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The Battle of Bosworth Field - Points of View.

© Elizabeth Batt

The day was 22 August 1485; the battlefield was to be named after the small neighboring town of Market Bosworth; the fallen King was the third and ablest of English monarchs who bore the name Richard; and the man whom the battle made a king was to be the seventh and perhaps the greatest of those who bore the name Henry.
S.T. Bindoff Tudor England PROLOGUE: 1485

As mentioned in my previous article, controversy is abound concerning not only the location of the battle but also the characters of both Kings.
Having conducted some moderate research into various theories, I will portray the views of others and allow you to decide whether you concur or not.

The first issue to tackle is that of location. The village of Dadlington in Leicestershire (situated between Hinckley, Bosworth and Nuneaton,) believes that it was far closer to the Battle of Bosworth Field than history gives it credit for. Issue is taken with the fact that the Battle was named Bosworth because Bosworth simply happened to be the most notable town near the area of fighting.(William Burton 1622). They place emphasis on this by citing 'Agincourt', which gained it's name from a nearby castle.

It seems that Dadlington's significance, during and after the battle has been obscured for centuries and it is only recently through the efforts of historians, that this significance is coming to light. The facts are considerably impressive as we'll discover.
Recent research has shown that many victims of the battle are buried in Dadlington, and thus King Henry VIII in 1511, chose it's church as the setting for a chantry commemorating the battle dead. It is also believed possible, that Richard III himself met his death within it's Parish boundaries.

Adding to the evidence is the number of human skeletons, battle debris and armoury, all from the famous battle that have been found within the parishes of Stoke Golding and Dadlington. There are also reports of relics and masses of human remains being disinterred in Dadlington churchyard. In 1511, the chapel wardens petitioned Henry VIII for the chantry foundation, on the basis that men who died in the battle were buried there. A subsequent license issued by the Archbishop of Canterbury describes the church as 'standing upon a parcell of the grounde where Bosworth Feld otherwise called Dadlyngton Feld.....was done.' The evidence it appears, is still mounting. Click the link for more information on the research at Dadlington.

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