Book excerpt: The Plantagenets reigned over England longer than any other family—from Henry II to Richard III. Four kings were murdered, two came close to being deposed, and the last—and most notorious, Richard III— was killed in a battle by rebels. Shakespeare wrote plays about six of them, further entrenching them in the national myth.Based on major contemporary sources and recent research, acclaimed historian Desmond Seward provides the first readable overview of the whole extraordinary dynasty, in one volume.