Execution of Thomas More, former Chancellor to Henry VIII, for denying that the king (Henry VIII) was the Supreme Head of the Church of England.  He was born on 7 February 1478.

Between c. 1513 and 1518 he wrote The History of King Richard III.  The work was not finished and only published posthumously by his son-in-law in 1557.  It is not a first-hand account, as he was only aged seven when Richard III fell at the Battle of Bosworth.  It is unknown for what purpose More wrote the History, as it contains many obvious untruths, which any reader at the time it was written would have recognized as such.  However, his work had a long-lasting influence in blackening Richard reputation.  It is therefore perhaps quite ironic that his downfall came on the anniversary of King Richard III’s coronation.

Source:  ODNB on Sir Thomas More

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