Dark Queen Rising

Paul Doherty

Description

London, 1471. The War of the Roses rages on. Edward of York has claimed the English throne and his Yorkist supporters gleefully slaughter their adversaries; there's no mercy for anyone who supported the Lancastrian cause. Margaret Beaufort - mother of Henry Tudor, the only hope for the House of Lancaster - knows her enemies are closing in. Desperate for help she turns to Christopher Urswicke for protection. But when ruthless scheming and pitiless killings are the only routes to survival, Urswicke will have to choose where his loyalties truly lie.

Sujets

• Historical fiction

Informations

• Publié par: Canongate Books
• Date de parution: 01 août 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781786895073
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Paul Doherty has written over 100 books and was awarded the Herodotus Award, for lifelong achievement for excellence in the writing of historical mysteries by the Historical Mystery Appreciation Society. His books have been translated into more than twenty languages and include the historical mysteries of Brother Athelstan and Hugh Corbett. paulcdoherty.com
Also by Paul Doherty
The Brother Athelstan Mysteries
The Herald of Hell The Great Revolt A Pilgrimage to Murder The Mansions of Murder

The Canterbury Tales Mysteries
Ghostly Murders The Hangman's Hymn A Haunt of Murder The Midnight Man

The Hugh Corbett Mysteries
The Mysterium Dark Serpent Devil's Wolf Death's Dark Valley

First published in Great Britain, the USA and Canada in 2019 by Black Thorn, an imprint of Canongate Books Ltd, 14 High Street, Edinburgh EH1 1TE
This digital edition first published in 2019 by Black Thorn
First published in 2018 by Severn House Publishers Ltd, Eardley House, 4 Uxbridge Street, London W8 7SY
blackthornbooks.com
Copyright © Paul Doherty, 2018
The moral right of the author has been asserted
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidentsare either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Except where actual historical events and characters are being described for the storyline of this novel, all situations in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is purely coincidental.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available on request from the British Library
ISBN 978 1 78689 489 2 eISBN 978 1 78689 507 3
To my dear friend Eve Khan. Many thanks for your help and support.
CONTENTS
Historical Note
Prologue
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six
HISTORICAL NOTE
B y May 1471 that most ferocious struggle known as the Wars of the Roses was reaching a fresh, bloody climax. Edward of York and his two brothers, Richard of Gloucester and George of Clarence, were determined to shatter the power of Lancaster. Henry VI, the Lancastrian King, was their prisoner in the Tower and marked down for death. Edward then moved swiftly to annihilate the Lancastrian army at Barnet before turning west to search out and destroy Henry VI s Queen, Margaret of Anjou, their son, also called Edward, and their leading general, the Duke of Somerset. The year 1471 was one of Yorkist victories, yet it also gave birth to forces intent on the total destruction of the House of York. Dark Queen Rising chronicles the beginning of this. Of course this is a work of fiction, yet most of this dramatic story is firmly grounded on evidence, as the author s note at the end of the novel will attest.
House of York
Richard Duke of York and his wife Cecily, Duchess of York, the Rose of Raby .
Parents of:
Edward (later King Edward IV),
George of Clarence,
Richard Duke of Gloucester (later King Richard III).
House of Lancaster
Henry VI,
Henry s wife Margaret of Anjou and their son Prince Edward.
House of Tudor
Edmund Tudor, first husband of Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond, and half-brother to Henry VI of England. Edmund s father Owain had married Katherine of Valois, French princess and widow of King Henry V, father of Henry VI.
Jasper Tudor, Edmund s brother, kinsman to Henry Tudor (later Henry VII).
House of Margaret Beaufort
Margaret Countess of Richmond, married first to Edmund Tudor, then Sir Humphrey Stafford and finally Lord William Stanley.
Reginald Bray, Margaret s principal steward and controller of her household.
Christopher Urswicke, Margaret Beaufort s personal clerk and leading henchman.
PROLOGUE
On the evening the Duke of Clarence, contrary to his honour and oath, departed secretly from the Earl of Warwick to King Edward his brother.
Great Chronicle of London

A nd so kingdoms fall, thrones tip and crowns topple, Melchior, a Barnabite friar from a village outside Cologne, a Rhinelander, solemnly intoned. He stared across at his two companions who had gathered with him in this small writing chamber deep within the precincts of Tewkesbury Abbey.
Indeed it is so, one of his companions replied, and we, the Three Kings as they call us, have the true knowledge to make that happen. He placed his hands on the book of hours. I would swear to such as I would on that held by our brothers at St Vedast.
We are nearly finished, Balthasar, the third Barnabite declared. We shall soon return to our friends in London.
Hush. Melchior, their leader, raised a hand. Do you not hear it? The chamber fell silent. The Three Kings listened intently. The great Benedictine abbey did not echo with any sound: no bells tolling, booming their invitation to prayer; no melodious plain-chant drifting on the early morning breeze, no patter of sandalled feet; nothing but an ominous, oppressive silence. Balthasar went to speak but Melchior shook his head and lifted a finger.
There, he whispered, the clash of armies. It has begun!
His two companions strained their hearing and nodded in agreement as the clamour from the nearby battlefield rolled through the abbey. The armies of York and Lancaster were at last locked in deadly combat along the water meadows of the Severn river.
Edward of York, Melchior declared, and his brothers have brought the Lancastrians to account. Queen Margaret of Anjou hoped to escape across the Severn into Wales, but that will not happen. Instead, she will face defeat. Her general Beaufort of Somerset and all his host will be scattered as was pharaoh s army; they will be swallowed up in disaster.
But our master surely will remain safe even if his House is the victor?
Do not worry, Melchior replied, George of Clarence is the King s own brother, a man who will not put himself in harm s way even if this day is vital to him and his kin.
He will be pleased, Balthasar, the youngest of the Three Kings, declared, the secrets we have gathered He paused. Is it not time we shared the fruits of our work with him?
True, he gave us the seed for the sowing, Melchior replied. But we are the ones who planted and tended the growth of this rich, bountiful harvest: a veritable treasure chest of intrigue and scandal.
But we have not finished yet.
No, we are not. I have received messages from Brother Cuthbert at St Vedast. He has discovered a porter who served Duchess Cecily and heard her scream certain words. Cuthbert has invited him to St Vedast. Melchior grinned to himself. He will be rewarded, once Cuthbert has taken a verbatim account of what Duchess Cecily shouted when she discovered that her royal son, Edward of York, had married the Woodville woman.
Oh, rich indeed, Caspar the third Barnabite whispered. And what else? What more could be done?
News has arrived, Melchior turned to face Caspar, that Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, has been defeated and killed at Barnet. He may once have been York s great friend and champion but, as we know, because of his hatred for the Woodvilles, he withdrew his allegiance and entered Lancaster s camp. Anyway, Melchior continued, our King-maker has paid the price for such a choice and been despatched to his eternal reward. More importantly, Warwick left no male heir, only two daughters: Isobel, married to our Lord George of Clarence; the other, her sister Anne, will, in my view, be the object of affection for our master s younger brother, Richard of Gloucester. He will be in the thick of the fight today and, if he survives, if Gloucester is victorious, I am sure he will approach his brother the King and demand the hand of Anne Neville in marriage, along with half of her father s estates which are the richest in the kingdom.
But surely our master will oppose that? Balthasar demanded.
Of course. Melchior sighed. And so my Lord of Clarence has asked us to provide a solution without, he sighed again, without causing the death of that young lady.
What happens, Caspar asked, if York loses the fight today? What then?
Oh, safe enough for us. Melchior rubbed his hands. If Warwick deserted York, so did Clarence. He betrayed his brothers for a while and sheltered deep in the Lancastrian camp, and we went with him, we had to! Now, Melchior pulled a face, if York loses, if my Lord of Clarence is killed, if Clarence survives and is taken prisoner, will not be the important issue. We have certain knowledge! We possess information, valuable information, precious little nuggets of scandal hidden away in a manner known only to ourselves. If Margaret of Anjou and Somerset carry the day, they will need us, and so we will still profit in so many, many ways. He paused, listening to the growing clamour of steel against steel rolling across the abbey grounds. In the meantime, Melchior murmured, we must act as if York will sweep the day. Remember, our master has asked us to keep another matter in mind as well as under close watch.
The little Beaufort bitch? Caspar retorted.
The same, Melchior agreed. Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond, late widow of Lord Edmund Tudor, mother of now possibly the sole Lancastrian claimant, Henry Tudor. If the stories are correct, the Beaufort bitch is to become a widow again: her husband Sir Humphrey Stafford is apparently not long for this vale of tears. Now the Beaufort woman also shelters here in this abbey with her leading henchmen, her steward Reginald Bray and her clerk, Christopher Urswicke. I understand she was visiting kinsmen in Wales before being caught up in this clash of armies.
Why doesn t my Lord of Clarence deal with her?
Oh, he will in time, Melchior declared, and when he can! Remember the Beaufort woman is protected by her husband Sir Humphrey Stafford, who has at his disposal all the support of his powerful kinsman the Duke of Buckingham. My master has not forgotten that. However, the woman is being closely watched. Inde