King Richard III, buried with honors, the “warrior king,” sometimes also called the “good king,” was laid to rest for the second time since his death at Bosworth in August 1485. Then, the king fell in battle during a fight with the forces of Henry Tutor, the man who was to become Henry VII, thus ending the War of the Roses.
Unlike the reported burial that was without pomp or ceremony of any kind back at his original burial at the Greyfriars monastery, King Richard III’s remains were buried in 2015 with a vibrant ceremony full of symbolism. Many gathered on top of Ambion Hill, which overlooks that battlefield in Leicestershire to pay tribute to King Richard III.
More than 35,000 people were reported to be on hand to watch as Richard’s remains were paraded through Leicester and some of the adjacent towns as it made its way to King Richard’s new final resting place. Some of the spectators even wore armor or other types of period clothing.
Archaeologists found the king’s remains back in August 2012, in what was left of the old monastery under a car park for the Leicester City Council. He appeared to have been buried quickly, as it was revealed that his head was propped up along his side.
The body showed evidence of the battle wounds that killed Richard, with eight head wounds. One caused much of his skull to be cut off, while another appeared to be from a sword being stabbed into his head. Archeologists studied the body remains and verified by DNA testing that it was indeed the previous monarch.
The modern ceremony for King Richard III was in part conducted by Dr. Phil Stone, chairman of the Richard III Society. He spoke to those gathered and said that the deceased king should be remembered as a man of integrity who believed in taking care of his trusting subjects. That is in part why Richard got the nickname, “the good king.”
There was also a religious ceremony as part of the funeral service that was led by the Catholic archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, since King Richard II was Catholic.
The ceremony to honor Richard III included a 21 gun salute to the previous monarch and included a banner that bore Richard’s white boar sigil from a flagstaff. His remains were rode through the town in a special lead lined coffin made of oak.
On this reburial, Richard’s remains were put to rest into a special inscribed tomb built with Yorkshire Swaledale stone honoring the previous king. The new grave site is to be covered over by a glass floor. Visitors to it will be able to read about the life and history of King Richard III, as well as about the way that his remains were found and identified.
God Bless King Richard III, may he rest in peace with honor, this time forever, in the city of Leicester at the pre-reformation era Leicester Cathedral.
