Archaeologists pinpoint long-disputed site of Battle of Bosworth

Archaeologists have located not just the site of the Battle of Bosworth, but the spot where – on 22 August 1485 – Richard III became the last English king to die in battle when he was cut down by Tudor swords.

The crucial evidence, including badges of the supporters of both kings, sword mounts, coins and 28 cannonballs, was found in fields straddling Fen Lane in the Leicestershire parish of Upton.

The site was located by archaeologists using metal detectors across hundreds of acres, and poring over the evidence of medieval place names to match them to accounts of the battle. Their finds suggest a sprawling fight, with the two armies facing one another in straggling lines almost a kilometre in length.

One of the crucial finds, the largest of the cannonballs nicknamed "the holy grapefruit" by the archaeologists, was found just behind one of Oliver's barns. Another key discovery was a silver boar no bigger than a thumbnail, battered but still snarling in rage after 500 years.

"The fact that this little boar is Richard's personal emblem, and made in silver gilt, means that it can only have been given to one of the closest members of his retinue. The man who wore this would have fought and died at Richard's side," Glenn Foard said.