The White Princess

by Philippa Gregory

Richard III has been killed in the Battle of Bosworth, and his devastated niece and lover Elizabeth of York must marry Richard's conqueror Henry Tudor, the new king of England, to finally end the longrunning Wars of the Roses between the houses of Lancaster and York. As queen, Elizabeth can assure the safety of her mother, the Queen Dowager Elizabeth, and the rest of her family. However, she believes that Henry—who openly despises her for her former alliance with his fallen enemy—may be responsible for the presumed murder of her brother Edward, the former heir. As suggested by his mother, the imperious Margaret Stanley, Henry insists that Elizabeth get pregnant by him before he commits himself to marry her. She does, and they wed. Elizabeth bears him a son, Arthur, but Henry's rule remains less than secure. He imprisons young Edward (called "Teddy"), the son of George, Duke of Clarence and a potential York claimant to the throne, in the Tower of London as public support for the fallen Yorks seems to surge. Henry discovers that Elizabeth's mother has been secretly rallying and financing York supporters in exile, and sends her to Bermondsey Abbey. Elizabeth is torn between her mother's Yorkist cause and her own loyalty to Henry and their son, and is tortured by a secret. Though the Dowager Queen has purposely kept her daughter in the dark about her plots, Elizabeth knows that her mother had sent her younger brother Richard to safety in Flanders, while an impostor went missing and was presumably murdered in the Tower.

Elizabeth and Henry have a daughter, Margaret and a son, Henry. Elizabeth's mother dies. Rebellion builds as a boy claiming to be the lost Richard appears and is acknowledged by Margaret, Duchess of Burgundy, the sister of Elizabeth's father, Edward IV. His claim is embraced by James IV of Scotland and other monarchs, and lords supposedly loyal to Henry begin to escape to Scotland. With the forces against him growing and his support waning, a volatile Henry grows increasingly mistrustful of Elizabeth and her extended family. Despite the odds, Henry is ultimately triumphant and takes the pretender Richard prisoner. The charismatic young man renounces his claims and is welcomed at the English court as Perkin Warbeck, kept unharmed until Henry can determine how best to deal with him. Warbeck is clearly the presumed dead York heir, but Elizabeth dare not acknowledge him. Meanwhile, Henry has fallen in love with Warbeck's wife Katherine Huntly, who indulges the king's attentions to keep her husband alive. On his own merits, Warbeck begins to gain allies and influence at court, so when an assassination attempt on Warbeck fails, Henry first imprisons him in the Tower with Teddy, and then arranges for them both to be caught trying to escape. Charged as traitors, Warbeck and Teddy are executed.