Lord and Lady Courtenay at Re-interment
Lord and Lady Courtenay (Charlie and AJ) will be attending the Re-interment of King Richard III today (Thursday 26 March 2015) at Leicester Cathedral.
Charlie will be representing his father, the 18th Earl of Devon, who has been invited to attend as a ‘Bosworth Peer’ – one of 15 representatives from the Houses of York and Lancaster descended from the principal protagonists in the Wars of the Roses.
Organisers of the Re-interment, the Dean and Chapter of Leicester Cathedral, assisted by the Garter Principal King of Arms, have researched and invited families descended from the leaders of the armies at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485.
Charlie and AJ are invited as representatives of Sir Edward Courtenay of Tiverton, who fought on the Lancastrian side at Bosworth. Somewhat uniquely, the couple will also be representing over half a dozen other Courtenay ancestors, who died at various times (mostly by beheading) during the Wars of the Roses.
Sometimes referred to as the “cousins war”, the Wars of the Roses often pitted families against each other and none more so than the Courtenay family. The senior branch of the family – the Tiverton Courtenays – favoured the Lancastrian cause, while the junior branch, based at Powderham Castle, often fought on the Yorkist side. Indeed, such was their rivalry that in 1455, at the Battle of Clyst Heath, the family fought each other in one of England’s last private feudal battles.
The Re-interment ceremony promises to be a unique occasion. Attended by their Royal Highnesses Sophie, Countess of Wessex, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and others dignitaries, there will be prayers in the Cathedral from two archbishops, Justin Welby and Vincent Nichols, plus numerous events, including the first ringing of a new peal of bells composed for Richard III.
The event will be broadcast live to a global audience of millions, and will tell a story of reconciliation, as the last Plantagenet King is finally laid to rest with dignity, along with the fatal rivalries that underlay the brutal and notorious ‘cousins war’.
Charlie, Lord Courtenay, commented: “We are honoured and excited to attend this unique occasion on behalf of my father, and to represent and commemorate so many Courtenay predecessors who lost lives and loved ones to both sides in the Wars of the Roses. Our long family story, despite such a turbulent chapters, is a testament to the powers of peace, reconciliation, and renewal. This extraordinary day is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate that fascinating history and the lessons of the Wars of the Roses.”
Powderham Castle is one of England’s oldest family homes and been home to the Courtenay family since it was built by Sir Philip Courtenay in 1391. Powderham Castle is located in a beautiful setting just outside Exeter, beside the Exe estuary.
The Castle is open to the public from 27th March to 30th October 2015, and provides a perfect history-laden family day out.
For details visit www.powderham.co.uk
