Celebrations for the 525th anniversary of the Battle of Bosworth had to be held on the wrong spot because the real location of the historic clash cannot cope with crowds.

Earlier this year, it emerged that the real site of the battle was not Ambion Hill, Sutton Cheney, home to Bosworth Battlefield centre but a farmer's field just over two miles away in Upton.

Nevertheless, Bosworth Heritage Centre was transformed into a medieval village over the weekend, with traditional music and dance accompanying jousting and falconry.

Thousands gathered to watch the main events re-creating the famous battle, which witnessed the death of King Richard III and saw the launch of the Tudor dynasty with the crowning of Henry VII.

Organisers said it was not possible to hold the re-enactment at the correct site as it could not cope with the thousands of visitors and 400 taking part in the annual battle.

Battlefield curator Richard Knox said: "The field where the actual location was is not really accessible for large numbers of people and we've got great facilities at the heritage centre."

He said historians were still making exciting finds.

Mr Knox added: "We've been searching to see if we can find out what the landscape was like 500 years ago and found a medieval marsh and the largest scatter of medieval cannon balls ever found."

For the first time, descendants of the original battle attended the event.

Susan and Max Barton, of Leicester's West End, discovered they were related to Sir James Blount around four weeks ago after doing some research into their family tree.

Sir James fought on the side of Henry Tudor, despite his family being Yorkists, and survived the battle.

Susan said: "We came along 25 years ago and enjoyed it, but we had no idea then that we were related to someone that fought here.

"Now we know what we do, it makes the whole thing much more interesting."

David Potter, 56, of Hinckley, discovered four years ago that he was a descendant of Henry Percy, the third Earl of Northumberland, murdered a few years after the battle.

David said: "I've always been interested in history so to find out you've got a link with something you're interested in is a real thrill."

The battle re-enactment is organised each year by the War of the Roses Federation.

Carl Brown, 38, of Tamworth, took part in his first Bosworth battle this year.

He said: "Unfortunately I die a gruesome death at the end but it's a lot of fun to take part in.

"It's a forgotten era so it's great to see a lot of youngsters here as I feel it's a part of our heritage that is sadly being brushed under the table. I think it's important to keep it alive."

See more images from the 525th celebrations