Richard III

by David Baldwin

Not many people would claim to be saints, or alternatively, consider themselves entirely without redeeming qualities. Some are unquestionably worse than others, but few have been held in greater infamy than Richard Plantagenet, afterwards Duke of Gloucester and, later still, King Richard III. Richard’s character has been besmirched as often as it has been defended, and the arguments between his detractors and supporters still rage after several centuries. Was he a ruthless hunchback who butchered his way to the throne, a paragon of virtue who became a victim of Tudor propaganda, or (as seems more likely) something in between?

Some would argue that a true biography is impossible because the letters and other personal documents required for this purpose are simply not available, but David Baldwin has overcome this through an in-depth study of Richard’s dealings with his contemporaries and of information gleaned from the recent discovery of his skeleton. This comprehensive biography tracks Richard's journey from birth to death, and this new edition is brought right up to date with an account of the king's reburial in Leicester Cathedral. The fundamental question Baldwin has answered is ‘what was Richard III really like’.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Medieval, Biography Memoir, 15th Century, Medieval History

288 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2012

About the author

David Baldwin was a historian that specialised in late medieval history, particularly the Wars of the Roses, and was a lecturer at both the University of Leicester and the University of Nottingham. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 2012.

Reviews

[Pam Baddeley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I applaud the attempt at a non partisan biography of this controversial King. Unfortunately it comes across as skimpy in places while going into aspects that don't seem relevant such as the bishops in post during Richard's reign. I wasn't sure also when the author dismissed the possibility of Edward IV's illegitimacy whether he had taken into account the discovery of documentation in France which supported that story and was the subject of a TV documentary on Channel 4 some years ago. Disappointing overall, and I can't rate it higher than 3 stars.

[Margaret]

Did not finish.

The author was trying so hard to be unbiased, that he ended up sitting on the fence so hard that it's a wonder he didn't impale himself.

[Joseph R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

King Richard III (1452-1485) is one of the most controversial kings of England. He was the last of the Plantagenet line and was replaced by Henry Tudor, who became King Henry VII. Richard came to the throne through a mixture of circumstances and deliberate acts. His decision to take the crown may not have been the act of unbridled ambition it is often portrayed as. He lived a hard and unstable life, seeing many relatives die and many reversals of fortune as the Lancastrian Plantagenets fought with the Yorkist Plantagenets over the throne(i.e. the War of the Roses). His nephews (who were legitimate candidates for the throne) were taken into the Tower of London (which was both the royal castle and a prison), never to be heard from again. People assume he killed them or had them killed though there is no direct evidence. His efficiency at governing was at times ruthless and at other times completely just. He put in motion many reforms and established a courier system that eventually developed into the Royal Mail. His life is a lot more complicated than either Shakespeare or Thomas More make it out (though their writings have colored popular opinion).

David Baldwin's biography of Richard makes the effort to be objective, looking at the historical records and evidence. Baldwin does not want to paint Richard as a villain or as a saint, but to see him for he was. The story is complicated not only by the lack of records and the Tudor propaganda but also by the many overlapping names (the book starts with a list of 23 people who have similar names, including three Georges, three Margarets, and four other Richards besides Richard III!). These various challenges are well met in this book, which is readable and convincing. An extra chapter was added where Baldwin describes the discovery of Richard's remains in the Leicester car park.

The even-handed approach and clear writing make this an excellent look at the life of Richard III. I see the author has also written Robin Hood: The English Outlaw Unmasked. Based on the excellence of this biography, I am going to hunt down his Robin Hood book.

[Nicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a reasonable biography of Richard III, attempting to be reasonably even handed. It's maybe less interesting because it doesn't fling itself into the fray for one side of the other, but more satisfying for me because it deals with both sides -- I haven't picked a side, doubt I ever will. He deals fairly well with his sources, though there's some repetition which drove me crackers.

Re: the even handedness, the more I think about it, the more I realise Baldwin refused to commit to anything beyond "people are complicated", presenting only the facts -- or the facts that he considered relevant, anyway. I do prefer a bit of an argument, even if only in a conclusion to wrap things up.

[Kelly Grice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book a bit tedious. There's that many names (including lords, dukes, earls, bishops, and uncle Tom Cobbley) it was difficult to understand quite what was going on. one things for sure, Edward IV killed his brother George, as he saw him as a threat to his son ascending the throne as Edward V, only to find after his death, that his younger brother Richard of Gloucester did it anyway.
The rightful heir was Edward V aged twelve, who infamously disappeared into the tower alongside his younger brother never to be seen again. Meanwhile it's 1483 and Richards the king but there's another Henry waiting in France to be called. He eventually comes along with backing of disillusioned dukes etc and defeats Richard in 1485. A reign of two years.
As Dan Snow and David Mitchell said, The war of the roses was a convoluted mess that nobody can completely comprehend. I second that.

[Éowyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Baldwin has written extensively about this period, so I had high expectations of his latest offering. The illustrations in this volume are great and the portrait of Richard is one which I don't believe I've seen before. The author also makes some sensible comments. So far so good, but I do feel that it doesn't go quite far enough. It's not a long book and a very easy read, but Baldwin seems a bit too keen to been seen as objective to commit himself as having too much of an opinion either way. Most of what is presented is done in a factual way and without a lot of analysis, I felt. Most of the evidence I felt was on the positive side, or at least not damning.

Beyond saying he thinks it unlikely that Richard has his nephews murdered (even his detractors agree that he was not stupid), he doesn't really go into this a lot, or examine Elizabeth Woodville's reasons for letting her daughters out of sanctuary or her later reaction to the Simnel rebellion. I know he has written separate volumes on both Elizabeth Woodville and Richard of York, the younger of her sons, but the issue is almost completely sidestepped here which is interesting, as this is really the question lying at the heart of The Great Debate.

So, my overall opinion was this this was very readable, fantastically illustrated and good, as far as it went. It would make a good introduction to the subject. Personally, I would have liked it to have gone a bit further. I couldn't help but compare it to Paul Murray Kendall's book. It's some time since I read it, but I was left with an enormous feel for the period and a sense of colour and life and I didn't quite get that from Baldwin.

[Elena · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's like this book is divided in two halves, each one written by a different author. I liked very much the first part, which was studied in depth, well reasearched and, despite some minor flaws, painted a good picture of the real Richard. The second part though is too unbalanced: subjects that would deserve much more study were discussed in few lines (e.g. the Woodvilles attemped seizure of power after Edward IV's death, Richard's relationship with his wife Anne and his mother Cecily), while others much less important were covered in depth (e.g. the part about the bishops, the coronation, sources like Thomas More taken into account and fully explored about Richard appereance). Besides, in the second part, Baldwin often relies on later propaganda (see the Elizabeth of York "affair"), and trying to stay in the middle of the debate often fails to make clear what his position actually is (it was difficult to understant if he thinks Richard wanted o didn't want to marry his niece). The last two chapters were nice though, and lifted the book with a fair ending, though one last thing really bothered me: the author just cites the University of Leicester concerning Richard's finding, while failing to name the true body behind the dig, the much praised Looking for Richard Project. Seriously he completely avoided to mention them.

[Alexander Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative, balanced and easy to read. Though not as in depth as I'd have liked and the conclusion was a bit wishy washy. A very good insight into the life of Richard III overall.

[L'aura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure about my three stars, but I think two would be too few since I can't say Baldwin wasn't committed to the cause.
I read that this was a balanced biography of king Richard and that was what convinced me to buy it: I didn't want someone who picked a side, maybe dismissing part of the evidence as biased on non relevant--I wanted facts.
Well, it's not true that Baldwin is completely neutral on the matter (he does take position more than once, as he actually should), but he still succeeds at being even-handed and reliable. Despite all this, though, the book still failed to impress me and it took me a while to finish reading it.
Thing is, I'm accostumed to biographies that are heavy on sources and details, and make guesses here and there. I'm starting to think that's something female biographers do more than their male colleagues, though. Baldwin claims that he framed Richard in his times, and it's true... I just think he didn't frame him quite enough.

[Julia Mclaren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read many biographies about Richard III and most choose evidence to support the traditional Tudor depiction of Richard, or to support the revisionist 'he can do no wrong' viewpoint. This biography is refreshing in its clear focus on Richard's life alone, without the hindrance of the author's own views so readers are allowed to form their own opinions. For anyone new to the topic this is a good introduction as the writing is clear and concise, avoiding verbose detail about areas that might interest the author but which become tedious to the reader. As with much historical writing there is conjecture, but this is kept to the minimum, and where evidence can be open to interpretation, the author clearly says so.

[Paniaa]

A very balanced account of what we know of Richard III drawn from many sources. He emerges as a member of royalty, a man of his time, but in some ways far-seeing. For instance, he promoted the idea of innocent until proven guilty and also setting up bail for the accused. As a ruler threatened on many sides he could be ruthless, but no more so than most other rulers previous and to follow. Surviving evidence would suggest a spiritual person.
A very interesting read

[Hannah Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, a balanced and sensible biography of Richard III?

[Don LaFountaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having never have read a book about Richard III, I found this book to be an interesting synopsis of the King's life. I found that I liked the book and the history of that medieval era.

The book is about the life of King Richard III, who was King of England from 1483 - 1485, for a total of 26 months. The book describes some of his childhood, including that at a young age his father and older brother were killed and Richard and another brother George had to go into exile. A few years later, he was able to come out of exile and his brother Edward became King. Though he was not always good with money, and seemed to have a penchant for stretching the law when it suited him, during his brother's reign Richard seemed to be a supportive and loyal servant to the King.

Then King Edward died. His son was in line to succeed him, but was a little young, and so Richard was to be his proctor until he was ready. That, however, did not happen. Richard, whether by short-term or long-term design, declared that King Edward's children were not the correct line of succession because King Edward was a bastard child, and therefore should never have been King. King Edward's boys were locked in the tower, and no one knows what really happened to them, though rumors circulated then and now that he had them murdered to prevent them from trying to take the thrown back. Rebellion started soon after his reign began, and though there were some laws that he passed, he was more focused on Henry Tudor. Henry and his followers who did not support King Richard fled to France and were on coming back to England to make Henry the King. This succeeded when the two armies fought at the battle of Bosworth. Richard had the superior numbers, but the men were not an entirely trained and disciplined army faced Henry's smaller but trained and disciplined army. Then during the battle, Lord Stanly put his forces with Henry Tudor's and Richard's fate was sealed. He was killed on the battlefield, and Henry became King.

Having never read another book about Richard III, I am unable to compare what other authors have said about this man. According to the author of this book, others come to the subject with an agenda: either to show King Richard as a wholly evil person who murdered and pillaged to get what he wanted, or a misunderstood man who felt that he was doing what was best for England. I think that the truth probably lies between the two, and that this book does a good job of "threading the needle" to offer a balanced viewpoint. The man was neither entirely good or entirely evil. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys English and medieval history, and anyone who like myself have never read a book on this subject before. It seems to be a good starting point for reading about the subject of King Richard III.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary:
David Baldwin quickly states in the first sentence of his introduction, that previous books about Richard III have either painted him as "very good or very bad". Baldwin's aim in his book, was to portray Richard III as accurately as possible---to have Richard III come to life through its pages, showing a dimensional personality. Baldwin wants to put to rest myths about Richard III, and instead show what in fact we do know about him.
Richard III was the youngest child in a large family. A brother Edmund, and their father died when Richard was age 8. His early life was marked by death and grief. His mother sent him and brother George away to be hidden. Then, the family's life dramatically changed, when the eldest brother became Edward IV. George and Richard gained titles, prestige, and a hope for future security and establishment.
At this point, no one envisioned that Richard would one day become king.

My Thoughts:

This is the first biography of Richard III that has the results of DNA testing done recently, as well as the history of finding his grave, and the archeology work involved in it. I'm sure there will be other books to follow.
David Baldwin is a medieval historian and is knowledgeable about Richard III.
I appreciated David Baldwin's goal in focusing on the facts, and not build on any myths surrounding Richard III. This was my main aim in reading Baldwin's book, I wanted history, not fantasy.
Baldwin began at the beginning of what is known about Richard III early life, as well as his siblings, and parents. Baldwin did not just begin at The War of the Roses key battle.
There are 81 photographs in the book, 57 are in color!
Geography and culture is described during this time period of 1400's.
The story of the 2 nephews of Richard III who were placed in the tower for "safe keeping" by Richard III is examined.
A list of books Richard III owned (of course only another bibliophile would love this information).
Richard III accomplishments listed.
Richard III had key people he could rely on, as well as those he mistrusted. Baldwin factors in these people, as well as how the kingdom felt when Richard III seized the throne.

I enjoyed reading this book! The added material about the newest findings on Richard III added sparkle to it.

Thank you to Amberley for my free review copy!

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Both principled and unprincipled, a flawed diamond. He has attracted sympathy partly because later generations have been unkind to him and because the English always feel sorry for a loser; but another reason is that somewhere in his complex and ultimately unfathomable character we may all recognise something of ourselves."

Baldwin approaches a life of Richard III in as much of a non-biased way as possible. He tries hard to present both sides of the narrative, and so the overall presentation of Richard is probably the fairest I've read so far. He is, as Baldwin says, a 'flawed diamond'. He appreciates that Richard was generous and benevolent, overall a good king but also he could be rash and sometimes harsh (e.g Hastings).
The chapter on the Princes included as many theories as possible, never underestimating the fact that we still don't know what happened. Too many books on Richard or the Princes take the author's own theory as established fact, more of a 'this definitely happened' rather than a 'this could'. Baldwin sticks to the facts and nothing else, and when dealing with something so steeped in mystery and shrouded in speculation, his approach is surely the best method.

This is an incredibly well-researched, easily readable, immersive account of Richard's life that doesn't necessarily require extensive background knowledge on either the period or Richard himself. After reading several pro-Ricardian and a few anti-Ricardian works, I would wager that this would be the best thing to read as an introduction to Richard III - as unbiased as you could expect, fair and well written. Baldwin never tries to establish whether Richard III was a good guy or a heinous villain - he set out attempting to prove naught else but Richard's humanity, something he doubtless achieved.

[Sabina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will not please everyone, but, as with all things Richard, that is only to be expected. This biography focuses mainly on Richard's dealings with those around him in an effort to discover what sort of person he was, what his motivations were and how he saw himself. When I bought this last year, one sentence from the cover description attracted me: "Not many people would claim to be saints, or alternatively, consider themselves entirely without redeeming qualities." My sentiments exactly.

It is a very readable, fairly short book, put together from a great number of sources and I particularly liked the many photos and drawings that complemented and illustrated the story of Richard's life, as well as copious amounts of notes and an extensive bibliography.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It presented the facts of Richard's life in a concise and easy-to-read manner, without trying to feed the good vs evil argument that has raged for centuries, rather describing him as 'a flawed diamond'. My only comment is that I would have liked a little more flesh to help me form a more well rounded picture of Richard- even if they were added as footnotes. I felt there wasn't enough analysis due to the author wanting to be objective, but I think this let the book down a bit. I also felt it skimmed over the Battle of Bosworth so quickly it failed to make the impact it deserved.

However a good introduction to the life of King Richard iii, and one I'm glad I've read.

[Liz Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read. Baldwin points out that history is written by the victors; the Tudors in this case. I read this right after reading about the discovery of King Richard's grave was found. While he had scoliosis, he was not a hunchback, as Shakespeare stated. The deaths of the 2 princes could have happened the same way Thomas Becket was killed. Loyal or ambitious men doing what they thought Richard wanted or needed. We'll probably never know the truth.

[J. Allen Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike other readers I was eager for a work on Richard that only presented the facts and not add bias one way or the other, but I will admit that I still finished this book wanting more. Since everything published before 2012 is outdated, this is a good place to start for any studies on Richard or this time period since we now know a lot more about him from the discovery of his remains. A worthy book to start one's reading on the era.

[John Eliot · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book about a King whom everyone thinks they know about. Baldwin does more than an introduction to the subject, but I do think there's even more to learn. For those wanting to know more, well worth reading. Richard III was buried in the playground of my school, so I must have walked over his grave many many times.

[Stephanie Diaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting subject but a tiny bit dry; history from this period is always difficult because every male seems to be named Richard, Henry, or Edward.

[Carolina Casas · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a King who has been maligned and then deified, it is surprising to find that there aren't that many factual biographies of him. What I mean by "factual" is that most self-styled revisionist non-fiction books on Richard III are actually opinion pieces. Few dare to do what they promise: Push away the veil of sensationalism and Tudor propaganda to give us an approximation of the truth.
When it comes to history, it tends to be the most frustrating - and deceiving - of social sciences, because it isn't exact. Even when there are undisputable facts, you will always have people, even historians, alleging that since no one was there, we can't take them at face value. This is a dangerous line of thinking which has made many people go to the other extreme and dismiss history altogether, seeing it as something that's a complete waste of time.

The truth is always found somewhere in the middle. This "middle path" is something that is approached by David Baldwin in his biography of England's last Plantagenet King. What differentiates this biography from others is that Baldwin doesn't hide his bias. Which makes this work more remarkable because he is able to move past that bias to provide us with the details that are undisputed and known about this monarch and from there, piece together what comes close to resembling a full picture of what truly happened.
As a result, he doesn't hold back from casting criticism, in an appropriate context, on Richard III and his supporters.
The end result is the portrait of a man who was devoted to the ideals of chivalry, religiously devout, and mindful of the social strata that governed his world. As a child, the future seemed bleak but by a stroke of luck (or as Richard and his family would have seen as divine providence), the Yorks sat on the throne. Against all plots, foreign and from within, Richard's eldest brother and first Yorkist king, remained seated on the throne. Through it all, despite his disapproval of Edward's in-laws, Richard remained committed to serving his brother because he believed it was his duty. However, things changed after Edward unexpectedly died on April 1483.
It is said that one's flaws are to one's detriment. In Richard's case, it was the opposite. Just as they made him strong, his attributes were also to his own detriment. Believing there was an order to everything and that only those of good birth (like him) were best suited to decide the fate of the nation, he effectively usurped his nephew, disinherited him and his other siblings by declaring Edward IV's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville invalid. On top of that, he also repeated past offense committed by his late brother George (whose arrogance led to his execution during the reign of their older brother, Edward IV), by casting doubt on Edward IV's parentage.
Then there is the mystery of the princes in the tower. Baldwin doesn't intend to solve this mystery, but opens the door to new possibilities while not completely dismissing Richard as the culprit. If that likely scenario is true, it demonstrates that brutality and religiosity often co-existed, and that a man as moral and dutiful like Richard could be capable of such things in the name of these same virtues he'd been acclaimed for.

Overall, David Baldwin offered a good expose of Richard III. Which was also a good respite from the constant badgering of both extremes who insist on either smearing or adopting the posthumous twisted version popularized by Tudor and Stuart playwright, William Shakespeare, and his defenders who swing the pendulum so far to the other side that he becomes almost too perfect.

[Mr Michael R Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it enjoyable, the author has strived to be neutral and succeeded. Lots of detail leading up to Bosworth and then all of a sudden you are finished.
But then if you are trying to write an unbiased account and there are no details of a particular event you cannot imagine or invent them.
An absorbing account.

[April Nicholas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this because my dad bought it for my son and I. Its not something I'd have chosen for myself and not something I'm too keenly interested in, but I finish booking feeling like I certainly know more about Richard III than I did when I started reading.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

He doesn't really give a really balances portrait. Very dry also.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Helen Birkbeck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written attempt to put flesh on Richard's newly discovered bones, but it is so hard really to know why he did what he did, and I was left feeling unsatisfied despite the author's best efforts.

[Rick Pantaleoni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good short history (228p) of R3- for those, like me, who find him interesting, but don't want a comprehensive tome.

[Sally O'wheel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very dense. Lots of verified facts but hard for me to keep up with the characters and their positions. So and so, Earl of such and such, then referred to as 'the Earl'. etc.

[Keeper of the Privy Seal · Rating 2 out of 5]

A highly underrated element, that sets a good book apart from a lesser one, is when the setting and surroundings are vividly described so that you can get a better feel & understanding for the world that the characters were living in. The Medieval world is so far removed from our own; we need to try see this world through the eyes of people around at the time. Likewise, the motivations and culture differences mean that the times shouldn’t be judged by modern standards…but I digress.

This book makes no effort, at all, to set the tone. If this was the first book a novice was to read on the maligned king they would come away being very confused as a lot of the information is framed as though you *should* already know these things. A lot of academic books have that problem, but that’s their niche—this isn’t even a serious academic piece—it’s just a bit, for lack of a better word, snobby.

As mentioned by several others Baldwin sits painfully on the fence about a lot of things, without really providing arguments either side. He’s also really bad at spoiling events early on in the book, again assuming that you should already know the story. The writing style was a bit dry but the story was fairly straightforward to follow, if a little basic at times. I’m personally not tremendously critical about books I don’t like, but this one really did rub me up the wrong way. I wouldn’t personally recommend it at all.