History has known many great liars. Copernicus. Goebbels. St Ralph the Liar. But there have been none quite so vile as the Tudor King Henry VII. It was he who rewrote history to portray his predecessor, Richard III, as a deformed maniac who killed his nephews in the Tower. But the real truth is that Richard was a kind and thoughtful man who cherished his young wards, in particular Richard, Duke of York, who grew into a big, strong boy. Henry also claimed he won the Battle of Bosworth Field and killed Richard III. Again, the truth is very different; for it was Richard, Duke of York, who became King after Bosworth Field, and reigned for thirteen glorious years. As for who really killed Richard III and how the defeated Henry Tudor escaped with his life, all is revealed in this, the first chapter of a history never before told: the history of ... the Black Adder! The Black Adder: The Foretelling, opening commentary, BBC 1983
Now, I’m afraid that there's going to have to be a certain amount of violence. But at least we know it’s all in a good cause. ibid. Harry
I’d just like to get these battle averages sorted out. Now then, who did you kill today? ibid. Harry to Edmund
As I shall be known from now on – the Black Vegetable. ibid.
In 1486, the second year of Richard IV’s historic reign and also the year in which the egg replaced the worm as the lowest form of currency, King Richard departed England on a Crusade against the Turks. The Black Adder: Born to Be King
He left behind him his beloved son Prince Harry to rule as Regent in his stead ... And his slimy son Edmund to do the tasks most befitting him. ibid.
We are not that desperate: Morris dancing is the most fatuous tenth-weight entertainment ever devised by man. ibid. Blackadder to Baldrick
I have a cunning plan. ibid. Baldrick
May your filthy soul be prepared for hell, my son. Yes, hell. Where Satan belches fire and enormous devils break wind both night and day. Your mind is never free from the torments of remorse. And your bottom never free from the prickling of little thorns. Hell – where the softest bits of your nether regions are everybody’s else’s favourite lunch. The Black Adder: The Archbishop, Bishop of London
There appear to be four major profit areas – curses, pardons, relics and selling the sexual favours of nuns. ibid. Baldrick
Fingers are really big at the moment. Mind you, for a really quick sale you can’t beat a nose. For instance, this is the sacred appendage compendium party pack. ibid. Baldrick
King: Chiswick, take this to the Queen of Naples [holds up urn].
Chiswick: What is it, my lord?
King: The King of Naples. The Black Adder: The Queen of Spain’s Beard, Harry to King
Baldrick: Why not make her think you prefer the company of men?
Edmund: But I do, Baldrick, I do!
Baldrick: No, no, My Lord. I mean the intimate company of men.
Edmund: You don’t mean... like the Earl of Doncaster...?
Baldrick: I mean just like the Earl of Doncaster.
Edmund: That great radish? That steaming great left-footer? The Earl of Doncaster, Baldrick, has been riding side-saddle since he was seventeen!
Baldrick: And who would want to marry the Earl of Doncaster?
Edmund: Well, no-one ... Brilliant! Of course! No-one would marry the Earl of Doncaster! Except, perhaps, the Duke of Beaufort. ibid.
The suspect has his head placed upon a block, and an axe aimed at his neck. If the man is guilty, the axe will bounce off his neck – so we burn him. If the man is not guilty, the axe will simply slice his head off. The Black Adder: Witchsmeller Pursuivant, Witchsmeller
Behold, Lucifer’s brother. ibid. Witchsmeller, re Baldrick
My Lord, I have a cunning plan. ibid. Baldrick tied to stake
So Edmund spurned his friends and began his quest for glory. The Black Adder: The Black Seal, caption
And so the Black Adder scoured the land to search out the six other Most Evil Men in the Kingdom. ibid.
July 6th 1483 and Westminster Abbey was packed tight for the coronation of one of England’s most controversial kings – Richard III … The Wars of the Roses when the rivalry between two great dynasties tore the nobility apart. Philippa Gregory, The Real White Queen and Her Rivals I, BBC 2016
As the daughter of the most powerful noble in the realm Anne was destined for greatness from birth … Margaret Beaufort – the second most important woman in the country … Elizabeth was the commoner queen – an English beauty who had enchanted a King. This is my chronicle of these three women. ibid.
Margaret Beaufort was an heiress to valuable lands … Margaret and all her possessions were transferred to Henry Tudor … ibid.
But the enchanted Edward was sure of his choice, and Elizabeth’s transformation was complete. ibid.
Edward IV was forced to abandon his throne and the Yorkist cause and flee England. The Lancastrian king Henry VI was restored in his place. With her husband on the run, Elizabeth Woodville, the former Queen of England, was now in grave danger. ibid.
1471: A new England is being forged in the fire of civil war. Philippa Gregory, The Real White Queen and Her Rivals II
They are the founders of our nation just as much as their more-famous men. ibid.
‘She [Margaret] plays the game of divided loyalties very effectively: she’s protected by her Yorkish husbands and is at the same time covertly working for her Lancastrian son. But King Edward’s victory was a disaster for her. Forcing her son Henry Tudor to flee into exile in France.’ ibid. Lisa Hilton
The York dynasty had an extraordinary capacity for self-destruction. And its downfall would begin with Anne Neville. ibid.
It looks as though Elizabeth had no option but to release her child into the hands of her enemies … I think she handed over a servant boy muffled up in a scarf. ibid.
The two boys in the Tower were never seen again. ibid.
July 6th 1483 in Westminster Abbey Richard had himself crowned King of England. At his side his wife Anne. Queen at last. ibid.
They were all using each other. ibid.
If Richard didn’t kill them, then who did? The other person with a clear motive was Elizabeth Beaufort. ibid.
The rumours were truly scandalous: that Richard was courting his niece the princess under the very nose of his wife. ibid.
Elizabeth Woodville gave her daughter in marriage to the family that may have killed her sons. ibid.
It was Margaret Beaufort who shaped the Tudor dynasty. ibid.
1485: Yorkist King Richard III had been on the throne for two years. But the fragile peace is about to be shattered. Our history is about to change for ever. Thomas Penn, Henry VII: Winter King, BBC 2013
Henry VII remains obscure ... An ‘infinitely suspicious’ ruler ... His murky story ... This manipulative king who created one of the strangest regimes in history. ibid.
‘Judge me, O Lord, and favour my cause’ ... He wanted to slip in undetected. ibid.
John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln v Henry Tudor: the first serious rebellion ... in the East Midlands. ibid.
Perkin Warbeck: impersonation of the Princes in the Tower ... A threat Henry had to diffuse. ibid.
Henry was obsessed with control ... Henry was building up a dense network of spies and informers. ibid.
A royal marriage: Arthur was to marry a great Spanish princess: Catherine of Aragon. ibid.
Prince Arthur was laid to rest ... A funeral befitting a prince, reflecting the scale of the tragedy ... The political impact of Arthur’s death was immense. ibid.
Henry saw conspiracy at every turn ... If his subjects would not love him they would be made to fear him ... Henry’s subjects were scared and they resentful. ibid.
1509: Henry VII died. ibid.
The Pope was the official head of the Church in England. And gave Henry the title Defender of the Faith for his loyal zeal. Yet it was this same Henry that eventually brought the Reformation to England. Ann Widdecombe, Christianity: A History s1e5: Reformation, BBC 2009
His crime was translating the Bible into English. His name is William Tyndale. Melvyn Bragg, The Most Dangerous Man in Tudor England, BBC 2013
William Tyndale was a matchless scholar whose heroic life of principle took on the great forces of Henry VIII with only an army of words. ibid.
His act was thought to be a work of revolution. ibid.
Luther’s study of the Bible led him to radical new beliefs which struck at the heart of the Catholic Church. ibid.
In 1526 copies of Tyndale’s translation began to arrive on English shores. ibid.