Elizabeth, as anne is already married to exeter and margaret is too young.
A Thorn In The Rose: A War Of The Roses TL
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Chapter 102: New Generation
VVD0D95
Banned
Chapter 102: New Generation
November, 1458
November, 1458
Edward looked at the letter his father had given him and then looked at his father. He didn’t believe a word of what had been written, he saw the plots and the conniving, and he was convinced that if his father went to London he would not come out alive. Edward took a breath and then said. “You can’t go to this.”
“Why?” His father asked.
“Because if you go, you will not come out alive. The Archbishop speaks of friendship and renewing of ties and peace, but the way he speaks of it, it is clear he is trying to give you a warning.” Edward said.
He looked down at the letter and read out a few lines. “His Grace wishes for you and Lord Somerset to embrace one another as brothers, as our Lord embraced Judas after he learned he would be betrayed by him.” Edward looked up at his father, and saw his father indicate that he should go on, so he did.
“Lord Somerset has shown a commitment to mending relations with you, my lord Prince, as Cain and Abel wished to mend relations after their first argument.”
“Good.” Father said.
“Good?” Edward asked, eyebrow raised.
“Yes, you are clearly able to spot things when they are waving you through the mist of nonsense.” Father said. “That will stand you in good stead for the future.”
Edward felt a burst of pride then. His father was praising him, that didn’t happen all that often. Usually, the Duke of York would indicate approval with a nod of the head, so for him to openly acknowledge that Edward had done something good, meant the world to him.
“Now, tell me, if you think I should not go to London, what should I do? Refusing to go would be treason, after all.” Father said.
“You must state your case clearly and concisely. You must highlight the wrongs that Somerset has done and ensure that they never seem to indicate that the King is at fault.” Edward said.
“And how would I do that?” Father asked.
“Through compiling every wrong that Somerset has done, from Birmingham to France. Everything that you have evidence of must be used to show he is beyond redemption.” Edward said, his mind working fast.
“And if Somerset produces something similar for me, how do I refute it?” Father asked.
“You point to your own record, Father.” Edward said. “The notes, the accounts, the testimonies of all those who have worked with and for you. You provide such a body of evidence that the King will have no choice but to believe you and refute Somerset.”
Father smiled. “Your lessons are paying off then. Good, I am proud.”
Edward beamed. His father was proud of him! That was something he had never heard before, he was…happy? Excited? Both. He didn’t know, but he was feeling something positive. “Thank you, Father.” Edward said.
His father changed the topic then. “What do you make of Lady Margaret?”
“Father?” Edward asked, slightly confused as to why they were discussing his sister in law.
“What do you make of your brother’s wife? Is she a good person?” Father asked.
Edward took a moment to think. His feelings for his brother’s wife were confused. She was a very good person, very smart and very caring, but she was also incredibly beautiful, and at times Edward had found his thoughts straying toward her. He’d never do anything though, he respected both her and Edmund far too much for that, but there were times when he had found himself thinking of her, overly much.
Of course, to say that to his father would be highly inappropriate so he said. “She is smart and loyal.”
“And you think she will be a good wife for your brother?” Father asked.
“Yes.” Edward replied. Of that he had no doubt.
“Good, we will need all the support and strength that we can get with what is to come.” Father said, his expression changing.
Edward could not read it then. It was a common thing to happen now. His father would often say something and then pause, as if waiting for some great thought to appear in his head. It was at turns frustrating and intriguing, to see how the man’s mind worked. Now seemed to be one of those moments. As Edward waited for his father to speak, he found his own thoughts drifting.
There was a girl in the village named Elizabeth, she was quite beautiful and she had welcomed his advances. He hadn’t been able to complete his courting of her, before, due to some need at Ludlow, but now that he was here, and would likely be here for some time, perhaps he could act on what was clearly there.
His father broke his silence then, his tone quiet. “You are going to come with me.”
“Where to, father?” Edward asked.
“London.” Father answered.
“But I thought you said you weren’t going to London?” Edward asked.
Father smiled at him. “I’m not going to reconcile with Somerset. Indeed, I’m not even going to bend to Henry.”
Henry? Edward thought to himself, that was the first time his father had referred to the King by his name. “What are you going to do then?” Edward asked.
His father said nothing for a moment and as the silence hung over them, Edward remembered the conversation he had had with Edmund and Ralph a long time ago, about how child Kings were not good for Kingdoms, and how weak Kings, like King Henry were just as bad. It was then that he knew what his father would say.
The man confirmed it moments later. “I am going to take my birthright. I shall become King of England, and you will be Prince of Wales.”
Father said it with such conviction that Edward believed him. His father would be King and he would be Prince, and damn all who stood in their way. He bowed his head then and said. “Of course….Your Grace.”
Quantum Immortal
Banned
Hop to it, Richard! Hopefully Henry's miraculously grown set of balls will make him step up to lead his forces, causing disorder and confusion.
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The question however is: who will be the traitors when all this is done?
Chapter 103: Room To Move
VVD0D95
Banned
Chapter 103: Room To Move
December, 1458
December, 1458
Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury looked at the people gathered in the room with him and said. “The hour of decision making has come. For too long now we’ve sat on the side lines whilst those less suited to power have taken their charge and made a mockery of our great Kingdom. The man who sits the throne is not fit to wear St Edward’s Crown, and I believe we must do something to address that.”
“Hear hear!” Came the reply, and then John Scrope of Bolton spoke.
“You are right my lord of Salisbury. We have all hoped for change and reform from the government in London, and yet it has not come. Instead the same mistakes are made time and time again. Ireland is on fire, and the men charged by London with sorting the issue out continue to inflame sentiments.” Scrope took a breath then continued. “There is only one solution to this issue that we face. We must endeavour to ensure that the right people sit in London and that the right man sits on the throne.”
“And how will you decide who the right man is?” Richard’s son Thomas asked, Richard had told his son to ask this question, they all knew the answer anyway.
“Why, the one with the best claim of course.” Scrope replied. “And the man who has shown time and again that he is above partisan interests and cares only about working for the good of the Kingdom.”
“And where might we find this man?” Thomas asked.
Richard answered his son’s question by pointing at his brother in law, York. “He sits before you, Thomas. Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, descendant of Edward III through his son Lionel, Duke of Clarence and from his other son Edmund, Duke of York. He holds the best claim to the throne. He fought in France and he bled for his Kingdom. He pushed for governmental reform and yet he was thwarted at every step. He is the man who must lead us out of this darkness.”
“Hear, hear!” Came the response from those gathered.
Lord Ferrers of Chartley spoke then. “That is all well and good, but how do we know that His Grace will get the support needed to bring proper change?”
Richard looked at York who answered. “The Archbishop of York has promised to bring the Archbishop of Canterbury on to our side, my son in law the Duke of Exeter has promised to bring his faction to our side. The Duke of Norfolk has already been our man for some time. With these three men, we will out do Buckingham and Northumberland, and we will handle Somerset.”
“What about the reconciliation that has been ordered between you and Somerset?” Ferrers asked. “Will you defy that order?”
Richard saw his brother in law snort and heard him say. “That was never a proper reconciliation. Henry might have ordered it, but Somerset took control of it. If I go for that, I am as good as dead. I will not emerge from the Abbey alive, nor will my family.”
York glanced at his eldest son, Edward, Earl of March then. March was a tall man already, even though he was only sixteen, he towered over everyone else.
Richard decided to speak then. “Somerset is not a man of good intentions, and for all his good qualities King Henry is a man who is easily swayed and that has led the Kingdom into destruction and chaos. We must save England from the House of Lancaster before we lose it for good.”
“How?” Came the question, that was Thomas again, but this time not prompted.
“We are going to issue a document once we are in London stating why we have done what we have done. And we are also going to issue a list of all the crimes that Somerset and his friends have committed during the course of the King’s reign.” Richard answered.
“And what will happen to the King and his family?” Thomas asked.
“The King and his son will be placed in the Tower. The Queen will be given the chance to move back to France.” York answered.
“And if she refuses to go?” Thomas asked.
“Then she will be dealt with accordingly.” York answered.
There was a brief pause as they all digested what York had just said. Richard knew his brother in law was nervous, hell, he was nervous. They all were. They needed this to work, otherwise they were all doomed. England could not abide by two Kings. There could only be one, and Richard knew that his brother in law was the man that she needed. Henry of Lancaster had failed, just as his grandfather had. Just as Richard II had. There could be no return of their line.
He blinked as a chair moved. Richard watched as his son Warwick got up and knelt before York. “I, Richard Neville, do hereby pledge my sword and my life to you, Richard Plantagenet, as the King of England and of France.”
Richard found himself standing and walking to kneel before his brother in law and repeating the words his son had said. Others did the same, Thomas, Ferrers, Scrope, and others all with long histories and long records of service. Then the final person to pledge allegiance was York’s son, Edward, who would be Prince of Wales should they succeed.
When they had, all said their piece, York spoke then. “I thank you all for your loyalty. I promise to work hard and to make England rise from the ashes.”
“God Save The King!” Richard said.
“God Save King Richard!”
“May He Reign Forever!” Ferrers said.
Richard looked at his brother in law as all of this was said, and he knew that they made the right choice. York looked at them all without expression, there were no smiles, no sulks, just a blank expression as he took it all in. That would bode well for the future, Richard hoped. They would need a man like that.