Richard III

Upon the death of his brother, King Edward IV, Richard, Duke of Gloucester was named as regent for the King's twelve-year-old son, the new King Edward V. Within weeks, the king and his younger brother were declared illegitimate, and Richard sent them to the Tower of London, where they disappeared. He then took the throne, becoming Richard III. Revolts swelled, and in what most consider the final chapter of the Wars of the Roses, Henry Tudor killed Richard in battle, ascending the throne as Henry VII.

• 1472: Marries Anne Neville
• 1482: Recaptures Berwick-upon-Tweed from the Scots
• 1483: Takes throne
• 1484: Anne Neville dies
• 1485: Killed in Battle of Bosworth Field

As history is written by the victors, Richard III was for centuries portrayed as the most evil of kings, physically deformed and morally depraved. Shakespeare's "bunch-backed toad" (in the play, Richard III), is a signal example, and was written, like many such portrayals, during the reign of a Tudor monarch, Elizabeth I. More recent investigations have failed to turn up evidence of his reputed physical abnormalities or grotesque behavior, but have done little to burnish his character, which seems to have been grasping and cruel even by the prevailing standards of his time and context.

• The majority of the following links are to IMDb which contains pop-ups.

• 1908: Richard III

• 1912: Richard III

• 1955: Richard III

• 1973: III Richard

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• 1986: Richard III

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• October 2, 1452: Born at Fotheringay Castle

• 1472: Marries Anne Neville

• 1473: Edward Plantagenet born

• 1482: Recaptures Berwick-upon-Tweed from the Scots

• 1483: Edward IV names Richard Duke of Gloucester as Protector | sons of Edward IV illegitimate | Richard III takes throne

• 1484: Edward Prince of Wales dies unexpectedly | Anne Neville dies

• 1485: Battle of Bosworth Field

• August 22, 1485: Dies in battle