Princes in the Tower becoming king, Henry married the princes' eldest sister, Elizabeth of York, to reinforce his claim to the throne. Not wanting the legitimacy of his wife or her claim as heiress of Edward IV called into question, prior to the marriage he had repealed the "Titulus Regius" which had previously declared the princes (and Elizabeth) illegitimate. Markham suggests the princes were executed under Henry's orders between 16 June and 16 July 1486, claiming that it was only after this date that orders went out to circulate the story that Richard had killed the princes, and that the princes' mother, Elizabeth Woodville,
Vigil of the Princes closed to the public for the evening. No known photographic record of this event exists, though a painting was made of it after the King's funeral. The oil painting was produced by Frank Beresford as the official painting of the King's lying-in-state, and was exhibited for the first time at the Royal Academy exhibition of 1936 at Burlington House. The painting, named "The Princes' Vigil: 12.15am, January 28, 1936", was subsequently purchased by Queen Mary to give to her son Edward VIII on his birthday. In the painting, the King is depicted wearing the uniform of the Grenadier Guards, of