Cade, Jack

Cade, Jack,
Rebellion of, a popular revolt by the men of Kent in June and July 1450 , Yorkist in sympathy, against the misrule of Henry VI and his council. Its intent was more to reform political administration than to create social upheaval, as the revolt of 1381 had attempted. Its leader Jack Cade, who is said to have been Irish, took the name Mortimer and marched triumphantly into London where his followers beheaded Say, the lord treasurer. After a fight on London Bridge, Cade was abandoned by his followers, whereupon he retreated into Sussex where he was killed. He appears as a character in Shakespeare's 2 Henry VI .