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Richard III and the Legend of the Car Park
You all watched the documentary, saw the news. It was September 2012 and thanks largely in part to the endeavors of Philippa Langley, a small council office car park in Leicester city centre, was pinpointed as the possible site of the church of the Greyfriars Abbey, the original burial place of short-lived King Richard III, killed by his successor Henry Tudor at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. Headlines grabbed the nation as, with the help of a team from the University of Leicester’s archaeology department, trenches were dug and under the ominous letter R from the reserved parking space it covered, a skeleton emerged, with its hands crossed as…
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Pedro the Cruel
No one looks at their sweet newborn baby and thinks some day his nickname is going to be “the cruel”. However, let’s say with start Pedro had it’s not surprising. His father, Alfonso XI, King of Castile, ditched his wife, Maria of Portugal, for his mistress. Once his wife gave him a son, he shipped them both off to exile away from court. He continued living with his mistress, with whom he had 10 children two of which were twin boys, leaving Maria to pour bitterness in Pedro’s ears. Pedro remained under his mother’s control away from court until 1350. When Pedro was 16, his father died of the black…
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Battle of Empingham
It has gone down in history as one of the shortest and least bloody battles that is known to have taken place in England. Casualties numbers are not recorded but were thought to be light, and two were executed before the battle started. Its 1470. Edward IV has regained his control following his defeat at Edgecote Moor the previous year, as a result of the intrigues of his brother George, Duke of Clarence and Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick who had later taken Edward captive for a period, before being forced to release him as a result of an uprising in the North by Lancastrian supporters under Humphrey Neville. Finding…
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Mary of York
Mary was born on the 11th August 1467 at Windsor Castle. She was the second daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville. Mary was christened the next day, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardinal Bourchier, was her Godfather. Her Godmothers are not recorded although it is thought Mary was named after Elizabeth’s sister Mary, who could possibly have been one of her God-mothers. Shortly after her birth, Mary’s Uncle, Anthony Lord Rivers successfully held back the Bastard of Fauconberg during his attack on London. Elizabeth secured in 1468, an income for her two daughters, of £400 a year, and the two were governed by Lady Berners until her death in 1475.…
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Battle of Mortimer’s Cross
I debated with myself for quite some time as to whether I should write about the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, as there isn’t really a great story to tell. The battle was short and decisive, but one of the most poorly accounted in the Wars of the Roses. Much of what we know is filled with holes and contradictions, particularly regarding the location of the venue and even the date is unconfirmed. But I felt the story must nonetheless be told, mostly for the sake of how the key events fit into the bigger picture. Several notable figures made their mark in history that day, one way or another either…
