On August 22, 1485 Richard III died at the Battle of Bosworth. But what if this was a Disney story? What would the outcome have been then?
The initial part really depends on whether Richard III was the good or bad guy. What do you think?
Before thinking about the war, it’s worth thinking about whether King Richard III would have been the good or the bad guy. There is one reason to make him the bad guy: his possible involvement in the disappearances of the Princes in the Tower. But what if he had nothing to do with that? What if it was someone like Margaret Beaufort or even Henry Tudor himself (somehow—I’ve not thought everything through yet).
Take out his involvement in the Princes in the Tower and King Richard III could have been the good guy. He stepped up to the throne when there was no-one else. He tried to make peace with his sister-in-law Elizabeth Woodville and gave his niece Elizabeth of York a place at court.
That would make Henry Tudor the villain.
Having fun with Henry VII being the bad guy in a Disney movie.
Maybe Henry wouldn’t quite be the villain. I’m taking some inspiration from Dreamworks' Skrek here and making him a mommy’s boy. Someone who has Margaret Beaufort doing it all for him. After all, she certainly did do a lot for him. Of course, in history she had no choice. Henry had been exiled by the time of the Battle of Bosworth, so she needed to do something to get her son on the throne.
While in France, Henry was gathering an army to bring back to England. I could see him communicating with his mother and she tells him just how to do it. In fact, bring in Jasper Tudor and the two of them are conspiring together to make the Battle of Bosworth happen. The other option is that Margaret as Jasper around her little finger and he does everything that she tells him to.
I'm chuckling to myself as I write this, envisioning Henry Tudor as a spoiled brat who can't do anything for himself. If you've seen Shrek 2, think of Prince Charming and you'll get my idea for him.
Just how would Disney have ended this movie? Would it have had the same outcome?
Finally, we get to the end. The final scene is the big fight. But who will win?
Since this is a Disney movie, it would have to be the good guy. After all, evil must be vanquished. During the war, Henry’s step-father decides to remain loyal to his king—he is a good king after all in this. Henry’s army is defeated and Henry dies on the battlefield. King Richard III is victorious.
Bosworth was the final clash in the Wars of the Roses. It marked the end of the Middle Ages and gave rise to the Tudors.
What about Margaret Beaufort? I don’t think she’d be killed off. Looking back at Cinderella, the ugly stepsisters were never killed off. But she would be left unhappy. Her son is gone and her husband betrayed her by standing up for Richard III. She would be locked away in the Tower, and I’m sure that would open the door for another movie at some point as she plots her revenge. Maybe in that one she meets her demise.
Let's not forget about Richard III's wife.
There is one character that I have forgotten about throughout all this. Anne Neville; the Kingmaker’s daughter. What could possibly happen to her?
Disney has sadness during movies. Characters die to help keep the plot going and to give the eventual hero something worth fighting for. I could see Anne’s death helping him with that. She may even give him her blessing to remarry—even suggesting Elizabeth of York.
That would open up the very final scene being Richard III’s marriage to Elizabeth of York. She finally becomes Queen Consort of England and we see her mother watching her with pride.
Disney movies always have a happy ending, so there is no way that Henry Tudor could have won. He was the usurper after all. Of course, this would depend on whether Richard III had anything to do with the Princes in the Tower or not. If Disney decided not to, then he would have been the good guy—the one with the white hat (the white rose...).
What do you think? What’s your storyline if Disney did the Battle of Bosworth?
Comments
TelestoAug 24, 2014
AlexandriaInghamAug 23, 2014
AS for Anne Neville, I'm in too minds whether she'd die so Elizabeth of York could come into it or whether she'd live. I'd need to find a happy ending for Elizabeth of York...maybe a good marriage was arranged for her and she became queen somewhere else? If you can't tell, Elizabeth of York is one of my favourite people in history.
JoHarringtonAug 22, 2014
Politics and humanitarian issues aside, I was giggling all of the way through your article. Having just been at the Battle of Bosworth reenactment (last weekend), I can picture only too well what this would look like via Disney.
I've got Margaret Beaufort as a tall, thin lady, all in black, with spidery fingers and purple eye-shadow. Henry Tudor all bumbling, idiotic, but still shady. Richard III bursting into song, surrounded by blue tweetie birds on the morning of Bosworth. Lord Stanley would be fat, and constantly in shining armour with the visor up. As for Anne, she's the princess! She can't die! Richard would kiss her or something and she'd come back to life.
And she'd have a lovely dress, all crinoline and sparkling - like was never, ever worn in history by anyone ever - but will look fabulous on a three year old. Just as soon as the Princes in the Tower have finished stitching it together.
AlexandriaInghamAug 22, 2014
LizMac67Aug 22, 2014
frankbeswickAug 22, 2014
AlexandriaInghamAug 22, 2014
I don't really see it as the wrong side winning to be honest. Henry VII and Richard III had their pros and cons.
Thanks for your thoughts, Frank.
frankbeswickAug 22, 2014
Henry's barbarities in Scotland at the Rough Wooing would not have taken place. The barbaric massacres of Northern English at the Pilgrimage of Grace would not have occurred. The Spanish Armada, which was an anti-Tudor move, would not have been launched.
This is not to say that all would have been a bed of roses. It is easy to say what would not have happened, but we cannot say what would.
Why did the wrong side win the battle of Bosworth?