Battle of Bosworth Field lead character, has been built up in the battles of Shakespeare's earlier play, "Henry VI, Part 3", as a "formidable swordsman and a courageous military leader"—in contrast to the dastardly means by which he becomes king in "Richard III". Although the Battle of Bosworth has only five sentences to direct it, three scenes and more than four hundred lines precede the action, developing the background and motivations for the characters in anticipation of the battle. Shakespeare's account of the battle was mostly based on chroniclers Edward Hall's and Raphael Holinshed's dramatic versions of history, which were sourced from Vergil's chronicle.
Richard Battle Richard Battle Lt. Col. Richard John Vulliamy Battle MBE, FRCS, LRCP, MCh Cantab, MA Cantab, BA Cantab, 1970 Gillies Gold Medal. (21 January 1907 – 26 May 1982) was an English plastic surgeon. The son of William Henry Battle and Anna Marguerite (née Vulliamy), Battle was educated at Gresham's School, Norfolk, and Trinity College, Cambridge. His father's family (Battle) were farmers in Lincolnshire. Following service as a military plastic surgeon during the Second World War for which he was awarded the MBE, Battle was appointed as Consultant Plastic Surgeon to St Thomas Hospital, London, the Westminster Hospital, London, and Queen