Mary Shelley began work on
Perkin Warbecksoon after completing her third novel,
The Last Man(1826). The novel concerns the historically disputed idea that the Duke of York, younger of the two princes imprisoned (and allegedly murdered) by Richard III, was the same person as the rebel leader Perkin Warbeck. This historical novel, therefore, presents the reader with an extremely detailed and well researched account of the early years of Henry VII (who defeated Richard III’s forces at the battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, thus bringing to an end the Wars of the Roses, 1455-85). Mary Shelley utilises historical accounts of the period (such as Holinshed’s
Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Irelande), but also relies heavily on Shakespeare’s English history plays, plus John Ford’s
3009 words
Citation: Allen, Graham. "Perkin Warbeck". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 September 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=16587, accessed 23 November 2024.]
