Richard III updates

There have been many articles and discussions since Richard's body was formally identified by Leicester University on Monday. Here are a few of them:

• There has been some debate between academics over the value of the find. Neville Morley from Bristol University argues that Richard's celebrity has overshadowed research by others into more "ordinary" people from the time and Caroline Fletcher from Sheffield University questions the decision to announce the discovery through a press conference and television programme rather than more rigourous academic channels. 
• Here Paul Lay from History Today discusses how the find will affect Richard's reputation and considers why he has been able to inspire such dedicated supporters such as the Richard III Society.
• Richard III's face has been reconstructed based on the skeletal remains. You can read more about it here and see a video here.
• Here is some discussion about how Richard might have acquired his injuries at the Battle of Bosworth.
• Here is an article on whether Richard was responsible for the deaths of the Princes in the Tower and whether there are any other suspects. Meanwhile this article suggests that the bodies in Westminster Abbey believed to be the princes will not be re-examined in the light of Richard's discovery.
• And finally...here are some of the many Richard III jokes currently doing the rounds on Twitter. Our favourite is "Richard III officially announced 1485 Hide and Seek Champion". There are many more!

Richard III is found

It has been announced this morning that the body found in a car park in Leicester last year is indeed that of Richard III. In a fascinating conference, the team from the University of Leicester put together the evidence that pointed towards the body's royal origins. This included careful analysis of the skeleton, which included several severe wounds to the skull suggesting damage in battle and also a curvature of the spine - in other words Richard did indeed have a hunched back. They also demonstrated how they had compared DNA from the body to a known relative of Richard's royal line, and found a very close match.

You can read more about this on the university's website here, which is full of fascinating articles and videos about the process that led to the skeleton's confirmation. There will also be a documentary about it on Channel 4 tonight at 9pm. More info here.

The Richard III Society is so excited that they have revamped their whole webpage - you can see the results for yourself here. Meanwhile the BBC have a great set of detailed photos of the skeleton with comments from the "Osto-archaeologist" on what they reveal, and an article showing the many different opinions about Richard's reputation...

PS: Here are two articles which are slightly more cautious about the news. Catherine Fletcher from the University of Sheffield and Greg Jenner, consulant for "Horrible Histories" both try to put the discovery within its historical context. Recommended for UCAS statements!

Richard III dug up?

As you may have heard, a team of archaeologists may have found the remains of Richard III in a car park in Leicester, formerly the site of a friary destroyed during Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries.

You can find out more about the dig here and here and on these sites from the University of Leicester and the Greyfriars Project page. For further information on Richard III (albeit slightly biased!), there is plenty of information on the Richard III Society's page.

PS: Here are some further interesting articles:

From the BBC Magazine website - here is the Tudor historian Suzannah Liscombe's view, and an article by David Hipshon focusing on the treachery that led to Richard's death.

From History Today - a sceptical article on the excavations from Linda Porter.