Princes in the Tower

The strange 15th Century disappearance of two European royals - 12-year-old Edward V and his 10-year-old brother, Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, lingers as one of the most enigmatic and bizarre incidents of the Middle Ages. In 1483, the two little boys stood in line as heirs to the British throne, but their father's early death preceded official accusations of regal bigamy and the judicial decision that the children were in fact illegitimate sons. As a result, the little boys were promptly removed from sight and placed in the Tower of London - a royal residence that doubled as a prison - never to be seen again. For centuries, historians have speculated about the actual fade of these children. Justin Hardy's historical drama Princes in the Tower recreates these events, providing one possible explanation for their fates. The film then moves ahead in time to 1491, when a teenager turned up, seemingly from out of nowhere, claiming that he was in fact Richard and that he wished to reclaim his birthright and rule the country.