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Portrait
of Richard III -- Unknown Artist |
Richard
III presents us with one of Shakespeare's most sociopathic
villains. Richard merrily proceeds to murder his brother and wife,
as well as his nephews, cousins, and friends in his bid to secure
and keep the throne, and he rarely feels a twinge of remorse. This
portrayal fits well within Tudor propaganda, which vilified Richard
in order to bolster Henry Tudor's (Henry VII's) fairly shaky claim
to the throne. Shakespeare drew from Tudor historians who championed
this version of history. Although Shakespeare's Richard commits
several atrocities before the play closes, three acts in particular--the
death of Clarence, the de-legitimatization of Edward V and Richard,
the Duke of York, and the murder of the princes in the Tower--place
Richard in the worst possible light. None of these acts, however,
are as clear-cut as Shakespeare's drama makes out.
To learn more about all things
Ricardian, there is no better website than the Richard
III Society. Also check out the American Branch’s comprehensive
site, http://www.r3.org/intro.html.
At both sites, you will find numerous resources on Richard, the
Wars of the Roses, his family, his friends, his enemies, his time,
and his treatment by history, playwrights, and authors.
Composition
and Performance History
Richard
III is one Shakespeare’s earliest plays. Believed to have
been composed around 1591, it would have been preceded only by the
earliest comedies and the three parts of Henry VI. Shakespeare
wrote his play toward the end of the Tudor dynasty’s reign,
but the Tudor slant would surely have shaped his idea of history,
especially as benefactors to Shakespeare himself. The Tudors presented
themselves as England’s just rulers because they united the
Lancastrian and Yorkist lines through the marriage of Henry VII
with Elizabeth of York (Edward IV’s daughter). Raphael Holinshed,
whose Chronicles were an important source for Shakespeare’s
plays, relied heavily on Edward
Hall’s history (which Shakespeare probably also consulted).
Hall, who published his history during the latter part of Henry
VII’s reign, understood the Tudor message; he called his history,
The Union of the Noble and Illustre Famelies of Lancastre and
York.
The 1591 composition date is
based on circumstantial evidence. The first quarto was not printed
until 1597, but Marlowe’s Edward II, which was written
by 1592, is believed to have been influenced by Shakespeare’s
play. It was evidently a popular play; six quartos were printed
between 1597 and 1622 (two in 1597). We do not have a record of
any performances in Shakespeare’s time, though there must
have been many, judging by the number of surviving quartos and its
inclusion in the First Folio. The first recorded performance is
in 1633, when it was performed for Charles I and his queen, Henrietta
Maria
Following the Restoration (1660),
the play was frequently performed. The popular 1699 version, adapted
by Colley
Cibber, a noted actor, playwright, and theater manager, differed
in numerous respects from the original. Cibber cut lines from the
original, reorganized the play, added scenes (such as an argument
between Richard and Anne after their marriage), deletes characters
(Queen Margaret), and dramatizes violent acts that occur off-stage
in Shakespeare’s version (the murder of the princes). Although
Cibber’s version was not immediately successful, by 1710 it
was the version of Richard III that audiences saw. Three legendary
Shakespearean actors—David Garrick (1717-1779), John Philip
Kemble (1757-1823), and Edmund Kean (1787-1833) —all played
Cibber’s Richard. Cibber’s Richard III also contributed
one of the most famous Shakespearean line not written by Shakespeare:
“Off with his head; so much for Buckingham.”
To learn more about
Colley's Richard III in performance, see http://www.r3.org/onstage/drunk.html
To read Cibber’s
version, check out: http://www.r3.org/bookcase/cibber1.html
For more on great
18th and 19th century Shakespearean actors, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Garrick
(David Garrick) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Philip_Kemble
(John Philip Kemble) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Kean
(Edmund Kean)
The
Death of Clarence
George
Plantagenet, the Duke of Clarence, was the younger brother of
Edward IV and the elder brother to Richard. Unlike Richard, who
was always loyal to Edward, Clarence's ambitions led him to think
of his older brother as a rival. After Edward ascended the throne,
Clarence married Isabel, daughter of Richard
Neville, Earl of Warwick, the "Kingmaker," and one
of the Kingmaker's two heiresses. Edward opposed this marriage because
of the familial alliance it created between Warwick and Clarence,
as well as the wealth and power Clarence acquired.
Clarence and Warwick both resented
Edward's marriage to Elizabeth
Woodville and the favor shown by Edward to his in-laws. Their
disenchantment grew into a rebellion, and, in 1469, they imprisoned
Edward and attempted to rule with him as their puppet. Much of the
nobility, however, did not support them, and they were forced to
release Edward. Incredibly, Edward forgave them their treachery.
A year later, however, Clarence and Warwick rebelled again, with
the aim of setting Clarence on the throne (with Warwick's daughter
as his queen). This time, Edward defeated them, and they fled to
France.
This flight led to Warwick's
alliance with Margaret
de Anjou, Henry VI's exiled queen. To secure the alliance, Warwick
married his younger daughter, Anne, to Margaret and Henry's son,
Prince Edward. Warwick then launched a second invasion of England,
this time successful. Edward IV, along with Richard and Queen Elizabeth,
pregnant with the future Edward V, fled to his sister, the Duchess
of Burgundy, seeking sanctuary.
Clarence realized, however, that the
new regime was unlikely to place him on the throne (even though
Henry VI, restored to his crown, designated Clarence as his successor
in the event of Prince Edward's death). With their mother and sisters
as intermediaries, Edward IV and Clarence again reconciled, and
Clarence fought with his brothers in the battles that resulted in
Warwick's death and the end of hope for a Lancastrian restoration.
The reconciliation was strained,
however, by Richard's marriage to Prince Edward's widow, Lady
Anne Neville, the co-heiress to the Warwick lands (Warwick being
dead by that point). Clarence resented having to divide any of the
inheritance with his brother or sister-in-law. After Isabel died,
Clarence sought to marry his sister's step-daughter, the Duchess
of Burgundy, but Edward again frustrated this ambition. Clarence
was implicated in treasonous plots against Edward, and, this time,
he was not forgiven. Instead, Edward ordered his execution. Contrary
to Shakespeare's tale, Richard was not involved in his brother's
death. He may have blamed the Woodvilles for Clarence's fall.
For more information
on Clarence, see also http://www.btinternet.com/~timeref/hpr1425.htm
For more information
on Ralph Neville, the Earl of Warwick, refer also to Paul Murray
Kendall’s Warwick the Kingmaker (1957), and
Michael Hicks’ Warwick the Kingmaker (1998).
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