oners had been confined was Pomfret Castle.[M]
On receiving the orders from Richard, Ratcliffe led them out to an
open place without the castle wall to be beheaded. The executioners
brought a log and an axe, and the victims were slaughtered one after
another, without any ceremony, and without being allowed to say a word
in self-defense.

[Footnote M: Called sometimes Pontefract.]

The whole country was shocked at hearing of these sudden and terrible
executions; but the power was in Richard's hands, and there was no one
capable of resisting him. The death of the leaders of what would have
been the young king's party struck terror into the rest, and Richard
now had every thing in his own hands, or, rather, _almost_ every
thing; for the queen and her family, being still in the sanctuary,
were beyond his reach. He, however, had nothing to fear from her
personally, and there were none of the children that gave him any
concern except the Duke of York, the king's younger brother. He, you
will recollect, was with his mother at Westminster when the king was
seized, and she had taken him with the other children to the Abbey.
Richard was now extremely desirous of getting possession of this boy.

The reason why he deemed it so essential to get possession of him was
this. The child was, it is true, of little consequence while his
brother the king lived; but if the king were put out of the way, then
the thoughts and the hearts of all the loyal people of England,
Richard knew very well, would be turned toward York as the rightful
successor. But if they could both be put out of the way, and if the
people of England could be induced to consider Clarence's children as
set aside by the attainder of their father, then he himself would come
forward as the true and rightful heir to the crown. It is true that it
was a part of his plan, as has already been said, to declare the
marriage of Elizabeth Woodville with the king null, and thus cut off
both these children of Edward from their right of inheritance; but he
knew very well that even if a majority of the people of England were
to assent to this, there would certainly be a minority that would
refuse their assent, and would adhere to the cause of the children,
and they, if the children should fall into their hands, might, at some
future time, make themselves very formidable to him, and threaten very
seriously the permanence of his dominion. It was quite necessary,
therefore, he thought, t