Morbid - The Princes In The Tower Mini Morbid

Episode Date: August 25, 2019

It's a historical mini! This week's tiny Morbid is a good old fashioned mystery/whodunit. After a long journey through the hellfire that was Dennis Rader, I think we can all use something lighter and ...possible politically charged murder is just the ticket. The Princes in the Tower takes us back to Tudor England when there was a real life game of thrones happening and sometimes things and often people got in the way of throne succession. Sources: https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/The-Princes-in-the-Tower/ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/princes-tower-will-ultimate-cold-case-finally-be-solved-after-more-500-years-10466190.html This week's sponsor is Care/Of! Head over to TakeCareOf.com and use our code MORBID for 25% off your first Care/Of order.  Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash KelleyListener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra LallyListener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 Hey weirdos, I'm Elena and I'm Ash. And this is a little teeny mini morbid. What? It actually might be a mini morbid. Oh shit, are you changing the game? I might change up the game. I don't know. Shit.
Starting point is 00:00:33 You know why BTK took a lot out of you. It drained a lot of my resources. It drained a lot of my reactions because all I had left to say toward the end was like, what a fucking loser. It just, it drained. That was a draining case. I agree. It really is. So this is going to probably be an actual mini morbid.
Starting point is 00:00:53 I'm stoked. We're not doing, it's like not your typical one. This is going to be like a little different. We're going like historical. Ooh. Which is kind of fun. It's only as many and I don't know what it is yet. It's true.
Starting point is 00:01:06 Today we're going to be talking about the unsolved mystery of what happened to the princes in the tower. I don't even know who they were to begin with. It's going to be fun. It's funny because. I said to John today that I was like, you know what, after BTK, I needed to do something a little light and fluffy. And he was like, so the unsolved mystery of what happened to two young boys who died in a tower alone is light and fluffy to you. And I was like, yeah. Has he listened to this podcast?
Starting point is 00:01:35 I was like, my barometer has changed, John. But before we get into the mini, we just want to cover a couple of little things. First, we still have tickets available for our live show November 19th, 2019. Our second one. Our second one show. So we'll be all seasoned and whatnot. Exactly, because our October 30th one is sold out. So go ahead and get your tickets for the November 19th show.
Starting point is 00:02:02 It is at AS 220 main stage in Providence, Rhode Island. It's going to be awesome. We're going to come hang out with everybody after the show like we're going to do with the October 30th one. Hell yeah. It's going to be worth it. So go get your tickets. You can get them at Event Bright and just look for morbid A True Crime Podcast Live. Or look at our Instagram and click on the link in the bio. Go get them. They're 20 bucks. Super cheap.
Starting point is 00:02:27 And after you buy your tickets to the live show, you should probably head over to murder apparel to get a show. Nope. To get a shirt to wear to the live show. Do it. There are so many fucking cool shirts. We have two featured on their site and you can use our code morbid, M-O-R-B-I-D for 25% off. 25% guys. What did I name the zombie on the last shirt?
Starting point is 00:02:51 We named him Murray. Murray, yeah, Murray the Morbid Murray. Morbid Murray, that's what his name is. Yeah, Murray the shirt where Mervid, Mervid, Mervid, Mourbid, Mourbid, Mourbid, Mourbid, Moury. Get that shirt. Go get that shirt. I have had a long day.
Starting point is 00:03:10 It's been a long week, guys. Oh, shit. So yeah, go do that. Motor Apparel is rad. Besides our shirts, they have an amazing array of true crime slash horror slash spooky great shirts. I think I literally have them all at this point. So do it. So be like me and do it.
Starting point is 00:03:26 Now let's dive into The Princes in the Tower. Hit me up. I've never heard of this story before. All right. So it's a mystery. I love a good mystery. It's a mystery. It's a who done it.
Starting point is 00:03:38 It's great. It's just a lot of fun. This theories. Okay. I have two main theories. I'm leaning towards one, and I'll tell you when it comes. I love to make a final decision. I love it.
Starting point is 00:03:50 That's like my favorite part of the episode. So the princes in the tower are what they are best known by, but strangely enough, that was not their collective given names. Why? They were not named the princes in the tower. Both of them didn't share that name. No, they did not. Weird.
Starting point is 00:04:06 The older one's name was Edward, Prince of Wales, and his younger brother. brother was Richard, the Duke of York. Edward and Richard. They were the two princes in the tower. Edward was 12 years old, and Richard was about nine or ten. Eddie and Dick. So they were little guys. Aw.
Starting point is 00:04:24 And that is the ages when their lives changed forever. So the prince's father was King Edward the 4th, and their mother was Queen Elizabeth Woodville. King Edward the 4th died suddenly of an unexpected illness on April 9th, 14, 18th. at the age of 40. Jeez, Louise. Yes. So it was really unexpected.
Starting point is 00:04:45 Well, actually, that's pretty old back in the day. I know. Right, actually. He was like elderly. Yeah. He was geriatric. Yeah, it was totally fine. Now, before his death, he was actually king twice for two different rains.
Starting point is 00:04:59 I was like, how does that work? How does that happen? His first reign as king was from 1461 until the October of 1470. And then again, from April 1471, until his death in 1483. Okay. In between, there was like a shit ton of infighting. People like just trying to snatch that throne from each other.
Starting point is 00:05:20 It was Game of Thrones. Love it. Literally. I'm here for it. He had a super significant claim to the throne, though, because both of his parents were descended from Edward III. You got to keep that bloodline close. You got to keep the Edwards and the Elizabeth.
Starting point is 00:05:33 So your mama and your dad has to come back from the same royal blood. You know, you got to share that shit. his reign was actually pretty dramatic. He didn't just get the throne, even though he had such a good claim to it. His father was Richard Duke of York, and he attempted to take the throne from Henry the 4th during his illness, but he was killed in battle. Okay. So Edward, 18 at the time, was like, I'm going to avenge my father's murder.
Starting point is 00:06:03 And he was crowned king after overthrowing the king's forces and sending Henry the 4th. to exile. So he was just like, here I am, bitches, I'm king. Okay. Yeah. He's also known for restoring like a little bit of chill to the country to England when they really needed it the most because he took the throne after the infamous war of the roses, which a lot of people might have at least heard of.
Starting point is 00:06:29 That was a pretty terrible and bloody series of battles between the House of York and the House of Lancaster. Again, this is like straight up game. Wait, Lancaster, like, hello? Like, almost Lannister. Oh. Fuck me. I was like, I know you think that's the exact one.
Starting point is 00:06:50 But. Lancaster. Close. Wow. He is close. It sounds good. I'm embarrassed. And so it was between these two houses, House of York, House of Lancaster.
Starting point is 00:07:01 It was a constant struggle for control of the throne of England. And it was 30 years of bloodshed. That's a lot of bloodshed. It's a lot of years of just spread in blood. One might say that's all the bloodshed. Yeah, it's a lot of shedding of blood. But finally, House of York became the controlling entity. So they were like, we got this now.
Starting point is 00:07:24 Now, obviously, leadership was shaken, and the throne suggests succession was like a tricky matter now because it was a lot of, you know, there was a little shit behind this. Yeah. And it remained a tricky matter through Edwards' death and the attempted succession of his son, Edward V. Edward V, is one of the princes in the tower.
Starting point is 00:07:44 Okay. So, attempting to clear the way to succession, Edward VIII had declared on his deathbed before succumbing to that mystery illness that he died of. He said, I want my eldest son, Edward V, to be king, and his second son, Richard, was to be second in line. He just wanted to make sure this was clear. I'm just making sure nobody else can come yonk this out of there.
Starting point is 00:08:11 Yolink. And now that seems simple, right? He's the king. He's dying. He's declaring his rightful heir. Right. He's just making sure. But he died and then they were like, nah.
Starting point is 00:08:23 Well, the issue here was that the boys were 12 and like 9. You can't be king of 12. So as weird as monarchies are about like everything. And like when it comes to ruling, this was a problem. You can't rule as a problem. minor. It's like when Tomon became king, but he wasn't really king. Same thing, exactly. So Edward the fourth declared his brother Richard III, the royal lord protector of the realm, which is some real Game of Thrones shit, and I love it. There's a lot of realms. Basically, what a lord protector
Starting point is 00:08:57 of the realm is, they're basically regents that are taking the place of the monarch while they're unable to rule by, you know, illness, you know, some other kind of thing, or if there's still a minor and they can't rule by themselves. The Lord Protector of the Realm will take over, like, government duties. Got it. So, little Edward V, one of the princes. Yes. His Uncle Richard III was Lord Protector of the Realm.
Starting point is 00:09:25 Okay. Okay. So he's acting as king, kind of. So Richard, like, Richard III, the uncle there. is likely feeling pretty powerful at this point. Oh, yeah. He gets to act as king. He's essentially the king.
Starting point is 00:09:38 Yeah. Without the title. Yeah, he's feeling the power. He knows this kid is 12. He's got a little ways to go before he actually becomes king. Oh, what does this dick do? Well, right after King Edward IV's death, his brother, his brother, you know, Richard III, Lord Protector of the Realm,
Starting point is 00:09:53 he stays that way. And he had Edward V and Richard, his little brother, locked in a tower. move to the Tower of London. Okay. Now, at the time, this was not a bad place to be. He wasn't locking them in a tower or anything like that. I'm jumping ahead of the game.
Starting point is 00:10:10 Like, he's locking him in the goddamn tower. I'm like, I know it. This is some shit. Now, to sum, the Tower of London is best known as a prison. Because after all, it was, it really was a prison for, I think, over like 800 years. During the Tudor time, you were, quote, sent to the tower before your execution. especially if you were like a threat to the kingdom or did something otherwise terrible. In fact, notable prisoners that were sent to the tower before their executions were Jane Gray,
Starting point is 00:10:40 Anne Boleyn, and Guy Fawkes. Oh, shit. Now, the time when it was used as like the most gnarly kind of prison was between 1540 and 1640. And during this period, there was something like 48 recorded cases of, torture used in there. So they weren't just sticking them in a tower and being like, all right, you got to wait your execution. They were also torturing the fuck out of them.
Starting point is 00:11:06 That's really fucked up. Now, the three most, I think the three forms of torture that were recorded used in the tower were the scavenger's daughter, the rack, and the manacles. Okay, so we know about the rack. So the scavenger's daughter, when I saw that, I was like, what the fuck is that? We didn't cover that in our torture episode. Sure didn't. It was basically the opposite of the rack.
Starting point is 00:11:28 because it was supposed to compress your body. Ugh. It was this weird triangular frame where the victim's head would be in the top point. And the victim's arms and legs would be at the other points in the bottom. So the arms would be in the middle. The bottom points were where your legs were spread. The tool would then be folded so that the victim's body was forced into this weird, compressed, in unnatural position with their heads slammed into their upper thighs, basically.
Starting point is 00:11:57 And it would force blood out of all the facial orifices. I believe that. So it's a lot of fun. Back to the show. Woo. The manacles were essentially shackles. So they could just be used along with any number of torture devices. So they weren't like really special.
Starting point is 00:12:14 It was just like, add this to blank for a fun time. For a fun. Add a dash of manacles for fun. So yeah. It was a bad history within it. But at the time that they were, the two princes were sent to the Tower of London, it was mainly used as a fortress and a palace. So it was pretty like luxurious.
Starting point is 00:12:36 It was for royal. Right. It was so secure that often royal families held their most precious possessions there. Such as their children. Such as their children. And they would also hunker themselves down for safekeeping during times of like uprising and war in there. It was fancy, it was luxurious, and it was super secure. Okay.
Starting point is 00:12:56 Like really secure. So it was also a place where the kings of England would stay for a few nights before their coronation. Mm-hmm. So it had this nice, noble, like, symbolic history as well. So sending two young future kings there after their father's untimely death was not weird or crazy at the time. Right. So this is all well and fine, except shit went down after this. Well, it had to have because you're listening to Morbid podcast.
Starting point is 00:13:21 Of course. It's not like, and then they went to the Tower of London and they had a great time. And then they became king. Yeah, nope. So apparently, a member of the clergy claimed that he had some shit that said that the marriage of Edward VIII and Queen Elizabeth Woodville was not valid. I knew it. I love how I was like, not valid. That's exactly what I was going to say.
Starting point is 00:13:44 Not valid. This would mean that the parents of these two princes were not legally married and therefore they were bastards. They had zero legitimate claim to the throne. Oh, shit. Now, interestingly enough, this would make it so Richard the third, their uncle had a clear pathway to the legitimate claim for the throne. Oh, what a thunk it. I wonder who paid that clergyman to say that. Because of this debacle, Richard was like, don't mind a Fadu!
Starting point is 00:14:13 And he took that crown over a few weeks later. He was like, yep, that's mine now. Oh, wow. So this changed things. Monarchs really are fucked. They really are. So this changed a lot of shit. So the princes were initially sent there being cared for, being treated as royalty, staying in nice, luxurious accommodations.
Starting point is 00:14:34 But now they were held as prisoners in the Tower of London. But that's not their fault. 12 years old and 9 years old. That like their parents weren't legitimate, quote unquote. But that was never proven that they weren't legitimate. I think it was bullshit. Yeah, I mean, it sounds like bullshit. Now, according to reports, Prince Edward, the 5th, the older brother,
Starting point is 00:14:54 was especially depressed and, like, lonely and... And he missed his parents. Yeah, and he wasn't in... And he was like completely... They said at one point it seemed like he was completely resolved to the fact that he was probably going to die. Like, they were literally... Like, because they grew up in this time, you know, where, like, they knew what happened when you were illegitimate and you were... And they also knew what happened when you were a young king waiting to take the throne, that you were in a really bad position.
Starting point is 00:15:24 and probably... You weren't going to make it to the throne. And Edward became like really resolved to the fact that they were just never leaving this tower. Because now they were locked in there. Right. Like people said like they were a lot outside or anything. They were behind bars. Like they were literally prisoners.
Starting point is 00:15:40 Oh God. And of course this is a mystery. Like no one knows what the fuck happened to them. Because suddenly they just disappeared. Mm-hmm. In 1485, only two years after Richard III had just snatched that throne. from his nephews. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:15:56 Henry Tudor came back with a full-blown army and was just knock, knock, knock on Richard's door to take that throne again. Knock, knock, knocking on Richard's door. Thank you so much because in my head I was singing that and I really needed you to do that. I'm really glad we were on the same way like there. People either really fucking hate when I sing or they really love it. But you know what? I really love it.
Starting point is 00:16:23 You know what, to all of you, you're welcome. Every single one of you. Everybody. So Henry Tudor came back and he's like, oh, hey, I have an army. I'm going to fight you now. I'm going to fuck, yo shit. So Richard only had two years of being king before Henry Tudor was like, no bitch. No, no.
Starting point is 00:16:47 So the battle that ensued out of this was called the Battle of Bosworth Field. and Richard the third was killed in the fight. Bummer. Henry Tudor was like, cool thanks, bro. And he became... They killed the king, that's fucking wild. Yeah, he was killed in the battle. Because I think he fought alongside.
Starting point is 00:17:04 That's not really. Do kings die a lot in battle? I feel like they're not normally in battle. I mean, I don't know. I don't know anything. I don't really know. But I don't know anything. But so Henry the Tudor, Henry of the Tudor.
Starting point is 00:17:16 Henry of the Tudor. Henry of the Tudor. Henry Tudor was like, cool thanks, bro and he became King Henry the 7th of everywhere. Like he just stepped over Richard the third and was like yeah I'll take that. He like took the crown off of his head and like put it on his own. And put it on
Starting point is 00:17:31 and like struck a pose and was like oh hip hop. Apparently even he didn't initially acknowledge the two missing princes. So he became king. Because he was like I don't give a fuck and that's just going to make things messy. Yeah like but he wasn't even like oh yeah they're gone everybody. Don't worry about it. He just didn't acknowledge it. He was like
Starting point is 00:17:51 Like which ones? So it was, I think, he did finally acknowledge it that they had, but he said they had been murdered. Like he officially was like, they were murdered. Believe that. He did that in July 1486, which was a year after Richard's death. Oh. So a year after he killed Richard III, the boy's uncles, King Henry the 7th was like, I think those boys were murdered. And before that, he had said nothing about them being even missing.
Starting point is 00:18:21 But obviously rumas was spreading around the castle Of course So everyone was just like Well that's weird Guess we just Is it though? I don't think so And I think they're all just like
Starting point is 00:18:33 Guess we'll just keep raining and killing And being royal And doing our thing for another couple of centuries And not look into that Like they just didn't look into it It was like back then Yeah You know back then
Starting point is 00:18:45 You know kids We lost a couple that sucks So one And it's like No one's like I wonder where those literal children went. Like, no one is worried. They were like orphans, so like nobody cares anymore.
Starting point is 00:18:59 Yeah, that's so sad. Which is horrific. So, in one of them, it's like one of them was supposed to be the king of England, everybody. Right. This is kind of a big deal. Kind of strange. I don't know. Kind of a big deal.
Starting point is 00:19:10 We should kind of look into this. The ghost of little Edward is like, oh, excuse me. I'm kind of a big deal. Kind of a huge fucking deal around here. I was supposed to be. No. And they're like, who are you? So in 1674, when Charles II had come into power at this point, because this was like 200 years later.
Starting point is 00:19:29 I was like, who? You know, Charles II just came out of nowhere. 200 years later. Poof, another kidding. They started doing renovations on the Tower of London. These construction dudes that were working, they're just doing their thing. They come across. An ass ton of skeletons.
Starting point is 00:19:46 Two tiny skeletons. Okay. Yeah, there you have. So a little less than an ass ton. Two. Well, I figured a lot of people. People died there. Two, to be specific.
Starting point is 00:19:55 They were clearly the skeletons of two children. Okay. These remains were stuffed under a staircase. Okay. Yeah. Like they weren't properly buried or found in state. They were hidden. Oh, that's really sad.
Starting point is 00:20:08 Now, there was also said to be pieces of velvet that were near and on their bones, like adhesed onto their bones. And at the time, it was not just anyone who was wearing velvet. Yeah. Only fancy people, literally royalty, wore that fabric. So right away they were like, these are not just two random kids. Right. So obviously at the time, people were like, holy shit, these are the two missing princes.
Starting point is 00:20:34 But weirdly, in 1674, they didn't have forensic technology to determine that for sure. What a bunch of bullshit. They were really just like, what were they doing? Slacking. Doing nothing. Chilling. Just killing little kids to get the throne. Fucking being dicks.
Starting point is 00:20:49 Yeah. You know. So basically they had a guy who was like, yeah, it seems legit. I wish I had said, for the last part, I wish I had said, jousting. Josting. I like it. It's still good. Okay.
Starting point is 00:21:02 So under that assumption that these are the two missing princes, the skeletons were buried properly in an urn together. Oh, I'm glad. Their not quite final resting place was now the Henry the 7th chapel in the abbey. That's where they laid for quite a long time. In the downtown Abbey? You know. Kidding.
Starting point is 00:21:23 But in 1933, so we're skipping head. 1933? Whoa. Yes. That was so far ahead. You just like yelled. Did I? What?
Starting point is 00:21:36 Shut up. I was like, whoa. Yes. Sorry. You were like, you know, in the 1600s. And then in 1930s. Like, I feel like you just went. back to a past life where you were like brutally murdered in 1933 because you were like 1933.
Starting point is 00:21:54 No. Not that year. Well, I wasn't going to tell you, but 1933 was a rough time in my life. Well, yes, 1933. Okay. These skeletons were exhumed from Westminster Abbey. Why? And they were examined by Lawrence E. Tannery and William Wright.
Starting point is 00:22:13 So Tannery was the librarian of Westminster Abbey, and he's like, a historian, he's very knowledgeable about the shit. Wright was an extremely respected anatomist and president of the anatomical society of Great Britain and Ireland. So that'll do it. So they have some, they have some cred. Yeah. They were both assisted by Dr. George Northcroft, who is a pretty respected dental
Starting point is 00:22:38 surgeon who specialized in pediatric dentistry. Okay. Because they wanted to take a look at these bones, see what the fuck's going on. So, do they, no, there was no. teeth anymore, was there? I believe there was some teeth. What? So, when they observed the bones, they said they were consistent for the ages
Starting point is 00:22:55 of the princes when they went missing. And there was also evidence of damage to the nasal bone of at least one of the skulls. And a brown stain on the face of one of the skulls that they said the stain could be blood that was due from
Starting point is 00:23:11 suffocation. Because they think that basically if they were murdered, they were suffocated. Because if you were going to kill two little kids in the Tower of London, you were just going to suffocate them. It was just the way it was going to happen. You didn't really have another, like, according to everything I read, they were like, that's just what they were like, suffocation would be the number one thing.
Starting point is 00:23:33 And basically the damage to their nasal bones was consistent with somebody pressing against their face with either something or their hands. And then how does the blood happen? Well, the blood happens because you're pressing against their face and suffocating them and blood will shoot out of your nose and mouth sometimes when you've been suffocated. I had no idea. Yeah, especially if they're pressing on their nose, they're breaking their nose and that will bleed. That makes sense.
Starting point is 00:23:59 So now that we have, they're consistent for the ages of the two boys, it looks like there might be a stain that is consistent with blood that's consistent with suffocation and this damage to nasal bones. So as far as they were concerned, they were going to call them Edward and Richard. This is them. Now, they were put, and I'll tell you more about it afterwards, but they were re-interred, like, so they could be buried again, like, respectfully. But now that they think they know that these are the two skeletons,
Starting point is 00:24:32 there's some suspects slash theories that you have to talk about. Hit me up. I love a good theory. Hell, yes. So the first suspect is Uncle Rich. Well, first of all, I watched this awesome, show called Medieval Murders. Sounds fucking lit. You can find it
Starting point is 00:24:50 on YouTube, especially for this case. And it was fascinating. I bet. I like really, it was really funny to watch. And horrible, I'm sure. Totally. But what I meant was fun to watch. I don't know why I said funny. I had a feeling. Wasn't that funny. I just knew people were going to, like,
Starting point is 00:25:05 curb stomp you. Yeah, like, it wasn't fun that it was, like, two kids getting murdered. That show's hilarious. But it was fun to see, like, one, all these different, like, historians, forensic scientists. They have pathologists. They have criminal psychologists.
Starting point is 00:25:20 And they're going so far back into like tutor history and stuff and like just trying to piece it all together. It's like this cool mystery thing. It's really cool. You should go listen to it. So the first theory is that it was Richard the third, their uncle. Right. He needed those two boys out of the picture in order to have a significant claim to the throne and become king. Uh-huh.
Starting point is 00:25:42 He was Lord Protector for Edward until he was old enough to become king. and rule alone. So he was never going to become king. It was just clear that it wasn't going to happen. Right. This kid was going to be king technically until he was old enough, and then he was going to be king until forever. Right.
Starting point is 00:25:59 And after him, his little brother had the next claim to the throne, so Richard was out. So apparently he was just a complete asshole as a king to boot. Oh, I believe it. Yeah, he wasn't a good king, even for those two years. He just demolished people in his way. Like he was just one of those people. He actually had a close supporter of his brother
Starting point is 00:26:19 and someone who had aided him in his own accession to the throne. Lord Hastings murdered. He also allegedly had Elizabeth Woodville's brother murdered to ensure he was not a problem to get into the throne. So he was not above this shit. No. And this dude grew up around a lot of, you know, war and bloodshed and murder and execution.
Starting point is 00:26:43 So this was just like a typical Saturday. So this makes sense that this is how he would see the world. I have to take out people who are in my way of something I want. This is also a bummer because Richard III was Edward the 4th, so the two princes father who died. It was his like favorite and closest brother. That's why he named him Lord Protector of the Realm because he truly trusted him. That would be like if I named you Lord Protector of the Realm and you killed my kids. And then I just went and killed your kids and took the third.
Starting point is 00:27:14 Wow, you bitch. That would suck. I'd be so angry at you. You fucking pissed. I'm, ugh. Like, poor Edward IV is like, fuck. I made a bad choice. Like, shit.
Starting point is 00:27:25 I'm dead, but like, come on. But that sucks. But so is everybody else. Well, apparently the two of them were like super close during their lives. And one of Edward the fourth's first act as King of England was to promptly have Richard the Third knighted. Oh, wow. Like, that was one of his first acts was like, knight my brother.
Starting point is 00:27:43 I would knight you. I would not you. Thank you. And then I wouldn't kill your kids. I wouldn't kill your kids ever. He also had a trusted. So Richard III also, once he had the two princes in the Tower of London and all that good stuff, he had a trusted bro, Sir James Tyrell.
Starting point is 00:28:00 Shit. Kind of like the Tyrells in Game of Thrones. We loved the Tyrells. We did love them. Marjorie. And he was actually his master of horse, which I guess is a big deal. Okay. Doesn't sound like a big deal to me.
Starting point is 00:28:14 But I guess it is. Tirel. People think that this was the guy who did the deed for him. Oh, no. Because he wasn't going to do it with his own hands, that's for sure. And in fact, Tirel is said to have confessed to it in 1502. And he did that when he was being tortured under King Henry the 7th for treason. So, I mean, take it with a grand assault because the other suspect is Henry the 7th.
Starting point is 00:28:44 Why is he the other suspect? So Henry the 7th is the second guy that I think might have done it. He's another guy who needed a better claim to the throne. Okay. His claim was weak and shitty and the princes was way stronger, barring that whole illegitimate marriage thing because that was probably fake. Right. So because he defeated and killed Richard III in that Bosworth battle,
Starting point is 00:29:08 but that would have allowed the princes technically to be the next in line still. Right. So he still needed them gone to become king. He could try to snatch it, but his claim just wasn't. And you need a legit claim. It's like your shit is so weak if you don't have a legit claim. And those kids could be like, no. My dad was king.
Starting point is 00:29:30 We're literally next in line. Now, remember, Richard III had his brother's kids all illegitimized so that he could snatch that throne. Wow, that's so rude. Like as soon as that clergyman was like, I don't think they're marriage was valid. He was like, cool, I'm the acting region right now, so I'm going to illegitimize all my brother's kids so that none of them can claim the throne. And then I get the throne. That's how he did it. So now apparently when Henry the 7th took the throne after he killed Richard III, he had all of Edward's children legitimized again. Okay. But the princes
Starting point is 00:30:05 were already missing at this point. So it didn't matter. So it didn't do anything. What's nuts here is that Edward V. Fourth had a daughter as well as these two princes. Her name was Elizabeth of York. Uh-huh. She was the surviving child. Uh-huh. Now that the two princes were gone. Henry the 7th married her.
Starting point is 00:30:23 Oh, shit. After he legitimized all of Edward's children again, he married her. Oh, and she was probably like 10. And boom, he was now sitting pretty with a legitimate claim to the throne due to his marriage to King Edward's blood. Wow. So it makes perfect sense that he would have them killed, right? It's crazy. That was my mind being blown.
Starting point is 00:30:43 In medieval murders that show that I'm telling you all to go watch because it's fun. They talked to a criminal's profile named Dr. Kieran O'Keefe and they asked him whether it made sense that a dude like Henry the 7th would even have these children murdered in this way for that purpose. So he agreed that Henry showed signs of a true psychopath during his reign, like he clearly was, and that he would. engage in behavior that would lead him to remove people or obstacles from his way to get something he wants. In fact, he thinks it's more possible that someone of his psychopathy would get rid of
Starting point is 00:31:23 those two princes ahead of time just to place suspicion on Richard to make his path to legitimacy even easier. So what's your idea? Well, I think at first I was like, it's got to be Richard the third. But I'm starting to think that it might have been Henry. Do you? Especially because he married the, he legitimized and then married the remaining daughter. That is weird. And he did that after the princes were already missing. Which doesn't make much sense. But if I have to say who stands to gain the most directly, it'd be Richard. It's Richard the third. Right. So I'm going to say, final answer?
Starting point is 00:32:02 My final answer or your final answer? What's your final answer? My final answer is Richard. I'm going to, you know what? I'm going to say Henry. Yeah, because, of course. Because he's a psychopath. I think he would plan that ahead of time. Yeah, maybe.
Starting point is 00:32:19 I mean, I could see both, but I just think Richard had more to gain. He definitely did, so that could sway me. But I'm going to stick with Henry. Okay. Hashtag team Henry. That's my favorite boy name. There you go. So, just so you know, those two skeletons,
Starting point is 00:32:36 like I said, were reburied in Westminster Abbey and the mystery remains about what happened to the princes in the tower. I liked that case. See, it's light and fluffy. It was like miracle whip. It was just, you know, it was historical fun. Yeah. With, you know, child murder and mystery. I like it. I'm excited to see what pictures you post for this. I know. Actually, what's funny is when I was looking up all the different resources for this case. There's a ton of like oil paintings of the two princes and like all of them are these two little boys that are looking off in like terror at something. At their future.
Starting point is 00:33:19 Or it's them laying in bed together and like two men are coming in to like suffocate them. Awesome. It's very dark. Very dark. I'm into it. And I was like, whoa, tutor history. What up? Yeah, tutor history is rough.
Starting point is 00:33:32 And before we head out, we are going to thank some patrol. Because we didn't thank our patronesses in our third BTK installment, because honestly it would have made the episode like six hours long. And we were tired. So the first Patreon we'd like to thank is Shirley A. Husted. Shirley A. Husted. I bet that's not how you say your last name. You are not busted. You're not.
Starting point is 00:33:59 You're the best. I love you, Shirley. Thank you so much. I love you. Next up is Sula Elizabeth. Ooh, Sula Elizabeth. I just love you. You're just wonderful and I appreciate your donation.
Starting point is 00:34:10 I appreciate it also. Thank you, Sula. Next, I would like to thank Kristen Blackshaw. Kristen Blackshaw. That's like a, you have like a very gothic last name. I like it. Badass last name. Yeah, I like that.
Starting point is 00:34:23 It makes me feel pretty good. Thank you, Kristen. Then we would like to thank Lexie Levin. Lexie Levin or Lexie Levin. Probably Levin. But I like to think of it as, Lexi leave-in conditioner. There you go. I like Lexi Levin as well. I like both. Either way. I like your alliteration. So I appreciate you. And you know what? We like you Lexi. We love you Lexi.
Starting point is 00:34:46 Thanks, girl. Thank you Lexi. Uh, next is Heather Mahoney. Heather Mahoney. You are not baloney. You are great. That's cute. Thank you, Heather. Thank you, Heather. Then I would like to thank. Oh, and I like how you spell your name. Leanna Tim. Ooh, Leanna Tim. That's a pretty name. But it's Lee like the end of my name. Ooh, I love that.
Starting point is 00:35:12 Thanks, Leanna. Oh, Leanna. Thank you. Beautiful name. Love you, girl. Then we can thank Ruth McKinnon. Ruth McKinnon. What up?
Starting point is 00:35:21 What's up, girl? I just love you. What up, Ruth? Ruth. You're a baby Ruth, and that's a good... The second you said that, in my mind, I thought baby Ruth, but at the exact second that you said it. We are on the same wavelength right now.
Starting point is 00:35:35 And it's because of you, Ruth McKinnon. So thank you so much. Thanks, Ruth. Then we have Danielle Griswold. Daniel Griswold. You are a wonderful person, and your last name is from a really funny Christmas movie. It is. So you are just, you're right.
Starting point is 00:35:54 Merry Christmas. So thank you so much, Danielle. Merry Christmas. Happy holidays. Then we have Brin Dibush. Brindy Bush. I just love that. I like it.
Starting point is 00:36:05 I like it a lot. I think that just feels nice. It does. It feels right. It feels right. Thank you, Bryn DeBush. So her first name is Bryn. Brin.
Starting point is 00:36:12 I love that. Brin double N. That's pretty. I really like that. It's beautiful. Thank you, Bryn. Thanks. Our last Patreon that we are going to thank tonight is Jen Fan.
Starting point is 00:36:22 Jen Fan. I am actually helter-sweltering right now and I need a fan. So you came at the right time. Wow, Jen, serving all of our podcast morbid needs. You are. Jen, you're fucking great. Thank you so much. Thank you to everybody that donates to the podcast.
Starting point is 00:36:38 You guys, we wouldn't be able to do this without you. And we appreciate you more than you can ever realize possible. Truly. You can't even realize it. You're beautiful. You're the chesticles. Yes, you are. And if you would like to become the chesticles, you can donate to the morbid Patreon at.
Starting point is 00:36:56 Patreon.com slash morbid podcast. Check out pictures of little children screaming in terror because they're about to die. Follow us on Instagram at. Morbid Podcasts. Send us a Gmail about how horrifying those pictures were and send us your therapy bills. Morbid Podcast at email.com. Tweet about your scarring experience and tweet and tag us in the tweet at. A morbid podcast.
Starting point is 00:37:24 Join the Facebook group and. and have some support at Morvid, colon, a true crime podcast, because that shit is awesome in there. And if you weren't freaked out enough, you could go over to our spooky-ass website that Elena designed at Morvidpodcast.com. We hope you keep listening.
Starting point is 00:37:42 And we hope you... Keep it weird! But not so weird that your two parents die and then you become king, but you're not ready to be king yet, and your uncle's the king. And he's like, ha, ha, ha, you can't be the king. I'm going to be the king. And then everybody's the king.
Starting point is 00:37:52 And then the other king tried to kill your uncle, and then everybody dies. And then you're dead. Yeah. Don't do that. So weird. Game of Thrones. Lancaster. Bye.
Starting point is 00:38:03 Bye.

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