Learn about Richard III with our Timeline of events, Medieval & Renaissance texts, sources about the Richard III Controversy, Ricardian Register & other links to learning resources.
Learn the real facts about the man behind the myths.
A brief history of the people and events leading to the reign of Richard III, including the origins of the strife between York & Lancaster, and battles of the Wars of the Roses.
PRIMARY SOURCE MATERIALS – Written during or shortly after the lifetime of Richard III
Anonymous, Croyland Chronicle. Important primary source for the study of the Wars of the Roses and especially the reigns of Henry VI, Edward IV, and Richard III. Material concerning the Wars of The Roses begins on approx. pg.418; reign of Richard III on approx. pg.482. (Archive.org courtesy of Univ. of California Libraries)
Anonymous, History of the Arrival of Edward IV in England and the Final Recovery of His Kingdoms from Henry VI. Anonymous contemporary chronicle, from the 1838 Camden Society edition. Take a break from all that Tudor propaganda and see Yorkist propaganda in one of its earlier manifestations. (Archive.org courtesy of Univ. of California Libraries)
Cely Family, Selections From the Correspondence and Memoranda of the Cely Family, Merchants of the Staple, AD 1475-1488. Henry Elliot Malden, ed. 1900 edition. The Cely Papers cover 1475-1488, and are a marvelous mirror into the lives and lifestyle of a very wealthy family of English wool merchants, members of the Staple of Calais and owners of business and residential property in London as well as some estates in Essex. They traveled regularly between England and the Continent on business and carry on a fascinating correspondence. (Archive.org courtesy of Univ. of Toronto)
Philippe de Commynes, Memoirs v2 Commynes was a diplomat in the courts of Burgundy & France and a direct observer of some of the personalities of our period. 1855 edition published by Henry G. Bohn, Andrew Scoble, ed. (HaithiTrust.org courtesy of Univ. Virginia)
Philippe de Commynes, Memoirs. Translation & Introduction by Michael Jones, 1972. Professor Jones’ edition quickly became the standard translation of Commynes upon its publication. He generously permitted the Society to place it online.
Edwards, Rhoda. The Itinerary of King Richard III 1483-85. Richard III’s movements around his kingdom, illustrated with maps. (Richard III Society UK)
Ellis, Sir Henry, ed. The Chronicles of the White Rose of York. Published in 1845, this “series of historical fragments, proclamations, letters, and other contemporary documents relating to the reign of King Edward IV” is a key primary source. (Archive.org courtesy of Harvard)
Robert Fabyan, The New Chronicles of England and France. Fabyan served as sheriff of London in 1493-1494 and as an alderman until he resigned in 1502. Material concerning the Wars of the Roses begins on approx. pg 630. The death of Edward IV and accession of Richard III begins on approx. pg. 668, linked directly above. (Archive.org courtesy of Cornell Univ.)
Nicolas Harris Nicolas, Privy purse expenses of Elizabeth of York : wardrobe accounts of Edward the Fourth. This book, compiled in 1830, contains detailed expenditures from reign of Edward IV, and the expenses of Elizabeth of York’s household after her marriage to Henry VII. The Edward IV section begins on pg.110. (Archive.org courtesy of Univ. of Toronto)
Horrox, Rosemary, ed., Register of Grants for the Reigns of Edward V and Richard III British Library Harleian MS.433. These excerpts from Richard III’s signet office are a critical primary source for anyone researching King Richard. (Richard III Society UK)
Titulus Regius. Statute of the Parliament of England, issued in 1483, by which the title of King of England was given to Richard III. The Titulus Regius was eventually repealed and all surviving copies ordered to, “be cancelled and brent [‘burned’], and be put in perpetual oblivion” by Henry VII. (Wikisource.org) There is an excellent companion essay explaining the Titulus Regius on the Richard III Society of Canada’s website.
Warkworth, John. A Chronicle of the First Thirteen Years of the Reign of King Edward IV. Printed for the Camden Society, 1839. John Warkworth was Master of Peterhouse College, Cambridge, from 1473–1500, and although the “Chronicle” was originally ascribed to him, more recent scholarship suggests that it may have been written by another person connected to Peterhouse. (Google Books)
TUDOR ERA MATERIALS – Written during the reigns of Tudor monarchs, these sources are often biased against Richard III.
Anonymous. The Battle of Bosworth Field. Long (163-stanza) sixteenth-century poem, thought to be written by an eye-witness to the battle, with exhaustive list of Richard III’s supporters.
Holinshed, Raphael. Holinshed’s Chronicles – England, Scotland, and Ireland Holinshed’s Chronicles (first printed in 1587) was one of the primary reference sources used by William Shakespeare when composing his history plays, including Richard III. (Project Gutenberg)
More, Thomas. The History of King Richard the Third Thomas More’s widely-influential work contains numerous factual errors and may have been influenced by Cardinal John Morton, a known enemy of the Yorkists. (Center for Thomas More Studies)
Virgil, Polydore. Anglia Historia, Book XXV. History of the deposition of Edward V and the reign of Richard III by humanist historian Polydore Vergil at the request of Henry VII. One of the classic traditionalist sources.
