Richard III

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Richard's seizure of the throne:

[In 10 steps]

-On the 1st of May Edward V was intercepted on his travels to London by Gloucester and Buckingham.

-The interception put delays to Edward V's coronation and allowed Buckingham to arrest Earl Rivers, Sir Thomas Vaughan and others.

-He imprisoned them in stronghold and executed them a few months later. By Richard capturing Edward's lead protector, it opened the role/position up to him, which he took full advantage of.

[This entire time Richard was pretending to have the best interests of Edward at heart]

-In June Gloucester set up a council meeting and invited nobles who he believed were scheming against him.

-These traitors were accused of committing treason. Hastings was involved in this scandal & executed without trial.

-The 22nd June was scheduled as Edward V coronation date. It was cancelled on the day and Friar Ralph said Richard would be the better and rightful heir to the throne.

-On the 25th June, Buckingham proclaimed infront of the house of Lords that Edward's marriage to Elizabeth was illegitimate as he contracted marriage with another woman beforehand.

-The next day Richard was hailed King.

3 main factors for Richard's seizure of power:

Buckingham:

-In June, he gave speeches at St Pauls questioning Edward's paternity and spoke of Richard as the noble son of Richard Duke of York.

-He toured the City and met with merchants to talk of Richard's rightful and just claim to the throne.

-Buckingham was responsible for spreading rumours of Edward''s pre-contract with Lady Eleanor Butler

-However: the illegitimacy of the boys helped and this was something he could not completely fabricate, simply exploit. It betrayed the 'divine right of kings' which was much more powerful in this medieval society than any on man's word.

Richard himself:

-He wrote letters to the Woodvilles displaying his loyalty to Edward V to gain their trust and allow him to arrest those close to Edward V [under the pretext that they were plotting against him - eg Earl Rivers]

-He executed Hastings [main supporter of the young king]

-He managed to have himself appointed as protector which added to his legitimacy.

-He moved Edward V to the tower where he could have physical control over him.

-He rewarded his supporters during this gradual seizure of power to ensure and maintain their loyalty - eg Buckingham to Constable of England.

-However: Richard was not exactly popular outside the North, and thus it was due Buckingham and the other factors that London came to support him and proclaim him King.

Other factors:

-People still did not like the woodvilles after their power hungry facade during Edward's reign. Thus, they were welcome to and alternative heir.

-Edward V was so young and thus could not properly fight for and assert his position as King.

--Edward's last days were spent in Wales, he could not imprint his legacy/message on the capital and it exaccerbated the power vacuum already left there after his death.

-Edward's probable pre-contract and thus illegitimacy of the boys went greatly in Richard's favour.

-However: without the manipulation and exploitation of some of these factors by Buckingham and Richard, they may not have been so significant in helping Richard lay claim to the throne.

The problem of the prince's in the tower:

Reasons to suggest Richard did kill them:

-It was obvious to Richard that Edward had been overthrown in 1470 due to his own weaknesses and lack of ruthlessness

-Richard murdered Rivers, Vaughn, Grey and Hastings without trial.

-Richard never produced their alive/dead bodies.

-Richard did not blame Buckingham for their deaths though he could have once Buckingham was executed.

-He had means, motive and opportunity.

The unknown fate of the princes in the tower haunted Richard's reign. Divine right of kings. Regicide was seen as an appalling act and unnatural against God's will.

Buckingham's rebellion:

-He had been the main supporter of Richard's overthrow, but like overmighty subjects before him, felt that he had not been properly rewarded.

Under Edward, Buckingham was excluded by Edward and there is evidence that he resented him. He resented his marriage to Katherine Woodville.

-Richard gave him control of South Wales, land in the midlands, many titles. But he felt underrewarded.

-He headed a series of uprisings across Southern England. At the same time, he invited Henry Tudor who attempted to invade from Brittany but was unable to.

Reasons for his rebellion:

-ambition

-he was convinced that Richard's days were numbered and wanted to be on the winning side.

Richard as a Northern King

-His formative years were spent in the North. He left his nephew, John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln in charge of the Council of the North who ruled very similarly to him.

-Richard brought his closest supporters to the South to try and spread popularity and support there. Sir William Catesby and Richard Ratcliffe, this led to the rhyme.

The Cat, the Rat and the Lovell our dog

Rule all of England under the Hog

Strengths of the regime:

-Buckingham was executed in Salisbury.

-Henry Tudor's attempted invasion of 1483 failed.

-His enemies were either powerless or in exile.

-He made good use of the 1483 rebellion and used the confiscations from then to bolster support.

-Richard elevated his loyal supporters:Howard - Duke of Norfolk.

-Richard was a tough king, ready to fight.

-Richard had a son, Edward of Middleham.

-There was no credible alternative to his rule.

-The four credible threats to Richard were nullified: Buckingham executed, Norfolk loyal, Northumberland concerned only with his power in the North, Stanley was cautious.

RIchard's financial position:

-Richard continued the use of the royal chamber as a financial department. He took interest in maximising his income from royal lands, as well as being less generous than Edward; he was in a secure financial position by 1485.

-The Act for the Settlement of the Crown upon Richard III

This ordered that Richard was the rightful king and denounced his predecessor as illegitimate.

Richard and the nobility:

By 1485, nearly half of the peers of the realm supported Richard.

26 of the 54 men who served Richard as councillors served under Edward.

The threat of Henry Tudor

-He had a claim to the throne. - his mother was also the mother of Henry VI. He could claim he was related to John of Gaunt, the son of Edward III.

-However for most of Richard's reign, Henry was powerless.

-He had never been to England and was unknown in England. Francis, Duke of Birttany was unlikely to help him against the English King as he was more concerned with the French threat.

Weaknesses of the regime:

-His claim was based upon the fictitous idea hat Edward's sons were illegitimate.

-The fate of the princes

-Buckingham rebellion.

-John De la Pole couldn't fill the power vacuum in the North

-Richard's nobles were unpopular in the South.

The crisis years of 1484-1485

-The year began well. In January, Richard invited the Lord MAyor and various other nobles for a magnificent feast. The 1484 Act of Parliament strengthened his position. After it, he dissolved Parliament and lords had to go to his house to swear an oath they would protect his son and heir.

-But then, Edward of Middleham died. He had no heir or potential Yorkist succession. Things looked very bad for Richard.

-In summer, there was trouble in the SOuth West and RIchard would never again have support from these areas.

-In early 1485 Anne's health worsend and then she died. There were rumours that he klled her to marry his niece - Elizabeth of York.

Problem of the succession:

-Earl of Lincoln or Henry Tudor.

Richard was believed to have settled on his nephew.

Richard losing the throne:

-Long term:

Buckingham's rebellion.

-The nature of his overthrow.

-The unknown fate of the Princes.

-Dependence on a narrow group of supporters.

-Dependence on Northern support.

-Short term:

-Events at Bosworth.

-French support for Henry.

Bosworth:

Events leading up to Bosworth:

-Henry Tudor fled to France after learning of the British alliance with Brittany. However, once he heard of Richard's plans to marry Elizabeth of York, his quest began again.

-Tudor's force landed in Wales. He had a lot of support here and swelled his army massively.

-Richard responded and sent summons to his subjects. Norfolk ordered his men to assemble but his other subjects were less responsive.

-Stanley ignored the king's requests to join him.

-Stanley entered the battle once it was obvious that Richard was loosing.

At Bosworth:

Richard's army was double that of Henry.

Richard took unusal tactics, such as the final charge against henry.

Henry had french paid mercenaries.

Henry's commander was Earl of Oxford. Very military capable.

3 reasons for Richard's downfall:

-He was doomed from the beginning of his reign:

-The question of his legitimacy, based on the fictitious idea that the princes were ilegitimate.

-He could not shake the Northern affinity. Southerners never supported him, as shown in the well-known rhyme.

-Edward of Middleham's death

-The death of his wife and the rumours that circulated this.

-His status as a usurper never left him.

HOWEVER: usurpation and brutal ruthlessness was not unusual to a medieval king

ULTIMATELY, his reign was doomed from the start.

-Bosworth led to his downfall

Support for Henry from french mercinaries after they learnt of Richard's truce with Brittany.

-Oxford's military experience

-The role and betrayal of Lord Stanley.

-The lack of action from Northumberland.

-The reckless charge at Henry

HOWEVER: Richard only lost his life at Bosworth, his strong hold on the throne was already lost.

-The strength of Henry Tudor

-Henry's image as a Lancastrian King [descendant of John of Gaunt],

-Margaret Beaufort's action is gaining Southern support. She arranged marriage discussions with Elizabeth of York, she sent him money, she helped organise 1483 rebellion, she was married to Lord Stanley.

-Support of French mercinaries and Oxford at Bosworth.

HOWEVER: Henry was not very present in England and did not have a wide support base, had Richard been in a stronger position it is unlikely he would have won the ability to even challenge Richard's position .