Books and Papers  
 
 

A new book about Richard III is always welcome when it promises a major reassessment of that king's reign, and Annette Carson's Richard III: The Maligned King lives up to its title. An analysis of the specific period 1483 to 1485, the book looks set to challenge many comfort zones.

Annette Carson has been a Society member for over ten years, but her original fascination with Richard III dates from the Laurence Olivier film which sparked animated discussions in history classes at school. Over the ensuing years the Great Debate remained an abiding topic of reading and reflection; but she dates the start of more intensive research from the advent of the internet, when source material became freely available for the first time on websites.
In recent years she feels there is a tendency for Richard's reputation to come increasingly under attack,despite no new evidence emerging to justify this trend. Almost every new book seems to trot out the old, tired assumptions, whether by historians or popular writers; and every opinionated TV history expert follows suit.

Given that so much scholarly work has been done, bringing to light alternative readings and conclusions, Annette wanted to do full justice to specific topics thrown up by such work rather than opt for a broader but shallower approach. Hence, although written in narrative form - and 320 pages long - the book concentrates purely on Richard's reign.

For example: what caused the death of Edward IV? What was being plotted in Brittany in the lead-up to the October rebellion, and what was the real nature of the negotiations for Elizabeth of York to marry Henry Tudor? Why did Buckingham betray his king? Did Elizabeth Woodville dabble in witchcraft? What might have happened to Edward V and his brother? What do we really know about Those Bones? And what were Richard's actual intentions towards his niece?

Ricardians will be interested to know that in the process of tracking the activities of Henry Tudor during 1483-1485, Annette uncovered a number of revealing facts which historians of the first Tudor king prefer to gloss over.