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A horse, a horse, my kingdom for...
- Thread starter jeremy h
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I can see your point but I think history will recall what happened to him. He's celebrated as being the last king to die in battle and the little dignity that his enemies accorded him is well known and is backed-up by the 'wounds of humiliation' they've found during the investigation of his bones.
IIRC The Richard III Society paid for the dig, using donations from its members to fund it and one of their driving motivations was that they felt the ignoble treatment surrounding his burial needed to be redressed and that he deserved a decent tomb. I'm inclined to agree with that view. They aren't putting him on display, they're giving him a decent reburial and I think that's fitting for a former king.
What's happening to him now will be part of history too and finding him has added to our historical knowledge of the period so I would contend that it's actually helped to preserve and add to the history of the man and his times, rather than pervert it...
I too have some sympathy for Sim's point but would suggest that this whole thing is a bit like when they discuss Quantum stuff and say that all things are possible until you observe it then the outcome is fixed*.
Once you actually know it's Richard in the car park then the outcome is fixed, as suddenly it's no longer a car park, despite the fact you're parking cars there. You're now just letting people park on the grave of a very famous king of England.
To stop that sort of thing happening I guess you've got to stop looking for evidence of anything (stop observing) for fear of fixing the outcome and I'm not sure where that would leave us.
*Please don't pick me up on this - I really have no idea how it all works.
Once you actually know it's Richard in the car park then the outcome is fixed, as suddenly it's no longer a car park, despite the fact you're parking cars there. You're now just letting people park on the grave of a very famous king of England.
To stop that sort of thing happening I guess you've got to stop looking for evidence of anything (stop observing) for fear of fixing the outcome and I'm not sure where that would leave us.
*Please don't pick me up on this - I really have no idea how it all works.
As an American who has no emotional tie to lucky sperm royalty, it still seems that tradition and history requires a proper burial. A reasonable royal tomb is the right end for this.
The alternative would be to dig up the parking lot and make it an historical memorial site. That would also be a graceful solution for others who may still be buried there.
The alternative would be to dig up the parking lot and make it an historical memorial site. That would also be a graceful solution for others who may still be buried there.
A
AhmedFaisal
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You make a surprisingly good argument though I'm not entirely convinced. I think a proper reburial is still the best course of action.
I doubt it will happen, and I do say this with tongue in cheek... but it wouldn't hurt to inscribe on that marble tomb something along the lines of "Exhumed from a council parking lot... " somewhere. That would ensure that future generations don't forget that bit of history. I think you are right that where the bones were finally found is will be as important as the rest of his life in writing his history for future generations.
Really?
To be honest, considering the way he was treated in 1485, I would think the only way is up when it comes to his reburial!
As a former head of state, I expect his burial will get all the deference due his position. However he was treated before, he was a King of England and should be treated as such.