Edward was a man of easy temper, it was true. But my father had miscalculated in summing up his character. Edward was luxury-loving, a man who wanted to be on good terms with those about him; he disliked quarrels, I think, partly because he thought they were a waste of time and energy; he saw himself as the benign monarch; he went about the countryside bestowing his smiles on all his people and particularly the female section. He knew that he had behaved badly to my father, but the earl would never understand the sensual nature of a man like the king. Edward had seen Elizabeth Woodville; she had refused to become his mistress: and therefore, because of his insuppressible desire for her, he had been forced to marry her. How could he explain that to a man like Warwick? On the other hand, he was grateful to Warwick, and it grieved him to disappoint him. Perhaps it would have occurred to him that the king should not tolerate a subject's insolence and he should order his arrest. But Edward was not impulsive. Some might think so because of his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville, but that had been a calculated act; simply, he had had to marry Elizabeth because his desire could not be slaked in any other way.

He would realise, too, that if he ordered Warwick's arrest a civil war might be provoked. He might have seen Warwick joining with the Lancastrians and that would certainly mean disaster for the House of York. So he did what was typical of him. He set aside his kingship and talked to Warwick as though he were still his friend.

The queen's mother was the widow of the Duke of Bedford, he explained gently. She was of the noble house of Luxembourg. There were royal connections on her mother's side. It was unfortunate that she had married a Lancastrian, but that was no fault of hers. Young girls could not choose their husbands. She was beautiful and had already shown herself capable of bearing strong healthy children. If the Earl of Warwick would set aside his disappointment about the marriage to Bona of Savoy, he would realise there was nothing to regret. And such a matter should not come between old friends.

Edward, as everyone knew, was one of the most charming of men, and he did manage to some extent to soothe my father's wounds. There was a reconciliation of a kind. The king embraced the earl and said: "There has been too much friendship between us two, Warwick, for this matter to spoil it."

My father's anger must have cooled sufficiently for him to realise that it would be folly for him to indulge in more outbursts and commonsense got the better of anger. He appeared to agree with the king.

But whatever was said, danger was looming. The Woodvilleswere trying to oust the Nevilles and that was quite unacceptable. My father returned to Middleham.

Richard, naturally, was no longer at Middleham, and I wondered if he would ever come back. But I did see him not very long after the quarrel.

One day my mother called Isabel and me to come to her and she told us we were going on a journey. She looked happier than she had for some time.

"Your uncle George is to be made Archbishop of York, and there will be a grand banquet afterwards. All the nobility will be there and your father wants every member of the family to be present if possible."

Isabel was very excited.

"Will the king be there?" she asked.

"Oh no. I don't expect the king will be there. But he will surely send someone to represent him. We shall see."

I was thinking, could it be that Richard would be there?. The prospect of seeing him made me very happy. Moreover if he were, it might be an indication that this feud between the king and my father was coming to an end.

"We shall go to Cawood Castle," went on my mother.

"It is very pleasant there on the south bank of the Ouse. We shall have the river and it is only ten miles from York, so after the ceremony the company will, with your father and the archbishop, join us there for the feast."

In due course we set out for Cawood and as soon as we arrived, if we had not been aware of it before, we would have realised what an important occasion this was. The castle was swarming with retainers. There were fifty cooks at work in the kitchens and the carcasses of sheep, cattle, pigs, swans and geese were being prepared for the table, together with artistically fashioned pastry commemorating the archbishop's elevation and the power of the Nevilles. It was borne home to me that there was something significant about this occasion.

The party arrived from York and, to my great joy, riding with my father and uncle was Richard.

In the great hall I was seated at the long table with my mother, and Isabel and Richard was with us. He gave me his rare smite! and I knew that meant that he was glad to see me.

All the feasting ... the drinking ... the dancing ... the splendour indicated one thing: the power of the Nevilles which was by no means diminished. The local peasantry had the earl's permission to go the kitchens and take as much meat as they could carry off on their knives; and for that they were ready to throw their caps in the air at any time and shout "A Warwick" as often and as enthusiastically as the great earl wished.

It was a reminder to all that the Nevilles were not to be treated with disdain. The king might travel about the south, smiling and courteous, winning the approbation of the people, but this was the north and the Nevilles were the lords of the north. They had wrested the title from the Percys; and these sturdy, down-to-earth people were not the sort to be seduced by a few superficial smiles.

I could see that Richard was not happy. I longed to talk to him, but I could not do so at the table before my mother, Isabel and the guests who sat with us. But I determined to find an opportunity of doing so before he went away.

It had always been a habit of his to go off alone somewhere and eventually I found him. He was walking in the castle grounds and I called to him."

"Richard, I'm here. Or do you want to be left alone?"

"I don't mind you," he said.

"I was hoping to have a talk with you. Oh, Richard, how deep is this trouble between the king and my father?"

"Your father is making it deep."

"Has he no reason?"

"I suppose there are some who would say he has." He turned anxious eyes to me.

"You know of my brother's marriage?"

"Everyone knows."

"A man must marry where he will."

"Must not a king think of his country?"

"My brother thinks of his country. They are demanding that he get an heir. That is what he is preparing to give them."

"But I have heard that my father was negotiating with the King of France for a suitable marriage. The king allowed him to do so while he was already married."

"I know. Perhaps the king should have told your father. But it is more than that, Anne. The king does not wish others to tell him what he must do. He decides for himself. That is what he means your father to understand. He is sorry to be on ill terms. He does not forget the good service your father has given him in the past and the friendship between them. But he will make his own choice and he has chosen this queen."

"So you, too, are against my father?"

He shook his head.

"I have admired your father more than any man except my brother. They have both been ideals to me. I have often wished that I could be like them. But your father must remember that it is my brother who is the king. The people shout for Warwick in the streets, it is true. I believe that, next to my brother, they respect him more than any other man. It grieves me as much as it does you that they should not be good friends."

"What does George say?"

He was silent for a few seconds. Then he said slowly: "George does not like the queen. George is always ... a little critical. Secretly, I think he would like to be king himself. He is handsome and clever ... and people like him. But he should know that not he nor anyone ... could compete with Edward."

"How loyal you are to the king!"

"I would die rather than fail him. I have taken for my motto "Loyaulte me lie!" I think loyalty is the most important virtue and that is what I have for Edward."

"He is fortunate to have such a brother."

"Nay. It is I who am the fortunate one." Tell me. Why does George not like the queen?"

"George would not like any queen my brother had, for if she produces a son, George would be a step backwards from the throne. Now, you see, he is next in line. I believe that is at the heart of George's dislike. Besides ..."

"Besides, what?"

"Well, the queen is haughty. People have to kneel before her all the time. It is what happens. She was of no importance before her marriage. Now she is the queen and she wants no one to forget it."

"That will not make her very popular."

"I believe she does not crave popularity. She just wants to be the Queen of England. Surely that is ambition enough."

"Richard, I believe you do not like her either."

"Have I shown that?"

"Yes, you have." .

He hesitated for a moment, then he said: "The Woodvilles are arrogant. They have come too high too quickly. They are pushing themselves into the highest positions in the land; and the queen is seeking great marriages for all her relations ... her sons ... her brothers. There are many of them. People are saying that before long we shall have the Woodville clan ousting ..."

'... ousting the Nevilles," I finished.

"Yes, they are saying that. We shall be ruled by the Woodvilles and the Woodvilles are unfit for high office."