Richard III

Question 1

When did Richard III rule?

Answer 1

From 1483 to 1485. He was the last of the Plantagenet Kings, who had ruled since 1154.

Question 2

What historical elements were left out of or changed for the play?

Answer 2

• He was loyal to his brother Edward and genuinely in love with his wife, Lady Anne, with whom he had a son named Edward.
• Main actions included declaring English as the language of the law and setting up a defense system for individuals in court.
• Queen Anne died of tuberculosis shortly after their son, and Richard was killed by the invading French army.

Question 3

What were Shakespeare’s sources for Richard III?

Answer 3

• Raphael Holinshed’s Chronicles and Thomas More’s The History of King Richard III were key sources for the play.
• Holinshed’s work presented Richard fairly accurately but depicted him as cruel to his subjects.
• Thomas More’s account, although well-written, was not historically accurate and aimed to please the Tudors.

Question 4

What was the great chain of being?

Answer 4

A belief during the Middle Ages that everything was arranged by God, in a heirachy from God to the lowest classes. The king’s authority was considered absolute and derived from God, and disturbing this order was seen as upsetting the universe, emphasizing the king’s divine right. Richard III’s actions were viewed through the lens of maintaining this order.

Question 5

Define

The Tudor Myth

Answer 5

The Tudor myth portrayed the Wars of the Roses era as dark and bloody, legitimizing Tudor rule. The Tudors promoted this myth to enhance their reign’s legitimacy, and it shaped public perception of historical events, including in the cretion of this play.

Question 6

What were the impacts of Queen Elizabeth I on Richard III?

Answer 6

Political tensions and religious conflicts heavily influenced Elizabethan theatre. Queen Elizabeth’s censorship of plays regarding government and religion impacted Shakespeare’s work, and Shakespeare had to navigate censorship to stage his plays successfully, which included following the ‘party line’, so to speak.

Question 7

“Alack, I love myself. Wherefore? For any good / That I myself have done unto myself? / O, no. Alas, I rather hate myself / For hateful deeds committed by myself. / I am a villain. Yet I lie; I am not. / Fool, of thyself speak well. Fool, do not flatter. / My conscience hath a thousand several tongues, / And every tongue brings in a several tale, / And every tale condemns me for a villain.”

Answer 7

Richard’s internal conflict about his villainy - the curse comes down on him here, and he feels guilt and pride in himself at once.

Question 8

“Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous”

Answer 8

Richard as a performer, theatrical language - he is constanty acting, even to the audience

Question 9

“Was ever woman in this humour wooed? / Was ever woman in this humour won?”

Answer 9

Richard is proud of his manipulation of Lady Anne, and is rather smug overall

Question 10

Richard

Character

Answer 10

Also called the duke of Gloucester, and eventually crowned King Richard III. He is evil, corrupt, sadistic, and manipulative, and he will stop at nothing to become king. His intelligence, political brilliance, and dazzling use of language keep the audience fascinated - and his subjects and rivals under his thumb.

Question 11

The Duke of Buckingham

Character

Answer 11

Richard’s right-hand man in his schemes to gain power, he is almost as amoral and ambitious as Richard himself. However, he hesitates after Richard asks him to murder the two princes, and chooses to flee to Wales and support Richmond in the fight against Richard.

Question 12

King Edward IV

Character

Answer 12

The older brother of Richard and Clarence, and the king of England at the start of the play. Edward was deeply involved in the Yorkists’ brutal overthrow of the Lancaster regime, but as king he is devoted to achieving a reconciliation among the various political factions of his reign, and oblivious to Richerd’s scheming.

Question 13

George, Duke of Clarence

Character

Answer 13

The gentle, trusting brother born between Edward and Richard in the York family. Richard has Clarence murdered in order to get him out of the way. Clarence leaves two children, a son and a daughter.

Question 14

Queen Elizabeth

Character

Answer 14

The wife of King Edward IV and the mother of the two young princes and their older sister, young Elizabeth. After Edward’s death, Queen Elizabeth, also called Lady Gray, is at Richard’s mercy. Elizabeth is part of the Woodeville family; her kinsmen—Dorset, Rivers, and Gray—are her allies in the court.

Question 15

Dorset, Rivers, and Gray

Character

Answer 15

The kinsmen and allies of Elizabeth, and members of the Woodeville and Gray families. Rivers is Elizabeth’s brother, while Gray and Dorset are her sons from her first marriage. Richard eventually executes Rivers and Gray, but Dorset flees and survives.

Question 16

Lady Anne

Character

Answer 16

The young widow of Prince Edward, who was the son of the former king, Henry VI. She hates Richard for the death of her husband, but for reasons of politics - and possibly for sadistic pleasure - Richard persuades her to marry him.

Question 17

Duchess of York

Character

Answer 17

Widowed mother of Richard, Clarence, and King Edward IV. The duchess of York is Elizabeth’s mother-in-law, and she is very protective of Elizabeth and her children, who are the duchess’s grandchildren. She is angry with, and eventually curses, Richard for his heinous actions.

Question 18

Margaret

Character

Answer 18

Widow of the dead King Henry VI, and mother of the slain Prince Edward, he whole family was murdered by the family of King Edward IV and Richard. She is embittered and hates both Richard and the people he is trying to get rid of, all of whom were complicit in the destruction of the Lancasters.

Question 19

The Princes

Character

Answer 19

The two young sons of King Edward IV and his wife, Elizabeth, their names are actually Prince Edward and the young duke of York, but they are often referred to collectively. Agents of Richard murder these boys in the Tower of London.

Question 20

Young Elizabeth

Character

Answer 20

The former Queen Elizabeth’s daughter. She becomes a pawn in political power-brokering, and is promised in marriage at the end of the play to Richmond, the Lancastrian rebel leader, in order to unite the warring houses of York and Lancaster.

Question 21

Ratcliffe and Catesby

Character

Answer 21

Two of Richard’s henchmen among the nobility.

Question 22

Tyrrell

Character

Answer 22

A murderer whom Richard hires to kill his young nephews, the princes in the Tower of London.

Question 23

Richmond

Character

Answer 23

A member of a branch of the Lancaster royal family who gathers a force of rebels to challenge Richard for the throne. He is meant to represent goodness, justice, and fairness—all the things Richard does not. Richmond is portrayed in such a glowing light in part because he founded the Tudor dynasty, which still ruled England in Shakespeare’s day.

Question 24

Hastings

Character

Answer 24

A lord who maintains his integrity, remaining loyal to the family of King Edward IV. Hastings winds up dead for making the mistake of trusting Richard.

Question 25

Lord Stanley

Character

Answer 25

The stepfather of Richmond and earl of Derby, he secretly helps Richmond, although he cannot escape Richard’s watchful gaze.

Question 26

Lord Mayor of London

Character

Answer 26

A gullible and suggestible fellow whom Richard and Buckingham use as a pawn in their ploy to make Richard king.

Question 27

Vaughan

Character

Answer 27

A friend of Elizabeth, Dorset, Rivers, and Gray who is executed by Richard along with Rivers and Grey.