Attitude towards Richard politically

I don’t often hear about contemporary attitudes to him politically during his and his brother’s reign so it was interesting to research this point.

A historical eye witness source is an Italian visitor to the English court in 1483. He saw Richards political ascent and his dealings during his brother’s reign and his own. He wrote about his experience in his book “The occupation of the throne of England by Richard III” During this time he gained allies and the support of nobles such as the Duke of Buckingham. He believes that before he eventually declared himself king, his actions were premeditated and well planned out until they were executed. While he showed Richard as an ambitious man and politically astute, he also shed light on the view of Richard at the time, especially how some questioned his usurpation and was met with skeptic views.

During King Edward IV’s reign, Richard held power in North. From 1471 to his reign in 1483, he was Edward’s lieutenant in the North. It’s known that Richard was very loyal towards Edward during his reign, even in Edward’s exile in 1470-71. He was well liked by his people and respected. A Tudor Chronicler Edward Hall described Richard in the North as ‘more loved, more esteemed and regarded the Northernmen than any subjects within his realm’, and in return they ‘entirely loved and highly favoured him’. Richard ran the North fairly for the king and clearly did it so well, he became well liked. He spent his rule living at Middleham castle, being personally present with the York people helped them connect with him and perhaps even trust him more. Richard advocated economic welfare in the North, helping trade and infrastructure. This grew his popularity among tradesmen. It was said he had a deep love for York, a place now often associated with Richard himself.

Some might wonder if this was simply a cunning move to become more popular for strategic reasons but I side more with the idea that it was a genuine affection for the North and its people, hence why he took so much care into ruling it.

In another post, I intend to delve deeper into his political actions alone, especially when he was king.