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Richard: The Young King To Be
A major new biography of the young Richard III. Richard III is a paradox - the most hated of English kings, yet the most beloved, a deeply pious man, yet materialistic to the point of obsession, puritan, yet the father of at least two illegitimate children. This new biography concentrates on the much neglected early part of Richard's life - from his birth in 1452 as a cadet of the House of York to his marriage to the beautiful Anne Neville - and shows how his experiences as the son of an ambitious duke, a prisoner of war, an exile, his knightly training and awe of his elder brother, King Edward IV, shaped the character of England's most controversial monarch.returncharacterreturncharacterFrom the insignificant younger brother of a would-be king to Knight of the Garter, duke, respected soldier and loyal supporter to Edward IV, Richard faced extreme danger and heady triumph, poverty and abundance, neglect and acclamation as the House of York rose to the heights of power and propelled him a glorious career at Court.
360 pages, Hardcover
First published November 15, 2008
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168 people want to read
About the author
Josephine Wilkinson
13 books56 followersDr Josephine Wilkinson received a First Class Honours degree from the University of Newcastle. She was the winner of the Third Year Prize for her work on The Little Apocalypse, which placed Mark chapter 13 into its historical context, and the Jewish Studies Prize for her historical study of the community at Qumran. She remained at Newcastle, earning an MPhil for her thesis on the historical John the Baptist (as close to a biography as is possible to do); her PhD traced historical traditions and legends of John the Baptist across several cultures as well as art, literature and film.
She was a scholar-in-residence at Gladstone's Library in Hawarden (formerly St Deiniol's Library), Britain's only residential library. This was founded in 1898 by the great Victorian statesman, William Gladstone. Great Britain's only Prime Ministerial library, it is based on Gladstone's personal collection. Dr Wilkinson has also held an honorary post at the University of Glasgow.
The recipient of a British Academy award, she is the author of a two volume biography of Richard III, the first volume of which, Richard III, the Young King To Be, has been published by Amberley. She is currently writing volume two. Other books are Mary Boleyn: The True Story of Henry VIII's Favourite Mistress, The Early Loves of Anne Boleyn and The Princes in the Tower. She lives in the attic of a mediaeval house within the city walls of York.
Follow her blog: http://josepha-josephine-wilkinson.bl...
She was a scholar-in-residence at Gladstone's Library in Hawarden (formerly St Deiniol's Library), Britain's only residential library. This was founded in 1898 by the great Victorian statesman, William Gladstone. Great Britain's only Prime Ministerial library, it is based on Gladstone's personal collection. Dr Wilkinson has also held an honorary post at the University of Glasgow.
The recipient of a British Academy award, she is the author of a two volume biography of Richard III, the first volume of which, Richard III, the Young King To Be, has been published by Amberley. She is currently writing volume two. Other books are Mary Boleyn: The True Story of Henry VIII's Favourite Mistress, The Early Loves of Anne Boleyn and The Princes in the Tower. She lives in the attic of a mediaeval house within the city walls of York.
Follow her blog: http://josepha-josephine-wilkinson.bl...
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 28, 2009
There is the skeleton of a good book, maybe even an excellent one buried beneath the adipose tissue of this volume. Alas, it is buried too deeply for the typical reader to be bothered to excavate.
Surely, any editor of minimal competence would have helped Wilkinson organize her material better. This book reads as though the author was so excited by her subject and so pleased with what she had discovered or surmised about him that she simply dumped it all out and chortled over the mess. There are long histories of every place mentioned and lengthy digressions which would have better been placed in extended Notes or Appendices. For example, on the occasion of Richard's being taken into the Knights of the Garter, Wilkinson takes one of the requirements for the honour and uses that as a springboard for a chapter-length discussion of his physical appearance (and some other topics!). She should have placed this information either in an Appendix or in its own chapter - after she rid it of the extraneous comments. This sort of meandering is very annoying to the serious reader.
There are many instances where Wilkinson cites numerous authorities for the same event - like the death of Rutland. These additional sources add little to the information already supplied and would have fit better in a footnote. Repetition does not lend authority.
A good proof-reader would have caught most of the spelling and grammatical errors. Wilkinson has left out pronouns in so many places that the reader is compelled to go back and think hard to supply the lacking ones. She seems to have little patience with grammar and punctuation; sometimes I have found myself wondering if English is her first language. And the spelling! Oh dear, most are merely clumsy but some of the misspellings are hilarious, like "tapir" for "taper". Writers do not generally want their readers helpless with laughter during solemn passages.
(Update) The longer I read this book the more I became convinced that my first impression was incorrect. The editor assigned to this project was not incompetent; the truth is that no editor had come within spitting distance of this work, no editor at all - not even a lowly proof-reader. I am reasonably certain that the published book is in fact a first draft, a manuscript handed by the author to the publisher who then promptly set it into type and ran off a few thousand copies, relying on the kindness of the strangers who would buy the book not to reveal the shameful secret. This is regrettable since there is much of value between these covers. The bad part is that it is well nigh impossible to find anything you may be hunting for. I had looked forward to reading this. Now I am only sorry for the writer who has apparently had her confidence as abused by her publisher as have her readers.
I hope Ms Wilkinson will be more careful when she pens the second part of her biography of Richard. If she does.
Surely, any editor of minimal competence would have helped Wilkinson organize her material better. This book reads as though the author was so excited by her subject and so pleased with what she had discovered or surmised about him that she simply dumped it all out and chortled over the mess. There are long histories of every place mentioned and lengthy digressions which would have better been placed in extended Notes or Appendices. For example, on the occasion of Richard's being taken into the Knights of the Garter, Wilkinson takes one of the requirements for the honour and uses that as a springboard for a chapter-length discussion of his physical appearance (and some other topics!). She should have placed this information either in an Appendix or in its own chapter - after she rid it of the extraneous comments. This sort of meandering is very annoying to the serious reader.
There are many instances where Wilkinson cites numerous authorities for the same event - like the death of Rutland. These additional sources add little to the information already supplied and would have fit better in a footnote. Repetition does not lend authority.
A good proof-reader would have caught most of the spelling and grammatical errors. Wilkinson has left out pronouns in so many places that the reader is compelled to go back and think hard to supply the lacking ones. She seems to have little patience with grammar and punctuation; sometimes I have found myself wondering if English is her first language. And the spelling! Oh dear, most are merely clumsy but some of the misspellings are hilarious, like "tapir" for "taper". Writers do not generally want their readers helpless with laughter during solemn passages.
(Update) The longer I read this book the more I became convinced that my first impression was incorrect. The editor assigned to this project was not incompetent; the truth is that no editor had come within spitting distance of this work, no editor at all - not even a lowly proof-reader. I am reasonably certain that the published book is in fact a first draft, a manuscript handed by the author to the publisher who then promptly set it into type and ran off a few thousand copies, relying on the kindness of the strangers who would buy the book not to reveal the shameful secret. This is regrettable since there is much of value between these covers. The bad part is that it is well nigh impossible to find anything you may be hunting for. I had looked forward to reading this. Now I am only sorry for the writer who has apparently had her confidence as abused by her publisher as have her readers.
I hope Ms Wilkinson will be more careful when she pens the second part of her biography of Richard. If she does.
May 26, 2021
It is an interesting proposition, which seeks to explore the young years of RIII, providing interesting information and an analysis of events that are seldom explored as his Duke of Gloucester career.
Even so I must admit that I did not like the book at all, I respect the research but I feel that the writing is a bit confusing, it has some errors in the words and the information is not as well organized as it could be, on the other hand at times the analysis seemed to me more of the fictional type than of the biographical type, and by that I mean the author's intention to deepen the feelings of RIII, which is impossible and this made the book goes to the novel side instead of sticking to the facts and logical possibilities,indeed sometimes the author relied on novel theories (without any basis) as when she talks about his possible emotional attachment to a mistress that no one knows (we don't even know if it was one or two women who gave him illegitimate children) except for the entire fiction that has been written, if exploring the life of RIII is difficult, it is impossible to enter into his feelings as was intended here and it did not work for me, it also lacks impartiality and that is something that I sincerely consider unacceptable, because I think that if the biographies of such controversial characters need something, it is precisely professionalism and impartiality, the book is not bad but I think there are many books that can provide better information and better expressed.
Even so I must admit that I did not like the book at all, I respect the research but I feel that the writing is a bit confusing, it has some errors in the words and the information is not as well organized as it could be, on the other hand at times the analysis seemed to me more of the fictional type than of the biographical type, and by that I mean the author's intention to deepen the feelings of RIII, which is impossible and this made the book goes to the novel side instead of sticking to the facts and logical possibilities,indeed sometimes the author relied on novel theories (without any basis) as when she talks about his possible emotional attachment to a mistress that no one knows (we don't even know if it was one or two women who gave him illegitimate children) except for the entire fiction that has been written, if exploring the life of RIII is difficult, it is impossible to enter into his feelings as was intended here and it did not work for me, it also lacks impartiality and that is something that I sincerely consider unacceptable, because I think that if the biographies of such controversial characters need something, it is precisely professionalism and impartiality, the book is not bad but I think there are many books that can provide better information and better expressed.
February 12, 2025
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I appreciate all of the original source material being quoted in the book. On the other, however, I find the author's insertion of her conclusions to be ... odd. There is also the poorly constructed transitions that made for some very confusing reading on my part.
March 10, 2013
This book starts slowly but it rewards patience. The name is somewhat of a misnomer since no one knows exactly how Richard spent his childhood nor how any youngster, especially of noble blood did. But the interesting part is how Wilkinson explains the history around Richard's childhood. (At times she psychologizes, which I didn't like, but it's her book.) She speculates on how Richard must have felt when his father and 2 older brothers were chased into exile and he, his mother and his brother and sister had to flee to Burgundy to be safe. She also speculates on how he must have reacted when his father was killed and how it might have influenced his actions afterwards - Richard was only 9 when his father died.
But the best part for me is the small things. Wilkinson includes the steps in the rituals of the bestowment of the Orders of the Bath and the Garter and explains what each part and action means. She also paints a wonderful picture of what happened after the feast at a wedding. A group of musicians was hired specifically for the wedding night. They played as loudly as they could in front of the door of the wedding chamber so that the noises of the initial love making could not be heard!!! (I'd never thought about that.......)
She also paints pictures of behing the scenes actions. For instance, after Edward IV "reclaims" his throne from Henry VI, we are always told there was a period of 14 years of peace. That's like saying that after WWI there were 20 years of peace. Thing are ALWAYS going on behind that "peace" that usually blie the idea. This one was no different. Richard marries basically to obtain lands and his wife apparently agrees to the marriage for the same reason. Then there is a struggle with other possible heirs, while men who had been loyal to Henry VI argue with the King and Richard about whether they should be allowed to retain their rights and lands. AND Richard's (and Edward's) brother, George, stirs up petty disgreements with Richard that require Big Brother to mediate. You get the feeling that Edward is sitting on the throne, shaking his head in disbelief at what is happening in the country in this time of "peace."
Wilkinson only takes the action to 1475 which is when the English army cuts a deal with France to call off its invasion in return for what would today be called a "pay off." Many English soldiers were extemely upset at the action, having wanted a fight in the manner of Agincourt where they could make their names and fortunes.
It is at this point that Wilkinson argues, without blatantly stating it, that Richard ceases to be a Young King To Be and begins to seriously question his brother's right to the throne and the possibility of his own right.
There is much detail in the book and some is confusing. I would really have like to have had a map of England in this book to help with the locations. Unlike my knowledge of the US where locations can be simply named and I know where they are, I don't know English geography.
But the best part for me is the small things. Wilkinson includes the steps in the rituals of the bestowment of the Orders of the Bath and the Garter and explains what each part and action means. She also paints a wonderful picture of what happened after the feast at a wedding. A group of musicians was hired specifically for the wedding night. They played as loudly as they could in front of the door of the wedding chamber so that the noises of the initial love making could not be heard!!! (I'd never thought about that.......)
She also paints pictures of behing the scenes actions. For instance, after Edward IV "reclaims" his throne from Henry VI, we are always told there was a period of 14 years of peace. That's like saying that after WWI there were 20 years of peace. Thing are ALWAYS going on behind that "peace" that usually blie the idea. This one was no different. Richard marries basically to obtain lands and his wife apparently agrees to the marriage for the same reason. Then there is a struggle with other possible heirs, while men who had been loyal to Henry VI argue with the King and Richard about whether they should be allowed to retain their rights and lands. AND Richard's (and Edward's) brother, George, stirs up petty disgreements with Richard that require Big Brother to mediate. You get the feeling that Edward is sitting on the throne, shaking his head in disbelief at what is happening in the country in this time of "peace."
Wilkinson only takes the action to 1475 which is when the English army cuts a deal with France to call off its invasion in return for what would today be called a "pay off." Many English soldiers were extemely upset at the action, having wanted a fight in the manner of Agincourt where they could make their names and fortunes.
It is at this point that Wilkinson argues, without blatantly stating it, that Richard ceases to be a Young King To Be and begins to seriously question his brother's right to the throne and the possibility of his own right.
There is much detail in the book and some is confusing. I would really have like to have had a map of England in this book to help with the locations. Unlike my knowledge of the US where locations can be simply named and I know where they are, I don't know English geography.
October 23, 2011
Yes it's true, I'm a medieval history geek & I believe I've read everything that's been published about Richard III! There are several really good biographies of Richard & some recent books that have discussed new discoveries from historical records. This book, while well balanced (neither excessively pro nor anti Richard), is not well written & contains numerous typos. Too bad as it could have been a good addition. Nevertheless, I'll probably read Volume II.
January 15, 2013
I agree with other reviewers, that the book lacked good editing. It also lacked error-checking. For example, King Louis XI of France did not provide financial support to Henry Tudor's expedition in 1485, as King Louis had died in 1481!
March 31, 2015
This book is so unbelievably biased in favour of Richard, that ceases to be a history book. There were parts where I felt I was reading fiction, and honestly I don't know why I don't stop reading it now. Probably because I want to see how far the author will take it! A disgrace!
September 2, 2016
Heavy duty research.
April 27, 2015
An interesting and balanced biography, but in dire need of an editor.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews