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Who Had The Strongest Claim To The Throne- Edward V, Richard III or Henry VII?

Edward V was the great-great-great-grandson of Edward III and the son of Edward IV, the previous king, therefore making him have a strong claim to the throne. When his father died he was only 12 years old and so people weren’t sure if he was ready to be king, or if he needed someone to watch over him. His uncle Richard Duke of Gloucester- later known as Richard III- was made protector and guardian of Edward which meant he partly controlled what Edward did. He wasn’t on the throne for very long and so didn’t have much of an influence during his reign. There was a brief conflict with the Woodville’s who were adamant they had more of a claim to the throne, but Richard had them arrested. Richard spread a rumour that Edward V was illegitimate to the throne which was why he needed a protector, however once Richard took the throne both Edward and his brother disappeared in the tower of London and were never seen again.

Once Richard took the throne he was known as Richard III. He was the great-great-grandson of Edward III and the uncle of the previous king Edward V. It was rumoured that he caused the death of the princes in the tower. Although it was never proven he had a motive to do it because he wanted the throne for himself. To help himself get there he also started a rumour that Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville’s marriage was illegitimate because Edward had already been set to marry someone before Elizabeth. People believed what they heard which meant they believed that Edward V was also illegitimate to have the throne, and so shortly after Richard was made king. During his reign the Buckingham Rebellion took place. Henry Stafford, The Duke of Buckingham, was once a loyal supporter of Richard but switched sides to bring Richard down. This caused Richard to build a huge army, but it wasn’t particularly strong. The rebellion failed leaving Richard still on the throne; however it left a

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