Visitors waited 3 to 4 hours in line Sunday to see King Richard III’s coffin on display at Leicester Cathedral in the UK

More than 5,000 people visited Leicester Cathedral in the United Kingdom to see the coffin of King Richard III on Sunday. The remains will be laid in state until a reburial ceremony to be held Thursday, led by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The former king’s skeleton was discovered under a parking lot in 2012. Richard III, the last English king to die in battle, was killed at the end of the Wars of the Roses in 1485. After his death his body was taken to the Greyfriars Church in Leicester and buried hastily. The location of his grave later became a mystery, until the surprise discovery three years ago.

Liz Hudson of the Leicester Cathedral stated that the number of people visiting has been “remarkable.”

John Wesseldine, from Barwell in Leicestershire, said he took his sons Jayden and Jenson out of school to view the coffin.

“This is part of their history and is a chance to see a real king. It is a chance they will never get again so we made the effort to come,” said Wesseldine.

Richard III was a controversial king. Following his brother Edward IV’s death he seized and imprisoned Edward’s young sons, disinheriting them. His taking of the crown, execution of several leading nobles and passing a number of new laws led to discontent and rebellion. He later gained notoriety as a Shakespearean villain.

Source: BBC News