The Legacy of Richard III - A TLIAD

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What are you doing now?

A TLIAD.

Why!

Well, I'm sick and bored.

Isn't this just a blatant rip off of what Alex Richards did?

I like to think that this is more of a continuation of an interesting idea.

Meh.

The POD involves Richard III and trouble for the Tudors.

That's original.

Look, do you want to see this or not.

Have you given up on the Harry Tudor timeline then?

No, I haven't.

Ok then, I guess this is ok.

Cool, let's move on then.​
 
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"...and when we truly study the characters that made up the royal family at the point of Bosworth, we are left feeling as though this was not a happy family. The king himself was obviously a distant father, as all Kings were, but there seems to have been many disagreements between the royal couple prior to the Queen's death as to the fates of her daughters. This all stopped at Queen Anne's early death, but this didn't stop the early, angry atmosphere that the girls grew up in from seriously effecting their decisions, particularly Princess Cecily..."
The Life and Times of Cecily and Anne Plantagenet: Sisters, Royals and Traitors by Grahem Orson

I entered the home of respected historian Grahem Orson and was immediately surrounded by books. As I sat down on a comfortable chair and struggle not to knock over the many beautiful piles that filled his living room. Not wanting to waste time, I immediately began questioning him.

"Mr Orson, what drew you to the story of the two Richardian Princesses?"

"Well, I guess it was originally the double portraits that hang in the National Portrait Gallery. They just seemed so innocent and young, like angels. Yet they had parts in some of the most important events of the 15th Century."

Nodding in agreement, I then queried as to what he thought was the most important part of their lives when it came to shaping their famous characters.

"Well, I would imagine that, especially for Cecily, their mother's death and the further humiliation of their house would have seriously effected how they dealt with their adult lives. Anne only knew her parents truly through how Cecily remembered them, and with the arguments early in her life as to fate, she didn't have good things to say. The only thing that they had had instilled in them was that they were the true rulers of England."

"So would you say that they were bred for ruling then?"

He ponders for a second and then gently shakes his head, picking up a nearby book.

"No, I would say not. There was always hope for another son after Edward died. Cecily and Anne were proof that they could have healthy and strong children. Indeed, there was already a new Queen in the talks when Bosworth happened. So no, at no point were the two princess ever seriously considered for the throne. That is, until they got to Burgundy."

With that, I left, needing to move onto my next interview. As I waved goodbye to the historian, I walked not even 50 metres to the other major historian that lived in the area, Lindsey Uptin.
 
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"...so when you truly think of what these two sisters did, you may find it unforgivable. They came into the Burgudian court as young exiles and died as two of the most powerful women in Europe. But to climb that high they had to do some truly awful things. They betrayed the trust that was put in them and worked with the enemy, all to get to an end. But you can't say that they weren't successful..."
Plantagenet Terror: The Sisters Who Shaped Europe by Professor Lindsey Uptin
I entered the office of Lindsey Uptin, neighbour to Grahem Orson, and was amazed at the difference. The house was clean to the point of sterility and any books that had once graced the walls had obviously been hidden long ago. With a cold glass of water at my side, I began asking the questions.

"Professor Uptin, I was wondering if we could focus on Cecily and Anne's time in Burgundy, and how they worked their way up to becoming Duchess and Queen by the times of their deaths."

"Oh, that is simple. They were extremely well-connected young women who were tutored in the ways of the diplomatic royal by their Aunt, Margaret of York. No one raised by that lady could truly be anything other than extremely good at gaining and keeping power."

"Yes, that does make sense. Now, in your book, you go against the current academic theory that Lady Margaret actively influenced the marriae of Philip of Burgundy to Cecily. Could you explained what you think was actually the case?"

"Certainly. I think that Cecily was very much a realist when it came to opportunities. While Lady Margaret may have secretly wished for the marriage, it truly was Cecily who pushed to marry Philip in the end.

"And what of Anne?"

"While Anne was both younger and much less intelligent, at least according to contemparies, she was also more ambitious. I know that my colleage Dr. Orson believes that Cecily was quite influentual in the eventual British outcome, I think it may be the opposite. While England my have been Cecily's pipe-dream, it was Anne's true obsession."

"Is that why she ended up marrying her enemy?"

She thinks for a moment, straightening the papers infront of her and addin to the overall perfection that she has achieved in her office.

"Yes, I guess so. England was what she wanted and she thought that if she ended up marrying the 'King' she could just continue being Queen when he died. It was not the best logic, but the actions of her opponents directly after Henry VII's death let her do just what she wanted. And then some."
 
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"...the marriage of Anne Plantagenet and Henry VII of England produced two living children, Princess Cecily and Prince Edward. Of course, the actual marriage only lasted three years, but these two little royals represented the Richardian and Tudor claims in physical form. And they are what led Queen Anne to rebel at the death of her husband and take control of the government..."

Queen Anne: A Richardian Terror by Alfred Redding

I moved onto the site of the sister's English meeting place, where they reunited after twenty years apart in 1526. Middleham Castle had become more of a palace at this time, expanded and turned into a symbol of the trueborn York.

In the open garden in the East wing, I met Plantagenet historian Thomas Mallet. He was already there, eating a box of chips and gravy. I joined him and began my questions.

"So, Mr Redding, can you explain how Anne Plantagenet was able to take control of England so completely?"

"Well, that came down to luck and careful politics. Philip of Burgundy worked with Margaret of York to bring the European powers to Anne's side when Henry VII died. And while initially Spain, Portugal and Scotland supported Henry VIII and his Queen, Catherine of Aragon, there was an extreme backlash when, in a heated argument, James IV mysteriously died, leaving his wife Maria of Aragon a widow with the three Scottish Princes. Then poor Catherine of Aragon went and died on Henry VIII. He lost all support by then. Not that he stopped trying to regain his throne. He married a Scottish noblewoman, Janet Douglas, in an attempt save the alliance but it was all for nought. By 1520 he was captured and after the disaster that was the Winter Rebellion, led by Margaret and Mary Tudor, the three remaining children of Henry VII by Elizabeth of York were executed for treason.”

“That seems fairly harsh.”

“Well, it really was an attempt to right the wrongs done during Henry VII’s reign. Because of the threat that came from Cecily and Anne, there was a mass of executions of prominent York families, including Edward and Margaret Plantagenet. This wasn’t just an argument, it was a true war. The fact that only the immediate leaders of the rebellion were executed shows more restraint than what was practiced during the reign of Henry VII.”

“On that subject, do you think that, if Henry VII had lived for any longer, Anne Plantagenet would have been as likely to take the country over as she did? Would the marriage of Anne of Burgundy and Edward VI of England have happened? Would Anne Plantagenet have ended up marrying George Boleyn in her later life?”

“Well, that is a question for the ‘what if-ers’ of the world.”
 
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"...the marriage of Philip of Burgundy and Cecily Plantagenet was a success in all ways but one. While they had eight living children upon Philip's unfortunate death in 1522, they were only daughters. Their one son, Charles of Burgundy (b.1507: d. 1520), died after a visit to England left him with the Sweat. This led to an interesting turn of events as at this came after the wedding between Anne of Brittany and Edward of England, which tied the sisters claims together..."
The English Renaissance: From Anne Plantagenet to Richard V by Louise Yovas

I entered my next interview, with the famous Louise Yovas. While many other royal biographers are quite willing to do interviews, Mrs Yovas usually refuses. I enter her small office in the London Museum and begin the interview.

"So, what drew you to the story of Cecily and Anne Plantagenet?"

"I suppose it was the ruthlessness of the two sisters. You can say what you want about their ambition and their charitable acts, they built their kingdom on destroying another family with deadly efficency. It was common that after one regime was cast down, the next would try and kill all their enemies. But what made the Plantagenet sisters so ruthless was that they succeeded. Henry VII had not, because they were still there. But they got every left over Tudor. Margaret Beaufort? The first to be executed. Henry VIII? His head was hacked off by an unexperienced ax-man. Margaret Tudor? She suffered the same fate. Mary Tudor? She had to watch all three be killed before being led up screaming and crying to suffer the same subpar job. It is fascinating in how brutal is was."

"Ok then. What about the marriage between Anne of Burgundy and Edward VI? Why do you think it ended how it did?"

"Because Anne of Burgundy was terrible at everything but having children. With two of the most beautiful and intelligent people in Europe as parents, she managed to be a fat, ugly, stupid girl. She was convinced that she was Queen, not her mother, aunt or husband. And when she tried kidnap her eldest son, she put the final nail in the coffin. The fact that she spent her days at the More in pretty much luxury is surprising in itself. Her own mother was willing to sign the death warrent after her stupid actions."

"Well, how do you view the surprise marriage between Anne Plantagenet and George Boleyn? They seem to have really loved eachother but the age difference was much derided at the time."

"She gave him a son, right? And two daughters. It wasn't as if she was doing anything 'illegal'. She begged her son and ended up gaining approval. Did George Boleyn use her to raise his family? Yes. Did she use him to feel young again? Yes again. It wasn't a bad thing, it was just a funny blip on the historical timeline."
 
Blooody hell this is good. I was trying to work out where you were going with the reference to my TL, but I wasn't expecting anything like this.
 
Blooody hell this is good. I was trying to work out where you were going with the reference to my TL, but I wasn't expecting anything like this.

Thanks :D I was using that same mode of interviewers and such. It isn't a direct reference so much as a similarity in style. :)
 
"...and at their death, England was finally at peace. While there was the odd boarder schirmish, England and Burgundy remained relatively peaceful until Richard V was upended by his sister. The Plantagenet claim was restored and their was no one else to truly take the throne. But what was truly left was two sisters who let their ambition for the throne take over their lives..."

The Tragedy of Monarchy by Ivan Ericson

I met my final historian beneath the 1492 double portrait of Cecily and Anne Plantagenet. Ivan Ericson, author of the wildly successful 'Rose Heart' series and the praised 'The Tragedy of ........' series, sat at the chairs next to the painting, and I began the interview.​


"So, what are your thoughts on the sisters. I know that many see them as grand figures and awe-inspiring leaders, so what do you think?"​

"I think that they're really quite sad."​

"Really?"​

"Yes. They were two little girls who, after the tragic death of both their parents in the span of less then a year, were taken to a foriegn court. From their, all they were taught was how t be an assest to said court and how to take back England. I think that, given the chance, they might have turned out less ruthless than they did."

"But what about their achievements? They were known, post 1530 anyway, as the peacekeepers of their lands. Cecily Plantagenet successfully pushed for more rights to rape victims and beaten wives, Anne Plantagenet worked hard to end corruption in the English legal system. You can't say that they were all bad."​

"But that doesn't change the fact that they both spent ten years between truly winning England and becoming good monarchs facing an identity crisis. They were broken women and no amount of titles and success could change that."​

"Ok then. Do you have any last thoughts as to their children's reigns?"​

"Yes. Edward VI was a cruel man who understood that you had to get stuff done 'now' or it won't get done at all. His son Richard, however, was incredibly stupid and it is a wonder he reigned for as long as he did."​

"Thank you for your time."​
 
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This is a cool idea for a TL. Everyone seems to think that because Richard and Anne had only one kid, that they weren't able to have more - disregarding the fact that they spent most of their marriage at Middleham Castle, which was far enough distant from London for Anne to be pregnant and miscarry before anyone of note found out about it. And an earlier, non-Tudor Queen of England is always interesting.
 
Fascinating though I'm not quite clear on some of the details, have Burgundy and England entered a Personal Union?
 
So we have a Tudors combined thrones of Burgundy and England, are they still there come the Reformation?

Yes, actually, the reformation is what ended up splitting Burgundy and England. Burgundy ended up converting earlier than England, which led to Richard V's elder sister Mary taking over Burgundy as the Protestant ruler. Her husband, John IV of Navarre, acted as an ambassador for France and Scotland, as his parents had ties to both royal families. Richard V ended up dying after twenty years of war and died with a bankrupt country. His only heir was his grandson Robert of Scotland, who took over England as Robert Stuart I of England.
 
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