Treaty of York (1464)

The Treaty of York (1464) was made between England and Scotland on 1 June 1464 at York and was intended to establish 15 years of peace. Previously Scotland had supported the defeated House of Lancaster in the English civil War of the Roses.

At the time of the negotiation Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany and Bishop Spens were prisoners in England. Scottish foreign policy was dominated by Bishop James Kennedy after the death of Mary of Gueldres in December 1463. As practical support from Louis XI of France was unlikely Scotland was forced to abandon its alliance with the House of Lancaster and treat with the Yorkist Edward IV of England.

Previously, the Lancastrian Henry VI of England, his wife Margaret of Anjou and son Prince Edward had found refuge in Scotland after the battle of Towton in 1461. Margaret had promised to deliver Berwick upon Tweed and Carlisle to Scotland, but these plans came to nothing permanent beyond the temporary handover of Berwick for twenty years, with a failed joint Scottish and Lancastrian siege of Carlisle and a successful expedition to relieve the Lancastrian garrison at Alnwick Castle in January 1463.

An invasion at Norham Castle in July 1463 was a failure swiftly followed by devastation in the Scottish borders by the Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick and the Yorkist-supporting Earl of Douglas. Douglas had cemented his alliance by the Treaty of Westminster. Margaret and Prince Edward left Scotland for Burgundy after the defeat at Norham. Henry VI eventually made his way to England and was captured in Lancashire in July 1465.

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