Richard III tree planted at battlefield

A sapling from an oak tree in the grounds of King Richard III's birthplace has been planted in the place where he died.

The tree, grown from an acorn from a 600-year-old "mother tree" at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire, was planted to mark 10 years since the reinterment of the monarch, whose remains were discovered under a Leicester city car park in 2012.

The king was born at Fotheringhay, near Peterborough, in 1452 and spent time there as a child.

The two-metre (6.5ft) high sapling was placed on the site of Bosworth battlefield in Leicestershire, where the king died in 1485, bringing an end to the Plantagenet dynasty.

Dave Luther, senior ranger at the Battle of Bosworth Heritage Centre, said: "It's special because of the historical significance.

"We do lots and lots of things as a ranger, our job is very, very diverse, but to think that we're planting a tree that should be there for five, six hundred probably more years to enhance the landscape here, it doesn't get much better than that, does it?"

Richard III's body was discovered 527 years after his death in a Leicester City Council-run car park at Greyfriars.

The dig, initiated by the Richard III Society and carried out in partnership with the University of Leicester and supported by Leicester City Council, uncovered a skeleton with battle wounds and a curved spine in August 2012.

Five months later the university confirmed the bones were Richard III, which experts said offered new insight into his life and death.

His remains were reinterred in Leicester Cathedral in 2015.

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