Re : Bosworth 1485: Psychology of a Battle

Doesn't all this miss the fact thought that the Duke of York acknowledged
Edward as his legitimate son and, in English law, that is sufficient to make him
the Legitimate heir. Whoever was actually Edward's biological father is
irrelevant in 15th Century terms by this simple acknowledgement as his son the
Duke of York made it so de jure.

It is fun to speculate whether Edward was illegitimate but in contemporary
terms that was on a claim actually made outright only by declared enemies as a
way of undermining support. This was simply because, whatever the rumours
or claims, all nobility knew what the law said and in many cases may have
suspected that a similar accusation could be made against themselves.

Pretty much the same applies to Henry VI and "his" son - many suspected that
Henry was not the father but no-one tried to exclude him on that basis alone
since Henry had acknowledged Edward as this de jure made him legitimate.

Diomedes