The final score settled

In 1502, the indefatigable Margaret and Henry finally worked out who had sheltered Edward V and Richard of York. Sir James Tyrrell was tortured into signing a confession that has been the Official Narrative of the Princes in the Tower ever since, and then executed.

Were I limited to the annals of history, my story would end on this sordid note. That would be a poor reward for anyone who has read this far. Fortunately I have one fictional character at my disposal. Lady Matilda Rose accepted a proposal of marriage from Lord Ralph Harris of Walsingham, and they lived happily ever after.

All the same, we take our chances,
Laughed at by time, tricked by circumstances.
Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.
The more that things change, the more they stay the same.

Acknowledgements

"Perkin Warbeck"

It is perhaps a mercy that Elizabeth did not live to see the re-appearance of her second son, Richard of York.

His uprising was less well organised and after a few skirmishes on the periphery of the kingdom he was captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London. Once again, Henry alleged that it was an impostor and his ministry of silly names came up with "Perkin Warbeck" for this one.

Edward son of Clarence was still in the Tower, and the two young men contrived an escape plan. At this, Henry lost patience with acting magnanimously and sent "Warbeck" to the gallows. Edward, who had been detained with no charges laid against him for nearly fifteen years, was beheaded.

The "Warbeck" affair did produce one testimony to the power of conscience. The claims of Richard of York received carefully qualified support from one totally unexpected quarter: William Stanley, to whose actions at Bosworth Field Henry probably owed his crown. For daring to admit even the possibility that "Warbeck" was really Richard of York, Stanley's head was not permitted to remain attached to his body.

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Cruel and unusual punishment

The Royal Council met to discuss what to do about Elizabeth Woodville. It was not clear how much involvement she had, if any, with the attempted restoration of her son Edward V, but Henry thought it safest to assume the worst.

Henry: She must be beheaded.

Oxford: Your majesty, there is no precedent for executing a woman of the nobility.

Henry: Servants follow precedents; masters set precedents.

The king was impervious to his wife's tears for her mother. Lady Margaret Beaufort had a different taste in cruel and unusual punishment from her son, and as her opinion prevailed it was left to three of Henry's children to establish chopping off female heads as a Tudor contribution to sexual equality.

Elizabeth was obliged to take a vow of chastity and spend the remainder of her days in the celibacy of Bermondsey Abbey.

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"Lambert Simnel"

In 1487, the first reports that a rival King had been proclaimed in Dublin were received in London.

Lady Matilda Rose, now working in the private sector as a royal pundit, immediately put the word out on the grapevine that it was someone impersonating Richard of York, younger brother of Edward V.

When later reports named the rival King as Edward, Henry Tudor was ready. He had imprisoned Edward, son of Clarence, in the Tower from the start of his reign, even though Edward posed no real threat as he was barred from the throne by his father's attainder. The story was propagated that the claimant in Dublin was Edward, son of Clarence. Henry allowed his prisoner a rare excursion to St Paul's Cathedral. Everyone saw that the real son of Clarence was in London, and concluded that the one in Dublin was an impostor.

As Henry well knew, the Dublin pretender was actually Edward V. From Ireland, Edward brought a substantial army which fought its way through Lancashire, Yorkshire and Sherwood Forest as far south as the river Trent. At Stoke Field near Newark, forces loyal to Henry finally overcame it. Edward was killed, but Henry had something different for public consumption. He alleged that the impostor had been captured alive and spared. A young lad was presented with a well prepared back story and the distinctive name of "Lambert Simnel". Elizabeth Lambert was the real name of "Jane Shore", so "Lambert" had useful connotations of illegitimacy. "Simnel", the time of year, was an unknown surname so instantly memorable. It also commenced the long tradition of associating conspiracy theories with fruitcakes. Henry displayed his magnanimity by appointing "Simnel" to the position of royal spit turner, and kept the legend in the public consciousness by subsequently promoting him to royal falconer.

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The new regime

The new regime soon asserted itself. Henry repealed Richard's law so that his wife to be Elizabeth of York was legitimate again. When it was pointed out that this would also legitimate her brothers, he ordered that the repealed law should not be read out, to avoid drawing attention to them. When it was pointed that there was no precedent for this, he replied that the rules of the game had changed.

Elizabeth, nursing her secret grief, made the most of things for her daughter's sake. Lady Margaret Beaufort wasted no opportunity to put her in her place. Lady Margaret had established that her position was only half a pace behind the King; Elizabeth must always be at least a full pace behind. Even so, Lady Margaret was not completely satisfied with her dominance. The two young princes were lurking in the background somewhere, and she and Henry would have to be ready for them.

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Bosworth Field

Richard was trying to set his army in battle array at Bosworth Field. Brave Norfolk was happy to command the leading forces, but Northumberland was insisting on staying in the rear. The Stanleys were still on the sidelines. Richard knew that William was a lost cause, but he sent an ultimatum to Lord Stanley to join him immediately or Lord Strange would die. Stanley replied cheekily that he had many more sons, sending Richard into a rage. He summoned block, axeman and priest and turned upon young Strange.

Richard: You told me your uncle William would not support me, but why did you lie to me about your father? Confess your lies, and I may yet show mercy.

Strange: Your majesty, I did not lie and I cannot lie. I truly believed that my father was loyal to you.

Checked by the courage of the youth, and perhaps recalling his hastiness with Hastings, Richard relented.

Richard: If God grants me victory this day, I swear to you that I will be a better father to you than Lord Stanley has ever been.

The priest asked whether he should say mass before the battle. Richard declined the offer on the grounds that if his cause was good God would uphold it anyway, and if his cause was bad they had no right to ask for God's blessing, a reply exhibiting the folly of exalting reason above revelation. Elizabeth, we may be confident, was not neglecting her prayers.

The battle commenced. Norfolk and his men gave everything, but they were no match for his opposite number Oxford, and were slaughtered. Northumberland's idea of a rearguard position appeared to be somewhere in Northamptonshire. There was nothing for it but for Richard and his men to attack Tudor directly. The best axeman in England set to work. Quickly he cut down Sir William Brandon, Tudor's standard bearer. Next he unhorsed Sir John Cheyney, a man mountain who was one of Tudor's fiercest warriors. Richard was close to his objective and yelled at Tudor, who was merely watching the proceedings, to fight like a man.

Tudor took the view that heroism was for romantic fools. He glanced across to William Stanley, who set his forces upon Richard's. Richard's peloton defended their king stoutly, but one by one they were hacked away by Stanley's overwhelming numbers until Richard was left exposed. Down he went, never to rise.

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The unavoidable conflict

Queen Anne's funeral soon followed, preceded by that of her only child. Richard and Elizabeth considered the option of giving the throne and Princess Elizabeth to Henry Tudor, and retiring to live quietly in the north. They both knew, though, that a Lancastrian Margaret doting on her only son would never give them any peace. There was no choice but to defeat Henry Tudor in battle.

The odds were stacked against Richard. He knew that he could not rely upon most of his chief commanders. Lord Stanley was the wife of Lady Margaret Beaufort and stepfather of Henry Tudor. His brother William was even more doubtful. The Earl of Northumberland was a Percy, and in their hearts all Percys were Lancastrians, "the bird in my bosom" as one of them poetically described it. Only the Duke of Norfolk could be depended upon. Richard attempted to mitigate the situation by holding Lord Stanley's son Lord Strange as security for his father's loyalty.

The time came for the man Elizabeth loved to depart for battle. When John Grey had departed all those years ago, she had been too naive to appreciate the danger. Whenever Edward had departed, her attachment to him was not so strong that she cared overmuch whether he returned or not, and ironically he always did return. This time, though, her heart really ached. Richard was about the same age as John when he died. It was as if she had the prospect of resuming her life where she had left off with John. Her future was about to be decided in the Leicestershire countryside just a few miles away from where she had spent the happiest days of her life.

Her daughter joined her as they watched the army depart. Soon one of them would be Queen of England, but which one?

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The dummy run

Richard decided upon a royal tour of his realm to consolidate his position. Buckingham returned to Brecon with Morton.

For all Richard's efforts, discontent was brewing in some of the southern counties. Rebellious movements arose in support of the restoration of Edward V. Lady Margaret Beaufort saw in this an opportunity to regain the initiative. Urgently she sought information from Buckingham about the whereabouts of the young princes. When Buckingham replied that Richard had sent them away, he knew not where, she instructed him to foment the rumour that the princes had been killed. For added realism, he should hint strongly that he had some personal involvement in their death.

It was a master stroke. People at large, already wary of Richard, were filled with abhorrence at the thought that he had murdered his nephews in the Tower, and with the princes supposedly dead the only figurehead remaining to lead the opposition to Richard was, of course, Henry Tudor.

Buckingham raised his forces in the name of Henry Tudor. However Buckingham was nowhere near as popular a governor of his territory as Richard was in the north, so the men he commanded were half hearted. In addition, the notoriously changeable British weather turned against him and he was soon defeated. Eventually apprehended, he was beheaded in Salisbury market place on the sabbath. This ensured a good crowd for the execution, but perhaps Richard would have been wiser to listen to those who advised him not to profane the Lord's day in this way.

For her part in the rebellion, Lady Margaret Beaufort forfeited all of her estate to her husband Lord Stanley who had maintained a position of loyalty to Richard.

Lady Margaret Beaufort was unperturbed. This had been a dummy run. Next time there would be a power surge.

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Elizabeth decides

Elizabeth thought about the offer made through Doctor Lewis. As part of her plan to make her son Henry Tudor King of England, Lady Margaret Beaufort wanted Elizabeth's daughter Princess Elizabeth of York to marry Henry. This would finally reconcile the competing lines of Lancaster and York. It was time for Elizabeth to return to her Lancastrian roots. The Yorks had never accepted her Woodville family, and Gloucester was a psychopath who had already murdered her brother and son. Put like that, it seemed as if once again Elizabeth had no choice, so she had consented.

All the same, she was uneasy. She had been as shocked and horrified by the deaths of Hastings and in Pontefract as anyone. Yet they were not the actions of the Gloucester she knew. He and his brothers had inherited the military skills of their father. Edward and Clarence had also inherited their father's poisonous, addictive lust, though expressed in different ways. In the father, it was for power, in Edward for women and in Clarence for wine. Gloucester was different. He loved Anne. He had cared for her when she was unwell. If he had taken mistresses, he had been so discreet about it that their identity was not public knowledge, unlike Edward's. She had seen his loyalty to Edward and his genuine affection for his nephews and nieces. He had earned a good reputation as a governor in the north, consolidating support by accommodating rivals rather than eliminating them.

On the other hand, there were rumours that Gloucester had killed Henry VI in the Tower. She didn't know whether this was true, but she did know that it was Edward who had given the order to kill Henry. Gloucester had a quick temper too. Most of us lose our temper, but few of us do so when we have the power to severely punish those who annoy us. Would we behave any better in those circumstances?

These thoughts went round and round in her mind. Then it came to her. If Lady Margaret Beaufort was intriguing with her, who else might she be plotting with? Her husband Lord Stanley was an obvious candidate, and he had been involved in the Hastings conspiracy. Buckingham was her nephew, and come to think of it Elizabeth's brother-in-law had never before shown any interest in national politics but had somehow become Gloucester's right hand man.

She was faced with two implausible possibilities. Either Gloucester was a murderous psychopath, or he was the victim of an extraordinary conspiracy. That was as far as her mind could take her. To decide between them she would have to follow her heart. Once she realised that, the next step was obvious.

To take it, she needed the one man whose transparent integrity had ensured that his services had been retained whoever was in power. Elizabeth enquired whether the Bishop of Winchester was in town.

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Lady Margaret's hour arrives

Lady Margaret Beaufort had been consolidating her position. Upon the death of Henry Stafford, she had married another Yorkist sympathiser, Lord Stanley.

Upon the death of Margaret of Anjou, she had become the leader of the Lancastrians. Her son, Henry Tudor, was their new pretender for the crown. His claim was sufficiently obscure that she had deemed it wise to bide her time rather than assert it in battle. The Beauforts were the illegitimate offspring of the Duke of Lancaster, third son of Edward III. Richard II had legitimated the Beaufort line. Henry IV had added some small print to deny them the right to inherit the throne, but no one reads the small print.

With the death of Edward IV in 1483, the time had come to put her patient planning to the test. The strategy was simple: divide and rule. Edward had willed that Gloucester should act as Protector until his son came of age. She would set Gloucester and the old Yorkists against the upstart Woodvilles, let them destroy each other, then take the spoils.

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