Death of St Cuthbert at Inner Farne Island, off the coast of Northumberland.  He is venerated at Durham Cathedral.

He must have had special relevance for Richard III, as the statutes for his college at Middleham, which it has been suggested Richard might have written himself, state that one of the stalls for the priests should be named for St Cuthbert.  St Cuthbert’s was one of the principal feast days to be celebrated at Middleham.

Further reading:

Melhuish, Joyce M., The College of King Richard III, Middleham.  Richard III Society (nd)

Rollason, David & Dobson, R.B., ‘Cuthbert [St Cuthbert] (c.635–687)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, ]Oxford University Press, 2004  [last accessed online 2 March 2020]

Sutton, Anne F. & Visser Fuchs, Livia, The Hours of Richard III.  Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd (first published 1990, paperback 1996)

Dorothea Preis

Tags: Middleham, Richard III, Saints

Death of Richard III’s wife Anne Neville at Westminster, probably of tuberculosis.  She was buried at Westminster Abbey, but the location of her grave is unknown.  It is often said that Richard openly wept at her funeral, though the origin of this assumption is unclear.  There is a plaque for her at Westminster Abbey donated by the Richard III Society.  Unfortunately it does not get mentioned in the audio guide, so you have to look out for it.

The illustration on the left is from the in memoriam card which accompanied the wreath for Queen Anne’s tomb at Westminster in 2007. (© Richard III Society)

Tags: Anne Neville, Richard III

Edward IV and his brother Richard (later Richard III) arrive back in England on their return from exile in Burgundy, landing at Ravenspur.

Tags: Edward IV, Richard III

Edward IV leaves Burgundy to return to England and win back his throne.  He is accompanied by his brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III)

Tags: Burgundy, Edward IV, Richard III

Elizabeth Woodville and her daughters leave sanctuary at Westminster Abbey and are reconciled with Richard III.

Tags: Elizabeth of York, Elizabeth Woodville, Richard III

Facial Reconstruction of Richard III (used by permission of the Richard III Society)

An unforgettable event:

Press Conference at the University of Leicester – it is Richard III!

A press conference at the University of Leicester was specially convened on 4 February 2013.  At 10h40 (local time) it was announced that the human remains found during the archaeological dig in the area of Leicester’s Greyfriars were those of King Richard III.

The identification was based on a wealth of scientific evidence, including radiocarbon dating, radiological evidence, DNA and bone analysis and archaeological results.

In conclusion to a presentation of the various strains of evidence, Richard Buckley, the lead archaeologist on the Search for Richard III, said: “It is the academic conclusion of the University of Leicester that the individual exhumed at Grey Friars in August 2012 is indeed King Richard III, the last Plantagenet King of England.” *

You can watch and listen to the whole press conference again at  http://www2.le.ac.uk/news/blog/2013/february/watch-or-listen-to-the-richard-iii-press-conference-online

* ‘University of Leicester announces discovery of King Richard III’, University of Leicester (4 Feb 2013).  URL:  http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/press/press-releases/2013/february/university-of-leicester-announces-discovery-of-king-richard-iii [last accessed 1 Feb. 2020]

Tags: Leicester, Leicester Greyfriars Dig, Richard III

Wishing all our readers a very merry Christmas

and lots of happiness and peace for the New Year.

Enjoy a carol from King’s College Chapel in Cambridge (click here).

Richard III was a generous benefactor of the building of the chapel, which had been started by Henry VI.  By the end of his reign the first six bays of the Chapel had reached full height and the first five bays, roofed with oak and lead, were in use. [1]  It was the Tudor kings, Henry VII and Henry VIII, who would eventually finish the chapel.

Note:

‘History of the Chapel’, King’s College Cambridge.  URL:  http://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/chapel/history.html [last accessed 23 November 2018]

Tags: Cambridge, Christmas, Richard III

Death of Edward Plantagenet (Richard of Eastwell) at Eastwell.  He is said to have claimed to be an illegitimate son of Richard III.

Tags: Richard III

Jane Austen

Birth of Jane Austen

On 16 December 1775, Jane Austen was born in Steventon, Hampshire, where her Father, George Austen, was rector.  We all know and love Jane Austen’s novels, but her History of England, from the Reign of Henry the 4th to the Death of Charles the 1st is less widely known.   She wrote this at the age of 16 in 1791, but even at this early age it shows the wit she was to become famous for.

Of particular interest to us is of course what she had to say about Richard III.  Jane acknowledges that his character has been badly treated by historians, however, she is “inclined to suppose him a very respectable Man”.  The reason for her positive impression is that “he was York”, so not too many Lancastrian sympathies there.

Quotes taken from:
Jane Austen:  Love and Freindship and other early Works, The Women’s Press, London, 1978, reprinted 1979.  ISBN 0 7043 3823 8, p.71

You can read a short biography here.

Dorothea Preis

Tags: Books, Richard III