Richard III Society
History of the Society
Our Founder
The Richard III Society was founded in 1924 by a Liverpool surgeon, Dr Samuel Saxon Barton, and a small group of amateur historians. Originally known as The Fellowship of the White Boar, they believed that history had not treated Richard fairly and that his reputation was worthy of re-examination.
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Their goal was simple yet profound: to challenge the Tudor-centric narrative and promote a factual understanding of Richard III's life.
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Dr Samuel Saxton Barton
Our Early Supporters
In the 1950s, three events converged to prompt a surge of renewed interest in Richard III. Two books were published – Josephine Tey’s novel The Daughter of Time, and Paul Murray Kendall’s sympathetic biography of Richard, together with the release of Laurence Olivier’s film of Shakespeare’s Richard III. In response, the Fellowship of the White Boar opened up to a wider membership and in 1959 changed its name to The Richard III Society.
Josephine Tey