30
Jul

Royal Blood. Richard III and the Mystery of the Princes

   Posted by: Dorothea Preis   in

Bertram Field, Royal Blood. Richard III and the Mystery of the Princes.  Regan Books, New York, 1998. ISBN 0-06-098738-3

Bertram Fields is a highly regarded entertainment lawyer, living in California.  Here he takes his legal expertise to evaluate the case of Richard III.  Was he the evil villain of Shakespeare’s play, who killed Henry VI as well as Henry’s son, his  brother Clarence, his wife and his two young nephews, until in the end he got what he deserved at Bosworth?  Or  was he really the loyal brother and later an intelligent and able king, who was popular with his subjects?  Was the negative image only due to the Tudor spin doctors?  Among all the questions about the reign and character of richard III, Fields also looks at the pretenders/impostors  ‘Lambert Simnel’ and ‘Perkin Warbeck’, who later haunted Henry VII.

Fields is neither a lawyer for the defence nor for the prosecution, but rather assumes the role of the judge and does not start off with a preconceived idea.   His aim is ‘to explore and evaluate the arguments on each side, to weigh the evidence and, peering through the mist of centuries, to come as close as possible to the elusive truth.”  Fields’ style is clear and concise.  The book includes a clear family tree and an extensive bibliography as well as a clear index.  For anyone who wants to form their own opinion on this controversial historical person, this well written book is a must.