by Nigel Green
Even to me this sounded a bit biased.
‘But he’s famous after his success in the Scottish wars!’ Anne Neville protested. ‘Don’t forget another thing too. On that occasion everyone was very happy for him to lead the army in place of King Edward and both the Woodvilles and all the old nobility accepted Gloucester as their leader. Well, if everyone followed him in time of war, why wouldn’t they in peace?’
It was hard to refute her argument and I was full of admiration for the way in which both Richard and Anne Neville put their country’s interests ahead of their own, particularly as this would be an immensely difficult role for Richard. Because I knew him so well, I brooded on this unhappily. While able, Richard was not, I judged, a natural leader outside of his own familiar environment, but if called on to serve he would have to go south to take control leaving behind him familiar friends and faithful servants and that, I knew, would worry him. On top of that he would find himself working with men who he would neither know nor trust. As if all that was not sufficient at a time of crisis, everybody would be looking to him for leadership and he would doubt his own capacity to supply it. I feared that the protectorship might be too great a burden for Richard and expressed my concerns to Anne Neville.
She nodded sympathetically.
‘But in a while I will be there to help him, and, in the meantime, he will have good and faithful friends such as you to guide him.’
‘What would happen if he declined the protectorship and stayed here in the North?’
Anne Neville cocked her head as she thought.
‘Assuming that there was no civil war and the Woodvilles came to power, then that would be an even bigger worry for Richard and me. How long would the Woodvilles tolerate such a mighty magnate ruling the North? They would see us as a threat to them so they would take action against us. Gloucester would be excluded from power, gradually his offices would be taken away, and we would lose all that we have gained.’
I thought about that. Ever since she had married Richard, Anne Neville had toiled with total single-mindedness to build Richard up in the North so that she and her husband might be seen as the worthy heirs of her father and Montague. Clearly under no circumstances would she permit her work to be undone or to be ruled by the lowly Woodvilles. And why should she or Richard? The thought was totally unreasonable.
‘So to protect himself, Richard of Gloucester, needs to be protector if King Edward dies, and by doing so he will prevent civil war between the nobles and the Woodvilles.’
Anne Neville’s blue eyes met mine.
‘That is correct, Francis. But are you prepared to accompany him if he is called on to serve as protector?’
I did not hesitate.
‘Of course, my lady’
‘Of course Gloucester needs us,’ Ratcliffe agreed. ‘The pressure on him is mounting, despite the fact that King Edward is still alive. Do you know that when he was in London earlier this year, people were sounding Richard out about his intentions?’
‘No, I didn’t.’
‘It was all done pretty discreetly; in fact, I didn’t find out until later. It seems that men will support him to become protector but they all want something in return. It’s not just the ones in government but the ones outside as well. Take the Duke of Buckingham, for instance.’
‘I don’t know anything about him.’
‘That’s hardly surprising. He’s been kept out of power by King Edward since Buckingham’s got royal blood too. Now admittedly, it’s not the strongest of claims, but King Edward doesn’t want any rivals. Consequently, Buckingham’s been excluded from more or less any form of government, despite his rank and his extensive wealth. It’s hardly surprising that Buckingham would support Gloucester to be protector, is it? It’s the only way he’ll fulfil his ambitions.’
‘How do you know what his ambitions are?’
‘His man, Persiwell, acts as the intermediary between Buckingham and Gloucester. Buckingham wants to control Wales, but, Francis, he’s not the only one sending messengers. The Earl of Northumberland believes that Gloucester would make an excellent protector.’
‘So that he would have a free rein in the North, while Gloucester was in the South,’ I said sourly.
Given that King Edward was still alive, all this scheming sounded faintly treacherous. My tone surprised Ratcliffe.
‘Francis, be reasonable. Men will always have ambitions and it’s only been the strong hand and natural ability of King Edward that has kept order in England these past few years. But once that strong grip looks to falter, everyone will look out for themselves.’
He grinned at me.
‘Myself included. After all, if Richard of Gloucester became protector, my own prospects would look distinctly rosy’
I laughed at his honesty and was about to reply when a messenger appeared and handed a scroll to Ratcliffe. Ratcliffe’s face became unusually solemn as he studied the contents.
‘Now it has begun,’ he announced gravely. Ä report has reached York that the king is dead.’
In fact the report of King Edward’s death was premature, but we had no way of knowing it at the time. Indeed, it was not until the official notification of the monarch’s death reached us nine days later that we realised what an incredible piece of luck we had been handed.
Of course, we failed to appreciate it at the time, but it meant we had extra time to prepare both ourselves and Richard of Gloucester were there to be a call for him to serve as protector.
Messengers arrived from London with considerable frequency. Some were sent by well-wishers who wanted to ingratiate themselves; others were from more reliable sources. Initially the reports were encouraging as the king’s council was functioning normally and it seemed that trouble would be averted, but then a note of disquiet crept in. The council was operating but Hastings and his party were outnumbered by the Woodvilles. Indeed, Dorset and the Woodvilles were giving orders in council and Hastings was violently objecting, claiming that they were too lowly born to do so. There was a plan to bring young Prince Edward to London, where the prince would be crowned immediately. The queen would act as Regent until he reached sixteen, meaning there was no need for a protector. The young Prince would be escorted to London by an army. Hastings seemed at the point of declaring civil war.
‘So Lord Hastings has sent a message to Gloucester saying that the late king left everything to his brother?’ I asked Ratcliffe.
‘So it appears. Apparently King Edward bequeathed everything to Richard of Gloucester’s protection: the realm, its goods and its heir. Hastings advises Richard to secure the prince and bring him to London.’
I frowned.
‘But if King Edward’s will says that Richard should be protector, why didn’t the late king tell everyone while he was still alive? If he’d made his wishes known then – not least to Gloucester – all this quarrelling and these threats of civil war could have been avoided.’
Ratcliffe grinned at me.
‘Francis, from you that’s good, very good. But it doesn’t really matter now; events have moved on. Now whether or not Hastings’ note is truthful, it tells us one important thing’
I was confused.
‘What’s that?’
‘Both Hastings and Lord Stanley know that they are losing ground to the Woodvilles. Both of them are shrewd enough and have sufficient political experience to know that they face political annihilation at the hands of the victorious Woodvilles.’
‘If not worse.’
‘True. But equally they both know that they lose a great deal of power if Richard is protector. What Hastings’ message really means is that they will now support Gloucester if he wishes to be protector. They probably see him as the lesser of two evils.’
‘Mm… so what happens now? Do we move to secure the prince as Hastings suggests?’
‘Not quite yet. She’s instructed me to write to the council in Gloucester’s name, before he rushes into anything. I am to state that Richard was al
ways loyal to the late king and only desires that the new government is established according to law and to point out that his brother’s will names him as protector.’
Ratcliffe glanced at me quickly.
‘She’s clever, Francis. If we do it this way, we justify our actions.’
I had no need to ask who ‘she’ was.
Anne Neville’s plan to secure the Protectorate of England for her husband was probably one of the best pieces of planning I have ever witnessed. I doubted whether even her father could have done better.
‘Clearly the prime objective in all of this is to separate the young prince from his Woodville escort and to secure his person,’ she began. ‘Once you have possession of the prince, it will be impossible for the Woodvilles to crown him quickly and deny you, my lord, your rightful protectorate.’
‘But how do I do that?’ her husband asked.
Anne Neville narrowed her eyes as she considered the question, but then her mouth twitched as if in secret merriment. She raised her hands to obscure her face.
‘Tell me, my lord, am I frowning or smiling?’ she asked.
Richard looked puzzled.
‘Well, how can I tell? Your face is hidden.’
Anne Neville put her hands down on her lap.
‘And that, my lord, is precisely how you will secure possession of the young prince; but before I explain further, allow me to tell Francis his role, as he must depart immediately’
The twin furrows on the face of Lord Stanley grew even deeper as he listened to my message. When I had finished, he turned sombrely to his ally Lord Hastings.
‘Not for a moment can I see Gloucester actually pulling it off,’ he said slowly.
The great leonine head of the late king’s chamberlain and best friend nodded sagely.
‘I have to agree with you – Gloucester will never be able to extract the young prince from a heavily armed escort of 1,000 men. Lovell says that Gloucester is only taking a small force, mostly unarmoured, so as not to arouse suspicion, but what use is that? He’ll just be brushed aside. The Woodvilles will bring the prince to London and crown him.’
He glanced at Lord Stanley.
‘You and I are finished now; Gloucester was our last chance.’
To my surprise, Lord Stanley glanced back to me.
‘Just remind me, Francis,’ he murmured. ‘If – against all odds -Richard of Gloucester did manage to secure the young prince, what is it that he wants us to do?’
I repeated Anne Neville’s instructions.
‘He wishes for Lord Hastings to use his considerable influence among Londoners here to ensure that the city affords Richard a favourable reception. This is essential; as soon as word gets out that Richard has gained control of the heir to the throne, fears and rumours are bound to spread. Men will question his motives and ask what his true intentions are.’
Lord Stanley looked up sharply.
‘Of course they would, but we can deal with that. Lord Hastings can reassure the mayor.’
‘If I thought that Gloucester stood a chance of getting hold of the prince, I’d personally ensure that the Mayor of London and all his aldermen were outside the city walls to greet him,’ snorted Lord Hastings. ‘Sweet Christ, I would have 500 of the most prominent citizens all clad in violet standing with them to honour our future king and his protector.’
His colleague nodded.
‘If Gloucester can manage this, he need have no fear of his welcome in London. We will use all of our influence to ensure everyone understands that all he wants to do is to protect his young nephew.’
But then the twin lines of worry deepened.
‘But, for the life of me, I can’t see how he’s going to manage it. The Woodvilles have over 1,000 men and he has far fewer, you say?’
‘Yes. Most of them are not in armour, I believe.’
Lord Hastings groaned deeply.
‘Then Gloucester’s a fool. The Woodvilles will trample over him and deal with him as they intend to deal with Lord Stanley and myself
His tawny eyes bored into mine.
‘The Woodvilles have won,’ he muttered dejectedly.
They were laying leafy branches and scattering blossom on the hawthorn in the hall of Crosby Place. I smiled at the sight, since the copious foliage totally transformed the mood of the austere room. It was pleasing to see the younger servants bustling around happy, not only with the novelty of their task, but in keen anticipation of their May Day holiday.
I reached into my purse for some pennies and groats for the steward to distribute to them.
‘My lord?’
I spun round. The messenger’s face was scratched by brambles, his face and clothes filthy with mud. Clearly he had ridden both long and hard.
I held out my hand for the proffered scroll and unrolled it apprehensively. Shortly after I felt an immense surge of happiness as I read Ratcliffe’s enigmatic scrawl.
‘Woodvilles deceived. Prince retrieved. ‘
So Richard had managed it! In his evident haste, Ratcliffe had omitted any details of where, when or how Richard had done this, but it scarcely mattered for the moment.
I smiled broadly, so great was my joy. Seeing this, one or two of the servants regarded me curiously, but I paid them no heed for now Richard could become protector and we would be saved from civil war. I glanced around for someone to share my happiness, but then I had an idea. Crosby Place was the house Richard used sometimes when he came to London. These were his servants.
On impulse, I dug deep into my purse and flung a handful of coins into the air. There was an excited rush towards them even before the cascade of copper and silver hit the floor and rolled in all directions, the servants scampering after them.
I left to find Lord Hastings. His own joy this May Day would probably exceed that of Richard’s servants.
The entry of Prince Edward into London, together with his Uncle Gloucester and the Duke of Buckingham, was managed magnificently. But while the young prince was cheered by the crowds, it was Richard who was the man of the hour.
Word had spread quickly; the crowds had learned that he had prevented the unpopular Woodvilles from seizing power for themselves and they were grateful to him. I watched how they cheered him as he deferentially presented King Edward’s son to them. He had chosen to wear subtle dark clothing to lend greater emphasis to the prince’s purple velvet and he bowed repeatedly to show the people that he was merely their servant.
Lord Stanley chuckled next to me.
‘They love him, don’t they? Hastings thinks the same. Mind you, he’s positively bursting with joy now that the Woodvilles have been neutralised.’
It was curious just how quickly the Woodvilles had collapsed, I reflected. With the head of the family, Earl Rivers, and the queen’s son Grey already arrested, they had been at a disadvantage. Of course, once the news of Richard’s action became known in London, they had tried to fight back. The queen’s eldest son, Dorset, had tried to raise an army but to no avail. As a result, he had joined his mother and the remainder of her children in sanctuary at Westminster.
‘I would like to know how Gloucester actually managed it,’ Lord Stanley murmured.
I tore my eyes away from the cheering crowds and smiled at him.
‘I imagine we’ll have to wait a few days.’
I pointed at the tumultuous scenes around us.
‘This is going to keep Richard busy for a while.’
But I was wrong; the following night a page summoned me from my chamber. The Duke of Gloucester had arrived at Crosby Place and, despite the lateness of the hour, was desirous of speech with me.
I hurried down and greeted him delightedly, but he waved away my congratulations claiming that I should be praised for arranging the successful reception in London.
Looking at his flushed cheeks and glittering eyes, I suspected that the heady events of the last few days were catching up with him and called for wine.
‘So how did you manage it?
’ I asked after he had dismissed the servants.
‘It all went according to plan,’ he said smugly.
He then gulped down his wine and held his glass out to be refilled, which was completely out of character for him.
‘Of course, I hadn’t realised just how good her planning could be. You see, we knew that Earl Rivers was bringing Prince Edward up to London from Ludlow, so we simply sent word to him that we would join him en route and would journey on together.’
‘But surely he would have been on his guard? He would have suspected your intentions.’
Richard winked at me conspiratorially
‘Why should he? His force, he knew, easily exceeded mine and he probably viewed my offer as a natural surrender to the power of the Woodvilles.’
‘And Buckingham, who was with you, is married to a Woodville,’ I said thoughtfully.
Richard clapped my shoulder and used his other hand to push his empty glass towards me again.
‘Rivers is a clever man, but he suspected nothing,’ he chuckled. ‘Do you know that when Buckingham and I got to Northampton, he even came trotting back to meet us?’
‘So what did you do?’ I asked as I handed his glass back.
‘We charmed him.’ Richard grinned. We asked him to dine with us and told him that he could sleep in the inn next door. Then Buckingham praised that book of his, while Ratcliffe plied him with wine.’
I shared in his amusement.
‘Did you have to carry him to bed?’
‘Almost, but the next day he felt bad.’
‘On account of the wine?’
Richard roared with laughter and slid his glass back towards me.
‘No, he felt bad because we imprisoned him in his inn and set up sentries and road blocks to stop anyone getting to him. Then we galloped about fourteen miles south – ah, thank you, Francis – and presented ourselves to my nephew and his escort.’
‘So how did you separate him from them?’