Here the Siege of London by the Bastard of Fauconberg, the illegitimate cousin of the Earl of Warwick, is drawn into the spotlight from which he has been frequently displaced. The episode offers fresh insights into the actions of key actors, from King Edward IV to his little-known brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, still more than a decade from becoming King Richard III. We can see something of the blinding allure of Earl of Warwick that allowed his plans and orders to survive his own death at the Battle of Barnet. His position as an illegitimate son of an earl is revealed and perhaps more compelling is the view of the motivations of counties in Southeast England being driven into fresh rebellion. The Wars of the Roses is a complex jigsaw in which this story is a vital piece, not least in understanding the controversial fate of a king of England. The Siege of London on 12th -14th May 1471 is a largely forgotten episode yet its implications were so far-reaching that the fate of the Lancastrian dynasty was sealed forever. Edward IV's gamble to reclaim the throne for the House of York was a triumph against the odds. He might have been confident of total victory if not for Thomas Neville, who, along with thousands of ordinary people, stormed London in a desperate attempt to free Henry VI from captivity. Here is the first ever full-length study which uses contemporary evidence and reveals where the battles for London took place and why Henry VI continued to be revered as a saint long after his death. The book asks whether the future Richard III was actually responsible for Henry's murder. 264 pages, maps.
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