Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1891-02-05
lead ROYALTY In LONDON,
Interesting Facts Concerning Remains
Of Kings and Queens at r EST in
Westminster Abbey.
Among the Tombs and Monuments OF
Some the Most Noted Rulers
Of England.
Many Curious and Interesting Facts
About the Manner of Their
Burial.

Burial.
This week my readers and will keep
the best of company. We shall deal only
with kings and queens. That was cur
lous desire expires ed by George II, that
his ashes and these of his Queen Caroline.
should be allowed TO minole. They are
buried in the Chapel of Henry VII. The
mingling of the remains was effected by
the removal of one side from each of their
| collins; and about fifty years ago, when
| their vaults were opened for the last time,
the two sides which had been Withdrawn
were seen standing against the wall. in
| Edward Confessor's charel many kings
| and queens were buried with rich and APP
propriate monuments over their mnulder-
ing dust. The central one on the east side
is that of Henry V. The altar tomb, with
a recumbent figure, which is he&dless now,
is of oak, and was originally covered with
engraved plates of brass. The absence OF
the head is accounted for by the statement
that it was solid silver, but some klepto,
matiac of Henry VIIth's time walked Of
with it, although Cromwell WAS charged
with the misrepresentation; as indeed he
he was for long time after the Stuarts re-
turned to powet, charged with all sorts of
vilhany.
Henry =. in his youth was anything
but well.behaved young man, but he re-
deemed himself aG Agincourt, although
the war III which that battle had place
was not Just or / wise one. He won his
wife, the Princess Catherine, through the
treaty OF Iroys, shortly after his seige of
| Rouen. He died when he Was only thirty
four. In the chantry called after him, the
hamlet, shield and saddle he used when he
conquered the French constable are to be
| seen.
The great fame attaching to this king
has been largely contributed to by Shakes
| peare, who drew each a loveable and
heroic picture, with just that dash of able
rhodomontdde about him, which has en-
deared him to the hearts of the masses:
Small time, but in that small, most greatly lived
| This star of England: fortune made his sword
| BY which the worlds best garden he achieved,
And of it left his own imperial lord.
Looking west, on the right-hand side,
is the tomb of Richard H. and his queen,
Anne of Bohemia. That, also, is an altar
| tomb, but with two recumbent etfiyies and
| q Ioucpy OFC1 ODOn ULlC IdlteI was
| painting, once fairly visable, OF the Vir-
gin Mary and the Saviour. The king was
murdered on st. Valentines day. He
was weak and treacherous man, but
| usually handsome. There is considerable
doubt about the manner of Richard s
| death, One was that he was poleaxed in
assisted by eight men. Another account
hlc to.1t how La
castle lie wandered into the Scottish isles,
where he was found by tie jester of Donald,
| lord OF the isles. Donald sent him to Robert
Ill, king Of Scotland, by whom he was
well treated, and after that monarch s
duke of Albany, and finally died IN his
bed at Stirling castle, and was buried in
the Church of the Preaching Friars in
Stirling town. Lord Dover tried to up
set the faith in these two stories, and
quoted authorities to prove to his own
satisfaction that Richard voluntarily
starved himself to death in the prison at
Pomfret, or Pouterfract, as it is spelled.
Stow asserts that there was nothing vol
untary about the starvation, but that the
king was kept from food and suffered cold
until he died. Henry, who was reigning
when Richard died, was very anxious to
purge himself of any iniqulty about it,
and accordingly exposed the body to pub
lie gaze for three days in st. Pau's cathe-
dral. The unhappy king had his monu-
ment erected during his lifetime To de-
stroy the poNe-ax;ng idea, Mr.. Cough,
who wrote the "Sepulchral Remains, -
says he examined the kings skull, but
could find no mark upon it. But this Was
not received es final by antiquarians, who
contended that the bodies beng depos tied
within the tomb, and not in the ground
beneath, neither Mr.. Cough nor any one
else could have come upon the skull. So
the matter rests to this day. In the 1923
edition, Shakespeare title of the play is
The Lie and Death of King Richard the
Second" He makes Exton strike him
down in the middle of a speech the king
addresses to lin, and in the last scene OF
the last act Exton actually returns and
meets Bolmgbroke and others. He has
the dead king in the coffin he brings with
him:
Great King, within this coffin present
Thy buried fears. Herein all breathless lies
The mIghtiest of thy greatest enemies,
Richard of Budeaux, by me hither brought.
Richard H.. the eldest son of the Black
Prince, was born in Bordeaux. The Bull
ins broke of Shakespeare, Henry Boiling
broke, Duke of Lancaster, afterwards
Henry w., was Richards own cousin.
Exton is in modern editions Sir Pierce of
Exton, and the last scene is there specified
as occurring IN Pontefect CASTLE There is
sad imagery conveyed in Boingbrokes
lines when he is banlshed, but the term of
banis ment is reduced to four years:
How long time lies in one little week.
Four tagging winters and four wanton springs
End i'll word; such is the breath OF kings.
That is very forcibly impressed on the
traveller as he stands amid the costly mon
umfnts OF so many kings, but in differ
ent sense.
Almost opposite the Richard and
Second IS tomb is the altar tomb of Edward
the First. He died on his way to battle,
at Burgh, IN the Sands, near Carlisle. He
was surnamed LoDgshanks. His body was
lncIosed IN wax and inferred In a stone
coffin. In 1910. more than four hundred
and fifty years after his death, the tomb
was opened ty sundry members of the
society of antlquaries, and the corpse was
found and described. The body was wrapped
In strong, thick, linen cloth, waXed on
the inside; the head and face was covered
with face cloth of crimson sarsanet,
wrapped into three folds, similar to tnat
worn by Christ on his Way to crucifxtion,
according to the Roman Catholic record
When these CLOTHS were removed Edward
was seen in rich dress the body. how
ever, being wrapped even to the fingers.
in cere cloth. Over this was a tunic of
red silk damask; above that, stole of
thick tissue, ano on this, d few inches
from each other. quatrefoils of flagree
work of gilt metal, set with limitations of
precious stones, powdered in the spaces. |
with white beads and with something like |