The Princes in the Tower: the most gripping mystery of British History probably solved
Maria Leotta
- Region:
- Yorkshire & Humber
- Notice Period:
- Emergency (maybe less than one week's notice)
- Type:
- Professional
- Fee:
- Paid: £70 plus expenses
- Category:
- History
- Updated:
- 23rd February 2026
- Tagged:
- Richard Iii | Tudor History | Perkin Warbeck | Lambert Simnel
In the years following the death of Richard III, two pretenders emerged in England asserting claims to the throne. Each identified himself as one of the so-called Princes in the Tower — Edward V and Richard, Duke of York — the nephews of Richard III who had disappeared in 1483. Their appearances revived longstanding uncertainties surrounding the fate of the princes. Were these men impostors exploiting dynastic instability, or might they indeed have been the surviving heirs they professed to be? After sustained historical investigation, the question now appears closer to resolution.
Views: 7 | Enquiries: 0About Maria Leotta
Maria Leotta is an Italian amateur researcher based in York, England. She is a host at York Trust Museum and York Minster, a volunteer for York Archeology Trust and a translator/interpreter working for several translation agencies.
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She graduated in Modern Foreign Languages and Literature with 1st Class Hons and she also has a Diploma in Religious Science. She got an MA in Translation Studies at the University of Sheffield .
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In 2018 she joined the team of The Missing Princes Project led by Philippa Langley MBE, who successfully led the discovery of King Richard III in a Leicester car park in 2012.
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After five years in the team, Maria Leotta published her first book, released on 12th December 2022. It is the first ever Italian biography of King Richard III. Her second book of short stories based on historical facts, "The Untold Stories", was published on 22nd August 2025,
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She is the Email Manager for both the Scottish Branch and the Yorkshire Branch of the Richard III Society.
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She regularly contributes to blogs and magazines with articles about the Middle Ages. She had two short stories published in two anthologies and two poems accepted for the White Rose Bards.
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She is fond of medieval music, reenactments, travelling, reading and writing.
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She is currently writing two more books including one of poetry and a non-fiction book about Ricardians writers and novelists.
Other Talks on SpeakerNet by Maria Leotta
- Richard III: monster or martyr?
- "Richard of Eastwell" a secret son of Richard III
- A Mayor of York: William Snawsell and his friendship with Richard III
- Medieval food and banquets
- English Travellers to Sicily: the Private Diary of Richard Grenville first Duke of Buckingham and C
- Myths and Legends about Mount Etna and its link to English Monarchs
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