It's quite fascinating when you can match a skeleton to significant events that happened in history. It is especially true, for some reason, when in life that person had a truly terrible reputation. And the more mysterious the story surrounding the person the better.
The finding of King Richard III's skeleton under a parking lot in 2012 in Leicester, England is absolutely fascinating. This is a guy who participated in the Wars of the Roses, conspired against his nephew's, the tragic "Princes in the Tower," in order to steal the crown, and is the last English king to have died in battle, thus ending the Plantagenet dynasty introducing the Tudor's.
His severe scolioses left his back deformed, and although not entirely true, it is the reason modern cinema exaggerates his character by portraying him as a hunchbacked tyrannical monster.
Though, if you look further into his reign, you find evidence that he did have the welfare of his subjects in mind putting in place specific laws designed to protect them from nobles who would exploit them. Unfortunately, we will never really know if Richard III was as nasty as history tells us or if he was simply an unfortunate product of his time.
Currently, there is fierce dispute between the current members of the Plantagenet family and Leicester University over who has final authority over Richard's remains. His modern relatives exclaim that he should be brought back to his home in York and re-interred properly...with the dignity due a one-time-king of England. They fear that if left to the University Richard would only be used to promote the University's hidden agenda's leaving him unable to rest in peace.
The University, on the other hand, claims they would not use him so shamefully and that he would have all the honor and respect due him. And if it weren't for them, Richard would not have had this last chance for glory, having stayed forever forgotten under the black top of an insignificant car park on campus grounds.
The vote is still out.
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Richard III was born into a world of political turmoil, resulting from the ongoing feud between two branches of the ruling Plantagenet family. They were the York's (Richard III's line) and the Lancastrian's (Henry Tudor's line). Their skirmishes are legendary and are referred to as the "War of the Roses" because both their herald's were of roses, one white, one red... which symbolized their closeness to the English throne.
Richard was eight years old when his father, a brother, and an uncle were killed at the battle of Wakefield in 1460. As a result Richard essentially lived in hiding and was eventually forced to flee the country. The struggles he endured throughout his young life caused him to grow-up much faster than most children and may also explain his callous demeanor.
Richard's fortune changed for the better when his brother Edward seized control of the crown. He was created Duke of Gloucester and supported his brother vehemently. (Not so with another brother who tried Edward's patience once too often; George was executed as a traitor in 1478.) Richard's loyalty and skill with a sword earned him favor with his brother the king and was named Lord Protector of Edward's heir, Edward V. Richard would hold authority over the kingdom until Edward V was crowned.
On his way to London, Edward V and his escort, Earl Rivers, were intercepted by Richard (Gloucester) and the Duke of Buckingham. Edward was taken to the Tower of London where his younger brother Richard, Duke of York, joined him. The princes were initially told it was for their own safety, but this was a farce.
Intoxicated with the taste of absolute power, Richard (Gloucester) schemed to take the crown for himself. He convinced the royal council to declare the marriage between his late brother King Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville invalid...making Edward V illegitimate and unable to assume the throne. Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was now King Richard III.
The two princes, now clearly prisoner's in the Tower, mysteriously disappeared shortly thereafter. Though their exact fates are unknown, it is speculated that Richard had the boys murdered in order to prevent any future rivalry.
It may have been ruthless, but if you put yourself in his shoes...this kind of treachery Richard had known since since his early childhood; to him the act was logical and necessary.
Richard died in 1485 of a traumatic head injury at the battle of Bosworth Field. The victor, Henry Tudor, had Richard stripped naked, carried off on the back of a horse, and buried without the customary honors of kingship. In fact, archaeological evidence suggests that he was hastily buried in a grave too small to fit the entire measure of his body.
His skull was smashed up against the back wall, his bones are riddled with wounds intentionally placed there in order to humiliate him, and his hands rest as if they were still bound together at the time he was interred. It is not known if he was taken to Grey Friars Church to begin with, but that is where he lay undisturbed for centuries. Over time, the church became ruin, and eventually the exact location of the church was lost to history...until it's re-discovery centuries later in 2012, underneath a car park Leicester.
