List of Characters
(NB: only those persons marked with an asterisk are fictional)
| The Household of the Duke of Gloucester at Middleham, Yorkshire | ||
| HELOISE BALLASTER* | eldest daughter of the merchant, Sir Dudley Ballaster, and maid of honour to the Duchess of Gloucester | |
| LADY MARGERY HUDDLESTON | half-sister to Anne, Duchess of Gloucester, and bastard daughter of Warwick the Kingmaker | |
| SIR RICHARD HUDDLESTON | knight banneret, brother-in-law to the Duchess of Gloucester, and husband of Lady Margery Huddleston | |
| WILL* | jester to the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester | |
| RICHARD PLANTAGENET, DUKE OF GLOUCESTER | youngest brother of the Yorkist king, Edward IV; later Lord Protector for his nephews. Future King Richard III | |
| ANNE, DUCHESS OF GLOUCESTER | wife to Duke Richard of Gloucester and daughter of Warwick the Kingmaker | |
| EDWARD | son to Gloucester | |
| DR JOHN DOKETT | chaplain to the Duke of Gloucester | |
| FRANCIS, LORD LOVELL | chamberlain to the Duke of Gloucester | |
| SIR RICHARD RATCLIFFE} | retainers of the Duke of Gloucester | |
| SIR PIERS HARRINGTON}* | ||
| The Household of the Duke of Buckingham at Brecknock, Wales | ||
| SIR MILES RUSHDEN* (Y Cysgod) |
son and heir to Phillip, Lord Rushden, and friend of the Duke of Buckingham | |
| HARRY STAFFORD, DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM |
brother-in-law to the queen and cousin to Richard, Duke of Gloucester. Descended from King Edward III | |
| SIR WILLIAM KNYVETT | acting constable of Brecknock Castle and friend of the Duke of Buckingham | |
| SIR RICHARD DE LA BERE | retainer of the Duke of Buckingham | |
| SIR NICHOLAS LATIMER | chamberlain to the Duke of Buckingham | |
| SIR THOMAS LIMERICK | steward to the Duke of Buckingham | |
| PERSHALL} RALPH BANNASTRE} |
servants of the Duke of Buckingham | |
| CATHERINE (CAT) WOODVILLE, DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM |
wife to Harry Stafford, and sister of the queen, Elizabeth Woodville | |
| EDWARD (NED), LORD STAFFORD | son and heir of the Duke of Buckingham | |
| BESS | his nursemaid | |
| BENET* | Ned’s servant | |
| BRIAN* | archer at Brecknock castle | |
| EMRYS* | Welsh harpist | |
| RHYS AP THOMAS | Welsh lord | |
| LADY MYFANNWY* | maid of honour to the Duchess of Buckingham and ward of Rhys ap Thomas | |
| THOMAS NANDIK | Cambridge scholar and astrologer, formerly in Lord Hastings’s employ | |
| TRAVELLER* | Sir Miles Rushden’s beloved horse | |
| DAFYDD* | a superlative mouser | |
|
At Bramley | ||
| PHILLIP, LORD RUSHDEN* | Sir Miles Rushden’s father | |
| DOBBE* | servant to Miles Rushden | |
| SIR DUDLEY BALLASTER* | a merchant who has married into the lesser nobility, knighted by King Edward IV for supporting the House of York | |
| DIONYSIA*} CLIO*} LUCRETIA*} |
Sir Dudley’s younger daughters, sisters of Heloise Ballaster | |
| MATILLIS* | second wife of Sir Dudley Ballaster | |
| SIR HUBERT* | retainer of Sir Dudley Ballaster | |
| MARTIN* | groom to Sir Dudley Ballaster | |
| CLOUD* | Heloise Ballaster’s dun mare | |
| The Prince of Wales’s entourage at Stony Stratford | ||
| EDWARD, PRINCE OF WALES (KING EDWARD V) |
elder son of King Edward IV and Queen Elizabeth Woodville | |
| ANTHONY WOODVILLE, LORD RIVERS |
eldest brother of the queen, and uncle to Edward V. In charge of the prince’s household at Ludlow | |
| SIR RICHARD GREY | half-brother of Edward V, and younger son of the queen, Elizabeth Woodville, by her first marriage | |
| JOHN ALCOCK, BISHOP OF WORCESTER | controller of the prince’s household and a supporter of the Woodvilles | |
| ROBERT STILLINGTON, BATH AND WELLS | a former chancellor of England, now in Alcock, Bishop of Worcester’s custody | |
|
Others | ||
| HOEL* | a Monmouth man (and guide, if paid sufficiently) | |
| THE VAUGHAN FAMILY | an English family, based at Tretwr, with a dislike of any authority, especially Buckingham’s | |
| LEWIS GLYN COTHI | Welsh bard | |
| WILLIAM, LORD HASTINGS | Lord Chamberlain to Kings Edward IV and Edward V | |
| SIR WILLIAM CATESBY | retainer of Lord Hastings | |
| CECILY, DUCHESS OF YORK | mother of Richard of Gloucester. Residing at Baynards Castle, London | |
| JOHN MORTON, BISHOP OF ELY | royal councillor, previously a supporter of the House of Lancaster | |
| JOHN, LORD HOWARD (LATER DUKE OF NORFOLK) | supporter of Richard III | |
| LADY RUSHDEN* | mother of Sir Miles Rushden | |
| THOMAS, LORD STANLEY | royal councillor. Third husband of Margaret Beaufort and stepfather of Henry Tudor | |
| MARGARET BEAUFORT, COUNTESS OF RICHMOND |
mother of Henry Tudor, a claimant to the throne, wife of Lord Stanley | |
| Mentioned but not appearing | ||
| KING EDWARD IV | Yorkist king of England since 1461, older brother of Richard, Duke of Gloucester, husband of Elizabeth Woodville, and father of Edward, Prince of Wales and Prince Richard | |
| ELIZABETH WOODVILLE, QUEEN OF ENGLAND |
queen to King Edward IV, and mother of young Edward V and Prince Richard. She also has daughters by King Edward IV and two sons from an earlier marriage: the Marquis of Dorset and Sir Richard Grey | |
| THOMAS GREY, MARQUIS OF DORSET | eldest son of the queen by her first marriage | |
| HENRY TUDOR | an exile in Brittany. Son of Margaret Beaufort, descended from a bastard grandson of King Edward III | |
| DR ARGENTINE | physician to Edward V | |
| DR LEWIS | physician to the Countess of Richmond | |
| GEORGE, DUKE OF CLARENCE | late brother to King Edward IV and Richard of Duke of Gloucester. Executed by Edward IV | |
| SIR HUMPHREY STAFFORD | Welsh Marches supporter of Richard III | |
|
TYLWYTH TEG (*?) |
Faeries and friends to Heloise Ballaster |