Brackenbury refused to obey the cruel order, and Richard then found another man, James Tyrell, who was willing to obey his orders. He sent him to London, and bade Brackenbury give up to him the charge of the Tower with all the keys for one night. That night two ruffians, Dighton and Forrest, entered the room where the princes lay asleep, and smothered them with their pillows. Shakespeare has made them thus describe their hateful deed, melted themselves to tears of compassion for their victims:--

66 6

“‘O, thus,' quoth Dighton, 'lay the gentle babes ;'
'Thus, thus,' quoth Forrest, 'girdling one another
Within their alabaster innocent arms:

Their lips were four red roses on a stalk,

Which in their summer beauty kiss'd each other.

A book of prayers on their pillow lay,

Which once,' quoth Forrest, almost changed my mind;
But O!.
we smothered

The most replenished sweet work of Nature

That from the prime creation e'er she framed."

The bodies were buried at the foot of the staircase, and long years afterwards, in the reign of Charles II., two skeletons were discovered there, and, being thought to be those of the young Princes, were buried in Westminster Abbey.

Richard was not so hardened in wickedness that the thought of this awful deed did not haunt him and fill him with remorse. Ever after he is said to have rested ill at night and been troubled with fearful dreams. The chances of his winning his people's love were now lost for ever. The news of the disappearance of the Princes was received everywhere with

groans and indignation. Even Richard's firm friend the Duke of Buckingham headed a rising against him. Richard was able to put this down, and the Duke was punished with death. But a more dangerous enemy rose against Richard. Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, a prince of the House of Lancaster, who was descended from John of Gaunt, Edward III.'s son, landed in England only two years after Richard had become king. Men flocked to join him, and when Richard met him on Bosworth field, a great part of Richard's own army deserted to him. Richard was advised to fly from the battle, but he would not listen. He fought with his crown upon his head, saying, "I will die King of England; I will not budge a foot ;" and so he fell covered with wounds. The crown was picked up, and Henry Tudor was crowned with it on the battlefield as Henry VII.

XXIX.

PERKIN WARBECK.

A.D. 1491-1499.

IN the year 1491, when Henry VII. had been king for six years, a Breton silk merchant came to Cork in Ireland to sell his goods. He had with him as servant a lad of seventeen, named Perkin or Peterkin, that is, little Peter, Osbeck or Warbeck, who was a native of Tournay in Flanders. Perkin walked about the streets of Cork, dressed in fine silk clothes, so as to show off his master's goods, and drew upon himself the

attention of the citizens. that he was very like the Yorkist Princes, and at last it was said that he must be the Duke of York, son of Edward IV., who was supposed to have been murdered in the Tower with his brother Edward V. The Irish hated Henry VII., for his rule was strict and severe, and they were eager to raise up as many enemies as possible against him. So there were plenty of people quite willing to believe or pretend to believe that Perkin was the Duke of York, and therefore the rightful King of England. Perkin was silly enough to listen to them, and he stayed in Ireland some months so as to learn English, and he wrote letters to two of the chief Irish earls. No one in England seems to have paid any heed to Perkin and his story at first. But the next year the King of France, who was making war upon Henry VII., invited Perkin to come to Paris, and received him as a royal prince. Several men who belonged to the Yorkist party, and hated Henry VII., came over from England and joined Perkin. But the war with Henry VII. did not turn out well for the King of France; he had to ask for peace, and then he sent Perkin out of his kingdom.

Some of them suggested to him

As he was obliged to leave France, Perkin, who still hoped to make people believe that he was the Duke of York, went to the Netherlands. The Duchess of Burgundy was an English lady, the sister of Edward IV. She hated Henry VII., and was eager to do something to harm him. So she invited Perkin to her court, and pretended to believe that he was her nephew. He was very kindly treated there, and many English who were discontented with Henry VII. gathered round the Duchess

of Burgundy. Living at her court gave Perkin a chance to learn how to behave as a prince, and the Duchess helped him as much as she could to act his part properly. The Emperor of Germany also befriended Perkin, but only that he might do harm to Henry VII.

Perkin was anxious to get as many friends as possible, and wrote to Isabella, Queen of Spain, to ask for her help. He told her the story which had been invented about his life; he said that the man who had been bidden to murder him had been filled with pity, and had sent him abroad after he had made him promise to tell no one who he was for some years. He had led a miserable wandering life, but at last had been joyfully received by the Irish. He promised that if Isabella would help him to become King of England, he would be a firm friend to Spain for ever after. Isabella, however, was not willing to do anything for him.

Perkin stayed in the Netherlands for about two years and a half, and then at last, with the help of the Duchess of Burgundy and the Emperor, he got together a number of men, needy adventurers of all kinds, robbers, thieves, and vagabonds from all nations, with whose help he decided to invade England. He sailed across the Channel with his fleet to the coast of Kent, and there some of his troops landed. There were no soldiers to resist them, but the country people rose in arms and attacked them with such vigour that many were slain and others taken prisoners. The country people thought little of Perkin: "As for this fellow," they said, "he may go back to his father and mother who live in France and are well known there."

Perkin certainly did not behave as if he had any noble blood in him. He took good care not to land himself, and when he saw how badly his men fared he sailed away and left them to their fates.

: After this miserable business Perkin went to Ireland, but he did not succeed any better there, and then he went to Scotland. James IV., King of the Scots, was quite ready to receive him with open arms, for he hoped by helping him to do a great deal of harm to Henry VII. Festivities were held at Stirling in honour of the meeting between James and Perkin. Later on there was a gathering of Scottish lords at Perth to see Perkin and perhaps to arrange for an expedition into England. James showed him so much favour that he even gave him a kinswoman of his own as wife. For nearly two years Perkin waited in Scotland, and then James gathered an army together to go into England and set Perkin on the throne. They hoped that as soon as they crossed the border all the old friends of the House of York would flock to help their supposed king. But no one came. The Scots were disappointed and angry, and to revenge themselves they ravaged the country, burning towns, robbing houses, and killing men, women, and children, and then were glad to go home. After this James IV. did not care to do anything more for Perkin, though he did not turn him out of Scotland for nearly a year, and always continued to speak of him as the Duke of York.

When Perkin left Scotland he went to Ireland, and from thence sailed to England, and landed in Cornwall, where he knew that the people were very discontented on account of