* The July issue of History Today features an article by Janet Dickson on the The Final Years of Elizabeth I’s Reign (article preview at link)
* Richard III tomb design unveiled in Leicester – The wooden coffin will be made by Michael Ibsen, a distant relative of Richard III, while the tomb will be made of Swaledale fossil stone, quarried in North Yorkshire.
And finally, a few more interesting historical houses up for sale for your “what would I do if a had a few quid to spare” dreaming…
* The Norfolk house fit for King Henry VIII – yours for just
There was some angry kerfuffling that Richard’s tomb does not resemble those of other late medieval kings, but I think it’s reasonably appropriate for a ruler whose reputation is, well, equivocal to say the least. Also, I don’t think the craftsmen still exist who could fashion accurate facsimiles of the statuary, canopy, and all the rest that went along with a 15th-century tomb (3-D printing maybe?). It does have a certain austere dignity.
I like the design.
Richard is being appropriately buried in the 21st century, and ‘gingerbread’ and ‘bells and whistles’ would detract from his final resting place. What I especially like is that the design is evocative of how his contemporaries felt about him…just a place in the ground itself, originally, and then that was only due to the kindness of strangers in a section of England that Richard didn’t visit continually…like York.