Remains of English King Richard III Found – Igniting the Controversy Again

Was He a Bad Man Or The Victim of Bad Political Spin By the Greatest Spinner of All William Shakespeare

We Report, You Decide

The knowledge of almost everyone in modern times about the British king Richard III comes entirely from the magnificent drama penned about the monarch by Shakespeare.  Of course, Shakespeare was a man of his times, and in his time the current monarchy was a descendent of Henry Tudor, the man who defeated Richard in battle and claimed the throne from him.

(Gavin Fogg/AFP/Getty Images) - In this Sept. 12, 2012
photo, men dressed as medieval knights pose for pictures
 in Leicester, England, at the site where a skeleton later
 identified as that of British medieval king Richard III was found.

So no rational author in the late 1500’s was ever going to write anything but a devastatingly nastry portrait of Richard III, the same way no Democratic inclined author would write positive things about George W. Bush or any Conservative would say anything good about Barack Obama.  And so with the location of the remains of Richard III in England, where history is always alive the controversy continues.

For example

The next task for authorities was to decide where to reinter the king. This has been a contentious issue, which was hotly debated on the floor of the House of Commons between members of Parliament from York — for whom Richard was the last hope against rival Lancastrians in the War of the Roses — and Leicester, where the remains were found.

And there is this.

Before this announcement, some of Richard’s staunchest supporters argued that a royal burial at Westminster Abbey would only be appropriate for the much-misunderstood monarch. That option seemed to have been vetoed by Queen Elizabeth II, whose royal lineage would not have been possible without the chain reaction caused by Richard’s death.

“We understand the queen has suggested that she doesn’t want him there,” said Phil Stone, chairman of the Richard III Society. “But it would be nice if we could at least have a procession, with the coffin being carried in a stately carriage.”

Well whatever you decide England, get on with it.  Thanks to Conservatives who control Parliament you have a faltering economy to deal with,  a useless pile of rocks called the Falkland Island to fight over and a decision of whether or not to leave the EU and really blow up the economy.  So stick Richard III back in the ground somewhere and be done with it. 

Just some friendly advice, no need to thank us.