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Ricardian Bulletin Magazine of the Richard III Society ISSN 0308 4337 September 2012 Ricardian Bulletin September 2012 Contents 2 From the Chairman 3 Society News and Notices Annual General Meeting 2012 Membership Matters Publication and Distribution of the Bulletin The 2013 Study weekend 11 Leeds International Medieval Congress 14 Update: Looking for Richard 15 ‘King Mike I’ has died in Australia 17 A Series of Remarkable Ladies: 2, Eleanor of Scotland, by Rita Diefenhardt-Schmitt 18 The will of Dame Alice Nevile 19 Our Olympic Diary, part 1, by Sue and Dave Wells 21 A day out with a difference? 23 News and Reviews 27 Media Retrospective 29 The Man Himself: Richard’s Wig, by Gordon Smith 33 Researches into the Tower of London, by Annette Carson 37 Papers from the Society’s session at Leeds International Medieval Congress Making the most of miracles, by Lesley Boatwright R.v. Walson: new light on a medieval mugging, by Christopher Whittick Miracles in everyday life: the ordinary and the miraculous, by Heather Falvey 48 Riding forth to aspye for þe town, by Penelope Lawton 49 Two portraits of our founder, by John Saunders 50 Correspondence 54 Report on visit to Stratford-upon-Avon and Baddesley Clinton, by Tom Wallis 56 Future Society Events 59 The Barton Library 60 Branches and Groups 63 New Members and Recently Deceased Members 64 Calendar Contributions Contributions are welcomed from all members. All contributions should be sent to Lesley Boatwright. Bulletin Press Dates 15 January for March issue; 15 April for June issue; 15 July for September issue; 15 October for December issue. Articles should be sent well in advance. Bulletin & Ricardian Back Numbers Back issues of The Ricardian and the Bulletin are available from Judith Ridley. If you are interested in obtaining any back numbers, please contact Mrs Ridley to establish whether she holds the issue(s) in which you are interested. For contact details see back inside cover of the Bulletin The Ricardian Bulletin is produced by the Bulletin Editorial Committee, Printed by Micropress Printers Ltd. © Richard III Society, 2012 From the Chairman n Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, Feste sings that ‘the rain it raineth every day’ and this pretty I much sums up the weather in the UK since the last issue of the Bulletin appeared. As I write, however, we are enjoying a respite and the sun is shining, perhaps specially for the Olympics. Maybe our intrepid joint secretaries won’t have to use their ‘London 2012’ umbrellas after all! They begin their Olympic Diary in this issue and we look forward to the conclusion in December’s Bulletin. This issue of your Bulletin is another triumph for the editorial team. Every quarter, I marvel at how much new and interesting material they find every three months. Of course, they are greatly helped by your contributions, so, in that sense, it’s a great collaborative effort. For The Man Himself, Gordon Smith takes a look at Richard III’s ‘wig’, and again examines that crucial period from April to June 1483. Annette Carson provides some fresh insights into the 1647 discovery of those bones in the Tower and Ken Hillier recalls an encounter with ‘King’ Mike. Penelope Lawton’s research in the Nottingham archives reminds us of the importance of the Ricardian Chronicle project and again I urge those of you interested in research to join the Chronicle team. As usual with September’s Bulletin we include the Annual Report and Accounts for the year 2011-2012. It presents a healthy picture of the Society, recording another year of achievement and progress. Of course, it continues to be a challenge in the current economic climate to maintain membership levels and we are determined to do more on this front. The Society’s presence at this year’s Leeds Medieval Congress was another success, and I thank all those involved in making it so. This year, we organised a lecture session, and you can read summaries of the talks in this issue; these, together with our bookstall, showcased all that is best about the Society to medieval scholars from around the world. We have recently become aware of two portraits of our founder, Dr Saxon Barton. One is now in private hands but the other is part of the collection of the Williamson Gallery in Birkenhead. It’s in a poor state of repair and is not presently on display. We are investigating the possibility of providing financial support to help with its restoration with a view to having it on display so members and others can see it. I am delighted to report that the Society has been able to make a significant contribution to the conservation of the Stillingfleet boar badge recently acquired by the Yorkshire Museum (see page 8 for details). We are hopeful that this will be the start of a positive working relationship between the Society and the museum. We welcome Jacqui Emerson to the post of Branches and Groups Liaison Officer and wish her well for the future. I extend our grateful thanks to Pauline Harrison Pogmore and Angela Moreton for jointly undertaking the role for the past two years and for all the hard work they put in. The AGM and Members’ Day in York fast approaches. I know it’s going to be an enjoyable and informative day and, for those going to Middleham on the Sunday, a great weekend. For those unable to join us, there will be a full report in December’s Bulletin and for those who are there, as ever, I look forward to meeting and talking with you. 2 Society News and Notices Subscriptions Due Subscriptions for the forthcoming membership year fall due on 2 October 2012. Please see the renewal form in the centrefold section of this Bulletin, and Membership Matters below for rates and methods of payment. Richard III Society Members’ Day and Annual General Meeting Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, Fossgate, York YO1 9XD Saturday 29 September 2012 As is the established practice, Saturday 29 September is both the AGM and a day for members to meet each other and get involved. This year’s venue will enable us to re -visit one of the most splendid medieval buildings in York. The event will follow a similar pattern to previous years. At the time of writing this article, late June, no motions have been received by the Chairman or the Joint Secretaries. All members are reminded that motions and resolutions for the AGM agenda, proposed and seconded by Society members and signed, should be sent to the Joint Secretaries, in hard copy, by no later than Friday 14 September 2012. Similarly, nominations by Society members for membership of the Executive Committee, proposed, seconded and accepted by the nominee and duly signed by all, should also be sent to the Joint Secretaries by the same date. Forms for this purpose may be obtained from the Joint Secretaries – by electronic or hard copy means, or downloaded from the Society’s website. The Annual Report is published in this Bulletin. It contains much of the material formerly reported by officers at the AGM. This means that officers’ reports on the day will provide attendees with any relevant updates which will enable the focus of the meeting to be on the future and members’ issues. As with other years, there will be an Open Forum/Question Time to enable members to raise questions and issues. These can be submitted by email or in writing to the Joint Secretaries (contact details on the inside cover of the Bulletin). If you wish to submit a question in advance, it would be helpful if it is received by Wednesday 26 September. You will also be able to post questions on the day and ‘post-it’ notes will be available for you to place on a board in the hall. Questions may be submitted anonymously, but, if they cannot be answered on the day, questioners will be invited to give their contact details to a Society officer to enable an answer to be provided at a later date. Speaker: this year our speaker will be the historian and author George Goodwin, who has recently published a book entitled Fatal Colours - Towton 1461: England’s Most Brutal Battle. Copies of this book will be available on the Society’s bookstall. Please remember that this is your day. Please try to attend and take the opportunity to raise any question that you have, to meet old friends and to make new ones. If you intend to come to the event, please register your place by email to the Secretaries at their email address or by completing and returning the booking form which was published in the June Bulletin. 3 Further to the official notification in the June Bulletin, set out below is the proposed programme for the day: Programme: 10.30 Doors open; members arrive, time to visit stalls etc. 12.00 Isolde Wigram Memorial Lecture – George Goodwin (further details above). 13.15 Lunch – own arrangements. 14.30 Annual General Meeting and Open Forum/Question Time followed by raffle. 16.30 (estimated) Conclusion of Members’ Day and dispersal. Details of the venue and how to get there are given below: Venue: The Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, York YO1 9XD. The hall can be accessed from Fossgate or Piccadilly. Public Transport: York railway station is on the East Coast Main Line. Trains run direct from York to many of the UK’s regional centres. The location is well served by numerous bus routes and the nearest stops are in Piccadilly. Parking: Parking facilities in York are very limited.