why was it called war of the roses
Wars of the Roses The name "Wars of the Roses" refers to the heraldic badges associated with two rival branches of the same royal house, the White Rose of York and the Red Rose of Lancaster. Wars of the Roses came into common use in the 19th century after the publication in 1829 of Anne of Geierstein by Sir Walter Scott.[6][7] Scott based the name on a scene in William Shakespeare's play Henry VI, Part 1 (Act 2, Scene 4), set in the gardens of the Temple Church, where a number of noblemen and a lawyer pick red or white roses to show their loyalty to the Lancastrian or Yorkist faction respectively. It is often suggested by literary critics[citation needed] that Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland has strong allegorical references to the conflict with York represented by the White Queen and Lancaster represented by the Red Queen.