New Painting Adorns Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre

Turning into a true cult figure some 530 years after his death, the iconic figure of Richard III is now the subject of an impressive and imposing new painting at the Bosworth Battle field Heritage Centre.  Richard died at Bosworth in 1485 at the hands of forces fighting for Henry Tudor, the future Henry VII. The picture, by Buckinghamshire artist and historian Graham Turner, depicts Richard at the battle.

Although undoubtedly the world focus that resulted in the discovery of Richard’s skeleton in a now famous Leicester car park has raised the profile of Mr. Turner’s painting, work began on the project some time before the discovery. Mr, Turner said that all that had subsequently happened had helped him complete the work with a greater understanding of his subject. He, like all of us, was enthralled by events as they unfolded.

He said: "Like quite a lot of other people in the world, I was on tenterhooks waiting for the news from the DNA tests. When they discovered the skeleton was Richard's and did the facial reconstruction, I was able to incorporate all that new information into the painting."

As a result, Mr Turner claimed the painting was one of the first "lifelike" depictions of the king.
The new work shows Richard at the moment that he caught sight of Henry Tudor across the battlefield, resulting in him leading the charge which ended in his depth.

Mr Turner has painted Richard on many occasions during his 30 years as a historical artist, but his previous works were based on copies of portraits available from the king's lifetime.

"These copies are the only paintings of Richard believed to exist," he said. "The facial reconstruction is remarkably close to these portraits but there are still small differences. Hopefully my painting will be the first that shows him as he was."

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