Battle of Bosworth
The Battle of Bosworth (or Bosworth Field) was fought outside the town of Market Bosworth, Leicestershire, England on 22 August 1485 between an Anglo-Welsh army led by Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, who had landed in Wales some 2 weeks before, and the forces led by the English king Richard III who had been waiting for him since that June.[1]
Richard's force out-numbered Henry’s, however their morale was low after nearly two months of inaction, and the increasing unpopularity of the king; and various barons did not want to fight. Richard led a charge against Henry’s position, however troops with the Stanley family, hitherto Richard’s ally, changed sides in mid-action and Richard was killed in the ensuing defeat. His death brought to an end 331 years of Plantagenet rule and brought the Tudor Henry VII to the throne.
1485 is usually given as the date of the end of the Middle Ages and the start of modern times in matters of English history.