Part III: The Battle of Bosworth Field

Richard III


Here I lay, torn from my horse

With a lance through my heart

I, Richard Three, recall with great force

The tale of my life, at least a small part.

The year be 1483, and my brother had died [1]

His son and his wife, both left, only cried

And I received the boy, Edward V, he was mine1

And if I play my cards right, the throne shall be mine

Now, I had done it, before mere Duke of Gloucester, now King of England1

I was in exactly the position I had wanted, every person in the city would wish to shake my hand

But, no, what be this, a man called Henry has come[2]

Tudor is the end, I can see it, he will ruin my plan, ho hum.

Filthy Yorkists such as he

Tend to hate folks such as me

But I had prepared for spies to tell me what it was he was up to

And tell me they did of an invasion1, this was not new.

I fled to a place known as Nottingham, so I could have the advantage

Lord Stanley acted strangely, a traitor!2

Tudor arrived to meet me at last, no one had made a try to stop him

Recruits were shy on both our ends, prospects of victory looked quite dim

22 August, ’85 my army and his were not even, I outnumbered the likes of Henry1

The battle began, and I knew I could do this, once I won I would feel so free

I had a secret, I had Stanley’s son captive2

So that the Stanley’s would not attack, I would keep him alive

Throughout the course of the battle, starting with archers and cannons, but I had my own surprise[3]

I rushed downhill towards Henry Tudor, I saw the fear in his eyes rise.

But in the blink of an eye, things turned for the worst, and I was surrounded, my final breath taken.

The last words I heard were shouts of the word “Treason”3, as I died, my kingdom was shaken.

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[1] "The Battle of Bosworth." The Wars of the Roses. Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://www.wars-of-the-roses.com/content/battles/bosworth_field.htm>.

[2] "Richard III Society- Ballad of Bosworth, Text." Richard III Society - American Branch. Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://www.r3.org/bosworth/ballad2.html>.

[3] May, By. "Richard III - Bosworth." Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://www.richard111.com/bosworth1.htm>.
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Henry Tudor

Henry VII, he is I, or if you prefer

The Great Henry Tudor

Here is how I came to take

The England throne from control of a fake.

My claim to the throne was ambitious, yes

But that does not matter, I needed to fix this mess

Richard III had not been honest or nice

He killed because he had been enticed.

I am of Welsh origin, I will admit[1]

But I was destined for greatness, even a bit

My mother helped in no small part, she claimed I was better than Richard Three1

And I saw what she saw, and I knew it to be.

Christmas Day, at Rennes Cathedral, I had vowed to take the hand in wed[2]

Of Edward IV’s eldest daughter, Elizabeth of York, the heir because the princes were dead

I now have comrades from everywhere, in France they give me troops and supplies1

The number 5,000, my army is that, and we ride into battle to the great battle cries

Bosworth Field, that was the place

That I charged at Richard[3], a deathly race

And then it was over, before it had begun,

The victory, the crown, I had won!

One year later, I kept my promise, to marry Elizabeth of York[4]

To unite the house of mine and hers, it will be great if unity works

The Tudor Rose! Lancaster and York, at last together finally as one

I claim this House shall never perish, the reign will never be undone

But now, I have to take leave of the crown,

I know my heir, my son, will not let me down4

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[1] 1483, By. "Henry VII of England." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_VII_of_England>.

[2] "About Henry VII TUDOR (King of England)." Tudor Place. Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/aboutHenryVII.htm>.

[3] "Battle of Bosworth Field." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Bosworth_Field>.

[4] "Henry VII." The Wars of the Roses. Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://www.wars-of-the-roses.com/content/importantpeople/henry_vii.htm>.