Richard was born in 1452 and was the youngest living child pf Richard, Duke of York, the Yorkist claimant to the throne. After a boyhood spent among the upheavals and
uncertainties of the Wars of the Roses, he served his apprenticeship in knightly conduct in the household of his cousin, Richard, Earl of Warwick (the Kingmaker). There he first met Warwick's younger daughter, Anne, whom he was later to marry.

From his first appointment as commissioner of array in 1464 Richard served his brother, Edward IV, with unshakeable loyalty. He shared the leadership at the Yorkist victories at Barnet and Tewkesbury. For eleven years he proved his ability as administrator and general by his rule in the North as Edward's deputy, and conducted two successful campaigns against the Scots.

When Edward IV died in April 1483 he named Richard as Lord Protector but after the invalidity of Edward's marriage and illegitimacy of his children were declared, the Lords and Commons petitioned Richard to take the throne as the lawful male heir. He was crowned on 6 July 1483.

Richard's brief reign of nearly two years is notable for the enlightened quality of his legislation to correct economic injustices and reform the machinery of the law and administration. He founded the College of Arms, was a patron of Caxton (the printer) and of Cambridge University and a great benefactor of the Church. He redressed many grievances among the poor and was an implacable enemy of
ëxtortioners and oppressors of his Commons.

What made Richard unpopular among the southern English gentry was not so much the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower but his use of northerners in the south and the discrimination of his patronage in favour of his affinity with the north.

In the belief that many features of the traditional accounts of the character and career of Richard III are neither supported by sufficient evidence nor reasonably tenable, the Society aims to promote in every possible way research in to the life and times of Richard III, and to secure a re-assessment of the material relating to this period, and of the role in English history of this monarch.

THE WAR OF THE ROSES

The origins of this conflict began in the 1300s when Edward III sired five sons: Edward (The Black Prince), and the Dukes of Clarence, Lancaster, York and Gloucester. The two eldest died before their father, the Black Prince’s only son succeeding as Richard II. He was deposed by the eldest son of Lancaster (John of Gaunt) who became Henry IV, and father of the warrior king, Henry V. The latter’s early death led to the succession of his infant son, Henry VI.
Gentle, and politically incompetent, this last Lancastrian king fuelled others’ ambitions. Foremost was Richard, Duke of York, who had a strong claim, being descended from Edward III’s fourth son on his father’s side and from Edward III’s second son on his mother’s. Richard married Cecily Neville (the Rose of Raby) and they had many children. In a battle led by Henry Vi’ formidable queen, Margaret of Anjou, Richard of York and his second son, Edmund were killed, but it was only a few weeks later that his eldest son, Edward, defeated the Lancastrians, had Henry deposed and imprisoned, and succeeded the throne as Edward IV.
Conflict continued when the Earl of Warwick, Edward’s uncle who had helped him to the throne, changed sides, as did Edward younger brother, George, Duke of Clarence. But by 1471 Henry VI, his son and Warwick were dead and Margaret of Anjou defeated. Clarence repented and returned to the family fold but it was Edward’s 19 year old youngest brother, the acclaimed and always loyal soldier, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who was rewarded not only with positions of power but with the total trust of the King.

THE PRINCES IN THE TOWER

Richard’s brother, Edward IV, met his match in the beautiful widow, Elizabeth Woodville, who had a large family, all of whom benefited from her rise to power. This surge of influence from the secret marriage concerned Edward’s family.

However the King knew that he could always rely on his youngest brother, Richard Duke of Gloucester, and it was he who was name Protector should the King die before his son attained his majority. So, when Edward IV died unexpectedly in April 1483, and the Woodville family started to take charge in London, Richard came quickly from his castle at Middleham in Yorkshire, to fulfill his brother’s wishes. He placed his two nephews, the elder now Edward V, and the little Duke of York, in the Tower of London, in those days the accepted home for all kings before their coronation and not the prison of Tudor times
But before the coronation could take place. the Bishop of Bath confessed that he had secretly married Edward IV to a Lady Eleanor Butler. so this second marriage was bigamous and all the children from it illegitimate, As bastards could not reign, Richard was proclaimed king by Parliament, his older brother, Clarence having been executed for treason.
What happen to the Princes in the Tower? Knowing the family’s closeness, it is unlikely Richard condoned the murder of his nephews. He may have sent them to join his own son and Clarence’s children in Yorkshire.
Suspicion about the princes’ fate has fallen on many people including Richard’s cousin, the Duke of Birmingham, Henry Tudor and his mother, Margaret Beaufort. But it is possible they were not murdered, but kept safely away from Henry Tudor’s plans to rid the world of all Plantagenets. Their fate is surely history’s most intriguing mystery.

RICHARD III

Why is he thought to be a villain?
Richard was a brave soldier and handling those heavy medieval swords could account for one shoulder being more developed than the other. But he wasn’t a hunchback!
His successor to the English throne was Henry Tudor (Henry VII) who defeated him at the Battle of Bosworth. Henry had a very shaky claim to the throne, being descended from Edward III’s third son, John of Gaunt, and his mistress.
Although their children, known as the Beauforts, were finally made legitimate, it was made clear in the parliamentary act that they had no claim to the throne.
It was vital for Henry Tudor to convince the people that he was the rightful king and that Richard had been evil personified, hence the rapid blackening of his name and allegations of his deformities and crimes. Even Richard’s early October birthday (Libra) was changed so that he had apparently been born under the unpopular sign of Scorpio!
Surprisingly, no mention was made of the Princes and their disappearance from the Tower. Maybe they hadn’t vanished after all. But if Henry was to reinforce his claim to the throne by marrying their sister, Elizabeth, he may have felt it was wise to remove the more eligible male heirs.
In all the propaganda, Henry was abetted by the ambitious Cardinal Morton and a series of historians who knew it was in their best interests to keep on the side of the King, as well as keep their heads. These histories such as the Holinshed Chronicles, formed the basis of the Wicked Uncle stories and it was on these that Shakespeare based his play “Richard III”, that is the basis of many people’s beliefs today. It was only after the last Tudor Elizabeth I, died that the truth began to emerge about Richard’s real character and accomplishments.

The NSW Branch of the Richard III Society meets six times a year, as well as enjoying social meetings such as the celebration of St George’s Day in April, the anniversary of Richard’s coronation (June/early July), Richard’s birthday in October and – a highlight of our year – a church service on the Sunday closest to August 22, the date of the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, where Richard met his death. Every two years many of the NSW members join with other Ricardians from Australian and New Zealand for a weekend conference. In July 2005 this took place in Sydney. The New Zealand Branch will be the hosts in 2007.