How successful was Richard III in achieving his aims as King?
To score highly in an essay like this, it is extremely important that you try to take ownership of the
question, and that you define what Richard’s aims were, and most importantly what exactly would
constitute success. You need to mention these briefly in your introduction (e.g. define what his aims
were, and what would constitute success), but you will be able to look at them in more detail in the
opening sections of your paragraphs.
What sort of things should you look at?
There are a great deal of things that you could address, however the important thing is that you do
not look at too much, as this will reduce the amount of analysis and judgement that you can bring in
(remember that the essay is asking you to judge his success in achieving his aims, rather than just list
his policies). I would suggest that you focus on 3 broad aims (although you can look at others if you
wish)




His attempts to remove the threat of the nobility (which would in turn increase his stability
and allow him to achieve his overall aim of establishing his dynasty and remaining King).
His attempts to bring in reforming legislation aimed at improving the lives of the common
man.
His attempts to win support from the people of England
You could also look at his attempts to get Henry Tudor back, although don’t think that this is
essential.
How to structure each paragraph
Start by thinking about what his aim was
“Richard’s most important objective as a monarch was to secure his dynasty, which he hoped to
achieve by careful management of the nobles. Richard’s aim was to reduce the threat of nobility by
eroding their power and privileges, whilst at the same time win the support of the most powerful
nobles, whose support would help provide stability.”
Having identified his aims, you can now start to bring in some historical content (along with
appropriate judgement)
“Administrative reforms such as the Council of the North were a definite attempt to reduce the
power of the nobles, and the Council of the North certainly reduced the power of Northumberland,
as he lost the control that he had previously been able to exert over the north. Similarly, Richard’s
judicial reforms such as the introduction of the Court of Requests continued to reduce the power of
potentially dangerous nobles as they found it increasingly difficult to subvert law and order for their
own gains”.
Now start to look at how successful he was in the second of his noble aims
“Although successful in his aim in reducing the power of the nobility, this came at a price. With
certain nobles feeling that Richard was pursuing an anti noble policy, Richard found it difficult to gain
the support of key nobles particularly Northumberland who felt isolated by the introduction of the
council of the North. This problem was further compounded by Richard’s poor policy with regards to
patronage. By continuing to give significant patronage to Northumberland and Stanley, who were
the main recipients of Buckingham’s attainted lands; Richard began to ignore his loyal supporters.
Although Norfolk was rewarded for his loyalty, the patronage given to Northumberland and Stanley
was given in the hope of winning their support, rather as reward for good service.”
Give an overall evaluation in which you consider the situation at Bosworth
Whilst Richard did succeed in reducing the power of the nobility, his failure to win the support of the
key nobles meant he failed in his principle aim of harnessing their power to safeguard his position.
This is particularly well demonstrated by the events at Bosworth; of the 40 nobles of the realm, just
10 supported Richard. Of these, just 3 were above the rank of a Marquis. More significantly his trust
in Stanley and Northumberland proved misplaced, as Stanley turned against him, and
Northumberland refused to commit his troops. Although he had moderate success in achieving his
policy aims with regards to the nobility, this if anything made it impossible to achieve his major aim
with regards to the nobility; a loyal group of magnates