Lincoln Cathedral, an awesome gothic building with loads of treasures to discover inside.

/ Lincoln Cathedral/

Construction of this magnificent cathedral you see above began in 1192, with its stunning rib vaulting as well as pointed arches and beautiful stained glass windows. To contrast with this, the amazing chapter house has fan vaulting and, coincidentally, was where some scenes of the film, the De Vinci Code were shot. Look closely and you will find beautifully carved misericords and if you are eagle eyed you will find some “Green Men” as well as a little creature known as the “Imp”. In the nave at the opposite end to the entrance is the tomb for the entrails of Queen Eleanor of Castile, wife of King Edward I. (her heart was buried in Blackfriars in Lincoln and the rest of her body, in Westminster Abbey). In the choir area, is the tomb of Katherine Swynford, the mistress and third wife of John of Gaunt whose family line ended with Henry VII claiming the throne in 1485.

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The king in the car park 2 : the backstory of the discovery and proof at the Richard III Visitor Centre

/ Richard III Visitor Centre/

A visit to the Richard III Visitor Centre is a must for any medieval history fan. It tells the story of the Wars of the Roses using some amazing graphics and how Richard came to rule England. You are then taken on a path to discover what happened to Richard’s body having lost the Battle of Bosworth Field to Henry Tudor. The great mystery was only recently solved but then the task was to exactly locate the skeletal remains. This was not easy because several misleading sources suggested that either his bones had been removed and buried next to a river or actually thrown in that river. This was not the end of the story because the next step was the monumental task of proving that the remains found were actually Richard III. Historian’s judgements would not be sufficient, it had to be proven by mitochondrial DNA. Finally, you can actually see Richard’s open grave!

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The king in the car park part 1: Leicester Cathedral, Richard III's final resting place.

/ Leicester Cathedral/

The king in the car park, part 1, is about Leicester Cathedral, Richard III's final resting place. In August 2012 there was a media frenzy taking place near an old car park in the city of Leicester. What was going on? The world’s media had just been informed that archaeologists had found skeletal remains which were possibly those of King Richard III of England. Back in August 1485, Richard III had been killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field by the army of Henry Tudor, soon to become Henry VII but there was a mystery about what happened to his body. Leicester Cathedral has become his final resting place. There you can see his amazing tomb, two beautiful stained glass windows commissioned to go with the tomb and the beautiful cloth (pall) that covered his coffin in his funeral. It is also next door to the Richard III Visitor Centre, specially created with audio visual facilities to tell the story of Richard’s life, how his body was discovered and give you a good view of his excavated grave.

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Stokesay Castle; "The finest and best preserved fortified medieval manor house in England",-English Heritage

/ Stokesay Castle/
Stokesay Castle; "The finest and best preserved fortified medieval manor house in England",-English Heritage

English Heritage states on its website, Stokesay Castle is the finest and best preserved manor house in England and they are the experts. English Heritage also states ,” it remains a treasure by-passed by time, one of the best places to visiting England to experience what medieval life was like.” They own a huge amount of properties and so they would not make this claim lightly. There is an air of tranquility when wandering around Stokesay Castle on a summer’s day. Very little has changed over the past 700 years and it is easy to imagine life in the medieval world especially festivities in the amazing great hall.

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Warwick Castle, home of the Kingmaker

/ Warwick Castle/

Warwick castle is one of the finest in the UK and a historical feast for all ages. For history geeks, there are a lot of historical features to seek out, such as its amazing barbican.It was very much at the centre of English history after William the Conqueror gained powering 1066 and played a huge part in the Wars of The Roses as the home of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, who became known as the Kingmaker. Everyone will be amazed by the huge catapult known as a trebuchet, the largest one in Europe and will be thrilled other activities like falconry displays and archery.

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