A History of England, Period I. Mediæval Monarchy

by J. Franck Bright

Richard first overthrows Queen’s party.

As the young King was being brought to London for his coronation, under the care of Rivers and Grey, to whom his education had been intrusted, and under whose charge he had lived at Ludlow, Richard and Buckingham, with 900 men, appeared upon their line of march at Northampton. Rivers and Grey, conscious of the advantage which the appearance of the King in London would give them, were unwilling to come to an open quarrel, and sent Edward forward to Stony Stratford, while they went to pay their respects to Gloucester, who had taken the oath of allegiance, and hitherto put on all the appearance of loyalty. The two Lords were taken prisoners at Northampton, and Richard and Buckingham suddenly advancing to Stratford, by the rapidity of their movements dispersed 2000 men who accompanied Edward, and took possession of him. The news spread dismay in London. The Queen, her son Richard and her daughters, with Lord Lisle and the other Grey, took sanctuary at Westminster; while Hastings calmed men’s minds by assuring them of Richard’s loyalty, that he had only withdrawn the King from the pernicious influence of his relations, and that he would speedily appear with him to crown him. Upon Richard’s appearance, therefore, everything at first went on in the regular order.

Is made Protector.

According to precedent, Richard was appointed Protector or President of the Council. With the exception of the removal of Rotheram, and the appointment of Russell, Bishop of Lincoln, in his place, no important changes were made, and the Parliament was summoned, and the coronation appointed for midsummer.

Quarrels with the new nobles.

Hastings’ death and fall of his party.

Having thus vanquished one party, Richard determined to get rid of his other rivals also, and to rest exclusively upon Buckingham and the old nobles. The coronation was settled for the 22nd of June, when suddenly Richard despatched a messenger, Sir Richard Ratcliffe, to the North, where he was much beloved, bidding the people hasten to his aid, as the Queen was aiming at the life of himself and Buckingham. There is no proof of any such conspiracy. But the quarrel between the two sections of the Council is marked by the fact that they met apart, Hastings and his followers at St. Paul’s, Richard, Buckingham, and their friends, at Crosby Place. They were however all joined on the 13th of June in the Tower, when Richard suddenly appeared with angry and suspicious countenance, charged the Queen and Jane Shore, the King’s mistress, who now lived with Hastings, with aiming at his life by sorcery, in proof of which he exhibited one of his arms, which was smaller than the other, and included Hastings in the charge. At a given signal armed men entered the chamber, and Hastings, Stanley, and the Bishops of York and Ely, were apprehended. Hastings was beheaded without trial on the spot.

Richard, with Buckingham’s help, secures the crown.

This coup d’état was immediately followed up. The people were summoned to the Tower, where Buckingham and Richard appeared in rusty armour, as though in their extreme necessity they had taken it from the armoury. Jane Shore was compelled to do penance through the streets of London. The Queen was persuaded by the Archbishop of Canterbury to surrender the young Prince Richard. And news arrived that, both in the North and in Wales, the people had risen for Richard. At the same time Grey and Rivers, hitherto kept prisoners in Northampton, were beheaded. It only remained for Richard to find some pretext for assuming the crown. He felt the necessity of forestalling the coronation, which would probably have withdrawn from him the protectorate, and have brought a commission of regency into power. On the very day that the coronation was to have been held, Dr. Shaw, brother of the Mayor of London, was put up to preach at Paul’s Cross. He took for his text, “The imperfect branches shall be broken off, their fruit unprofitable,”[100] and proceeded to expatiate upon the lax life of the late King; and moreover, to renew the charge which Clarence had once made, that that King was himself illegitimate. As for the present Princes, he asserted that they too were bastards. According to him, before Edward’s marriage with Elizabeth Woodville, he had been engaged to Lady Eleanor Talbot; by the laws of the Church, therefore, his subsequent marriage was void, and the King and his brothers illegitimate. He drew attention to the want of resemblance between Richard of York and Edward IV., and the close likeness which existed, on the other hand, between Richard and the Protector. At this moment the Protector made his appearance, expecting that the crowd would cry, “Long live, King Richard!” But the charges were too new and surprising; he was received in perfect silence. The failure of this attempt induced him to repeat it; and two days after, Buckingham came to Guildhall, and there addressed the people in a similar strain. He was determined to take no refusal, and upon a few cries of approbation, commanded the people to follow him to Baynard’s Castle, where Richard then was. The Parliament was just assembling, a number of Lords and representatives from the Commons joined the crowd, and enabled him with some show of truth to draw up a petition called “The choice and prayer of the Lords spiritual and temporal and the Commons of England,” in which, after recapitulating his story, he requested Richard to accept the crown. After some show of resistance, Richard accepted the petition, and took solemn possession of the throne at Westminster Abbey on the 26th. That this choice was by no means unanimous is plain from the order issued, commanding the inhabitants of London to keep within their houses after ten o’clock, and forbidding the wearing of arms.

Richard’s policy of conciliation.