Silver Groat of Richard III. Lot 391.                                             Silver Groat of Henry VII. Lot 392.

by Eldert Bontekoe

     Richard III, King of England for 26 months from 1483 to 1485, is one of history's most controversial figures. Much about the king's actions and motivations are unknown and provide an opportunity for modern debate. What we know for sure is that Richard of Gloucester was named Lord Protector of the Heir Apparent, Edward V, in his bother's (Edward IV) will. It was Richard's charge to protect and council the young King Edward V until he came of age and could assume the full powers of Kingship. Somewhere along the way, Richard decided to usurp the throne for himself. The young King and his brother were locked in the Tower of London, never to be seen again. That Richard was cunning and violent to achieve an end most scholars agree. But Richard is a product of violent times full of political intrigue, where a slip or inaction could easily mean one's death.

     The seizure of the throne and imprisonment of the rightful heirs in the Tower created a widespread undercurrent of resentment within the kingdom. Richard was able to secure a veneer of acceptance by a series of gifts to important nobleman and towns and the relocation of many of his northern supporters into position of power in the south. But all these actions to consolidate his support created a small disempowered and angry noble class eager for his removal.

     In the Autumn of 1483 a conspiracy was initiated in southern and western England to remove King Richard and replace him with Henry Tudor. Joining this conspiracy was the Duke of Buckingham the most well paid of Richard's supporters. Henry Tudor led an invasion fleet of 5000 troops supplied by the Duke of Brittany and set sail for Wales. Richard caught wind of the conspiracy before it had gained much momentum, and his supporters dispelled it quickly. It was Richard's quick success in quelling the Great Rebellion of 1483 which paved the way for Henry's eventual successful invasion in 1485. If his forces were not scattered by a storm and he had landed in Wales, he would have been easily captured. The conspirators which escaped from the rebellion became the backbone of the English support which accompanied Henry Tudor in 1485 to Bosworth field.

     Richard was well aware of the likelihood of a repeat invasion in 1484 and 1485 and had stationed lookouts at likely landfalls. Richard, himself, moved his court to Nottingham castle to be centrally located for quick response.

     On August 7, 1485, Henry Tudor landed at Milford Haven in Wales with a force of about 2000 men, mostly French troops loaned by Charles VII of France. He was joined in the crossing by 500 English nobles and their troops which escaped after the unsuccessful 1483 rebellion. After marching through Wales, picking up recruits (500 from Shrewsbury and 2000 Welsh) along the way, Henry arrived at Shrewsbury on August 18 with an army of almost 5000 men.

     Meanwhile, Richard quickly learned of Henry's arrival and by August 11 he summoned his supporters including the Duke of Norfolk, Lord Stanley, and the Earl of Northumberland to come to his immediate aid. Lord Stanley sent word he would be unable to attend personally due to a bout of the 'sweating sickness'. Still with his son, Lord Strange, held hostage by Richard to assure his loyalty, he responded by sending troops. The support of the Stanley's (or lack thereof) would prove crucial in the later battle.

     Richard left Nottingham on August 19 to seek battle. His personal forces numbered about 3500, to which he added 2500 troops under the Duke of Norfolk and 2500 men under the Earl of Northumberland. Lord Stanley's force numbered 2500-3500 and Sir William Stanley led about 1500-2500 troops, but Richard knew that the loyalty of the Stanley's was questionable at best.

     On August 22, the two armies met near the town of Market Bosworth a few miles south-west of Leicester.

     Richard's forces took the high ground on top of Ambign Hill and arranged his 8000 troops into three battles. The vanguard was led by Norfolk, it consisted of about 4000 troops. Richard led the reserves of about 1000 men plus his private guard, the Knights and Squires of the Body (about 75 in number). About 500-1000 troops guarded against a surprise advance of the Stanley's, while a force of 3000 under Northumberland took the nominal role of rear guard.

     Facing them, Henry put the majority of the troops under the command of the Earl of Oxford with the undersized left wing commanded by John Savage, and the right wing anchored to a swamp commanded by Sir Talbot. Henry himself led a small reserve on the left side. Clearly given this deployment, Henry knew that Sir Stanley would not support the King and may even come to his aid. The location of Lord Stanley's troops is debated to be either with Sir Stanley on the north, or alone on the south.

     The forces of Oxford clashed with those of Norfolk and the battle began to turn towards the Tudors. Richard sent a runner to Northumberland to have him engage his troops, but he refused saying it was his duty to guard against Lord Stanley's forces. By then, the news came that the Duke of Norfolk had fallen in battle and it began to look as Henry might win this engagement and that Richard should begin to plan his retreat and await reinforcements.

     But then, recognizing Henry Tudor on the field, Richard realized that the troops would surrender if their leader was killed and decided to take the initiative. Richard assembled his Knights of the Body and began a perilous charge across the face of Sir Stanley's forces, past the engaged mass of the invader's troops, to try to fought his way to Henry himself. Leading the valiant charge, he hacked his way to the Tudor standard, only to be dismounted and killed within sight of his goal.

     As Richard predicted, the battle soon ended upon news of his death. Some of Richard's supporters, Lincoln, Lovell, and Stafford, escaped the battlefield to make trouble another day. Henry Tudor retired to Leicester where he executed those who supported Richard and planned his eventual coronation as Henry VII. Richard body was put on public display and never properly buried. Bosworth Field came to mark the end of the Plantagenets and beginning of the renaissance in England.