Richard III: Honor in a Ruthless Age

Before Richard III became king - and long before history cast him as a villain - he built a very different reputation in the north of England.

In this episode, Rebecca Larson and Matt Lewis continue Richard’s story from his marriage to Anne Neville through his rise as one of Edward IV’s most trusted lords. They examine the bitter division of the Warwick inheritance, Richard’s relationship with Anne Beauchamp, his settlement of the Percy–Neville feud, and the authority he established across northern England.

Through several surviving legal disputes, a striking pattern emerges: Richard repeatedly ruled against his own retainers and social superiors when the evidence demanded it, placing equitable justice above personal advantage. The conversation also explores his refusal of a French pension, his white boar badge, the religious college he founded at Middleham, and his successful Scottish campaign, which recovered Berwick-upon-Tweed for England.

Was Richard an honorable man attempting to navigate a deeply corrupt political system? This episode reveals the principled lord, capable commander, and trusted northern leader whose record stands in sharp contrast to the villain he would later become in popular history.

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Host: Rebecca Larson

Guest: Matt Lewis