See Richard III's Grave in Leicester Where Richard's Reputation Is Restored - Not a hunchbacked murderer! Was Shakespeare wrong?

Richard III's new burial place in Leicester Cathedral.

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Richard - who? where?

Richard's remains were found in a car park in Leicester, England. Who was the skeleton? Richard, they speculated. They hoped.

Nah, said the nay-sayers. Wishful thinking.

However, DNA from his relative's descendants proved it was really Richard III! Amazing. So somebody today can say, Richard III was a member of my family - and my DNA proved it.


Picture shared in Wikipedia.

You can drive to Leicester or take the train, then drive a tank at the tank museum in summer. Next the tourist can move to car parks and see Richard III's grave in Leicester Cathedral - all year. Leicester is a lovely, lively area, if you like action and modern or ancient history.

Richard III's Effect On Our World
If your history is hazy, it's a quick way to catch up. To sum it up, Richard was the last of the Plantaganets, who ended the Wars of the Roses, when he lost the Battle of Bosworth to Henry VII.

Why did Richard lose the battle? Some say it was because soldiers under Stanley, supposedly supporting Richard who had more men, were held back until it was clear which side was winning. Seeing Richard run towards Henry in the hope of killing him, being surrounded, Stanleys men quickly joined what loooked like the winning side.

Another theory is that the absence of the Princes in the Tower, and rumours that Richard had killed them, meant that outraged leaders of the nobility withheld their support.

But where were the bodies? Who knew?

The Princes in the Tower. Portraits depicted by Millais, much later.

This pivotal event led to the Tudor takeover. The Tudor takeover led to Henry VIII's important reign which affects people worldwide today. Who is affected? The Church of England, Protestants, Anglicans, students of Shakespeare for A level or simply schoolchildren, and actors of Shakespeare's plays, and lovers of quotations, and even pub goers answering quizzes.

Henry VIII had to divorce his wife to try to get a son and heir, but the Pope did not give permission, so Henry VIII made himself head of the Church of England, which is in England. Other churches worldwide following the British Protestant system, without the pope, not Roman Catholics, are called Anglican. If Richard had won that battle, who knows how different the kings and queens and churches would have been.

William Shakespeare.

In the play by William Shakespeare, Richard III, losing his horse and the battle (for the throne), desperate to escape, shouts, "A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!"

How did Shakespeare manage to so successfully encapsulate the desperation of the man about to die and lose the battle, in less than ten memorable words? Why is that sentence so memorable? The start is a repetition: a horse, a horse. For a moment, it seems an exaggeration, absurd, to give your entire kingdom for just a horse. On second thoughts, after some investigation and enlightenment, you realise that without the horse, he had lost the battle, his kingdom, his life.

The night before my drive home from my holiday in the Midlands to London, a lady from Leicester kept me and a group of others entranced until midnight on the last night of Writer's Summer School at the Hayes Conference Centre near Derby, with her story of how William Shakespeare had unfairly blackened the character of Richard III. "Richard," she insisted, "was not the baddie, which William Shakespeare portrayed."

Why did Shakespeare tell such lies? At very least, half truths. Our hero, Shakespeare! Shakespeare was a diplomat. Shakespeare had no choice. He was writing for his patrons, the Tudor royalty, and the audience who had to be persuaded, or convinced, that Richard, who the Tudors killed in battle, had deserved to die.

Richard III! That man who had killed the two little boys in the Tower of London. His imprisoned nephews, heirs to the throne. Tut, tut. Dreadful man, Richard III.

She assured us, "There was no evidence that Richard killed his nephews, the princes in the tower." ("Yes," we assured our Canadian visitor, "the famous Tower of London, which everybody knows.")

The Tower of London has many towers. The tower where the boys were imprisoned was actually the regular place for a prince to reside prior to his coronation. But, of course, the coronation never took place. After that, the tower was known as the Bloody Tower.

If you go to London, you can visit the Tower of London, which competes with Madame Tussaud's as London's most visited attraction.

A portrait of Henry VII is in the National Portrait Gallery on London's Trafalgar Square.

Portrait of Henry VII in the National Portrait Gallery, London.


We listened politely, to the animated lady who was acting as unpaid PR for local hero, Richard III of Leicester, but we speculated sceptically.
"So what killed the boys?"
"Maybe the boys killed themselves."
"Or each other?"
"Or were killed by Aliens?"


The Princes in the Tower of London.

Richard III
"Furthermore," she insisted, "Richard III did not have a hunchback. He had a curved spine."

Conspiracy theorists have all sorts of ideas about what never happened. People have claimed Richard could not have ridden into battle with a curved spine. However, a modern man with the same condition was persuaded to don a suit of armour, which he apparently gladly did for his moment of fame and climbed onto a horse. Far from impeding and hurting him, the armour acted like a giant corset. It helped to support the spine.

If he had lived in modern times, perhaps dear Richard would have said, "A tank, a tank, my kingdom for a tank." But he didn't.

Richard, with or without his horse, was killed at the battle of Bosworth. The throne was taken by Henry VII, leading to Henry VIII, who is regarded with much more enthusiasm, although there is no doubt that Henry VIII married six times, and executed two wives.

Compare Henry VII and Richard. Richard, we suspect, killed his two nephews. They were heirs to the throne.

Henry VII, lifelike bust made copying Henry VII's death mask. See the bust in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, England.


Henry VII killed Richard on the battlefield. A fair fight. (Not exactly. Richard was not taken prisoner. He did not surrender nor live to tell the tale. But he fought to the death. According to one historian, Richard said that he wished to live and die as a king.)

Copare villain Henry with hero Henry VIII. We could also find fault with Henry. Killed his next of kin. Henry was also overweight, extremely so, even for his era. An old man with two wives who were much younger. in his own era, Henry divorcing his longstanding, middle-aged, menopausal wife who could no longer bear children, in favour of her lady in waiting, young, sexy, flirtatious, Anne Boleyn, did not appeal.

Divorced, not a popular move in his era. And had VD (venereal disease) which probably infected his wives and killed his children by damaging their health and resilience in an unsanitary age. But Shakespeare and portrait painters made Henry the hero and the popular villain, whilst Richard III was depicted as horrid, deformed, outside and inside. Richard a man who was handicapped in life, resentful, and killed children.

Richard III is now due for a makeover. But the more mystery and controversy the better.

When I visited Leicester to stay with a friend our main activity was visiting the local branch of Dunelm Mill, one of my favourite stores for affordable but smart furnishings. Dunelm was founded in Leicester.


Duneldm in Bradford.


Richard III is now re-buried in Leicester Cathedral under a solid white slab. His character is now whitewashed.

Disappointingly, the Wikipedia article on the play reveals that Richard was offered a horse and turned it down, preferring to continue on foot. In that case, all the more credit to Shakespeare for improving on the story and creating a memorable line to fit the new, invented scenario.

Go and find out for yourself. If you read Richard III at school, what a spine-tingling moment to see Richard III's grave. If you never read Richard III, a chance to learn visually a bit of history, literature, controversy. A great subject for debate, perhaps in a Tudor style historic pub.

If you are too far away to visit now, and live in the USA, you might be interested in the Wiki article on the play Richard III which gives accounts of the performances of the play in the USA, with photos of playbills of dramatic performances.



To sum up:
TRAVEL TRAIL & TRIP TIPS
1 Richard III grave in cathedral
2 Richard III centre.
3 Bosworth Field centre (shop and more).

Optional extras:
Bosworth medieval Festival:
Bosworth Medieval Festival: 2019

Saturday 17th August - Sunday 18th August, 10:00 am - 5:30 pm.

Tank Museum.
Pub lunch - at pub where you can buy furniture.
Stay in cheap affordable Ibis, cheap hotel at motorway service station, or smarter historical and/or modern hotel.

Practical Information For Travellers

Richard III Museum
Southfields Farm
Husbands Bosworth,
Lutterworth,
Leicestershire LE17 6NW
Tel: 01858 880239.

Useful Websites
www.armourgeddon.co.uk.
www.militarymuseum.uk.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloster_E.28/39
Richard III Visitor Centre (the mysterious letters in the web address are abbreviations for king richard iii all lower case)
https://kriii.com Richard III Visitor Centre
Leicester Tourism
https://www.visitleicester.info/good-to-know/visit-leicester-information-centre
Leicester Cathedral
https://leicestercathedral.org/visiting-king-richards-tomb/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_III_(play)#cite_note-jones-53
https://www.dunelm.com/stores

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
text and pictures in progress

Drive A Tank at Armourgeddon In England, see a WWII jet plane, and Richard III's tomb

"I'd like to drive a tank," enthused my husband, when I told him that an attraction in England offers you a chance to drive a tank.

What a great idea for a birthday for the boys, or men, or the whole family. I have no desire to drive a tank. But I can instantly see or imagine their excitement and get vicarious satisfaction. I picked up the leaflet on tanks at the motorway stop near Leicester. Years ago Leicester was not on the tourist map. Just a name. Then I had stopped to visit a good friend, but did not bother diverting to see the cathedral. I was far more excited learning from her husband that when you stand on stage, you engage the audience by opening your arms wide.

In those days I would have been bored by the idea of a tank and acting out a WWII scene. Paintballs, I thought, were games for toddlers and men who have not grown up. But this time somehow my perception of Leicester was different. What was lurking at the back of my mind? Richard III? I knew Leicester and it was a place with modern activity, ancient activity, the ghosts of the past come alive.

Let's start with the leaflet on tanks which helped England fight and win wars, win battles, engaging ordinary soldiers. Later we shall come back to VIP-not-to-be Richard III losing his battle with an older form of battlefield transport for advance, attack, and escape, the horse. When you drive into battle with your horse towering over foot soldiers, or your tank on the horizon, you feel all powerful. If your horse crumples, you are a dead man. The same applies to a tank.

But as a tourist, you are alive, excited, invincible.

Tanks
The tank place is built on an old military range. You start with a ride around the area in a tank driven by an instructor. As I looked at the leaflet, the rain poured down outside. Yes, but what if it rains? If it rains, you won't mind diverting into the museum which contains more than 70 wartime vehicles, all in giant aircraft hangars. You will learn why those hangars were there later.

Ages
If you are over 17 years of age and have a driver's license, you can book to drive one of several vehicles, and play paintball games. Children must be over 8 years old. Some activities are for different minimum ages, including clay pigeon shooting, and archery. No problem if, instead of saying 'we' are going to do such an activity, you say, 'we are going to watch Dad,' or them, 'doing so and so,' or, 'We are going to sit in a tank!' instead of we are going to drive one.

When?
The outdoor activities, the whole place, is open like many UK attractions in the tourist high season, in good weather. April to October. Wednesday to Sunday, 10 am to 4 pm. How do you remember that? By looking at the logic. So the staff are there for you at the weekend, but take off the dead days of Monday and Tuesday. The tanks are out and about in daylight hours, ten to four. Like on a film set, for photographs.

So they won't bother opening in the hope of attracting a random stray visitor in the off season.
However, you can book group activities throughout the year. Where, again? It's near Market Harborough. And Leicester.

Whilst in the area, look out for the aviation monument on a roundabout just south of Lutterworth. That memorial is not just a random piece of decoration. It is an essential part of the story, the history, of the area. The jet engine started here. Engines don't sound romantic. But when you think of Icarus trying to get off the ground, engines are the heart of flying, the power, winning in peace and war. Winning the battle in olden times - and in modern times they are winning the modern battle for tourists' attention.

Wikipedia says of Lutterworth:

Frank Whittle, inventor of the jet engine, developed some of the world's first jet engines at the British Thomson-Houston works in Lutterworth, and in nearby Rugby, during the late 1930s and the 1940s, with his company Power Jets. A replica of his first jet aircraft the Gloster E.28/39 stands in the middle of a roundabout just south of the town as a memorial, and a number of papers and documents relating to Whittle's development of the jet engine are displayed at the town's museum.^[7]


Photo from Wikipedia in public domain.

Rugby is famous for the school. The game of Rugby, supposedly started there. Wasn't there a saying about war being won on the playing fields of Rugby, where the upper class boys, the future leaders, practised fighting to win, keeping fit, and playing in a team.

Er, no. I checked. The saying was that the battle of Waterloo was won on the playing frields of Eton. Eton is near Windsor, which you pass driving west from London, on the M4. Leicester is on the road north from London, the M1. Yet somehow the idea of the playing the game on the battlefield persists. The good old days when you fought the oposite team with every ounce of your energy, but, at the end of the game, you shook hands with the enemy if you won, and the losers, with good grace, conceded defeat to the winners and congratulated them on their prowess.

Next, near Leicester and rugby, you can travel further back in time, before tanks and before engines. The big excitement for those studying history and literature was the discovery of the body of Richard III in a Leicester car park. It sounds odd, doesn't it?

But modern excavations unearth all sorts of exciting and interesting relics of the past, weapons, food, skeletons. The first time I heard about Richard III, I thought, Who cares?

The infamous Richard III. Did he or didn't he? Kill the princes? Lose his horse?

A Canadian visitor to a Writers' Summer School at Swanwick was at first baffled by our enthusiasm for Richard III. I must admit, when I first read the newspaper reports about his body, I thought, Richard III? I could not place Richard the first, Richard the second or Richard the third in my memory bank.

But the phrase 'my kingdom for a horse' resonated. In England, people often use that phrase as the base for a comment on something else urgently wanted. Such as, 'my kingdom for a cake', or, 'my kingdom for a cup of coffee'.

It is one of many phrases from Shakespeare's plays which have landed into daily conversation, unnoticed by the average person. Like, 'Oh, woe is me for you are undone'.

The lady from Leicester lit up like a tourist guide when the name of Richard III was mentioned. Our Canadian friend was illuminated by the collective glow as five of us leaned forward and competed to tell the story of Richard, desperate for a horse on the battlefield, as he lost his life, and kingdom.

So, if you visit the Leicester area, stop, or at least stop on the motorway and think about the area and plan a return visit. After thinking of tanks, or instead of 'my kingdom for' a tank, there's 'my kingdom for' a horse. Continue on to Leicester to see the story of King Richard III, last of the Plantaganets, before the throne was taken over by the Tudors, notably Henry VIII, and Elizabeth I.

Remember the Wars of the Roses. One was white and the other was red.



More about Richard III in the next post.

Southfields Farm
Husbands Bosworth,
Lutterworth,
Leicestershire LE17 6NW
Tel: 01858 880239.

Useful Websites
www.armourgeddon.co.uk.
www.militarymuseum.uk.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloster_E.28/39
https://kriii.com Richard III Visitor Centre
https://www.visitleicester.info/good-to-know/visit-leicester-information-centre

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Jane Austen's Burial Place, Winchester Cathedral and The Bones of Queen Emma

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Jane Austen was buried at Winchester cathedral.

Jane Austen from Wikipedia article on Jane Austen

Jane Austen remembered in Winchester cathedral.

 It also is known for commenorating St Swithin and assorted other famous and people and those you half know about. For example King Canute. Confusingly Canue is often called King Cnut. King Cnut - never heard of him. King Canute! Why didn't somebody say so?

Winchester cathedral exterior. Photo by Wyrdlight.com (Weird name! Or is it wired? ) creative Commons.  More details on the origins of the photo and the cathedral in Wikipedia.

An exciting new exhibition is planned for the end of this month (May 2019), somewhere to visit if you are in England this summer or later.

It's a detective story. The bones were scattered by Roundhead soldiers, jumbled up and put back later in the coffins in the cathedral.

Now, with modern technology, the bones have been matched up. One set of a woman might be the bones of Queen Emma. I had never heard of her. But she is was related to a line of kings, and ultimately our present Queen Elizabeth.

Emma's two husbands were known as The Unready and The Great. I know what you are thinking. She had two equally famous sons.

The man you are most likely to know of is Canute, who legend says tried to tell the waves of the sea to go back. They did not. This was to demonstrate to his fawning servants that he was not all-powerful. He was, however, head of an earlier united kingdom, of England, Denmark and Norway, a Viking.


Canute ruled England, Denmark, a bridging bit of Sweden between Denmark and Norway and Norway. Looking at the map makes sense of this

.

Here's a Canute coin. A bit primitive, but quite attractive.

If you are in London and want to learn more about Canute and see something associated with him, other coins are in the British Museum in London, England.

Let us move on to another well-known story. The Princes in the tower.

Painting by Millais. Public domain. (From Wikipedia article on the princes.)


Equally exciting is the find of the bones of two boys. Speculation says they could be the two princes in the tower, put there and reputedly murdered by their uncle Richard III (another controversy). Probably not their bones. If in London, go to the Tower Of London.

Or look at the outisde as you pass and wonder whether the boys' bones ended up in Winchester cathedral

Probably not? But interesting to go to Winchester and read about the research. The exhibition will even have a reconstruction of the face of one of the boys, taken from the skeleton, like those done for victims or murdered and unidentified bodies after accidents.  Like a photo from the past, matched to the skeletal remains.

Winchester, a lovely cathedral with associations with other famous people. Alfred the great it seems was here - but his bones were moved on.

However, history is all stories which may or not be true, and you really go to places to hear stories. But if you want to see bones, the exhibiton will show you bones, or at least, pictures of the bones. As we were all told as children, look but don't touch.

You can visit it on a day drive from London. A must visit if you are interested in royalty, history, forensic science, or your name is Emma.

 Or you happen to be a fan of Jane Austen. Jane Austen was not hinking of Emma when she said, or didn't say nor write, to lose one husband is a misfortunate - no, that was Oscar Wilde. Jane Austen did say that somebody in possession of a fortune must be in want of a spouse. When looking at the bones of British history, the words of great British writers spring to mind.

If you are as muddled as I am about long lost British Kings and Queens, perhaps this would be a fine time to plan to go to Winchester. Apparently there is a fee for entering the cathedral. I once went on a press trip to the Cathedral and we were walked around the outside to save the time and money of going inside. But one report says that the cost of a year's admission is the same is a one time admission, so, if that is still the case, you might as well buy the year's admission in case you are so enamoured that you wish to return.

Useful Websites
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-hampshire-48281733
http://www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk/whats-on/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winchester_Cathedral

Travel
visitbritain.com
visitbritain.org
visitbritainshop.com
visitengland.com
visitlondon.com

Author
Angela Lansbury, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Richard III to be buried in Leicester Cathedral - ending "the winter of our discontent"

Next week (March 2015) Richard III will be buried in Leicester Cathedral. The lead-lined coffin has been carved by one of his descendants, named not Richard but Michael. It was Richard's closest descendant's DNA which enabled Richard III to be identified when his skeleton was dug up from a Leicester car park.

   Richard III should be buried in York, many people protest, because he is from the House of York. (He lost to the Lancastrians, from Lancaster, Tudor dynasty, a line of kings all confusingly named Henry who led to Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.)

   However, York already has many attractions and does not need another. Also visitors to York might find so many other things to do that they neglect Richard III.

   Leicester, however, has almost no major attractions. I recall the highlight of my stay with my good friend Lynda was a trip to the Dunelm Mill store. Leicester is also nearer if you are going north from London, where large numbers of tourists arrive.

   Yes, Leicester, specifically Leicester Cathedral, is a great place for Richard III to be buried, near where he died in the battle of Bosworth Field, ending The Wars of The Roses ((White rose of York versus Red Rose symbol of Lancaster on their heraldic badges). He lived from 2 October 1452 to 22 August 1485, dying in his early thirties.

   How do you get to Leicester? Drive up the motorway from London. As Richard III said, according to William Shakespeare, at the end of the play, Richard III, written about 1592, more than a century later, "A horse! A horse - my kingdom for a horse!"

   Did Richard kill, or order to be killed, his nephews, the two princes in the tower (of London). He had just cancelled the coronation of the eldest brother, declaring them both to be illegitimate, so that he could be crowned.

   You may recall the opening line of the Shakespeare's play, given to Richard III, "Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of York."
   If you want to know more about Richard III, you can read three books about him. Two of the biographies were reviewed in a recent edition of the Sunday Times, by the author of the third book.

Photo of Richard III of England from Wikipedia in public domain

Richard III, Roundworms And Your Diet

A newspaper article on Richard III says he had roundworm, which you can get from meat which has not been properly cooked and from using faecal matter as fertiliser. The article also says that roundworm is prevalent in tropical countries.
   This reminds me that meat should be thoroughly cooked, both at home and in restaurants. I always ask for medium, never rare.
   The debate about salads is also raised in tropical countries. When I first went to Singapore I listened to the Americans saying they would only eat salads from Australia or the USA because they did not want the risk of food fertilised by faecal matter. (They put it less politely.)
   People who lived in the tropics liked what they were used to eating and buying, at cheaper prices, and were against food which they though had added chemicals.
     Health and safety ideas can back up your existing preferences after the event. Or cause you to take or change your view.
  Two more views on what people prefer to eat: Some people think that insect life is a sign that a vegetable is good to eat and not treated with chemicals.
   But I have liked pre-washed salad since I read about how it is spun around flinging off anything which should not be there. I have never been a fan of worms in my food. I can't stop worms eating people after they are dead and buried. But I'm with all those people keen to stop worms eating me and my food. I don't want worms eating my food, whether apples, fruit or vegetables, before I eat the food. Nor do I want worms grabbing the nutrients from my food after the food reaches my intestines.