Richard The III
Richard III has come down through history as a deformed badly twisted human with an evil heart. What was Richard III actually like and did Shakespeare actually perceive him as a villain, or just material for a good mystery? Due to lack of media, as we understand it, there was no one in 16th century England to defend him. So let's look at Richards's life before he became king. Who were Richard's parents and where was he in line to become king? Would he have ever taken the throne without treachery? Why did Shakespeare lay all the guilt at Richard's feet; did it make a good story or did he really believe it? This paper will attempt to answer these questions, as well as establish Richard's innocence on several counts. Richard III, in some people's eyes, was one of the most villainous people in history. In others', he was a King who just got a bad reputation with little background as to why. Richard was born at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire on October 2, 1452. He was born to Cecily Neville and Richard Duke of York of the house of York (Fraser, 158). Richard was the twelfth of thirteen children and the youngest of seven to survive their childhood. His parents did not exclusively raise him because he very seldom ac
Lace W. William. The Little Princes in the Tower. San Diego, CA, 1997. Fraser Antonia. The Lives of the Kings & Queens of England. Las Angeles, CA, 1995 Throughout history there is no actual recording of what Richard looked like, not even any contemporary portraits survive to show his true appearance. Over time his image has been described as that of a deformed hunchback with a clubfoot. This is because of how Shakespeare portrayed him in Richard III. Shakespeare also claimed that Richard deceived Anne into marriage. History does not support this though; they had grown up together during Richard's years at Middleham (Costain, 349). He was an attentive and faithful husband and treated Anne's mother with kindness and generosity (Fraser, 159). Within six months, Richard had the boys declared illegitimate because the king had indeed made a marriage contract with Eleanor Butler before his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville, which would have invalidated their marriage. Richard had the King's best friend Lord Hastings executed for being a traitor and then seized the crown for himself (Fraser, 162). Did he kill the nephews to get them out of the way? No one knows for sure, although he could have. Richard's troubles really began as the Queen allied herself to the Lancastrian, Henry Tudor who later became Henry VII. Henry Tudor could've also had the boy murdered to eliminate any question surrounding his ascent to the throne (Lace, 91). Thanks to Shakespeare, the guilt is squarely on Richard. Richard died in 1485 on the field in the Battle of Bosworth thus ending his short reign of two years. Shakespeare took a tragic story of a few dysfunctional families burdened with greed, self promotion, and treachery, and turned it into melodrama by intensifying Richard's villainy. By doing so, it became his most frequently performed play. It may not be historically accurate, but it makes a good point; that in destroying others, we destroy ourselves.
Some common words found in the essay are:
King Edward, Richard III, Earl Warwick, Middleham Costain, Battle Bosworth, Warwick Richard's, King Richard, York Fraser, Lord Hastings, Edward Wardenship, richard iii, king edward, shakespeare william, earl warwick, fraser 159, las angeles ca, ny 1962, 1962 fraser, antonia lives, lives kings, england las, england las angeles, 1995 lace william, angeles ca 1995, ca 1995 lace,
Approximate Word count = 1471
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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