Makers of History

 Richard III. 

 By JACOB ABBOTT

 WITH ENGRAVINGS

 NEW YORK AND LONDON HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS 1901

 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, by

 HARPER & BROTHERS, in the Clerk's office of the District Court of the Southern District of New York. 

 Copyright, 1886, by BENJAMIN VAUGHAN ABBOTT, AUSTIN ABBOTT, LYMAN ABBOTT, AND EDWARD ABBOTT. 

[Illustration: THE ROYAL CHAMPION. ]

PREFACE. 

King Richard the Third, known commonly in history as Richard theUsurper, was perhaps as bad a man as the principle of hereditarysovereignty ever raised to the throne, or perhaps it should rather besaid, as the principle of hereditary sovereignty ever _made_. There isno evidence that his natural disposition was marked with any peculiardepravity. He was made reckless, unscrupulous, and cruel by theinfluences which surrounded him, and the circumstances in which helived, and by being habituated to believe, from his earliestchildhood, that the family to which he belonged were born to live inluxury and splendor, and to reign, while the millions that formed thegreat mass of the community were created only to toil and to obey. Themanner in which the principles of pride, ambition, and desperate loveof power, which were instilled into his mind in his earliest years, brought forth in the end their legitimate fruits, is clearly seen bythe following narrative. 

CONTENTS. 

 Chapter Page

 I. RICHARD'S MOTHER 13

 II. RICHARD'S FATHER 33

 III. THE CHILDHOOD OF RICHARD 57

 IV. ACCESSION OF EDWARD IV. , RICHARD'S ELDER BROTHER 67

 V. WARWICK, THE KING-MAKER 89

 VI. THE DOWNFALL OF YORK 118

 VII. THE DOWNFALL OF LANCASTER 137

 VIII. RICHARD'S MARRIAGE 165

 IX. END OF THE REIGN OF EDWARD 182

 X. RICHARD AND EDWARD V. 208

 XI. TAKING SANCTUARY 221

 XII. RICHARD LORD PROTECTOR 236

 XIII. PROCLAIMED KING 258

 XIV. THE CORONATION 279

 XV. FATE OF THE PRINCES 291

 XVI. DOMESTIC TROUBLES 301

 XVII. THE FIELD OF BOSWORTH 320

ENGRAVINGS. 

 Page

 THE ROYAL CHAMPION _Frontispiece. _

 SCENES OF CIVIL WAR 15

 LUDLOW CASTLE 26

 CASTLE AND PARK OF THE MIDDLE AGES 29

 HENRY VI. IN HIS CHILDHOOD 38

 QUEEN MARGARET OF ANJOU, WIFE OF HENRY VI. 40

 WALLS OF YORK 49

 LAST HOURS OF KING RICHARD'S FATHER 54

 CASTLE AND GROUNDS BELONGING TO THE HOUSE OF YORK 62

 THE OLD QUINTAINE 84

 PLAYING BALL 86

 BATTLE-DOOR AND SHUTTLE-COCK 87

 RICHARD'S SIGNATURE 88

 EDWARD IV. 102

 QUEEN ELIZABETH WOODVILLE 103

 WESTMINSTER IN TIMES OF PUBLIC CELEBRATIONS 106

 WARWICK IN THE PRESENCE OF THE FRENCH KING 112

 THE SANCTUARY 133

 DEATH OF WARWICK ON THE FIELD OF BARNET 148

 STREET LEADING TO THE TOWER 151

 CHURCH AT TEWKESBURY 155

 QUEEN MARGARET BROUGHT IN PRISONER AT COVENTRY 160

 TOMB OF HENRY VI. 163

 RICHARD III. 176

 QUEEN ANNE 177

 MIDDLEHAM CASTLE 180

 LOUIS XI. OF FRANCE 184

 THE MURDERERS COMING FOR CLARENCE 200

 JANE SHORE 203

 THE ATTEMPTED RECONCILIATION 211

 ANCIENT PORTRAIT OF EDWARD V. 219

 ANCIENT VIEW OF WESTMINSTER 228

 THE PEOPLE IN THE STREETS 235

 CLARENCE'S CHILDREN HEARING OF THEIR FATHER'S DEATH 237

 THE COUNCIL IN THE TOWER 244

 POMFRET CASTLE 248

 BAYNARD'S CASTLE 273

 THE KING ON HIS THRONE 276

 THE BLOODY TOWER 283

 QUEEN ELIZABETH AT THE GRAVE 304

 PORTRAIT OF THE PRINCESS ELIZABETH 318

 THE CASTLE AT TAMWORTH 325

 KING HENRY VII. 332

 THE MONASTERY AT BERMONDSEY 335

KING RICHARD III. 

CHAPTER I. 

RICHARD'S MOTHER. 

The great quarrel between the houses of York and Lancaster. --Terribleresults of the quarrel. --Origin of it. --Intricate questions ofgenealogy and descent. --Lady Cecily Neville. --She becomes Duchess ofYork. --Her mode of life. --Extract from the ancient annals. --LadyCecily's family. --Names of the children. --The boys' situation and modeof life. --Their letters. --Letter written by Edward and Edmund. --Theboys congratulate their father on his victories. --Further particularsabout the boys. --The Castle of Ludlow. --Character of Richard'smother. --Spirit of aristocracy. --Relative condition of the nobles andthe people. --Character of Richard's mother. --The governess. --SirRichard Croft, the boys' governor. 

The mother of King Richard the Third was a beautiful, and, in manyrespects, a noble-minded woman, though she lived in very rude, turbulent, and trying times. She was born, so to speak, into one ofthe most widely-extended, the most bitter, and the most fatal of thefamily quarrels which have darkened the annals of the great in thewhole history of mankind, namely, that long-protracted and bittercontest which was waged for so many years between the two greatbranches of the family of Edward the Third--the houses of York andLancaster--for the possession of the kingdom of England. This dreadfulquarrel lasted for more than a hundred years. It led to wars andcommotions, to the sacking and burning of towns, to the ravaging offruitful countries, and to atrocious deeds of violence of every sort, almost without number. The internal peace of hundreds of thousands offamilies all over the land was destroyed by it for many generations. Husbands were alienated from wives, and parents from children by it. Murders and assassinations innumerable grew out of it. And what was itall about? you will ask. It arose from the fact that the descendantsof a certain king had married and intermarried among each other insuch a complicated manner that for several generations nobody couldtell which of two different lines of candidates was fairly entitled tothe throne. The question was settled at last by a prince who inheritedthe claim on one side marrying a princess who was the heir on theother. Thus the conflicting interests of the two houses were combined, and the quarrel was ended. 

But, while the question was pending, it kept the country in a state ofperpetual commotion, with feuds, and quarrels, and combatsinnumerable, and all the other countless and indescribable horrors ofcivil war. 

[Illustration: SCENES OF CIVIL WAR. ]

The two branches of the royal family which were engaged in thisquarrel were called the houses of York and Lancaster, from the factthat those were the titles of the fathers and heads of the two linesrespectively. The Lancaster party were the descendants of John ofGaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and the York party were the successors andheirs of his brother Edmund, Duke of York. These men were both sons ofEdward the Third, the King of England who reigned immediately beforeRichard the Second. A full account of the family is given in ourhistory of Richard the Second. Of course, they being brothers, theirchildren were cousins, and they ought to have lived together in peaceand harmony. And then, besides being related to each other throughtheir fathers, the two branches of the family intermarried together, so as to make the relationships in the following generations so closeand so complicated that it was almost impossible to disentangle them. In reading the history of those times, we find dukes or princesfighting each other in the field, or laying plans to assassinate eachother, or striving to see which should make the other a captive, andshut him up in a dungeon for the rest of his days; and yet theseenemies, so exasperated and implacable, are very nearrelations--cousins, perhaps, if the relationship is reckoned in oneway, and uncle and nephew if it is reckoned in another. During theperiod of this struggle, all the great personages of the court, andall, or nearly all, the private families of the kingdom, and all thetowns and the villages, were divided and distracted by the dreadfulfeud. 

Richard's mother, whose name, before she was married, was Lady CecilyNeville, was born into one side of this quarrel, and then afterwardmarried into the other side of it. This is a specimen of the way inwhich the contest became complicated in multitudes of cases. LadyCecily was descended from the Duke of Lancaster, but she married theDuke of York, in the third generation from the time when the quarrelbegan. 

Of course, upon her marriage, Lady Cecily Neville became the Duchessof York. Her husband was a man of great political importance in hisday, and, like the other nobles of the land, was employed continuallyin wars and in expeditions of various kinds, in the course of which hewas continually changing his residence from castle to castle all overEngland, and sometimes making excursions into Ireland, Scotland, andFrance. His wife accompanied him in many of these wanderings, and sheled, of course, so far as external circumstances were concerned, awild and adventurous life. She was, however, very quiet and domesticin her tastes, though proud and ambitious in her aspirations, and sheoccupied herself, wherever she was, in regulating her husband'shousehold, teaching and training her children, and in attending withgreat regularity and faithfulness to her religious duty, as religiousduty was understood in those days. 

The following is an account, copied from an ancient record, of themanner in which she spent her days at one of the castles where she wasresiding. 

 "She useth to arise at seven of the clock, and hath readye her chapleyne to say with her mattins of the daye (that is, morning prayers), and when she is fully readye, she hath a lowe mass in her chamber. After mass she taketh something to recreate nature, and soe goeth to the chapelle, hearinge the divine service and two lowe masses. From thence to dynner, during the tyme of whih she hath a lecture of holy matter (that is, reading from a religious book), either Hilton of Contemplative and Active Life, or some other spiritual and instructive work. After dynner she giveth audyence to all such as hath any matter to shrive unto her, by the space of one hower, and then sleepeth one quarter of an hower, and after she hath slept she contynueth in prayer until the first peale of even songe. 

 "In the tyme of supper she reciteth the lecture that was had at dynner to those that be in her presence. After supper she disposeth herself to be famyliare with her gentlewomen to the seasoning of honest myrthe, and one hower before her going to bed she taketh a cup of wine, and after that goeth to her pryvie closette, and taketh her leave of God for all nighte, makinge end of her prayers for that daye, and by eighte of the clocke is in bedde. "

The going to bed at eight o'clock was in keeping with the otherarrangements of the day, for we find by a record of the rules andorders of the duchess's household that the dinner-hour was eleven, andthe supper was at four. 

This lady, Richard's mother, during her married life, had no less thantwelve children. Their names were Anne, Henry, Edward, Edmund, Elizabeth, Margaret, William, John, George, Thomas, Richard, andUrsula. Thus Richard, the subject of this volume, was the eleventh, that is, the last but one. A great many of these, Richard's brothersand sisters, died while they were children. All the boys died thusexcept four, namely, Edward, Edmund, George, and Richard. Of course, it is only with those four that we have any thing to do in the presentnarrative. 

Several of the other children, however, besides these three, lived forsome time. They resided generally with their mother while they wereyoung, but as they grew up they were often separated both from her andfrom their father--the duke, their father, being often called awayfrom home, in the course of the various wars in which he was engaged, and his wife frequently accompanied him. On such occasions the boyswere left at some castle or other, under the care of persons employedto take charge of their education. They used to write letters to theirfather from time to time, and it is curious that these letters are theearliest examples of letters from children to parents which have beenpreserved in history. Two of the boys were at one time under thecharge of a man named Richard Croft, and the boys thought that he wastoo strict with them. One of the letters, which has been preserved, was written to complain of this strictness, or, as the boy expressedit, "the odieux rule and demeaning" of their tutor, and also to askfor some "fyne bonnets, " which the writer wished to have sent forhimself and for his little brother. There is another long letterextant which was written at nearly the same time. This letter waswritten, or at least signed, by two of the boys, Edward and Edmund, and was addressed to their father on the occasion of some of hisvictories. But, though signed by the boys' names, I suspect, from thelofty language in which it is expressed, and from the many high-flownexpressions of duty which it contains, that it was really written_for_ the boys by their mother or by one of their teachers. Of this, however, the reader can judge for himself on perusing the letter. Inthis copy the spelling is modernized so as to make it moreintelligible, but the language is transcribed exactly from theoriginal. 

 "Right high and mighty prince, our most worshipful and greatly redoubted lord and father:

 "In as lowly a wise as any sons can or may, we recommend us unto your good lordship, and please it to your highness to wit, that we have received your worshipful letters yesterday by your servant William Clinton, bearing date at York, the 29th day of May. [A]

 "By the which William, and by the relation of John Milewater, we conceive your worshipful and victorious speed against your enemies, to their great shame, and to us the most comfortable things that we desire to hear. Whereof we thank Almighty God of his gifts, beseeching him heartily to give you that good and cotidian[B] fortune hereafter to know your enemies, and to have the victory over them. 

 "And if it please your highness to know of our welfare, at the making of this letter we were in good health of body, thanked be God, beseeching your good and gracious fatherhood for our daily blessing. 

 "And whereas you command us by your said letters to attend specially to our learning in our young age, that should cause us to grow to honor and worship in our old age, please it your highness to wit, that we have attended to our learning since we came hither, and shall hereafter, by the which we trust to God your gracious lordship and good fatherhood shall be pleased. 

 "Also we beseech your good lordship that it may please you to send us Harry Lovedeyne, groom of your kitchen, whose service is to us right agreeable; and we will send you John Boyes to wait upon your lordship. 

 "Right high and mighty prince, our most worshipful and greatly redoubted lord and father, we beseech Almighty God to give you as good life and long as your own princely heart can best desire. 

 "Written at your Castle of Ludlow, the 3d of June. 

 "Your humble sons, "E. MARCHE. "E. RUTLAND. "

[Footnote A: There were no postal arrangements in those days, and allletters were sent by private, and generally by special messengers. ]

[Footnote B: Daily. ]

The subscriptions E. March and E. Rutland stand for Edward, Earl ofMarch, and Edmund, Earl of Rutland; for, though these boys were thenonly eleven and twelve years of age respectively, they were bothearls. One of them, afterward, when he was about seventeen years old, was cruelly killed on the field of battle, where he had been fightingwith his father, as we shall see in another chapter. The other, Edward, became King of England. He came immediately before Richard theThird in the line. 

The letter which the boys wrote was superscribed as follows:

"To the right high and mighty prince, our most worshipful and greatlyredoubted lord and father, the Duke of York, Protector and Defender ofEngland. "

[Illustration: LUDLOW CASTLE. ]

The castle of Ludlow, where the boys were residing when this letterwas written, was a strong fortress built upon a rock in the westernpart of England, not far from Shrewsbury. The engraving is a correctrepresentation of it, as it appeared at the period when those boyswere there, and it gives a very good idea of the sort of place wherekings and princes were accustomed to send their families for safety inthose stormy times. Soon after the period of which we are speaking, Ludlow Castle was sacked and destroyed. The ruins of it, however, remain to the present day, and they are visited with much interest bygreat numbers of modern travelers. 

Lady Cecily, as we have already seen, was in many respects a noblewoman, and a most faithful and devoted wife and mother; she was, however, of a very lofty and ambitious spirit, and extremely proud ofher rank and station. Almost all her brothers and sisters--and thefamily was very large--were peers and peeresses, and when she marriedPrince Richard Plantagenet, her heart beat high with exultation andjoy to think that she was about to become a queen. She believed thatPrince Richard was fully entitled to the throne at that time, forreasons which will be fully explained in the next chapter, and that, even if his claims should not be recognized until the death of theking who was then reigning, they certainly would be so recognizedthen, and she would become an acknowledged queen, as she thought shewas already one by right. So she felt greatly exalted in spirit, andmoved and acted among all who surrounded her with an air of statelyreserve of the most grand and aristocratic character. 

[Illustration: CASTLE AND PARK OF THE MIDDLE AGES. ]

In fact, there has, perhaps, no time and place been known in thehistory of the world in which the spirit of aristocracy was more loftyand overbearing in its character than in England during the periodwhen the Plantagenet family were in prosperity and power. The noblesformed then, far more strikingly than they do now, an entirelydistinct and exalted class, that looked down upon all other ranks andgradations of society as infinitely beneath them. Their onlyoccupation was war, and they regarded all those who were engaged inany employments whatever, that were connected with art or industry, with utter disdain. These last were crowded together in villagesand towns which were formed of dark and narrow streets, and rude andcomfortless dwellings. The nobles lived in grand castles scatteredhere and there over the country, with extensive parks andpleasure-grounds around them, where they loved to marshal theirfollowers, and inaugurate marauding expeditions against their rivalsor their enemies. They were engaged in constant wars and contentionswith each other, each thirsting for more power and more splendor thanhe at present enjoyed, and treating all beneath him with the utmosthaughtiness and disdain. Richard's mother exhibited this aristocraticloftiness of spirit in a very high degree, and it was undoubtedly in agreat manner through the influence which she exerted over her childrenthat they were inspired with those sentiments of ambition and love ofglory to which the crimes and miseries into which several of them fellin their subsequent career were owing. 

To assist her in the early education of her children, Richard's motherappointed one of the ladies of the court their governess. Thisgoverness was a personage of very high rank, being descended from theroyal line. With the ideas which Lady Cecily entertained of theexalted position of her family, and of the future destiny of herchildren, none but a lady of high rank would be thought worthy ofbeing intrusted with such a charge. The name of the governess was LadyMortimer. 

The boys, as they grew older, were placed under the charge of agovernor. His name was Sir Richard Croft. It is this Sir Richard thatthey allude to in their letter. He, too, was a person of high rank andof great military distinction. The boys, however, thought him toostrict and severe with them; at least so it would seem, from themanner in which they speak of him in the letter. 

The governor and the governess appear to have liked each other verywell, for after a time Sir Richard offered himself to Lady Mortimer, and they were married. 

 * * * * *

Besides Ludlow Castle, Prince Richard had several other strongholds, where his wife from time to time resided. Richard, who was one of theyoungest of the children, was born at one of these, called FotheringayCastle; but, before coming to the event of his birth, I must give someaccount of the history and fortunes of his father. 

CHAPTER II. 

RICHARD'S FATHER. 

A. D. 1415-1461

Genealogy of Richard Plantagenet. --Family of Edward III. --Successionof heirs in the family of Edward III. --Genealogical table of thehouses of York and Lancaster. --Union of the houses of Clarence andYork. --Richard Plantagenet a prisoner. --King Henry VI. --His gentle andquiet character. --Portrait. --Discontent of the people. --Arrangementsmade for the succession. --Character of Margaret of Anjou. --Nochildren. --Feeble and failing capacity of the king. --RichardPlantagenet formally declared the heir. --Unexpected birth of aprince. --Suspicions. --Various plans and speculations. --Richard'shopes. --Progress of the formation of parties. --Queen Margaret'sresolution and energy. --Wars. --Richard's two brothers, Edward andEdmund. --The walls of York. --Prince Richard at York. --Boldness of thequeen. --The advice of Richard's counselors. --Richard's reply. --Thebattle. --Richard defeated. --Death of Edmund. --Death of Richard. --Thehead set upon a pole at York. 

Richard's father was a prince of the house of York. In the course ofhis life he was declared heir to the crown, but he died before heattained possession of it, thus leaving it for his children. Thenature of his claim to the crown, and, indeed, the general relation ofthe various branches of the family to each other, will be seen by thegenealogical table on the next page but one. 

Edward the Third, who reigned more than one hundred years beforeRichard the Third, and his queen Philippa, left at their decease foursons, as appears by the table. [C] They had other children besidesthese, but it was only these four, namely, Edward, Lionel, John, andEdmund, whose descendants were involved in the quarrels for thesuccession. The others either died young, or else, if they arrived atmaturity, the lines descending from them soon became extinct. 

[Footnote C: See page 35. ]

Of the four that survived, the oldest was Edward, called in historythe Black Prince. A full account of his life and adventures is givenin our history of Richard the Second. He died before his father, andso did not attain to the crown. He, however, left his son Richard hisheir, and at Edward's death Richard became king. Richard reignedtwenty years, and then, in consequence of his numerous vices andcrimes, and of his general mismanagement, he was deposed, and Henry, the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, Edward's third son, ascended the throne in his stead. 

Now, as appears by the table, John of Gaunt was the third of the foursons, Lionel, Duke of Clarence, being the second. The descendants ofLionel would properly have come before those of John in thesuccession, but it happened that the only descendants of Lionel werePhilippa, a daughter, and Roger, a grandchild, who was at this time aninfant. Neither of these were able to assert their claims, although intheory their claims were acknowledged to be prior to those of thedescendants of John. The people of England, however, were so desirousto be rid of Richard, that they were willing to submit to the reign ofany member of the royal family who should prove strong enough todispossess him. So they accepted

 GENEALOGICAL TABLE OF THE FAMILY OF EDWARD III. , SHOWING THE CONNECTION OF THE HOUSES OF YORK AND LANCASTER. 

 EDWARD III. = Phillippa. | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | | | EDWARD LIONEL JOHN EDMUND (The Black Prince). (Duke of Clarence). (Of Gaunt, (Duke of York). | | Duke of Lancaster). | | | | | RICHARD II. PHILLIPPA = Edward HENRY IV. RICHARD = Anne. | Mortimer. | (_See second column. _) ROGER MORTIMER HENRY V. | Earl of Marche). | | | HENRY VI. RICHARD PLANTAGENET | | (Duke of York). | | | | | --------------- | | | | | ANNE = Richard EDWARD EDWARD GEORGE RICHARD of York. (Prince IV. (Duke III. (_See fourth column. _) of Wales). Of Clarence). 

 The character = denotes marriage; the short perpendicular line | a descent. There were many other children and descendants in the different branches of the family besides those whose names are inserted in the table. The table includes only those essential to an understanding of the history. 

Henry of Lancaster, who ascended the throne as Henry the Fourth, andhe and his successors in the Lancastrian line, Henry the Fifth andHenry the Sixth, held the throne for many years. 

Still, though the people of England generally acquiesced in this, thefamilies of the other brothers, namely, of Lionel and Edmund, calledgenerally the houses of Clarence and of York, were not satisfied. Theycombined together, and formed a great many plots and conspiraciesagainst the house of Lancaster, and many insurrections and wars, andmany cruel deeds of violence and murder grew out of the quarrel. Atlength, to strengthen their alliance more fully, Richard, the secondson of Edmund of York, married Anne, a descendant of the Clarenceline. The other children, who came before these, in the two lines, soon afterward died, leaving the inheritance of both to this pair. Their son was Richard, the father of Richard the Third. He is calledRichard Plantagenet, Duke of York. On the death of his father andmother, he, of course, became the heir not only of the immense estatesand baronial rights of both the lines from which he had descended, butalso of the claims of the older line to the crown of England. 

The successive generations of these three lines, down to the period ofthe union of the second and fourth, cutting off the third, is shownclearly in the table. 

Of course, the Lancaster line were much alarmed at the combination ofthe claims of their rivals. King Henry the Fifth was at that period onthe throne, and, by the time that Richard Plantagenet was three yearsold, under pretense of protecting him from danger, he caused him to beshut up in a castle, and kept a close prisoner there. 

Time rolled on. King Henry the Fifth died, and Henry the Sixthsucceeded him. Richard Plantagenet was still watched and guarded; butat length, by the time that Richard was thirteen years old, the powerand influence of his branch of the royal family, or rather those ofthe two branches from which, combined, he was descended, were found tobe increasing, while that of the house of Lancaster was declining. After a time he was brought out from his imprisonment, and restored tohis rank and station. King Henry the Sixth was a man of a very weakand timid mind. He was quite young too, being, in fact, a mere childwhen he began to reign, and every thing went wrong with hisgovernment. While he was young, he could, of course, do nothing, andwhen he grew older he was too gentle and forbearing to control therough and turbulent spirits around him. He had no taste for war andbloodshed, but loved retirement and seclusion, and, as he advanced inyears, he fell into the habit of spending a great deal of his time inacts of piety and devotion, performed according to the ideas andcustoms of the times. The annexed engraving, representing him as heappeared when he was

[Illustration: HENRY VI. IN HIS CHILDHOOD. ]

a boy, is copied from the ancient portraits, and well expresses themild and gentle traits which marked his disposition and character. 

Such being the disposition and character of Henry, every thing duringhis reign went wrong, and this state of things, growing worse andworse as he advanced in life, greatly encouraged and strengthened thehouse of York in the effort which they were inclined to make to bringtheir own branch of the family to the throne. 

"See, " said they, "what we come to by allowing a line of usurpers toreign. These Henrys of Lancaster are all descended from a younger son, while the heirs of the older are living, and have a right to thethrone. Richard Plantagenet is the true and proper heir. He is a manof energy. Let us make him king. "

But the people of England, though they gradually came to desire thechange, were not willing yet to plunge the country again into a stateof civil war for the purpose of making it. They would not disturbHenry, they said, while he continued to live; but there was nobody tosucceed him, and, when he died, Richard Plantagenet should be king. 

[Illustration: QUEEN MARGARET OF ANJOU, WIFE OF HENRY VI. ]

Henry was married at this time, but he had no children. The name ofhis wife was Margaret of Anjou. She was a very extraordinary andcelebrated woman. Though very beautiful in person, she was asenergetic and masculine in character as her poor husband waseffeminate and weak, and she took every thing into her own hands. This, however, made matters worse instead of better, and the wholecountry seemed to rejoice that she had no children, for thus, on thedeath of Henry, the line would become extinct, and Richard Plantagenetand his descendants would succeed, as a matter of course, in a quietand peaceful manner. As Henry and Margaret had now been married eightor nine years without any children, it was supposed that they neverwould have any. 

Accordingly, Richard Plantagenet was universally looked upon asHenry's successor, and the time seemed to be drawing nigh when thechange of dynasty was to take place. Henry's health was very feeble. He seemed to be rapidly declining. His mind was affected, too, quiteseriously, and he sometimes sank into a species of torpor from whichnothing could arouse him. 

Indeed, it became difficult to carry on the government in his name, for the king sank at last into such a state of imbecility that it wasimpossible to obtain from him the least sign or token that wouldserve, even for form's sake, as an assent on his part to the royaldecrees. At one time Parliament appointed a commission to visit him inhis chamber, for the purpose of ascertaining the state that he was in, and to see also whether they could not get some token from him whichthey could consider as his assent to certain measures which it wasdeemed important to take; but they could not get from the king anyanswer or sign of any kind, notwithstanding all that they could do orsay. They retired for a time, and afterward came back again to make asecond attempt, and then, as an ancient narrative records the story, "they moved and stirred him by all the ways and means that they couldthink of to have an answer of the said matter, but they could have noanswer, word nor sign, and therefore, with sorrowful hearts, cameaway. "

This being the state of things, Parliament thought it time to makesome definite arrangements for the succession. Accordingly, theypassed a formal and solemn enactment declaring Richard Plantagenetheir presumptive of the crown, and investing him with the rank andprivileges pertaining to that position. They also appointed him, forthe present, Protector and defender of the realm. 

Richard, the subject of this volume, was at this time an infant twoyears old. The other ten children had been born at various periodsbefore. 

It was now, of course, expected that Henry would soon die, and thatthen Richard Plantagenet would at once ascend the throne, acknowledgedby the whole realm as the sole and rightful heir. But theseexpectations were suddenly disturbed, and the whole kingdom was throwninto a state of great excitement and alarm by the news of a veryunexpected and important event which occurred at this time, namely, the birth of a child to Margaret, the queen. This event awakened allthe latent fires of civil dissension and discord anew. The Lancastrianparty, of course, at once rallied around the infant prince, who, theyclaimed, was the rightful heir to the crown. They began at once toreconstruct and strengthen their plans, and to shape their measureswith a view to retain the kingdom in the Lancaster line. On the otherhand, the friends of the combined houses of Clarence and York declaredthat they would not acknowledge the new-comer as the rightful heir. They did not believe that he was the son of the king, for he, as theysaid, had been for a long time as good as dead. Some said that theydid not even believe that the child was Margaret's son. There was astory that she had had a child, but that he was very weak and puny, and that he had died soon after his birth, and that Margaret hadcunningly substituted another child in his place, in order to retainher position and power by having a supposed son of hers reign as kingafter her husband should die. Margaret was a woman of so ambitious andunscrupulous a character, that she was generally believed capable ofadopting any measures, however criminal and bold, to accomplish herends. 

But, notwithstanding these rumors, Parliament acknowledged the infantas his father's son and heir. He was named Edward, and created at oncePrince of Wales, which act was a solemn acknowledgment of his right tothe succession. Prince Richard made no open opposition to this; for, although he and his friends maintained that he had a right to thecrown, they thought that the time had not yet come for openlyadvancing their claim, so for the present they determined to be quiet. The child might not survive, and his father, the king, being in sohelpless and precarious a condition, might cease to live at any time;and if it should so happen that both the father and the child shoulddie, Richard would, of course, succeed at once, without any question. He accordingly thought it best to wait a little while, and see whatturn things would take. 

He soon found that things were taking the wrong turn. The child lived, and appeared likely to continue to live, and, what was perhaps worsefor him, the king, instead of declining more and more, began torevive. In a short time he was able to attend to business again, atleast so far as to express his assent to measures prepared for him byhis ministers. Prince Richard was accordingly called upon to resignhis protectorate. He thought it best to yield to this proposal, and hedid so, and thus the government was once more in Henry's hands. 

Things went on in this way for two or three years, but the breachbetween the two great parties was all the time widening. Difficultiesmultiplied in number and increased in magnitude. The country tooksides. Armed forces were organized on one side and on the other, andat length Prince Richard openly claimed the crown as his right. Thisled to a long and violent discussion in Parliament. The result was, that a majority was obtained to vote in favor of Prince Richard'sright. The Parliament decreed, however, that the existing state ofthings should not be disturbed so long as Henry continued to live, butthat at Henry's death the crown should descend, not to little Edwardhis son, the infant Prince of Wales, but to Prince Richard Plantagenetand his descendants forever. 

Queen Margaret was at this time at a castle in Wales, where she hadgone with the child, in order to keep him in a place of safety whilethese stormy discussions were pending. When she heard that Parliamenthad passed a law setting aside the claims of her child, she declaredthat she would never submit to it. She immediately sent messengers allover the northern part of the kingdom, summoning the faithfulfollowers of the king every where to arm themselves and assemble nearthe frontier. She herself went to Scotland to ask for aid. The King ofScotland at that time was a child, but he was related to theLancastrian family, his grandmother having been a descendant of Johnof Gaunt, the head of the Lancaster line. He was too young to take anypart in the war, but his mother, who was acting as regent, furnishedMargaret with troops. Margaret, putting herself at the head of theseforces, marched across the frontier into England, and joined herselfthere to the other forces which had assembled in answer to hersummons. 

In the mean time, Prince Richard had assembled his adherents too, andhad commenced his march to the northward to meet his enemies. He tookhis two oldest sons with him, the two that wrote the letter quoted inthe last chapter. One of these you will recollect was Edward, Earl ofMarche, and the second was Edmund, Earl of Rutland. Edward was nowabout eighteen years of age, and his brother Edmund about seventeen. One would have said that at this period of life they were altogethertoo young to be exposed to the hardships, fatigues, and dangers of amartial campaign; but it was the custom in those times for princes andnobles to be taken with their fathers to fields of battle at a veryearly age. And these youthful warriors were really of great servicetoo, for the interest which they inspired among all ranks of the armywas so great, especially when their rank was very high, that they wereoften the means of greatly increasing the numbers and the enthusiasmof their fathers' followers. 

Edward, indeed, was in this instance deemed old enough to be sent offon an independent service, and so, while the prince moved forward withthe main body of his army toward the north, he dispatched Edward, accompanied by a suitable escort, to the westward, toward thefrontiers of Wales, to assemble all the armed men that he could findin that part of the kingdom who were disposed to espouse his cause. Edmund, who was a year younger than Edward, went with his father. 

The prince proceeded to the city of York, which was then a fortifiedplace of great strength. The engraving gives a very good idea of theappearance of the walls in those times. These walls remain, indeed, almost entire at the present day, and they are visited a great deal bytourists and travelers, being regarded with much interest asfurnishing a very complete and well-preserved specimen of the muralfortifications of the Middle Ages. Such walls, however, would bealmost entirely useless now as means of defense, since they would notstand at all against an attack from modern artillery. 

The great church seen over the walls, in the heart of the city, is thefamous York minster, one of the grandest Cathedral churches inEngland. It was a hundred and fifty years in building, and it wascompleted about two centuries before Richard's day. 

When Prince Richard reached York, he entered the town, and establishedhimself there, with a view of waiting till his son should arrive withthe re-enforcements which he had been sent to seek in the western partof England. 

[Illustration: WALLS OF YORK. ]

While he was there, and before the re-enforcements came, the queen, atthe head of her army from Scotland, which was strengthened, moreover, by the troops which she had obtained in the north of England, camemarching on down the country in great force. When she came into theneighborhood of York, she encamped, and then sent messengers to PrinceRichard, taunting and deriding him for having shut himself up withinfortified walls, and daring him to come out into the open field andfight her. 

The prince's counselors advised him to do no such thing. One of themin particular, a certain Sir Davy Hall, who was an old and faithfulofficer in the prince's service, urged him to pay no attention toQueen Margaret's taunts. 

"We are not strong enough yet, " said he, "to meet the army which shehas assembled. We must wait till our re-enforcements come. By goingout now we shall put our cause in great peril, and all to no purposewhatever. "

"Ah! Davy, Davy, " said the prince, "hast thou loved me so long, andnow wouldst thou have me dishonored? When I was regent in Normandy, thou never sawest me keep fortress, even when the dauphin himself, with all his power, came to besiege me. [D] I always, like a man, cameforth to meet him, instead of remaining within my walls, like a birdshut up in a cage. Now if I did not then keep myself shut up for fearof a great, strong prince, do you think I will now, for dread of ascolding woman, whose weapons are only her tongue and her nails, andthus give people occasion to say that I turned dastard before a woman, when no man had ever been able to make me fear? No, I will neversubmit to such disgrace. I would rather die in honor than live inshame; and so the great numbers of our enemies do not deter me in theleast; they rather encourage me; therefore, in the name of God and St. George, advance my banner, for I am determined that I will go out andfight them, if I go alone. "

[Footnote D: In former years Prince Richard had acted as viceroy ofthe English possessions in France, under King Henry, and while therehe had been engaged in wars with the King of France, and with thedauphin, his son. ]

[Illustration: LAST HOURS OF KING RICHARD'S FATHER. ]

So Prince Richard came forth from the gates of York at the head of hiscolumns, and rode on toward the queen's camp. Edmund went with him. Edmund was under the care of his tutor, Robert Aspell, who was chargedto keep close to his side, and to watch over him in the most vigilantmanner. The army of the queen was at some distance from York, at aplace called Wakefield. Both parties, as is usual in civil wars, wereextremely exasperated against each other, and the battle wasdesperately fought. It was very brief, however, and Richard's troopswere defeated. Richard himself was taken prisoner. Edmund endeavoredto escape. His tutor endeavored to hurry him off the field, but hewas stopped on the way by a certain nobleman of the queen's party, named Lord Clifford. The poor boy begged hard for mercy, but Cliffordkilled him on the spot. 

The prince's army, when they found that the battle had gone againstthem, and that their captain was a prisoner, fled in all directionsover the surrounding country, leaving great numbers dead upon thefield. The prince himself, as soon as he was taken, was disarmed onthe field, and all the leaders of the queen's army, including, as themost authentic accounts relate, the queen herself, gathered around himin wild exultation. They carried him to a mound formed by an ant-hill, which they said, in mockery, should be his throne. They placed himupon it with taunts and derision. They made a crown for him of knottedgrass, and put it upon his head, and then made mock obeisances beforehim, saying, "Hail! king without a kingdom. Hail! prince without apeople. "

After having satisfied themselves with their taunts and revilings, theparty killed their prisoner and cut off his head. They set his headupon the point of a lance, and in this way presented it to QueenMargaret. The queen ordered the head to be decorated with a papercrown, and then to be carried to York, and set up at the gates ofthat city upon a tall pole. 

Thus was little Richard, the subject of this narrative, leftfatherless. He was at this period between eight and nine years old. 

CHAPTER III. 

THE CHILDHOOD OF RICHARD III. 

Condition of young Richard in his childhood. --Strange tales inrespect to his birth. --Dangers to which Richard was exposed inhis childhood. --Extraordinary vicissitudes in the life of hismother. --The castles and palaces belonging to the house ofYork. --Situation of Lady Cecily at the time of her husband'sdeath. --Lady Cecily sends the children to the Continent. --Situationof Lady Cecily and of her oldest son. 

Young Richard, as was said at the close of the last chapter, was of avery tender age when his father and his brother Edmund were killed atthe battle of Wakefield. He was at that time only about eight yearsold. It is very evident too, from what has been already related of thehistory of his father and mother, that during the whole period of hischildhood and youth he must have passed through very stormy times. Itis only a small portion of the life of excitement, conflict, and alarmwhich was led by his father that there is space to describe in thisvolume. So unsettled and wandering a life did his father and motherlead, that it is not quite certain in which of the various towns andcastles that from time to time they made their residence, he was born. It is supposed, however, that he was born in the Castle ofFotheringay, in the year 1452. His father was killed in 1461, whichwould make Richard, as has already been said, about eight or nineyears old at that time. 

There were a great many strange tales related in subsequent years inrespect to Richard's birth. He became such a monster, morally, when hegrew to be a man, that the people believed that he was born a monsterin person. The story was that he came into the world very ugly in faceand distorted in form, and that his hair and his teeth were alreadygrown. These were considered as portents of the ferociousness oftemper and character which he was subsequently to manifest, and of theunnatural and cruel crimes which he would live to commit. It is verydoubtful, however, whether any of these stories are true. It is mostprobable that at his birth he looked like any other child. 

There were a great many periods of intense excitement and terror inthe family history before the great final calamity at Wakefield whenRichard's father and his brother Edmund were killed. At these timesthe sole reliance of the prince in respect to the care of the youngerchildren was upon Lady Cecily, their mother. The older sons went withtheir father on the various martial expeditions in which he wasengaged. They shared with him the hardships and dangers of hisconflicts, and the triumph and exultations of his victories. Theyounger children, however, remained in seclusion with their mother, sometimes in one place and sometimes in another, wherever there was, for the time being, the greatest promise of security. 

Indeed, during the early childhood of Richard, the changes andvicissitudes through which the family passed were so sudden andviolent in their character as sometimes to surpass the most romantictales of fiction. At one time, while Lady Cecily was residing at theCastle of Ludlow with Richard and some of the younger children, aparty of her husband's enemies, the Lancastrians, appeared suddenly atthe gates of the town, and, before Prince Richard's party had time totake any efficient measures for defense, the town and the castle wereboth taken. The Lancastrians had expected to find Prince Richardhimself in the castle, but he was not there. They were exasperated bytheir disappointment, and in their fury they proceeded to ransack allthe rooms, and to destroy every thing that came into their hands. Insome of the inner and more private apartments they found Lady Cecilyand her children. They immediately seized them all, made themprisoners, and carried them away. By King Henry's orders, they wereplaced in close custody in another castle in the southern part ofEngland, and all the property, both of the prince and of Lady Cecily, was confiscated. While the mother and the younger children were thusclosely shut up and reduced to helpless destitution, the father andthe older sons were obliged to fly from the country to save theirlives. In less than three months after this time these same exiled andapparently ruined fugitives were marching triumphantly through thecountry, at the head of victorious troops, carrying all before them. Lady Cecily and her children were set at liberty, and restored totheir property and their rights, while King Henry himself, whosecaptives they had been, was himself made captive, and brought indurance to London, and Queen Margaret and her son were in their turncompelled to fly from the realm to save their lives. 

This last change in the condition of public affairs took place only ashort time before the great final contest between Prince Richard ofYork, King Richard's father, and the family of Henry, when the princelost his life at Wakefield, as described in the last chapter. 

[Illustration: PALACE AND GARDEN BELONGING TO THE HOUSE OF YORK. ]

Of course, young Richard, being brought up amid these scenes of wildcommotion, and accustomed from childhood to witness the most cruel andremorseless conflicts between branches of the same family, was trainedby them to be ambitious, daring, and unscrupulous in respect to themeans to be used in circumventing or destroying an enemy. The seedthus sown produced in subsequent years most dreadful fruit, as will beseen more fully in the sequel of his history. 

There were a great many hereditary castles belonging to the family ofYork, many of which had descended from father to son for manygenerations. Some of these castles were strong fortresses, built inwild and inaccessible retreats, and intended to be used as places oftemporary refuge, or as the rallying-points and rendezvous of bodiesof armed men. Others were better adapted for the purposes of a privateresidence, being built with some degree of reference to the comfort ofthe inmates, and surrounded with gardens and grounds, where the ladiesand the children who were left in them could find recreation andamusement adapted to their age and sex. 

It was in such a castle as this, near London, that Lady Cecily and heryounger children were residing when her husband went to the northwardto meet the forces of the queen, as related in the last chapter. HereLady Cecily lived in great state, for she thought the time was drawingnigh when her husband would be raised to the throne. Indeed, sheconsidered him as already the true and rightful sovereign of therealm, and she believed that the hour would very soon come when hisclaims would be universally acknowledged, and when she herself wouldbe Queen of England, and her boys royal princes, and, as such, theobjects of universal attention and regard. She instilled these ideascontinually into the minds of the children, and she exacted the utmostdegree of subserviency and submission toward herself and toward themon the part of all around her. 

While she was thus situated in her palace near London, awaiting everyday the arrival of a messenger from the north announcing the finalvictory of her husband over all his foes, she was one daythunderstruck, and overwhelmed with grief and despair, by the tidingsthat her husband had been defeated, and that he himself, and the dearson who had accompanied him, and was just arriving at maturity, hadbeen ignominiously slain. The queen, too, her most bitter foe, nowexultant and victorious, was advancing triumphantly toward London. 

Not a moment was to be lost. Lady Cecily had with her, at this time, her two youngest sons, George and Richard. She made immediatearrangements for her flight. It happened that the Earl of Warwick, who was at this time the Lord High Admiral, and who, of course, hadcommand of the seas between England and the Continent, was a relativeand friend of Lady Cecily's. He was at this time in London. LadyCecily applied to him to assist her in making her escape. Heconsented, and, with his aid, she herself, with her two children and asmall number of attendants, escaped secretly from London, and madetheir way to the southern coast. There Lady Cecily put the childrenand the attendants on board a vessel, by which they were conveyed tothe coast of Holland. On landing there, they were received by theprince of the country, who was a friend of Lady Cecily, and to whosecare she commended them. The prince received them with great kindness, and sent them to the city of Utrecht, where he established them safelyin one of his palaces, and appointed suitable tutors and governors tosuperintend their education. Here it was expected that they wouldremain for several years. 

Their mother did not go with them to Holland. Her fears in respect toremaining in England were not for herself, but only for her helplesschildren. For herself, her only impulse was to face and brave thedangers which threatened her, and triumph over them. So she wentboldly back to London, to await there whatever might occur. 

Besides, her oldest son was still in England, and she could notforsake him. You will recollect that, when his father went north tomeet the forces of Queen Margaret, he sent his oldest son, Edward, Earl of Marche, to the western part of England, to obtainre-enforcements. Edward was at Gloucester when the tidings came to himof his father's death. Gloucester is on the western confines ofEngland, near the southeastern borders of Wales. Now, of course, sinceher husband was dead, all Lady Cecily's ambition, and all her hopes ofrevenge were concentrated in him. She wished to be at hand to counselhim, and to co-operate with him by all the means in her power. How shesucceeded in these plans, and how, by means of them, he soon becameKing of England, will appear in the next chapter. 

CHAPTER IV. 

ACCESSION OF EDWARD IV. , RICHARD'S ELDER BROTHER. 

A. D. 1461

Edward now becomes heir to the crown. --His energy and decision. --Hemarches to intercept Margaret. --Warwick. --Battle with thequeen. --Warwick defeated. --Margaret regains possession of herhusband. --Excesses committed by the queen's troops. --Edwardadvances. --He enters London. --His welcome. --Excitement inLondon. --Measures taken by Edward. --Voice of the people. --They declarein favor of Edward. --Edward is formally enthroned. --Variousceremonies. --Edward marches to the northward. --A battle. --Edwardenters York in triumph. --He inters his father's body. --He returnsto London. --Grief of his mother. --Situation of George andRichard. --Richard's person. --Description of the armor worn in thosedays. --Necessity of being trained to use this armor. --The armorcostly. --Substitutes for it. --Exercises. --Feats to beperformed. --Account of the quintaine. --Other exercises andsports. --Playing ball. --Jumping through a hoop. --The two brotherscompanions. --Richard's intellectual education. 

Richard's brother Edward, as has already been remarked, was atGloucester when he heard the news of his father's death. This news, ofcourse, made a great change in his condition. To his mother, the eventwas purely and simply a calamity, and it could awaken no feelings inher heart but those of sorrow and chagrin. In Edward's mind, on theother hand, the first emotions of astonishment and grief were followedimmediately by a burst of exultation and pride. He, of course, as nowthe oldest surviving son, succeeded at once to all the rights andtitles which his father had enjoyed, and among these, according to theideas which his mother had instilled into his mind, was the right tothe crown. His heart, therefore, when the first feeling of grief forthe loss of his father had subsided, bounded with joy as he exclaimed, "So now _I_ am the King of England. "

The enthusiasm which he felt extended itself at once to all aroundhim. He immediately made preparations to put himself at the head ofhis troops, and march to the eastward, so as to intercept QueenMargaret on her way to London, for he knew that she would, of course, now press forward toward the capital as fast as possible. 

He accordingly set out at once upon his march, and, as he went on, hefound that the number of his followers increased very rapidly. Thetruth was, that the queen's party, by their murder of Richard, and ofyoung Edmund his son, had gone altogether too far for the good oftheir own cause. The people, when they heard the tidings, wereindignant at such cruelty. Those who belonged to the party of thehouse of York, instead of being intimidated by the severity of themeasure, were exasperated at the brutality of it, and they were alleager to join the young duke, Edward, and help him to avenge hisfather's and his brother's death. Those who had been before on theside of the house of Lancaster were discouraged and repelled, whilethose who had been doubtful were now ready to declare against thequeen. 

It is in this way that all excesses in the hour of victory defeat thevery ends they were intended to subserve. They weaken theperpetrators, and not the subjects of them. 

In the mean time, while young Edward, at the head of his army, wasmarching on from the westward toward London to intercept the queen, the Earl of Warwick, who has already been mentioned as a friend ofLady Cecily, had also assembled a large force near London, and he wasnow advancing toward the northward. The poor king was with him. Nominally, the king was in command of the expedition, and every thingwas done in his name, but really he was a forlorn and helplessprisoner, forced wholly against his will--so far as the feeble degreeof intellect which remained to him enabled him to exercise a will--toseem to head an enterprise directed against his own wife, and his bestand strongest friend. 

The armies of the queen and of the Earl of Warwick advanced towardeach other, until they met at last at a short distance north ofLondon. A desperate battle was fought, and the queen's party werecompletely victorious. When night came on, the Earl of Warwick foundthat he was beaten at every point, and that his troops had fled in alldirections, leaving thousands of the dead and dying all along the roadsides. The camp had been abandoned, and there was no time to save anything; even the poor king was left behind, and the officers of thequeen's army found him in a tent, with only one attendant. Of course, the queen was overjoyed at recovering possession of her husband, notmerely on his own account personally, but also because she could nowact again directly in his name. So she prepared a proclamation, bywhich the king revoked all that he had done while in the hands ofWarwick, on the ground that he had been in durance, and had not actedof his own free will, and also declared Edward a traitor, and offereda large reward for his apprehension. 

The queen was now once more filled with exultation and joy. Her joywould have been complete were it not that Edward himself was still tobe met, for he was all this time advancing from the westward; she, however, thought that there was not much to be feared from such a boy, Edward being at this time only about nineteen years of age. So thequeen moved on toward London, flushed with the victory, andexasperated with the opposition which she had met with. Her soldierswere under very little control, and they committed great excesses. They ravaged the country, and plundered without mercy all those whomthey considered as belonging to the opposite party; they committed, too, many atrocious acts of cruelty. It is always thus in civil war. In foreign wars, armies are much more easily kept under control. Troops march through a foreign territory, feeling no personal spite orhatred against the inhabitants of it, for they think it is a matter ofcourse that the people should defend their country and resistinvaders. But in a civil war, the men of each party feel a specialpersonal hate against every individual that does not belong to theirside, and in periods of actual conflict this hatred becomes a ragethat is perfectly uncontrollable. 

Accordingly, as the queen and her troops advanced, they robbed andmurdered all who came in their way, and they filled the whole countrywith terror. They even seized and plundered a convent, which was aspecies of sacrilege. This greatly increased the general alarm. "Thewretches!" exclaimed the people, when they heard the tidings, "nothingis sacred in their eyes. " The people of London were particularlyalarmed. They thought there was danger that the city itself would begiven up to plunder if the queen's troops gained admission. So theyall turned against her. She sent one day into the town for a supply ofprovisions, and the authorities, perhaps thinking themselves bound bytheir official duty to obey orders of this kind coming in the king'sname, loaded up some wagons and sent them forth, but the people raiseda mob, and stopped the wagons at the gates, refusing to let them goon. 

In the mean time, Edward, growing every hour stronger as he advanced, came rapidly on toward London. He was joined at length by the Earl ofWarwick and the remnant of the force which remained to the earl afterthe battle which he had fought with the queen. The queen, now findingthat Edward's strength was becoming formidable, did not dare to meethim; so she retreated toward the north again. Edward, instead ofpursuing her, advanced directly toward London. The people threw openthe gates to him, and welcomed him as their deliverer. They throngedthe streets to look upon him as he passed, and made the air ring withtheir loud and long acclamations. 

There was, indeed, every thing in the circumstances of the case toawaken excitement and emotion. Here was a boy not yet out of histeens, extremely handsome in appearance and agreeable in manners, whohad taken the field in command of a very large force to avenge thecruel death of his father and brother, and was now coming boldly, atthe head of his troops, into the very capital of the king and queenunder whose authority his father and brother had been killed. 

The most extraordinary circumstance connected with these proceedingswas, that during all this time Henry was still acknowledged by everyone as the actual king. Edward and his friends maintained, indeed, that he, Edward, was _entitled_ to reign, but no one pretended thatany thing had yet been done which could have the legal effect ofputting him upon the throne. There was, however, now a generalexpectation that the time for the formal deposition of Henry was near, and in and around London all was excitement and confusion. The peoplefrom the surrounding towns flocked every day into the city to see whatthey could see, and to hear what they could hear. They thronged thestreets whenever Edward appeared in public, eager to obtain a glimpseof him. 

At length, a few days after Edward entered the city, his counselorsand friends deemed that the time had come for action. Accordingly, they made arrangements for a grand review in a large open field. Theirdesign was by this review to call together a great concourse ofspectators. A vast assembly convened according to their expectations. In the midst of the ceremonies, two noblemen appeared before themultitude to make addresses to them. One of them made a speech inrespect to Henry, denouncing the crimes, and the acts of treachery andof oppression which his government had committed. He dilated long onthe feebleness and incapacity of the king, and his total inability toexercise any control in the management of public affairs. After he hadfinished, he called out to the people in a loud voice to declarewhether they would submit any longer to have such a man for king. 

The people answered "NAY, NAY, NAY, " with loud and long acclamations. 

Then the other speaker made an address in favor of Edward. Heexplained at length the nature of his title to the crown, showing itto be altogether superior in point of right to that of Henry. He alsospoke long and eloquently in praise of Edward's personalqualifications, describing his courage, his activity, and energy, andthe various graces and accomplishments for which he was distinguished, in the most glowing terms. He ended by demanding of the people whetherthey would have Edward for king. 

The people answered "YEA, YEA, YEA; KING EDWARD FOREVER! KING EDWARDFOREVER!" with acclamations as long and loud as before. 

Of course there could be no legal validity in such proceedings asthese, for, even if England had at that time been an electivemonarchy, the acclamations of an accidental assembly drawn together towitness a review could on no account have been deemed a valid vote. This ceremony was only meant as a very public announcement of theintention of Edward immediately to assume the throne. 

The next day, accordingly, a grand council was held of all the greatbarons, and nobles, and officers of state. By this council a decreewas passed that King Henry, by his late proceedings, had forfeited thecrown, and Edward was solemnly declared king in his stead. Immediatelyafterward, Edward rode at the head of a royal procession, which wasarranged for the purpose, to Westminster, and there, in the presenceof a vast assembly, he took his seat upon the throne. While thereseated, he made a speech to the audience, in which he explained thenature of his hereditary rights, and declared his intention tomaintain his rights thenceforth in the most determined manner. 

The king now proceeded to Westminster Abbey, where he performed thesame ceremonies a second time. He was also publicly proclaimed king onthe same day in various parts of London. 

Edward was now full of ardor and enthusiasm, and his first impulse wasto set off, at the head of his army, toward the north, in pursuit ofthe queen and the old king. The king and queen had gone to York. Thequeen had not only the king under her care, but also her son, thelittle Prince of Wales, who was now about eight years old. This youngprince was the heir to the crown on the Lancastrian side, and Edwardwas, of course, very desirous of getting him, as well as the king andqueen, into his hands; so he put himself at the head of his troops, and began to move forward as fast as he could go. The body of troopsunder his command consisted of fifty thousand men. In the queen'sarmy, which was encamped in the neighborhood of York, there were aboutsixty thousand. 

Both parties were extremely exasperated against each other, and wereeager for the fight. Edward gave orders to his troops to grant noquarter, but, in the event of victory, to massacre without mercy everyman that they could bring within their reach. The armies came togetherat a place called Towton. The combat was begun in the midst of asnow-storm. The armies fought from nine o'clock in the morning tillthree in the afternoon, and by that time the queen's troops wereevery where driven from the field. Edward's men pursued them along theroads, slaughtering them without mercy as fast as they could overtakethem, until at length nearly forty thousand men were left dead uponthe ground. 

The queen fled toward the north, taking with her her husband andchild. Edward entered York in triumph. At the gates he found the headof his father and that of his brother still remaining upon the poleswhere the queen had put them. He took them reverently down, and thenput other heads in their places, which he cut off for the purpose fromsome of his prisoners. He was in such a state of fury, that I suppose, if he could have caught the king and queen, he would have cut off_their_ heads, and put them on the poles in the place of his father'sand his brother's; but he could not catch them. They fled to thenorth, toward the frontiers of Scotland, and so escaped from hishands. 

Edward determined not to pursue the fugitives any farther at thattime, as there were many important affairs to be attended to inLondon, and so he concluded to be satisfied at present with thevictory which he had obtained, and with the dispersion of his enemies, and to return to the capital. He first, however, gathered togetherthe remains of his father and brother, and caused them to be buriedwith solemn funeral ceremonies in one of his castles near York. Thiswas, however, only a temporary arrangement, for, as soon as hisaffairs were fully settled, the remains were disinterred, andconveyed, with great funeral pomp and parade, to their finalresting-place in the southern part of the kingdom. 

As soon as Edward reached London, one of the first things that he didwas to send for his two brothers, George and Richard, who, as will berecollected, had been removed by their mother to Holland, and were nowin Utrecht pursuing their education. These two boys were all thebrothers of Edward that remained now alive. They came back to London. Their widowed mother's heart was filled with a melancholy sort of joyin seeing her children once more together, safe in their native land;but her spirit, after reviving for a moment, sank again, overwhelmedwith the bitter and irreparable loss which she had sustained in thedeath of her husband. His death was, of course, a fatal blow to allthose ambitious plans and aspirations which she had cherished forherself. Though the mother of a king, she could now never becomeherself a queen; and, disappointed and unhappy, she retired to one ofthe family castles in the neighborhood of London, and lived therecomparatively alone and in great seclusion. 

The boys, on the other hand, were brought forward very conspicuouslyinto public life. In the autumn of the same year in which Edward tookpossession of the crown, they were made royal dukes, with great paradeand ceremony, and were endowed with immense estates to enable them tosupport the dignity of their rank and position. George was made Dukeof Clarence; Richard, Duke of Gloucester; and from this time the twoboys were almost always designated by these names. 

Suitable persons, too, were appointed to take charge of the boys, forthe purpose of conducting their education, and also to manage theirestates until they should become of age. 

There have been a great many disputes in respect to Richard'sappearance and character at this time. For a long period after hisdeath, people generally believed that he was, from his very childhood, an ugly little monster, that nobody could look upon without fear; and, in fact, he was very repulsive in his personal appearance when he grewup, but at this time of his life the historians and biographers whosaw and knew him say that he was quite a pretty boy, though puny andweak. His face was handsome enough, though his form was frail, and notperfectly symmetrical. Those who had charge of him tried to strengthenhis constitution by training him to the martial exercises and usageswhich were practiced in those days, and especially by accustoming himto wear the ponderous armor which was then in use. 

This armor was made of iron or steel. It consisted of a great numberof separate pieces, which, when they were all put on, incased almostthe whole body, so as to defend it against blows coming from anyquarter. First, there was the helmet, or cap of steel, with large ovalpieces coming down to protect the ears. Next came the _gorget_, as itwas called, which was a sort of collar to cover the neck. Then therewere elbow pieces to guard the elbows, and shoulder-plates for theshoulders, and a breast-plate or buckler for the front, and greavesfor the legs and thighs. These things were necessary in those days, orat least they were advantageous, for they afforded pretty effectualprotection against all the ordinary weapons which were then in use. But they made the warriors themselves so heavy and unwieldy as verygreatly to interfere with the freedom of their movements when engagedin battle. There was, indeed, a certain advantage in this weight, asit made the shock with which the knight on horseback encountered hisenemy in the charge so much the more heavy and overpowering; but if hewere by any accident to lose his seat and fall to the ground, he wasgenerally so encumbered by his armor that he could only partiallyraise himself therefrom. He was thus compelled to lie almost helplessuntil his enemy came to kill him, or his squire or some other friendcame to help him up. [E]

[Footnote E: See engraving on page 148. ]

Of course, to be able to manage one's self at all in these habilimentsof iron and steel, there was required not only native strength ofconstitution, but long and careful training, and it was a veryimportant part of the education of young men of rank in Richard's daysto familiarize them with the use of this armor, and inure them to theweight of it. Suits of it were made for boys, the size and weight ofeach suit being fitted to the form and strength of the wearer. Many ofthese suits of boys' armor are still preserved in England. There areseveral specimens to be seen in the Tower of London. They are in theapartment called the Horse Armory, which is a vast hall with effigiesof horses, and of men mounted upon them, all completely armed withthe veritable suits of steel which the men and the horses that theyrepresent actually wore when they were alive. The horses are arrangedalong the sides of the room in regular order from the earliest agesdown to the time when steel armor of this kind ceased to be worn. 

[Illustration: THE OLD QUINTAINE]

These suits of armor were very costly, and the boys for whom they weremade were, of course, filled with feelings of exultation and pridewhen they put them on; and, heavy and uncomfortable as such clothingmust have been, they were willing to wear it, and to practice therequired exercises in it. When actually made of steel, the armor wasvery expensive, and such could only be afforded for young princes andnobles of very high rank; for other young men, various substituteswere provided; but all were trained, either in the use of actualarmor, or of substitutes, to perform a great number and variety ofexercises. They were taught, when they were old enough, to spring upona horse with as much armor upon them and in their hands as possible;to run races; to see how long they could continue to strike heavyblows in quick succession with a battle-axe or club, as if they werebeating an enemy lying upon the ground, and trying to break his armorto pieces; to dance and throw summersets; to mount upon a horsebehind another person by leaping from the ground, and assistingthemselves only by one hand, and other similar things. One feat whichthey practiced was to climb up between two partition walls builtpretty near together, by bracing their back against one wall, andworking with their knees and hands against the other. Another feat wasto climb up a ladder on the under side by means of the hands alone. 

Another famous exercise, or perhaps rather game, was performed withwhat was called the _quintaine_. The quintaine consisted of a stoutpost set in the ground, and rising about ten or twelve feet above thesurface. Across the top was a strong bar, which turned on a pivot madein the top of the post, so that it would go round and round. To oneend of this cross-bar there was fixed a square board for a target; tothe other end was hung a heavy club. The cross-bar was so poised uponthe central pivot that it would move very easily. In playing the game, the competitors, mounted on horseback, were to ride, one afteranother, under the target-end of the cross-bar, and hurl their spearsat it with all their force. The blow from the spear would knock thetarget-end of the cross-bar away, and so bring round the other end, with its heavy club, to strike a blow on the horseman's head if he didnot get instantly out of the way. It was as if he were to strike oneenemy in front in battle, while there was another enemy ready on theinstant to strike him from behind. 

There is one of these ancient quintaines now standing on the green inthe village of Offham, in Kent. 

Such exercises as these were, of course, only fitted for men, or atleast for boys who had nearly attained to their full size andstrength. There were other games and exercises intended for smallerboys. There are many rude pictures in ancient books illustrating theseold games. In one they are playing ball; in another they are playingshuttle-cock. The battle-doors that they use are very rude. 

[Illustration: PLAYING BALL. ]

These pictures show how ancient these common games are. In anotherpicture the boys are playing with a hoop. Two of them are holding thehoop up between them, and the third is preparing to jump through it, head foremost. His plan is to come down on the other side upon hishands, and so turn a summerset, and come up on his feet beyond. 

[Illustration: BATTLE-DOOR AND SHUTTLE-COCK. ]

In these exercises and amusements, and, indeed, in all hisoccupations, Richard had his brother George, the Duke of Clarence, forhis playmate and companion. George was not only older than Richard, but he was also much more healthy and athletic; and some persons havethought that Richard injured himself, and perhaps, in some degree, increased the deformity which he seems to have suffered from in lateryears, or perhaps brought it on entirely, by overloading himself, inhis attempts to keep pace with his brother in these exercises, withburdens of armor, or by straining himself in athletic exertions whichwere beyond his powers. 

The intellectual education of the boys was not entirely neglected. They learned to read and write, though they could not write much, orvery well. Their names are still found, as they signed them to ancientdocuments, several of which remain to the present day. The followingis a fac-simile of Richard's signature, copied exactly from one ofthose documents. 

[Illustration: RICHARD'S SIGNATURE. ]

Richard continued in this state of pupilage in some of the castlesbelonging to the family from the time that his brother began to reignuntil he was about fourteen years of age. Edward, the king, was thentwenty-four, and Clarence about seventeen. 

CHAPTER V. 

WARWICK, THE KING-MAKER. 

A. D. 1461-1468

Situation of Richard under the reign of his brother. --Strangevicissitudes in the life of Margaret. --Representatives of the houseof York. --Margaret. --Value of a marriageable young lady. --Warwickbecomes Edward's prime minister. --The three great parties. --Thefortunes of Margaret of Anjou. --She escapes to France. --A newexpedition planned. --Margaret is defeated and compelled to fly. --Sheencounters great dangers at sea. --The king concealed. --The king ismade prisoner, and sent to the Tower. --Brutal punishments. --Greatexasperation of the combatants. --Account of ElizabethWoodville. --Edward's first interview with her. --The secretmarriage. --The marriage gradually revealed. --Indignation of the Earlof Warwick. --Ancient portrait of Edward IV. --Portrait of QueenElizabeth Woodville. --George and Richard. --The queen is publiclyacknowledged. --Various difficulties and entanglements resultingfrom this marriage. --Jealousy against the queen's family andrelations. --Situation of Henry and his family. --Margaret ofYork. --Plans and manoeuvres in respect to Margaret's marriage. --CountCharles carries the day. --Vexation of Warwick. --Progress of thequarrel. --A temporary reconciliation. --A new marriage scheme. --Edwarddispleased. --He fails of preventing the marriage. --The ceremonyperformed at Calais. 

Richard's brother, Edward the Fourth, began to reign when Richard wasabout eight or nine years of age. His reign continued--with a briefinterruption, which will be hereafter explained--for twenty years; sothat, for a very important period of his life, after he arrived atsome degree of maturity, namely, from the time that he was fourteen tothe time that he was thirty, Richard was one of his brother'ssubjects. He was a prince, it is true, and a prince of the veryhighest rank--the next person but one, in fact, in the line ofsuccession to the crown. His brother George, the Duke of Clarence, ofcourse, being older than he, came before him; but both the young men, though princes, were subjects. They were under their brother Edward'sauthority, and bound to serve and obey him as their rightfulsovereign; next to him, however, they were the highest personages inthe realm. George was, from this time, generally called Clarence, andRichard, Gloucester. 

The reader may perhaps feel some interest and curiosity in learningwhat became of Queen Margaret and old King Henry after they weredriven out of the country toward the north, at the time of Edward'saccession. Their prospects seemed, at the time, to be hopelesslyruined, but their case was destined to furnish another very strikinginstance of the extraordinary reverses of fortune which marked thehistory of nearly all the great families during the whole course ofthis York and Lancaster quarrel. In about ten years from the time whenHenry and Margaret were driven away, apparently into hopeless exile, they came back in triumph, and were restored to power, and Edwardhimself, in his turn, was ignominiously expelled from the kingdom. Thenarrative of the circumstances through which these events were broughtabout forms quite a romantic story. 

In order, however, that this story may be more clearly understood, Iwill first enumerate the principal personages that take a part in it, and briefly remind the reader of the position which they respectivelyoccupied, and the relations which they sustained to each other. 

First, there is the family of King Henry, consisting of himself andhis wife, Queen Margaret, and his little son Edward, who had receivedthe title of Prince of Wales. This boy was about eight years old atthe time his father and mother were driven away. We left them, in thelast chapter, flying toward the frontiers of Scotland to save theirlives, leaving to Edward and his troops the full possession of thekingdom. 

Henry and his little son, the Prince of Wales, of course represent thehouse of Lancaster in the dispute for the succession. 

The house of York was represented by Edward, whose title, as king, wasEdward the Fourth, and his two brothers, George and Richard, or, asthey were now generally called, Clarence and Gloucester. In caseEdward should be married and have a son, his son would succeed him, and George and Richard would be excluded; if, however, he should diewithout issue, then George would become king; and if George should diewithout issue, and Richard should survive him, then Richard wouldsucceed. Thus, as matters now stood, George and Richard werepresumptive heirs to the crown, and it was natural that they shouldwish that their brother Edward should never be married. 

Besides these two brothers, who were the only ones of all his brothersthat were now living, Edward had a sister named Margaret. Margaret wasfour years younger than Edward the king, and about six years olderthan Richard. She was now about seventeen. A young lady of that age inthe family of a king in those days was quite a treasure, as the kingwas enabled to promote his political schemes sometimes veryeffectually by bestowing her in marriage upon this great prince orthat, as would best further the interests which he had in view inforeign courts. 

This young lady, Edward's sister, being of the samename--Margaret--with the queen of old King Henry, was distinguishedfrom her by being called Margaret of York, as she belonged to the Yorkfamily. The queen was generally known as Margaret of Anjou. Anjou wasthe place of her nativity. 

The next great personage to be named is the Earl of Warwick. He wasthe man, as you will doubtless recollect, who was in command of thesea between England and the Continent at the time when Lady Cecilywished to send her children, George and Richard, away after theirfather's death, and who assisted in arranging their flight. He was aman of great power and influence, and of such an age and characterthat he exerted a vast ascendency over all within his influence. Without him, Edward never would have conquered the Lancaster party, and he knew very well that if Warwick, and all those whom Warwickwould carry with him, were to desert him, he should not be able toretain his kingdom. Indeed, Warwick received the surname of_King-maker_ from the fact that, in repeated instances during thisquarrel, he put down one dynasty and raised up the other, just as hepleased. He belonged to a great and powerful family named Neville. Assoon as Edward was established on his throne, Warwick, almost as amatter of course, became prime minister. One of his brothers was madechancellor, and a great number of other posts of distinction and honorwere distributed among the members of the Neville family. Indeed, although Edward was nominally king, it might have been considered insome degree a question whether it was the house of York or the houseof Neville that actually reigned in England. 

The Earl of Warwick had two daughters. Their names were Isabella andAnne. These two young ladies the earl reckoned, as Edward did hissister Margaret, among the most important of his political resources. By marrying them to persons of very high position, he could strengthenhis alliances and increase his power. There was even a possibility, hethought, of marrying one of them to the King of England, or to aprince who would become king. 

Thus we have for the three great parties to the transactions now to bedescribed, first, the representatives of the house of Lancaster, thefeeble Henry, the energetic and strong-minded Margaret of Anjou, andtheir little son, the Prince of Wales; secondly, the representativesof the house of York, King Edward the Fourth, the two young men hisbrothers, George, Duke of Clarence, and Richard, Duke of Gloucester, and his sister Margaret; and, thirdly, between these two parties, asit were, the Earl of Warwick and his two daughters, Isabella and Anne, standing at the head of a vast family influence, which ramified toevery part of the kingdom, and was powerful enough to give theascendency to either side, in favor of which they might declare. 

We are now prepared to follow Queen Margaret in her flight toward thenorth with her husband and her son, at the time when Edward the Fourthovercame her armies and ascended the throne. She pressed on as rapidlyas possible, taking the king and the little prince with her, andaccompanied and assisted in her flight by a few attendants, till shehad crossed the frontier and was safe in Scotland. The Scots espousedher cause, and assisted her to raise fresh troops, with which she madeone or two short incursions into England; but she soon found that shecould do nothing effectual in this way, and so, after wasting sometime in fruitless attempts, she left Scotland with the king and theprince, and went to France. 

Here she entered into negotiations with the King of France, and withother princes and potentates, on the Continent, with a view of raisingmen and money for a new invasion of England. At first these powersdeclined to assist her. They said that their treasuries wereexhausted, and that they had no men. At last, however, Margaretpromised to the King of France that if he would furnish her with afleet and an army, by which she could recover the kingdom of herhusband, she would cede to him the town of Calais, which, thoughsituated on the coast of France, was at that time an Englishpossession. This was a very tempting offer, for Calais was a fortressof the first class, and a military post either for England or Franceof a very important character. 

The king consented to this proposal. He equipped a fleet and raised anarmy, and Margaret set sail for England, taking the king and theprince with her. Her plan was to land in the northern part of theisland, near the frontiers of Scotland, where she expected to find thecountry more friendly to the Lancastrian line than the people weretoward the south. As soon as she landed she was joined by many of thepeople, and she succeeded in capturing some castles and small towns. But the Earl of Warwick, who was, as has been already said, the primeminister under Edward, immediately raised an army of twenty thousandmen, and marched to the northward to meet her. Margaret's French armywas wholly unprepared to encounter such a force as this, so they fledto their ships. All but about five hundred of the men succeeded inreaching the ships. The five hundred were cut to pieces. Margaretherself was detained in making arrangements for the king and theprince. She concluded not to take them to sea again, but to send themsecretly into Wales, while she herself went back to France to see ifshe could not procure re-enforcements. She barely had time, at last, to reach the ships herself, so close at hand were her enemies. As soonas the queen had embarked, the fleet set sail. The queen had savednearly all the money and all the stores which she had brought with herfrom France, and she hoped still to preserve them for another attempt. But the fleet had scarcely got off from the shore when a terriblestorm arose, and the ships were all driven upon the rocks and dashedto pieces. The money and the stores were all lost; a large portion ofthe men were drowned; Margaret herself and the captain of the fleetsaved themselves, and, as soon as the storm was over, they succeededin making their escape back to Berwick in an old fishing-boat whichthey obtained on the shore. 

Soon after this, Margaret, with the captain of the fleet and a verysmall number of faithful followers who still adhered to her, sailedback again to France. 

The disturbances, however, which her landing had occasioned, did notcease immediately on her departure. The Lancastrian party all overEngland were excited and moved to action by the news of her coming, and for two years insurrections were continually taking place, andmany battles were fought, and great numbers of people were killed. King Henry was all this time kept in close concealment, sometimes inWales, and sometimes among the lakes and mountains in Westmoreland. Hewas conveyed from place to place by his adherents in the most secretmanner, the knowledge in respect to his situation being confined tothe smallest possible number of persons. This continued for two orthree years. At last, however, while the friends of the king wereattempting secretly to convey him to a certain castle in Yorkshire, hewas seen and recognized by one of his enemies. A plan was immediatelyformed to make him prisoner. The plan succeeded. The king wassurprised by an overwhelming force, which broke into the castle andseized him while he sat at dinner. His captors, and those who werelying in wait to assist them, galloped off at once with their prisonerto London. King Edward shut him up in the Tower, and he remainedthere, closely confined and strongly guarded for a long time. 

Thus King Henry's life was saved, but of those who espoused his cause, and made attempts to restore him, great numbers were seized andbeheaded in the most cruel manner. It was Edward's policy to slay allthe leaders. It was said that after a battle he would ride with acompany of men over the ground, and kill every wounded or exhaustedman of rank that still remained alive, though he would spare thecommon soldiers. Sometimes, when he got men that were speciallyobnoxious to him into his hands, he would put them to death in themost cruel and ignominious manner. One distinguished knight, that hadbeen taken prisoner by Warwick, was brought to King Edward, who, atthat time, as it happened, was sick, and by Edward's orders wastreated most brutally. He was first taken out into a public place, andhis spurs were struck off from his feet by a cook. This was one of thegreatest indignities that a knight could suffer. Then his coat of armswas torn off from him, and another coat, inside out, was put upon him. Then he was made to walk barefoot to the end of the town, and therewas laid down upon his back on a sort of drag, and so drawn to theplace of execution, where his head was cut off on a block with abroad-axe. 

Such facts as these show what a state of exasperation the two greatparties of York and Lancaster were in toward each other throughout thekingdom. It is necessary to understand this, in order fully toappreciate the import and consequences of the very extraordinarytransaction which is now to be related. 

It seems there was a certain knight named Sir John Gray, aLancastrian, who had been killed at one of the great battles which hadbeen fought during the war. He had also been attainted, as it wascalled--that is, sentence had been pronounced against him on a chargeof high treason, by which his estates were forfeited, and his wifeand children, of course, reduced to poverty. The name of his wife wasElizabeth Woodville. She was the daughter of a noble knight named SirRichard Woodville. Her mother's name was Jacquetta. On the death andattainder of her husband, being reduced to great poverty and distress, she went home to the house of her father and mother, at a beautifulmanor which they possessed at Grafton. She was quite young, and verybeautiful. 

It happened that by some means or other Edward paid a visit one day tothe Lady Jacquetta, at her manor, as he was passing through thecountry. Whether this visit was accidental, or whether it wascontrived by Jacquetta, does not appear. However this may be, thebeautiful widow came into the presence of the king, and, throwingherself at his feet, begged and implored him to revoke the attainderof her husband for the sake of her innocent and helpless children. Theking was much moved by her beauty and by her distress. From pityingher he soon began to love her. And yet it seemed impossible that heshould marry her. Her rank, in the first place, was far below his, andthen, what was worse, she belonged to the Lancastrian party, theking's implacable enemies. The king knew very well that all his ownpartisans would be made furious at the idea of such a match, and that, if they knew that it was in contemplation, they would resist it to theutmost of their power. For a time he did not know what he should do. At length, however, his love for the beautiful widow, as might easilybe foreseen, triumphed over all considerations of prudence, and he wassecretly married to her. The marriage took place in the morning, in avery private manner, in the month of May, in 1464. 

The king kept the marriage secret nearly all summer. He thought itbest to break the subject to his lords and nobles gradually, as he hadopportunity to communicate it to them one by one. In this way it atlength became known, without producing, at any one time, any specialsensation, and toward the fall preparations were made for openlyacknowledging the union. 

[Illustration: KING EDWARD IV. 

This engraving is a portrait of King Edward as he appeared at thistime. It is copied from an ancient painting, and doubtless representscorrectly the character and expression of his countenance, and oneform, at least, of dress which he was accustomed to wear. He was, atthe time of his marriage, about twenty-two years of age. Elizabeth wasten years older. ]

[Illustration: QUEEN ELIZABETH WOODVILLE. 

This engraving represents the queen. It is taken, like the other, froman ancient portrait, and no doubt corresponds closely to theoriginal. ]

Although the knowledge of the king's marriage produced no suddenoutbreak of opposition, it awakened a great deal of secret indignationand rage, and gave occasion to many suppressed mutterings and curses. Of course, every leading family of the realm, that had been onEdward's side in the civil wars, which contained a marriageabledaughter, had been forming hopes and laying plans to secure thismagnificent match for themselves. Those who had no marriageabledaughters of their own joined their nearest relatives and friends intheir schemes, or formed plans for some foreign alliance with aprincess of France, or Burgundy, or Holland, whichever would bestharmonize with the political schemes that they wished to promote. TheEarl of Warwick seems to have belonged to the former class. He had twodaughters, as has already been stated. It would very naturally be hisdesire that the king, if he were to take for his wife any Englishsubject at all, should make choice of one of these. Of course, he wasmore than all the rest irritated and vexed at what the king had done. He communicated his feelings to Clarence, but concealed them from theking. Clarence was, of course, ready to sympathize with the earl. Hewas ready enough to take offense at any thing connected with theking's marriage on very slight grounds, for it was very much for hisinterest, as the next heir, that his brother should not be married atall. 

[Illustration: WESTMINSTER IN TIMES OF PUBLIC CELEBRATIONS. ]

The earl and Clarence, however, thought it best for the time tosuppress and conceal their opposition to the marriage; so they joinedvery readily in the ceremonies connected with the publicacknowledgment of the queen. A vast assemblage of nobles, prelates, and other grand dignitaries was convened, and Elizabeth was broughtforward before them and formally presented. The Earl of Warwick andClarence appeared in the foremost rank among her friends on thisoccasion. They took her by the hand, and, leading her forward, presented her to the assembled multitude of lords and ladies, whowelcomed her with long and loud acclamations. 

Soon after this a grand council was convened, and a handsome incomewas settled upon the queen, to enable her properly to maintain thedignity of her station. 

Early in the next year preparations were made for a grand coronationof the queen. Foreign princes were invited to attend the ceremony, andmany came, accompanied by large bodies of knights and squires, to dohonor to the occasion. The coronation took place in May. The queen wasconveyed in procession through the streets of London on a sort of openpalanquin, borne by horses most magnificently caparisoned. Vast crowdsof people assembled along the streets to look at the procession as itpassed. The next day the coronation itself took place in Westminster, and it was followed by games, feasts, tournaments, and publicrejoicings of every kind, which lasted many days. 

Thus far every thing on the surface, at least, had gone well; but itwas not long after the coronation before the troubles which were to beexpected from such a match began to develop themselves in great force. The new queen was ambitious, and she was naturally desirous ofbringing her friends forward into places of influence and honor. Theking was, of course, ready to listen to her recommendations; but thenall her friends were Lancastrians. They were willing enough, it istrue, to change their politics and to become Yorkists for the sake ofthe rewards and honors which they could obtain by the change, but theold friends of the king were greatly exasperated to find the importantposts, one after another, taken away from them, and given to theirhated enemies. 

Then, besides the quarrel for the political offices, there were agreat many of the cherished matrimonial plans and schemes of the oldfamilies interfered with and broken up by the queen's family thuscoming into power. It happened that the queen had five unmarriedsisters. She began to form plans for securing for them men of thehighest rank and position in the realm. This, of course, thwarted theplans and disappointed the hopes of all those families who had beenscheming to gain these husbands for their own daughters. To see fivegreat heirs of dukes and barons thus withdrawn from the matrimonialmarket, and employed to increase the power and prestige of theirancient and implacable foes, filled the souls of the old Yorkistfamilies with indignation. Parties were formed. The queen and herfamily and friends--the Woodvilles and Grays--with all theiradherents, were on one side; the Neville family, with the Earl ofWarwick at their head, and most of the old Yorkist noblemen, were onthe other; Clarence joined the Earl of Warwick; Richard, on the otherhand, or Gloucester, as he was now called, adhered to the king. 

Things went on pretty much in this way for two years. There was noopen quarrel, though there was a vast deal of secret animosity andbickering. The great world at court was divided into two sets, orcliques, that hated each other very cordially, though both, for thepresent, pretended to support King Edward as the rightful sovereign ofthe country. The struggle was for the honors and offices under him. The families who still adhered to the old Lancastrian party, and tothe rights of Henry and of the little Prince of Wales, withdrew, ofcourse, altogether from the court, and, retiring to their castles, brooded moodily there over their fallen fortunes, and waited inexpectation of better times. Henry was imprisoned in the Tower;Margaret and the Prince of Wales were on the Continent. They and theirfriends were, of course, watching the progress of the quarrel betweenthe party of the Earl of Warwick and that of the king, hoping that itmight at last lead to an open rupture, in which case the Lancastriansmight hope for Warwick's aid to bring them again into power. 

[Illustration: WARWICK IN THE PRESENCE OF THE FRENCH KING. ]

And now another circumstance occurred which widened this breach verymuch indeed. It arose from a difference of opinion between King Edwardand the Earl of Warwick in respect to the marriage of the king'ssister Margaret, known, as has already been said, as Margaret of York. There was upon the Continent a certain Count Charles, the son and heirof the Duke of Burgundy, who demanded her hand. The count's family hadbeen enemies of the house of York, and had done every thing in theirpower to promote Queen Margaret's plans, so long as there was any hopefor her; but when they found that King Edward was firmly establishedon the throne, they came over to his side, and now the count demandedthe hand of the Princess Margaret in marriage; but the stern old Earlof Warwick did not like such friendship as this, so he recommendedthat the count should be refused, and that Margaret should have forher husband one of the princes of France. 

Now King Edward himself preferred Count Charles for the husband ofMargaret, and this chiefly because the queen, his wife, preferred himon account of the old friendship which had subsisted between hisfamily and the Lancastrians. Besides this, however, Flanders, thecountry over which the count was to reign on the death of his father, was at that time so situated that an alliance with it would be ofgreater advantage to Edward's political plans than an alliance withFrance. But, notwithstanding this, the earl was so earnest in urginghis opinion, that finally Edward yielded, and the earl was dispatchedto France to negotiate the marriage with the French prince. 

The earl set off on this embassy in great magnificence. He landed inNormandy with a vast train of attendants, and proceeded in almostroyal state toward Paris. The King of France, to honor his coming andthe occasion, came forth to meet him. The meeting took place at Rouen. The proposals were well received by the French king. The negotiationswere continued for eight or ten days, and at last every thing wasarranged. For the final closing of the contract, it was necessary thata messenger from the King of France should proceed to London. The kingappointed an archbishop and some other dignitaries to perform theservice. The earl then returned to England, and was soon followed bythe French embassadors, expecting that every thing essential wassettled, and that nothing but a few formalities remained. 

But, in the mean time, while all this had been going on in France, Count Charles had quietly sent an embassador to England to press hisclaim to the princess's hand. This messenger managed this businessvery skillfully, so as not to attract any public attention to what hewas doing; and besides, the earl being away, the queen, Elizabeth, could exert all her influence over her husband's mind unimpeded. Edward was finally persuaded to promise Margaret's hand to the count, and the contracts were made; so that, when the earl and the Frenchembassadors arrived, they found, to their astonishment and dismay, that a rival and enemy had stepped in during their absence and securedthe prize. 

The Earl of Warwick was furious when he learned how he had beendeceived. He had been insulted, he said, and disgraced. Edward madeno attempt to pacify him; indeed, any attempt that he could have madewould probably have been fruitless. The earl withdrew from the court, went off to one of his castles, and shut himself up there in greatdispleasure. 

The quarrel now began to assume a very serious air. Edward suspectedthat the earl was forming plots and conspiracies against him. Hefeared that he was secretly designing to take measures for restoringthe Lancastrian line to the throne. He was alarmed for his personalsafety. He expelled all Warwick's family and friends from the court, and, whenever he went out in public, he took care to be alwaysattended by a strong body-guard, as if he thought there was danger ofan attempt upon his life. 

At length one of the earl's brothers, the youngest of the family, whowas at that time Archbishop of York, interposed to effect areconciliation. We have not space here to give a full account of thenegotiations; but the result was, a sort of temporary peace was made, by which the earl again returned to court, and was restored apparentlyto his former position. But there was no cordial good-will between himand the king. Edward dreaded the earl's power, and hated the sternseverity of his character, while the earl, by the commanding influencewhich he exerted in the realm, was continually thwarting both Edwardand Elizabeth in their plans. 

Edward and Elizabeth had now been married some time, but they had noson, and, of course, no heir, for daughters in those days did notinherit the English crown. Of course, Clarence, Edward's secondbrother, was the next heir. This increased the jealousy which the twobrothers felt toward each other, and tended very much to driveClarence away from Edward, and to increase the intimacy betweenClarence and Warwick. At length, in 1468, it was announced that amarriage was in contemplation between Clarence and Isabella, the Earlof Warwick's oldest daughter. Edward and Queen Elizabeth were verymuch displeased and very much alarmed when they heard of this plan. Ifcarried into effect, it would bind Clarence and the Warwick influencetogether in indissoluble bonds, and make their power much moreformidable than ever before. Every body would say when the marriagewas concluded, "Now, in case Edward should die, which event may happen at any time, the earl's daughter will be queen, and then the earl will have agreater influence than ever in the disposition of offices and honors. It behooves us, therefore, to make friends with him in season, so asto secure his good-will in advance, before he comes into power. "

King Edward and his queen, seeing how much this match was likely atonce to increase the earl's importance, did every thing in their powerto prevent it. But they could not succeed. The earl was determinedthat Clarence and his daughter should be married. The opposition was, however, so strong at court that the marriage could not be celebratedat London; so the ceremony was performed at Calais, which city was atthat time under the earl's special command. The king and queenremained at London, and made no attempt to conceal their vexation andchagrin. 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE DOWNFALL OF YORK. 

1469-1470

Insurrections. --The king goes to meet the rebels. --Rebellionsuppressed. --A grand reconciliation. --The king frightened. --Thequarrel renewed. --New reconciliations. --New rebellions. --Warwick comesto open war with the king. --Warwick and his party not allowed to landat Calais. --The party in great straits. --They land at Harfleur. --Strangecompact between Warwick and Queen Margaret. --Attempt to entice Clarenceaway from Warwick. --Edward does not fear. --The Duke of Burgundy. --QueenMargaret crosses the Channel. --Landing of the expedition. --Reception ofit. --Edward's friends and followers forsake him. --Edward flies from thecountry. --Difficulties and dangers. --His mother makes her escape tosanctuary. --Birth of Edward's son and heir. --King Henry is fullyrestored to the throne. 

Edward's apprehension and anxiety in respect to the danger thatWarwick might be concocting schemes to restore the Lancastrian line tothe throne were greatly increased by the sudden breaking out ofinsurrections in the northern part of the island, while Warwick andClarence were absent in Calais, on the occasion of Clarence's marriageto Isabella. The insurgents did not demand the restoration of theLancastrian line, but only the removal of the queen's family andrelations from the council. The king raised an armed force, andmarched to the northward to meet the rebels. But his army wasdisaffected, and he could do nothing. They fled before the advancingarmy of insurgents, and Edward went with them to Nottingham Castle, where he shut himself up, and wrote urgently to Warwick and Clarenceto come to his aid. 

Warwick made no haste to obey this command. After some delay, however, he left Calais in command of one of his lieutenants and repaired toNottingham, where he soon released the king from his dangeroussituation. He quelled the rebellion too, but not until the insurgentshad seized the father and one of the brothers of the queen, and cutoff their heads. 

In the mean time, the Lancastrians themselves, thinking that this wasa favorable time for them, began to put themselves in motion. Warwickwas the only person who was capable of meeting them and putting themdown. This he did, taking the king with him in his train, in acondition more like that of a prisoner than a sovereign. At length, however, the rebellions were suppressed, and all parties returned toLondon. 

There now took place what purported to be a grand reconciliation. Treaties were drawn up and signed between Warwick and Clarence on oneside, and the king on the other, by which both parties boundthemselves to forgive and forget all that had passed, and thenceforthto be good friends; but, notwithstanding all the solemn signings andsealings with which these covenants were secured, the actual conditionof the parties in respect to each other remained entirely unchanged, and neither of the three felt a whit more confidence in the othersafter the execution of these treaties than before. 

At last the secret distrust which they felt toward each other brokeout openly. Warwick's brother, the Archbishop of York, made anentertainment at one of his manors for a party of guests, in whichwere included the king, the Duke of Clarence, and the Earl of Warwick. It was about three months after the treaties were signed that thisentertainment was made, and the feast was intended to celebrate andcement the good understanding which it was now agreed was henceforthto prevail. The king arrived at the manor, and, while he was in hisroom making his toilet for the supper, which was all ready to beserved, an attendant came to him and whispered in his ear, "Your majesty is in danger. There is a band of armed men in ambushnear the house. "

The king was greatly alarmed at hearing this. He immediately stole outof the house, mounted his horse, and, with two or three followers, rode away as fast as he could ride. He continued his journey allnight, and in the morning arrived at Windsor Castle. 

Then followed new negotiations between Warwick and the king, withmutual reproaches, criminations, and recriminations without number. Edward insisted that treachery was intended at the house to which hehad been invited, and that he had barely escaped, by his suddenflight, from falling into the snare. But Warwick and his friendsdenied this entirely, and attributed the flight of the king to awholly unreasonable alarm, caused by his jealous and suspicioustemper. At last Edward suffered himself to be reassured, and then camenew treaties and a new reconciliation. 

This peace was made in the fall of 1469, and in the spring of 1470 anew insurrection broke out. The king believed that Warwick himself, and Clarence, were really at the bottom of these disturbances, butstill he was forced to send them with bodies of troops to subdue therebels; he, however, immediately raised a large army for himself, andproceeded to the seat of war. He reached the spot before Warwick andClarence arrived there. He gave battle to the insurgents, and defeatedthem. He took a great many prisoners, and beheaded them. He found, orpretended to find, proof that Warwick and Clarence, instead ofintending to fight the insurgents, had made their arrangements forjoining them on the following day, and that he had been just in timeto defeat their treachery. Whether he really found evidence of theseintentions on the part of Warwick and Clarence or not, or whether hewas flushed by the excitement of victory, and resolved to seize theoccasion to cut loose at once and forever from the entanglement inwhich he had been bound, is somewhat uncertain. At all events, he nowdeclared open war against Warwick and Clarence, and set offimmediately on his march to meet them, at the head of a force muchsuperior to theirs. 

Warwick and Clarence marched and countermarched, and made manymanoeuvres to escape a battle, and during all this time theirstrength was rapidly diminishing. As long as they were nominally onthe king's side, however really hostile to him, they had plenty offollowers; but, now that they were in open war against him, theirforces began to melt away. In this emergency, Warwick suddenly changedall his plans. He disbanded his army, and then taking all his familywith him, including Clarence and Isabella, and accompanied by aninconsiderable number of faithful friends, he marched at the head of asmall force which he retained as an escort to the sea-port ofDartmouth, and then embarked for Calais. 

The vessels employed to transport the party formed quite a littlefleet, so numerous were the servants and attendants that accompaniedthe fugitives. They embarked without delay on reaching the coast, asthey were in haste to make the passage and arrive at Calais, forIsabella, Clarence's wife, was about to become a mother, and at Calaisthey thought that they should all be, as it were, at home. 

It will be remembered that the Earl of Warwick was the governor ofCalais, and that when he left it he had appointed a lieutenant to takecommand of it during his absence. Before his ship arrived off the portthis lieutenant had received dispatches from Edward, which had beenhurried to him by a special messenger, informing him that Warwick wasin rebellion against his sovereign, and forbidding the lieutenant toallow him or his party to enter the town. 

Accordingly, when Warwick's fleet arrived off the port, they found theguns of the batteries pointed at them, and sentinels on the pierswarning them not to attempt to land. 

Warwick was thunderstruck. To be thus refused admission to his ownfortress by his own lieutenant was something amazing, as well asoutrageous. The earl was at first completely bewildered; but, ondemanding an explanation, the lieutenant sent him word that therefusal to land was owing to the people of the town. They, he said, having learned that he and the king had come to open war, insistedthat the fortress should be reserved for their sovereign. Warwickthen explained the situation that his daughter was in; but thelieutenant was firm. The determination of the people was so strong, hesaid, that he could not control it. Finally, the child was born onboard the ship, as it lay at anchor off the port, and all the aid orcomfort which the party could get from the shore consisted of twoflagons of wine, which the lieutenant, with great hesitation andreluctance, allowed to be sent on board. The child was a son. Hisbirth was an event of great importance, for he was, of course, asClarence's son, a prince in the direct line of succession to theEnglish crown. 

At length, finding that he could not land at Calais, Warwick sailedaway with his fleet along the coast of France till he reached theFrench port of Harfleur. Here his ships were admitted, and the wholeparty were allowed to land. 

Then followed various intrigues, manoeuvres, and arrangements, whichwe have not time here fully to unravel; but the end of all was, thatin a few weeks after the Earl of Warwick's landing in France, herepaired to a castle where Margaret of Anjou and her son, the Princeof Wales, were residing, and there, in the course of a short time, hemade arrangements to espouse her cause, and assist in restoring herhusband to the English throne, on condition that her son, the Princeof Wales, should marry his second daughter Anne. It is said that QueenMargaret for a long time refused to consent to this arrangement. Shewas extremely unwilling that her son, the heir to the English crown, should take for a wife the daughter of the hated enemy to whom thedownfall of her family, and all the terrible calamities which hadbefallen them, had been mainly owing. She was, however, at lengthinduced to yield. Her ambition gained the victory over her hate, andshe consented to the alliance on a solemn oath being taken by Warwickthat thenceforth he would be on her side, and do all in his power torestore her family to the throne. 

This arrangement was accordingly carried into effect, and thus theearl had one of his daughters married to the next heir to the Englishcrown in the line of York, and the other to the next heir in the lineof Lancaster. He had now only to choose to which dynasty he wouldsecure the throne. Of course, the oath which he had taken, like otherpolitical oaths taken in those days, was only to be kept so long as heshould deem it for his interest to keep it. 

He could not at once openly declare in favor of King Henry, for fearof alienating Clarence from him. But Clarence was soon drawn away. King Edward, when he heard of the marriage of Warwick's daughter withthe Prince of Wales, immediately formed a plan for sending a messengerto negotiate with Clarence. He could not do this openly, for he knewvery well that Warwick would not allow any avowed messenger fromEdward to land; so he sent a lady. The lady was a particular friend ofIsabella, Clarence's wife. She traveled privately by the way ofCalais. On the way she said nothing about the object of her journey, but gave out simply that she was going to join her mistress, thePrincess Isabella. On her arrival she managed the affair with greatdiscretion. She easily obtained private interviews with Clarence, andrepresented to him that Warwick, now that his daughter was married tothe heir on the Lancastrian side, would undoubtedly lay all his plansforthwith for putting that family on the throne, and that thusClarence would lose all. 

"And therefore, " said she, "how much better it will be for you toleave him and return to your brother Edward, who is ready to forgiveand forget all the past, and receive you again as his friend. "

Clarence was convinced by these representations, and soon afterward, watching his opportunity, he made his way to England, and thereespoused his brother's cause, and was received again into his service. 

In the mean time, tidings were continually coming to King Edward fromhis friends on the Continent, warning him of Warwick's plans, andbidding him to be upon his guard. But Edward had no fear. He said hewished that Warwick would come. 

"All I ask of my friends on the other side of the Channel, " said he, "is that, when he does come, they will not let him get away againbefore I catch him--as he did before. "

Edward's great friend across the Channel was his brother-in-law, theDuke of Burgundy, the same who, when Count Charles, had married thePrincess Margaret of York, as related in a former chapter. The Duke ofBurgundy prepared and equipped a fleet, and had it all in readiness tointercept the earl in case he should attempt to sail for England. 

In the mean time, Queen Margaret and the earl went on with theirpreparations. The King of France furnished them with men, arms, andmoney. When every thing was ready, the earl sent word to the north ofEngland, to some of his friends and partisans there, to make a sortof false insurrection, in order to entice away Edward and his armyfrom the capital. This plan succeeded. Edward heard of the rising, and, collecting all the troops which were at hand, he marched to thenorthward to put it down. Just at this time a sudden storm arose anddispersed the Duke of Burgundy's fleet. The earl then immediately putto sea, taking with him Margaret of Anjou and her son, the Prince ofWales, with his wife, the Earl of Warwick's daughter. The Prince ofWales was now about eighteen years old. The father, King Henry, Margaret's husband, was not joined with the party. He was all thistime, as you will recollect, a prisoner in the Tower, where Warwickhimself had shut him up when he deposed him in order to place Edwardupon the throne. 

All Europe looked on with astonishment at these proceedings, andwatched the result with intense interest. Here was a man who, having, by a desperate and bloody war, deposed a king, and shut him up inprison, and compelled his queen and the prince his son, the heir, tofly from the country to save their lives, had now sought the exiles intheir banishment, had married his own daughter to the prince, and wassetting forth on an expedition for the purpose of liberating thefather again, and restoring him to the throne. 

The earl's fleet crossed the Channel safely, and landed on the coastof Devonshire, in the southwestern part of the island. The landing ofthe expedition was the signal for great numbers of the nobles and highfamilies throughout the realm to prepare for changing sides; for itwas the fact, throughout the whole course of these wars between thehouses of York and Lancaster, that a large proportion of the nobilityand gentry, and great numbers of other adventurers, who lived invarious ways on the public, stood always ready at once to change sideswhenever there was a prospect that another side was coming into power. Then there were, in such a case as this, great numbers who weresecretly in favor of the Lancaster line, but who were prevented frommanifesting their preference while the house of York was in fullpossession of power. All these persons were aroused and excited by thelanding of Warwick. King Edward found that his calls upon his friendsto rally to his standard were not promptly obeyed. His friends werebeginning to feel some doubt whether it would be best to continue hisfriends. A certain preacher in London had the courage to pray inpublic for the "king in the Tower, " and the manner in which thisallusion was received by the populace, and the excitement which itproduced, showed how ready the city of London was to espouse Henry'scause. 

These, and other such indications, alarmed Edward very much. He turnedto the southward again when he learned that Warwick had landed. Richard, who had, during all this period, adhered faithfully toEdward's cause, was with him, in command of a division of the army. AsWarwick himself was rapidly advancing toward the north at this time, the two armies soon began to approach each other. As the time of trialdrew nigh, Edward found that his friends and supporters were rapidlyabandoning him. At length, one day, while he was at dinner, amessenger came in and told him that one of the leading officers of thearmy, with the whole division under his command, were waving theircaps and cheering for "King Harry. " He saw at once that all was lost, and he immediately prepared to fly. 

He was not far from the eastern coast at this time, and there was asmall vessel there under his orders, which had been employed inbringing provisions from the Thames to supply his army. There werealso two Dutch vessels there. The king took possession of thesevessels, with Richard, and the few other followers that went with him, and put at once to sea. Nobody knew where they were going. 

Very soon after they had put to sea they were attacked by pirates. They escaped only by running their vessel on shore on the coast ofFinland. Here the king found himself in a state of almost absolutedestitution, so that he had to pawn his clothing to satisfy the mosturgent demands. At length, after meeting with various strangeadventures, he found his way to the Hague, where he was, for the time, in comparative safety. 

As soon as Warwick ascertained that Edward had fled, he turned towardLondon, with nothing now to impede his progress. He entered London intriumph. Clarence joined him, and entered London in his train; forClarence, though he had gone to England with the intention of makingcommon cause with his brother, had not been able yet to decidepositively whether it would, on the whole, be for his interest to doso, and had, accordingly, kept himself in some degree uncommitted, andnow he turned at once again to Warwick's side. 

The queen--Elizabeth Woodville--with her mother Jacquetta, wereresiding at the Tower at this time, where they had King Henry intheir keeping; for the Tower was an extended group of buildings, inwhich palace and prison were combined in one. As soon as the queenlearned that Edward was defeated, and that Warwick and Clarence werecoming in triumph to London, she took her mother and three of herdaughters--Elizabeth, Mary, and Cecily--who were with her at thattime, and also a lady attendant, and hurried down the Tower stairs toa barge which was always in waiting there. She embarked on board thebarge, and ordered the men to row her up to Westminster. 

Westminster is at the upper end of London, as the Tower is at thelower. On arriving at Westminster, the whole party fled for refuge toa sanctuary there. This sanctuary was a portion of the sacredprecincts of a church, from which a refugee could not be taken, according to the ideas of those times, without committing the dreadfulcrime of sacrilege. A part of the building remained standing for threehundred years after this time, as represented in the oppositeengraving. It was a gloomy old edifice, and it must have been acheerless residence for princesses and a queen. 

[Illustration: THE SANCTUARY. ]

In this sanctuary, the queen, away from her husband, and deprived ofalmost every comfort, gave birth to her first son. Some personsliving near took compassion upon her forlorn and desolate condition, and rendered her such aid as was absolutely necessary, out of charity. The abbot of the monastery connected with the church sent in variousconveniences, and a good woman named Mother Cobb, who lived near by, came in and acted as nurse for the mother and the child. 

The child was baptized in the sanctuary a few days after he was born. He was named Edward, after his father. Of course, the birth of thisson of King Edward cut off Clarence and his son from the succession onthe York side. This little Edward was now the heir, and, aboutthirteen years after this, as we shall see in the sequel, he becameKing of England. 

As soon as the Earl of Warwick reached London, he proceeded at once tothe Tower to release old King Henry from his confinement. He found thepoor king in a wretched plight. His apartment was gloomy andcomfortless, his clothing was ragged, and his person squalid anddirty. The earl brought him forth from his prison, and, after causinghis personal wants to be properly attended to, clothed him once morein royal robes, and conveyed him in state through London to the palacein Westminster, and established him there nominally as King ofEngland, though Warwick was to all intents and purposes the real king. A Parliament was called, and all necessary laws were passed tosanction and confirm the dynasty. Queen Margaret, who, however, hadnot yet arrived from the Continent, was restored to her former rank, and the young Prince of Wales, now about eighteen years old, was theobject of universal interest throughout the kingdom, as now theunquestioned and only heir to the crown. 

CHAPTER VII. 

THE DOWNFALL OF LANCASTER. 

A. D. 1470-1471

Position of Richard. --The Duke of Burgundy. --His cunning. --Secretcommunication with Clarence. --Warwick's plans to secureClarence. --Edward and Richard sail for England. --Stratagemsof war. --Reception of Edward at York. --The roses. --Publicopinion. --Warwick. --Position of Clarence. --His doubledealing. --Clarence goes over to Edward's side. --Edwardtriumphant. --Henry again sent to the Tower. --Warwick refuses toyield. --Preparations for a battle. --Edward victorious. --Warwickslain. --King Henry. --Margaret and the Prince of Wales. --Meetingof the armies. --Two boys to command. --The killing of LordWenlock. --End of the battle. --Murder of the Prince of Wales. --Thequeen's refuge. --Edward in the church. --Margaret taken. --Conducteda prisoner to London. --Henry is put to death in the Tower. --Burialof Henry VI. --The Lancastrian party completely subdued. 

It was in the month of October, 1470, that old King Henry and hisfamily were restored to the throne. Clarence, as we have seen, beingallied to Warwick by being married to his daughter, was induced to goover with him to the Lancastrian side; but Gloucester--that is, Richard--remained true to his own line, and followed the fortunes ofhis brother, in adverse as well as in prosperous times, withunchanging fidelity. He was now with Edward in the dominions of theDuke of Burgundy, who, you will recollect, married Margaret, Edward'ssister, and who was now very naturally inclined to espouse Edward'scause. 

The Duke of Burgundy did not, however, dare to espouse Edward's causetoo openly, for fear of the King of France, who took the side of Henryand Queen Margaret. He, however, did all in his power secretly tobefriend him. Edward and Richard began immediately to form schemes forgoing back to England and recovering possession of the kingdom. TheDuke of Burgundy issued a public proclamation, in which it wasforbidden that any of his subjects should join Edward, or that anyexpedition to promote his designs should be fitted out in any part ofhis dominions. This proclamation was for the sake of the King ofFrance. At the same time that he issued these orders publicly, hesecretly sent Edward a large sum of money, furnished him with a fleetof fifteen or twenty ships, and assisted him in collecting a force oftwelve hundred men. 

While he was making these arrangements and preparations on theContinent, Edward and his friends had also opened a secretcommunication with Clarence in England. It would, of course, very muchweaken the cause of Edward and Richard to have Clarence against them;so Margaret, the wife of the Duke of Burgundy, interested herself inendeavoring to win him back again to their side. She had herself greatinfluence over him, and she was assisted in her efforts by theirmother, the Lady Cecily, who was still living in the neighborhood ofLondon, and who was greatly grieved at Clarence's having turnedagainst his brothers. The tie which bound Clarence to the Earl ofWarwick was, of course, derived chiefly from his being married toWarwick's daughter. Warwick, however, did not trust wholly to this. As soon as he had restored Henry to the throne, he contrived a cunningplan which he thought would tend to bind Clarence still more stronglyto himself, and to alienate him completely from Edward. This plan wasto induce the Parliament to confiscate all Edward's estates and conferthem upon Clarence. 

"Now, " said Warwick to himself, when this measure had beenaccomplished, "Clarence will be sure to oppose Edward's return toEngland, for he knows very well that if he should return and berestored to the throne, he would, of course, take all these estatesback again. "

But, while Edward was forming his plans on the Continent for a freshinvasion of England, Margaret sent messengers to Clarence, and theirpersuasions, united to those of his mother, induced Clarence to changehis mind. He was governed by no principle whatever in what he did, butonly looked to see what would most speedily and most fully gratify hisambition and increase his wealth. So, when they argued that it wouldbe much better for him to be on the side of his brothers, and assistin restoring his own branch of the family to the throne, than tocontinue his unnatural connection with Warwick and the house ofLancaster, he allowed himself to be easily persuaded, and he promisedthat though, for the present, he should remain ostensibly a friend ofWarwick, still, if Edward and Richard would raise an expedition andcome to England, he would forsake Warwick and the Lancasters, and jointhem. 

Accordingly, in the spring, when the fleet and the forces were ready, Edward and Richard set sail from the Low Country to cross the Channel. It was early in March. They intended to proceed to the north ofEngland and land there. They had a very stormy passage, and in the endthe fleet was dispersed, and Edward and Richard with great difficultysucceeded in reaching the land. The two brothers were in differentships, and they landed in different places, a few miles apart fromeach other. Their situation was now extremely critical, for allEngland was in the power of Warwick and the Lancastrians, and Edwardand Richard were almost entirely without men. 

They, however, after a time, got together a small force, consistingchiefly of the troops who had come with them, and who had succeeded atlast in making their way to the land. At the head of this force theyadvanced into the country toward the city of York. Edward gave outevery where that he had not come with any view of attempting toregain possession of the throne, but only to recover his own privateand family estates, which had been unjustly confiscated, he said, andconferred upon his brother. He acquiesced entirely, he said, in therestoration of Henry to the throne, and acknowledged him as king, andsolemnly declared that he would not do any thing to disturb the peaceof the country. 

All this was treacherous and false; but Edward and Richard thoughtthat they were not yet strong enough to announce openly their realdesigns, and, in the mean time, the uttering of any false declarationswhich they might deem it good policy to make was to be considered as astratagem justified by usage, as one of the legitimate resources ofwar. 

So they went on, nobody opposing them. They reached, at length, thecity of York. Here Edward met the mayor and aldermen of the city, andrenewed his declaration, which he confirmed by a solemn oath, that henever would lay any claim to the throne of England, or do any thing todisturb King Henry in his possession of it. He cried out, in a loudvoice, in the hearing of the people, "Long live King Henry, and PrinceEdward his son!" He wore an ostrich feather, too, in his armor, whichwas the badge of Prince Edward. The people of York were satisfiedwith these protestations, and allowed him to proceed. 

His force was continually increasing as he advanced, and at length, oncrossing the River Trent, he came to a part of the country wherealmost the whole population had been on the side of York during allthe previous wars. He began now to throw off his disguise, and to avowmore openly that his object was again to obtain possession of thethrone for the house of York. His troops now began to exhibit thewhite rose, which for many generations had been the badge of the houseof York, as the red rose had been that of Lancaster. [F] In a word, thecountry was every where aroused and excited by the idea that anotherrevolution was impending, and all those whose ruling principle it wasto be always with the party that was uppermost began to makepreparations for coming over to Edward's side. 

[Footnote F: It was in consequence of this use of the roses, as thebadges of the two parties respectively, that the civil wars betweenthese two great families are often called in history the Wars of theRoses. ]

In the mean time, however, Warwick, alarmed, had come from thenorthward to London to meet the invaders at the head of a strongforce. Clarence was in command of one great division of this force, and Warwick himself of the other. The two bodies of troops marched atsome little distance from each other. Edward shaped his course so asto approach that commanded by Clarence. Warwick did all he could toprevent this, being, apparently, somewhat suspicious that Clarence wasnot fully to be relied on. But Edward succeeded, by dint of skillfulmanoeuvring, in accomplishing his object, and thus he and Clarencecame into the neighborhood of each other. The respective encampmentswere only three miles apart. It seems, however, that there were stillsome closing negotiations to be made before Clarence was fullyprepared to take the momentous step that was now before him. Richardwas the agent of these negotiations. He went back and forth betweenthe two camps, conveying the proposals and counter-proposals from oneparty to the other, and doing all in his power to remove obstaclesfrom the way, and to bring his brothers to an agreement. At last everything was arranged. Clarence ordered his men to display the white roseupon their armor, and then, with trumpets sounding and banners flying, he marched forth to meet Edward, and to submit himself to his command. 

When the column which he led arrived near to Edward's camp, it halted, and Clarence himself, with a small body of attendants, advanced tomeet his brother; Edward, at the same time, leaving his encampment, incompany with Richard and several noblemen, came forward too. ThusEdward and Clarence met, as the old chronicle expresses it, "betwixtboth hosts, where was right kind and loving language betwixt them two. And then, in like wise, spoke together the two Dukes of Clarence andGloucester, and afterward the other noblemen that were there withthem; whereof all the people that were there that loved them wereright glad and joyous, and thanked God highly for that joyous meeting, unity and concord, hoping that thereby should grow unto themprosperous fortune in all that they should after that have to do. "

Warwick was, of course, in a dreadful rage when he learned thatClarence had betrayed him and gone over to the enemy. He could donothing, however, to repair the mischief, and he was altogether tooweak to resist the two armies now combined against him; so he drewback, leaving the way clear, and Edward, at the head now of anoverwhelming force, and accompanied by both his brothers, advanceddirectly to London. 

He was received at the capital with great favor. Whoever was uppermostfor the time being was always received with favor in England in thosedays, both in the capital and throughout the country at large. It wassaid, however, that the interest in Edward's fortunes, and in thesuccession of his branch of the family to the throne, was greatlyincreased at this time by the birth of his son, which had taken placein the sanctuary, as related in the last chapter, soon after QueenElizabeth sought refuge there, at the time of Edward's expulsion fromthe kingdom. Of course, the first thing which Edward did after makinghis public entry into London was to proceed to the sanctuary to rejoinhis wife, and deliver her from her duress, and also to see hisnew-born son. 

Queen Margaret was out of the kingdom at this time, being on a visitto the Continent. She had her son, the Prince of Wales, with her; butHenry, the king, was in London. He, of course, fell into Edward'shands, and was immediately sent back a prisoner to the Tower. 

Edward remained only a day or two in London, and then set off again, at the head of all his troops, to meet Warwick. He brought out KingHenry from the Tower, and took him with the army as a prisoner. 

Warwick had now strengthened himself so far that he was prepared forbattle. The two armies approached each other not many miles fromLondon. Before commencing hostilities, Clarence wished for anopportunity to attempt a reconciliation; he, of course, felt a strongdesire to make peace, if possible, for his situation, in case ofbattle, would be painful in the extreme--his brothers on one side, andhis father-in-law on the other, and he himself compelled to fightagainst the cause which he had abandoned and betrayed. So he sent amessenger to the earl, offering to act as mediator between him and hisbrother, in hopes of finding some mode of arranging the quarrel; butthe earl, instead of accepting the mediation, sent back onlyinvectives and defiance. 

"Go tell your master, " he said to the messenger, "that Warwick is notthe man to follow the example of faithlessness and treason which thefalse, perjured Clarence has set him. Unlike him, I stand true to myoath, and this quarrel can only be settled by the sword. "

Of course, nothing now remained but to fight the battle, and a mostdesperate and bloody battle it was. It was fought upon a plain at aplace called Barnet. It lasted from four in the morning till ten. 

[Illustration: DEATH OF WARWICK ON THE FIELD OF BARNET. ]

Richard came forward in the fight in a very conspicuous and prominentmanner. He was now about eighteen years of age, and this was the firstserious battle in which he had been actually engaged. He evinced agreat deal of heroism, and won great praise by the ardor in which herushed into the thickest of the fight, and by the manner in which heconducted himself there. The squires who attended him were bothkilled, but Richard himself remained unhurt. 

In the end, Edward was victorious. The quarrel was thus decided by thesword, as Warwick had said, and decided, so far as the earl wasconcerned, terribly and irrevocably, for he himself was unhorsed uponthe field, and slain. Many thousands of soldiers fell on each side, and great numbers of the leading nobles. The bodies were buried in onecommon trench, which was dug for the purpose on the plain, and achapel was afterward erected over them, to mark and consecrate thespot. 

It is said in respect to King Henry, who had been taken from the Towerand made to accompany the army to the field, that Edward placed him inthe midst of the fight at Barnet, in the hope that he might in thisway be slain, either by accident or design. This plan, however, if itwere formed, did not succeed, for Henry escaped unharmed, and, afterthe battle, was taken back to London, and again conveyed through thegloomy streets of the lower city to his solitary prison in the Tower. The streets were filled, after he had passed, with groups of men ofall ranks and stations, discussing the strange and mournfulvicissitudes in the life of this hapless monarch, now for the secondtime cut off from all his friends, and immured hopelessly in a dismaldungeon. 

[Illustration: STREET LEADING TO THE TOWER. ]

On the very day of the battle of Barnet, Queen Margaret, who hadhastened her return to England on hearing of Edward's invasion, landedat Plymouth, in the southwestern part of England. The young Prince ofWales, her son, was with her. When she heard the terrible tidings ofthe loss of the battle of Barnet and the death of Warwick, she wasstruck with consternation, and immediately fled to an abbey in theneighborhood of the place where she had landed, and took sanctuarythere. She soon, however, recovered from this panic, and came forthagain. She put herself, with her son, at the head of the French troopswhich she had brought with her, and collected also as many more asshe could induce to join her, and then, marching slowly toward thenorthward, finally took a strong position on the River Severn, nearthe town of Tewkesbury. Tewkesbury is in the western part of England, near the frontiers of Wales. 

Edward, having received intelligence of her movements, collected hisforces also, and, accompanied by Clarence and Gloucester, went forthto meet her. The two armies met about three weeks after the battle ofBarnet, in which Warwick was killed. All the flower of the Englishnobility were there, on one side or on the other. 

Queen Margaret's son, the Prince of Wales, was now about eighteenyears of age, and his mother placed him in command--nominally at thehead of the army. Edward, on his side, assigned the same position toRichard, who was almost precisely of the same age with the Prince ofWales. Thus the great and terrible battle which ensued was fought, asit were, by two boys, cousins to each other, and neither of them outof their teens. 

The operations were, however, really directed by older and moreexperienced men. The chief counselor on Margaret's side was the Dukeof Somerset. Edward's army attempted, by means of certain evolutions, to entice the queen's army out of their camp. Somerset wished to go, and he commanded the men to follow. Some followed, but others remainedbehind. Among those that remained behind was a body of men under thecommand of a certain Lord Wenlock. Somerset was angry because they didnot follow him, and he suspected, moreover, that Lord Wenlock wasintending to betray the queen and go over to the other side; so heturned back in a rage, and, coming up to Lord Wenlock, struck him adreadful blow upon his helmet with his battle-axe, and killed him onthe spot. 

In the midst of the confusion which this affair produced, Richard, atthe head of his brother's troops, came forcing his way into theintrenchments, bearing down all before him. The queen's army wasthrown into confusion, and put to flight. Thousands upon thousandswere killed. As many as could save themselves from being slaughteredupon the spot fled into the country toward the north, pursued bydetached parties of their enemies. 

The young Prince of Wales was taken prisoner. The queen fled, and fora time it was not known what had become of her. She fled to the churchin Tewkesbury, and took refuge there. 

[Illustration: CHURCH AT TEWKESBURY. ]

As for the Prince of Wales, the account of his fate which was givenat the time, and has generally been believed since, is this: As soonas the battle was over, he was brought, disarmed and helpless, intoKing Edward's tent, and there Edward, Clarence, Gloucester, and othersgathered around to triumph over him, and taunt him with his downfall. Edward came up to him, and, after gazing upon him a moment in a fierceand defiant manner, demanded of him, in a furious tone, "What broughthim to England?"

"My father's crown and my own inheritance, " replied the prince. 

Edward uttered some exclamation of anger, and then struck the princeupon the mouth with his gauntlet. [G]

[Footnote G: The gauntlet was a sort of iron glove, the fingers ofwhich were made flexible by joints formed with scales sliding overeach other. ]

At this signal, Gloucester, and the others who were standing by, fellupon the poor helpless boy, and killed him on the spot. The princecried to Clarence, who was his brother-in-law, to save him, but invain; Clarence did not interfere. 

Some of the modern defenders of Richard's character attempt to showthat there is no sufficient evidence that this story is true, and theymaintain that the prince was slain upon the field, after the battle, and that Richard was innocent of his death. The evidence, however, seems strongly against this last supposition. 

Soon after the battle, it was found that the queen, with herattendants, as has already been stated, had taken refuge in a churchat Tewkesbury, and in other sacred structures near. 

Edward proceeded directly to the church, with the intention of huntingout his enemies wherever he could find them. He broke into the sacredprecincts, sword in hand, attended by a number of reckless anddesperate followers, and would have slain those that had taken refugethere, on the spot, had not the abbot himself come forward andinterposed to protect them. He came dressed in his sacerdotal robes, and bearing the sacred emblems in his hands. These emblems he held upbefore the infuriated Edward as a token of the sanctity of the place. By these means the king's hand was stayed, and, before allowing him togo away, the abbot exacted from him a promise that he would molest therefugees no more. 

[Illustration: QUEEN MARGARET BROUGHT IN PRISONER AT COVENTRY. ]

This promise was, however, not made to be kept. Two days afterwardEdward appointed a court-martial, and sent Richard, with an armedforce, to the church, to take all the men that had sought refugethere, and bring them out for trial. The trial was conducted withvery little ceremony, and the men were all beheaded on the green, in Tewkesbury, that very day. 

Queen Margaret and the ladies who attended her were not with them. They had sought refuge in another place. They were, however, foundafter a few days, and were all brought prisoners to Edward's camp atCoventry; for, after the battle, Edward had begun to move on with hisarmy across the country. 

The king's first idea was to send Margaret immediately to London andput her in the Tower; but, before he did this, a change in his planstook place, which led him to decide to go to London himself. So hetook Queen Margaret with him, a captive in his train. On the arrivalof the party in London, the queen was conveyed at once to the Tower. 

Here she remained a close prisoner for five long and weary years, andwas then ransomed by the King of France and taken to the Continent. She lived after this in comparative obscurity for about ten years, andthen died. 

As for her husband, his earthly troubles were brought to an end muchsooner. The cause of the change of plan above referred to, which ledEdward to go directly to London soon after the battle of Tewkesbury, was the news that a relative of Warwick, whom that nobleman, duringhis lifetime, had put in command in the southeastern part of England, had raised an insurrection there, with a view of marching to London, rescuing Henry from the Tower, and putting him upon the throne. Thismovement was soon put down, and Edward returned from the expeditiontriumphant to London. He and his brothers spent the night after theirarrival in the Tower. The next morning King Henry was found dead inhis bed. 

The universal belief was then, and has been since, that he was put todeath by Edward's orders, and it has been the general opinion thatRichard was the murderer. 

The body of the king was put upon a bier that same day, and conveyedto St. Paul's Church in London, and there exhibited to the public fora long time, with guards and torch-bearers surrounding it. An immenseconcourse of people came to view his remains. The object of thisexposition of the body of the king was to make sure the fact of hisdeath in the public mind, and prevent the possibility of thecirculation of rumors, subsequently, by the partisans of his house, that he was still alive; for such rumors would greatly have increasedthe danger of any insurrectionary plans which might be formed againstEdward's authority. 

In due time the body was interred at Windsor, and a sculpturedmonument, adorned with various arms and emblems, was erected over thetomb. 

[Illustration: TOMB OF HENRY VI. ]

The remaining leaders on the Lancaster side were disposed of in a veryeffectual manner, to prevent the possibility of their again acquiringpower. Some were banished. Others were shut up in various castles ashopeless prisoners. The country was thus wholly subdued, and Edwardwas once more established firmly on his throne. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

RICHARD'S MARRIAGE. 

1471-1474

Characters of Clarence and Richard. --Embarrassing situation in whichClarence was placed. --Richard made Lord High Admiral of England. --Hisreal character. --Requisites of a good soldier. --Young Edward formallyacknowledged heir to the crown. --Forlorn condition of Lady Anne. --Hersister Isabella. --Clarence's views in respect to theproperty. --Richard's plan. --His early acquaintance with Anne. --Thebanquet at the archbishop's. --Clarence conceals Lady Anne. --Richardfinds her at last. --His marriage. --Measures for securing theproperty. --Difficulty about the division of the property. --The quarrelbecomes serious. --It is at last settled by the king. --Richard's childis born. --Anne becomes more contented. 

When the affairs of the kingdom were settled, after the return of KingEdward to the throne, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, the subject of thepresent volume, was found occupying a very exalted and brilliantposition. It is true, he was yet very young, being only about nineteenyears of age, and by birth he was second to Clarence, Clarence beinghis older brother. But Clarence had been so wavering and vacillating, having changed sides so often in the great quarrels, that noconfidence was placed in him now on either side. Richard, on the otherhand, had steadily adhered to his brother Edward's cause. He hadshared all his brother's reverses, and he had rendered him mostvaluable and efficient aid in all the battles which he had fought, andhad contributed essentially to his success in all the victories whichhe had gained. Of course, now, Edward and his friends had greatconfidence in Richard, while Clarence was looked upon with suspicionand distrust. 

Clarence, it is true, had one excuse for his instability, whichRichard had not; for Clarence, having married the Earl of Warwick'sdaughter, was, of course, brought into very close connection with theearl, and was subjected greatly to his influence. Accordingly, whatever course Warwick decided to take, it was extremely difficultfor Clarence to avoid joining him in it; and when at length Warwickarranged the marriage of his daughter Anne with the Prince of Wales, King Henry's son, and so joined himself to the Lancaster party, Clarence was placed between two strong and contrary attractions--hisattachment to his brother, and his natural interest in the advancementof his own family being on one side, and his love for his wife, andthe great influence and ascendency exerted over his mind by hisfather-in-law being on the other. 

Richard was in no such strait. There was nothing to entice him awayfrom his fidelity to his brother, so he remained true. 

He had been so brave and efficient, too, in the military operationsconnected with Edward's recovery of the throne, that he had acquiredgreat renown as a soldier throughout the kingdom. The fame of hisexploits was the more brilliant on account of his youth. It wasconsidered remarkable that a young man not yet out of his teensshould show so much skill, and act with so much resolution and energyin times so trying, and the country resounded with his praises. 

As soon as Edward was established on the throne, he raised Richard towhat was in those days, perhaps, the highest office under the crown, that of Lord High Admiral of England. This was the office which theEarl of Warwick had held, and to which a great portion of the powerand influence which he exercised was owing. The Lord High Admiral hadcommand of the navy, and of the principal ports on both sides of theEnglish Channel, so long as any ports on the French side remained inEnglish hands. The reader will recollect, perhaps, that while Richardwas quite a small boy, his mother was compelled to fly with him andhis little brother George to France, to escape from the enemies of thefamily, at the time of his father's death, and that it was through theEarl of Warwick's co-operation that she was enabled to accomplish thisflight. Now it was in consequence of Warwick's being at that time LordHigh Admiral of England, and his having command of Calais, and thewaters between Calais and England, that he could make arrangements toassist Lady Cecily so effectually on that occasion. 

Still, Richard, though universally applauded for his military courageand energy, was known to all who had opportunities of becomingpersonally acquainted with him to be a bad man. He was unprincipled, hard-hearted, and reckless. This, however, did not detract from hismilitary fame. Indeed, depravity of private character seldomdiminishes much the applause which a nation bestows upon those whoacquire military renown in their service. It is not to be expectedthat it should. Military exploits have been, in fact, generally, inthe history of the world, gigantic crimes, committed by reckless andremorseless men for the benefit of others, who, though they would bedeterred by their scruples of conscience or their moral sensibilitiesfrom perpetrating such deeds themselves, are ready to repay, with themost extravagant honors and rewards, those who are ferocious andunscrupulous enough to perpetrate them in their stead. Were it not forsome very few and rare exceptions to the general rule, which have fromtime to time appeared, the history of mankind would show that, to be a_good soldier_, it is almost absolutely essential to be a _bad man_. 

The child, Prince Edward, the son of Edward the Fourth, who was born, as is related in a preceding chapter, in the sanctuary at Westminster, whither his mother had fled at the time when Edward was expelled fromthe kingdom, was, of course, King Edward's heir. He was now less thana year old, and, in order to place his title to the crown beyonddispute, a solemn oath was required from all the leading nobles andofficers of Edward's government, that in case he survived his fatherthey would acknowledge him as king. The following is the form of theoath which was taken:

 I acknowledge, take, and repute you, Edward, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwayll, and Erl of Chestre, furste begoten son of oure sovereigne lord, as to the corones and reames of England and of France, and lordship of Ireland; and promette and swere that in case hereafter it happen you by Goddis disposition do outlive our sovereigne lord, I shall then take and accept you for true, veray and righteous King of England, and of France, and of Ireland; and feith and trouth to you shall here, and yn all thyngs truely and feithfully behave me towardes you and youre heyres, as a true and feithful subject oweth to behave him to his sovereigne lord and righteous King of England, France, and Ireland; so help me God, and Holidome, and this holy Evangelist. 

Richard took this oath with the rest. How he kept it will hereafterappear. 

The Lady Anne, the second daughter of the Earl of Warwick, who hadbeen betrothed to the Prince of Wales, King Henry's son, was left, bythe fall of the house of Lancaster and the re-establishment of KingEdward the Fourth upon the throne, in a most forlorn and pitiablecondition. Her father, the earl, was dead, having been killed inbattle. Her betrothed husband, too, the Prince of Wales, with whom shehad fondly hoped one day to sit on the throne of England, had beencruelly assassinated. Queen Margaret, the mother of the prince, whomight have been expected to take an interest in her fate, was ahelpless prisoner in the Tower. And if the fallen queen had been atliberty, it is very probable that all her interest in Anne would proveto have been extinguished by the death of her son; for Queen Margarethad never felt any personal preference for Anne, and had onlyconsented to the marriage very reluctantly, and from politicalconsiderations alone. The friends and connections of her father'sfamily, a short time since so exalted in station and so powerful, werenow scattered and destroyed. Some had been killed in battle, othersbeheaded by executioners, others banished from the realm. The restwere roaming about England in terror and distress, houseless, homeless, friendless, and only intent to find some hiding-place wherethey might screen themselves from Edward's power and vengeance. 

There was one exception, indeed, the Lady Isabella, Clarence's wife, who, as the reader will recollect, was Warwick's oldest daughter, and, of course, the sister of Lady Anne. She and Clarence, her husband, itmight be supposed, would take an interest in Lady Anne's fate. Indeed, Clarence did take an interest in it, but, unfortunately, the interestwas of the wrong kind. 

The Earl of Warwick had been immensely wealthy. Besides the ancientstronghold of the family, Warwick Castle, one of the most renowned oldfeudal fortresses in England, he owned many other castles, and manylarge estates, and rights of property of various kinds all over thekingdom. Now Clarence, after Warwick's death, had taken most of thisproperty into his own hands as the husband of the earl's oldestdaughter, and he wished to keep it. This he could easily do while Anneremained in her present friendless and helpless condition. But he knewvery well that if she were to be married to any person of rank andinfluence on the York side, her husband would insist on a division ofthe property. Now he suspected that his brother Richard had conceivedthe design of marrying her. He accordingly set himself at workearnestly to thwart this design. 

It was true that Richard had conceived the idea of making Anne hiswife, from the motive, however, solely, as it would seem, to obtainher share of her father's property. 

Richard had been acquainted with Anne from her childhood. Indeed, hewas related to the family of the Earl of Warwick on his mother's side. His mother, Lady Cecily Neville, belonged to the same great family ofNeville from which the Warwicks sprung. Warwick had been a greatfriend of Lady Cecily in former years, and it is even supposed thatwhen Richard and his brother George were brought back from theContinent, at the time when Edward first obtained possession of thekingdom, they lived for a time in Warwick's family at MiddlehamCastle. [H] This is not quite certainly known, but it is at any rateknown that Richard and Anne knew each other well when they werechildren, and were often together. 

[Footnote H: For a view of this castle, and the grounds pertaining toit, see page 180. ]

There is an account of a grand entertainment which was given by theWarwick family at York, some years before, on the occasion of theenthroning of the earl's brother George as Archbishop of York, atwhich Richard was present. Richard, being a prince of the blood royal, was, of course, a very highly honored guest, notwithstanding that hewas but a child. So they prepared for him and some few other greatpersonages a raised platform, called a dais, at one end of thebanquet-hall, with a royal canopy over it. The table for thedistinguished personages was upon this dais, while those for the otherguests extended up and down the hall below. Richard was seated at thecentre of the table of honor, with a countess on one side of him and aduchess on the other. Opposite to him, at the same table, were seatedIsabella and Anne. Anne was at this time about twelve years old. 

Now it is supposed that Isabella and Anne were placed at this table toplease Richard, for their mother, who was, of course, entitled to takeprecedence of them, had her seat at one of the large tables below. 

From this and some other similar indications, it is supposed thatRichard took a fancy to Anne while they were quite young, as Clarencedid to Isabella. Indeed, one of the ancient writers says that Richardwished, at this early period, to choose her for his wife, but that shedid not like him. 

At any rate, now, after the re-establishment of his brother upon thethrone, and his own exaltation to such high office under him, hedetermined that he would marry Anne. Clarence, on the other hand, determined that he should not marry her. So Clarence, with thepretense of taking her under his protection, seized her, and carriedher away to a place of concealment, where he kept her closely shut up. Anne consented to this, for she wished to keep out of Richard's way. Richard's person was disagreeable to her, and his character washateful. She seems to have considered him, as he is generallyrepresented by the writers of those times, as a rude, hard-hearted, and unscrupulous man; and she had also a special reason for shrinkingfrom him with horror, as the mortal enemy of her father, and thereputed murderer of the husband to whom she had been betrothed. 

Clarence kept her for some time in obscure places of concealment, changing the place from time to time to elude the vigilance ofRichard, who was continually making search for her. The poor princesshad recourse to all manner of contrivances, and assumed the mosthumble disguises to keep herself concealed, and was at last reduced toa very forlorn and destitute condition, through the desperate shiftsthat she resorted to, in her endeavors to escape Richard'spersecutions. All was, however, in vain. Richard discovered her atlast in a mean house in London, where she was living in the disguiseof a servant. He immediately seized her, and conveyed her to a placeof security which was under his control. 

Soon after this she was taken away from this place and conveyed toYork, and placed, for the time, under the protection of thearchbishop--the same archbishop at whose enthronement, eight or tenyears before, she had sat at the same table with Richard, under theroyal canopy. But she was not left at peace here. Richard insisted onher marrying him. She insisted on her refusal. Her friends--the fewthat she had left--turned against her, and urged her to consent to theunion; but she could not endure the thought of it. 

[Illustration: RICHARD III. ]

Richard, however, persisted in his determination, and Anne was finallyovercome. It is said she resisted to the last, and that the ceremonywas performed by compulsion, Anne continuing to refuse her consent tothe end. It was foreseen that, as soon as any change of circumstancesshould enable her to resume active resistance to the union, she wouldrepudiate the marriage altogether, as void for want of her consent, orelse obtain a divorce. To guard against this danger, Richard procuredthe passage of an act of Parliament, by which he was empowered tocontinue in the full possession and enjoyment of Anne's property, evenif _she were to divorce him_, provided that he did his best to bereconciled to her, and was willing to be re-married to her, with herconsent, whenever she was willing to grant it. 

[Illustration: QUEEN ANNE. ]

As for Richard himself, his object was fully attained by theaccomplishment of a marriage so far acknowledged as to entitle him tothe possession of the property of his wife. There was still somedifficulty, however, arising from a disagreement between Richard andClarence in respect to the division. Clarence, when he found thatRichard would marry Anne, in spite of all that he could do to preventit, declared, with an oath, that, even if Richard did marry her, he, Clarence, would never "part the livelihood, " that is, divide theproperty with him. 

So fixed was Clarence in this resolution to retain all the propertyhimself, and so resolute was Richard, on the other hand, in hisdetermination to have his share, that the quarrel very soon assumed avery serious character. The lords and nobles of the court took part inthe controversy on one side and on the other, until, at length, therewas imminent danger of open war. Finally Edward himself interposed, and summoned the brothers to appear before him in open council, when, after a full hearing of the dispute, he said that he himself woulddecide the question. Accordingly, the two brothers appeared before theking, and each strenuously argued his own cause. The king, afterhearing them, decided how the property should be divided. He gave toRichard and Anne a large share, but not all that Richard claimed. Richard was, however, compelled to submit. 

[Illustration: MIDDLEHAM CASTLE. ]

When the marriage was thus consummated, and Richard had been putin possession of his portion of the property, Anne seems to havesubmitted to her fate, and she went with Richard to MiddlehamCastle, in the north of England. This castle was one which hadbelonged to the Warwick family, and it now came into Richard'spossession. Richard did not, however, remain long here with his wife. He went away on various military expeditions, leaving Anne most of thetime alone. She was well contented to be thus left, for nothing couldbe so welcome to her now as to be relieved as much as possible fromthe presence of her hateful husband. 

This state of things continued, without much change, until the end ofabout a year after her marriage, when Anne gave birth to a son. Theboy was named Edward. The possession of this treasure awakened in thebreast of Anne a new interest in life, and repaid her, in somemeasure, for the sorrows and sufferings which she had so long endured. 

Her love for her babe, in fact, awakened in her heart something like atie to bind her to her husband. It is hard for a mother to continuelong to hate the father of her child. 

CHAPTER IX. 

END OF THE REIGN OF EDWARD. 

A. D. 1475-1483

Richard's high position. --His character. --Edward's plan for theinvasion of France. --Character of King Louis. --Louis's wilymanagement. --Treaty proposed. --Arrangements made for a personalinterview. --The grating on the bridge. --Meeting of the kings atthe grating. --Jocose conversation of the two kings. --Terms of thetreaty. --Marriage agreed upon. --Clarence and Gloucester. --The peopleof England discontented. --Renewal of the quarrel between Edward andClarence. --Clarence retires from court. --Belief in witchcraft. --Birthof Clarence's second son. --New quarrels. --The rich heiress. --Edwardand Clarence quarrel about the heiress. --Clarence becomes furious. --Heis sent to the Tower. --Clarence is accused of high treason. --He issentenced to death. --He is assassinated. --Dissipation and wickednessof Edward. --Jane Shore. --Edward sends Richard to war. --Difficultiesin Scotland. --Edward falls sick. --His anger against the King ofFrance. --Death of the Duchess Mary. --Louis's treachery. --Vexationand rage of Edward. --His death. 

King Edward reigned, after this time, for about eight years. Duringthis period, Richard continued to occupy a very high officialposition, and a very conspicuous place in the public mind. He wasgenerally considered as personally a very bad man, and, whenever anygreat public crime was committed, in which the government wereimplicated at all, it was Richard, usually, who was supposed to bechiefly instrumental in the perpetration of it; but, notwithstandingthis, his fame, and the general consideration in which he was held, were very high. This was owing, in a considerable degree, to hismilitary renown, and the straightforward energy and decision whichcharacterized all his doings. 

He generally co-operated very faithfully in all Edward's plans andschemes, though sometimes, when he thought them calculated to impederather than promote the interests of the kingdom and theaggrandizement of the family, he made no secret of opposing them. Asto Clarence, no one placed any trust or confidence in him whatever. For a time, he and Edward were ostensibly on friendly terms with eachother, but there was no cordial good-will between them. Each watchedthe other with continual suspicion and distrust. 

About the year 1475, Edward formed a grand scheme for the invasion ofFrance, in order to recover from the French king certain possessionswhich Edward claimed, on the ground of their having formerly belongedto his ancestors. This plan, as, indeed, almost all plans of war andconquest were in those days, was very popular in England, andarrangements were made on an immense scale for fitting out anexpedition. The Duke of Burgundy, who, as will be recollected, hadmarried Edward's sister, promised to join the English in this proposedwar. When all was ready, the English army set sail, and crossed overto Calais. Edward went with the army as commander-in-chief. He wasaccompanied by Clarence and Gloucester. Thus far every thing had goneon well, and all Europe was watching with great interest for theresult of the expedition; but, very soon after landing, greatdifficulties arose. The Duke of Burgundy and Edward disagreed, andthis disagreement caused great delays. The army advanced slowlytoward the French frontier, but for two months nothing effectual wasdone. 

[Illustration: LOUIS XI. OF FRANCE. ]

In the mean time, Louis, the King of France, who was a very shrewd andwily man, concluded that it would be better for him to buy off hisenemies than to fight them. So he continually sent messengers andnegotiators to Edward's camp with proposals of various sorts, made togain time, in order to enable him, by means of presents and bribes, to buy up all the prominent leaders and counselors of the expedition. He gave secretly to all the men who he supposed held an influence overEdward's mind, large sums of money. He offered, too, to make a treatywith Edward, by which, under one pretext or another, he was to pay hima great deal of money. One of these proposed payments was that of alarge sum for the ransom of Queen Margaret, as mentioned in apreceding chapter. The amount of the ransom money which he proposedwas fifty thousand crowns. 

Besides these promises to pay money in case the treaty was concluded, Louis made many rich and valuable presents at once. One day, while thenegotiations were pending, he sent over to the English camp, as a giftto the king, three hundred cart-loads of wine, the best that could beprocured in the kingdom. 

At one time, near the beginning of the affair, when a herald was sentto Louis from Edward with a very defiant and insolent message, Louis, instead of resenting the message as an affront, entertained the heraldwith great politeness, held a long and friendly conversation with him, and finally sent him away with three hundred crowns in his purse, anda promise of a thousand more as soon as a peace should be concluded. He also made him a present of a piece of crimson velvet "thirty ellslong. " Such a gift as this of the crimson velvet was calculated, perhaps, in those days of military foppery, to please the herald evenmore than the money. 

These things, of course, put Edward and nearly all his followers inexcellent humor, and disposed them to listen very favorably to anypropositions for settling the quarrel which Louis might be disposed tomake. At last, after various and long protracted negotiations, atreaty was agreed upon, and Louis proposed that at the final executionof it he and Edward should have a personal interview. 

Edward acceded to this on certain conditions, and the circumstancesunder which the interview took place, and the arrangements which wereadopted on the occasion, make it one of the most curious transactionsof the whole reign. 

It seems that Edward could not place the least trust in Louis'sprofessions of friendship, and did not dare to meet him withoutrequiring beforehand most extraordinary precautions to guard againstthe possibility of treachery. So it was agreed that the meeting shouldtake place upon a bridge, Louis and his friends to come in upon oneside of the bridge, and Edward, with his party, on the other. Inorder to prevent either party from seizing and carrying off the other, there was a strong barricade of wood built across the bridge in themiddle of it, and the arrangement was for the King of France to comeup to this barricade on one side, and the King of England on theother, and so shake hands and communicate with each other through thebars of the barricade. 

The place where this most extraordinary royal meeting was held wascalled Picquigny, and the treaty which was made there is known inhistory as the Treaty of Picquigny. The town is on the River Somme, near the city of Amiens. Amiens was at that time very near the Frenchfrontier. 

The day appointed for the meeting was the 29th of August, 1475. Thebarricade was prepared. It was made of strong bars, crossing eachother so as to form a grating, such as was used in those days to makethe cages of bears, and lions, and other wild beasts. The spacesbetween the bars were only large enough to allow a man's arm to passthrough. 

The King of France went first to the grating, advancing, of course, from the French side. He was accompanied by ten or twelve attendants, all men of high rank and station. He was very specially dressed forthe occasion. The dress was made of cloth of gold, with a large _fleurde lis_--which was at that time the emblem of the Frenchsovereignty--magnificently worked upon it in precious stones. 

When Louis and his party had reached the barricade, Edward, attendedlikewise by his friends, approached on the other side. When they cameto the barricade, the two kings greeted each other with many bows andother salutations, and they also shook hands with each other byreaching through the grating. The King of France addressed Edward in avery polite and courteous manner. "Cousin, " said he, "you are rightwelcome. There is no person living that I have been so ambitious ofseeing as you, and God be thanked that our interview now is on sohappy an occasion. "

After these preliminary salutations and ceremonies had been concluded, a prayer-book, or missal, as it was called, and a crucifix, werebrought forward, and held at the grating where both kings could touchthem. Each of the kings then put his hands upon them--one hand on thecrucifix and the other on the missal--and they both took a solemn oathby these sacred emblems that they would faithfully keep the treatywhich they had made. 

After thus transacting the business which had brought them together, the two kings conversed with each other in a gay and merry manner forsome time. The King of France invited Edward to come to Paris and makehim a visit. This, of course, was a joke, for Edward would as soonthink of accepting an invitation from a lion to come and visit him inhis den, as of putting himself in Louis's power by going to Paris. Both monarchs and all the attendants laughed merrily at this jest. Louis assured Edward that he would have a very pleasant time at Parisin amusing himself with the gay ladies, and in other dissipations. "And then here is the cardinal, " he added, turning to the Cardinal ofBourbon, an ecclesiastic of very high rank, but of very loosecharacter, who was among his attendants, "who will grant you a veryeasy absolution for any sins you may take a fancy to commit while youare there. "

Edward and his friends were much amused with this sportiveconversation of Louis's, and Edward made many smart replies, especially joking the cardinal, who, he knew, "was a gay man with theladies, and a boon companion over his wine. "

This sort of conversation continued for some time, and at length thekings, after again shaking hands through the grating, departed eachhis own way, and thus this most extraordinary conference of sovereignswas terminated. 

The treaty which was thus made at the bridge of Picquigny containedseveral very important articles. The principal of them were thefollowing:

 1. Louis was to pay fifty thousand crowns as a ransom for Queen Margaret, and Edward was to release her from the Tower and send her to France as soon as he arrived in England. 

 2. Louis was to pay to Edward in cash, on the spot, seventy-five thousand crowns, and an annuity of fifty thousand crowns. 

 3. He was to marry his son, the dauphin, to Edward's oldest daughter, Elizabeth, and, in case of her death, then to his next daughter, Mary. These parties were all children at this time, and so the actual marriage was postponed for a time; but it was stipulated solemnly that it should be performed as soon as the prince and princess attained to a proper age. It is important to remember this part of the treaty, as a great and serious difficulty grew out of it when the time for the execution of it arrived. 

 4. By the last article, the two kings bound themselves to a truce for seven years, during which time hostilities were to be entirely suspended, and free trade between the two countries was to be allowed. 

Clarence was with the king at the time of making this treaty, and hejoined with the other courtiers in giving it his approval, but Richardwould have nothing to do with it. He very much preferred to go on withthe war, and was indignant that his brother should allow himself to bebought off, as it were, by presents and payments of money, and inducedto consent to what seemed to him an ignominious peace. He did not giveany open expression to his discontent, but he refused to be present atthe conference on the bridge, and, when Edward and the army, after thepeace was concluded, went back to England, he went with them, but invery bad humor. 

The people of England were in very bad humor too. You will observethat the inducements which Louis employed in procuring the treaty weregifts and sums of money granted to Edward himself, and to his greatcourtiers personally for their own private uses. There was nothing inhis concessions which tended at all to the aggrandizement or to thebenefit of the English realm, or to promote the interest of the peopleat large. They thought, therefore, that Edward and his counselors hadbeen induced to sacrifice the rights and honor of the crown and thekingdom to their own personal advantage by a system of gross and openbribery, and they were very much displeased. 

 * * * * *

The next great event which marks the history of the reign of Edward, after the conclusion of this war, was the breaking out anew of the oldfeud between Edward and Clarence, and the dreadful crisis to which thequarrel finally reached. The renewal of the quarrel began in Edward'sdispossessing Clarence of a portion of his property. Edward was verymuch embarrassed for money after his return from the Frenchexpedition. He had incurred great debts in fitting out the expedition, and these debts the Parliament and people of England were veryunwilling to pay, on account of their being so much displeased withthe peace which had been made. Edward, consequently, notwithstandingthe bribes which he had received from Louis, was very much in want ofmoney. At last he caused a law to be passed by Parliament enactingthat all the patrimony of the royal family, which had hitherto beendivided among the three brothers, should be resumed, and applied tothe service of the crown. This made Clarence very angry. True, he wasextremely rich, through the property which he had received by hiswife from the Warwick estates, but this did not make him any morewilling to submit patiently to be robbed by his brother. He expressedhis anger very openly, and the ill feeling which the affair occasionedled to a great many scenes of dispute and crimination between the twobrothers, until at last Clarence could no longer endure to have anything to do with Edward, and he went away, with Isabella his wife, toa castle which he possessed near Tewkesbury, and there remained, inangry and sullen seclusion. So great was the animosity that prevailedat this time between the brothers and their respective partisans, thatalmost every one who took an active part in the quarrel lived incontinual anxiety from fear of being poisoned, or of being destroyedby incantations or witchcraft. 

Every body believed in witchcraft in these days. There was onepeculiar species of necromancy which was held in great dread. It wassupposed that certain persons had the power secretly to destroy anyone against whom they conceived a feeling of ill will in the followingmanner: They would first make an effigy of their intended victim outof wax and other similar materials. This image was made therepresentation of the person to be destroyed by means of certainsorceries and incantations, and then it was by slow degrees, from dayto day, melted away and gradually destroyed. While the image was thusmelting, the innocent and unconscious victim of the witchcraft wouldpine away, and at last, when the image was fairly gone, would die. 

Not very long after Clarence left the court and went to Tewkesbury, his wife gave birth to a child. It was the second son. The child wasnamed Richard, and is known in history as Richard of Clarence. Isabella did not recover her health and strength after the birth ofher child. She pined away in a slow and lingering manner for two orthree months, and then died. 

Clarence was convinced that she did not die a natural death. Hebelieved that her life had been destroyed by some process ofwitchcraft, such as has been described, or by poison, and he openlycharged the queen with having instigated the murder by having employedsome sorcerer or assassin to accomplish it. After a time he satisfiedhimself that a certain woman named Ankaret Twynhyo was the person whomthe queen had employed to commit this crime, and watching anopportunity when this woman was at her own residence, away from allwho could protect her, he sent a body of armed men from among hisretainers, who went secretly to the place, and, breaking in suddenly, seized the woman and bore her off to Warwick Castle. There Clarencesubjected her to what he called a trial, and she was condemned todeath, and executed at once. The charge against her was that sheadministered poison to the duchess in a cup of ale. So summary werethese proceedings, that the poor woman was dead in three hours fromthe time that she arrived at the castle gates. 

These proceedings, of course, greatly exasperated Edward and thequeen, and made them hate Clarence more than ever. 

Very soon after this, Charles, the Duke of Burgundy, who marriedMargaret, Edward and Clarence's sister, and who had been Edward's allyin so many of his wars, was killed in battle. He left a daughter namedMary, of whom Margaret was the step-mother; for Mary was the child ofthe duke by a former marriage. Now, as Charles was possessed ofimmense estates, Mary, by his death, became a great heiress, andClarence, now that his wife was dead, conceived the idea of making herhis second wife. He immediately commenced negotiations to this end. Margaret favored the plan, but Edward and Elizabeth, the queen, assoon as they heard of it, set themselves at work in the most earnestmanner to thwart and circumvent it. 

Their motives for opposing this match arose partly from their enmityto Clarence, and partly from designs of their own which they hadformed in respect to the marriage of Mary. The queen wished to securethe young heiress for one of her brothers. Edward had another plan, which was to marry Mary to a certain Duke Maximilian. Edward's plan, in the end, was carried out, and Clarence was defeated. When Clarencefound at length that the bride, with all the immense wealth and vastlyincreased importance which his marriage with her was to bring, werelost to him through Edward's interference, and conferred upon hishated rival Maximilian, he was terribly enraged. He expressed hisresentment and anger against the king in the most violent terms. 

About this time a certain nobleman, one of the king's friends, died. The king accused a priest, who was in Clarence's service, of havingkilled him by sorcery. The priest was seized and put to the torture tocompel him to confess his crime and to reveal his confederates. Thepriest at length confessed, and named as his accomplice one ofClarence's household named Burdett, a gentleman who lived in veryintimate and confidential relations with Clarence himself. 

The confession was taken as proof of guilt, and the priest and Burdettwere both immediately executed. 

Clarence was now perfectly frantic with rage. He could restrainhimself no longer. He forced his way into the king's council-chamber, and there uttered to the lords who were assembled the most violent andangry denunciation of the king. He accused him of injustice andcruelty, and upbraided him, and all who counseled and aided him, inthe severest terms. 

When the king, who was not himself present on this occasion, heardwhat Clarence had done, he said that such proceedings were subversiveof the laws of the realm, and destructive to all good government, andhe commanded that Clarence should be arrested and sent to the Tower. 

After a short time the king summoned a Parliament, and when theassembly was convened, he brought his brother out from his prison inthe Tower, and arraigned him at the bar of the House of Lords oncharges of the most extraordinary character, which he himselfpersonally preferred against him. In these charges Clarence wasaccused of having formed treasonable conspiracies to depose the king, disinherit the king's children, and raise himself to the throne, andwith this view of having slandered the king, and endeavored, by bribesand false representations, to entice away his subjects from theirallegiance; of having joined himself with the Lancastrian faction sofar as to promise to restore them their estates which had beenconfiscated, provided that they would assist him in usurping thethrone; and of having secretly organized an armed force, which was allready, and waiting only for the proper occasion to strike the blow. 

Clarence denied all these charges in the most earnest and solemnmanner. The king insisted upon the truth of them, and brought forwardmany witnesses to prove them. Of course, whether the charges were trueor false, there could be no difficulty in finding plenty of witnessesto give the required testimony. The lords listened to the charges andthe defense with a sort of solemn awe. Indeed, all England, as itwere, stood by, silenced and appalled at the progress of this dreadfulfraternal quarrel, and at the prospect of the terrible termination ofit, which all could foresee must come. 

[Illustration: THE MURDERERS COMING FOR CLARENCE. ]

Whatever the members of Parliament may have thought of the truth orfalsehood of the charges, there was only one way in which it wasprudent or even safe for them to vote, and Clarence was condemned todeath. 

Sentence being passed, the prisoner was remanded to the Tower. 

Edward seems, after all, to have shrunk from the open and publicexecution of the sentence which he had caused to be pronounced againsthis brother. No public execution took place, but in a short time itwas announced that Clarence had died in prison. It was understood thatassassins were employed to go privately into the room where he wasconfined and put him to death; and it is universally believed, thoughthere is no positive proof of the fact, that Richard was the personwho made the arrangements for the performance of this deed. [I]

[Footnote I: There was a strange story in respect to the manner ofClarence's death, which was very current at the time, namely, that hewas drowned by his brothers in a butt of Malmsey wine. But there is noevidence whatever that this story was true. ]

After Clarence was dead, and the excitement and anger of the quarrelhad subsided in Edward's mind, he was overwhelmed with remorse andanguish at what he had done. He attempted to drown these painfulthoughts by dissipation and vice. He neglected the affairs of hisgovernment, and his duties to his wife and family, and spent his timein gay pleasures with the ladies of his court, and in guiltycarousings with wicked men. In these pleasures he spent large sums ofmoney, wasting his patrimony and all his resources in extravagance andfolly. Among other amusements, he used to form hunting-parties, inwhich the ladies of his court were accustomed to join, and he used toset up gay silken tents for their accommodation on the hunting-ground. He spent vast sums, too, upon his dress, being very vain of hispersonal attractions, and of the favor in which he was held by theladies around him. 

The most conspicuous of his various female favorites was thecelebrated Jane Shore. She was the wife of a respectable citizen ofLondon. Edward enticed her away from her husband, and induced her tocome and live at court with him. The opposite engraving, which istaken from an ancient portrait, gives undoubtedly a correctrepresentation both of her features and of her dress. We shall hearmore of this person in the sequel. 

[Illustration: JANE SHORE. ]

Things went on in this way for about two years, when at length warbroke out on the frontiers of Scotland. Edward was too much engrossedwith his gallantries and pleasures to march himself to meet the enemy, and so he commissioned Richard to go. Richard was very well pleasedthat his brother Edward should remain at home, and waste away ineffeminacy and vice his character and his influence in the kingdom, while he went forth in command of the army, to acquire, by the vigorand success of his military career, that ascendency that Edward waslosing. So he took the command of the army and went forth to the war. 

The war was protracted for several years. The King of Scotland had abrother, the Duke of Albany, who was attempting to dethrone him, inorder that he might reign in his stead; that is, he was doing exactlythat which Edward had charged upon his brother Clarence, and for whichhe had caused Clarence to be killed; and yet, with strangeinconsistency, Edward espoused the cause of this Clarence of Scotland, and laid deep plans for enabling him to depose and supplant hisbrother. 

In the midst of the measures which Richard was taking for theexecution of these plans, they, as well as all Edward's other earthlyschemes and hopes, were suddenly destroyed by the hand of death. Edward's health had become much impaired by the dissolute life whichhe had led, and at last he fell seriously sick. While he was sick, anaffair occurred which vexed and worried his mind beyond endurance. 

The reader will recollect that, at the treaty which Edward made withLouis of France at the barricade on the bridge of Picquigny, amarriage contract was concluded between Louis's oldest son, theDauphin of France, and Edward's daughter Mary, and it was agreed that, as soon as the children were grown up, and were old enough, theyshould be married. Louis took a solemn oath upon the prayer-book andcrucifix that he would not fail to keep this agreement. 

But now some years had passed away, and circumstances had changed somuch that Louis did not wish to keep this promise. Edward's greatally, the Duke of Burgundy, was dead. His daughter Mary, who becamethe Duchess Mary on the death of her father, and who, so greatly toClarence's disappointment, had married Maximilian, had succeeded tothe estates and possessions of her father. These possessions the Kingof France desired very much to join to his dominions, as they laycontiguous to them, and the fear of Edward, which had prompted him tomake the marriage contract with him in the first instance, had nowpassed away, on account of Edward's having become so much weakened byhis vices and his effeminacy. He now, therefore, became desirous ofallying his family to that of Burgundy rather than that of England. 

The Duchess Mary had three children, all very young. The oldest, Philip, was only about three years old. 

Now it happened that just at this time, while the Duchess Mary was outwith a small party, hawking, near the city of Bruges, as they wereflying the hawks at some herons, the company galloping on over thefields in order to keep up with the birds, the duchess's horse, intaking a leap, burst the girths of the saddle, and the duchess wasthrown off against the trunk of a tree. She was immediately taken upand borne into a house, but she was so much injured that she almostimmediately died. 

Of course, her titles and estates would now descend to her children. The second of the children was a girl. Her name was Margaret. She wasabout two years old. Louis immediately resolved to give up the matchbetween the dauphin and Edward's daughter Mary, and contract anotheralliance for him with this little Margaret. He met with considerabledifficulty and delay in bringing this about, but he succeeded at last. While the negotiations were pending, Edward, who suspected what wasgoing on, was assured that nothing of the kind was intended, andvarious false tales and pretenses were advanced by Louis to quiet hismind. 

At length, when all was settled, the new plan was openly proclaimed, and great celebrations and parades were held in Paris in honor of theevent. Edward was overwhelmed with vexation and rage when he receivedthe tidings. He was, however, completely helpless. He lay tossingrestlessly on his sick-bed, cursing, on the one hand, Louis'sfaithlessness and treachery, and, on the other, his own miserableweakness and pain, which made it so utterly impossible that he shoulddo any thing to resent the affront. 

His vexation and rage so disturbed and worried him that they hastenedhis death. When he found that his last hour was drawing near, a newsource of agitation and anguish was opened in his mind by the remorsewhich now began to overwhelm him for his vices and crimes. Long-forgotten deeds of injustice, of violence, and of every speciesof wickedness rose before his mind, and terrified him with awfulpremonition of the anger of God and of the judgment to come. In hisdistress, he tried to make reparation for some of the grossest of thewrongs which he had committed, but it was too late. After lingering aweek or two in this condition of distress and suffering, his spiritpassed away. 

CHAPTER X. 

RICHARD AND EDWARD V. 

A. D. 1483

Effect of the tidings of Edward's death. --Anxiety of Queen ElizabethWoodville. --Attempt made by Edward to effect a reconciliation. --Plansfor bringing the young prince to London. --Richard's movements. --Hisletter to the queen. --He arrives at Northampton. --The king at StonyStratford. --Movements and manoeuvres at Northampton. --The noblementaken into custody. --Seizure of the king. --The little king is verymuch frightened. --Richard's explanations of his proceedings. --Edward'sastonishment. --He is helpless in Richard's hands. 

As the tidings of Edward's death spread throughout England, they werereceived every where with a sentiment of anxiety and suspense, for noone knew what the consequences would be. Edward left two sons. Edward, the oldest of the two, the Prince of Wales, was about thirteen yearsof age. The youngest, whose name was Richard, was eleven. Of course, Edward was the rightful heir to the crown. Next to him in the line ofsuccession came his brother, and next to them came Richard, Duke ofGloucester, their uncle. But it was universally known that the Duke ofGloucester was a reckless and unscrupulous man, and the question inevery one's mind was whether he would recognize the rights of hisyoung nephews at all, or whether he would seize the crown at once forhimself. 

Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was in the northern part of England atthis time, at the head of his army. The great power which thepossession of this army gave him made people all the more fearfulthat he might attempt to usurp the throne. 

The person who was most anxious in respect to the result was thewidowed Queen Elizabeth, the mother of the two princes. She was verymuch alarmed. The boys themselves were not old enough to realize veryfully the danger that they were in, or to render their mother much aidin her attempts to save them. The person on whom she chiefly reliedwas her brother, the Earl of Rivers. Edward, her oldest son, was underthis uncle Rivers's care. The uncle and the nephew were residingtogether at this time at the castle of Ludlow. [J] Queen Elizabeth wasin London with her second son. 

[Footnote J: For a view of this castle, see page 26. ]

Immediately on the death of the king, a council was called todeliberate upon the measures proper to be taken. The council decreedthat the Prince of Wales should be proclaimed king, and they fixedupon the 4th of May for the day of his coronation. They also madearrangements for sending orders to the Earl of Rivers to come at oncewith the young king to London, in order that the coronation might takeplace. 

Queen Elizabeth was present at this council, and she desired that herbrother might be ordered to come attended by as large an armed forceas he could raise, for the protection of the prince on the way. 

Now it happened that there were great dissensions among the officersand nobles of the court at this time. The queen, with the relativesand connections of her family, formed one party, and the other noblesand peers of England another party, and great was the animosity andhatred that prevailed. The English nobles had never been satisfiedwith Edward's marriage, and they were very jealous of the influence ofthe queen's family and relations. This feud had been kept down in somedegree while Edward lived, and Edward had made a great final effort toheal it entirely in his last sickness. He called together the leadingnobles on each side, that had taken part in this quarrel, and then, bygreat exertion, went in among them, and urged them to forget theirdissensions and become reconciled to each other. The effort for thetime seemed to be successful, and both parties agreed to a compromiseof the quarrel, and took a solemn oath that they would thenceforthlive together in peace. But now, on the death of the king, thedissension broke out afresh. The other nobles were very jealous andsuspicious of every measure which Elizabeth proposed, especially ifit tended to continue the possession of power and influence in thehands of her family. Accordingly, when she proposed in the council tosend for the earl, and to require him to raise a large escort to bringthe young Prince Edward to London, they objected to it. 

[Illustration: THE ATTEMPTED RECONCILIATION. ]

"Against whom, " demanded one of the councilors, "is the young princeto be defended? Who are his enemies? He has none, and the real motiveand design of raising this force is not to protect the prince, butonly to secure to the Woodville family the means of increasing andperpetuating their own importance and power. "

The speaker upbraided the queen, too, with having, by this proposal, and by the attempt to promote the aggrandizement of the Woodvilleparty which was concealed in it, been guilty of violating the oath ofreconciliation which had been taken during the last sickness of thelate king. So the council refused to authorize the armed escort, andthe queen, with tears of disappointment and vexation, gave up theplan. At least she gave it up ostensibly, but she neverthelesscontrived to come to some secret understanding with the earl, inconsequence of which he set out from the castle with the young princeat the head of quite a large force. Some of the authorities statethat he had with him two thousand men. 

In the mean time, Richard of Gloucester, as soon as he heard ofEdward's death, arranged his affairs at once, and made preparations toset out for London too. He put his army in mourning for the death ofthe king, and he wrote a most respectful and feeling letter ofcondolence to the queen. In this letter he made a solemn profession ofhomage and fealty to her son, the Prince of Wales, whom heacknowledged as rightfully entitled to the crown, and promised to befaithful in his allegiance to him, and to all the duties which he owedhim. 

Queen Elizabeth's mind was much relieved by this letter. She began tothink that she was going to find in Richard an efficient friend tosustain her cause and that of her family against her enemies. 

When Richard reached York, he made a solemn entry into that town, attended by six hundred knights all dressed in deep mourning. At thehead of this funeral procession he proceeded to the Cathedral, andthere caused the obsequies of the king to be celebrated with greatpomp, and with very impressive and apparently sincere exhibitions ofthe grief which he himself personally felt for the loss of hisbrother. 

After a brief delay in York, Richard resumed his march to thesouthward. He arranged it so as to overtake the party of the princeand the Earl of Rivers on the way. 

He arrived at the town of Northampton on the same day that the prince, with the Earl of Rivers and his escort, reached the town of StonyStratford, which was only a few miles from it. When the earl heardthat Gloucester was so near, he took with him another nobleman, namedLord Gray, and a small body of attendants, and rode back toNorthampton to pay his respects to Gloucester on the part of the youngking; for they considered that Edward became at once, by the death ofhis father, King of England, under the style and title of Edward theFifth. 

Gloucester received his visitors in a very courteous and friendlymanner. He invited them to sup with him, and he made quite anentertainment for them, and for some other friends whom he invited tojoin them. The party spent the evening together in a very agreeablemanner. 

They sat so long over their wine that it was too late for the earl andLord Gray to return that night to Stony Stratford, and Richardaccordingly made arrangements for them to remain in Northampton. Heassigned quarters to them in the town, and secretly set a guard overthem, to prevent their making their escape. The next morning, whenthey arose, they were astonished to find themselves under guard, andto perceive too, as they did, that all the avenues of the town wereoccupied with troops. They suspected treachery, but they thought itnot prudent to express their suspicions. Richard, when he met themagain in the morning, treated them in the same friendly manner as onthe evening before, and proposed to accompany them to Stony Stratford, in order that he might there see and pay his respects to the king. This was agreed to, and they all set out together. 

In company with Richard was one of his friends and confederates, theDuke of Buckingham. This Duke of Buckingham had been one of theleaders of the party at court that were opposed to the family of thequeen. These two, together with the Earl of Rivers and Lord Gray, rodeon in a very friendly manner toward Stratford. They went in advance ofRichard's troops, which were ordered to follow pretty closely behind. In this manner they went on till they began to draw near to the town. 

Richard now at once threw off his disguise. He told the Earl ofRivers and Lord Gray that the influence which they were exerting overthe mind of the king was evil, and that he felt it his duty to takethe king from their charge. 

Then, at a signal given, armed men came up and took the two noblemenin custody. Richard, with the Duke of Buckingham and their attendants, drove on with all speed into the town. It seems that the persons whohad been left with Edward had, in some way or other, obtainedintelligence of what was going on, for they were just upon the eve ofmaking their escape with him when Richard and his party arrived. Thehorse was saddled, and the young king was all ready to mount. 

Richard, when he came up to the place, assumed the command at once. Hemade no obeisance to his nephew, nor did he in any other way seem torecognize or acknowledge him as his sovereign. He simply said that hewould take care of his safety. 

"The persons that have been about you, " said he, "have been conspiringagainst your life, but I will protect you. "

He then ordered several of the principal of Edward's attendants to bearrested; the rest he commanded to disperse. What became of the largebody of men which the Earl of Rivers is said to have had under hiscommand does not appear. Whether they dispersed in obedience toRichard's commands, or whether they abandoned the earl and came overto Richard's side, is uncertain. At any rate, nobody resisted him. TheEarl of Rivers, Lord Gray, and the others were secured, with a view ofbeing sent off prisoners to the northward. Edward himself was to betaken with Richard back to Northampton. 

The little king himself scarcely knew what to make of theseproceedings. He was frightened; and when he saw that all thosepersonal friends and attendants who had had the charge of him so long, and to whom he was strongly attached, were seized and sent away, andothers, strangers to him, put in their place, he could not refrainfrom tears. King as he was, however, and sovereign ruler over millionsof men, he was utterly helpless in his uncle's hands, and obliged toyield himself passively to the disposition which his uncle thoughtbest to make of him. 

All the accounts of Edward represent him as a kind-hearted andaffectionate boy, of a gentle spirit, and of a fair and prepossessingcountenance. The ancient portraits of him which remain confirm theseaccounts of his personal appearance and of his character. 

[Illustration: ANCIENT PORTRAIT OF EDWARD V. ]

After having taken these necessary steps, and thus secured the powerin his own hands, Richard vouchsafed an explanation of what he haddone to the young king. He told him that Earl Rivers, and Lord Gray, and other persons belonging to their party, "had conspired together torule the kynge and the realme, to sette variance among the states, and to subdue and destroy the noble blood of the realme, " and that he, Richard, had interposed to save Edward from their snares. He told him, moreover, that Lord Dorset, who was Edward's half brother, being theson of the queen by her first husband, and who had for some time heldthe office of Chancellor of the Tower, had taken out the king'streasure from that castle, and had sent much of it away beyond thesea. 

Edward, astonished and bewildered, did not know at first what to replyto his uncle. He said, however, at last, that he never heard of anysuch designs on the part of his mother's relatives, and he could notbelieve that the charges were true. But Richard assured him that theywere true, and that "his kindred had kepte their dealings from theknowledge of his grace. " Satisfied or not, Edward was silenced; and hesubmitted, since it was hopeless for him to attempt to resist, to betaken back in his uncle's custody to Northampton. 

CHAPTER XI. 

TAKING SANCTUARY. 

A. D. 1483

Alarm of the queen on hearing the news. --Visit of thearchbishop. --Hasting's message. --The queen is in greatdistress. --Uncertainty in respect to Gloucester's designs. --Arrestof the leading men in the Woodville party. --The queen"on the rushes. "--Her daughters. --Description of thesanctuary. --Apartments. --The Jerusalem chamber. --Richard'splans in respect to the coronation. --Reception of Richard's partyat London. --Richard establishes his court. --Dorset. --The queen'sfriends dismissed. --Richard's titles. --Anxiety of the peopleof England. --Forlorn situation of the queen. 

When the news reached London that the king had been seized on the wayto the capital, and was in Gloucester's custody, it produced auniversal commotion. Queen Elizabeth was thrown at once into a stateof great anxiety and alarm. The tidings reached her at midnight. Shewas in the palace at Westminster at the time. She rose immediately inthe greatest terror, and began to make preparations for fleeing tosanctuary with the Duke of York, her second son. All her friends inthe neighborhood were aroused and summoned to her aid. The palace soonbecame a scene of universal confusion. Every body was busy packing upclothing and other necessaries in trunks and boxes, and securingjewels and valuables of various kinds, and removing them to places ofsafety. In the midst of this scene, the queen herself sat upon therushes which covered the floor, half dressed, and her long andbeautiful locks of hair streaming over her shoulders, the picture ofdespair. 

There was a certain nobleman, named Lord Hastings, who had been a veryprominent and devoted friend to Edward the Fourth during his life, andhad consequently been upon very intimate and friendly terms with thequeen. It was he, however, that had objected in the council to theemployment of a large force to conduct the young king to London, and, by so doing, had displeased the queen. Toward morning, while the queenwas in the depths of her distress and terror, making her preparationsfor flight, a cheering message from Hastings was brought to her, telling her not to be alarmed. The message was brought to her by acertain archbishop who had been chancellor, that is, had had thecustody of the great seal, an impression from which was necessary tothe validity of any royal decree. He came to deliver up the seal tothe queen, and also to bring Lord Hastings's message. 

"Ah, woe worth him!" said the queen, when the archbishop informed herthat Lord Hastings bid her not fear. "It is he that is the cause ofall my sorrows; he goeth about to destroy me and my blood. "

"Madam, " said the archbishop, "be of good comfort. I assure you that, if they crown any other king than your eldest son, whom they havewith them, we will, on the morrow, crown his brother, whom you havewith you here. And here is the great seal, which, in like wise as yournoble husband gave it to me, so I deliver it to you for the use ofyour son. " So the archbishop delivered the great seal into the queen'shands, and went away. This was just before the dawn. 

The words which the archbishop spoke to the queen did not give hermuch comfort. Indeed, her fears were not so much for her children, orfor the right of the eldest to succeed to the throne, as for herselfand her own personal and family ascendency under the reign of her son. She had contrived, during the lifetime of her husband, to keep prettynearly all the influence and patronage of the government in her ownhands and in that of her family connections, the Woodvilles. You willrecollect how much difficulty that had made, and how strong a partyhad been formed against her coterie. And now, her husband being dead, what she feared was not that Gloucester, in taking the young king awayfrom the custody of her relatives, and sending those relatives off asprisoners to the north, meant any hostility to the young king, butonly against her and the whole Woodville interest, of which she wasthe head. She supposed that Gloucester would now put the power of thegovernment in the hands of other families, and banish hers, and thatperhaps he would even bring her to trial and punishment for acts ofmaladministration, or other political crimes which he would chargeagainst her. It was fear of this, rather than any rebellion againstthe right of Edward the Fifth to reign, which made her in such hasteto flee to sanctuary. 

It was, however, somewhat uncertain what Gloucester intended to do. His professions were all very fair in respect to his allegiance to theyoung king. He sent a messenger to London, immediately after seizingthe king, to explain his views and motives in the act, and in thiscommunication he stated distinctly that his only object was to preventthe king's falling into the hands of the Woodville family, and not atall to oppose his coronation. 

"It neyther is reason, " said he in his letter, "nor in any wise to besuffered that the young kynge, our master and kinsman, should be inthe hands of custody of his mother's kindred, sequestered in greatmeasure from our companie and attendance, the which is neitherhonorable to hys majestie nor unto us. "

Thus the pretense of Richard in seizing the king was simply that hemight prevent the government under him from falling into the hands ofhis mother's party. But the very decisive measures he took in respectto the leading members of the Woodville family led many to suspectthat he was secretly meditating a deeper design. All those who werewith the king at the time of his seizure were made prisoners and sentoff to a castle in the north, as we have already said; and, in orderto prevent those who were in and near London from making their escape, Richard sent down immediately from Northampton ordering their arrest, and appointing guards to prevent any of them from flying to sanctuary. When the archbishop, who had called to see the queen at the palace, went away, he saw through the window, although it was yet before thedawn, a number of boats stationed on the Thames ready to intercept anywho might be coming up the river with this intent from the Tower, forseveral influential members of the family resided at this time at theTower. 

The queen herself, however, as it happened, was at Westminster Palace, and she had accordingly but little way to go to make her escape to theAbbey. 

The space which was inclosed by the consecrated limits, from withinwhich prisoners could not be taken, was somewhat extensive. Itincluded not only the church of the Abbey, but also the Abbey garden, the cemetery, the palace of the abbot, the cloisters, and variousother buildings and grounds included within the inclosure. As soon asthe queen entered these precincts, she sank down upon the floor of thehall, "alone on the rushes, all desolate and dismayed. " It was in themonth of May, and the great fire-place of the hall was filled withbranches of trees and flowers, while the floor, according to thecustom of the time, was strewed with green rushes. For a time thequeen was so overwhelmed with her sorrow and chagrin that she wasscarcely conscious where she was. But she was soon aroused from herdespondency by the necessity of making proper arrangements for herselfand her family in her new abode. She had two daughters with her, Elizabeth and Cecily--beautiful girls, seventeen and fifteen years ofage; Richard, Duke of York, her second son, and several youngerchildren. The youngest of these children, Bridget, was only threeyears old. Elizabeth, the oldest, afterward became a queen, and littleBridget a nun. 

[Illustration: ANCIENT VIEW OF WESTMINSTER. ]

The rooms which the queen and her family occupied in the sanctuaryare somewhat particularly described by one of the writers of thosedays. The fire-place, where the trees and flowers were placed, was inthe centre of the hall, and there was an opening in the roof above, called a _louvre_, to allow of the escape of the smoke. This hearthstill remains on the floor of the hall, and the louvre is still to beseen in the roof above. [K] The end of the hall was formed of oakpanneling, with lattice-work above, the use of which will presentlyappear. A part of this paneling was formed of doors, which led bywinding stairs up to a curious congeries of small rooms formed amongthe spaces between the walls and towers, and under the arches above. Some of these rooms were for private apartments, and others were usedfor the offices of buttery, kitchen, laundry, and the like. At the endof this range of apartments was the private sitting-room and study ofthe abbot. The windows of the abbot's room looked down upon a prettyflower-garden, and there was a passage from it which led by a corridorback to the lattices over the doors in the hall, through which theabbot could look down into the hall at any time without beingobserved, and see what the monks were doing there. 

[Footnote K: The room is now the college hall, so called, ofWestminster school. ]

Besides these there were other large apartments, called stateapartments, which were used chiefly on great public occasions. Theserooms were larger, loftier, and more richly decorated than the others. They were ornamented with oak carvings and fluting, painted windows, and other such decorations. There was one in particular, which wascalled the Jerusalem chamber. This was the grand receiving-room of theabbot. It had a great Gothic window of painted glass, and the wallswere hung with curious tapestry. This room, with the window, thetapestry, and all the other ornaments, remains to this day. 

It was on the night of the third of May that the queen and her family"took sanctuary. " The very next day, the fourth, was the day that thecouncil had appointed for the coronation. But Richard, instead ofcoming at once to London, after taking the king under his charge, soas to be ready for the coronation at the appointed day, delayed hisjourney so as not to enter London until that day. He wished to preventthe coronation from taking place, having probably other plans of hisown in view instead. 

It is not, however, absolutely certain that Richard intended, at thistime, to claim the crown for himself, for in entering London heformed a grand procession, giving the young king the place of honorin it, and doing homage to him as king. Richard himself and all hisretinue were in mourning. Edward was dressed in a royal mantle ofpurple velvet, and rode conspicuously as the chief personage of theprocession. A short distance from the city the cavalcade was met by aprocession of the civic authorities of London and five hundredcitizens, all sumptuously appareled, who had come out to receive andwelcome their sovereign, and to conduct him through the gates into thecity. In entering the city Richard rode immediately before the king, with his head uncovered. He held his cap in his hand, and bowedcontinually very low before the king, designating him in this way tothe citizens as the object of their homage. He called out also, fromtime to time, to the crowds that thronged the waysides to see, "Beholdyour prince and sovereign. "

There were two places to which it might have been considered notimprobable that Richard would take the king on his arrival at thecapital--one the palace of Westminster, at the upper end of London, and the other, the Tower, at the lower end. The Tower, though oftenused as a prison, was really, at that time, a castle, where the kingsand the members of the royal family often resided. Richard, however, did not go to either of these places at first, but proceeded insteadto the bishop's palace at St. Paul's, in the heart of the city. Here asort of court was established, a grand council of nobles and officersof state was called, and for some days the laws were administered andthe government was carried on from this place, all, however, inEdward's name. Money was coined, also, with his effigy andinscription, and, in fine, so far as all essential forms andtechnicalities were concerned, the young Edward was really a reigningking; but, of course, in respect to substantial power, every thing wasin Richard's hands. 

The reason why Richard did not proceed at once to the Tower wasprobably because Dorset, the queen's son, was in command there, andhe, as of course he was identified with the Woodville party, mightperhaps have made Richard some trouble. But Dorset, as soon as heheard that Richard was coming, abandoned the Tower, and fled to thesanctuary to join his mother. Accordingly, after waiting a few days atthe bishop's palace until the proper arrangements could be made, theking, with the whole party in attendance upon him, removed to theTower, and took up their residence there. The king was nominally inhis castle, with Richard and the other nobles and their retinue inattendance upon him as his guards. Really he was in a prison, and hisuncle, with the people around him who were under his uncle's command, were his keepers. 

A meeting of the lords was convened, and various politicalarrangements were made to suit Richard's views. The principal membersof the Woodville family were dismissed from the offices which theyheld, and other nobles, who were in Richard's interest, were appointedin their place. A new day was appointed for the coronation, namely, the 22d of June. The council of lords decreed also that, as the kingwas yet too young to conduct the government himself personally, hisuncle Gloucester was, for the present, to have charge of theadministration of public affairs, under the title of Lord Protector. The title in full, which Richard thenceforth assumed under thisdecree, was, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, brother and uncle of theking, Protector and Defender, Great Chamberlain, Constable, and LordHigh Admiral of England. 

During all this time the city of London, and, indeed, the whole realmof England, as far as the tidings of what was going on at the capitalspread into the interior, had been in a state of the greatestexcitement. The nobles, and the courtiers of all ranks, wereconstantly on the alert, full of anxiety and solicitude, not knowingwhich side to take or what sentiments to avow. They did not know whatturn things would finally take, and, of course, could not tell whatthey were to do in order to be found, in the end, on the side that wasuppermost. The common people in the streets, with anxious looks andmany fearful forebodings, discussed the reports and rumors that theyhad heard. They all felt a sentiment of loyal and affectionate regardfor the king--a sentiment which was increased and strengthened by hisyouth, his gentle disposition, and the critical and helpless situationthat he was in; while, on the other hand, the character of Gloucesterinspired them with a species of awe which silenced and subdued them. Edward, in his "protector's" hands, seemed to them like a lamb in thecustody of a tiger. 

The queen, all this time, remained shut up in the sanctuary, in astate of extreme suspense and anxiety, clinging to the children whomshe had with her, and especially to her youngest son, the little Dukeof York, as the next heir to the crown, and her only stay and hope, in case, through Richard's violence or treachery, any calamity shouldbefall the king. 

[Illustration: THE PEOPLE IN THE STREETS. ]

CHAPTER XII. 

RICHARD LORD PROTECTOR. 

A. D. 1483

Richard forms plans for seizing the crown. --His plan for disposing ofEdward's children. --Clarence's children. --Lady Cecily. --Baynard'sCastle. --Situation of the queen's friends at Pomfret Castle. --LordHastings. --Richard's councils. --The Tower. --Nobles in council at theTower. --Richard's proceedings at the council. --Scene in the councilchamber at the Tower. --He makes signals for the armed men to comein. --Hastings is executed. --Orders sent to the north. --Execution ofthe prisoners at Pomfret Castle. --Richard's plans in respect to theDuke of York. --He determines to seize him. --The case of the littleRichard argued. --Delegation sent to the Tower. --Interview with themother of the princes. --The queen is forced to give up the child. --Theparting scene. --The prince is taken away. --Both princes entirely inRichard's power. 

What sort of protection Richard afforded to the young wards who werecommitted to his charge will appear by events narrated in thischapter. 

It was now June, and the day, the twenty-second, which had been fixedupon for the coronation, was drawing nigh. By the ancient usages ofthe realm of England, the office of Protector, to which Richard hadbeen appointed, would expire on the coronation of the king. Of course, Richard perceived at once that if he wished to prolong his power hemust act promptly. 

He began to revolve in his mind the possibility of assuming the crownhimself, and displacing the children of his older brothers; forClarence left children at his decease as well as Edward. Of course, these children of Clarence, as well as those of Edward, would takeprecedence of him in the line of succession, being descended from anolder brother. Richard therefore, in order to establish any claim tothe crown for himself, must find some pretext for setting aside boththese branches of the family. The pretexts which he found were these. 

[Illustration: CLARENCE'S CHILDREN HEARING OF THEIR FATHER'S DEATH. ]

In respect to the children of Edward, his plan was to pretend to havediscovered proof of Edward's having been privately married to anotherlady before his marriage with Elizabeth Woodville. This would, ofcourse, render the marriage with Elizabeth Woodville null, and destroythe rights of the children to any inheritance from their father. 

In respect to the children of Clarence, he was to maintain that theywere cut off by the attainder which had been passed against theirfather. A bill of attainder, according to the laws and usages of thosetimes, not only doomed the criminal himself to death, but cut off hischildren from all rights of inheritance. It was intended to destroythe family as well as the man. 

Richard, however, did not at once reveal his plans, but proceededcautiously to take the proper measures for putting them intoexecution. 

In the first place, there was his mother to be conciliated, the LadyCecily Neville, known, however, more generally by the title of theDuchess of York. She lived at this time in an old family residencecalled Baynard's Castle, which stood on the banks of the Thames. [L] Assoon as Richard arrived in London he went to see his mother at thisplace, and afterward he often visited her there. How far he explainedhis plans to her, and how far she encouraged or disapproved of them, is not known. If she was required to act at all in the case, it musthave been very hard for her, in such a question of life and death, todecide between her youngest son alive and the children of herfirst-born in his grave. Mothers can best judge to which side, in suchan alternative, her maternal sympathies would naturally incline her. 

[Footnote L: For a view of this castle, see engraving on page 273. ]

As for the immediate members of the Woodville family, they werealready pretty well taken care of. The queen herself, with herchildren, were shut up in the sanctuary. Her brothers, and the otherinfluential men who were most prominent on her side, had been madeprisoners, and sent to Pomfret Castle in the north. Here they wereheld under the custody of men devoted to Richard's interest. But toprevent the possibility of his having any farther trouble with them, Richard resolved to order them to be beheaded. This resolution wassoon carried into effect, as we shall presently see. 

There remained the party of nobles and courtiers that were likely tobe hostile to the permanent continuance of the power of Richard, andinclined to espouse the cause of the young king. The nobles had notyet distinctly taken ground on this question. There were, however, some who were friendly to Richard. Others seemed more inclined to forma party against him. The prominent man among this last-named set wasLord Hastings. There were several others besides, and Richard knewvery well who they were. In order to circumvent and defeat any planswhich they might be disposed to form, and to keep the power fully inhis own hands, he convened his councils of state at different places, sometimes at Westminster, sometimes at the Tower, where the king waskept, and sometimes at his own residence, which was in the heart ofLondon. He transferred the public business more and more to his ownresidence, assembling the councilors there at all times, late andearly, and thus withdrawing them from attendance at the Tower. Verysoon Richard's residence in London became the acknowledgedhead-quarters of influence and power, and all who had petitions topresent or favors to obtain gathered there, while the king in theTower was neglected, and left comparatively alone. 

Still the form of holding a council from time to time at the Tower wascontinued, and, of course, the nobles who assembled there were thosemost inclined to stand by and defend the cause of the king. 

Such was the state of things on the 13th of June, nine days before thetime appointed for the coronation. Richard then, having carefullylaid his plans, was prepared to take decisive measures to break up theparty who were disposed to gather around the king at the Tower andespouse his cause. 

On that day, while these nobles were holding a council in the Tower, suddenly, and greatly to their surprise, Richard walked in among them. He assumed a very good-natured and even merry air as he entered andtook his seat, and began to talk with those present in a very friendlyand familiar tone. This was for the purpose of lulling any suspicionswhich they might have felt on seeing him appear among them, andprevent them from divining the dreadful intentions with which he hadcome. 

"My lord, " said he, turning to a bishop who sat near him, and who wasone of those that he was about to arrest, "you have some excellentstrawberries in your garden, I understand. I wish you would let mehave a plateful of them. "

It was about the middle of June, you will recollect, which was thetime for strawberries to be ripe. 

The bishop was very much pleased to find the great Protector takingsuch an interest in his strawberries, and he immediately called aservant and sent him away at once to bring some of the fruit. 

After having greeted the other nobles at the board in a somewhatsimilar style to this, with jocose and playful remarks, which had theeffect of entirely diverting from their minds every thing likesuspicion, he said that he must go away for a short time, but that hewould presently return. In the mean time, they might proceed, he said, with their deliberations on the public business. 

So he went out. He proceeded at once to make the preparationsnecessary for the accomplishment of the desperate measures which hehad determined to adopt. He stationed armed men at the doors and thepassages of the part of the Tower where the council was assembled, andgave them instructions as to what they were to do, and agreed withthem in respect to the signals which he was to give. 

In about an hour he returned, but his whole air and manner were nowtotally changed. He came in with a frowning and angry countenance, knitting his brows and setting his teeth, as if something had occurredto put him in a great rage. He advanced to the council table, andthere accosting Lord Hastings in a very excited and angry manner, hedemanded, "What punishment do you think men deserve who form plots and schemesfor my destruction?"

Lord Hastings was amazed at this sudden appearance of displeasure, andhe replied to the Protector that such men, if there were any such, most certainly deserved death, whoever they might be. 

"It is that sorceress, my brother's wife, " said Richard, "and thatother vile sorceress, worse than she, Jane Shore. See!"

This allusion to Jane Shore was somewhat ominous for Hastings, as itwas generally understood that since the king's death Lord Hastings hadtaken Jane Shore under his protection, and had lived in great intimacywith her. 

As Richard said this, he pulled up the sleeve of his doublet to theelbow, to let the company look at his arm. This arm had always beenweak, and smaller than the other. 

"See, " said he, "what they are doing to me. "

He meant that by the power of necromancy they had made an image of waxas an effigy of him, according to the mode explained in a previouschapter, and were now melting it away by slow degrees in order todestroy his life, and that his arm was beginning to pine and witheraway in consequence. 

[Illustration: THE COUNCIL IN THE TOWER. ]

The lords knew very well that the state in which they saw Richard'sarm was its natural condition, and that, consequently, his chargeagainst the queen and Jane Shore was only a pretense, which was to bethe prelude and excuse for some violent measures that he was about totake. They scarcely knew what to say. At last Lord Hastings replied, "Certainly, my lord, if they have committed so heinous an offense asthis, they deserve a very heinous punishment. "

"If!" repeated the Protector, in a voice of thunder. "And thouservest me, then, it seems, with _ifs_ and _ands_. I tell thee thatthey _have_ so done--and I will make what I say good upon thy body, traitor!"

He emphasized and confirmed this threat by bringing down his fist witha furious blow upon the table. 

This was one of the signals which he had agreed upon with the peoplethat he had stationed without at the door of the council hall. A voicewas immediately heard in the ante-chamber calling out Treason. Thiswas again another signal. It was a call to a band of armed men whomRichard had stationed in a convenient place near by, and who were torush in at this call. Accordingly, a sudden noise was heard of therushing of men and the clanking of iron, and before the councilorscould recover from their consternation the table was surrounded withsoldiery, all "in harness, " that is, completely armed, and as fast asthe foremost came in and gathered around the table, others pressed inafter them, until the room was completely full. 

Richard, designating Hastings with a gesture, said suddenly, "I arrestthee, traitor. "

"What! _me_, my lord?" exclaimed Hastings, in terror. 

"Yes, thee, traitor. "

Two or three of the soldiers immediately seized Hastings and preparedto lead him away. Other soldiers laid hands upon several of the othernobles, such as Richard had designated to them beforehand. These, ofcourse, were the leading and prominent men of the party opposed toRichard's permanent ascendency. Most of these men were taken away andsecured as prisoners in various parts of the Tower. As for Hastings, Richard, in a stern and angry manner, advised him to lose no time insaying his prayers, "for, by the Lord, " said he, "I will not to dinnerto-day till I see thy head off. "

Then, after a brief delay, to allow the wretched man a few minutes tosay his prayers, Richard nodded to the soldiers to signify to themthat they were to proceed to their work. They immediately took theirvictim out to a green by the side of the Tower, and, laying him downwith his neck across a log which they found there, they cut off hishead with a broad-axe. 

[Illustration: POMFRET CASTLE. ]

The same day Richard sent off a dispatch to the north, directed tothe men who had in charge the Earl Rivers, and the other friends ofthe king who had been made prisoners when the king was seized atStony Stratford, ordering them all to be beheaded. The order wasimmediately obeyed. 

The person who had charge of the execution of this order was a sternand ruffian-like officer named Sir Richard Ratcliffe. This man isquite noted in the history of the times as one of the mostunscrupulous of Richard's adherents. He was a merciless man, short andrude in speech, and reckless in action, destitute alike of all pityfor man and of all fear of God. 

The place where the prisoners had been confined was Pomfret Castle. [M]On receiving the orders from Richard, Ratcliffe led them out to anopen place without the castle wall to be beheaded. The executionersbrought a log and an axe, and the victims were slaughtered one afteranother, without any ceremony, and without being allowed to say a wordin self-defense. 

[Footnote M: Called sometimes Pontefract. ]

The whole country was shocked at hearing of these sudden and terribleexecutions; but the power was in Richard's hands, and there was no onecapable of resisting him. The death of the leaders of what would havebeen the young king's party struck terror into the rest, and Richardnow had every thing in his own hands, or, rather, _almost_ everything; for the queen and her family, being still in the sanctuary, were beyond his reach. He, however, had nothing to fear from herpersonally, and there were none of the children that gave him anyconcern except the Duke of York, the king's younger brother. He, youwill recollect, was with his mother at Westminster when the king wasseized, and she had taken him with the other children to the Abbey. Richard was now extremely desirous of getting possession of this boy. 

The reason why he deemed it so essential to get possession of him wasthis. The child was, it is true, of little consequence while hisbrother the king lived; but if the king were put out of the way, thenthe thoughts and the hearts of all the loyal people of England, Richard knew very well, would be turned toward York as the rightfulsuccessor. But if they could both be put out of the way, and if thepeople of England could be induced to consider Clarence's children asset aside by the attainder of their father, then he himself would comeforward as the true and rightful heir to the crown. It is true that itwas a part of his plan, as has already been said, to declare themarriage of Elizabeth Woodville with the king null, and thus cut offboth these children of Edward from their right of inheritance; but heknew very well that even if a majority of the people of England wereto assent to this, there would certainly be a minority that wouldrefuse their assent, and would adhere to the cause of the children, and they, if the children should fall into their hands, might, at somefuture time, make themselves very formidable to him, and threaten veryseriously the permanence of his dominion. It was quite necessary, therefore, he thought, that he should get both children into his ownpower. 

"I must, " said he to himself, therefore, "I must, in some way orother, and at all hazards, get possession of little Richard. "

It is always the policy of usurpers, and of all ambitious and aspiringmen who wish to seize and hold power which does not properly belong tothem, to carry the various measures necessary to the attainment oftheir ends, especially those likely to be unpopular, not by their ownpersonal action, but by the agency of others, whom they put forward toact for them. Richard proceeded in this way in the present instance. He called a grand council of the peers of the realm and great officersof state, and caused the question to be brought up there of removingthe young Duke of York from the custody of his mother to that of theProtector, in order that he might be with his brother. The peers whowere in Richard's interest advocated this plan; but all the bishopsand archbishops, who, of course, as ecclesiastics, had very high ideasof the sacredness and inviolability of a sanctuary, opposed the planof taking the duke away except by the consent of his mother. 

The other side argued in reply to them that a sanctuary was a placewhere persons could seek refuge to escape punishment in case of crime, and that where no crime could have been committed, and no charges ofcrime were made, the principle did not apply. In other words, that thesanctuary was for men and women who had been guilty, or were supposedto have been guilty, of violations of law; but as children couldcommit no crime for which an asylum was necessary, the privileges ofsanctuary did not extend to them. 

This view of the subject prevailed. The bishops and archbishops wereoutvoted, and an order in council was passed authorizing the LordProtector to possess himself of his nephew, the Duke of York, and forthis purpose to take him, if necessary, out of sanctuary by force. 

Still, the bishops and archbishops were very unwilling that forceshould be used, if it could possibly be avoided; and finally theArchbishop of Canterbury, who was the highest prelate in the realm, proposed that a deputation from the council should be sent to theAbbey, and that he should go with them, in order to see the queen, andmake the attempt to persuade her to give up her son of her own accord. 

After giving notice to the abbot of their intended visit, and makingan arrangement with him and with the queen in respect to the time whenthey could be received, the delegation proceeded in state to the Abbeyon the appointed day, and were received by the abbot and by Elizabethwith due ceremony in the Jerusalem chamber, the great audience hall ofthe Abbey, which has already been described. 

The Archbishop of Canterbury, who was at the head of the delegation, explained the case to the queen. They wished her, he said, to allowher son, the Duke of York, to leave the sanctuary, and to join hisbrother the king at his royal residence in the Tower. He would beperfectly safe there, he said, under the care of his uncle, the LordProtector. 

"The Protector thinks it very necessary that the duke should go, "added the archbishop, "to be company for his brother. The king is verymelancholy, he says, for want of a playfellow. "

"And so the Protector, " replied the queen--"God grant that he mayreally prove a protector--thinks that the king needs a playfellow! Andcan no playfellow be found for him except his brother?

"Besides, " she added, "he is not in a mood to play. He is not well. They must find some other playmate for his brother. Just as ifprinces, while they are so young, could not as well have some one toplay with them not of their own rank, or as if a boy must have hisbrother, and nobody else for his mate, when every body knows that boysare more likely to disagree with their brothers than they are withother children. "

The archbishop, in reply, proceeded to argue the case with the queen, and to represent the necessity, arising from reasons of state, why theyoung duke should be committed to the charge of his uncle. Heexplained to her, too, that the Lord Protector had been fullyauthorized, by a decree of the council, to come and take his nephewfrom the Abbey, and to employ force, if necessary, to effect thepurpose, but that it would be much better, both for the queen herselfand the young duke, as well as for all concerned, that the affairshould be settled in a peaceable and amicable manner. 

The unhappy queen saw at last that there was no alternative but forher to submit to her fate and give up her boy. Slowly and reluctantlyshe came to this conclusion, and finally gave her consent. Richard wasbrought in. His mother took him by the hand, and again addressed thearchbishop and the delegation, speaking substantially as follows:

"My lord, " said she, "and all my lords now present, I will not be sosuspicious as to mistrust the promises you make me, or to believe thatyou are dealing otherwise than fairly and honorably by me. Here is myson. I give him up to your charge. I have no doubt that he would besafe here under my protection, if I could be allowed to keep him withme, although I have enemies that so hate me and all my blood, that Ibelieve, if they thought they had any of it in their own veins, theywould open them to let it flow out. 

"I give him up, at your demand, to the protection of his brother andhis uncle. And yet I know well that the desire of a kingdom knows nokindred. Brothers have been their brothers' bane, and can thesenephews be sure of their uncle? The boys would be safe if keptasunder; together--I do not know. Nevertheless, I here deliver my son, and with him his brother's life, into your hands, and of you shall Irequire them both, before God and man. I know that you are faithfuland true in what you intend, and you have power, moreover, to keep thechildren safe, if you will. If you think that I am over-anxious andfear too much, take care that you yourselves do not fear too little. "

Then drawing Richard to her, she kissed him very lovingly, the tearscoming to her eyes as she did so. 

"Farewell, " she said, "farewell, mine own sweet son. God send you goodkeeping. I must kiss you before you go, for God knows when we shallkiss together again. "

She kissed him again and blessed him, and then turned to go away, weeping bitterly. 

The child began to weep too, from sympathy with his mother's distress. The archbishop, however, took him by the hand and led him away, followed by the rest of the delegation. 

They conveyed the young duke first to the hall of the council, whichwas very near, and thence to the Lord Protector's residence in thecity. Here he was received with every mark of consideration and honor, and a handsome escort was provided to conduct him in state to theTower, where he joined his brother. 

Richard had now every thing under his own control. The delivery ofthe Duke of York into his hands took place on the sixteenth of June. The time which had been set for the coronation was the twenty-second. 

CHAPTER XIII. 

PROCLAIMED KING. 

A. D. 1483

The Duke of Buckingham. --Historical doubts. --Richard at Baynard'sCastle. --The expense-book. --Items from the expense-book. --Richard'splans. --Richard's determination in respect to Jane Shore. --Jane'scharacter. --Her jewelry confiscated. --The punishment of JaneShore. --Alleged marriage of Edward IV. To Elinor Talbot. --Particularsof the story. --Plan for publishing it. --Sermon preached by Dr. Shawnear St. Paul's. --Ingenious contrivance. --Coolness of thepeople. --Meeting at the Guildhall. --The people do not respond. --Theappeals to the people fail. --Grand council convened. --Arrangementsmade by Buckingham. --The petition. --Substance of the petition. --Realobject of it. --Richard receives the petition at Baynard'sCastle. --Richard concludes to accept the crown. --Ceremonies connectedwith the investiture of the king. --Richard marches through London. --Isevery where proclaimed king. --Extraordinary character of the reign ofEdward V. 

Richard, having thus obtained control of every thing essential to thesuccess of his plans, began to prepare for action. His chief friendand confederate, the one on whom he relied most for the execution ofthe several measures which he proposed to take, was a powerfulnobleman named the Duke of Buckingham. I shall proceed in this chapterto describe the successive steps of the course which Richard and theDuke of Buckingham pursued in raising Richard to the throne, asrecorded by the different historians of those days, and as generallybelieved since, though, in fact, there have been great disputes inrespect to these occurrences, and it is now quite difficult toascertain with certainty what the precise truth of the case really is. This, however, is, after all, of no great practical importance, for, in respect to remote transactions of this nature, the thing which ismost necessary for the purposes of general education is to understandwhat the story is, in detail, which has been generally received amongmankind, and to which the allusions of orators and poets, and thediscussions of statesmen and moralists in subsequent ages refer, forit is with this story alone that for all the purposes of generalreading we have any thing to do. 

 * * * * *

Richard was residing at this time chiefly at Baynard's Castle with hismother. [N] The young king and his brother, the Duke of York, were inthe Tower. They were not nominally prisoners, but yet Richard keptclose watch and ward over them, and took most effectual precautions toprevent their making their escape. The queen, Elizabeth Woodville, with her daughters, was in the sanctuary. Richard's wife, with theyoung child, was still at Middleham Castle. 

[Footnote N: For view of this castle, see page 273. ]

It is a very curious circumstance, showing how sometimes records ofthe most trivial and insignificant things come down to us from ancienttimes in a clear and certain form, while all that is really importantto know is involved in doubt and obscurity--that the householdexpense-book of Anne at Middleham is still extant, showing all thelittle items of expense incurred for Richard's son, while all isdispute and uncertainty in respect to the great political schemes andmeasures of his father. In this book there is a charge of 22_s. _ 9_d. _for a piece of green cloth, and another of 1_s. _ 8_d. _ for making itinto gowns for "my lord prince. " There is also a charge of 5_s. _ for afeather for him, and 13_s. _ 1_d. _ paid to a shoemaker, named Dirick, for a pair of shoes. This expense-book was continued after Anne leftMiddleham Castle to go to London, as will be presently related. Thereare several charges on the journey for offerings and gifts made by thechild at churches on the way. Two men were paid 6_s. _ 8_d. _ forrunning on foot by the side of his carriage. These men's names wereMedcalf and Pacock. There is also a charge of 2_d. _ for mending awhip!

But to return to our narrative. The time for the coronation of Edwardthe Fifth was drawing near, but Richard intended to prevent theperformance of this ceremony, and to take the crown for himselfinstead. The first thing was to put in circulation the story that histwo nephews were not the legitimate children of his brother, Edwardthe Fourth, and to prepare the way for this, he wished first, by everymeans, to cast odium on Edward's character. This was easily done, forEdward's character was bad enough to merit any degree of odium whichhis brother might wish it to bear. 

Accordingly, Richard employed his friends and partisans in talking asmuch as possible in all quarters about the dissoluteness and the vicesof the late king. False stories would probably have been invented, ifit had not been that there were enough that were true. These storieswere all revived and put in circulation, and every thing was made toappear as unfavorable for Edward as possible. Richard himself, on theother hand, feigned a very strict and scrupulous regard for virtue andmorality, and deemed it his duty, he said, to do all in his power toatone for and wipe away the reproach which his brother's loose andwicked life had left upon the court and the kingdom. Among otherthings, the cause of public morals demanded, he said, that an exampleshould be made of Jane Shore, who had been the associate and partnerof the king in his immoralities. 

Jane Shore, it will be recollected, was the wife of a rich citizen ofLondon, whom Edward had enticed away from her husband and brought tocourt. She was naturally a very amiable and kind-hearted woman, andall accounts concur in saying that she exercised the power that sheacquired over the mind of the king in a very humane and praiseworthymanner. She was always ready to interpose, when the king contemplatedany act of harshness or severity, to avert his anger and save hisintended victim, and, in general, she did a great deal to soften thebrutality of his character, and to protect the innocent and helplessfrom the wrongs which he would otherwise have often done them. Theseamiable and gentle traits of character do not, indeed, atone at allfor the grievous sin which she committed in abandoning her husband andliving voluntarily with the king, but they did much toward modifyingthe feeling of scorn and contempt with which she would have otherwisebeen regarded by the people of England. 

Richard caused Jane to be arrested and sent to prison. He also seizedall her plate and jewels, and confiscated them. She had a very richand valuable collection of these things. [O] Richard then caused anecclesiastical court to be organized, and sent her before it to betried. The court, undoubtedly in accordance with instructions thatRichard himself gave them, sentenced her, by way of penance for hersins, to walk in midday through the streets of London, from one end ofthe city to the other, almost entirely undressed. The intention ofthis severe exposure was to designate her to those who should assembleto witness the punishment as a wanton, and thus to put her to shame, and draw upon her the scorn and derision of the populace. They foundsome old and obsolete law which authorized such a punishment. Thesentence was carried into effect on a Sunday. The unhappy criminal wasconducted through the principal streets of the city, wearing anight-dress, and carrying a lighted taper in her hand, between rows ofspectators that assembled by thousands along the way to witness thescene. But, instead of being disposed to receive her with taunts andreproaches, the populace were moved to compassion by her saddened lookand her extreme beauty. Their hearts were softened by the remembranceof the many stories they had heard of the kindness of her heart, andthe amiableness and gentleness of her demeanor, in the time of herprosperity and power. They thought it hard, too, that the law shouldbe enforced so rigidly against her alone, while so many multitudes inall ranks of society, high as well as low, were allowed to gounpunished. 

[Footnote O: The husband with whom she had lived before she becameacquainted with Edward was a wealthy goldsmith and jeweler. ]

Still, Richard's object in this exhibition was accomplished. Thetransaction had the effect of calling the attention of the publicuniversally and strongly to the fact that Edward the Fourth had been aloose and dissolute man, and prepared people's minds for the chargewhich was about to be brought against him. 

This charge was that he had been secretly married to another ladybefore his union with Elizabeth Woodville, and that consequently bythis latter marriage he was guilty of bigamy. Of course, if this weretrue, the second marriage would be null and void, and the childrenspringing from it would have no rights as heirs. 

Whether there was any truth in this story or not can not now ever becertainly known. All that is certain is that Richard circulated thereport, and he found several witnesses to testify to the truth of it. The maiden name of the lady to whom they said the king had beenmarried was Elinor Talbot. She had married in early life a certainLord Boteler, whose widow she was at the time that Edward was allegedto have married her. The marriage was performed in a very privatemanner by a certain bishop, nobody being present besides the partiesexcept the bishop himself, and he was strictly charged by the king tokeep the affair a profound secret. This he promised to do. Notwithstanding his promise, however, the bishop some timesubsequently, after the king had been married to Elizabeth Woodville, revealed the secret of the previous marriage to Gloucester, at whichthe king, when he heard of it, was extremely angry. He accused thebishop of having betrayed the trust which he had reposed in him, and, dismissing him at once from office, shut him up in prison. 

Richard having, as he said, kept these facts secret during hisbrother's lifetime, out of regard for the peace of the family, nowfelt it his duty to make them known, in order to prevent the wrongwhich would be done by allowing the crown to descend to a son who, notbeing born in lawful wedlock, could have no rights as heir. 

After disseminating this story among the influential persons connectedwith the court, and through all the circles of high life, during theweek, it was arranged that on the following Sunday the facts should bemade known publicly to the people. 

There was a large open space near St. Paul's Cathedral, in the veryheart of London, where it was the custom to hold public assemblies ofall kinds, both religious and political. There was a pulpit built onone side of this space, from which sermons were preached, orationsand harangues pronounced, and proclamations made. Oaths wereadministered here too, in cases where it was required to administeroaths to large numbers of people. 

From this pulpit, on the next Sunday after the penance of Jane Shore, a certain Dr. Shaw, who was a brother of the Lord-mayor of London, preached a sermon to a large concourse of citizens, in which he openlyattempted to set aside the claims of the two boys, and to prove thatRichard was the true heir to the crown. 

He took for his text a passage from the Wisdom of Solomon, "Themultiplying brood of the ungodly shall not thrive. " In this discoursehe explained to his audience that Edward, when he was married toElizabeth Woodville, was already the husband of Elinor Boteler, andconsequently that the second marriage was illegal and void, and thechildren of it entirely destitute of all claims to the crown. He also, it is said, advanced the idea that neither Edward nor Clarence werethe children of their reputed father, the old Duke of York, but thatRichard was the oldest legitimate son of the marriage, in proof ofwhich he offered the fact that Richard strongly resembled the duke inperson, while neither Edward nor Clarence had borne any resemblance tohim at all. 

It was arranged, moreover--so it was said--that, when the preachercame to the passage where he was to speak of the resemblance whichRichard bore to his father, the great Duke of York, Richard himselfwas to enter the assembly as if by accident, and thus give thepreacher the opportunity to illustrate and confirm what he had said bydirecting his audience to observe for themselves the resemblance whichhe had pointed out, and also to excite them to a burst of enthusiasmin Richard's favor by the eloquent appeal which the incident ofRichard's entrance was to awaken. But this intended piece of stageeffect, if it was really planned, failed in the execution. Richard didnot come in at the right time, and when he did come in, either thepreacher managed the case badly, or else the people were very littledisposed to espouse Richard's cause; for when the orator, at the closeof his appeal, expected applause and acclamations, the people utteredno response, but looked at each other in silence, and remained whollyunmoved. 

In the course of the following two or three days, other attempts weremade to excite the populace to some demonstration in Richard's favor, but they did not succeed. The Duke of Buckingham met a large concourseof Londoners at the Guildhall, which is in the centre of the businessportion of the city. He was supported by a number of nobles, knights, and distinguished citizens, and he made a long and able speech to theassembly, in which he argued strenuously in favor of calling Richardto the throne. He denounced the character of the former king, andenlarged at length on the dissipated and vicious life which he hadled. He also related to the people the story of Edward's having beenthe husband of Lady Elinor Boteler at the time when his marriage withQueen Elizabeth took place, which fact, as Buckingham showed, made themarriage with Elizabeth void, and cut off the children from theinheritance. The children of Clarence had been cut off, too, by theattainder, and so Richard was the only remaining heir. 

The duke concluded his harangue by asking the assembly if, under thosecircumstances, they would not call upon Richard to ascend the throne. A few of the poorer sort, very likely some that had been previouslyhired to do it, threw up their caps into the air in response to thisappeal, and cried out, "Long live King Richard!" But the major part, comprising all the more respectable portion of the assembly, lookedgrave and were silent. Some who were pressed to give their opinionsaid they must take time to consider. 

Thus these appeals to the people failed, so far as the object of themwas to call forth a popular demonstration in Richard's favor. But inone respect they accomplished the object in view: they had the effectof making it known throughout London and the vicinity that arevolution was impending, and thus preparing men's minds to acquiescein the change more readily than they might perhaps have done if it hadcome upon them suddenly and with a shock. 

On the following day after the address at the Guildhall, a grandassembly of all the lords, bishops, councilors, and officers of statewas convened in Westminster. It was substantially a Parliament, thoughnot a Parliament in form. The reason why it was not called as aParliament in form was because Richard, having doubts, as he said, about the right of Edward to the throne, could not conscientiouslyadvise that any public act should be performed in his name, and aParliament could only be legally convened by summons from a king. Accordingly, this assembly was only an informal meeting of the peersof England and other great dignitaries of Church and State, with aview of consulting together to determine what should be done. Ofcourse, it was all fully arranged and settled beforehand, among thosewho were in Richard's confidence, what the result of thesedeliberations was to be. The Duke of Buckingham, Richard's principalfriend and supporter, managed the business at the meeting. Theassembly consisted, of course, chiefly of the party of Richard'sfriends. The principal leaders of the parties opposed to him had beenbeheaded or shut up in prison; of the rest, some had fled, some hadconcealed themselves, and of the few who dared to show themselves atthe meeting, there were none who had the courage, or perhaps I oughtrather to say the imprudence and folly, to oppose any thing whichBuckingham should undertake to do. 

The result of the deliberations of this council was the drawing up ofa petition to be presented to Richard, declaring him the true andrightful heir to the crown, and praying him to assume at once thesovereign power. 

A delegation was appointed to wait upon Richard and present thepetition to him. Buckingham was at the head of this delegation. Thepetition was written out in due form upon a roll of parchment. Itdeclared that, inasmuch as it was clearly established that King Edwardthe Fourth was already the husband of "Dame Alionora Boteler, " by aprevious marriage, at the time of his pretended marriage withElizabeth Woodville, and that consequently his children by ElizabethWoodville, not being born in lawful wedlock, could have no rights ofinheritance whatever from their father, and especially could by nomeans derive from him any title to the crown; and inasmuch as thechildren of Clarence had been cut off from the succession by the billof attainder which had been passed against their father; and inasmuchas Richard came next in order to these in the line of succession, therefore he was now the true and rightful heir. This his rightmoreover by birth was now confirmed by the decision of the estates ofthe realm assembled for the purpose; wherefore the petition, inconclusion, invited and urged him at once to assume the crown whichwas thus his by a double title--the right of birth and the election ofthe three estates of the realm. 

Of course, although the petition was addressed to Richard as if theobject of it was to produce an effect upon his mind, it was really allplanned and arranged by Richard himself, and by Buckingham inconjunction with him; and the representations and arguments which itcontained were designed solely for effect on the mind of the public, when the details of the transaction should be promulgated throughoutthe land. 

The petition being ready, Buckingham, in behalf of the delegation, demanded an audience of the Lord Protector that they might lay itbefore him. Richard accordingly made an appointment to receive them athis mother's residence at Baynard's Castle. 

At the appointed time the delegation appeared, and were received ingreat state by Richard in the audience hall. The Duke of Buckinghampresented the petition, and Richard read it. He seemed surprised, andhe pretended to be at a loss what to reply. Presently he began to saythat he could not think of assuming the crown. He said he had noambition to reign, but only desired to preserve the kingdom for hisnephew the king until he should become of sufficient age, and then toput him peaceably in possession of it. But the Duke of Buckinghamreplied that this could never be. The people of England, he said, would never consent to be ruled by a prince of illegitimate birth. 

"And if you, my lord, " added the duke, "refuse to accept the crown, they know where to find another who will gladly accept it. "

[Illustration: BAYNARD'S CASTLE. ]

In the end, Richard allowed himself to be persuaded that there was noalternative but for him to accept the crown, and he reluctantlyconsented that, on the morrow, he would proceed in state toWestminster, and publicly assume the title and the prerogatives ofking. 

Accordingly, the next day, a grand procession was formed, and Richardwas conducted with great pomp to Westminster Hall. Here he took hisplace on the throne, with the leading lords of his future court, andthe bishops and archbishops around him. The rest of the hall wascrowded with a vast concourse of people that had assembled to witnessthe ceremony. 

First the king took the customary royal oath, which was administeredby the archbishop. He then summoned the great judges before him, andmade an address to them, exhorting them to administer the laws andexecute judgment between man and man in a just and impartial manner, inasmuch as to secure that end, he said, would be the first andgreatest object of his reign. 

After this Richard addressed the concourse of people in the hall, who, in some sense, represented the public, and pronounced a pardon for alloffenses which had been committed against himself, and ordered aproclamation to be made of a general amnesty throughout the land. These announcements were received by the people with loudacclamations, and the ceremony was concluded by shouts of "Long liveKing Richard!" from all the assembly. 

We obtain a good idea of this scene by the following engraving, whichis copied exactly from a picture contained in a manuscript volume ofthe time. 

[Illustration: THE KING ON HIS THRONE. ]

The royal dignity having thus been assumed by the new king at theusual centre and seat of the royal power, the procession was againformed, and Richard was conducted to Westminster Abbey for the purposeof doing the homage customary on such occasions at one of the shrinesin the church. The procession of the king was met at the door of thechurch by a procession of monks chanting a solemn anthem as they came. 

After the religious ceremonies were completed, Richard, at the head ofa grand cavalcade of knights, noblemen, and citizens, proceeded intothe city to the Church of St. Paul. The streets were lined withspectators, who saluted the king with cheers and acclamations as hepassed. At the Church of St. Paul more ceremonies were performed andmore proclamations were made. The popular joy, more or less sincere, was expressed by the sounding of trumpets, the waving of banners, andloud acclamations of "Long live King Richard!" At length, when theservices in the city were concluded, the king returned to Westminster, and took up his abode at the royal palace; and while he was returning, heralds were sent to all the great centres of concourse andintelligence in and around London to proclaim him king. 

This proclamation of Richard as king took place on the twenty-sixth ofJune. King Edward the Fourth died just about three months before. During this three months Edward the Fifth is, in theory, considered ashaving been the King of England, though, during the whole period, thepoor child, instead of exercising any kingly rights or prerogatives, was a helpless prisoner in the hands of others, who, while theyprofessed to be his protectors, were really his determined andrelentless foes. 

CHAPTER XIV. 

THE CORONATION. 

A. D. 1483

Plan for the coronation. --Anne is sent for, and comes toLondon. --Procession of barges. --Great crowds of spectators. --The royalbarges. --Arrival at the Tower. --Measures adopted. --The princesimprisoned. --Richard and Anne proceed to Westminster. --Ceremoniesconnected with the coronation. --The royal paraphernalia. --Religiousservices. --The king and queen crowned. --The dais. --Ceremonial inWestminster Hall. --The banquet. --The royal champion. --Grandchallenge. --Gauntlet thrown down. --The spectators. --A largesse. --Modernlargesses. --The torches. 

It was on the 26th of June, 1483, that Richard was proclaimed king, under the circumstances narrated in the last chapter. In order torender his investiture with the royal authority complete, he resolvedthat the ceremony of coronation should be immediately performed. Heaccordingly appointed the 6th of July for the day. This allowed aninterval of just ten days for the necessary preparations. 

The first thing to be done was to send to Middleham Castle for Anne, his wife, who now, since the proclamation of Richard, became Queen ofEngland. Richard wished that she should be present, and take part inthe ceremony of the coronation. The child was to be brought too. Hisname was Edward. 

It seems that Anne arrived in London only on the 3d of July, threedays before the appointed day. There is a specification in the book ofaccounts of some very elegant and costly cloth of gold bought on thatday in London, the material for the queen's coronation robe. 

Richard determined that the ceremony of his coronation should be moremagnificent than that of any previous English monarch. Preparationswere made, accordingly, on a very grand scale. There were severalpreliminary pageants and processions on the days preceding that of thegrand ceremony. 

On the 4th of July, which was Sunday, the king and queen proceeded instate to the Tower. They went in barges on the river. The party setout from Baynard's Castle, the residence of Richard's mother, and theplace where the queen went on her arrival in London. 

The royal barges destined to convey the king and queen, and the othergreat personages of the party, were covered with canopies of silk andwere otherwise magnificently adorned. Great crowds of spectatorsassembled to witness the scene. Some came in boats upon the water, others took their stations on the shores, where every prominent andcommanding point was covered with its own special crowd, and othersstill occupied the windows of the buildings that looked out upon theriver. 

Through the midst of this scene the royal barges passed down the riverto the Tower. As they moved along, the air was filled with prolongedand continual shouts of "Long live King Richard!" "Long live thenoble Queen Anne!"

Royal or imperial power, once firmly established, will never fail todraw forth the acclamations of the crowd, no matter by what means ithas been acquired. 

On his arrival at the Tower, Richard was received with great honor bythe authorities which he had left in charge there, and he tookpossession of the edifice formally, as one of his own royalresidences. He held a court in the great council-hall. At this courthe created several persons peers of the realm, and invested otherswith the honor of knighthood. These were men whom he supposed to besomewhat undecided in respect to the course which they should pursue, and he wished, by these compliments and honors, to purchase theiradhesion to his cause. 

He also liberated some persons who had been made prisoners, presumingthat, by this kindness, he should conciliate their good-will. 

He did not, however, by any means extend this conciliating policy tothe case of the young ex-king and his brother; indeed, it would havebeen extremely dangerous for him to have done so. He was aware thatthere must be a large number of persons throughout the kingdom whostill considered Edward as the rightful king, and he knew very wellthat, if any of these were to obtain possession of Edward's person, itwould enable them to act vigorously in his name, and to organizeperhaps a powerful party for the support of his claims. He wasconvinced, therefore, that it was essential to the success of hisplans that the boys should be kept in very close and safe custody. Sohe removed them from the apartments which they had hitherto occupied, and shut them up in close confinement in a gloomy tower upon the outerwalls of the fortress, and which, on account of the cruel murderswhich were from time to time committed there, subsequently acquiredthe name of the Bloody Tower. 

[Illustration: THE BLOODY TOWER. ]

Richard and the queen remained at the Tower until the day appointedfor the coronation, which was Tuesday. The ceremonies of that day werecommenced by a grand progress of the king and his suite through thecity of London back to Westminster, only, as if to vary the pageantry, they went back in grand cavalcade through the streets of the city, instead of returning as they came, by barges on the river. Theconcourse of spectators on this occasion was even greater than before. The streets were every where thronged, and very strict regulationswere made, by Richard's command, to prevent disorder. 

On arriving at Westminster, the royal party proceeded to the Abbey, where, first of all, as was usual in the case of a coronation, certainceremonies of religious homage were to be performed at a particularshrine, which was regarded as an object of special sanctity on suchoccasions. The king and queen proceeded to this shrine from the greathall, barefooted, in token of reverence and humility. They walked, however, it should be added, on ornamented cloth laid down for thispurpose on the stone pavements of the floors. All the knights andnobles of England that were present accompanied and followed the kingand queen in their pilgrimage to the shrine. 

One of these nobles bore the king's crown, another the queen's crown, and others still various other ancient national emblems of royalpower. The queen walked under a canopy of silk, with a golden bellhanging from each of the corners of it. The canopy was borne by fourgreat officers of state, and the bells, of course, jingled as thebearers walked along. 

The queen wore upon her head a circlet of gold adorned with preciousstones. There were four bishops, one at each of the four corners ofthe canopy, who walked as immediate attendants upon the queen, and alady of the very highest rank followed her, bearing her train. 

When the procession reached the shrine, the king and queen took theirseats on each side of the high altar, and then there came forth aprocession of priests and bishops, clothed in magnificent sacerdotalrobes made of cloth of gold, and chanting solemn hymns of prayer andpraise as they came. 

After the religious services were completed, the ceremony of anointingand crowning the king and queen, and of investing their persons withthe royal robes and emblems, was performed with the usual grand andimposing solemnities. After this, the royal cortége was formed again, and the company returned to Westminster Hall in the same order as theycame. The queen walked, as before, under her silken canopy, the goldenbells keeping time, by their tinkling, with the steps of the bearers. 

At Westminster Hall a great dais had been erected, with thrones uponit for the king and queen. As their majesties advanced and ascendedthis dais, surrounded by the higher nobles and chief officers ofstate, the remainder of the procession, consisting of those who hadcome to accompany and escort them to the place, followed, and filledthe hall. 

As soon as this vast throng saw that the king and queen were seatedupon the dais, with their special and immediate attendants aroundthem, their duties were ended, and they were to be dismissed. A grandofficer of state, whose duty it was to dismiss them, came in onhorseback, his horse covered with cloth of gold hanging down on bothsides to the ground. The people, falling back before this horseman, gradually retired, and thus the hall was cleared. 

The king and queen then rose from their seats upon the dais, and wereconducted to their private apartments in the palace, to rest andrefresh themselves after the fatigues of the public ceremony, and toprepare for the grand banquet which was to take place in the evening. 

The preparations for this banquet were made by spreading a table uponthe dais under the canopy for the king and queen, and four other verylarge and long tables through the hall for the invited guests. 

The time appointed for the banquet was four o'clock. When the hourarrived, the king and queen were conducted into the hall again, andtook their places at the table which had been prepared for them onthe dais. They had changed their dresses, having laid aside theirroyal robes, and the various paraphernalia of office with which theyhad been indued at the coronation, and now appeared in robes ofcrimson velvet embroidered with gold, and trimmed with costly furs. They were attended by many lords and ladies of the highest rank, scarcely less magnificently dressed than themselves. They were waitedupon, while at table, by the noblest persons in the realm, who servedthem from the most richly wrought vessels of gold and silver. 

After the first part of the banquet was over, a knight, fully armed, and mounted on a warhorse richly caparisoned, rode into the hall, having been previously announced by a herald. This was the king'schampion, who came, according to a custom usually observed on suchoccasions, to challenge and defy the king's enemies, if any such therewere. [P]

[Footnote P: See Frontispiece. ]

The trappings of the champion's horse were of white and red silk, andthe armor of the knight himself was bright and glittering. As he rodeforward into the area in front of the dais, he called out, in a loudvoice, demanding of all present if there were any one there whodisputed the claim of King Richard the Third to the crown of England. 

All the people gazed earnestly at the champion while he made thisdemand, but no one responded. 

The champion then made proclamation again, that if any one there waswho would come forward and say that King Richard was not lawfully Kingof England, he was ready there to fight him to the death, invindication of Richard's right. As he said this, he threw down hisgauntlet upon the floor, in token of defiance. 

At this, the whole assembly, with one voice, began to shout, "Longlive King Richard!" and the immense hall was filled, for some minutes, with thundering acclamations. 

This ceremony being concluded, a company of heralds came forwardbefore the king, and proclaimed "a largesse, " as it was called. Theceremony of a largesse consisted in throwing money among the crowd tobe scrambled for. Three times the money was thrown out, on thisoccasion, among the guests in the hall. The amount that is charged onthe royal account-book for the expense of this largesse is one hundredpounds. 

The scrambling of a crowd for money thrown thus among them, one wouldsay, was a very rude and boisterous amusement, but those were rude andboisterous times. The custom holds its ground in England, in somemeasure, to the present day, though now it is confined to throwing outpence and halfpence to the rabble in the streets at an election, andis no longer, as of yore, relied upon as a means of entertaining nobleguests at a royal dinner. 

After the frolic of the largesse was over, the king and queen rose todepart. The evening was now coming on, and a great number of torcheswere brought in to illuminate the hall. By the light of these torches, the company, after their majesties had retired, gradually withdrew, and the ceremonies of the coronation were ended. 

CHAPTER XV. 

THE FATE OF THE PRINCES. 

The king resolves on a grand progress through the kingdom. --Stateof public sentiment. --Oxford. --Warwick Castle. --Embassadors. --Arrivalat York. --The coronation repeated. --Richard's son. --Celebrations andrejoicings. --His determination in respect to the children. --His agentGreen. --Green's return. --Conversation with the page. --Sir JamesTyrrel. --Richard employs Tyrrel. --The letter. --Tyrrel arrives atthe ower. --Murder of the princes. --Action of the assassins. --Theburial. --Joy of Richard. --Re-interment of the bodies. --Richard keepsthe murder secret. 

After the coronation, King Richard and Anne, the queen, went toWindsor, and took up their residence there, with the court, for ashort time, in order that Richard might attend to the most importantof the preliminary arrangements for the management of public affairs, which are always necessary at the commencement of a new reign. As soonas these things were settled, the king set out to make a grandprogress through his dominions, for the purpose of receiving thecongratulations of the people, and also of impressing them, as much aspossible, with a sense of his grandeur and power by the magnificenceof his retinue, and the great parades and celebrations by which hisprogress through the country was to be accompanied. 

From Windsor Castle the king went first to Oxford, where he wasreceived with distinguished honors by all the great dignitariesconnected with the University. Hence he proceeded to Gloucester, andafterward to Worcester. At all these places he was received withgreat parade and pageantry. Those who were disposed to espouse hiscause, of course, endeavored to gain his favor by doing all in theirpower to give éclat to these celebrations. Those who were indifferentor in doubt, flocked, of course, to see the shows, and thusinvoluntarily contributed to the apparent popularity of thedemonstrations; while, on the other hand, those who were opposed tohim, and adhered still secretly to the cause of young King Edward, made no open opposition, but expressed their dissent, if theyexpressed it at all, in private conclaves of their own. They could notdo otherwise than to allow Richard to have his own way during the hourof his triumph, _their_ hour being not yet come. 

At last, Richard, in his progress, reached Warwick Castle, and here hewas joined by the queen and the young prince, who had remained atWindsor while the king was making his tour through the western towns, but who now came across the country with a grand retinue of her own, to join her husband at her own former home; for Warwick Castle was thechief stronghold and principal residence of the great Earl of Warwick, the queen's father. The king and queen remained for some time atWarwick Castle, and the king established his court here, andmaintained it with great pomp and splendor. Here he receivedembassadors from Spain, France, and Burgundy, who had been sent bytheir several governments to congratulate him on his accession, and topay him their homage. Each of these embassadors came in great state, and were accompanied by a grand retinue; and the ceremonies ofreceiving them, and the entertainments given to do them honor, weremagnificent beyond description. 

One of these embassadors, the one sent by the government of Spain, brought a formal proposal from Ferdinand and Isabella for a marriagebetween their daughter and Richard's little son. The little prince wasat that time about seven years of age. 

After remaining some time at Warwick Castle, the royal party proceedednorthward, and, after passing through several large towns, theyarrived finally at York, which was then, in some sense, the northerncapital of the kingdom. Here there was another grand reception. Allthe nobility and gentry of the surrounding country came in to honorthe king's arrival, and the ceremonies attending the entrance of theroyal cortége were extremely magnificent. 

While the court was at York, Richard repeated the ceremony of thecoronation. On this occasion, his son, the little Prince Edward, wasbrought forward in a conspicuous manner. He was created Prince ofWales with great ceremony, and on the day of the coronation he had alittle crown upon his head, and his mother led him by the hand in theprocession to the altar. 

The poor child did not live, however, to realize the grand destinywhich his father thus marked out for him. He died a few months afterthis at Middleham Castle. 

The coronation at York was attended and followed, as that at Londonhad been, with banquets and public parades, and grand celebrations ofall sorts, which continued for several successive days, and thehilarity and joy which these shows awakened among the crowds thatassembled to witness them seemed to indicate a universal acquiescenceon the part of the people of England in Richard's accession to thethrone. 

Still, although outwardly every thing looked fair, Richard's mind wasnot yet by any means at ease. From the very day of his accession, heknew well that, so long as the children of his brother Edward remainedalive at the Tower, his seat on the throne could not be secure. Theremust necessarily be, he was well aware, a large party in the kingdomwho were secretly in favor of Edward, and he knew that they would verysoon begin to come to an understanding with each other, and to formplans for effecting a counter-revolution. The most certain means ofpreventing the formation of these plots, or of defeating them, ifformed, would be to remove the children out of the way. He accordinglydetermined in his heart, before he left London, that this should bedone. [Q]

[Footnote Q: I say he determined; for, although some of Richard'sdefenders have denied that he was guilty of the crime which the almostunanimous voice of history charges upon him, the evidence leaves verylittle room to doubt that the dreadful tale is in all essentialparticulars entirely true. ]

He resolved to put them to death. The deed was to be performed duringthe course of his royal progress to the north, while the minds of thepeople of England were engrossed with the splendor of the pageantrywith which his progress was accompanied. He intended, moreover, thatthe murder should be effected in a very secret manner, and that thedeath of the boys should be closely concealed until a time andoccasion should arrive rendering it necessary that it should be madepublic. 

Accordingly, soon after he left London, he sent back a confidentialagent, named Green, to Sir Robert Brakenbury, the governor of theTower, with a letter, in which Sir Robert was commanded to put theboys to death. 

Green immediately repaired to London to execute the commission. Richard proceeded on his journey. When he arrived at Warwick, Greenreturned and joined him there, bringing back the report that SirRobert refused to obey the order. 

Richard was very angry when Green delivered this message. He turned toa page who was in waiting upon him in his chamber, and said, in arage, "Even these men that I have brought up and made, refuse to obey mycommands. "

The page replied, "Please your majesty, there is a man here in the ante-chamber, that Iknow, who will obey your majesty's commands, whatever they may be. "

Richard asked the page who it was that he meant, and he said Sir JamesTyrrel. Sir James Tyrrel was a very talented and accomplished, butvery unscrupulous man, and he was quite anxious to acquire the favorof the king. The page knew this, from conversation which Sir James hadhad with him, and he had been watching an opportunity to recommendSir James to Richard's notice, according to an arrangement that SirJames had made with him. 

So Richard ordered that Sir James should be sent in. When he came, Richard held a private conference with him, in which he communicatedto him, by means of dark hints and insinuations, what he required. Tyrrel undertook to execute the deed. So Richard gave him a letter toSir Robert Brakenbury, in which he ordered Sir Robert to deliver upthe keys of the Tower to Sir James, "to the end, " as the letterexpressed it, "that he might there accomplish the king's pleasure insuch a thing as he had given him commandment. "

Sir James, having received this letter, proceeded to London, takingwith him such persons as he thought he might require to aid him in hiswork. Among these was a man named John Dighton. John Dighton was SirJames's groom. He was "a big, broad, square, strong knave, " and readyto commit any crime or deed of violence which his master mightrequire. 

On arriving at the Tower, Sir James delivered his letter to thegovernor, and the governor gave him up the keys. Sir James went to seethe keepers of the prison in which the boys were confined. There werefour of them. He selected from among these four, one, a man namedMiles Forest, whom he concluded to employ, together with his groom, John Dighton, to kill the princes. He formed the plan, gave the mentheir instructions, and arranged it with them that they were to carrythe deed into execution that night. 

Accordingly, at midnight, when the princes were asleep, the two menstole softly into the room, and there wrapped the poor boys upsuddenly in the bed-clothes, with pillows pressed down hard over theirfaces, so that they could not breathe. The boys, of course, weresuddenly awakened, in terror, and struggled to get free; but the menheld them down, and kept the pillows and bed-clothes pressed soclosely over their faces that they could not breathe or utter any cry. They held them in this way until they were entirely suffocated. 

When they found that their struggles had ceased, they slowly openedthe bed-clothes and lifted up the pillows to see if their victims werereally dead. 

"Yes, " said they to each other, "they are dead. "

The murderers took off the clothes which the princes had on, and laidout the bodies upon the bed. They then went to call Sir James Tyrrel, who was all ready, in an apartment not far off, awaiting the summons. He came at once, and, when he saw that the boys were really dead, hegave orders that the men should take the bodies down into thecourt-yard to be buried. 

The grave was dug immediately, just outside the door, at the foot ofthe stairs which led up to the turret in which the boys had beenconfined. When the bodies had been placed in the ground, the grave wasfilled up, and some stones were put upon the top of it. 

Immediately after this work had been accomplished, Sir James deliveredback the keys to the governor of the castle, and mounted his horse toreturn to the king. He traveled with all possible speed, and, onreaching the place where the king then was, he reported what he haddone. 

The king was extremely pleased, and he rewarded Sir James veryliberally for his energy and zeal; he, however, expressed somedissatisfaction at the manner in which the bodies had been disposedof. "They should not have been buried, " he said, "in so vile acorner. "

So Richard sent word to the governor of the Tower, and the governorcommissioned a priest to take up the bodies secretly, and inter themagain in a more suitable manner. This priest soon afterward died, without revealing the place which he chose for the interment, and soit was never known where the bodies were finally laid. 

Richard gave all the persons who had been concerned in this affairvery strict instructions to keep the death of the princes a profoundsecret. He did not intend to make it known, unless he should perceivesome indication of an attempt to restore Edward to the throne; and, had it not been for the occurrence of certain circumstances which willbe related in the next chapter, the fate of the princes might, perhaps, have thus been kept secret for many years. 

CHAPTER XVI. 

DOMESTIC TROUBLES. 

A. D. 1483-1484

Plots formed against Richard. --Situation of ElizabethWoodville. --Plans of the conspirators. --Queen Elizabeth'sagony. --Retribution. --Elizabeth visits the grave. --The Duke ofBuckingham. --Richmond. --Elizabeth. --Plans formed for amarriage. --Richmond plans an invasion. --Buckingham's attempt toco-operate. --Failure of the plan. --Death of Buckingham. --Richmondretreats. --Unhappy situation of Elizabeth. --The princess. --He seeks toget possession of Richmond. --Parliament. --New policy. --The plansucceeds. --Excuses for the queen. --Her situation still unhappy. --Themarriage countermanded. --Richard's plan for the princess. --Elizabeth'sviews on the subject. --Death of Richard's son. --Sickness of QueenAnne. --Sufferings of the queen--Suspicions. --Elizabeth's eagerness tomarry the king. --Death of the queen. --Remonstrance of Richard'scounselors. --Richard gives up the plan. --Disappointment of Elizabeth. 

While Richard was making his triumphal tour through the north ofEngland, apparently receiving a confirmation of his right to the crownby the voice of the whole population of the country, the leaders ofthe Lancaster party were secretly beginning, in London, to form theirschemes for liberating the young princes from the Tower, and restoringEdward to the kingdom. 

Queen Elizabeth, who still remained, with the Princess Elizabeth, heroldest daughter, and some of her other children, in the sanctuary atWestminster, was the centre of this movement. She communicatedprivately with the nobles who were disposed to espouse her cause. Thenobles had secret meetings among themselves to form their plans. Atthese meetings they drank to the health of the king in the Tower, andof his brother, the little Duke of York, and pledged themselves to doevery thing in their power to restore the king to his throne. Theylittle knew that the unhappy princes were at that very time lyingtogether in a corner of the court-yard of the prison in an ignoblegrave. 

At length the conspirators' plans were matured, and the insurrectionbroke out. Richard immediately prepared to leave York, at the head ofa strong force, to go toward London. At the same time, he allowed thetidings to be spread abroad that the two princes were dead. This newsgreatly disconcerted the conspirators and deranged their plans; andwhen the dreadful intelligence was communicated to the queen in thesanctuary, she was stunned, and almost killed by it, as by a blow. "She swooned away, and fell to the ground, where she lay in greatagony, like a corpse;" and when at length she was restored toconsciousness again, she broke forth in shrieks and cries of anguishso loud, that they resounded through the whole Abbey, and were mostpitiful to hear. She beat her breast and tore her hair, calling allthe time to her children by their names, and bitterly reproachingherself for her madness in giving up the youngest into his enemies'hands. After exhausting herself with these cries and lamentations, shesank into a state of calm despair, and, kneeling down upon the floor, she began, with dreadful earnestness and solemnity, to call uponAlmighty God, imploring him to avenge the death of her children, and invoking the bitterest curses upon the head of their ruthlessmurderer. 

[Illustration: QUEEN ELIZABETH AT THE GRAVE OF HER CHILDREN. ]

It was but a short time after this that Richard's child died atMiddleham Castle, as stated in the last chapter. Many persons believedthat this calamity was a judgment of heaven, brought upon the king inanswer to the bereaved mother's imprecations. 

It is said that when Queen Elizabeth had recovered a little from thefirst shock of her grief, she demanded to be taken to her children'sgrave. So they conducted her to the Tower, and showed her the place inthe corner of the court-yard where they had first been buried. 

One of the principal leaders of the conspiracy which had been formedagainst Richard was the Duke of Buckingham--the same that had taken soactive a part in bringing Richard to the throne. What induced him tochange sides so suddenly is not certainly known. It is supposed thathe was dissatisfied with the rewards which Richard bestowed upon him. At any rate, he now turned against the king, and became the leader ofthe conspirators that were plotting against him. 

When the conspirators heard of the death of the princes, they were atfirst at a loss to know what to do. They looked about among thebranches of the York and Lancaster families for some one to make theircandidate for the crown. At last they decided upon a certain HenryTudor, Earl of Richmond. This Henry, or Richmond, as he was generallycalled, was descended indirectly from the Lancaster line. The proposalof the conspirators, however, was, that he should marry the PrincessElizabeth, Queen Elizabeth Woodville's daughter, who has already beenmentioned among those who fled with their mother to the sanctuary. Nowthat both the sons of Elizabeth were dead, this daughter was, ofcourse, King Edward's next heir, and by her marriage with Richmond theclaims of the houses of York and Lancaster would be, in a measure, combined. 

When this plan was proposed to Queen Elizabeth, she acceded to it atonce, and promised that she would give her daughter in marriage toRichmond, and acknowledge him as king, provided he would first conquerand depose King Richard, the common enemy. 

The plan was accordingly all arranged. Richmond was in France at thistime, having fled there some time previous, after a battle, in whichhis party had been defeated. They wrote to him, explaining the plan. He immediately fell in with it. He raised a small force--all that hecould procure at that time--and set sail, with a few ships, from theport of St. Malo, intending to land on the coast of Devonshire, whichis in the southwestern part of England. 

In the mean time, the several leaders of the rebellion had gone todifferent parts of the kingdom, in order to raise troops, and formcentres of action against Richard. Buckingham went into Wales. Hisplan was to march down, with all the forces that he could raise there, to the coast of Devonshire, to meet Richmond on his landing. 

This Richard resolved to prevent. He raised an army, and marched tointercept Buckingham. He first, however, issued a proclamation inwhich he denounced the leaders of the rebellion as criminals andoutlaws, and set a price upon their heads. 

Buckingham did not succeed in reaching the coast in time to joinRichmond. He was stopped by the River Severn, which you will see, bylooking on a map of England, came directly in his way. He tried to getacross the river, but the people destroyed the bridges and the boats, and he could not get over. He marched up to where the stream wassmall, in hopes of finding a fording place, but the waters were soswollen with the fall rains that he failed in this attempt as well asthe others. The result was, that Richard came up while Buckingham wasentangled among the intricacies of the ground produced by theinundations. Buckingham's soldiers, seeing that they were likely to besurrounded, abandoned him and fled. At last Buckingham fled too, andhid himself; but one of his servants came and told Richard where hewas. Richard ordered him to be seized. Buckingham sent an imploringmessage to Richard, begging that Richard would see him, and, beforecondemning him, hear what he had to say; but Richard, in the place ofany reply, gave orders to the soldiers to take the prisoner at onceout into the public square of the town, and cut off his head. Theorder was immediately obeyed. 

When Richmond reached the coast of Devonshire, and found thatBuckingham was not there to meet him, he was afraid to land with thesmall force that he had under his command, and so he sailed back toFrance. 

Thus the first attempt made to organize a forcible resistance toRichard's power totally failed. 

The unhappy queen, when she heard these tidings, was once moreoverwhelmed with grief. Her situation in the sanctuary was becomingevery day more and more painful. She had long since exhausted all herown means, and she imagined that the monks began to think that she wasavailing herself of their hospitality too long. Her friends withoutwould gladly have supplied her wants, but this Richard would notpermit. He set a guard around the sanctuary, and would not allow anyone to come or go. He would starve her out, he said, if he could notcompel her to surrender herself in any other way. 

It was, however, not the queen herself, but her daughter Elizabeth, who was now the heir of whatever claims to the throne were possessedby the family, that Richard was most anxious to secure. If he couldonce get Elizabeth into his power, he thought, he could easily devisesome plan to prevent her marriage with Henry of Richmond, and sodefeat the plans of his enemies in the most effectual manner. He wouldhave liked still better to have secured Henry himself; but Henry wasin Brittany, on the other side of the Channel, beyond his reach. 

He, however, formed a secret plan to get possession of Henry. Heoffered privately a large reward to the Duke of Brittany if he wouldseize Henry and deliver him into his, Richard's hands. This the dukeengaged to do. But Henry gained intelligence of the plot before it wasexecuted, and made his escape from Brittany into France. He wasreceived kindly at Paris by the French king. The king even promised toaid him in deposing Richard, and making himself King of Englandinstead. This alarmed Richard more than ever. 

In the mean time, the summer passed away and the autumn came on. InNovember Richard convened Parliament, and caused very severe laws tobe passed against those who had been engaged in the rebellion. Manywere executed under these laws, some were banished, and others shut upin prison. Richard attempted, by these and similar measures, to breakdown the spirit of his enemies, and prevent the possibility of theirforming any new organizations against him. Still, notwithstanding allthat he could do, he felt very ill at ease so long as Henry andElizabeth were at liberty. 

At last, in the course of the winter, he conceived the idea of tryingwhat pretended kindness could do in enticing the queen and her familyout of sanctuary. So he sent a messenger to her, to make fair andfriendly proposals to her in case she would give up her place ofrefuge and place herself under his protection. He said that he felt noanimosity or ill will against her, but that, if she and her daughterswould trust to him, he would receive them at court, provide for themfully in a manner suited to their rank, and treat them in all respectswith the highest consideration. She herself should be recognized asthe queen dowager of England, and her daughters as princesses of theroyal family; and he would take proper measures to arrange marriagesfor the young ladies, such as should comport with the exalted stationwhich they were entitled to hold. 

The queen was at last persuaded to yield to these solicitations. Sheleft the sanctuary, and gave herself and her daughters up to Richard'scontrol. Many persons have censured her very strongly for doing this;but her friends and defenders allege that there was nothing else thatshe could do. She might have remained in the Abbey herself to starveif she had been alone, but she could not see her children perish ofdestitution and distress when a word from her could restore them tothe world, and raise them at once to a condition of the highestprosperity and honor. So she yielded. She left the Abbey, and wasestablished by Richard in one of his palaces, and her daughters werereceived at court, and treated, especially the eldest, with the utmostconsideration. 

But, notwithstanding this outward change in her condition, the realsituation of the queen herself, after leaving the Abbey, was extremelyforlorn. The apartments which Richard assigned to her were veryretired and obscure. He required her, moreover, to dismiss all her ownattendants, and he appointed servants and agents of his own to waitupon and guard her. The queen soon found that she was under a verystrict surveillance, and not much less a prisoner, in fact, than shewas before. 

While in this situation, she wrote to her son Dorset, [R] at Paris, commanding him to put an end to the proposed marriage of her daughterElizabeth to Henry of Richmond, "as she had given up, " she said, "theplan of that alliance, and had formed other designs for the princess. "Henry and his friends and partisans in Paris were indignant atreceiving this letter, and the queen has been by many persons muchblamed for having thus broken the engagement which she had so solemnlymade. Others say that this letter to Paris was not her free act, butthat it was extorted from her by Richard, who had her now completelyin his power, and could, of course, easily find means to procure fromher any writing that he might desire. 

[Footnote R: The Earl of Dorset, you will recollect, was QueenElizabeth's son by her first marriage; he, consequently, had no claimto the crown. ]

Whether the queen acted freely or not in this case can not certainlybe known. At all events, Henry, and those who were acting with him atParis, determined to regard the letter as written under constraint, and to go on with the maturing of their plans just as if it had neverbeen written. 

Richard's plan was, so it was said, to marry the Princess Elizabeth tohis own son; for the death of his child, though it has been alreadyonce or twice alluded to, had not yet taken place. Richard's son wasvery young, being at that time about eleven years old; but theprincess might be affianced to him, and the marriage consummated whenhe grew up. Elizabeth herself seems to have fallen in with thisproposed arrangement very readily. The prospect that Henry of Richmondwould ever succeed in making himself king, and claiming her for hisbride, was very remote and uncertain, while Richard was already infull possession of power; and she, by taking his side, and becomingthe affianced wife of his son, became at once the first lady in thekingdom, next to Queen Anne, with an apparently certain prospect ofbecoming queen herself in due time. 

But all these fine plans were abruptly brought to an end by the deathof the young prince, which occurred about this time, at MiddlehamCastle, as has been stated before. The death of the poor boy tookplace in a very sudden and mysterious manner. Some persons supposedthat he died by a judgment from heaven, in answer to the awful curseswhich Queen Elizabeth Woodville imprecated upon the head of themurderer of her children; others thought he was destroyed by poison. 

Not very long after the death of the prince, his mother fell veryseriously sick. She was broken-hearted at the death of her son, andpining away, she fell into a slow decline. Her sufferings were greatlyaggravated by Richard's harsh and cruel treatment of her. He wascontinually uttering expressions of impatience against her on accountof her sickness and uselessness, and making fretful complaints of hervarious disagreeable qualities. Some of these sayings were reported toAnne, and also a rumor came to her ears one day, while she was at hertoilet, that Richard was intending to put her to death. She wasdreadfully alarmed at hearing this, and she immediately ran, halfdressed as she was, and with her hair disheveled, into the presence ofher husband, and, with piteous sobs and bitter tears, asked him whatshe had done to deserve death. Richard tried to quiet and calm her, assuring her that she had no cause to fear. 

She, however, continued to decline; and not long afterward herdistress and anguish of mind were greatly increased by hearing thatRichard was impatient for her death, in order that he might himselfmarry the Princess Elizabeth, to whom every one said he was now, sincethe death of his son, devoting himself personally with greatattention. In this state of suffering the poor queen lingered onthrough the months of the winter, very evidently, though slowly, approaching her end. The universal belief was that Richard had formedthe plan of making the Princess Elizabeth his wife, and that thedecline and subsequent death of Anne were owing to a slow poison whichhe caused to be administered to her. There is no proof that thischarge was true, but the general belief in the truth of it shows whatwas the estimate placed, in those times, on Richard's character. 

It is very certain, however, that he contemplated this new marriage, and that the princess herself acceded to the proposed plan, and wasvery deeply interested in the accomplishment of it. It is said thatwhile the queen still lived she wrote to one of her friends--a certainnoble duke of high standing and influence--in which she implored himto aid in forwarding her marriage with the king, whom she called "hermaster and her joy in this world--the master of her heart andthoughts. " In this letter, too, she expressed her impatience at thequeen's being so long in dying. "Only think, " said she, "the betterpart of February is past, and the queen is still alive. Will she_never_ die?"

But the patience of the princess was not destined to be taxed muchlonger. The queen sank rapidly after this, and in March she died. 

The heart of Elizabeth was now filled with exultation and delight. Thegreat obstacle to her marriage with her uncle was now removed, and theway was open before her to become a queen. It is true that therelationship which existed between her and Richard, that of uncle andniece, was such as to make the marriage utterly illegal. But Richardhad a plan of obtaining a dispensation from the Pope, which he had nodoubt that he could easily do, and a dispensation from the Pope, according to the ideas of those times, would legalize any thing. SoRichard cautiously proposed his plan to some of his confidentialcounselors. 

His counselors told him that the execution of such a plan would bedangerous in the highest degree. The people of England, they said, hadfor some time been led to think that the king had that design incontemplation, and that the idea had awakened a great deal ofindignation throughout the country. The land was full of rumors andmurmurings, they said, and those of a very threatening character. Themarriage would be considered incestuous both by the clergy and thepeople, and would be looked upon with abhorrence. Besides, they said, there were a great many dark suspicions in the minds of the peoplethat Richard had been himself the cause of the death of his formerwife Anne, in order to open the way for this marriage, and now, if themarriage were really to take place, all these suspicions would beconfirmed. They could judge somewhat, they added, by the depth of theexcitement which had been produced by the bare suspicion that suchthings were contemplated, how great would be the violence of theoutbreak of public indignation if the design were carried into effect. Richard would be in the utmost danger of losing his kingdom. 

[Illustration: PORTRAIT OF THE PRINCESS ELIZABETH. ]

So Richard determined at once to abandon the plan. He caused it to beannounced in the most public manner that he had never contemplatedsuch a marriage, and that all the rumors attributing such a design tohim were malicious and false. He also sent orders abroad throughoutthe kingdom requiring that all persons who had circulated such rumorsshould be arrested and sent to London to be punished. 

Elizabeth's hopes were, of course, suddenly blasted, and the splendidcastle which her imagination had built fell to the ground. It was onlya temporary disappointment, however, for she became Queen of Englandin the end, after all. 

CHAPTER XVII. 

THE FIELD OF BOSWORTH. 

A. D. 1485-1492

Richmond goes on with his preparations at Paris. --The expeditionsails. --Richard issues a proclamation. --Plans of the campaign. --Theking goes to Nottingham. --Richmond's hopes and expectations. --Thevarious negotiations. --Richard at Nottingham. --He commences hismarch. --The long column. --Bosworth. --The two armies. --Richard'sdepression and anxiety. --His painful suspicions. --His remorse. --Thebattle. --Richard betrayed. --Defection of his men. --Richard's Well. --Hisdespair. --Terrible combat. --He refuses to fly. --Richard iskilled. --Transfer of the crown. --Flight of Richard'stroops. --Disposition of the body. --Henry marries the princess. --QueenElizabeth Woodville. --Last years of her life. --Her death and burial. 

In the mean time, while Richard had been occupied with the schemes andmanoeuvres described in the last chapter, Richmond was going onsteadily in Paris with the preparations that he was making for a newinvasion of England. The King of France assisted him both by providinghim with money and aiding him in the enlistment of men. When Richmondreceived the message from Elizabeth's mother declaring that theproposed match between him and the princess must be broken off, andheard that Richard had formed a plan for marrying the young ladyhimself, he paid no regard to the tidings, but declared that he shouldproceed with his plans as vigorously as ever, and that, whatevercounter-schemes they might form, they might rely upon it that heshould fully carry into effect his purpose, not only of deposingRichard and reigning in his stead, but also of making the PrincessElizabeth his wife, according to his original intention. 

At length the expedition was ready, and the fleet conveying it setsail from the port of Harfleur. 

Richard attempted to arouse the people of England against the invadersby a grand proclamation which he issued. In this proclamation hedesignated the Earl of Richmond as "one Henry Tudor, " who had no claimwhatever, of any kind, to the English throne, but who was coming toattempt to seize it without any color of right. In order to obtainassistance from the King of France, he had promised, the proclamationsaid, "to surrender to him, in case he was successful, all the richpossessions in France which at that time belonged to England, evenCalais itself; and he had promised, moreover, and given away, to thetraitors and foreigners who were coming with him, all the mostimportant and valuable places in the kingdom--archbishoprics, bishoprics, duchies, earldoms, baronies, and many other inheritancesbelonging of right to the English knights, esquires, and gentlemen whowere now in the possession of them. The proclamation farther declaredthat the people who made up his army were robbers and murderers, andrebels attainted by Parliament, many of whom had made themselvesinfamous as cutthroats, adulterers, and extortioners. "

Richard closed his proclamation by calling upon all his subjects toarm themselves, like true and good Englishmen, for the defense oftheir wives, children, goods, and hereditaments, and he promised thathe himself, like a true and courageous prince, would put himself inthe forefront of the battle, and expose his royal person to the worstof the dangers that were to be incurred in the defense of the country. 

At the same time that he issued this proclamation, Richard sent forthorders to all parts of the kingdom, commanding the nobles and baronsto marshal their forces, and make ready to march at a moment'swarning. He dispatched detachments of his forces to the southward todefend the southern coast, where he expected Richmond would land, while he himself proceeded northward, toward the centre of thekingdom, to assemble and organize his grand army. He made Nottinghamhis head-quarters, and he gradually gathered around him, in that city, a very large force. 

In the mean time, while these movements and preparations had beengoing on on both sides, the spring and the early part of the summerpassed away, and at length Richard, at Nottingham, in the month ofAugust, received the tidings that Richmond had landed at MilfordHaven, on the southwestern coast of Wales, with a force of two orthree thousand men. Richard said that he was glad to hear it. "I amglad, " said he, "that at last he has come. I have now only to meethim, and gain one decisive victory, and then the security of mykingdom will be disturbed no more. "

Richmond did not rely wholly on the troops which he had brought withhim for the success of his cause. He believed that there was a greatand prevailing feeling of disaffection against Richard throughoutEngland, and that, as soon as it should appear that he, Richmond, wasreally in earnest in his determination to claim and take the crown, and that there was a reasonable prospect of the success of hisenterprise, great numbers of men, who were now ostensibly on Richard'sside, would forsake him and join the invader. So he sent secretmessengers throughout the kingdom to communicate with his friends, andto open negotiations with those of Richard's adherents who mightpossibly be inclined to change sides. In order to give time for thesenegotiations to produce their effect, he resolved not to march at onceinto the interior of the country, but to proceed slowly toward theeastward, along the southern coast of Wales, awaiting intelligence. This plan he pursued. His strength increased rapidly as he advanced. At length, when he reached the eastern borders of Wales, he began tofeel strong enough to push forward into England to meet Richard, whowas all this time gathering his forces together at Nottingham, andpreparing for a very formidable resistance of the invader. Heaccordingly advanced to Leicester, and thence to the town of Tamworth, where there was a strong castle on a rock. He took possession of thiscastle, and made it, for a time, his head-quarters. 

In the mean time, Richard, having received intelligence of Richmond'smovements, and having now made every thing ready for his own advance, determined to delay no longer, but to go forth and meet his enemy. Accordingly, one morning, he marshaled his troops in the market-placeof Nottingham, "separating his foot-soldiers in two divisions, fiveabreast, and dividing his cavalry so as to form two wide-spreadingwings. " He placed his artillery, with the ammunition, in the centre, reserving for himself a position in a space immediately behind it. 

[Illustration: THE CASTLE AT TAMWORTH. ]

When all was ready, he came out from the castle mounted upon amilk-white charger. He wore, according to the custom of the times, a very magnificent armor, resplendent with gold and embroidery, andwith polished steel that glittered in the sun. Over his helmet he worehis royal crown. He was preceded and followed, as he came out throughthe castle gates and descended the winding way which led down from thehill on which the castle stands, by guards splendidly dressed andmounted--archers, and spearmen, and other men at arms--with ensignsbearing innumerable pennants and banners. As soon as he joined thearmy in the town the order was given to march, and so great was thenumber of men that he had under his command that they were more thanan hour in marching out of Nottingham, and when all had finally issuedfrom the gate, the column covered the road for three miles. 

At length, after some days of man[oe]uvring and marching, the twoarmies came into the immediate vicinity of each other near the town ofBosworth, at a place where there was a wide field, which has sincebeen greatly renowned in history as the Field of Bosworth. The twoarmies advanced into the neighborhood of this field on the 19th and20th days of August, and both sides began to prepare for battle. 

The army which Richard commanded was far more numerous and imposingthan that of Richmond, and every thing, so far as outward appearanceswere concerned, promised him an easy victory. And yet Richmond wasexultant in his confidence of success, while Richard was harassed withgloomy forebodings. His mind was filled with perplexity and distress. He believed that the leading nobles and generals on his side hadsecretly resolved to betray him, and that they were prepared toabandon him and go over to the enemy on the very field of battle, unless he could gain advantages so decisive at the very commencementof the conflict as to show that the cause of Richmond was hopeless. Although Richard was morally convinced that this was the state ofthings, he had no sufficient evidence of it to justify his taking anyaction against the men that he suspected. He did not even dare toexpress his suspicions, for he knew that if he were to do so, or evento intimate that he felt suspicion, the only effect would be toprecipitate the consummation of the treachery that he feared, andperhaps drive some to abandon him who had not yet fully resolved ondoing so. He was obliged, therefore, though suffering the greatestanxiety and alarm, to suppress all indications of his uneasiness, except to his most confidential friends. To them he appeared, as oneof them stated, "sore moved and broiled with melancholy and dolor, and from time to time he cried out, asking vengeance of them that, contrary to their oath and promise, were so deceiving him. "

The recollection of the many crimes that he had committed in theattainment of the power which he now feared he was about to loseforever, harassed his mind and tormented his conscience, especially atnight. "He took ill rest at nights, " says one of his biographers, "using to lie long, waking and musing, sore wearied with care andwatch, and rather slumbered than slept, troubled with fearful dreams. "

On the day of the battle Richard found the worst of his forebodingsfulfilled. In the early part of the day he took a position upon anelevated portion of the ground, where he could survey the whole field, and direct the movements of his troops. From this point he could see, as the battle went on, one body of men after another go over to theenemy. He was overwhelmed with vexation and rage. He cried out, Treason! Treason! and, calling upon his guards and attendants tofollow him, he rushed down the hill, determined to force his way tothe part of the field where Richmond himself was stationed, with aview of engaging him and killing him with his own hand. This, hethought, was the last hope that was now left him. 

There was a spring of water, and a little brook flowing from it in apart of the field where he had to pass. He stopped at this spring, opened his helmet, and took a drink of the water. He then closed hishelmet and rode on. 

This spring afterward received, from this circumstance, the name of"Richard's Well, " and it is known by that name to this day. 

From the spring Richard rushed forward, attended by a few followers asfearless as himself, in search of Richmond. He penetrated the enemies'lines in the direction where he supposed Richmond was to be found, andwas soon surrounded by foes, whom he engaged desperately in ahand-to-hand encounter of the most furious and reckless character. Heslew one or two of the foremost of those who surrounded him, callingout all the time to Richmond to come out and meet him in singlecombat. This Richmond would not do. In the mean time, many ofRichard's friends came up to his assistance. Some of these urged himto retire, saying that it was useless for him to attempt to maintainso unequal a contest, but he refused to go. 

"Not one foot will I fly, " said he, "so long as breath bides within mybreast; for, by Him that shaped both sea and land, this day shall endmy battles or my life. I will die King of England. "

So he fought on. Several faithful friends still adhered to him andfought by his side. His standard-bearer stood his ground, with theking's banner in his hand, until at last both his legs were cut offunder him, and he fell to the earth; still he would not let the bannergo, but clung to it with a convulsive grasp till he died. 

At last Richard too was overpowered by the numbers that beset him. Exhausted by his exertions, and weakened by loss of blood, he wasbeaten down from his horse to the ground and killed. The royal crownwhich he had worn so proudly into the battle was knocked from his headin the dreadful affray, and trampled in the dust. 

Lord Stanley, one of the chieftains who had abandoned Richard's causeand gone over to the enemy, picked up the crown, all battered andbloodstained as it was, and put it upon Richmond's head. From thathour Richmond was recognized as King of England. He reigned under thetitle of Henry the Seventh. 

[Illustration: KING HENRY VII. ]

The few followers that had remained faithful to Richard's cause up tothis time now gave up the contest and fled. The victors lifted up thedead body of the king, took off the armor, and then placed the bodyacross the back of a horse, behind a pursuivant-at-arms, who, thusmounted, rode a little behind the new king as he retired from thefield of battle. Followed by this dreadful trophy of his victory, KingHenry entered the town of Leicester in triumph. The body of Richardwas exposed for three days, in a public place, to the view of allbeholders, in order that every body might be satisfied that he wasreally dead, and then the new king proceeded by easy journeys toLondon. The people came out to meet him all along the way, receivinghim every where with shouts and acclamations, and crying, "King Henry!King Henry! Long live our sovereign lord, King Henry!"

For several weeks after his accession Henry's mind was occupied withpublic affairs, but, as soon as the most urgent of the calls upon hisattention were disposed of, he renewed his proposals to the PrincessElizabeth, and in January of the next year they were married. It seemsto have been a matter of no consequence to her whether one man oranother was her husband, provided he was only King of England, so thatshe could be queen. Henry's motive, too, in marrying her, was equallymercenary, his only object being to secure to himself, through her, the right of inheritance to her father's claims to the throne. Heaccordingly never pretended to feel any love for her, and, after hismarriage, he treated her with great coldness and neglect. 

His conduct toward her poor mother, the dowager queen, ElizabethWoodville, was still more unfriendly. He sent her to a gloomymonastery, called the Monastery of Bermondsey, and caused her to bekept there in the custody of the monks, virtually a prisoner. Thereason which he assigned for this was his displeasure with her forabandoning his cause, and breaking the engagement which she had madewith him for the marriage of her daughter to him, and also for givingherself and her daughter up into Richard's hands, and joining with himin the intrigues which Richard formed for connecting the princess withhis family. In this lonely retreat the widowed queen passed theremainder of her days. She was not precisely a prisoner--at least, shewas not kept in close and continual confinement, for two or threetimes, in the course of the few remaining years that she lived, shewas brought, on special occasions, to court, and treated there with acertain degree of attention and respect. One of these occasions wasthat of the baptism of her daughter's child. 

[Illustration: THE MONASTERY OF BERMONDSEY. ]

In this lonely and cheerless retreat the queen lingered a few years, and then died. Her body was conveyed to Windsor for interment, andher daughters and the friends of her family were notified of theevent. A very few came to attend the funeral. Her daughter Elizabethwas indisposed, and did not come. The interment took place at night. Afew poor old men, in tattered garments, were employed to officiate atthe ceremony by holding "old torches and torches' ends" to light thegloomy precincts of the chapel during the time while the monks werechanting the funeral dirge. 

 THE END.