WHEN King Edward IV died in April 1483, his brother Richard of Gloucester was named Lord Protector of Edward’s son, the 12-year-old Edward V.
But before Edward could be crowned, Richard arranged for his parents’ marriage to be declared invalid, making the Princes illegitimate and ineligible for the throne, which Richard claimed for himself.
On July 6, 1483, Richard was crowned Richard III. The young Princes, placed in the Tower of London, were not seen in public after August, and accusations soon circulated that they had been murdered on his orders. The fate of “The Princes in the Tower” has fascinated people ever since.