Produced by Al Haines
[Frontispiece: _King Richard III. From a picture in the National
Portrait Gallery_]
RICHARD III: HIS LIFE & CHARACTER
REVIEWED IN THE LIGHT OF RECENT RESEARCH
BY SIR CLEMENTS E. MARKHAM, K.C.B.
AUTHOR OF 'THE LIFE OF THE
GREAT LORD FAIRFAX' AND
'THE FIGHTING VERES'
WITH A PORTRAIT
LONDON: SMITH, ELDER, AND CO.
15 WATERLOO PLACE. 1906
(_All rights reserved_)
{v}
PREFACE
There are periods of history when the greatest caution is called for in
accepting statements put forward by a dominant faction. Very early in
my life I came to the conclusion that the period which witnessed the
change of dynasties from Plantagenet to Tudor was one of these. The
caricature of the last Plantagenet King was too grotesque, and too
grossly opposed to his character derived from official records. The
stories were an outrage on common-sense. I studied the subject at
intervals for many years, and in the course of my researches I found
that I more or less shared my doubts with every author of repute who
had studied the subject for the last three centuries, except Hume and
Lingard. My own conclusions are that Richard III. must be acquitted on
all the counts of the indictment. The present work is divided into two
parts, the first narrating the events of his life and times, and the
second examining the various accusations against him. I did not
contemplate publication because I thought that in these days prejudices
were too strong to make it possible that a fair and candid hearing
should be given to the arguments. But I determined to consult {vi}
some historical friends, and I was pleased to find that to a great
extent I was mistaken.
In the first place, I wrote a full abstract of my arguments, for
publication in the 'Historical Review,' acting under the advice of my
old schoolfellow, Professor Freeman, to whom I sent it in the first
instance. It so happened that Mr. Freeman had given attention to part
of the subject. He upset some odious fabrications of the chroniclers
affecting the character of Margaret of Anjou, by proving that she was
in Scotland at the time when the battle of Wakefield was fought.
Freeman seldom wrote on so late a period of our history, and we owe
this modern excursion to a visit to Mr. Milnes Gaskell at Thornes.
After reading what I sent him, Professor Freeman wrote on August 13,
1890: 'Your abstract has set me a-thinking. It is only a Robert of
Belleme who does that kind of thing. On your main point I will talk to
Gardiner and Stubbs. Meanwhile, I have shown your manuscript to Sidney
Owen, who read it and held it to be what lawyers would call
_considerable_. Owen had been at those times, and holds Henry VII. to
be at least capable of it.
'It would be a self-denying ordinance in Gairdner if he accepted your
view, for he has gone more straight at that time than anybody else.
Gardiner has written to him, and he is a little fierce, as was to be
expected, but if you are like me, no man's fierceness will hinder you
from dining and sleeping as well as usual. The matter is at all events
worth discussing.'
{vii}
Professor York Powell read my manuscript, and wrote: 'I have read the
manuscript and think there is something worth looking into. Henry's
conduct to Tyrrell is exceedingly suspicious. Either Richard or Henry
might have put the boys to death, but it would be interesting for many
reasons to know which it was. I am not convinced by Markham, but I do
not think Gairdner has the right to be cocksure. The Morton suggestive
idea is very ingenious and pretty, and quite probable. It has
interested me much to read Markham's letter, for I remember my
difficulties in the matter and the point I got to, that the great men
did not, for a time, hold the now vulgate view of the murder of the
princes. I should rejoice should Markham light upon additional
evidence in favour of his thesis, which _a priori_ is by no means
unlikely. There is something about Richard's character, ability, and
reign which, I think, attracts every real student of history, and gives
one a feeling that he has been unfairly dealt with.'
In 1891, the abstract of my work was published in the 'Historical
Review,' and Bishop Creighton, who was then the editor, wrote: 'Thank
you for your paper, which I have read with great interest. It
certainly makes out a strong case.'
There were two rejoinders from Mr. Gairdner, which enabled me to recast
and improve parts of my work by the light of his criticism.
I lost my adviser, Mr. Freeman, in 1892. One of the last things he did
was to warn me of an objection {viii} taken by Miss Edith Thompson,
which enabled me to meet it.[1]
After careful revision I showed my manuscript to the late Sir Archibald
Milman, who had given close attention to those times. On December 27,
1897, he wrote: 'It is your bounden duty to tell your story of Richard
III., giving the date for every fact. It is only by sticking to dates
that you get at truth in criminal causes, and the same method must be
followed at the bar of history. It would be a pleasure to think that
the last Plantagenet was not a cruel scoundrel. By giving dates and
authorities for them, you render a great service. Richard's loyalty
and able administration in the north seem inconsistent with such
ferocity. I was much interested in one of your facts, that, according
to the story put forward by Henry VII., the bodies of the little
princes were taken up from the place of hasty interment and placed in
consecrated ground. But lo! they remained under the staircase, where
they were found in Charles II.'s reign.'
In consequence of Sir A. Milman's letter I made another close scrutiny
of dates given by various authorities for the same events with
important results. I also went very carefully over the ground of the
battlefields of Wakefield, Towton, Barnet, Tewkesbury, and Bosworth;
and I added some chapters to the work.
{ix}
The correspondence to which I have referred has led me to the
conclusion that students of history are not, as I once believed,
unwilling to reconsider the questions which form the subject of the
present work, when they are presented from new points of view; and that
the well-known arguments which were supposed to suffice for the defence
of the Tudor stories in the past are in these days insufficient. The
numerous points now raised and submitted for the judgment of students
are at all events worth discussing. The present work is about as
complete as very frequent revision can make it.
[1] She pointed out that the titles of Norfolk and Nottingham, granted
by Edward IV. to his second son Richard, were given by Richard III. to
Lords Howard and Berkeley, and that, therefore, young Richard must have
been dead. The answer is that the grants to Lords Howard and Berkeley
were made on June 28, 1483, before it was even pretended that young
Richard had been murdered.
{xi}
CONTENTS
PAGE
PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
_PART I_
CHAPTER I
BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD
Description of Fotheringhay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Possessions of the Duke of York. Marriage . . . . . . . . 2, 3
Birth of Richard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Letter of Edward and Edmund to their father . . . . . . . 4
Children of the Duke of York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Richard a prisoner of war aged 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Refuge in John Paston's chambers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
CHAPTER II
DEATH OF RICHARD'S FATHER AND BROTHER AT THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD
The Duke of York declared Heir-Apparent . . . . . . . . . 9
The Duke and his family united at Baynard's Castle . . . . 10
March to Sandal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Description of Sandal Castle and its neighbourhood . . . . 12, 13
Battle of Wakefield. Death of the Duke . . . . . . . . . 14, 15
Death of Edmund, Earl of Rutland . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 16
Cruelty and inhuman folly of the Lancastrians . . . . . . 17
Edward's victory at Mortimer's Cross . . . . . . . . . . . 18
George and Richard sent to Holland for safety . . . . . . 18, 19
{xii}
CHAPTER III
THE CROWNING VICTORY OF TOWTON
Description of Edward IV. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Edward proclaimed King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 22
March to the north. Yorkist leaders . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Lancastrian leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Sir Andrew Trollope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Description of the country round Towton . . . . . . . . . 26
Surprise at Ferrybridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Chase and death of Clifford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Yorkists march to Saxton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29, 30
Marshalling of the Lancastrians . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Battle of Towton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32, 33
Flight of Henry and his partisans. Edward at York . . . . 34
Coronation of Edward IV. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Edward's generous treatment of his foes . . . . . . . . . 36
Chapel built by Richard at Towton . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
CHAPTER IV
THE CROWN LOST AND WON--BATTLE OF BARNET
Return of George and Richard from Holland . . . . . . . . 38
Their Dukedoms, Earldoms and Richard's K.G. . . . . . . . 38
Richard chief mourner at his father's obsequies . . . . . 39
Military training under Warwick . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Description of Richard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Treason of Warwick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Flight of Edward and Richard to Holland. . . . . . . . . . 42, 43
Expedition fitted out at Veere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Landing at Ravenspur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Edward's brilliant campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46, 47
Richard's negotiation with Clarence . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Battle of Barnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49, 52
CHAPTER V
MARGARET OF ANJOU AND HER SON EDWARD
Birth and marriage of Margaret . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53, 54
Birth of Edward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Adventures in the wars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56, 59
{xiii}
Home at Koeur-la-Petite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Edward's conversations with the Chief Justice . . . . . . 61, 66
Agreement with Warwick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Description of young Edward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
CHAPTER VI
THE BATTLE OF TEWKESBURY
Margaret and Edward land at Weymouth . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Advance to Bristol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
King Edward's plan of campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Description of the battle field . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
March of King Edward's army . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Battle of Tewkesbury . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74, 75
Death of Edward of Lancaster on the battle field . . . . . 75
Execution of some leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Pardon of the rest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Death of Henry VI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Ransom of Margaret. Her death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
CHAPTER VII
MARRIED LIFE AND PUBLIC SERVICES OF RICHARD DUKE OF GLOUCESTER
Richard's march to Sandwich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Marriage of Richard and Anne Nevill . . . . . . . . . . . 81, 82
Richard with his brother in France . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Description of Middleham Castle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Home life at Middleham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82, 83, 84
Public duties. Frequent visits to York . . . . . . . . . 84
Warden of the Marches. Scottish campaign . . . . . . . . 84, 86
Death of Edward IV. Lady Grey. Children . . . . . . . . 86, 87
CHAPTER VIII
ACCESSION OF RICHARD III
Conspiracy of the Woodvilles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Richard made Protector by his brother's will . . . . . . . 89
Arrest of Rivers and his colleagues . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Queen Dowager in sanctuary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Richard and his mother . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Disclosure of Bishop Stillington . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
{xiv}
Account of Bishop Stillington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94-95
Foundation of the College at Acaster . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Children of Edward IV. illegitimate . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Hastings-Woodville conspiracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98, 99
Execution of Rivers and his colleagues . . . . . . . . . . 99, 100
Richard's title to the crown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Accession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
CHAPTER IX
CONDITION OF THE PEOPLE
Results of the Lancastrian usurpation . . . . . . . . . . 103
Effects of the Wars of the Roses . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
No destruction of the nobility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Scenery. Country life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Castles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Hunting and hawking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
The Peerage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Town residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Magnificence of the Court . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Wealth of merchants. City Companies . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Introduction of printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Caxton's works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114, 115
Literary noblemen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115, 116
Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Bishops. Clergy. Monasteries. Pilgrimages . . . . . . . 118-119
Lawlessness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Manor houses. Cultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Condition of the people . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122-123
Prices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
CHAPTER X
REIGN OF RICHARD III
Description of the King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Treatment of his nephews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Coronation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126-127
Claim of Buckingham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Royal Progress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129-130
Rebellion of Buckingham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131-132
{xv}
List of traitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132-133
Parliament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Reforms. Revenue. Navy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Convocation. Agreement with the Queen Dowager . . . . . . 136
Death of the Prince of Wales. His tomb . . . . . . . . . 137
Edward Earl of Warwick made Heir-Apparent . . . . . . . . 138
King Richard's popularity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Conspiracy of Henry Tudor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
The King assembled troops at Nottingham . . . . . . . . . 141
Proclamation against Henry Tudor . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Peerage of Richard III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Ministers of Richard III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Commissioners for Peace with Scotland . . . . . . . . . . 145
Judges and Law Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Bishops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Knights of the Garter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Knights of the Bath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
CHAPTER XI
THE BATTLE OF BOSWORTH
Treachery of the Stanleys explained . . . . . . . . . . . 148, 149
King Richard's military talent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
English pluck displayed by Richard . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Loyal men flocking to the King's standard . . . . . . . . 151
Description of the country round Bosworth . . . . . . . . 152
Positions of the two armies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
King Richard leads his men to the encounter . . . . . . . 154
Treachery of Lord Stanley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
The King's gallant charge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Death of the King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155-156-157
Richard buried at Leicester. Memorials . . . . . . . . . 158
Character of King Richard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
His generosity. Arbitrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Able administration. Building operations . . . . . . . . 161
Literary tastes. Founded the Heralds' College . . . . . . 162
Comparison of Richard and the Tudors . . . . . . . . . . . 162, 163
His married life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Contemporary Sovereigns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
{xvi}
_PART II_
CHAPTER I
THE AUTHORITIES
The Plantagenet Dynasty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Character and position of the accusers . . . . . . . . . . 167
Extravagance of their caricature . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Writers in the pay of the Tudors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
The notorious pamphlet by Morton . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168-171
Bernard Andre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Polydore Virgil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171-172
Rous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Fabyan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Warkworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Continuators of the Croyland Chronicle . . . . . . . . . . 175-178
Official documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Hall, Grafton, Holinshed, Stow, Buck . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Reaction. Modern authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Miss Halsted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Upholders of the Tudor stories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182-183
CHAPTER II
EXAMINATION OF THE CHARGES AGAINST RICHARD
Reckless profusion of abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Deformity. Statement of Rous and Morton . . . . . . . . . 185
The truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Object of the calumny . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Tewkesbury. The truth told by all contemporaries . . . . 188-189
Fable by Fabyan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Polydore Virgil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Subsequent embellishments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Silence of Morton and Rous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191-192
Henry VI. Insinuations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Warkworth and Fabyan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194-195
The Croyland Monk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Polydore Virgil contradicts . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
All unworthy of credit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Evidence of the accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
{xvii}
Evidence of a contemporary writer . . . . . . . . . . 198
The truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Marriage. Richard and Anne really attached . . . . . . . 200
Attack of Miss Strickland, a specimen of the sort
of arguments used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Countess of Warwick. False statement of Rous . . . . . . 201
The truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Death of Clarence. Charge absolutely groundless . . . . . 202
Another specimen of argument . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
The truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
CHAPTER III
FURTHER CHARGES AGAINST RICHARD III
Some account of Morton, the chief accuser . . . . . . . . 205-207
Misrepresentation of events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208-210
Cunning misrepresentations respecting Hastings . . . . . . 210-212
Falsification of dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215-217
The accession. The true claim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Attempt of Henry VII. to destroy the evidence . . . . 219
Polydore Virgil's version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Morton's version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Fabyan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Further falsification of dates . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Buckingham's treason. False reason given for
his discontent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
The truth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Morton's account of conversations . . . . . . . . . . 225, 226
Second coronation. Statement disproved . . . . . . . . . 227
Death of the Queen. Slanders of Polydore and Rous . . . . 228
Elizabeth of York. Absurd rumour spread . . . . . . . . . 229
Elizabeth's letter to the Duke of Norfolk . . . . . . 229-230
Intrigues of Henry's mother . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Lord Strange. The truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
CHAPTER IV
THE MAIN CHARGE AGAINST RICHARD III
Rests on the truth or falsehood of previous crimes . . . . 233
Richard's antecedents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Nothing to fear from his nephews . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
{xviii}
Treatment of others in the same position . . . . . . . . . 236
His nephews were probably members of his household . . . . 236
Bill, in March 1485, for the elder nephew . . . . . . . . 237
Conduct of the mother and sister . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238-239
Alleged rumours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240-242
Assertion of the French Chancellor . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Statements of Fabyan, Rous, Polydore, Andre . . . . . . . 244
Sir William Stanley's conduct . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
Baseless rumours promulgated by Henry . . . . . . . . . . 245
CHAPTER V
HENRY TUDOR IN THE DOCK
Description of Henry VII. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
His lawless executions after Bosworth . . . . . . . . . . 247
Responsible for the lives of royal children . . . . . . . 248
Henry's character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Necessity to strengthen his position . . . . . . . . . . . 250
His Parliament of outlaws. Unjust attainders . . . . . . 251
Loyal men attainted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Silent about the late King's nephews. Were they missing? 253
If alive, Henry's marriage necessitated their deaths . . . 254
Henry's treatment of other victims in his way . . . . . . 255
The fate of the princes, if alive, was sealed by
the marriage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
Imprisonment of the Queen Dowager . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Henry put forward a story, in Polydore Virgil . . . . . . 258
A more detailed story, published by Rastell and Grafton 260-263
Rewards alleged to have been given by Richard
to murderers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264, 265
Confession of Tyrrel and Dighton fabricated . . . . . . . 267
Genesis of these stories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Some account of Sir James Tyrrel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Henry's grant to John Green. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Tyrrel taken into favour. His two pardons . . . . . . . . 269
Murder of the two Princes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Relations silenced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270-271
Hush money to 'Black Will' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Reward to Dighton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Rewards and employments for Tyrrel . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Treacherous arrest and hurried execution of Tyrrel . . . . 273
Dighton to reside at Calais . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
The story put forward and generally accepted . . . . . . . 274
{xix}
Judicial murder of the Earl of Warwick . . . . . . . . . . 275
Henry's remorse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276
Elizabeth saw the cruel treatment of her mother and cousin
Her death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Henry's design to kill the Earl of Suffolk . . . . . . . . 277
His death. Successful as this world counts success . . . 278
Things unexplained . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279, 280
CHAPTER VI
MR. GAIRDNER'S RICHARD III
Mr. Gairdner's view of the alleged crimes . . . . . . . . 281
Views stated in Mr. Gairdner's preface . . . . . . . . . . 282
Richard's character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Richard acquitted of several charges . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Tudor fables irreconcileable with Richard's character . . 285
Mr. Gairdner's latest view of the Tewkesbury charge . . . 286-287
On Edward IV.'s proceedings after Tewkesbury . . . . . . . 289-290
His view of the Henry VI. charge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
His rejection of the evidence of the writer in Fleetwood . 292
Acquits Richard of responsibility for the death of
Clarence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294-295
Position with regard to the title to the crown . . . . . . 296
Believes in the Duchess of York slander . . . . . . . . . 297
His reason for the belief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
Murder of the Princes. Story admitted to be full
of inaccuracies and improbabilities . . . . . . . . . . 298
Richard could not have been a cool, calculating villain . 298
Must have been headstrong and reckless . . . . . . . . . . 298
Such a man might have committed the crime on a
sudden impulse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
The rising in Kent supposed to be the motive . . . . . . . 299
But the murders are stated to have been in August,
the rising in October. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Thus Mr. Gairdner's theory fails . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Mr. Gairdner supplies proofs of the King's popularity . . 300
Richard was the victim of the perfidy of a few traitors . 300
Mr. Gairdner's testimony to Richard's good qualities . . . 300
Great value of Mr. Gairdner's work . . . . . . . . . . . . 300-301
INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
{xx}
GENEALOGICAL TABLES
SEIZE QUARTIERS OF EDWARD IV. AND RICHARD III. . . . _to face page_ 6
SEIZE QUARTIERS OF ANNE NEVILL . . . . . . . . . . . " " 82
MAP
BATTLE OF BOSWORTH FIELD . . . . . . . . . . . . _to face page_ 328
{1}
LIFE OF RICHARD III
PART I
CHAPTER I
BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD
The castle of Fotheringhay[1] was the birthplace of our last
Plantagenet king. This venerable pile stood on the banks of the river
Nen, in Northamptonshire, amidst 'marvellous fair corn ground and
pasture.' From its battlements there was an extensive view, bounded to
the westward by the forest of Rockingham, while on the other side the
abbey church of Peterborough and the woods of Milton intercepted the
distant expanse of fen country. Originally built by bold Simon de St.
Liz in the twelfth century, the castle had fallen into ruin when it
reverted to the crown, and was granted by Edward III. to his son Edmund
of Langley.
Edmund, who was created Duke of York by his nephew Richard II., rebuilt
the castle and founded a college hard by. Fotheringhay was surrounded
by a double moat with drawbridges, the river Nen serving as the outer
moat on the south side, and the Mill Brook, {2} flowing between the
castle yard and the little park, to the east. The walls were of stone,
and the great gate in the north front was adorned with the arms of
England, as differenced for Edmund of Langley, impaling the arms of
Castille and Leon.[2] The keep, built in the shape of a fetterlock,
was on a mount in the north-west angle of the castle; and below there
was a great courtyard surrounded by stately buildings, a chapel, and
'very fair lodgings,' as Leland tells us. The great hall was seventy
feet long, with a deep oriel window at one end.[3]
Here dwelt Edmund the first Duke of York, his son Edward the second
Duke, who fell at Agincourt, and his grandson Richard, the third Duke.
Edmund projected the foundation of a college near the parish church, to
consist of a master, eight clerks, and thirteen choristers. He
commenced the choir, while his son and grandson completed and richly
endowed this religious house. The church was a fine specimen of the
Perpendicular architecture of the time, and the cloisters had numerous
windows filled with stained glass.
The third Duke of York resided at Fotheringhay during part of every
year when he was in England, {3} with his beautiful wife the Lady
Cicely Nevill, the 'Rose of Raby,' and their troop of fair children.
But he also held vast estates elsewhere. In Yorkshire the castles of
Sandal and Conisborough were part of his paternal inheritance. On the
Welsh borders he had succeeded to all the possessions of the Mortimers,
including Ludlow and Wigmore. For his mother was the heiress of Edmund
Mortimer, Earl of March, and also of Lionel Duke of Clarence, the
second surviving son of King Edward III. Baynard's Castle, in the City
of London, was the Duke's town house.
The 'Rose of Raby' bore her husband twelve children, and they came of a
right noble English stock. In their veins flowed the blood of
Plantagenet and Holland, Mortimer and FitzAlan, Nevill and Percy,
Clifford and Audley. Five of these fair branches died in infancy.
Ann, the eldest of those who survived early childhood, was born at
Fotheringhay in 1439. The three next, Edward, Edmund and Elizabeth,
first saw the light at Rouen, when their father was making a last
gallant stand for English dominion in France, from 1442 to 1444.
Margaret was born at Fotheringhay. The Duke and Duchess were ruling in
Ireland when George was born at Dublin Castle. The three last births
were at Fotheringhay, but of these only Richard, the eleventh child,
survived infancy.
Richard Plantagenet was born at Fotheringhay Castle on October 2, 1452.
He probably passed the first five years of his life there with George
and Margaret. The elder sisters, Anne and Elizabeth, were married to
'Lancastrian' noblemen, the Dukes of Exeter and Suffolk, when Richard
was still in infancy. His elder brothers, Edward Earl of March and
Edmund Earl of Rutland, were separated from him by an interval {4} of
ten years, and lived with their tutor Richard Croft at Ludlow or
Wigmore. So that Richard's childhood must have been passed with his
brother George and his sister Margaret, the future Duchess of Burgundy.
But both were a few years older than little Richard.
We obtain a glimpse of the home life of the two elder boys, Edward and
Edmund, from a letter to their father which has been preserved.[4]
'Right high and right mighty prince, our full redoubted and right noble
lord and father.
'As lowly with all our hearts as we, your true and natural sons can or
may, we recommend us unto your noble grace, humbly beseeching your
noble and worthy fatherhood daily to give us your hearty blessing;
through which we trust much the rather to increase and grow to virtue,
and to speed the better in all matters and things that we shall use,
occupy, and exercise.
'Right high and right mighty prince, our full redoubted lord and
father--
'We thank our blessed Lord, not only of your honourable conduct and
good speed in all your matters and business, of your gracious prevail
against the intent and malice of your evil willers, but also of the
knowledge that it pleased your nobleness to let us now late have of the
same by relation of Sir Walter Devereux Kt.[5] {5} and John Milwater
Esq.,[6] and John at Nokes, yeoman of your honourable chamber. Also we
thank your noble and good fatherhood for our green gowns now late sent
unto us to our great comfort, beseeching your good lordship to remember
our porteux,[7] and that we might have some fine bonnets sent unto us
by the next sure messenger, for necessity so requireth. Over this,
right noble lord and father, please it your highness to wit that we
have charged your servant, William Smyth, bearer of these, for to
declare unto your nobility certain things on our behalf, namely
concerning and touching the odious rule and demeaning of Richard Croft
and of his brother. Wherefore we beseech your gracious lordship and
full noble fatherhood to hear him in exposition of the same, and to his
relation to give full faith and credence. Right high and right mighty
prince, our full redoubted and right noble lord and father, we beseech
Almighty Jesus give you as good life and long, with as much continual
perfect prosperity as your princely heart can best desire. Written at
your castle of Ludlow on Saturday in Easter week.
'your humble sons
'Edward (Earl of March)
'Edmund (Earl of Rutland).'
The boys evidently did not like their tutor, declaring him to be
tyrannical and disagreeable.[8]
{6}
CHILDREN OF RICHARD, DUKE OF YORK
1. Anne. Born at Fotheringhay, August 11, 1439. (Duchess of Exeter.)
2. Henry. Born at Hatfield, February 10,1441. (Died in infancy.)
3. Edward. Born at Rouen,[9] April 28, 1442. (Earl of March. King.)
4. Edmund. Born at Rouen, May 17, 1443. (Earl of Rutland.)
5. Elizabeth. Born at Rouen, April 22,1444. (Duchess of Suffolk.)
6. Margaret. Born at Fotheringhay, May 3, 1446. (Duchess of Burgundy.
Died 1503.)
7. William. Born at Fotheringhay, July 7, 1447. (Died young.)
8. John. Born at Neath, November 7, 1448. (Died in infancy.)
9. George. Born at Dublin, October 21, 1449. (Duke of Clarence.)
10. Thomas. Born at Fotheringhay, 1450. (Died in infancy.)
11. Richard. Born at Fotheringhay, October 2, 1452.[10] (Duke of
Gloucester. King.)
12. Ursula. Born at Fotheringhay, July 20,1455. (Died in infancy.)
W. WYRCESTER, _Annales_, 460-477.
[Illustration: SEIZE QUARTIERS OF EDWARD IV. AND RICHARD III.]
Their father, the Duke of York, first Prince of the blood royal, was
the most powerful and wealthy, as well as one of the ablest noblemen in
the kingdom. He was moderate and prudent, and was unwillingly driven
into resistance to the misgovernment of the corrupt faction which
misused the powers they had seized, owing to the imbecility of Henry
VI. His original object was not to assert his own undoubted title to
the throne, but to obtain just and reasonable government by the removal
of corrupt and incapable ministers. 'After repeated experience of bad
faith, and after {7} fruitlessly endeavouring to bind Henry by pledges,
the Duke was at length forced into advancing his own claim.'[11]
Disaster followed the first attempt of the Duke of York at open
resistance. He was overpowered by the Lancastrian forces at Ludlow, in
October 1459, and his followers were scattered. The Duke himself, with
his son Edmund, fled to Ireland. His eldest son, Edward Earl of March,
escaped to Calais with the Earl of Warwick. The Duchess of York, and
her three young children, Margaret, George and Richard, were taken
prisoners at Wigmore. They were sent to Tunbridge Castle in the
custody of their mother's sister, the Duchess of Buckingham, who had
married a Lancastrian husband.
Little Richard was only seven years of age when he became a prisoner of
war. The detention was of short duration. His eldest brother landed
in Kent and marched to London. Troops flocked to the standard of the
gallant youth, and he advanced northwards against his enemies. The
Duchess of York then escaped from Tunbridge, and found an asylum for
her little children at the chambers of John Paston, in the Temple.[12]
Meanwhile Edward, Earl of March, won a great victory at Northampton,
and Henry VI. became his prisoner. He returned to London, but the
children had not been two days in John Paston's chambers before their
mother was summoned to meet her {8} husband at Hereford, who was
returning from Ireland. The children were left with servants. Young
Edward, however, while busily engaged in preparing for the defence of
the city, found time to visit his little brothers and sister every
day.[13]
[1] 'Fodringeia' in Domesday. 'Fodering' is part of a forest separated
from the rest, for producing hay.
[2] He married Isabella of Castille and Leon.
[3] Mary Queen of Scots was tried and beheaded in the great hall of
Fotheringhay. But it is untrue that the castle was destroyed by James
I. on that account. James granted it to Lord Mountjoy, and it was
intact, though out of repair, when it was surveyed in 1625. It began
to be dismantled soon after this survey; but the work of demolition was
very gradual. The college buildings had been desecrated and destroyed
by John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, to whom they were granted by
the government of Edward VI. The last remains of the castle were
demolished in the middle of the last century. See _Historic Notices in
reference to Fotheringhay_, by the Rev. H. K. Bonney (Oundle, 1821).
[4] _MS. Cotton, Vesp._, F. iii., fol. 9. Printed in the first series
of Ellis's original letters, i. 9, letter v.
[5] This Sir Walter Devereux, son of Walter Chancellor of Ireland 1449,
when the Duke of York was Lord Deputy, was born in 1432. He married
Anne, heiress of Lord Ferrers of Chartley, and was summoned to
Parliament by that title _jure uxoris_. Sir Walter Devereux, Lord
Ferrers of Chartley, fell gloriously at Bosworth, fighting for his
King, Richard III., the younger brother of his two young friends Edward
and Edmund. He was ancestor of the Devereux, Earls of Essex.
[6] Afterwards esquire to Richard Duke of Gloucester. He fell at the
battle of Barnet, fighting by his young master's side.
[7] Breviary.
[8] Richard Croft of Croft Castle, in Herefordshire, is the odious
ruler mentioned by the young princes. He was faithful to King Edward
during the Tewkesbury campaign; but the boys had some insight into
character. For Croft appears to have been a time-server. He got made
Treasurer of the Household to Henry Tudor, and fought for him at Stoke.
To please his new patron he appears to have told some story,
disparaging to Edward IV., which, in a garbled form, appeared in Hall's
_Chronicle_.
[9] Edwardus quartus Rothomagi natus. _Rous_, p. 210.
[10] Rous says that Richard was born on the feast of the eleven
thousand virgins, October 21. But this was really George's birthday,
in 1449.
[11] Gairdner. The Duke's mother, Anne Mortimer, was grand-daughter of
Philippa Countess of March, the only child of Lionel Duke of Clarence,
_second_ son of King Edward III. Henry VI. was great-grandson of John
Duke of Lancaster, _third_ son of Edward III.
[12] _Paston Letters_, i. 525. Christopher Hansson to John Paston.
[13] 'And sythe y left here bothe the sunys and the dowztyr, and the
Lord of Marche comyth every day to se them.'--_Paston Letters_.
{9}