This thesis is an investigation of the state and conduct of the royal finances onthe eve of the Wars of the Roses. In a period of such intense politicalcontroversy the financial health, or otherwise, of the crown was a matter ofgreat debate among contemporaries, and has remained so in subsequenthistoriography. The capacity of the government to manage the king's financesand in particular to meet its principal financial obligations was fundamental tothe success or failure of successive regimes during the period 1450-55. Assuch, the greater part of this work comprises a critical assessment ofgovernment expenditure in areas such as the defence of the realm, themanagement of the king's household, the dispensation of patronage and theoperation of a complex administration. Furthermore, it includes analysis of themain financial initiatives which were put in place during these years. Theprincipal materials for the study are derived from the records of the royalexchequer.The significance of the financial history of the period lies in its relationship tothe political developments which were taking place concurrently. An attempthas been made to provide a more rounded picture of the state of governmentfinance in the mid-fifteenth century by relating financial policies not only to theexigencies of day-to-day politics, but also to the broader expectations ofcontemporary political society, which are increasingly being recognised bymodern researchers as issues of the utmost significance in directing the courseof politics