The Coronation of Richard III

July 6, 2015 is the 532^nd anniversary of one of the most controversial events in English history. Many historians and Wars of the Roses enthusiasts continue to debate Richard of Gloucester’s motivations and intentions when he took the crown of England from his young nephew, who was already being called Edward V. I will leave that debate for another day as we look at what the coronation of Richard III may have looked like.

Richard’s coronation was shared with his wife, Anne Neville, who was crowned queen at his side. Their son, another Edward, remained in the north. Did they fear for his health or safety? It is unknown, but the fact remains that he died less than a year later so poor health is a possibility.

Richard’s brother Edward IV had been a boisterous and glamorous king, probably not unlike his grandson, Henry VIII. Except that Edward had better luck with the fertility of his queen, Elizabeth Woodville, and therefore never experienced the frustration to beget a son that defines so much of Henry’s reign. Edward had set a high standard for pageantry and magnificence that Richard’s coronation met and exceeded.

Anne’s dress was handcrafted out of 27 yards of white cloth of gold, trimmed in ermine. Over it, she wore a velvet robe and mantle in royal purple. This purple stretched behind Anne in the form of a stunning train created from 56 yards of the precious velvet. With her proud Neville background, Anne surely looked every bit a Queen of England.

Richard was dressed no less magnificently than his bride in his own purple velvet mantle that was exchanged for one in glimmering cloth of gold once the ceremony at Westminster Abbey was completed. He and Anne had been reverently anointed with holy oil, recognizing them as monarchs of England and representatives of God.

The banquet following the solemn mass was another example of amazing ceremony, especially considering the brief period of time that had been taken to plan it. Course after course of savory foods and delicate desserts were served to the most important people in the land. Richard and Anne were served from dishes of rich gold and silver.

Contrary to what some may believe about Richard’s reputation as a villain and usurper, great rejoicing took place at his coronation. Though Edward V may or may not have been the legitimate heir (that, too, is a discussion for another day), the people of England had suffered through too many years of civil war that were the result of a child king who never truly grew up. Rather than taking the chance that young Edward would become a second Henry VI, many nobles were eager to back the capable brother of the previous king. More than 3,000 people including most of the nobility attended the coronation feast in a celebration that has not seen its equal since.

Since I have a particular interest in her, I have often wondered what Elizabeth of York was thinking as Richard III’s coronation took place. Still in sanctuary with her mother and sisters, Elizabeth would have still been in shock at the death of her larger than life father and the bastardization of herself and her siblings. Did she see Richard as a grasping villain?

Nine more months would go by before Elizabeth and her sisters would leave sanctuary with their mother. In this time, Richard ruled well, but somehow misplaced Elizabeth’s brothers. Did he have them murdered to solidify his own strength and eliminate future heads of rebellion? Did someone else do away with them, thinking they were doing Richard a favor? Possibly a member of the Lancastrian remnant rid the country of two more York boys, or they simply sickened and died. Many authors have written in the hope that the boys didn’t die at all but escaped or were sent away by Richard for their own safety. We do not know the truth to this day, but this is an issue that Elizabeth would have struggled with.

When she went to court, no longer as a princess but as the bastard daughter of the king’s brother, what thoughts were coursing through her mind? Maybe Elizabeth believed the story of her father’s precontract. After all, she was old enough to know that he had been many things, but monogamous was not one of them. To overhear one conversation between her and Richard is a privilege that I wish there was a way to obtain.

Whether Elizabeth hated Richard, was in love with him, or had a relationship that fell somewhere in between, his reign was not to last. Shortly following the deaths of his heir and then his queen, Richard fell in a courageous charge at Bosworth, defending his crown from Henry Tudor on August 22, 1485. Henry had promised to marry Elizabeth the previous Christmas and made good on that promise on January 18, 1486. 

Death of the Last Plantagenet Princess

Like most of us when we hold our newborn baby in our arms, Isabel Neville would never have guessed at the future of her tiny daughter when she was born on August 14, 1473. The baby's name was Margaret, and she seemed to have a secure future as a Plantagenet princess. Her father, George of Clarence, was the younger brother of King Edward IV, who had successfully won the English crown for York.

Through much trial and tribulation, Margaret's life did not go at all as Isabel likely imagined, though she was kept from witnessing it herself. Isabel died in 1476, attempting to give George another son. Therefore, this proud Neville woman would not see her husband executed by his own brother for treason after he had plotted with her father to overthrow the king. This was the first in a long line of deaths and disappointments that would define Margaret's life.

After the death of her father and mother, Margaret and her

brother Edward of Warwick were left orphans in a volatile court. Following his brother in death after only five years, Edward IV had not put much effort into the raising of his brother's children. When his youngest brother Richard took the throne from his own son, the favor was returned in spades. Academics and armchair historians continue to debate the motivations and facts behind Richard's usurpation to this day, but little Margaret was 10 years old and floating in a churning political sea.

Two cousins, The Princes in the Tower, were lost to Margaret at this time, but she was housed with their sisters, the daughters of Edward IV. Included in this household was Elizabeth of York, who Margaret would go on to serve as a lady in waiting when Elizabeth married Henry Tudor. Margaret was quickly married off by Henry VII to a firm supporter who could be trusted to keep a former princess in line, Richard Pole.

Though Margaret was likely only 14 when this wedding took place, evidence indicates that it was a happy marriage and Margaret was probably thankful for the stability it brought to her life, despite it being a very different type of life than her mother would have envisioned for her. This happiness was relatively brief. Richard died in 1504, leaving Margaret with five children, the last possibly having been born after his father's death.

Margaret's life under Henry VII was calm if, at times, destitute, but his son, Henry VIII decided to raise her up. Made Countess of Salisbury in 1512, Margaret was shown the respect and given the riches that recognized the position she had been born into. While her sons were forced to carefully present themselves at court as not to be seen by Henry as rivals to the throne, she seemed to be in favor.

Margaret was named as governess to the Princess Mary, and stood firmly by her and her mother Queen Katherine of Aragon when Henry decided that it was time for a new wife to give him his longed for son. Margaret's sons were a torture to Henry just as Catherine Grey's sons would be to his daughter a generation later.

Henry, Arthur, Reginald, and Geoffrey managed mostly to please the king and keep him from feeling threatened by them, unlike the duke of Buckingham who was executed for treason in 1521. The Pole boys were careful not to point out their closeness to the throne and their royal Plantagenet blood.

However, Henry VIII was famous for seeing demons where none existed, and the Poles simply could not bring themselves to support Anne Boleyn or the reformation of the Church of England. By 1538, Margaret saw many members of her extended family arrested, including her firstborn, Henry lord Montegue. He was executed, along with his noble cousins Exeter and Neville, by the end of the year. Margaret and her youngest son, Geoffrey, continued to languish in prison. (Arthur had died around 1527.)

Geoffrey, the weakest willed of the strong Poles, was released after two suicide attempts. Was Henry merciful or could see that freedom and life were the harshest punishment to the boy who had given evidence against his older brother? Margaret was kept under house arrest for some time before being transferred to the Tower.

As Henry's failure to beget an heir and declining health caused ever increasing cruelty and mood swings, he took aim at the Plantagenet remnant that he felt sure had eyes on his crown. Reginald was forced into exile as his brother's small children were also taken to the Tower. Not a soul was bragging about Plantagenet blood now.

On May 27, 1541, this day 474 years ago, Margaret was woken in her Tower cell and informed that she would die that day. Henry had determined a need to clear the Tower of traitors and Margaret's continued longevity was rather inconvenient. The execution was kept quiet, for even Henry understood the poor reception his actions would receive. Margaret, for her part, is reported to have accepted her fate with royal dignity, even when the inexperienced axeman hacked ruthlessly at her head and upper body. Her painful and unnecessary death rid Henry of that generation of Plantagenets (his father had executed Margaret's brother Edward without cause), and his children would do their part to execute those that remained.

The bloody Wars of the Roses may have been long over for most families, but for the York remnant the fight for life and position carried on until the last Plantagenet princess, Margaret Countess of Salisbury, was executed by her cousin's son at the age of 67. In 1886, Margaret was beatified by the Catholic Church and became Blessed Margaret Pole.