The Fortunes of Perkin Warbeck: A Romance is an 1830 historical novel written by Mary Shelley. The book tells the story of Perkin Warbeck. It presents events from the Yorkist perspective, suggesting that Perkin Warbeck died as a child and that the person pretending to be him was actually Richard of Shrewsbury. Henry VII of England is described as an evil person who dislikes Elizabeth of York, his wife and Richard’s sister. The future Henry VIII, mentioned only twice in the novel, is portrayed as a young man who mistreats dogs. The book’s preface states that records from the Tower of London, as well as the works of Edward Hall, Raphael Holinshed, and Francis Bacon, and letters from Sir John Ramsay to Henry VII, published in John Pinkerton’s History of Scotland, support these claims. Each chapter begins with a quotation. The entire book is introduced with a quotation in French by Georges Chastellain and Jean Molinet.

Plot and themes

In this novel, Mary Shelley revisited an idea from The Last Man, which stated that a perfect political system cannot exist without better human behavior. This historical novel, inspired by works by Sir Walter Scott, tells a story about Perkin Warbeck, a man who claimed to be Richard, Duke of York, the second son of King Edward IV.

Shelley believed Warbeck was truly Richard and had escaped from the Tower of London. She gave Warbeck traits similar to her husband, Percy Shelley, and portrayed him kindly, describing him as pure and unable to be harmed. She also connected with Richard’s wife, Lady Katherine Gordon, who survived after her husband’s death by working with his political enemies.

Lady Gordon represents values like friendship, family life, and fairness. Through her, Mary Shelley offers a woman’s perspective that contrasts with the usual stories about men in politics and the typical historical accounts that focus only on major events.

Shelley also created a strong female character in Monina de Faro, Richard’s adoptive sister. Monina, who has a round face and mixed heritage from Moorish and Flemish backgrounds, helps Richard in many ways, including acting as a decoy, messenger, and military organizer. She is close to both Richard and Katherine. Robin Clifford, a friend from the Lancastrian family, shows conflicting loyalties, as his choices are driven by real emotions. Stephen Frion, a secretary to King Henry VII who was betrayed by him, is an older character whose shifting loyalties depend on Henry’s favor, unlike Clifford’s emotional struggles.

The book begins right after the Battle of Bosworth on August 22, 1485 (a mistake in the Dodo Press 2000 edition lists the date as 1415 instead of 1485). Three knights are escaping the battle: Sir Henry Stafford, Lord Lovel, and Edmund Plantagenet. The last two are not identified until they separate from Stafford and reach a church. All three are part of the Yorkist group that lost the battle.

With help from John de la Pole, the Earl of Lincoln, Lovel and Edmund helped move Richard to safety with Mynheer Jahn Warbeck, a moneylender from Flanders who had previously cared for Richard and pretended that Richard was his deceased son, Perkin Warbeck. This was not considered safe enough, so Richard was sent with Madeline de Faro, Warbeck’s 25-year-old sister. Madeline is married to a sailor named Hernan de Faro, and the two have a daughter named Monina. Richard and Monina form a strong bond, and Richard knows he can never marry someone from a lower class. It is Monina who rescues and cares for him after he experiences battle for the first time in the Granada War.

Characters

• Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York, son of King Edward IV and nephew of King Richard III
• Perkin Warbeck, son who died of Mynheer Jahn Warbeck, and a name used by Richard
• Lady Katherine Gordon, wife of Richard, and cousin of James, daughter of Lord Huntley
• Monina de Faro, adopted sister of Richard and close friend of Lady Katherine
• Edmund Plantagenet, illegitimate son of Richard III, cousin and close ally of Richard
• Stephen Frion, French-born secretary of Henry VII, sometimes an enemy and sometimes an ally of Richard
• Sir Robert "Robin" Clifford, friend and betrayer of Richard
• James IV of Scotland, friend of Richard
• Madeline Warbeck de Faro, wife of Hernan de Faro, mother of Monina, adoptive mother of Richard, and sister of Mynheer Jahn Warbeck
• Hernan de Faro, a Moorish sailor who converted to Christianity, husband of Madeline, father of Monina, adoptive father of Richard
• Henry VII of England, Earl of Richmond and first Tudor King of England
• Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII and sister of Richard
• Elizabeth Woodville, mother of Richard and former queen, widow of Edward IV
• Jane Shore, mistress of Edward IV, Richard's father
• Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, son of George, Duke of Clarence, prisoner of Henry VII
• John de la Poole, Earl of Lincoln
• Lady Margaret Brampton, ally of Richard
• Sir Edward Brampton, her husband
• Arthur, Prince of Wales, eldest son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York
• Margaret Tudor, eldest daughter of Henry and Elizabeth
• Prince Harry, second son of Henry and Elizabeth
• Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset, son of Elizabeth Woodville from her first marriage
• Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby
• John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford
• Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
• Lord Lovel
• John Morton, Bishop of Ely, close ally of Henry VII
• Richard Fox, Bishop of Exeter, Bath and Wells, Durham, and Winchester, ally of Henry VII
• Christopher Urswick
• Richard Simon
• Lambert Simnel
• Mynheer Jahn Warbeck, father of Perkin Warbeck
• Charles the Bold
• Isabella I of Castile
• Ferdinand II of Aragon
• Louis XI of France
• Jasper Tudor, 1st Duke of Bedford
• Sir Thomas Broughton
• Mary of Burgundy
• Lord Barry, ally of Richard
• Sir William Stanley, ally of Richard
• Meiler Trangmar, assassin who pretended to be a monk
• Maurice FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Desmond, ally of Richard
• John Lavallan, Lord Mayor of Cork and ally of Richard
• John Atwater, previous and subsequent Lord Mayor of Cork, ally of Richard
• Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham
• Lord Huntley, father of Katherine
• John Ramsay, 1st Lord Bothwell, Laird of Kilmaine and spy of Henry VII at the court of James IV
• Alexander Stewart, 2nd Earl of Buchan, ally of Ramsay
• Lord Broke
• Margaret of York, Richard's aunt
• Gerald FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Kildare
• Thomas FitzGerald of Laccagh
• Martin Schwartz
• René of Anjou
• John Radcliffe, 9th Baron FitzWalter
• Don Rodrigo Ponce de Leon, Marquess of Cadiz
• Bartholomew Diaz
• Sire de Beverem
• Boabdil el Chico
• El Zagal
• El Zogoybi
• Count de Tendilla
• Almoradi Gomelez
• Charles VIII of France
• Anne of Brittany
• Hubert Burgh
• Sir James Keating, prior of Kilmainham and ally of Richard
• Richard Fitzroy
• Sir Simon Mountford
• Sir Thomas Thwaites
• Sir Robert Ratcliffe
• Sir Richard Lessey
• William Worseley, Dean of St. Paul's
• Master William Barley
• Baron George Neville, ally of Richard
• Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor
• Adam Floyer
• Lord William Dawbenny
• Thomas Cressenor
• Thomas Astwood
• William Richford
• Thomas Poyns
• Doctor William Sutton
• Robert Langborne
• Sir William Lessey
• Gilbert Dawbenny, brother of William
• Sir Edward Lisle
• John Tate (Lord Mayor of London)
• Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
• Sir John Digby, Lieutenant of the Tower of London
• Sir John Peachy
• Lord Astley
• Sir Patrick Hamilton of Kincavil, ally of Richard
• Mary Boyd, suitor of James
• Lady Jane Kennedy, suitor of James
• Lord Audley
• Anne de Mowbray, 8th Countess of Norfolk
• John de Mowbray, 4th Duke of Norfolk
• Earl of Errol
• Earl of Douglas
• Sir Thomas Todd
• Sir Roderick-de-Lalane
• Andrew Stewart, Bishop of Moray
• Master Heron, lieutenant of Richard chosen by Monina de Faro
• Master Skelton, lieutenant of Richard chosen by Monina de Faro
• Master Treireife, lieutenant of Richard chosen by Monina de Faro
• William Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon, ally of Henry VII
• Adam Wicherly
• Mat Oldcraft
• John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford
• Empson
• Garthe
• John Cheney
• Sir Harry de Vere
• Clim of Tregothius
• Swartz (son of Martin)
• Clym of the Lyn, a forester and ally of Richard
• Sir Hugh Luttrell, Lancastrian ordered to take Richard prisoner
• Long Roger, prisoner in the Tower of London who helps Edward and Richard escape
• Dame Madge, wife of Long Roger (unseen character)
• Abel Blewet, prisoner in the Tower of London who helps Edward and Richard escape, a short person who is nearly a dwarf
• Mat Strangeways, prisoner in the Tower of London who helps Edward and Richard escape, a drunkard
• Master Astwood, prisoner in the Tower of London who helps Edward and Richard escape, a greedy person

• Richard III of England, Richard's paternal uncle, who is said to have caused his death
• Anthony

Quotations

Each chapter begins with a quote, sometimes two quotes. The quotes are from these authors:

• Edmund Spenser (I: 1, 5, 6, 15; II: 15; III: 10, 13, 15, 20)
• William Shakespeare (often spelled "Shakspeare") (I: 2, 3, 4, 11, 13, 17; II: 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 13, 17; III: 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 16, 17; Conclusion)
• Percy Bysshe Shelley (I: 5, 12; II: 5, 9; III: 2, 21)
• Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher (I: 7)
• Old Ballad (I: 8, 9; III: 9)
• Lord Byron (I: 9; III: 18)
• Homer's Hymn to Mercury (I: 10)
• The Cyclops [Percy Bysshe Shelley] (I: 10)
• Thomas Moore (I: 12; III: 4)
• Geoffrey Chaucer (I: 14)
• Samuel Taylor Coleridge (I: 16, 18)
• John Ford (I: 17; II: 9, 14, 18; III: 1, 6)
• The Heir of Lynne (II: 1)
• Two Noble Kinsmen [John Fletcher and William Shakespeare] (II: 7; III: 14, 19)
• The Woeful Lamentation of Jane Shore (II: 8)
• Ben Jonson (II: 16)
• Friedrich Schiller's Wallenstein (III: 1, 8)