From the Field of Bosworth to the Sands of Timbuktu

Richard III of England

The University of Leicester in England has announced that they have confirmed that the bones dug up from under a parking lot are indeed those of the hapless Richard III. Of course, this has brought up all kinds of delicious speculation and historical revisionism, particularly from those who think he was a much maligned king, especially via Shakespeare's history, exemplified by Laurence Olivier's almost cartoonish performance. Shakespeare clearly drew on historians who had fealty to Elizabeth I, a granddaughter of the winner at Bosworth, Henry of Lancaster. An example of how history is written by the winners, as well as by those who wish to flatter them.

Those of us who care about cultural and historical survival have been following the struggles in Mali and the ancient city of Timbuktu, where it was originally speculated that in addition to the destruction of the Sufi saints' tombs, the Ansar Dine would burn the ancient manuscripts. After all, there is much reason for concern; those who care watched in horror as the Taliban assaulted the Bamiyan Buddhas which had survived for 1,700 years. Good news, the majority of the ancient manuscripts are said to be safe.

(via: Hyperallergic dot com)

"Decentralizing the documents, which range from academic treatises to commercial contracts, law books, and medical texts, kept them safe. After Tuareg rebel fighters entered Timbuktu on April 1, curators and collectors began to remove texts from the libraries and “distributed them around,” Cape Town University professor Shamil Jeppie said. The New Yorker reports that 50,000 manuscripts are housed in 32 family libraries that remain protected."

History is cruel. Elizabeth I's father, Henry VIII had a dispute with the Catholic Church. In the process of wresting power and, it must be said, money and influence from the Church of Rome, Henry destroyed monasteries all over England. Due to this destruction the bones of the only English King with the designation "The Great," Alfred, are missing. Also missing are those of Henry I to the same cause.