Richard III – Study Guide
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“Backstory” of Richard III
o Edward III
 Father of Edward, the Black Prince and great-great-grandfather of Richard
III. His many children branched off into the Houses of Lancasters and
Yorks
o Edward, the Black Prince
 Son of Edward III, fought valiantly with his father at Crécy
o Richard II
 Became king when Edward III died. The crown remained on the Lancaster
side for 84 years
o Wars of the Roses
 Many battles occurred between the Lancasters and Yorks over who would
get the throne.
 The war starts with Henry VI (Lancaster) and Margaret of Anjou gaining
power and ends with Henry VII of Richmond (Tudor) having power.
 Before/at the beginning of the Richard III, Edward IV (Richard III’s older
brother) is king, but Richard III (York) wants the crown so does
everything he needs to get it
o Margaret of Anjou wipes the forehead of Richard of York with a clothe stained
with York’s dead son’s blood and places a paper crown on York to mock him
o Edward, Prince of Wales
 The only legitimate son of Richard III and Lady Anne, Warwick’s
daughter who Richard manipulated into marrying him
Dramatis Personae
o Richard, Earl of Warwick was known as the Kingmaker. He was one of the
leaders in the Wars of the Roses and helped and father of Lady Anne
o Dighton and Forest were two people sent by Tyrrel to kill the two princes (sons
of Elizabeth Woodville and Edward IV) in the tower
o Elizabeth of York is Richard III’s niece, but Richard still wants to marry her so
that his place in the throne will be secured. She doesn’t marry him and instead
marries Henry VII of Richmond
Literary/Dramatic Conventions
o Soliloquy - an act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless
of any hearers, especially by a character in a play (one person only)
o Monologue - a long speech by one actor in a play or movie, or as part of a
theatrical or broadcast program (multiple people)
o Iambic Pentameter - a line of verse with five metrical feet, each consisting of
one short (or unstressed) syllable followed by one long (or stressed) syllable, for
example Two households, both alike in dignity
o Rhymed Couplet - two line of the same length that rhyme and complete one
thought
o Motif - a recurring symbol which takes on a figurative meaning
Places
o The Tower of London was the tower were the two princes (sons of Elizabeth and
Edward IV) were kept until they were murdered by Dighton and Forest
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Richard III – Study Guide
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Clarence, Richard III’s brother, was killed by two murderers in the Tower
of London
o Bosworth Field was where the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses was
fought (Henry VII of Richmond vs Richard III)
 Ended in a victory for Richmond and the House of Tudor gaining the
throne and Richard III’s death
o Leicester
 The place where they found Richard’s body
o Pomfret
 The castle where Edward stayed in
o Ludlow
 The place where Edward, Prince of Wales stayed before his coronation
Other things to know
o Malmsey Butt – Clarence, Richard’s brother, was supposedly drowned in a butt
of Malmsey wine after being stabbed by two murderers in the Tower of London
o The Cross Row –
o White Surrey – Richard III’s horse
o Jane Shore – King Edward IV’s mistress and also like Grey and Hastings
o Tyrrel, Dighton, and Forest – Tyrrel is Richard III’s henchman who was
supposed to kill the two princes, but instead hired Dighton and Forest to do the
dirty work
o The Two Murderers – two murders were not named during the scene were
Clarence was murdered by them (the first murderer was the one that stabbed him)
Curses of Margaret of Anjou
o Elizabeth will outlive her glory, and see her husband and children die before her,
just as Margaret has (yes)
o Edward, Elizabeth’s son, die in his youth by untimely violence (yes)
o Hastings, Rivers, and Dorset to die early deaths (yes)
o Richard will mistake his friends for enemies, and vice versa, that he will never
sleep peacefully, and that he will gain a worm of conscience (yes)
Dreams
o Clarence dreams about him and Richard on a ship, talking about the horrors that
happened in the Wars of the Wars thus far, and both of them falling of the ship
and drowning
o Stanley dreams about a wild boar knocking his helmet off, thinking that it’s a
allusion to Richard as the bull killing him
o Richard dreams of ghosts. The ghosts are of people that he has killed and they
condemn him and tell him that he will die the next day. The ghosts go to
Richmond and tell him he will win and rule all of England
Scenes
o The Opening Soliloquy: Richard describes that after a lengthy civil war, peace
has been restored in the royal house of England and his brother, Edward IV, is
now king. There are many festivities but he will not join in on them. He
complains about having a deformed body and implies that he will do anything to
become king
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Richard III – Study Guide
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o The Lady Anne Scene: Richard confronts and manipulates Lady Anne into
marrying him using the three tactics of denial, love, and suicide
o The Clarence Dream Scene: Clarence dreams about him and Richard on a ship,
talking about the horrors that happened in the Wars of the Wars thus far, and both
of them falling of the ship and drowning
o The Elizabeth Scene: Elizabeth and the duchess of York are sad about the death
of the two princes. Margaret enters and tells them that Richard is a monster. The
duchess of York curses Richard when he enters the room. Richard persuades
Elizabeth to talk to her daughter about marrying him.
o The Ghost Scene: Richard dreams of ghosts. The ghosts are of people that he has
killed and they condemn him and tell him that he will die the next day. The ghosts
go to Richmond and tell him he will win and rule all of England
Quotes
o
o
***There are too many quotes to list***
***All quotes should be underlined in your
book***
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