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Richard III (Fact and Fictions) Kindle Edition

by Matthew Lewis (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 187 ratings
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“Bust[s] some commonly held myths that have built up about Richard III over the centuries, most coming from Shakespeare’s famous play . . . eye-opening.” —Sarah Bryson, author of La Reine Blanche: Mary Tudor, a Life in Letters


King Richard III remains one of the most infamous and recognizable monarchs in English or British history, despite only sitting on the throne for two years and fifty-eight days. His hold on the popular imagination is largely due to the fictional portrayal of him by William Shakespeare which, combined with the workings of five centuries of rumor and gossip, has created two opposing versions of Richard. In fiction he is the evil, scheming murderer who revels in his plots, but many of the facts point towards a very different man.
 
Dissecting a real Richard III from the fictional versions that have taken hold is made difficult by the inability to discern motives in many instances, leaving a wide gap for interpretation that can be favorable or damning in varying degrees. It is the facts that will act as the scalpel to begin the operation of finding a truth obscured by fiction.
 
Richard III may have been a monster, a saint, or just a man trying to survive, but any view of him should be based in the realities of his life, not the myths built on rumor and theater. How much of what we think we know about England’s most controversial monarch will remain when the facts are sifted from the fictions?
 
“He’s been portrayed as one of history’s biggest baddies—and Shakespeare shares the blame for that.But now historian and author Matt Lewis is out to right the wrong done to Richard III.” —Shropshire Star
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  1. Print length
    169 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Pen & Sword History
  5. Publication date
    September 28, 2019
  6. File size
    7645 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

The informed and informative result of remarkably painstaking and meticulous research that is deftly organized and presented so as to be of especially impressive value to scholars and non-specialist general readers alike, this edition of "Richard III" by Matthew Lewis will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to community and academic library late Medieval English Biography collections in general, and King Richard III supplemental studies reading lists in particular

Midwest Book Review

About the Author

Matthew Lewis trained in law and is now a full time author of historical fiction and non-fiction. He also blogs on his website, Matt’s History Blog, and can be found on Twitter as @mattlewisauthor. His main interest is medieval history and he has a number of books on that topic, including The Wars of the Roses: The Key Players in the Struggle for Supremacy and Richard, Duke of York: King by Right.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07RBKGLCQ
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pen & Sword History (September 28, 2019)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 28, 2019
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 7645 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 169 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 187 ratings

About the author

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Matthew Lewis

Matthew Lewis

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Matthew Lewis was born and grew up in the West Midlands. Having obtained a law degree, he currently lives in the beautiful Shropshire countryside with his wife and children. History and writing have always been a passion of Matthew's, with particular interest in the Wars of the Roses period. His first novel, Loyalty, was born of the joining of those passions.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
187 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

m t
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book
Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2023
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This is not a comprehensive biography. Matt Lewis, an historian and expert on Richard III and the Wars of the Roses, lists common misconceptions, rumors, and discusses them clearly and concisely. A very good primer, introduction, to Richard III. Thank you.
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Benny 80439
5.0 out of 5 stars The List King
Reviewed in the United States on June 5, 2023
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I enjoy concise, we'll researched history books, and this one fits the pistol nicely. The real Richard is lost into the mist of often murky medieval times. But it is clear that he suffered from a character assassination at the pen of a very talented writer.
One person found this helpful
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D.Craig Strachan
3.0 out of 5 stars Informative
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2022
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A bit dry and over examined. Not as well organized as would like,
but I got point. Thank you, author
One person found this helpful
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Kris
5.0 out of 5 stars Facts against over trodden fiction
Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2019
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Once again, Matt Lewis presents more than one facet of the ongoing debate about Richard III. Well researched and very informative.
Matt lays out the researched facts and explanations side by side with the overly told stories about Richard III presenting a way to better analyse truth from the fiction. We may never know the absolute truth, but Matt Lewis’ ability to present the information we do have, allows us to think and make a better informed decision for ourselves.
13 people found this helpful
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L. Plantagenent
5.0 out of 5 stars Matthew Lewis answers questions about the King in simplified ways.
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2019
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Love, love, love this book. Matthew Lewis again shows his talent. It's not thick, but answers questions about the King in simplified terms. It's like a Cliff Notes on KRIII. I would read this first then go to his thick biography on the King.
7 people found this helpful
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Janet O'Donnell
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2019
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This is a fantastic book. If you are new to learning about Richard, this will give you a lot of good information. If you are already a supporter, this concisely sums up the information about him. Highly recommend.
4 people found this helpful
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Calhoun
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommend this book!
Reviewed in the United States on December 20, 2019
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A very valuable companion to any book about Richard III.
It’s like having an encyclopedia handy to sift through all the misinformation found in so many accounts of Richard III.
Highly Recommended!
4 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Good book
Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2019
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Brief, clear, useful definitions
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Annals of Lorsch
5.0 out of 5 stars Richard iii Questions Answered
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 11, 2022
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Excellent and succinct breakdown of the many questions around the person and reputation of King Richard iii.

Matthew Lewis takes each legend and question, breaking it down from the original sources and brings the real story to light. There are several myths which are tackled here and the reader is left with a balanced explanation and the facts behind those myths are clarified.

Lewis tackles the thorney questions of Richard's taking the crown in 1483, the accusations of murder against the sons of Edward iv, the mythology around the events at Stoney Stafford, the legitimacy of Richard's actions, the death of Lord Hastings and the plots Richard himself accused others off. He deals with Richard's relationshio with the Wydeville family and puts the myth that he hated them firmly to rest.

Lewis also explores Richard's kingship, his character and his laws. He answers the questions around Richard's Parliament, his legal reforms and the reforms which helped ordinary people. He also touches on the laws Richard made to protect English goods and English merchants and his other favourable economic policies. Matthew Lewis reveals the real Richard, the human being behind the man of myth, challenging those lies and myths sold to the public for centuries by Shakespeare etc.

Matthew Lewis is an excellent medieval historian and here he seeks not to reveal Richard iii as a saint, but as a man, who, although flawed, did what was right in life, despite the challenges from corrupt men who didn't share his vision of justice and fairness. This Fact and Fiction Book is a simplar version of his well researched biography of the last Plantagenet King. It is accessible, balanced, fair, well presented and I cannot recommend it enough.
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Margot McLennan
5.0 out of 5 stars Neither Saint not Demon
Reviewed in Australia on July 15, 2021
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A well written & thoughtful examination of Richard III's life, reign & death. A very enjoyable book which I heartily recommend.
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Mr. T. Upton
4.0 out of 5 stars A slim book which aims to answer the main controversies of Richard III's reign
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2019
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This is an easily readable book, well-illustrated and with a good, clear layout. Each of the nine chapters deals with a different topic e.g. Taking The Throne, Richard's Legacy, and is subdivided into sections answering pertinent questions e.g. Did Richard III Kill The Princes in the Tower? In addition, each subdivision has a short paragraph under the title 'Little known fact'. The inclusion of some 'Glossary' sections suggests that the book is intended more for readers who've read some fictional stories about Richard III and subsequently developed an interest in discovering what we actually know about him from his contemporaries. I get the feeling that the book was perhaps a bit rushed to print because in my paperback copy at least the 'Little known fact' in Chapter 4 (p 55) is simply a slightly re-worded and expanded version of the 'Little known fact' in Chapter 1 (p19).

I also get a sense that the book somewhat panders to the vociferous Ricardian faction. For example, in Chapter 3 the decision to execute (the choice of the word 'murder' in the heading question is a bit odd, especially when ‘kill’ is used with reference to Henry VI’s death!) George Duke of Clarence is firmly and correctly attributed to Edward IV, but the author adds as a further criticism 'There was little by way of a trial...' At least there was a trial and trials loaded to find someone guilty were par for the course at the time. By this stage George Duke of Clarence was notorious for repeated treasonous acts anyway, not to mention that he himself had already loaded a jury to enforce the death penalty on Ankarette Twynho! On the other hand, in Chapter 4 Richard III's summary execution of Hastings (again the word 'murder' in the title question is a bit sensationalist plus a nod to Ricardians as it allows the author to give an unequivocal 'no' answer) we are told that Richard III operated within 'a legal framework' - no mention of the fact that Hastings, the most loyal of all Edward IV's supporters, was executed immediately after his arrest and therefore had absolutely no recourse to any trial whatsoever! I also feel that some of the questions are worded in a way that avoids the more uncomfortable issues facing Ricardian apologists. For example, in Chapter 5 we have the question ‘Was Buckingham’s Rebellion A Serious Threat?’ and the author then goes on to explain that it wasn’t really Buckingham’s rebellion at all! A more direct and pertinent question for this section, which avoids the apparent misnomer ‘Buckingham’s Rebellion’, would be ‘Why did Buckingham rebel?’ Again, in Chapter 3 rather than the assumption implicit in ‘Why Was Richard So Loved In the North?’ (clearly appealing to Ricardians) perhaps a better question would be ‘Was Richard So Loved in the North?’ One of Richard III’s biggest problems was his narrow base of supporters, Northern or otherwise. And the fact remains that the two most important northerners of his realm, Northumberland and Stanley, deserted him at the Battle of Bosworth (Richard’s loyal northerners were small fry by comparison). Finally, the only evidence we have for him being ‘Loved in the North’ are two comments from the House Books of the City of York. This section makes no mention of Roger Brere of York saying in 1482 ‘as touching my lord of Gloucester, what might he do for the city? Nothing but grin of us’. Was this the saddler who was arrested for slandering the duke during the civil unrest in that city in March of that year? Neither does it mention the fact that Richard wrote to York in 1485 asking for 400 soldiers from the city, but York's aldermen were sadly only able to find 80 men willing to support their king's cause. Even this small force of 80 men apparently didn't arrive in time to take part in the Battle of Bosworth, so perhaps the city of York (in its own small way) actually contributed to Richard's defeat!

With the minor reservations admitted above, overall this is an interesting, fairly balanced and very accessible book with a commendable focus on giving definitive answers wherever this is possible. Where, as often happens, this is not possible due to the paucity of evidence (e.g. the deaths of the princes in the Tower), the author gives a well-reasoned assessment of what was most likely to have occurred. A useful addition to anyone’s Richard III or Wars of the Roses library.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Richard III facts and fiction
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 6, 2023
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This book helps the reader have a good indicator with some facts to decide if Richard III was the villain portrayed by Will Shakespeare.

If Shakespeare had any factual knowledge of Richard III biography then there would have been some evidence/commentary/notes with persons that were with Shakespeare at the time to confirm that Richard Iii was indeed the villain as portray in his plays.

There are still questions to answer about Richard III character and especially the deaths of his nephew and how he came to the throne are which are which
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Mr.I.Rogers
5.0 out of 5 stars First class review of Richard, Duke of Gloucester.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 16, 2023
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All Ricardians will know Matthew Lewis, and will be more than aware of the quality of his work. If you are not aware of his books I would highly recommend your reading this. He has a very accessible style and he covers the complexities of the life and times of Richard of Gloucester from the early days up to his becoming king in a way that anyone can enjoy.
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