MEDIA RELEASE

Specialist Travel Tours Operator marks King RichardIII'sre-internment at Leicester Cathedral with new cradle to grave tour!

26 March 2015: With the eyes of the world focusing on the re-internment of King Richard lll at Leicester Cathedral, specialist travel tours operator Brookland Travel has launched a new four day tour which offers the opportunity to explore the extraordinary life of a man who helped to change the course of English history. www.brooklandtravel.com

Running from 15 - 18 May 2015, the tour will be led by charismatic historian Julian Humphrys, an expert in this field and someone who can provide an in depth insight into the "War of the Roses" and the life and times of the last Plantagenet king. As Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Rev Tim Stevens, comments on the death of Richard, "It was a change of dynasty, an end of a period of violent civil war, the beginning of the period in which Shakespeare was to write his great tragedies, including Richard lll, and a different way of governing the country."

Richard lll was 32 years old when he died and he had been King for just two years. He was the last English king to die in battle. Starting in London and with hotel accommodation in Worksop, the tour offers more than a look at Richard at the end of his life. It takes in key towns, villages and cities that are associated with the King throughout his tumultuous existence. These include Fotheringhay Castle, Middleham Castle, Sheriff Hutton and Bosworth Battlefield.

The tour will also cover the amazing discovery of Richard's remains in the Greyfriars complex of buildings in Leicester that took place in 2012 and talk about the archaeological finds and places linked to his time in Leicester taking in a visit to Leicester Cathedral and the King Richard lll Visitor Centre.

Carefully created to encompass the key moments and significant battles in Richard's life, the first day of the tour includes a visit to Fotheringhay Castle, home of The Dukes of York. Fotheringhay is also where Mary Queen of Scots was tried and beheaded in 1587, and her body lay there for some months before its burial at Peterborough Cathedral and then its final burial in Westminster Abbey. Little remains of Fotheringhay Castle today other than a mound in the shape of a fetterlock, a Yorkist symbol, and a chunk of the outer stone wall.

However beautiful Fotheringhay Church stands proud and is much larger than the original church would have been, with its tall octagonal lantern tower overlooking the River Nene. Within the precincts members of the York family lie buried including Richard Duke of York (Edwards father) and his elder brother Edmund, Earl of Rutland. Despite the choir of the church being destroyed in the 16th century, the York tombs were removed from the ruins on the instructions of Elizabeth 1 and the memorials were erected in the sanctuary either side of the alter for Richard lll's father and brother.

On this first day, the tour also pays a visit to Nottingham Castle. The Castle stands on Castle Rock overlooking the city and dates back to 1067 when William the Conqueror built the first wooden castle on the site. Nottingham was significant for Richard because in 1485 he left from Nottingham Castle to ride to Bosworth where he died in battle at the hands of Henry Tudor.

The second day of the tour takes in York, Richard lll' s "favourite" city and visits York Minster where he was met by the Mayor and Aldermen of the City and sprinkled with Holy Water. Richard's son, Edward was also crowned Prince of Wales at The Archbishops Palace behind York Minster. There will also be a visit to Towton Battlefield in North Yorkshire. Towton was a Yorkist victory and tour guide Julian Humphrys will share his expert knowledge on the tactics, weapons, protagonists and the brutal reality of the battle, probably the bloodiest battle on English soil. This battle changed the course of English history.

The third day the tour shines a light on to Richard's childhood and marriage. There will be a visit to Middleham Castle, his childhood home and although roofless, extensive remains of this fortified palace remain with wonderful views of Wensleydale from the viewing platform. Despite its ruined state, the central Keep is still an imposing structure measuring some 110 feet by 80 feet, making this a fascinating castle to explore.

There will be an opportunity to explore the village of Sheriff Hutton and the Church of St Helen and the Holy Cross. Richard Duke of Gloucester (the future Richard lll) was placed in the household of Richard Neville. The Neville's were overlords of Sheriff Hutton and owners of the second castle, a quadrangular castle, in the village. The castle is now a ruin but the "Council of the North" used to meet here and in York. Richard lll acquired the castle by marriage to Anne Neville.

On the final day the group will visit the site of the Bosworth Battlefield as well as the Heritage Centre which is staging the current exhibition. Here there will be a chance to re-live this famous turning point in British history - the death of a King and the birth of the all-powerful Tudor dynasty.

Finishing in Leicester the tour will visit all the sites connected with Richard lll including St Martins Church (Leicester Cathedral), Greyfriars Car Park, The Guildhall and the new Richard lll Visitor Centre.

The Richard lll tour returns to London on 18 May after completion of the final day. Cost per individual for the four day tour is £485 (£479 reduced price for members of English Heritage) and includes three night's accommodation at the welcoming Best Western Lion Hotel, Worksop with full English breakfast each morning and three course dinner and coffee/tea each evening. For full details of what's included please call +44 (0) 845 121 2863 or +44 (0) 1305 259 467, E/: info@brooklandtravel.com or visit: www.brooklandtravel.com .

Picture captions: Richard III - credit G L Archive/Alamy; Fotheringhay Church - Credit NRT - Helena/Alamy and York City Walls - credit Visit Britain

For further press information or hi res images, please contact Jane Adkins, A Head for PR, T/: 01935 813114 or E/: jane@aheadforpr.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

Established in 1999, independent Dorset-based company Brookland Travel organises exclusive short breaks, cultural holidays and special interest hotel breaks in the UK and various European destinations. Catering for individuals, as well as groups and organisations, Brookland Travel specialises in tour themes which cover a wide range of special interests including:

History tours

Art appreciation

Garden tours, flower shows, hidden gardens and The Eden Project

Stately homes and country houses

Castle tours, battlefields and fortifications

Discovering UK cities

Maritime

Walking, hiking and archaeological holidays on The Isles of Scilly and in Cornwall

UK Islands short breaks

Literary Tours - Jane Austen, Victorian women writers, Thomas Hardy etc

Theatrical and musical appreciation

Dorset's Jurassic Coastline

Exclusive hotel breaks

March 2015 (Brooklands 01)