The King's Grave: The Discovery of Richard III's Lost Burial Place and the Clues It Holds (37 page)
Authors: Philippa Langley
Tags: #Nonfiction, #Plantagenets, #Royalty, #England/Great Britain, #Science, #15th Century
Richard may have suffered from what is known in modern psychology as the ‘Intolerance of Uncertainty’ syndrome, an anxiety disorder characterized by excessive worry. He might have displayed some signs of this, perhaps most strongly seen in his sensitivity to possible threat and danger. Associated with this syndrome is extreme self-control which can lead to inflexible moral and religious beliefs.
The final part of the psychological analysis was an examination of Richard’s transition from Lord of the North to king. For a decade Richard had a clearly defined role in the north; he was his own man and got on with the job. Subsequently, the executions of Hastings and Buckingham could be seen as Richard’s need to assert control in an unfamiliar and rapidly changing situation.
In summary, we believe it was unlikely that Richard was a psychopathic murderer. Rather, the analysis shows him as a man with good and bad qualities, some attractive, some less so, perhaps including an excessive need or desire for control.
Five questions were then raised and speculative answers provided:
What does Hastings’s execution tell us?
Although the nature of Hastings’s crime was not clear, it would have been entirely plausible for Richard to have acted with impetuosity if he believed that he had been betrayed. We see no inconsistency in the fact that he treated Hastings’s widow with respect.
Could Richard have murdered his nephews?
No deposed medieval king of England subsequently survived for long. Richard may simply have followed in the footsteps of his predecessors. However, Richard had a claim to the throne of his own – one that he and others may have believed in – as a consequence of which his nephews were declared illegitimate. If this was true Richard did not necessarily have to kill the princes to succeed to the throne. Later, renewed threat of civil war may have forced his hand, obliging him to order their death; alternatively he may simply have resolved to move them to a safer location. As a cautious and judicious man we believe it was more in character for him to hide the princes than murder them.
Was he Machiavellian?
We see Richard imperilled to think and act by what he believed in. He was not a mere opportunist.
Did he take the throne opportunistically?
Richard had a real sense of justice. Once the illegitimacy of the princes was raised as an issue, Richard may have felt that he was justified in staking his own claim to the throne. His record of loyalty to his brother Edward IV leads us to believe that he did not nurture a secret ambition to be king for years before his brother’s death.
Why did he die at Bosworth?
At the battle’s climax Richard chose to make a dramatic charge against his opponent Henry Tudor. As an experienced soldier he probably believed this manoeuvre stood a good chance of success, and his belief in the legitimacy of his rule and his consciousness of being God’s anointed representative as monarch would have further motivated his action.
Acknowledgements
T
HIS BOOK HAS
involved two parallel journeys: one about finding Richard III’s physical remains, the other around exploring his historical reputation. In the course of this, the authors would like to acknowledge the help and support they have received. These debts are many, and more specific instances of thanks are also given in the Notes.
* * *
Philippa Langley would like to start with an apology: for four years this search was my passion, and I am aware that I can’t possibly mention all those individuals without whom it would not have been possible. If your name is not recorded here, I ask your forgiveness.
I thank my co-author whose critically acclaimed
Bosworth 1485: Psychology of a Battle
re-ignited my quest for the real Richard III and led to my 2004 visit to a car park in Leicester. I had two wingmen at the 2012 dig, firstly Dr John Ashdown-Hill. His long years of painstaking research guided all our efforts, and everyone involved in this project is deeply indebted to him. Annette Carson, my other support, was the first writer I encountered who stated her belief that Richard III still lay where we found him. Her study of the contemporary sources propelled the search for the real Richard. Two founding members of the project, Dr David and Wendy Johnson, contributed unstinting commitment plus years of research to crucial tasks including the design of the tomb and formulating the Reburial Document. Dr Phil Stone, Chairman of the Richard III Society, personally saved the project on four separate occasions, demonstrating belief and vision of truly Ricardian proportions.
The part played by Leicester City Council has been much overshadowed, and I hope this book may help put that right. They graciously granted permission to excavate, for which my appreciation goes especially to Sir Peter Soulsby, the City Mayor, for unwavering support, and Sarah Levitt, lead on the project, whom I have the honour to count as both colleague and friend. To the utterly brilliant Richard Buckley and his dedicated team at University of Leicester Archaeological Services whose skill and expertise shine through in these pages. To that remarkable centre of learning, Leicester University, particularly Professor Mark Lansdale, Dr Julian Boon and Dr Turi King for their many kindnesses, and Richard Taylor, Deputy Registrar, for his decision to support the project. To the Dean, the Very Reverend David Monteith and all at the Cathedral who have preserved and honoured the memory of King Richard. To Julian Ware, Simon Farnaby, Simon Young, Louise Osmond, Pete Woods, Alex Rowson and the entire production team at Darlow Smithson, together with John Hay, Julia Harrington and Ralph Lee at Channel 4. To many other partners and donors: Martin Peters at Leicestershire Promotions, Michael Johnson and Colin Cook at Leicester Adult Schools, and numerous private investors including Raymond Bord, David Fiddimore, Gerry Martin, Fiona Nicolson and Jack Thomson. To Martin Traynor OBE at Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce, Heather Broughton at Leicestershire County Council and Stuart Bailey and Ben Ravilious at Leicester Civic Society. To all at the Richard III Society, its dedicated Secretaries Sue and David Wells, Relations Officer Richard Van Allen and its Deputy Chair Wendy Moorhen, plus local members Sally Henshaw and Richard Smith, for their long years of commitment. To my friends and family for their unfailing support, particularly Sheila Malham and Geoff Akers, and of course my two sons Max and Raife and their father, John. My final thanks must go to all those Ricardians around the world who stepped in when the dig was threatened with cancellation. The search for King Richard was yours.
* * *
Michael Jones would like to express gratitude to his co-author for sharing his vision of putting Richard III back into the story of his family, the House of York, rather than casting him out from its ranks. I would like to thank fellow scholars Professor Michael Hicks, Dr Rosemary Horrox, Drs Sean Cunningham and James Ross at the National Archives, Dr Malcolm Mercer at the Tower Armouries, Professor Colin Richmond and Dr Philip Morgan at the University of Keele, Dr Rowena Archer, Cliff Davies, Diana Dunn, Keith Dockray, Margaret Condon and Anne Crawford for their support over years of working on Richard III, and particularly Professor Tony Pollard and Dr David Grummitt for the advice and help they gave as this present book got underway. To Peter and Carolyn Hammond, who for many years put the resources of the Richard III Society library at my disposal: I am appreciative of their personal kindness and hospitality.
Richard Mackinder of the Bosworth Battlefield Centre has walked the battlefield with me and discussed the latest archaeological finds there. Tobias Capwell, Curator of Arms and Armour at the Wallace Collection, has given helpful advice on the logistics of armour and Richard’s cavalry charge. Bob Woosnam-Savage of the Royal Armouries, an expert on late medieval weaponry and wounding in battle, has provided invaluable support around interpreting the battle wounds on Richard’s remains and reconstructing the king’s final moments at Bosworth. In the case of both the archaeological finds and battlefield terrain, Richard and Bob have stressed that their conclusions at this stage can only be provisional.
Sioned Williams, Curator of Furniture at the National History Museum, Cardiff, has kindly provided information on Rhys ap Thomas’s bed lintel, and Professor Paul Moroz, Orthopedic Surgeon at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, on the likely effects of Richard’s scoliosis. Geoffrey Wheeler has provided valuable assistance with the picture research. I am also grateful to my friends and family for their support – and to my two sons Edmund and Rufus and to their mother Liz.
We both would like to thank our agent, Charlie Viney, who has encouraged us every step of the way, and Roland Philipps, Caroline Westmore, Becky Walsh and everyone at John Murray, who have given us such great support, as well as Morag Lyall, our copy-editor, and Christopher Summerville who has compiled the index. My final debt is to my supervisor, Professor Charles Ross, who first kindled my interest in Richard III. Charles’s major biography of Richard was completed whilst I was his post-graduate student and we discussed it on many occasions. His depth of scholarship and personal generosity inspired my love of medieval history – and I have thought of him often as this book was written.
Picture Credits
Darlow Smithson Productions Ltd
Darlow Smithson Productions Ltd
Darlow Smithson Productions Ltd
Looking for Richard
project 2013
Stratascan Ltd: (Claire Graham)
Dr Phil Stone, Richard III Society
University of Leicester: (Colin G. Brooks)
University of Leicester: (Colin G. Brooks)
University of Leicester: (Colin G. Brooks)
University of Leicester Archaeological Services
Notes
Introduction: The Inspiration
The quotes about Richard come from the York City Records, 23 August 1485 and 14 October 1485.
Chapter 1: The Road to the Dig
For Richard’s burial in the Greyfriars Priory in Leicester see Peter Hammond, ‘The Burial Place of Richard III’, in
Richard III. Crown and People,
Richard III Society, 1985, p. 31 (also
Ricardian,
IV, 59 (December 1977), pp. 30–31). For Richard’s tomb, see Rhoda Edwards, ‘King Richard’s Tomb at Leicester’, in
Richard III. Crown and People,
pp. 29–30 (also
Ricardian,
III, 50 (September 1975), pp. 8–9). For John Speed’s report on the site of King Richard’s grave, see John Speed,
History of Great Britain,
1611, p. 725. For Wren’s account of the memorial pillar in Herrick’s garden in Leicester see
Parentalia, or Memoires, of the Family of the Wrens
(London, 1750), p. 144. See Ashdown-Hill,
Last Days of Richard III,
pp. 114–23, for full details on the discovery of Richard III’s mtDNA sequence. Ashdown-Hill’s discovery was made in 2005 and published in John Ashdown-Hill: ‘Finding the DNA of Richard III’,
Medelai Gazette,
August 2005. Ashdown-Hill also published full details of Richard III’s mtDNA sequence for HVR1 and HVR2 (subsequently confirmed in the Leicester bones, 2013) in ‘Margaret of York’s Dance of Death: The DNA Evidence’,
Handelingen van de Koninklijke Kring voor Oudheidkunde, Letteren en Kunst van Mechelen,
111, 2007, pp. 193–207. The site of the lost Greyfriars Church was believed to be close to Grey Friars Street in the north-east of the Greyfriars precinct. See Ken Wright,
The Field of Bosworth,
2002, pp. 142–3, 146. David Baldwin, ‘Is there a King under this bridge?’
Leicester Mercury,
October 8 2002. For the assertion that Richard may have first been buried in the Church of the Annunciation in the Newarke in Leicester, see Anne F. Sutton and Livia Visser-Fuchs, ‘The Making of a Minor London Chronicle in the Household of Sir Thomas Frowyk (died 1485)’,
Ricardian,
X, 126, (September 1994), pp. 86–103. For John Ashdown-Hill’s new evidence to confirm the Greyfriars burial see his ‘The Epitaph of Richard III’,
Ricardian,
18 (2008), pp. 31–45. Also see Ashdown-Hill,
Last Days of Richard III,
Appendix 4, pp. 134, 168. For Ashdown-Hill’s conclusion that Richard’s body was still at the Greyfriars site see his
Last Days of Richard III,
pp. 106–9. For the law on burials, see the Burials Act 1857, section 25. The heraldic emblem of a boar has long antecedents, at least back to Roman times. It signified a fighter. Live wild boar do not seek out humans but when hunted, as they were in medieval days, will turn and fight. Richard’s best known motto was ‘loyaulte me lie’ – loyalty binds me. The former grammar school was owned by William Davis Ltd, Loughborough, who very kindly gave permission to carry out the GPR survey (2011) and archaeological investigation (2012). Thanks to Adrian McInnes, Technical Director, and Paul Watkins, Project Co-ordinator. Thanks to Dr Raymond Bord, David Fiddimore, Dr David and Wendy Johnson, Gerry Martin, Fiona Nicolson, Dr Phil Stone, Jack Thomson for funding the GPR survey. The Mira Scanner for the GPR survey was provided by LTU. Englezo’s search had been successful; eight pits containing the mass grave of two hundred and fifty British and Australian servicemen from the Great War were discovered. The servicemen were reburied with honour in a new cemetery opened in France by the Prince of Wales. Using DNA profiling and forensic analysis, by 2010–11 over ninety of these remains had been successfully identified.