The Resurrection and Rehabilitation of Richard III.

Have been quite interested by the recent news of the reidiscovery of the body of Richard III, under a car park in Leicester, the site the old Greyfriars convent. The extraordinary circumstances of the discovery, which was the first thing found when the diggers tore up a section of the car park, under a painted letter 'R' was rather reminiscent of medieval accounts of miraculous discoveries of saintly relics- almost too good to be true, yet the evidence stacks up in favour of the identification. This evidence includes genetic, a match was found with a descendant of Richard's sister.

The body was found to have curvature of the spine, so the king was a hunchback after all. It seems fans of Richard III have egg on their faces in that regard, as they have long insisted that Richard was not a hunchback, and that this image was part of hostile Tudor propaganda. One suspects that the group, whose instinct has been to stick up for the underdog, has led to them somewhat idolising Richard, and assuming that he has been over-vilified and caricatured.

I am not so keen on the Wars of the Roses, which seem internecine and regrettable. However the wounds evidenced by the skeleton seem to confirm the impression that the king died bravely in battle. As one of the last real warrior kings, and one who gained battles in vain despite a physical handicap, he deserves a certain new respect. In this regard he may also be compared to Baldwin IV of Jerusalem. (This example also goes to show the presumptuousness of assuming that a medieval king had to be entirely able-bodied in order to be effective on the battlefield.) I hope Richard's reburial is with suitable pomp.