The history of the British monarchy sometimes seems like a soap opera. One juicy story is the one about “The Princes in the Tower”. It is one of the most fascinating mysteries in British history. On April 9, 1483, King Edward IV died. Since he had a son, there should have been no problem in the succession. His son Edward was 12 and thus a little too young to rule on his own. On his death bed, Edward IV proclaimed his brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, to be Lord Protector until his son was mature enough to run the country himself. But Gloucester envisioned a better job than royal baby-sitter. A group of noblemen twisted his arm to proclaim himself king. They probably did not have to twist hard. But how to get around the fact that clearly the deceased king’s son was first in line for the throne? Easy, have him declared illegitimate! It turns out Edward IV had contracted a marriage and then jilted the woman to marry Elizabeth Woodville. Thus, according to Richard and his supporters, the marriage was not legal. Richard had Edward locked up in the Tower of London. Elizabeth, seeing the handwriting on the wall, took refuge in Westminster Abbey. However, when Richard demanded custody over her second son, the 9-year-old Richard, she reluctantly turned him over. She would not see her boys again. Richard joined his brother in the Tower and they were seen several times in 1483, but not at all after that. Rumors quickly spread that they had been murdered. That seems highly likely. The mystery is who did it. Obviously, the most likely suspect was Richard III. Having taken the throne in shady circumstances, he had strong reasons to want the true heir and the next in line out of the way. About thirty years after the deaths, Sir Thomas More wrote “The History of Richard III”. More claimed Sir James Tyrrell and two other knights smothered the boys with pillow cases. Their bodies were buried in the Tower under a staircase. Tyrell would have been working under orders from Richard III. There are other theories, but this one seems the most likely. It inspired Shakespeare to write “Richard III”. “The Princes in the Tower” was perfect history for a tragedy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princes_in_the_Tower
https://www.history.co.uk/articles/the-mystery-of-the-princes-in-the-tower-what-really-happened
https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/The-Princes-in-the-Tower/
https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/the-princes-in-the-tower/#gs.3afout
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