ABSTRACT
The Yorkist kings pursued a very similar course of action. They were not directly influenced by Fortescue but common sense and experience suggested it. Yorkist government was a highly personal system centred on the figure of the king. Both Edward and Richard bent their energies to making their wills felt in the kingdom and to demonstrating their concern for the welfare of their subjects. The Yorkists were able to reverse this trend and increasingly summon whom they preferred, though in the 1460s there was always a Neville interest in the Council. The Yorkist period witnessed a revival in the traditional administrative and judicial powers of the Council. It helped the king to formulate policy and relieved him of some of the day-to-day decisions of government. The accession of Richard III led to the most significant institutional development of Yorkist government. Yorkist government was a highly personal system centred on the figure of the king.
