Princes in the Tower Princes in the Tower "The Princes in the Tower" is an expression frequently used to refer to Edward V, King of England and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York. The two brothers were the only sons of Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville surviving at the time of their father's death in 1483. When they were 12 and 9 years old, respectively, they were lodged in the Tower of London by the man appointed to look after them, their uncle, the Lord Protector: Richard, Duke of Gloucester. This was supposedly in preparation for Edward's forthcoming coronation as king. However,
King of the Romans revived the title as King of Rome ("Roi de Rome"), styling his son as such at birth. The boy was often known colloquially by this title throughout his short life. However, from 1818 onward, he was styled officially as the Duke of Reichstadt by Emperor Francis I of Austria. This article uses material translated from the in the German-language Wikipedia, which, in turn, cites a source that contains further references: King of the Romans King of the Romans (; ) was a title used by Syagrius, then by the German king following his election by the princes from the time