Henry V, hero of Agincourt (1415), died in 1422 leaving his 9-month old son heir to the crown. After decades of war with France, England's economic and political turmoil came to a head. Magnates feuded over control of feeble-minded Henry VI, fiscal policies and war strategies. Factions coalesced around the York family (white rose) and Lancastrian champions (red rose), erupting into battle in 1455. For 30 years, royal cousins connived and killed, destroying the Plantagenet line of kings.