Explain the threats hat Richard III faced during his reign
With the sons of Edward IV debarred from inheriting the throne, Clarence's son, the Earl of Warwick, was next in line, but there was no doubt in anyone's mind who would now be king. On 25 and 26 June, he at first apparently declined, Gloucester was offered the crown, and on 6 July he was crowned King Richard III, with his wife Anne. Shortly after his coronation, Richard left London for a progress, which ended in York with the investiture of his son as Prince of Wales.
In October 1483 Richard suffered a serious setback with the rebellion of the Duke of Buckingham. Buckingham had up until now been the Richard's most loyal supporter, and he had been granted many rewards. This uprising was in the name of Henry Tudor, descended from John of Gaunt through the debarred Beaufort line, but he presented himself as the last of Lancaster and as a focus for rebellion for those disaffected with Richard's reign. It is unlikely Buckingham had any loyalty to Henry Tudor; it was more likely he was hoping to use him to remove Richard and attempt his own usurpation. As a descendent of Thomas of Woodstock, he had arguably a better claim to the throne than Henry, whose was deemed illegitimate
The rebellion stirred up by Buckingham was supposed to create an unstable atmosphere in England so Henry, living in Brittany since 1471, could invade. Richard dealt with this rebellion with his usual efficiency and it was quickly put down. Buckingham was executed in Salisbury market place on 2 December 1483 and Tudor was forced to sail back to Brittany.
On Christmas Day 1483 Henry Tudor promised to marry Elizabeth of York if he became king. Henry now presented a very real threat to Richard's throne. Richard now began to rely more and more on his northern supporters, which came to be resented by his southern subjects. It could have been at this time that he gave the order for the princes to be killed, in an attempt to secure his...