King Richard III's closest known relatives set foot Wednesday on Bosworth Battlefield where the 15th-century monarch was slain, feeling the historic moment come to life on the eve of his reburial.
In the spring sunshine, four relatives of the last Plantagenet king stood in the quiet rolling Leicestershire fields, imagining the brutal clash that changed the course of English history.
All direct female line descendants of Richard's eldest sister Anne of York, they were given a tour of the battlefield by expert archaeologists, and shown artefacts that helped researchers identify the site.
University genealogists linked the four relatives to the skeleton found beneath a car park in Leicester, central England three years ago, and their positive DNA tests confirmed the bones belonged to the last English king to die in battle.
Siblings Michael, Jeff and Leslie Ibsen from Canada -- nephews and nieces 16 times removed -- and Australian-born Wendy Duldig, a niece 18 times removed, were told how Richard's forces succumbed.
"It's an interesting experience to be standing on the edge of a farmer's field and to be told that it's highly likely Richard was killed within a few hundred metres of where I was standing," Michael Ibsen told AFP on Ambion Hill, overlooking the scene.
"It all becomes much more tangible," said the London-based carpenter, 58, who, fittingly, built Richard's new oak coffin.
"Some 530 years ago, he was here and cut down, with chaos raging around. History is leaping up and coming alive."
- Holding link to the past -
Richard, the last of the Plantagenet dynasty, ruled from 1483 until his death at the Battle of Bosworth near Leicester, central England, in 1485.
It was the last major conflict in the Wars of the Roses and Richard's defeat aged 32 saw the crown pass to the Tudor dynasty, with his opponent ending the bloody day as king Henry VII.
Perhaps the most prized artefact found in the fields was a silver-gilt badge of Richard's personal symbol, a white boar, something worn only by his closest knights.
Leslie Ibsen, 55, who lives on Vancouver Island, said holding the symbol at the spot where it was found was "mind-boggling".
"It's one thing to be at home reading about it, but to actually come and hold the boar badge, that was incredible," she told AFP.
"What I found really interesting was the swords, when we saw how big they were. Holding them and going into battle, how much they would have had to do and how much they had to wear.
"It's an experience that will be with me forever."
Richard's remains will be reburied at Leicester Cathedral on Thursday in a solemn service attended by royalty and presided over by the Archbishop of Canterbury, England's most senior cleric.
King Richard III’s closest known relatives set foot Wednesday on Bosworth Battlefield where the 15th-century monarch was slain, feeling the historic moment come to life on the eve of his reburial.
In the spring sunshine, four relatives of the last Plantagenet king stood in the quiet rolling Leicestershire fields, imagining the brutal clash that changed the course of English history.
All direct female line descendants of Richard’s eldest sister Anne of York, they were given a tour of the battlefield by expert archaeologists, and shown artefacts that helped researchers identify the site.
University genealogists linked the four relatives to the skeleton found beneath a car park in Leicester, central England three years ago, and their positive DNA tests confirmed the bones belonged to the last English king to die in battle.
Siblings Michael, Jeff and Leslie Ibsen from Canada — nephews and nieces 16 times removed — and Australian-born Wendy Duldig, a niece 18 times removed, were told how Richard’s forces succumbed.
“It’s an interesting experience to be standing on the edge of a farmer’s field and to be told that it’s highly likely Richard was killed within a few hundred metres of where I was standing,” Michael Ibsen told AFP on Ambion Hill, overlooking the scene.
“It all becomes much more tangible,” said the London-based carpenter, 58, who, fittingly, built Richard’s new oak coffin.
“Some 530 years ago, he was here and cut down, with chaos raging around. History is leaping up and coming alive.”
– Holding link to the past –
Richard, the last of the Plantagenet dynasty, ruled from 1483 until his death at the Battle of Bosworth near Leicester, central England, in 1485.
It was the last major conflict in the Wars of the Roses and Richard’s defeat aged 32 saw the crown pass to the Tudor dynasty, with his opponent ending the bloody day as king Henry VII.
Perhaps the most prized artefact found in the fields was a silver-gilt badge of Richard’s personal symbol, a white boar, something worn only by his closest knights.
Leslie Ibsen, 55, who lives on Vancouver Island, said holding the symbol at the spot where it was found was “mind-boggling”.
“It’s one thing to be at home reading about it, but to actually come and hold the boar badge, that was incredible,” she told AFP.
“What I found really interesting was the swords, when we saw how big they were. Holding them and going into battle, how much they would have had to do and how much they had to wear.
“It’s an experience that will be with me forever.”
Richard’s remains will be reburied at Leicester Cathedral on Thursday in a solemn service attended by royalty and presided over by the Archbishop of Canterbury, England’s most senior cleric.
