by John M. Ford
John Morton is an amazing example of the political survivor. He served in Henry VI's court until Edward IV took the throne, was exiled to France with Henry and Margaret of Anjou, returned for their Readeption, and at the end of that year stayed on as one of Edward's diplomatic corps. Richard III had him arrested along with Lord Hastings (possibly over a bowl of strawberries from Holborn) and given to the Duke of Buckingham for safekeeping; but he helped persuade Buckingham to try and seize the throne himself, and in the confusion escaped to France.
He returned again in the train of Henry Tudor, and spent no more time in exile or prison. Henry VII made him Archbishop of Canterbury, then Lord Chancellor (does one hear the sigh of Beck- et's ghost?). He would be created a cardinal, and finally Chancellor of Oxford University. In his latter years he wrote a history of Richard III, which was translated from Latin by a young man in Morton's household. The young man was Thomas More, and the argument about whether Morton told him anything true will probably never end.
Morton died in 1500 C.E., at about the age of eighty, leaving behind a form of legal extortion known as "Morton's Fork" (though it was probably invented by his assistant Richard Fox) and a number of dead kings of all persuasions.
As was said in the prolegomena, this book does not attempt to provide a "solution" to the "problem" of Richard III. Even when such problems are not wholly synthetic, the solutions fall into the abyss of all deductive reasoning, namely that one cannot deduce from data facts that are not inherent in the data. In the supposedly crucial "Mystery of the Princes," we have various pieces of evidence—Dominic Mancini's account, James Tyrell's confession, Thomas More's history, et alia—and various reasons to consider each reliable or unreliable (not the same as "true or false"). And we have opinions, because we cannot reason without theses and hypotheses... and ultimately it is the opinions that determine what evidences we use to form a judgment.
There have always been those who portrayed Richard as a good man and king, and until lately this usually meant clearing him of his nephews' deaths, sometimes by the most remarkable chains of reasoning. Today we are less particular. We have assimilated Ma- chiavelli. We have even come to admire a little ruthlessness in our leaders, especially a theatrical ruthlessness; power, after all, exists to be used.
Richard Plantagenet, Duke of Gloucester, King of England, was killed in battle 22 August 1485 at a place called Redmoor Plain, near the village of Market Bosworth. Until recently, many historians dated the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the Renaissance from Richard's death, as if he were personally standing in the way of History.
Our revels now are ended, the airy constructions fading. Only the music remains, as it always remains, waiting for another improvisation of life.
About the Author
John Milo "Mike" Ford (April 10, 1957 – September 25, 2006) was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet. Ford was regarded (and obituaries, tributes and memories describe him) as an extraordinarily intelligent, erudite and witty man. He was a popular contributor to several online discussions. He composed poems, often improvised, in both complicated forms and blank verse, notably Shakespearean pastiche; he also wrote pastiches and parodies of many other authors and styles.
He is winner of the Philip K. Dick Award and two World Fantasy Awards, including one for THE DRAGON WAITING.
