As if poor old King Richard III didn’t have a bad enough reputation thanks to Shakespeare! Researchers have just confirmed that they found parasitic worm eggs around the deceased king’s pelvis under the parking lot in Leicester last year.
In an online journal post from Lancet, experts suggest that this points to a roundworm infection during the king’s life. While this would have been an inconvenience, these worms would not have been life threatening for a well-fed English Monarch.
However, they may have made themselves known at an inappropriate time:
As the Register Guard points out –
“It’s also possible Richard’s worms made a gruesome appearance when he died on the battlefield in 1485 as the last English king killed in war. In adults infected with roundworm, traumatic events like car crashes can cause the worms to pop out of peoples’ noses and ears.
‘“The worms get shocked and they move quickly,” said Simon Brooker, a professor of epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who was not part of the study.”
I bet Shakespeare couldn’t have thought that one up, even if he did have Richard born with teeth in his play.
In conclusion
Hamlet: “A man may fish with the worm that hath eat of a king”
And that king apparently was Richard III.
J A Hirsch 
How embarrassing for the poor bloke. RIP, Richard #3 (wink)
Agreed. At least he’s out from under the parking lot, I suppose!
Okay, pretty gruesome! But what a way to go. Poor Richard. And a parking lot, really? Talk about valuing your history, lol. 🙂
Something tells me that his worms did not make their unexpected appearance, though, because with Restoration drama as gruesome as it was, some playwright would have come up with a way to put that on stage. Or maybe that’s me wishful thinking for R3 🙂
Depends if people remembered that part of the tale I guess… 🙂
Jeez, scoliosis AND worms…
The guy had a rough life AND a rough afterlife
It’s great when science intersects with history and literature. As you’ve probably already heard, the more recent research published in Lancet comes to Richard III’s defense. Shakespeare greatly exaggerated the last Plantagenet King’s physical appearance!
He definitely did. All part of the “Tudor Myth” that had to legitimize killing RIII to make way for HenryVII. It’s a shame Shakespeare played politics, but it would have been more of a shame if he lost his head, so I guess I’m alright with it!