The Princes in the Tower

A damaged reputation 

Within weeks of Richard III's coronation, that took place on

'July 1483'

It was widely rumoured that the princes Edward V and Richard, Duke of York had been put to death by their uncle the King. These rumours damaged Richard III's reputation  and you could argue they contributed to him losing his throne in 1485 at the Battle of Bosworth.

 

Settlement of the Crown

The traditional view regarding the princes in the tower asserts that Richard III was responsible for the deaths of his nephews as he was, after all, the man with the biggest motives for murder. Although an Act of Parliament 

'The Act of the settlement of the Crown' 

 1484 

Declared Richard to be the true King of England on the basis of the illegitimacy of Edward V and his brother, many doubted the story and so if the Princes were kept alive they would always be the focus of plots against the King. 

The traditional view holds Richard III responsible of the deaths of the princes as the logical and inevitable outcome of Richard III's usurpation. 

Revisionist Views 

 

On the other hand, revisionists challenge the view that Richard III murdered his nephews. They have put forward several alternative theories about what happened to the princes.