The Mortimer Kidnapping

Young Edmund Mortimer, who was the heir-presumptive of Richard II with the strongest claim to the throne of England, was being raised by the usurper Henry Bolingbroke, now King Henry IV. Edmund's uncle, Sir Edmund Mortimer, in 1402 declared that young Edmund was the rightful heir to the throne, putting him publicly opposed to Henry's reign.Sir Edmund's sister Elizabeth was married to Henry "Hotspur" Percy. Sir Edmund made an arrangement with the Percy family of northern England and Owain Glendower of Wales (now Sir Edmund's father-in-law) called the Tripartite Indenture, by which they would overthrow Henry and divide Great Britain among themselves. Their first attempt to overthrow Henry IV resulted in the death of Hotspur.They did not give up. One step toward success was gaining control of the "captive" Edmund. Henry was raising Edmund and his brother Roger with Henry's own younger children at Windsor Castle.For the rescue they turned to Constance of York, whose husband had been…