In this episode of Real Fake History, Dan Snow is joined by historians Matt Lewis, Nathen Amin, and Tracy Borman to discuss the hypothetical scenario: what if Richard III had won the Battle of Bosworth?
On the 22nd of August 1485, the future of England was decided on the fields of Bosworth. Richard III, a short reigned king made infamous by myths about his murderous and scheming nature was killed in battle by the invading army of Henry Tudor.
Henry VII slayed not only Richard, but the Medieval era in one swift strike, ending the 30-year War of Roses, and ushering in the rule of the Tudors. Saving the country from the supposedly disastrous reign of a wicked king.
But what if Richard had won? Experts in both Medieval and Early Modern history will analyse how much would have changed if the Tudors failed. Would the civil war of the roses have continued? Would the reformation happen in the UK? Who would rule the country? Could Richard have been a good King after all?
Up Next in More from Matt Lewis
-
Britain's Wild West: Discovering Hay ...
The peaceful South Wales town of Hay-on-Wye offers few clues today of its brutal past on a violent frontier. A monument to this history can be found in Hay Castle. Once right on the border between England and Wales, it sits in a region densely packed with castles that saw border skirmishes and bi...
-
Treason
Treason is a word we all know, but how did treason law develop in England? Over the centuries, those linked with some of the most audacious attacks on the establishment have been branded traitors. If treason failed, it usually led to the most gruesome of death penalties. Some of those convicted w...
-
The Princes in the Tower: The Mystery...
Wars of the Roses historian Matt Lewis visits the Tower of London to talk through one of the building’s greatest mysteries: the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower. He talks through the possibility that the two young boys were not murdered on King Richard III's orders, but in fact survived ...
16 Comments