Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury plays role in Richard III's requiem service
The Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury has spoken of his role in Richard III's reburial, saying although historians are split on the king's legacy, only God could judge him.
The Right Reverend Mark Davies took part in the Requiem Mass for Richard at Holy Cross Priory in Leicester on Tuesday evening.
The king, who died at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, will be reburied tomorrow at Leicester Cathedral.
The event is likely to prove a huge draw. Thousands of people have already filed past the king's coffin.
The bishop said Tuesday's service "was a solemn occasion".
"However, what was most striking was that King Richard III received the same funeral mass as any other Catholic.
"We prayed for the eternal repose of his soul, commending him to God's mercy.
"I am conscious of historians' conflicting judgments on Richard III and his short reign. However, in the Requiem Mass the judgment of this long-departed King of England is left to God alone.
"It also seemed appropriate that a king who insisted that prayers and masses be offered for all who had died on each side of the violent conflicts which marked his lifetime should have been likewise remembered in the prayer of the Mass in Leicester."
