



Produced by Al Haines










[Frontispiece: _King Richard III.  From a picture in the National
Portrait Gallery_]





RICHARD III: HIS LIFE & CHARACTER



REVIEWED IN THE LIGHT OF RECENT RESEARCH



BY SIR CLEMENTS E. MARKHAM, K.C.B.


AUTHOR OF 'THE LIFE OF THE
  GREAT LORD FAIRFAX' AND
  'THE FIGHTING VERES'




WITH A PORTRAIT



LONDON: SMITH, ELDER, AND CO.

15 WATERLOO PLACE.  1906

(_All rights reserved_)




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PREFACE

There are periods of history when the greatest caution is called for in
accepting statements put forward by a dominant faction.  Very early in
my life I came to the conclusion that the period which witnessed the
change of dynasties from Plantagenet to Tudor was one of these.  The
caricature of the last Plantagenet King was too grotesque, and too
grossly opposed to his character derived from official records.  The
stories were an outrage on common-sense.  I studied the subject at
intervals for many years, and in the course of my researches I found
that I more or less shared my doubts with every author of repute who
had studied the subject for the last three centuries, except Hume and
Lingard.  My own conclusions are that Richard III. must be acquitted on
all the counts of the indictment.  The present work is divided into two
parts, the first narrating the events of his life and times, and the
second examining the various accusations against him.  I did not
contemplate publication because I thought that in these days prejudices
