Richard II

Richard II PDF Author: Nigel Saul
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300149050
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 529

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Book Description
Richard II is one of the most enigmatic of English kings. Shakespeare depicted him as a tragic figure, an irresponsible, cruel monarch who nevertheless rose in stature as the substance of power slipped from him. By later writers he has been variously portrayed as a half-crazed autocrat or a conventional ruler whose principal errors were the mismanagement of his nobility and disregard for the political conventions of his age. This book—the first full-length biography of Richard in more than fifty years—offers a radical reinterpretation of the king. Nigel Saul paints a picture of Richard as a highly assertive and determined ruler, one whose key aim was to exalt and dignify the crown. In Richard's view, the crown was threatened by the factiousness of the nobility and the assertiveness of the common people. The king met these challenges by exacting obedience, encouraging lofty new forms of address, and constructing an elaborate system of rule by bonds and oaths. Saul traces the sources of Richard's political ideas and finds that he was influenced by a deeply felt orthodox piety and by the ideas of the civil lawyers. He shows that, although Richard's kingship resembled that of other rulers of the period, unlike theirs, his reign ended in failure because of tactical errors and contradictions in his policies. For all that he promoted the image of a distant, all-powerful monarch, Richard II's rule was in practice characterized by faction and feud. The king was obsessed by the search for personal security: in his subjects, however, he bred only insecurity and fear. A revealing portrait of a complex and fascinating figure, the book is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the politics and culture of the English middle ages.

Richard II

Richard II PDF Author: Nigel Saul
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300149050
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 529

Get Book Here

Book Description
Richard II is one of the most enigmatic of English kings. Shakespeare depicted him as a tragic figure, an irresponsible, cruel monarch who nevertheless rose in stature as the substance of power slipped from him. By later writers he has been variously portrayed as a half-crazed autocrat or a conventional ruler whose principal errors were the mismanagement of his nobility and disregard for the political conventions of his age. This book—the first full-length biography of Richard in more than fifty years—offers a radical reinterpretation of the king. Nigel Saul paints a picture of Richard as a highly assertive and determined ruler, one whose key aim was to exalt and dignify the crown. In Richard's view, the crown was threatened by the factiousness of the nobility and the assertiveness of the common people. The king met these challenges by exacting obedience, encouraging lofty new forms of address, and constructing an elaborate system of rule by bonds and oaths. Saul traces the sources of Richard's political ideas and finds that he was influenced by a deeply felt orthodox piety and by the ideas of the civil lawyers. He shows that, although Richard's kingship resembled that of other rulers of the period, unlike theirs, his reign ended in failure because of tactical errors and contradictions in his policies. For all that he promoted the image of a distant, all-powerful monarch, Richard II's rule was in practice characterized by faction and feud. The king was obsessed by the search for personal security: in his subjects, however, he bred only insecurity and fear. A revealing portrait of a complex and fascinating figure, the book is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the politics and culture of the English middle ages.

Richard II and the English Royal Treasure

Richard II and the English Royal Treasure PDF Author: Jenny Stratford
Publisher: Boydell Press
ISBN: 1843833786
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 490

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Book Description
The remarkable treasure of gold and silver from England and France which Richard II had amassed by the end of his reign in 1399 is fully revealed for the first time in this richly illustrated book. The author explores the nature of the objects themselves, their provenance and later fate, and examines the crucial role the treasure played in diplomacy and in financing the Hundred Years War, especially at the time of Agincourt. --

Richard II

Richard II PDF Author: William Shakespeare
Publisher: Independently Published
ISBN: 9781728877501
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
Richard II by William Shakespeare . Richard II is one of Shakespeare's finest works: lucid, eloquent, and boldly structured. It can be seen as a tragedy, or a historical play, or a political drama, or as one part of a vast dramatic cycle which helped to generate England's national identity. Today, to some of us, Richard II may appear conservative; but, in Shakespeare's day, it could appear subversive: 'I am Richard II', declared an indignant Queen Elizabeth. Numerous recent revivals in the theatre and on screen have demonstrated the enduring power and poignancy of this drama of the downfall of an egoistic but pitiable monarch.

Richard II

Richard II PDF Author: Anthony Goodman
Publisher: Clarendon Press
ISBN: 9780199262205
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description
Richard II had a dramatic kingship. This text, written by leading historians, aims to re-evaluate the much-maligned figure.

The Medieval Tournament As Spectacle

The Medieval Tournament As Spectacle PDF Author: Alan V. Murray
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
ISBN: 1783275421
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 265

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Book Description
Fresh insights into the development of the tournament as an opportunity for social display.

Chronicles of the Revolution, 1397-1400

Chronicles of the Revolution, 1397-1400 PDF Author: Chris Given-Wilson
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 9780719035272
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
A range of material covering the 'tyranny' and deposition of Richard II and the usurpation of the throne by his cousin, who became King Henry IV.

The Court of Richard II and Bohemian Culture

The Court of Richard II and Bohemian Culture PDF Author: Alfred Thomas
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
ISBN: 1843845660
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 246

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Book Description
First detailed exploration of the role played by Bohemian tradition and customs on the court of Richard II.

Richard II and the Rebel Earl

Richard II and the Rebel Earl PDF Author: A. K. Gundy
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107433789
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 311

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Book Description
The reign of Richard II and the circumstances of his deposition have long been subject to intense debate. This new interpretation of the politics of the late-fourteenth century offers an in-depth survey of Richard's reign from the perspective of one of the leading nobles who came to oppose him, Thomas Beauchamp, the Appellant Earl of Warwick. This is the first full-length study of one of Richard II's opponents to explore not only why the Earl rebelled against the King, but also why Richard lost his throne. Rather than offering the traditional explanation of a subject grown too mighty, A. K. Gundy sets Warwick's rule in the context of the political and constitutional framework of the period. The interplay of local and national events helps to reveal Warwick's motives as a long-serving member of the nobility faced with a king determined to rule in a manner contradictory to contemporary political structures.

Shakespeare and Politics

Shakespeare and Politics PDF Author: Catherine M. S. Alexander
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521544818
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
Selection of sixteen provocative and stimulating essays on the complex subject of Shakespeare and politics.

The Cambridge History of Ireland: Volume 1, 600–1550

The Cambridge History of Ireland: Volume 1, 600–1550 PDF Author: Brendan Smith
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108625258
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 686

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Book Description
The thousand years explored in this book witnessed developments in the history of Ireland that resonate to this day. Interspersing narrative with detailed analysis of key themes, the first volume in The Cambridge History of Ireland presents the latest thinking on key aspects of the medieval Irish experience. The contributors are leading experts in their fields, and present their original interpretations in a fresh and accessible manner. New perspectives are offered on the politics, artistic culture, religious beliefs and practices, social organisation and economic activity that prevailed on the island in these centuries. At each turn the question is asked: to what extent were these developments unique to Ireland? The openness of Ireland to outside influences, and its capacity to influence the world beyond its shores, are recurring themes. Underpinning the book is a comparative, outward-looking approach that sees Ireland as an integral but exceptional component of medieval Christian Europe.