Richard II · Chapters

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Chapter companions for Richard II by William Shakespeare.

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Chapter 1
Act I
Richard II — Stage Lens: dramatic beats, line helps that follow your scroll, and stage picture. Read to understand, not to collect a closed thesis.
Chapter 2
Scene I
King Richard II presides over a formal hearing between Henry Bolingbroke and Thomas Mowbray. Bolingbroke accuses Mowbray of treason, including misappropriation of royal funds and complicity in the Duke of Gloucester's murder. Mowbray denies the charges and defends his honor. Both men throw down their gages, demanding trial by combat. Richard attempts to reconcile them but fails, ultimately ordering them to prepare for a judicial duel at Coventry.
Chapter 3
Scene II
In the Duke of Lancaster's palace, John of Gaunt and the Duchess of Gloucester mourn the murder of the Duke of Gloucester. The Duchess urges Gaunt to seek revenge, but Gaunt refuses to raise arms against King Richard, God's anointed deputy. The Duchess resigns herself to grief and departs, asking Gaunt to commend her to Edmund York.
Chapter 4
Scene III
The trial by combat between Bolingbroke and Mowbray is halted by King Richard, who instead banishes both: Bolingbroke for ten years (later reduced to six) and Mowbray for life. Gaunt counsels his son to bear exile with stoic resolve, but Bolingbroke struggles with the weight of his sentence. The scene closes with Gaunt's foreboding sense of his own mortality.
Chapter 5
Scene IV
King Richard, with Bagot, Green, and Aumerle, discusses Bolingbroke's departure and his popularity with the common people. Richard reveals his plans to fund the Irish wars by taxing the realm and using blank charters. Bushy enters with news that John of Gaunt is gravely ill, and Richard expresses a wish for Gaunt's death to seize his wealth.

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Act I

Scene I

Scene II

Scene III

Scene IV