The Tower Grave (34 page)

             
“How long were you there?” she whispered.

             
“Too long, Janey. I’m home now and I’ve missed you.”

             
She kissed him hard on the mouth without a word and squeezed him as her tears renewed afresh.

             
“I’ve missed you too,” she said.

             
“Did you do it, John?” Derek asked nervously as he broke up the reunion. “Did you get the evidence?”

             
“Yes, Del, we got it,” John replied firmly through gentle tears. “We got everything.”

Epilogue

4
th
August 2014

             
“Dad, you look so happy,” said Holly, watching her father and his new girlfriend sit holding hands while they waited for the evening news report.

             
“I am,” John replied as he squeezed Jane’s hand and gave her a smile. “I’m glad you could come and visit.”

             
"Dad, we couldn’t wait,” she answered sincerely.

             
Jane had been terrified of meeting John’s teenage children but had asked them to visit for a meal and they had agreed, embracing her with open arms. John hadn’t left her side in the three weeks since the operation and they had spent the time getting to know each other ‘in the real world’ as he called it before Holly and Danny had visited. She squeezed his thigh warmly as they continued to talk in his apartment sitting room, and then turned up his television as the news report moved on to the ‘Fall of Lord Courtridge’.

             
“This is it,” she said as she increased the volume to watch and a reporter spoke to the camera.

             
‘I stand outside Inner London Crown Court today, moments after the first hearing of Lord Charles Courtridge, which concluded with the Lord being remanded in custody until his trial for conspiracy to murder and commit terrorist acts,’ the reporter commented. ‘The court case follows a government-led investigation which resulted in the freezing of one point two billion pounds of Lord Courtridge’s assets; the largest financial seizure in British history. The investigation led to the uncovering of evidence relating to Lord Courtridge’s involvement in the terror-plot, and the identification of over fifty other members of his group who have each been arrested in the operation throughout the last week. All of those involved have been remanded in custody and are expected to stand trial within six months. We stand now with a spokesperson for Lord Courtridge’s legal team. Mr Phillips, are you surprised by the result today…?’

             
“I can’t believe it’s ended like this,” said Jane smiling as she watched the interview take place on TV.

             
“I can’t believe he’s on remand. We went to seize his titles and they found everything. It’s unbelievable,” said John.

             
“I can’t believe you went back there, Dad,” said Danny, shyly. “I need to hear more.”

             
“Of course I’ll tell you more,” John replied, standing up and answering his phone as it vibrated on his dining table.

             
“Derek,” he said as Jane turned to watch. “I know, it’s unbelievable,” he continued. “And the prime minister wants to do what..? When...? At number ten...? Jesus, that’s not something you get asked every day...  Fantastic… No, go on what is it..? Why..? Don’t worry, I can talk… Yes… Well I’m feeling rested if that’s what you mean, I have a few scars..! You’re joking… I hadn’t thought about it, I never thought we ever would…” Jane watched John as his expression showed fear and then turned to excitement. “The truth? Yeah, I’d love it… No, seriously. But I’d like better circumstances… What about the others...? Well then we’re set... Ok, mate… Yeah, bye.”

             
“What’s happening?” asked Jane, worried.

             
“Well, they have their reasons, but they want me to go and work with someone else.”

“Who?”

              “The Metropolitan Police.”

“What do you mean?”

“They want us to catch the ripper, Jane,” said John as a boyish grin spread across his face. “They want Jack the Ripper. I’m going back…”

Historical Note

In 1483, the young King Edward V and his brother were seen for the last time, playing inside the Tower of London. Their disappearance coincided with the declared illegitimacy of the King and the succession of their uncle, Richard Duke of Gloucester as King Richard III. Following the discovery of two young bodies buried within a staircase of the Tower many years later, there have been uncountable conspiracy theories relating to both Richard the Third and his successor Henry Tudor as King Henry VII. Why? The crowning of Richard the Third and the battle that saw him defeated by Henry Tudor two years later, marked the end of a long dispute between the Houses of York and Lancaster; two dynasties descended from King Edward III who had reigned in England over 100 years earlier.

This book plants our fictional characters deep within the political struggle that was famously named the Wars of the Roses. Lord Edmund Courtridge and his political faction are absolutely fictional, but Richard III of York and his Lancastrian soon-to-be rival, Henry Tudor, are genuine in their roles in the Wars and their involvement in the murder of the boys is still very much in debate.

The less discussed element of the Wars
is their origin. Who started them? Who was right? How did a struggle between Plantagenet cousins lead to the repeated battles and deaths of thousands of men fighting for the would-be kings?

Extracted from my upcoming non-fiction series,
Rhyme Through Time, A History of Britain
,
I have answered these questions and provided a rhythmical chronicle of how the Wars of the Roses came to be, and how the men and women who shaped them, changed our future.

Please, read on, and enjoy...

As seen in the Rhyme
Through Time series:

A History of Britain,
The Middle Ages

by
J. E. Moncrieff:

The Wars of the Roses

Rarely in time, has England seen,
Its kings and queens fight to the death,
Until fourteen hundred, and the war of two lines,
Turned it around in a breath.

It starts with the House of Plantagenet
,
Which passed on from father to son,
They ruled well in peace for two-hundred years,
Until Edward the Third’s time had come.

See Edward had eight sons and for power they seemed
,
To have an unquenchable thirst,
But as he prepared to pass on his crown,
Alas, his heir had died first.

The Black Prince as he had been known in his life
,
Left Richard, his son, aged just ten,
So despite having sons that were ready to rule,
Ed’s crown passed right over those men.

Richard the Second was crowned the new king
,
While his uncles they watched like a hawk,

With Lionel, then John, then Thomas of Gloucester
,
And Edmund the first Duke of York.

So John of Gaunt, the fourth son of Edward
,
Had Henry, a son of his own,
And it was Henry who teamed up with his uncle Tom,
To challenge the man on the throne.

The result wasn’t great as Thomas was murdered
,
And Henry was sent overseas,
It wasn’t ‘til Rich went to Ireland years later,
That Henry returned home with ease.

Henry of Lancaster spotted his chance
,
And said, “Hey, I’m the grandson of Ed,”
With barons behind him and Richard away,
They put the king’s crown on his head.

Richard was fuming when he heard the news
,
He led his men back and they fought,
The battle took place outside Pontefract Castle,
But Richard was beaten and caught.

Henry was crowned, thirteen ninety nine,
The reign of Lancaster ensued,
But just one year later, poor Richard was killed,
First king to fall prey to this feud.

Henry the fourth kept trouble at bay
,
Despite fighting and being unwell,
His son Henry Fifth prepared England for war,
The moment his great father fell.

From fourteen thirteen, the crown sat on his head
,
And King Henry the Fifth sought out trouble instead,
He quickly re-opened the Hundred Years War,
And defeated the Frenchmen at Agincourt.

He wasn’t just hungry to spill the French blood
,
He had barons who wanted him dead,
By uniting their forces to one common aim,
He got them on his side instead.

So on with the war, he fought back their land
,
He knew that his men wouldn’t falter,
By fourteen twenty, he forced the French king,
To allow him to marry his daughter.

And marry he did with the Treaty of Troyes,
He was heir to the Kingdom of France,
But sadly he died before the French King,
And Henry missed out on his chance.

His son was still young when the French king followed
,
But the deal it was done and France sold,
When Henry the Sixth became the king of both countries,
He was still only ten months old!

His life wasn’t easy, by the time he was eight,
A young lady had risen in France,
At nineteen years old, Joan of Arc had a vision,
That gave the French hope of a chance.

The fighting renewed and though Joan was killed
,
The French didn’t stop their attack,
The vision continued for twenty two years,
And they finally won their country back.

Meanwhile the House of York felt they should sit,
On the throne as the kings all along,
Descended from Edmund’s line, married to Lionel’s,
Their claim was incredibly strong.

In fourteen fifty four, King Henry fell ill
,
Duke of York was named Lord Protector,
But the tables had turned, just one more year on,
He was sacked when Henry got better.

And so his rage sparked the War of the Roses
,
York’s white rose and Lancaster’s red,
The first battle of St. Albans saw York as the victors,
With Richard the Duke at their head.

The Duke of Somerset, Lancaster’s leader
,
Was killed by the army he faced,
With Richard now free to take government over,
He had all his pieces in place.

Fourteen fifty nine was a more violent time
,
York won a fight but lost one later,
With Lancaster’s King Henry steaming ahead,
His parliament named Richard a traitor.

Not a bad move ‘til the Earl of Warwick
,
The ‘Kingmaker’ as he was known,
Led York to Northampton where Henry was caught,
And left Richard to claim England’s throne.

But though King Henry was a placid man
,
Queen Margaret was tougher than ten,
Although up in Scotland she gathered her troops,
And killed Richard of York with her men.

So fourteen sixty one, and Ed, Richard’s son
,
Beat Lancaster with all he could bring,
But Maggie and men, beat Warwick again,
And so he named Edward as king.

Then he gathered at
Tauston and beat Margaret down,
Thus making sure Edward the Fourth got his crown,
Henry kept trying despite losing power,
But was captured again and locked in the Tower.

So all was at peace for five or six years
,
‘Til Warwick and King Edward fought,
Edward was beaten but banished the Earl,
To make sure that a lesson was taught.

With his loyalty gone, Warwick turned to Margaret
,
And together their armies charged down,
He gave Edward no choice but to run overseas,
And gave Henry Sixth back his crown!

But Ed wasn’t done, he returned and killed Warwick
,
Beat Margaret and then killed her son,
King Henry was captured and killed in the Tower,
And at last, the battle was won.

Margaret was ransomed to France so King Ed,
Had no one to give him a run,
Elizabeth Woodville, his wife and his queen,
Gave birth to Edward, their son.

But things wouldn’t last, for Ed shortly passed
,
And Edward the Fifth became king,
His uncle Duke Richard of Gloucester had plans,
As Protector he’d change everything.

He first took the twelve year old King and his brother
,
To live in the Tower for good,
But just before Edward was given his crown,
Some men, they were not sure he should.

Two bishops announced that his mum and his dad
,
Should never have really been wed,
For King Edward the Fourth was already promised,
To marry another instead.

So now illegitimate, Ed’s crown was at stake
,
Parliament only had one choice to make,
Three months after Edward his brother was dead,
King Richard the Third put the crown on his head.

And sadly that was the end for the boys
,
Before they could turn into men,
One day they were seen at play in the Tower,
But never were spotted again.

And so then it seemed that Richard would rule
,
And York had control of the lot,
But little he knew that behind the scenes,
Lancaster still fancied a shot.

Margaret Beaufort, descended back to
,
John of Gaunt who started it all,
When she married a Welshman called Edmund Tudor,
Their son believed Richard could fall.

Two years after Richard first sat on the throne
,
Henry Tudor took his men to fight,
The armies collided and at Bosworth Field,
Tudor’s men took out York with their might.

In victory King Henry the Seventh was crowned
,
And he wanted a long, happy life,
To make sure that no one could challenge his place,
He took Liz of York as his wife.

And so thanks to Henry and his clever plan
,
The houses united as one,
The War of the Roses, it came to an end,
And the new Tudor reign had begun.

Copyright © 201
3 James Moncrieff

All rights reserved.

Acknowledgements

With thanks to all my testers who read this first and put up with my incessant badgering for updates and praise.

Thank you...

Carly

Claire

Adele

Ken

Valerie

Phil

Elle

I am forever grateful!

And thank you to Iris, my mum, and to both Graham and Jan, my in-laws. I couldn’t have got here without your support.