Richard III

Roles

• Gloucester - Young Adult (20-35), Adult (36-50), Male

About this piece

Gloucester (future King Richard III) rejoices on his conquest of Lady Anne

Summary

The play begins at the end of a long civil war between the house of Lancaster, that ruled with King Henry VI, and the house of York. The house of York has prevailed and Edward IV is now king of England. His younger brothers are Clarence and Richard, the Duke of Gloucester. Richard plots against noblemen and even his own family to become the future king. He plans to have his brother Clarence killed by spreading rumors about him. He also plans to marry Lady Anne, the young widowed wife of Prince Edward, that is the son of the late King Henry VI. In this scene Gloucester courts Lady Anne while she is still mourning the death of her husband and King Henry. Even if she knows he is responsible for their death, Gloucester manages to charm her. He even admits that he killed them and argues that he did it because of her beauty, to get to her. He slips a ring onto her finger and asks her to marry him. She accepts the ring and agrees to meet him later. When she leaves Gloucester celebrates his conquest with this monologue. She still had tears in her eyes, he says, and a hatred for him but he still managed to seduce her and make her forget her diseased husband.

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