King Richard III Visitor Centre facts for kids
Entrance and shop
|
|
| Established |
|
|---|---|
| Location | 4A Saint Martins, Leicester, LE1 5DB, England, United Kingdom |
| Visitors | 300,000+ (since 2014) |
The King Richard III Visitor Centre in Leicester, England, is a cool museum! It tells the amazing story of King Richard III. You'll learn about his life and how his lost remains were found and reburied between 2012 and 2015.
For many years, no one knew exactly where King Richard III was buried. People thought his grave might be under a car park in Leicester. But thanks to science and DNA testing, his bones were finally identified!
The museum opened on July 26, 2014. It's built right where King Richard III was buried way back in 1485. That was after he died in the Battle of Bosworth Field. His grave was found at Greyfriars, a very old monastery.
Contents
Finding a King's Resting Place
The Visitor Centre is in an old school building. It's right next to the car park where King Richard's bones were discovered! This amazing find happened on August 25, 2012. It was part of an excavation project led by Philippa Langley and the Richard III Society. Experts from the University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) helped with the dig.
People all over the world were excited about this discovery. So, the Leicester City Council decided to turn the old school into a special museum. The museum even has a covered area over the exact spot where the King's grave was found. This spot was in the choir section of the old friary church. The whole project cost £4 million and was designed by Maber Architects.
Protecting History
The place where King Richard III was buried is now a protected historical site. In December 2017, Historic England officially recognized a large part of the old friary site as important. Even though the original buildings were gone, experts knew the ground still held valuable archaeological secrets.
Award-Winning Museum
In October 2018, the King Richard III Visitor Centre won a big award. It was named "Best Museum" at the Group Leisure and Travel Awards! It even beat out famous places like the British Museum and the National Railway Museum.
Images for kids
-
The original grave of Richard III, under the then choir of Greyfriars, Leicester. A projector light outlines the skeleton in its original position.
-
Replica of Richard III's armour
-
The "muscle stage" of the reconstruction of the face of Richard III
-
Richard III's reconstructed face
-
The upstairs gallery of the museum
-
The replica of Richard III's skeleton
-
A replica of the oldest surviving portrait of Richard III, with the original dating to around 1520
-
A ledger stone (memorial stone) dedicated to Richard III, originally from Leicester Cathedral
-
The pall that covered the coffin of Richard III when he was re-buried in 2015
Learn More
