Re-interment of King Richard III

Lamplighter wrote:

lily wrote:Thanks LL.   

Another Pm for you.   LL

bb1 wrote:It's so rare for clothing to survive anyway, Lily, let alone Catholic vestments through the Reformation. Astounding.

King Richard III was coffined at the University of Leicester in a former chapel on Sunday 15 March 2015 at 12 noon.

There were twenty official witnesses to the event, including three clerics from the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church. A list of those present was signed by each individual; a copy will be presented to the Richard III Society on 22 March and will be published on our website.

A welcome address from the Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Leicester, Professor Kevin Schürer, included a statement confirming that the University had completed its scientific research and analysis of the bones; there was also an assurance that King Richard's remains would not be disinterred in the future. He also stated that all the samples taken from the King's remains for scientific testing had been collected and would be placed in the coffin. The materials used in the coffin were sourced from across the United Kingdom, and were all naturally-based to avoid the danger of any contamination of the remains.

The coffin is English oak with a lead lining and the base is covered with a piece of unbleached linen. It was made by Michael Ibsen, a carpenter and collateral descendant of King Richard, whose DNA was used in the identification of the King's remains.

Beforehand King Richard's bones had been laid out anatomically on a table covered with a murray coloured cloth. They were also placed in the coffin anatomically, with wool fleece placed around the bones to hold them in position. The smaller ones were picked up individually and placed in eight unbleached linen bags made by children from Leicester's King Richard III Infants School.

The scientific samples taken from the bones, stored in glass tubes and sealed with cork were then placed into the ninth bag. When all the bones had been transferred to the coffin sheets of thick wool wadding were paced over the bones and fleece. A rosary was put into the final bag and this was placed in the coffin. The rosary, donated by Dr John Ashdown-Hill, had been blessed a few weeks earlier at Clare Priory in Suffolk.

Further sheets of wadding were added and finally another piece of embroidered unbleached linen was placed over the wadding and this was carefully tucked down. The lead lid cover was then soldered into place and coffin's lid laid and fixed.

The coffining was held in silence, with reverence and due dignity providing those present the opportunity to offer their thoughts and prayers privately in silence.

University of Leicester announcement.

bb1 wrote:I see C4 has a discussion at 9 tonight about Richard III and the Princes in the Tower. Now, normally I'd watch it, but unfortunately, one of the guests is David Starkey.

Should I avoid it, because he annoys me so much? Or watch it, because the other guest is Ms Langley, and she may be able to make him stutter and go red in the face?

bb1 wrote:He's putting me off watching it, LL. I've seen him too often on the subject of his beloved Tudors. I find him outdated, imperialist, and generally....predictable. His whole style of 'history' seems old-fashioned and bigoted, as is his research and methodology.

bb1 wrote:IMO, the lightbulb moment comes when you think, Hold on, who said they were even murdered in the first place?

My own personal opinion is that the key is Elizabeth Woodville's actions.