Bosworth Field: A version verified

In 1990, Peter Foss published a short volume on his take on the siting of the Battle of Bosworth, titled The Field of Redemore. In light of the recent surveys and digs funded by the Heritage Lottery, it is beginning to look as if Mr Foss was virtually spot on with his conclusions. In his diagrams of what he believes to be the site of the final melee, we can see the edge of the triangular field where the recent discoveries have been found. It is but a few yards further to the south-west, along the Fenn Lanes. Full marks to the man and his superlative interpretation of the battle. And the good news for traditionalists is that Peter Foss states that Richard most likely camped at Ambion Hill on the eve of battle, and would have used the lower slopes as the starting point for his move towards Tudor. Foss, having got the site of the denoument correct, is unlikely to have erred regarding other features of the conflict.(Above pic: the new field of battle, with Fenn Lanes in the distance.)

Digging up the past

There are interesting developments regarding the Battle of Bosworth. New finds from the archaeological dig have, I think, persuaded all but the most hard-bitten of traditionalists that the battle was fought a mile or two further to the south-west of the existing site. Having visited the new battleground with camera and notepad, I found it to a be a field like any other. That will soon be rectified, no doubt, pending permission from the landowner. However, all the cannon shot and belt buckles in the world will not tell us exactly why Richard III was defeated by a rag tag and bobtail set of mercenaries on August 22, 1485. No doubt someone was paid off handsomely for playing the deadly political game of duplicity.

I do hope that if any memorials are erected on this new site, it will only be for the brave warrior king and not the Tudor usurper. One wonders just exactly where on this field Henry was skulking when the final gratuitous blows were struck against the last of the Plantagenets. (Pic: Richard's standard on Ambion Hill)

'Betjeman' by A N Wilson

An enjoyable biography. It was interesting to find out about Betjeman's influence on the early days of television programming at the BBC. Sadly, a lot of his advice went unappreciated, and at one point he threatened to withdraw his pioneering services as a writer and frontman on documentaries about archictecture as he was barely being paid enough to cover his expenses. He was actually being paid a far higher fee for his appearances on rather frivolous quiz shows and the like. It does seem to be taking the corporation a long time to get things right.

Goodbye winter, hello blogspot

To mark the demise of a terrible winter, I hereby venture into the world of weblog.