Detail of Warwickshire map by John Cary, 1806  

The Life and Times of Richard III

John Richards

Monday 19 January, 6.00 pm - White Swan
This month's subject is The Life and Death of King Richard III and will consist of a brief history of his life, his involvement in the Wars of the Roses, and the methods by which he became king. We shall then look at the Battle of Bosworth which includes a weaponry demonstration (!) and a close look at how Richard met his end, based on evidence from his skeleton found in Leicester.

John Richards was born in Wales and attended Aberystwyth University. He worked for 20 years as a fireman in the London and West Glamorgan fire services while completing a part-time degree in Ancient History and Classics.

He has worked in museums and on archaeological digs including the Dig for Shakespeare on the site of Shakespeare’s house – New Place. He ran his own business for 20 years teaching history, archaeology and drama. John is currently employed as a guide in the Shakespeare houses in Stratford–upon-Avon.

In 2024 John was made a Fellow of the Historical Association.

Watch the presentation here (3 minutes in)

Report on the Talk

King Richard III was a well-known and controversial king, but he was on the throne for only two years. He was killed in the battle of Bosworth on 22 August 1485 and was the last king to have died in combat. Shakespeare’s famous creation focuses on his malevolence and on his crippled body. The disappearance of the princes in the Tower (the children of King Edward IV, and Richard’s nephews) was also blamed on him, although the evidence is only circumstantial. He is the only king to have had no known grave – until his body was found beneath a car park in Leicester in 2012.

He was born in 1452, son of Richard, Duke of York and grew up during the difficult and complex era of the Wars of the Roses, between the noble houses of York and Lancaster, which lasted for over 30 years. The various rivalries, machinations and battles were described in an exciting way by John Richards, setting the scene for Richard’s final moments. Richard became Duke of Gloucester in 1461 after the accession of his brother to the throne as Edward IV. Richard married Anne Neville in 1472 and they had one son, Edward. Richard was well respected in the north as a good ruler in his area.

When Edward IV died in 1483, he was succeeded by his son, Edward V, age 12, and Richard was named Lord Protector. Just before the coronation the marriage of the parents of the young princes was declared bigamous and Richard was declared king in Edward V’s stead. The boys were placed in the royal apartments of the Tower of London for their own protection, but they never emerged. There were rumours of foul play by or on behalf of Richard. Thomas More later wrote about it alleging that Sir James Tyrell smothered them and they were buried in the Tower. In the reign of King Charles II, when some work was done in the Tower, two bodies were found. In the 1930s they were examined and considered to be 10-12 years’ old. Queen Elizabeth II did not want them to be touched further, but maybe DNA tests might be possible now, under Charles III?

When challenged Richard III said nothing but also was unable to produce the young princes. Richard’s son and wife sadly also died around this time. The Duke of Buckingham revolted and was executed and Richard became isolated. Henry Tudor at this point was in Brittany, but Rees ap Thomas, loyal to Henry Tudor, was in Wales, and, with the support of some French soldiers, crossed the River Severn and made their way across England to engage Richard III in battle at Bosworth in Leicestershire in 1485. Richard started with an advantage of 3:1 over Henry Tudor, but some of his soldiers defected to Henry.

At this time, soldiers got off their horses and fought on foot. They had a variety of weapons including bows and arrows, long thin swords, guns and daggers and they wore armour. They also had halberds, multi-purpose weapons, 6-7 feet long. These have a spike at each end - a big stabbing spike, a hook to trip up the enemy, and a small spike to go through and between the armour. John Richards showed us a halberd and demonstrated with a skull how injuries could be inflicted. A dagger in the eye was very effective too.

Richard was killed fighting bravely on the ground, after two fatal halberd injuries to the brain, and also a wound to the groin – a 'humiliation' wound. His crown was found in a thorn bush. His body was stripped and later buried at the Greyfriars monastery in Leicester. This site, many years later, became a car park, where Richard’s body was found in 2012 (under a space marked 'R' for Reserved!). His body was found sitting up, but his feet were lost. His hands were crossed, perhaps after being tied together. The skeleton was examined carefully and it was found that he had a curvature of the spine and uneven shoulders, probably due to scoliosis. He possibly dragged one foot. This bears out the depiction by Shakespeare. The body was later buried in Leicester Cathedral in 2015.

This tale was vividly told and demonstrated and there were several questions from the enthusiastic audience. One question addressed the connection of Richard to Stratford. The answer is that there is no direct link to this town, but there are links to Warwickshire, somewhat tenuously to Richard Neville, 16th. Earl of Warwick, the 'King Maker', whose daughter, Anne Neville married Richard III when he was Duke of Gloucester.

Helen Elliott, Publicity officer