The Princes in the Tower: Who’s Who in the Wars of the Roses

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Ah, the Princes in the Tower. Most people have heard of them and know there is a mystery surrounding their disappearance at the Tower of London, where they were supposedly being kept for their own safety. Yet, how many people know the story of the Princes is intimately tied to the Wars of the Roses? How many know when, exactly, they disappeared? How many know who their parents were? These two boys were just as crucial to the events of the Wars of the Roses as any of the other major players, even though they may not be discussed much except in terms regarding their disappearance. This is the real story behind these two young royals, and how the Wars of the Roses affected their entire known childhoods, as well as some possible explanations for what may have really happened to them.

The Princes in the Tower and Their Family

They are known as the Princes in the Tower now, but they had other names. They were brothers, three years apart in age, and the sons of King Edward IV of England and his queen, Elizabeth Woodville. They were younger brothers to Elizabeth of York, who became the first Tudor queen through her marriage to Henry Tudor, and thus, uncles to the infamous Henry VIII. The older boy, Edward, Prince of Wales, was born in 1470 and was the fourth child and first son the king and queen had together (the queen having two older sons by her first marriage to Sir John Grey). The younger boy, Richard, Duke of York, was born in 1473 and was the king and queen’s 6th child together. Their 8th of the 10 children they had together was also a boy, named George, but he died of plague at two years old in 1479.

Edward and Richard were the king and queen’s heirs. Edward, as the elder one, was designated Prince of Wales and was set up with his own household when he was only three years old. It was traditional at that time for the primary heir of the English monarch to go live at Ludlow Castle on the Welsh border when he was young enough to be away from his mother, to keep a royal presence in Wales, and get the young prince used to govern an area of his own. Edward was sent to Ludlow with the queen’s brother, Sir Anthony Woodville, and her younger son by her first marriage (and, thus, Edward’s half-brother), Sir Richard Grey, as his royally appointed caretakers. From the time Edward was three until he was twelve, Sir Anthony and Sir Richard oversaw every aspect of his education and upbringing, with occasional visits from or to his parents.

Richard, Duke of York, and a Childhood Marriage

The younger boy, Richard, Duke of York, stayed with his parents and took a slightly different path. As the “spare heir,” his main job was to make a successful marriage to a rich heiress who would bring a fortune to the kingdom’s coffers and become an accomplished noble who would bring honor and leadership to the court. To this end, he was made Duke of York when he was one year old, a title later often given to a monarch’s second son, though not automatically or without exceptions.

Richard was also married at the age of four to the fatherless five-year-old heiress, Anne Mowbray, the last legitimate heir in the ancient and extremely wealthy Mowbray line. Naturally, two such young children were not expected to consummate their marriage, though they were given a wedding ceremony as lavish as any king or queens. Anne died in 1481 at the age of eight, and her estates and fortunes became Richard’s.

The Death of Edward IV

Everything was fine for the two princes until April of 1483, when they were twelve and nine, respectively. This is when their father, King Edward IV, died unexpectedly at the age of forty, after a brief illness whose cause is uncertain. The elder prince was technically now King Edward V, and was called back to London from his home at Ludlow Castle, so he could be formally crowned in a traditional coronation ceremony.

Meanwhile, his mother, Elizabeth Woodville, knew she and her family had enemies among her late husband’s family, and she was concerned for the safety of her and her children. She took all of her surviving children with the king (with the exception of young Edward, who was coming from Ludlow), as well as her eldest son by her first husband, Lord Thomas Grey, and went into sanctuary at Westminster Abbey. Medieval laws said anyone seeking sanctuary in a consecrated building of worship like the abbey could not be meddled with there, even by the king, regardless of what they did (though her late husband and his brothers violated this sacred law once during his reign).

Elizabeth was right to be concerned. Her late husband named his only remaining brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, regent of the kingdom, meaning he would have control over his young nephew’s reign and government once the boy reached London. He already thought his royal nephew had been raised with too much Woodville influence, and he exerted his first powers as regent by stopping his nephew and his guardians on their way to London. Richard had Anthony Woodville and Richard Grey arrested, despite young Edward V’s demands otherwise, and later had them executed on trumped up charges of treason. By executing the dowager queen’s brother and son, Richard made a serious enemy of Elizabeth Woodville.

The Princes Enter the Tower

Richard took Edward V the rest of the way back to London and installed him in the Tower, which was not suspicious at the time. It was traditional for new monarchs to lodge there before their coronations, and that is the reason Richard gave for putting his nephew there. He wanted both of his brother’s sons in his control, though, and came to Elizabeth Woodville in sanctuary, again and again, asking her to hand over Richard, Duke of York, ostensibly to go keep his older brother company in the Tower. He sent his emissaries there several times, as well. Elizabeth steadfastly refused to hand over her youngest surviving son, until thinly veiled threats were made to her about sanctuary being broken and she and all of her children being dragged out into the streets. Only then did she let her boy go with his uncle to the Tower.

Edward entered the Tower in May 1483; Richard joined him in June. Their appearances became less frequent during the summer, and no later sighting of either boy has been securely established.

In June 1483, Edward IV’s marriage to Elizabeth Woodville was declared invalid on the allegation that he had previously contracted a marriage with Eleanor Butler. His children were excluded from the succession. Richard took the throne and was crowned on July 6; Parliament later confirmed his title in Titulus Regius in 1484.

What Happened to the Princes in the Tower?

Even during Richard III and Elizabeth Woodville‘s lifetimes, there were questions of what really happened to Edward V and Richard, Duke of York. Those who knew weren’t saying and never did. However, the princes were never officially seen again. Shortly before his coronation, Richard III dismissed all of the boys’ servants. Edward V’s personal physician was the last to leave and gave the last known account of seeing the boys. He said Edward V seemed quite emotionally distressed, and prayed constantly, as he expressed concern every day until the physician was dismissed that there might be plots against him.

Richard III remains the best-known suspect in the princes’ disappearance. Contemporary reports and later Tudor accounts have to be weighed carefully. Neither his earlier loyalty to Edward IV nor Elizabeth Woodville’s later dealings with him establish what happened to the boys.

The children of Richard’s elder brother George, Duke of Clarence, were also potential Yorkist claimants. However, their father’s attainder had barred them from the succession. Their position cannot be used as simple proof that Richard would, or would not, have harmed Edward IV’s sons.

Henry Tudor and Other Explanations

Henry VII and other political figures have also been proposed as suspects. Theories involving Margaret Beaufort feature prominently in historical fiction, but fiction is not evidence that she arranged the boys’ deaths. Their fate remains unresolved.

Survival theories have also attracted attention. They remain theories: neither a fatal illness for Edward V nor an escape for Richard has been conclusively established.

In the 1490s, Perkin Warbeck claimed to be Richard, Duke of York. Margaret of Burgundy and several European rulers supported his claim, but political support does not establish his identity. In Scotland he married Lady Catherine Gordon, daughter of the Earl of Huntly.

Warbeck’s attempts to overthrow Henry VII failed. He was captured in 1497 and executed in 1499. Claims that Elizabeth Woodville organized a substitution in the Tower or supported Warbeck over her daughter lack secure evidence.

An Enduring Historical Mystery

The mystery also involves children’s bones found beneath a staircase in the White Tower in 1674. They were assumed to be the princes’ remains and placed in Westminster Abbey. An examination in 1933 found bones of two children, but did not conclusively establish their identities.

The urn’s inscription records an early explanation of the deaths, rather than a modern forensic identification. Further scientific examination might answer some questions, but it cannot be assumed in advance that the remains are the princes or that any single test would settle the whole mystery.

Learn More

For a closer look at the evidence and historical context, explore these resources:

• Historic Royal Palaces: evidence and theories about the princes
• Westminster Abbey: the princes and the unidentified remains

You can also read Who’s Who in the Wars of the Roses (free eBook) and browse the Wars of the Roses articles.