THE LAST WHITE ROSE - EPISODE TWO: "NEVILLE NIGHTMARES"

One page synopsis of Episode Two of "The Last White Rose": "Neville Nightmares" After Merlin gives more background on the War of the Roses and the consequences, the second hour opens in the cold castle of Amboise where Lady Anne, her mother the Countess Anne Beauchamp and Lancastrians Prince Edward of Westminster, Sir John Fortescue, and Margaret of Anjou are hosting the Spider King of France, Louis XI, dressed in shabby clothes with his cap of medals. The Spider King is a cousin of Anjou's with a vested interest in French domination of England. They are plotting when to return to England and how they will fare for the Duke of Warwick has captured London, but Margaret is not satisfied for the Kingmaker Warwick now entertains ideas of being king himself. Anjou's husband King Henry VI is too feeble and crazed in the Tower to rule again. Therefore the witch of Anjou forces the issue. Anne must marry her son. Against her wishes, Anne, fearing Richard has forgotten her, succumbs and agrees to marry the prince. On their wedding night Anne's fears are realized when Prince Edward treats her roughly and rudely. Soon after his abuse causes her to lapse into a coma where she experiences hallucinations due to the prince's rough perversion of her in the marriage bed. During her extreme sickness, the prince ignores her, but Anne's mother is at her bedside and wills her back to health despite the French barbers whose methods are leeching. A priest is called in for the last rites, but she recuperates with a will to live even if she may never love Richard as she had so hoped. While recuperating, her mother reads to Anne the works of Thomas Mallory on "L'Mort d'Arthur" which tells of Merlin, though Anne cannot see or hear him, she can sense him. While struggling with her thoughts, she also senses Richard is nearer than before. That he is, for Richard and his brother King Edward IV have been forced to flee England to Burgundy to seek financial help in order to recapture London. They also need troops and provisions. Edward turns to his brother-in-law Charles of Burgundy who agrees to give the Yorkists 50,000 Crowns and troops. Edward confides to Richard that Anne is now married and was severely ill. Richard is crestfallen and expresses anger toward Prince Edward whom he swears he will avenge. Edward pooh poohs Richard's venom, but love knows no bounds and Richard is determined as they sail back toward England to engage the Lancastrians. Soon after, Anjou and her son sail with Anne and her mother to England. After depositing the Countess at the Beaulieu Abbey in Portsmouth where there is a tearful farewell, they sail west to Weymouth to march north to join the Duke of Warwick and the Lancastrian troops at Barnet. But they are too late for on Easter morning at the Battle of Barnet, a fog shrouds the battle field where King Edward and Richard of Gloucester engage Richard and John Neville. Confusion ensues when the Lancastrian Stars and Streams banner is mistaken for the Sun in Splendor standard in the mist. Chaos follows and, in the pother, Lancastrian turns against Lancastrian, enabling the York troops to triumph. The future Richard III's arm is wounded in the battle. Meanwhile, Warwick sees his brother struck dead on the field. Then the Yorkists attack, mauling Anne's father to death. Richard and Edward, muddied and bloodied, stand over the dead Warwick. Richard cannot rejoice for he aches for Anne. Word reaches Anne from the Duke of Somerset who gallops from Barnet to Weymouth to inform Anjou and her son. While Anne laments her father's death, Prince Edward and Margaret argue with Somerset over the next course of action. The brash prince swears vengeance and they agree to march north to join up with the Welsh troops for strength in facing King Edward and the York troops. Yet, they are turned away from crossing the Severn River at Gloucester and now have no choice as the troops they have recruited are no better than farmers with pitchforks who grow more restless as the journey continues. In order to cross they must continue on to Tewkesbury without realizing that is the very spot Edward and Richard are riding towards as the ending aerial shot shows both forces closing in on Tewkesbury where the abbey bells ring as the sun sets.