Five Notable Tower of London Prisoners

As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Lancastrian King was also prone to periods of madness.  At these times, Richard of York was regularly employed as a sort of ‘supply King’.  Once he became used to the power, Richard wasn’t keen to give it up.  He successfully defeated Henry VI in battle and had him incarcerated in the Tower – admittedly a rather posh part of it, rather than some dark dungeon.  Unfortunately, Richard was killed in battle before he could be crowned King, but he did at least leave us a handy mnemonic for remembering the colours of the rainbow!

Richard’s son became King Edward IV, and succeeded in locking Henry VI up in the tower again, but Henry was released and restored to the throne after a series of rebellions in 1470.  This didn’t last long.  By April of the next year, Edward was back on the throne, and Henry was missing his head.  Just another episode in the soap opera that was the Wars of the Roses.

The Two Princes – Edward V and his brother, Richard

Imprisoned by their uncle in 1483.

(Image Source)

The sons of Edward IV and grandsons of Richard of York were born into turbulent times.  The young Edward was only 13 when his father died, and heard the news while staying at Ludlow Castle. Together with his brother, he travelled to the Tower to prepare for his coronation procession which traditionally started from the Tower, and went through the City of London to Westminster Abbey.

On the way, their entourage was intercepted by their uncle, Richard of Gloucester, who was supposed to be Lord Protector.  Many of the young king’s supporters were killed and he was escorted to the tower, where he was later joined by his brother.  Uncle Richard, with the help of Parliament, then had the boys declared illegitimate – after all, their father had been a famous womaniser – and took the crown for himself.

The two boys simply disappeared, and in 1674, two skeletons were discovered under a staircase in the White Tower.  It seems most likely that Richard had them killed, although this his been debated by historians and conspiracy theorists ever since! 

So there you are, five (well six, really) notable occupants of the Tower of London.  See this sequel for another five.

For more articles on the British monarchy, try this one about England’s three kings named Richard, and this one about three kings who managed to be remembered for all the wrong reasons.