King Richard III Found in Leicester

The king found under a car park 

Breaking news, Richard will be buried in Leicester Cathedral. See article below.

Live on the day of official announcement - February 4th 2013

Richard III

As I write this article in early December 2012 many people in the country await with baited breath, the results of an autopsy on bones discovered in a Leicester Car Park. I have read a lot about King Richard III over the past decade or so. Books are great and I have visited Bosworth Field but to then live in the time when his body may be discovered is tantalizing indeed and I have been riveted to every piece of news.

I will not retell the story of Richard here, he is well documented elsewhere along with all the questions about whether or not he murdered his nephews, whether he was an evil monster or much maligned good king. This is not my purpose. Rather I want to bring history alive in a way only this kind of event can do. I am making a supposition at this point that the results are positive and I will amend in the future if it proves otherwise. Either way it is a fascinating read.

After Richard fell at Bosworth Field his body was thrown naked over a horse and paraded into Leicester. After his body was exhibited in the city to prove he was dead, he was said to have been buried behind the altar in Greyfriars church. Greyfriars was demolished during the reformation of the next century and for a long time the area was a garden till the 20th century when it became a car park. Piecing clues together from old maps, the suspected location of the altar where the body was supposed to lay was identified by archaeologists from the local university. Coupled with the discovery that a descendant of the king's sister was still living in Ontario Canada, the prospect of a DNA identification was enough to clinch funding to dig up Greyfriars Car Park.

The discovery was beyond encouraging, it was spectacular. The bones were exactly where the records said they were; behind the altar. The body had an arrowhead in the spine as was stated. There was a wound to the head that Richard was supposed to have suffered in the battle or shortly afterwards and there was the deformity to the spine that could be the source of the hunchback stigma so long proffered by all antagonists of the king. But the clincher is DNA, without that the body is just another corpse. Results were originally promised for December 2012 but have now been delayed to January 2013. Early signs are again encouraging, so the wait continues. We have waited 500 years so a few more weeks is not a long time.

If the results prove that the body is indeed Richard then thoughts will turn to a funeral. Indications are that it will be a state funeral and it will be in Leicester with his remains interred after in the cathedral. I intend to be there and will be able to add my own photos to this story.

Updates January 27th 2013

After several delays the news conference at Leicester University is scheduled for Feb 4th. Revealed will be DNA results, facial reconstruction conclusions, environmental evidence and radio carbon dating. Hopefully this will all result in a picture of the long dead king and we can move on to funeral arrangements.

Updates February 3rd 2013

This is getting incredibly exciting, the news conference is tomorrow night at 9 pm as part of a programme about the investigation and will be shown on Channel 4. I will provide a feedback on the conference this week.

Updates February 4th 2013

It's Him ! It's Him ! Confirmation has been given that the skeleton is the body of the king. DNA has proved a connection to living relatives. Carbon date is consistent with 1485. Examination of diet shows a high protein diet consistent with an important wealthy individual. Wounds match those described from the times. Spinal curvature matches description from the times. There are other clues as well which I will add at 9 pm tonight when the official documentary is broadcast. Funeral is being advertised as Leicester Cathedral in early 2014
Live 9.00pm GMT. Skeleton lifted from car park and placed in a cardboard box and covered in the flag of the crown. They were that certain to feel that this was appropriate thing to do. The first item turned out to be a disappointment. The arrowhead is just a Roman nail that was coincidentally lying by the spine. Lower arms have a gracile nature and pelvis has a larger sciatic hole that suggests a female skeleton however other features very male and historical documentation refer to Richards surprisingly good at fighting despite weak appearance. Marine fish diet confirmed high status individual but distorted the carbon 14 reading to earlier than expected. Radio Carbon 14 is depleted in the ocean environment because the water is not part of the biosphere and contains older carbon sources. Adjustment of this bias gave a date of 1450 to 1540. Pattern of injuries after death highly suggestive of opportunistic people taking a stab at the body and why would you do that to a foot soldier or the like. The comparison of the DNA of the descendant of Richard's sister with the skeletal DNA is complete and there is a match.

Updates February 6th 2013
A few interesting items have come to light. Apparently the window of opportunity to find Richard was closing. The skeleton was nearly lost when a Victorian toilet was built over the top and was only 4 inches above the level of the burial. Further development of the car park would almost certainly have devastated the grave. The feet had already gone as a result of disturbance when the body was discovered. Also the DNA gene that identified Richard is only transmitted by the female descendants. Male descendants can carry the gene but not pass it on. The last female descendant was without issue so a future match would not have been possible.
The fight for Richard's remains has started. While Leicester Cathedral is the obvious choice not everyone agrees. Both London and York have a claim and, of all places, Worksop lying half way between the two thinks it would be suitable! While most people would be happy with Leicester, York Council have written an open letter to the Queen in the hopes of securing the remains. I hope the most wonderful archaeological story of our times doesn't end up in a bitter battle of words to rival Bosworth field. Richard deserves better and more respect than that.

Updates February 7th 2013
News is coming thick and fast now as the fact that the bones are Richard sink in with everyone. Apparently he had a brummie accent. There is no evidence of a Northern Accent and the way he spelled 'will' was 'wule' which is closer to a midland accent. Molded head based on the skull profile provides a glimpse of quite a good looking man aged 30 not the hardened features of Tudor painters. Plantagenet's were known to be often tall, fair and handsome even good looking. Richard may have suffered from being dark and shorter of stature but there is no reason to believe he was denied the good looks of his gene pool. 

Updates February 12th 2013
It has been decided that Richard's bones will not become a sideshow thank goodness. The public will be able to pay their respects to a closed casket that preserves the dignity of the king. No news as to when this will be but considering the number of people who will attracted to the casket I expect sometime mid year. The remains are scheduled to be entombed in early 2014.

Updates February 22nd 2013
There is some evidence emerging from an old Welsh poem that the killer of Richard III was a Welsh Knight from Carmarthenshire. His name was Rhys ap Tomos and he now lies in a tomb in St Peter's church Carmarthen. Rhys was definitely at the battle on Henry's side and he was a good fighter. Henry VII knighted him on the battlefield. The poem says that Richard's head was cleaved and this is consistent with the wound found on the skull. The poem is in praise of Rhys ap Tomos. It is therefore possible that the poet is relating Rhys's killing of the king and then being knighted for his services. St Peter's is hoping that the renewed interest in Richard will generate new interest in their knight and the town of Carmarthen may also benefit from increased tourism. This is my hope too. Stories from 500 years ago are difficult to prove or disprove but this sounds like a good one and whether or not Rhys did the dastardly deed or was simply part of the melee where it all happened, doesn't really matter.

Updates March 22nd 2013

Richard III Skeletal Representation

Two interesting developments this month. Leicester Cathedral has indicated they are in favour of a stone plinth instead of a tomb. This is similar to that given recent kings and queens buried in St George Chapel Windsor. The Richard III society believes a proper tomb befitting a Plantagenet king would be more appropriate. So far the choices are just submissions so the decision is yet to be made. Also the expected knock on effect of the discovery of Richard's bones has manifested itself in a ten fold increase in the number of visitors to Leicester Cathedral. Tourists visit the car park and then want to see the likely future burial place at the cathedral, resulting in 500 to 1000 per day compared to the usual 50-100. Needless to say the cathedral is struggling to cope.

Updates March 27th 2013
The ''battle of the bones'' is heating up. Now the 16 living descendants of Richard III have clubbed together to put forward a judicial review. For those who don't know what that means, it is a process whereby the judiciary look at any kind of statute, law etc issued by legislative or executive means to make sure it is fair and just. In a democracy, it creates checks and balances to curb the excesses of an overwhelming majority. The descendants are saying that they should be consulted about what happens to Richards bones and more importantly, where he should be buried. Their preference is for York Minster. As a reminder, dear reader, I remain ambivalent and am simply reporting the events.

Updates July 19th 2013
One important issue has been resolved today. Richard III's body will be given a proper, above ground tomb not a plinth on the floor. This is something the the Richard III society has been campaigning for. Good or bad, Richard was the last plantagenet king and as such is worthy of a proper English gothic style tomb. Leicester cathedral has announced that this will go ahead to the cost of £1m probably raised by public subscription and donation. Count me in !!

Updates September 26th 2013
The online petition requesting a parliamentary debate on burying Richard at York has failed to garner sufficient votes. The final tally was 30000. A similar petition to bury Richard in Leicester closes in October but has only managed 25000 votes. This means the decision now lies with the judicial review that has been ordered for next month. I for one will be glad when this is all resolved and we all know where we are headed next May !!

Updates November 27th 2013
So I am afraid the Nov 26th judicial review came to nothing because it was adjourned to an unspecified date. The reason given is that Leicester Council had made a submission that it wanted to be part of the decision and required time to prepare. I am not sure what games, if any, are going on here but now it seems we have an indefinite wait. Meanwhile plans for the ceremony, tomb design are still going ahead but I suspect any thoughts of redesigning Leicester Cathedral to accommodate the tomb will now be on hold. I will add that this review is merely to decide whether the act of granting Leicester University the rights to exhume the body was lawful. It still may not finally decide where he will rest. Richard III could be in a box in a laboratory for a very long time to come while the second War of the Roses rages overhead.

Updates May 25th 2014

After over a year of nail biting the judicial review has ruled in favour of Richard being re-interred at Leicester Cathedral. While it was never a foregone conclusion I think there was a big collective sigh of relief from all the players involved in finding the skeleton. Possession is not nine tenths of the law in this case and the ruling could easily have gone the other way. In the end the judges ruled that there was no precedent that the university should have given wider consultation on the choice of burial sites and so the judges had therefore no cause to become involved. I am sure this came as a blow to the ‘plantagenet alliance’ who had sought to have him interred at York and the merits of the case, in particular Richard’s perceived last wishes, did require some review. But really Leicester held most of the cards, they researched the location, they made the application, they did all the work and it seems patience paid off. The judges declared there was ‘no duty to consult’. My hope now is that finally we can get a ceremony where all of us who have followed the story closely will have a chance to see the king ride to his final resting place at the heart of Leicester Cathedral.

Updates July 7th 2014

I recently drove from Wolverhampton to Tywyn and stopped for a drink at Cann Office Pub in Llangadfan. On the wall was a plaque dedicated to the life of the pub since it was built in 1310. In 1485 Henry Tudor journeyed through central Wales and bivouacked either side of Cann Office at Matawaran and Dolorddu. If they left Matawaran on August 10th morning and arrived at Dolorddu in the evening then they would have passed right by Cann Office and more than likely would have stopped for refreshments. A sobering thought as I sat supping my pint in the pub.

What happens next will be reported here as it happens so please check back later.