Study Guide

for

Richard III

Prepared by: Elena Barberia

Dramaturg, Arizona Repertory Theatre

Table of Contents

1. Summary of the Play

2. William Shakespeare’s Richard III: The Facts and the Fiction

3. The History of the Wars of the Roses

4. Family Tree

5. Historic Characters

6. Houses Divided Activity

7. The Light and the Dark Activity (Adapted from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival)

8. Richard’s Shadow Box Activity

9. Standard Activity

Richard III Play Summary

It is about two years before the end of the Wars of the Roses. King Edward IV is king of England,

and is very sick. There has also been a temporary lack of war, which frustrates Edward’s brother, Richard,

Duke of Gloucester, who wants the crown for himself. In order to do so, he kills his way through the line,

sending two murderers to kill his brother, George, Duke of Clarence, in the Tower of London after

Edward incarcerated him for being named George. (There was a prophesy which foretold one of Edward’s

heirs would be murdered by a family member by the name of “G”.) To enhance his status, Richard also

woos Lady Anne, the widow of Prince Edward, the son of King Henry VI, who died in a battle at

Tewkesbury.

Upon the death of George, Edward becomes even weaker and dies, leaving the monarchy to his

son Prince Edward, who was 12. Richard becomes his “Lord Protector,” a title given to the person who

will oversee England while Edward is still too young to reign properly. Richard sends him and his brother

Richard, Duke of York, to the Tower to wait for his coronation. Instead, their uncle sends a man named

Tyrrel to kill them. Richard’s closest ally, the Duke of Buckingham stages a gathering during which

citizens beg Richard to take the throne before someone else does, to which he, of course, accepts.

While Richard is on the throne, the Earl of Richmond, who is fighting for the Lancastrians, has

begun gathering troops. In order to solidify his crown, Richard marries Lady Anne, but then spreads a

rumor that she is sick and murders her. Upon Anne’s death, Richard goes to King Edward IV’s wife,

Elizabeth, and attempts to get her to woo her daughter, young Elizabeth for him.

In response to Richmond’s encroaching army, Richard decides to go to battle, assembling his

army at Bosworth Field. As he falls asleep, the ghosts of the people he has murdered visit and curse him,

laying their well-wishes on the sleeping Richmond across the field. In the morning when the two armies

battle, Richmond is victorious and Richard is slain. To unite the Lancastrian and Yorkist houses,

Richmond marries young Elizabeth and ends the Wars of the Roses.

William Shakespeare’s Richard III

William Shakespeare wrote Richard III in the late 1500s during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Queen Elizabeth I would be the last Tudor monarch, with her 45-year reign ending in 1603 and no male

heir (or any heir) being produced. She was the daughter of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII, and was

the granddaughter of King Henry VII, the first Tudor monarch.

King Henry VII was the king that ended the Wars of the Roses, a 30-year war fought over the

Houses of Lancaster and York over the English throne. He is, in Shakespeare’s version, called

“Richmond”.

As mentioned before, Shakespeare was writing the play Richard III not during Richard’s reign,

but rather, Elizabeth’s. In order to appease the queen and create a production that enhanced the Tudor

legacy, William Shakespeare embellished many characteristics about Richard in order to make Elizabeth’s

grandfather seem more like the hero that saved the country from a ruthless tyrant. The Tudor Myth was

especially influential in the writing of this play. This myth enhances King Henry VII’s claim to the throne

by slandering Richard and painting the 30 year period of war and Richard’s reign as one of pure darkness,

shattered by the prosperity brought by King Henry VII.

In Shakespeare’s version, Richard is often portrayed as a hunchbacked, ruthless villain who will

do anything to take the crown. From killing his closest followers to his innocent nephews, Shakespeare

makes him one of the most fascinating villains in history. However, many of these traits and actions have

been disputed by scholars. For example, when the remains of Richard were uncovered in 2012, his spinal

column was curved, indicating that he had a case of scoliosis rather than the exaggerated hunchback

Shakespeare gives him. Likewise, it has not been proven that he killed his nephews in the conquest for the

throne, or that he really was a ruthless tyrant.

The Wars of the Roses—A Brief Synopsis of the Before and After King Richard III

The Wars of the Roses were a series of civil wars fought for 30 years between the English

houses of Lancaster and York from 1455-1485 over the throne. It is so named because the

Lancastrians’ emblem was a red rose, and the Yorkists’ white.

It began with the reign of King Henry VI, a Lancastrian king, who was 9 months old

when he became king, and was uninterested in politics. During one of his biggest mental

breakdowns, he proclaimed Richard, the Duke of York to be protector. However, when his

breakdown ended a couple of years later, he stripped York’s power and created an enemy.

Angered by his power being taken away, the Duke of York initiated a civil war. Queen Margaret,

the wife of King Henry VI, would be a leader of the Lancastrians.

The Duke of York was killed in the Battle of Wakefield, but his son lead the charge and

defeated the Lancastrians in 1461, thereby taking the throne and naming himself King Edward

IV. King Henry VI soon fled, but was captured by Edward IV. Meanwhile, the Earl of Warwick,

who had been fighting for the Yorkists, switched sides and reinstated Henry to the throne. When

Edward returned from his exile, he defeated the Lancastrians at Tewksbury, killing Henry and

Margaret’s son, Prince Edward, and murdering Henry VI in the Tower of London.

The Wars of the Roses ended with the Battle of Bosworth Field, where King Richard III,

was killed by Henry Tudor, a Lancastrian. In order to truly end the battle, Henry married

Elizabeth of York as he assumed the throne and title of King Henry VII.

Richard III’s Family Tree

From Cambridge School Shakespeare’s King Richard III

The Major Characters of Richard III

Gloucester/King Richard III •Of the House of York •Initially the Duke of Gloucester •Marries Anne Neville, who is his cousin after her father the Earl of Warwick dies •Rules England between 1483 and 1485 •It is rumored that he assumes the throne after killing his nephews, the Princes in the Tower of London as Edward V waits for his coronation •Defeated by Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond (Richmond) in the Battle of Bosworth Field •Shakespeare writes him as a disabled man, who is often portrayed as having a hunchback

Clarence •George, Duke of Clarence •King Edward IV’s brother who attempted to overthrow him with Anne Neville’s father •Accused of treason after a prophecy fortells of a person with the name of “G” is going to kill King Edward’s heirs (this turns out to be Richard, Duke of Gloucester) •Richard sentences him to death •Stabbed to death then drowned in wine

Brakenbury •Sir Robert Brakenbury •Loyal servant of Richard III •Constable of the Tower of London •Killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field

Hastings •William, Lord Hastings •Devoted follower of King Edward IV •Follower of Richard when he is the Protector •Charged with treason by Richard III •First man to die at the hands of Richard •Gets beheaded

Lady Anne •Anne Neville •Was initially betrothed to Richard III, but this was broken when her father rebelled against King Edward IV •Was married to Edward of Lancaster (son of King Henry VI) but then was widowed when he died •Marries King Richard III after being wooed by him

•There was a solar eclipse on the day of her death, which was interpreted as a sign of God saying that Richard had murdered her by poison (even though it was probably tuberculosis or cancer)

Queen Elizabeth •“The White Queen” •Wife of King Edward IV •Often called “Lady Gray” by Richard III (referring to initial marriage to Sir John Gray, which downgrades her status) •Mother of the young princes Edward and Richard •Conspires against Richard III with Queen Margaret

Rivers •Anthony Woodville, Earl Rivers •Queen Elizabeth’s brother •Dorset and Grey’s uncle •Sends Hastings to the Tower •Arrested and beheaded at Pontefract Castle •Supposed curse put on him by Queen Margaret for not saving her son when he was murdered

Grey •Queen Elizabeth’s son from her marriage before Edward IV •Accompanied Edward V (young prince) to his coronation when they were met by Richard III and Buckingham—arrested and beheaded •Executed by King Richard III

Buckingham •Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham •Supporter of Richard III •Intercepts the young prince, Edward V, with Richard III •Ordered by Richard to murder the princes and objects to it—there was a manuscript discovered in 1980 that refers to him as the princes’ murderer •Flees to Wales but is captured and beheaded

Stanley •Lord Stanley, Earl of Derby •Mild supporter of Richard III •Richmond’s stepfather •His dream about the boar knocking his helmet off his head alludes to his worry that Richard III will kill him •Doesn’t join Richard at the Battle of Bosworth Field

•Crowns King Henry VII (Richmond) Queen Margaret • Widow of King Henry VI • Curses and prophesizes many of the deaths Catesby

•Supporter of Richard III •Trained in law •Councilor who advises Richard against marrying Elizabeth of York •Fought at the Battle of Bosworth

oCaptured and executed York

•Richard, Duke of York •son of King Edward IV •nephew of Richard III •brother to Prince Edward •locked in the Tower and killed

Duchess of York •Cecily Neville •Widowed mother of Richard III, Clarence, and King Edward IV •Curses Richard as her last words

Prince Edward •King Edward IV’s eldest son •Richard III’s nephew •Heir to the throne •Killed in the Tower along with brother Richard (York)

Ratcliff •Sir Richard Ratcliffe •Loyal to Richard III •Ordered by Richard III to kill Rivers, Grey, and Hastings at Pontefract •Fights at the Battle of Bosworth Field and is killed

Bishop of Ely •John Morton •Arrested and imprisoned by Richard III •Watched over by Buckingham •Flees to Flanders and joined Richmond’s court after Buckingham’s rebellion •Later becomes the Archbishop of Canterbury

Richmond

•Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond •King Henry VII •Claim to the throne is based off of Edward III’s son, John of Gaunt •Ends the War of the Roses with the defeat of King Richard III

Houses Divided Activity

Below is a list of characters in Shakespeare’s play (the third row are not in Shakespeare’s

play, but are historic figures), and the division of the house of Lancaster and the House of York.

Can you place each character in the side they’re fighting for? Be careful, some of them switch!

House of House of York Lancaster

Queen Margaret Lady Anne King Edward IV Richard, Duke of Gloucester Lord Stanley Rivers Grey Richmond The Young Princes Lady Anne

King Henry VI Richard, Duke of York

The Light and the Dark Activity

This is a version of Shakespeare’s opening speech for Richard, Duke of Gloucester. With a bright color, circle the words that imply happiness, peace, and prosperity. With a dark color, circle the words that are related to war, darkness, and maliciousness. When everyone is done, stand up as a group and read the speech once through. Read it a second time, and every time you get to a light word, make your voice higher and raise up on your toes. Every time you get to a dark word, stomp on the ground, and make your voice deeper.

GLOUCESTER Now is the winter of our discontentMade glorious summer by this sun of York;And all the clouds that lour'd upon our houseIn the deep bosom of the ocean buried.Now are our brows bound with victorious wreaths; 5Our bruised arms hung up for monuments;Our stern alarums changed to merry meetings,Our dreadful marches to delightful measures. Grim-visaged war hath smooth'd his wrinkled front;And now, instead of mounting barded steeds 10 To fright the souls of fearful adversaries,He capers nimbly in a lady's chamberTo the lascivious pleasing of a lute. But I, that am not shaped for sportive tricks,Nor made to court an amorous looking-glass; 15I, that am rudely stamp'd, and want love's majestyTo strut before a wanton ambling nymph;I, that am curtail'd of this fair proportion,Cheated of feature by dissembling nature, Deformed, unfinish'd, sent before my time 20 Into this breathing world, scarce half made up,And that so lamely and unfashionableThat dogs bark at me as I halt by them;Why, I, in this weak piping time of peace, Have no delight to pass away the time, 25 Unless to spy my shadow in the sunAnd descant on mine own deformity:And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover, To entertain these fair well-spoken days,I am determined to prove a villain 30 And hate the idle pleasures of these days.Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous, By drunken prophecies, libels and dreams,To set my brother Clarence and the kingIn deadly hate the one against the other: 35 And if King Edward be as true and justAs I am subtle, false and treacherous,This day should Clarence closely be mew'd up, About a prophecy, which says that 'G' Of Edward's heirs the murderer shall be. 40

Richard’s Shadow Box

After you’ve read/seen the play, put together a shadow box: a collection of

important objects and memories from the perspective of Richard III. It can be as simple

as pictures on a Pinterest board, a shoe box, or a full-fledged shadow box.

Some questions to consider:

1) What are props/costume pieces that were given specifically to Richard?

2) How did he rise to power?

3) Is there something that’s not in the script that you think he would have? Why?

4) What are some colors you associate with Richard?

5) Is there anything he may have wanted but couldn’t have?

6) Was he close to anyone in the play? What from them would he have used?

Your Standard

While riding into battle, Richmond and Richard have people carrying their

standards. Standards are flags or banners that represent each army. If you were yourself

or a different character from Richard III, what would your standard look like?

These are the standards of Richard III, Henry Tudor (Richmond), and Lord Stanley, provided by the

wonderful people at: https://www.bosworthbattlefield.org.uk/