Richard III is a biography of said King of England

Richard III of England

Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...

 by American historian Paul Murray Kendall

Paul Murray Kendall

Paul Murray Kendall was an American academic and historian. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Frankford High School in 1928. In 1932 he received an Bachelor of Arts from the University of Virginia. He received an Master's degree in 1933, also from U of V...

. The book, published in 1955, has remained the standard popular work on the controversial monarch.

Contents

The book is divided into two major parts, with a prologue, an epilogue and two appendices.

• The prologue describes the situation before Richard's birth, leading up to the Wars of the Roses
  Wars of the Roses
  The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York...
  
  .
• The first major part deals with Richard's early life as son of Richard, Duke of York and brother to Edward IV
  Edward IV of England
  Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
  
  . It deals covers Richard's youth and his life as Duke of Gloucester
  Duke of Gloucester
  Duke of Gloucester is a British royal title , often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England, the next in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; this current creation carries with it the...
  
   (13 chapters) as well as his role as "Lord of the North" (6 chapters).
• The second part covers Richard's life after the death of Edward IV in 1483, first as Lord Protector (8 chapters), then as King (12 chapters).
• The epilogue describes the situation after Richard's death at Bosworth, especially the farings of his associates under Henry VII
  Henry VII of England
  Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
  
  .
• Appendix I deals with the question of the Princes in the Tower
  Princes in the Tower
  The Princes in the Tower is a term which refers to Edward V of England and Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York. The two brothers were the only sons of Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville alive at the time of their father's death...
  
  , weighing the evidence about their fate. He criticizes traditionalists for ignoring the "disablities inherent in the 'evidence'" and revisionists for having "put forward a melange of wishful thinking and speculation". Examining the evidence and commenting on several indications of Richard's innocence, he concludes:

  "The most powerful indictment of Richard is the plain and massive fact that the princes disappeared from view after he assumed the throne, and were never reported to have been seen alive. This fact ... weighs heavily against the indications of his innocence.
  ... only positive evidence that someone murdered the princes will tell against this indictment."

  Considering alternative culprits, Kendall discounts claims that Richard's successor Henry VII
  Henry VII of England
  Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
  
   could have killed the princes after 1485, but makes a case for Richard's temporary ally, the Duke of Buckingham
  Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
  Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, KG played a major role in Richard III of England's rise and fall. He is also one of the primary suspects in the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower...
  
  , who could have killed the princes with or without Richard's knowledge and consent.
• Appendix II deals with Richard's posthumous reputation.

Critical reception

The work was critically very well received and was a runner-up for the National Book Award

National Book Award

The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...

 in 1956, also picked one of the best books of the year by the American Library Association.

In the Chicago Tribune

Chicago Tribune

The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...

, A. L. Rowse

A. L. Rowse

Alfred Leslie Rowse, CH, FBA , known professionally as A. L. Rowse and to friends and family as Leslie, was a British historian from Cornwall. He is perhaps best known for his work on Elizabethan England and his poetry about Cornwall. He was also a Shakespearean scholar and biographer...

 called it "The best biography of Richard III that has been written.", whereas Saturday Review's Geoffrey Bruun opined: "A definitive biography of Richard III. It is a noteworthy performance." The Times Literary Supplement wrote: "Brilliantly successful... combines sound scholarship with literary distinction... his descriptions... are always stimulating and sometimes beautiful."

Historian Desmond Seward and popular historical biographer Alison Weir

Alison Weir (historian)

Alison Weir is a British writer of history books, and latterly historical novels, mostly in the form of biographies about British royalty.-Personal life:...

, both extremely hostile to Richard, called the book "a discredited work", superseeded by Charles Ross

Charles Ross (historian)

Charles Derek Ross was an English historian of the Late Middle Ages, specialising on the Wars of the Roses. He was Professor of Medieval History at the University of Bristol until his death in 1986, when he was killed by an intruder in his own home.His best known works are his biographies of...

's 1981 biography.

Charles Ross

Charles Ross (historian)

Charles Derek Ross was an English historian of the Late Middle Ages, specialising on the Wars of the Roses. He was Professor of Medieval History at the University of Bristol until his death in 1986, when he was killed by an intruder in his own home.His best known works are his biographies of...

himself both praised and criticised Kendall's work, stating: "Although the author admits that at times he goes beyond the facts and 'reconstructs'..., and in spite of an empurpled prose style which tends to enhance his partisanship, the book is soundly based on a wide range of primary sources, for which it shows a proper respect."

Release details

• Kendall, Paul Murray, Richard III, 1955, London, Allen & Unwin, 514 p., bibliography, maps, genealogy table, ISBN 0-04-942048-8 ISBN 0-04-923035-2 (pbk)
• Kendall, Paul Murray, Richard The Third, 1956, New York, W.W. Norton & Company, 602 pp., bibliography, genealogy, 16 monochrome illustrations, 5 maps, paperback ISBN 0-393-00785-5
• Kendall, Paul Murray, Richard The Third, 1956, New York, W. W. Norton & Company, 602 pages, special printing 1996 Book of the Month Club edition, bibliography, genealogy table, maps, illustrations. (hardback).
• Kendall, Paul Murray, Richard III, 2002, W.W. Norton & Co Ltd, 608 pages, paperback ISBN 0-393-00785-5

Source

• The Richard III Society article, originally published in the Fall, 1995 Ricardian Register