openly. There were laws against that sort of thing, even in those days. The worst he could have done was to lock her away somewhere, and of course, take the kids. That’s why she decided to take the initiative and, I might add, the treasure. Anyhow, Richard wasted no more time. On the morning of May 3rd, Richard and Buckingham escorted Edward out of Northampton on the road to London.
‘The two Dukes rode on either side of Edward during the procession into the city, proceeding to St. Paul's where the young king was installed temporarily in the Palace of the Bishop of London. Richard then summoned all the magnates and citizens to pay homage to their young sovereign; a ceremony which was done with great joy and relief. Hastings especially was super pleased that all had gone well and no one had been hurt. I guess he didn't ask Richard where Rivers, Grey, Vaughan and Haute were.
‘With all that out of the way, Richard posted guards about the King's person and then retired to Baynard Castle, the family home on the Thames. He shuffled the Council a bit, got rid of individuals whom he knew were either hostile or of no value to him, until he had a hard core of men he could reasonably trust. The first order of business at this new Council concerned a proper residence for Edward since the Bishop's Place was old and unsuitable. Various places were suggested but it was Buckingham who first put forward the idea of the Tower. Council agreed and so Edward was moved there sometime before the 19th of May.’
‘I do not like the Tower, of any place. Isn't that what Edward said when he heard the news?’ Gail asked.
‘Well, that’s what Shakespeare suggested he said but in fact the Tower had not yet acquired its sinister reputation; the Tudor's did that.’
‘But, Henry the Sixth and George, Duke of Clarence both died there, so young Edward must have been at least a little apprehensive.’ Gail was sticking firmly to the point. ‘And, considering the way he had already been treated, he might have been downright scared.’
‘Perhaps, but he didn't have any choice in the matter anyway. Historical precedence would demand that sooner or later he would have to stay at the Tower prior to his coronation. Besides, he wasn't kept in some dark, dank tower or something. South of the White Tower, in what was called the “Royal Ward”, there were a number of massive wooden structures, a banqueting hall, privy chambers, an audience chamber and royal bedrooms. It was quite sumptuous, really. I'll show you what I mean tomorrow. The night before his coronation, however, he would be expected to stay in the White Tower, praying all night in the Chapel but other than that, he had the run of the royal apartments.’
‘Nevertheless, he would be watched day and night.’
‘Of course he would be carefully watched day and night,’ Laura said, emphasising the word carefully. She paused then and lit a cigarette.
‘So, you admit that Richard had the boy under close guard?’
‘Of course he did. I’m sure that Richard was just making sure that the boy didn't hurt himself; have an accident or something.’
‘Sure,’ Gail said with more than a hint of sarcasm. ‘Come on, Laura, Richard kept a close watch on that child because he had no intentions of ever letting him out, not alive anyway. He probably hoped that he would have an accident - a fatal one.’
‘Now, Gail, you’re jumping to conclusions. There’s absolutely no evidence up to now to suggest that Richard had any designs on the boy or his throne. In fact, after he was proclaimed Protector and Defender of the Realm on the 10th of May, Richard encouraged the Council to set a date for Edward's coronation - the twenty-fourth of June to be exact.
‘Richard's role of Protector got off to a bumpy start though when Council began to ask embarrassing questions about Rivers, Grey, Vaughan and Haute. Richard wanted Council to draw up warrants accusing them of complicity to murder, calling them traitors. The Council more or less refused since there was absolutely no evidence to support Richard's claims, plus since at the time Richard had not yet been officially declared Protector, the “Stony Stratford Four” could not be accused of treason. Richard was encouraged to release them but of course he wouldn't, and didn't, do that. Almost from the start he was being challenged and when Council went on to suggest that Richard ought to do something to improve the Queen's condition, he must have gone ballistic.’
Gail chuckled.
‘Well,’ Laura said, smiling, ‘Richard probably knew by then that the Queen had spirited away the royal treasure and here was Council suggesting that he should do something in consideration of the Queen's “good dignity and safety”. Obviously Council didn't consider her a threat although her continued presence in sanctuary was becoming an administrative embarrassment. Richard wanted to see her out, transferred if possible to a lovely nunnery somewhere, like in Yorkshire for instance.
‘Eventually Richard appointed a committee of lords headed by Buckingham and the Archbishop of Canterbury. They tried to reason with the Queen but, no luck. All Richard could do publicly to alleviate her condition was to encourage people to visit her, and many did, for a while. That was probably a mistake. Elizabeth Wydville was an experienced manipulator, capable of extreme charm and ruthlessly ambitious for herself and her family. Believe me, she was still dangerous. But Richard had to put up with it in the end when it became obvious that she wasn't leaving. As much as Richard might have wanted to pull her out by force, he dare not do that and risk the Church's wrath. No doubt he posted spies who kept him informed of all the comings and goings.
‘I’ve often wondered just how much the Queen told her children. Elizabeth of York was seventeen and the youngest, Bridget was three years old and, of course the second son Richard, Duke of York. It must have been extremely difficult for the young Elizabeth who should have been at court, having a lovely time, not stuck in an abbey with her overbearing and aloof mother. If the Queen tried to poison her children's minds against Richard, she wasn’t entirely successful as we shall soon see. And that, my dear, is it for tonight.’ Laura closed her notebook with a resounding thud. ‘The Tower of London awaits our arrival on the morrow.’
Day 2
Tower of London – Covent Garden
Prince:
I do not like the Tower, of any place:
Did Julius Caesar build that place, my lord?
Buckingham:
He did, my gracious lord, begin that place,
Which, since, succeeding ages have re-edified.
Shakespeare –
The Tragedy of King Richard the Third
[Act III, Scene 1]
As she walked, Laura flipped through the Official Guidebook to the Tower of London, which she had purchased along with their tickets. ‘Ready for this, Gail?’
‘Sure. Bleak looking though, isn’t it?’
‘It’s a fortress and a prison. I don’t think it was meant to be pretty. Come on, let’s hurry and catch the next tour.’
*****
‘Good morning ladies and gentleman, boys and girls. I am a Yeoman Warder. One of thirty-eight Yeoman Warders who guard this Tower and call it home. I will be conducting you on a brief
