Sign-In
Cart
Edward VI's Lord Chancellor, Richard Rich: Villain or Loyal Servant?
Hardcover
Historical FiguresPresidents & Heads of StateBritish History
Publisher Price: $39.95
PREORDER - Expected ship date October 15, 2026
Please select the version of book you would like to purchase.
ISBN10: 103611242X
ISBN13: 9781036112424
Publisher: Pen and Sword History
Published: Oct 15 2026
Pages: 232
Language: English
ISBN13: 9781036112424
Publisher: Pen and Sword History
Published: Oct 15 2026
Pages: 232
Language: English
Richard Rich shaped Tudor power through ruthless prosecutions, torture, and office gains under multiple monarchs.
Richard Rich is remembered for being one of the biggest villains of the Tudor period. A reputation he certainly seems to have earned, he can be found involved in many of the events in the reign of Henry VIII, including the downfall of Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell. He was one of the torturers of the protestant martyr Anne Askew, and he prosecuted catholic priests for refusing the English bible.
Rising from a lawyer to Lord Chancellor to King Edward VI, Rich's wealth grew as did his status. He eventually owned hundreds of properties in Essex and became very wealthy due to his appointment as Chancellor of the Court of Augmentations. But was he all bad?
Towards the end of his life, Rich established Felsted School, which remains active today. He managed to survive under four Tudor monarchs, some say by betraying his fellows, while others argue that he was simply being a loyal servant to his monarch. Does he truly deserve this pessimistic view, or has history portrayed him as a villain? This book examines Richard Rich's life and involvement in the Tudor court to determine whether he truly was a villain.
Richard Rich is remembered for being one of the biggest villains of the Tudor period. A reputation he certainly seems to have earned, he can be found involved in many of the events in the reign of Henry VIII, including the downfall of Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell. He was one of the torturers of the protestant martyr Anne Askew, and he prosecuted catholic priests for refusing the English bible.
Rising from a lawyer to Lord Chancellor to King Edward VI, Rich's wealth grew as did his status. He eventually owned hundreds of properties in Essex and became very wealthy due to his appointment as Chancellor of the Court of Augmentations. But was he all bad?
Towards the end of his life, Rich established Felsted School, which remains active today. He managed to survive under four Tudor monarchs, some say by betraying his fellows, while others argue that he was simply being a loyal servant to his monarch. Does he truly deserve this pessimistic view, or has history portrayed him as a villain? This book examines Richard Rich's life and involvement in the Tudor court to determine whether he truly was a villain.
Also from
Adkins, Laura
Also in
Historical Figures
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy: A Righteous Gentile vs. the Third Reich
Metaxas, Eric
Paperback
$11.99
The Rise of Thomas Cromwell: Power and Politics in the Reign of Henry VIII, 1485-1534
Everett, Michael
Paperback
$10.99
One Man in: The Explosive Firsthand Account of the Lone Special-Ops Commando Who Fought Off a Major Terrorist Attack in Kenya
Craighead, Christian
Hardcover
$28.50
The Lost Founder: James Wilson and the Forgotten Fight for a People's Constitution
Wegman, Jesse
Hardcover
$27.00
The Lost Empire of Emanuel Nobel: Romanovs, Revolutionaries, and the Forgotten Titan Who Fueled the World
Brunt, Douglas
Hardcover
$28.80
America's Founding Son: John Quincy Adams, from President to Political Maverick
Crawford, Bob
Hardcover
$26.60
A Librarian's War: The Man Who Fought World War II with Books and Brought the Joy of Reading to Millions
Manning, Molly Guptill
Hardcover
$31.49
Solo and Together: Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, an Enigmatic Life and Marriage
Hansen, James R.
Hardcover
$38.00
Operation Sparrow: The Incredible True Story of the Spies Who Tricked Hitler and Won the War
Bell, Jason
Hardcover
$29.69
Thomas Jefferson Survives: American Independence in His Time and Ours
Onuf, Peter S.
Cogliano, Francis D.
Hardcover
$26.99
Family of Spies: A World War II Story of Nazi Espionage, Betrayal, and the Secret History Behind Pearl Harbor
Kuehn, Christine
Paperback
$17.09
Cicero's Tongue: The Life of Rome's Greatest Orator and the End of the Republic
Edwards, Catharine
Hardcover
$29.70
The Nine: The True Story of a Band of Women Who Survived the Worst of Nazi Germany
Strauss, Gwen
Paperback
$19.00
The Hiding Place: The Triumphant True Story of Corrie Ten Boom
Boom, Corrie Ten
Sherrill, John
Paperback
From $4.99
Rebel of the Regency: The Scandalous Saga of Caroline of Brunswick, Britain's Queen Without a Crown
Foster, Ann
Hardcover
$29.69
A Thousand Shall Fall: The Electrifying Story of a Soldier and His Family Who Dared to Practice Their Faith in Hitler's Germany
Mundy, Susi Hasel
Paperback
$16.14
Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook
Bourdain, Anthony
Paperback
$16.19
Biography of a Dangerous Idea: A New History of Race from Louis XIV to Thomas Jefferson
Curran, Andrew S.
Hardcover
$37.99
The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel: Genius, Power, and Deception on the Eve of World War I
Brunt, Douglas
Paperback
From $9.99
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
Kendi, Ibram X.
Paperback
$27.54
The Forsaken Founder: Gouverneur Morris, the Unsung Patriot Who Wrote the Constitution, Stood Up to Slavery, and Survived the Reign of Terror
Greenberger, Scott S.
Hardcover
$28.50
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
Winchester, Simon
Paperback
$18.04
The Confessions of Samuel Pepys: Private Revelations from Britain's Most Famed Diarist
de la Bédoyère, Guy
Hardcover
$31.50
Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High
Beals, Melba Pattillo
Paperback
From $7.99
The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America
Rosen, Jeffrey
Paperback
$19.00
American Prometheus (Pulitzer Prize Winner): The Inspiration for the Major Motion Picture Oppenheimer
Bird, Kai
Sherwin, Martin J.
Paperback
From $14.99
The Widow Clicquot: The Story of a Champagne Empire and the Woman Who Ruled It
Mazzeo, Tilar J.
Paperback
$18.04
The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II
Kiernan, Denise
Paperback
From $9.99
The Power Broker (Pulitzer Prize Winner): Robert Moses and the Fall of New York
Caro, Robert A.
Hardcover
$66.50
The First Fascist: The Sensational Life and Dark Legacy of the Marquis de Morès
Luzzatto, Sergio
Hardcover
$31.50
The Man Behind the Cane: Preston Brooks, Political Violence, and the Road to the Civil War
Quigley, Paul
Hardcover
$34.99
No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II
Goodwin, Doris Kearns
Paperback
From $12.99
The Greatest Beer Run Ever: A Memoir of Friendship, Loyalty, and War
Molloy, J. T.
Donohue, John Chick
Paperback
$18.04
The Book of Charlie: Wisdom from the Remarkable American Life of a 109-Year-Old Man
Von Drehle, David
Paperback
$18.04
A Human Being Died That Night: A South African Woman Confronts the Legacy of Apartheid
Gobodo-Madikizela, Pumla
Paperback
$17.09
Tomboy Bride, 50th Anniversary Edition: One Woman's Personal Account of Life in Mining Camps of the West
Backus, Harriet Fish
Paperback
$18.04
The Faithful Executioner: Life and Death, Honor and Shame in the Turbulent Sixteenth Century
Harrington, Joel F.
Paperback
$19.95
Master of the Senate (Pulitzer Prize Winner): The Years of Lyndon Johnson III
Caro, Robert A.
Paperback
From $14.99
Women Make History: Fifty-Three Stories of Courage, Strength & Resilience
Spaulding, Sharon
Paperback
$23.74
Miracles in American History, Volume Two: Amazing Faith That Shaped the Nation: Adapted from William J. Federer's American Minute [With 2 Paperbacks]
Federer, William J.
Federer, Susie
Paperback
$19.00