This thesis is an investigation of the state and conduct of the royal finances on the eve of the Wars of the Roses. In a period of such intense political controversy the financial health, or otherwise, of the crown was a matter of great debate among contemporaries, and has remained so in subsequent historiography. The capacity of the government to manage the king's finances and in particular to meet its principal financial obligations was fundamental to the success or failure of successive regimes during the period 1450-55. As such, the greater part of this work comprises a critical assessment of government expenditure in areas such as the defence of the realm, the management of the king's household, the dispensation of patronage and the operation of a complex administration. Furthermore, it includes analysis of the main financial initiatives which were put in place during these years. The principal materials for the study are derived from the records of the royal exchequer. The significance of the financial history of the period lies in its relationship to the political developments which were taking place concurrently. An attempt has been made to provide a more rounded picture of the state of government finance in the mid-fifteenth century by relating financial policies not only to the exigencies of day-to-day politics, but also to the broader expectations of contemporary political society, which are increasingly being recognised by modern researchers as issues of the utmost significance in directing the course of politics