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saucydoorhandles's review against another edition
3.0
after reading
Interesting, especially looking around in European royality letter caches. I didn't like how the author kept gassing themselves up on how they are doing a professional investigation like the police do, mutiple times. Yeah, like the police don't make mistakes or so many crimes aren't solved! It was annoying and needless. And comparing your investigation to what the police would do, is not a boast the author thinks it is. Though the information is interesting and gave me a lot to think about. I liked the fact that they pointed out that accepting Perkin Warbeck was Perkin Warbeck is a form of Tudor properganda and that everything should be questioned. It gives you something new info to think about, though you've got to accept that the info is being filtered through a heavy Ricardian lense as the author has kind of deep obsession with him so you've got to kind of strip that away.
before reading;
will give this a go, even though the author makes me feel iffy and I know it'll be heavily skewed by the authors heavy Ricardan views. But I am interested to see what has supposedly been discovered.
Interesting, especially looking around in European royality letter caches. I didn't like how the author kept gassing themselves up on how they are doing a professional investigation like the police do, mutiple times. Yeah, like the police don't make mistakes or so many crimes aren't solved! It was annoying and needless. And comparing your investigation to what the police would do, is not a boast the author thinks it is. Though the information is interesting and gave me a lot to think about. I liked the fact that they pointed out that accepting Perkin Warbeck was Perkin Warbeck is a form of Tudor properganda and that everything should be questioned. It gives you something new info to think about, though you've got to accept that the info is being filtered through a heavy Ricardian lense as the author has kind of deep obsession with him so you've got to kind of strip that away.
before reading;
will give this a go, even though the author makes me feel iffy and I know it'll be heavily skewed by the authors heavy Ricardan views. But I am interested to see what has supposedly been discovered.
droidulook4's review against another edition
It made me surprisingly angry. Philippa Langley knows more about Richard III than I will ever know, but she doesn’t even consider Richard III as a suspect in the disappearance. She didn’t expect the book to claim Richard III did it, but I was expecting her to even acknowledge he had a motive.
Couldn’t finish the book after that
Couldn’t finish the book after that
souxiequeue's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
2.0
This is an academic report, not a narrative, making the work hard to follow for a layperson.
notesofatimetraveller's review against another edition
challenging
informative
medium-paced
3.0
Warning: This review contains spoilers.
Richard III and the Princes in the Tower. Both of these topics stimulate passionate debate. Many people believe that King Richard III was responsible for the murder of his nephews, Edward V and Richard, Duke of York. But, many believe the Princes survived their uncle's reign, remembered in history as Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck, pretenders to the throne. In the 17th Century, the remains of two children were found in a chest under the stairs in the Tower of London. They are believed to be the remains of the missing Princes and have been laid to rest in an urn in the Lady Chapel of Westminster Abbey. Genetic testing requires the permission of the reigning monarch, and without it, their identity remains a mystery. Published in 2023, The Princes in the Tower: Solving History's Greatest Cold Case by Philippa Langley is the latest book released on this highly controversial topic.
The name Philippa Langley would be familiar to readers with some knowledge of Richard III. Langley is a passionate and devoted Ricardian known for her pivotal role in finding the lost remains of King Richard III in a carpark in Leicester. While I love the documentary Richard III: The King in the Carpark (which can be watched here), I have read several books about Richard III and the Princes in the Tower, so this wasn't on my "must-read" list. But, as it was a recommended read on the topic (along with several other books) as part of historian Suzannah Lipscomb's current online course, Tudor Crisis Management, I decided to dive in.
The book's title gives readers an immediate idea of Langley's stance, The Princes in the Tower: Solving History's Greatest Cold Case. Claiming to solve the mystery of the Princes is a considerable statement; therefore, expectations going into this book are immediately high. As Langley states in the preface, this book represents the "first five-year report of The Missing Princes Project". According to revealingrichardiii.com, The Missing Princes Project "aims to undertake new research into the enduring mystery of the disappearance of the sons of Edward IV". By applying modern techniques to investigate cold cases, Langley and the research team claim to look at all the available evidence, including new archival evidence, and solve the unsolvable.
Overall, the book is easy to read. However, I found the language used throughout it biased, perhaps even more so than expected. There were also some issues with the use of sources. Early in the book, Langley discredits two primary sources for the events of this period - the Crowland Chronicle and Dominic Mancini. Subsequent statements are then supported using these already discredited sources.
While I enjoyed reading about the various sources and how the research team had interpreted these, I felt that there wasn't enough evidence to make some of the statements. For example, "Richard, as duke and king, had no clear motive to murder his nephews, Edward V (12) and Richard, Duke of York (9)," or that there is a considerable body of evidence supporting the veracity of the pre-contract of Edward IV and to its primary role in the accession of Richard III. I did not feel there was sufficient evidence to support either of these statements. Langley and her team establish their argument early in the book but seem to do so at the expense of broader discussion. For example, on page 128, the following quote is provided:
“… that is suffice to quote the testimony [evidence] from our neighbours the English. Look at, I beg you, the events which, after the death of King Edward, happened to that country. Behold his children, already great and brave, murdered unpunished and the crown transferred to the murderer by the favour [approval, faventibus] of the people.”
This quote has been used by Langley as evidence that Richard’s accession was lawful and transparent, but it is not used as evidence that Richard was responsible for the death of the Princes.
Two main pieces of evidence are used as "proof of life" for Edward V and Richard, Duke of York. The discovery which has come about as a result of The Missing Princes Project is a receipt for the purchase of 400 pikes used to "serve her nephew - son of King Edward, late her brother (may God save his soul), [who was] expelled from his dominion..." The receipt is dated 16 December 1487 and is signed by multiple officials. While this is certainly an exciting discovery, it is not 100% sufficient to state that it is proof of life. It does however prove that 400 pikes were purchased on this date. Following this, the source used for proof of life for Richard, Duke of York, is from the Gelderland Archive. It is a document believed to be an account of Richard, Duke of York's life told from a personal narrative. Langley does share that the document arrived at the Archive in either the 19th or 20th century; that it has unknown provenance; that it is likely to be a copy; and, that it is not signed or date. These facts alone, mean that this cannot be used as proof of life.
Overall, The Princes in the Tower: Solving History’s Greatest Cold Case by Philippa Langley gave me a greater understanding of the different viewpoints surrounding Richard III and the Princes in the Tower. While, the research didn't convince me, I am looking forward to reading about any new finds from the second half of The Missing Princes Project. I would not recommend this book as a starting point to readers who are new to the topic. But, I would recommend this book to people who already have some knowledge and understanding of the topic. I would however advise readers to proceed with caution, and to query the use of sources.
erinzona1980's review against another edition
4.0
Psychically I am sure of two things:
#1 Aliens will come down to planet Earth during my lifetime. I gotta see.
#2 Authorities WILL allow the DNA test of those goddam bones at Westminster Abbey.
#1 Aliens will come down to planet Earth during my lifetime. I gotta see.
#2 Authorities WILL allow the DNA test of those goddam bones at Westminster Abbey.
janey's review against another edition
3.0
I like what she's doing but I think publication of this book might be a bit premature. I really want to read the first one, though.
vaguely_academic's review against another edition
1.0
She’s working really hard to clean up Richard III’s image when Occam’s Razor certainly suggests those kids died during his reign. Also I just kind of gave up when I was more than halfway through and couldn’t track at all why we were talking about the people and places she had started talking about. DNF.