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Primary sourceBookc. 1592-1594; printed 1632

Richard III

William Shakespeare · c. 1592-1594; printed 1632

Shakespeare's early history play depicting the rise and fall of King Richard III, printed in the 1632 Second Folio.

Shakespeare's authorship of this villain-king drama helped make his name with Elizabethan London audiences.

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Page 173 of an old printed book showing the title 'The Tragedy of Richard the Third' with a decorative border, the subtitle about the landing of Earle Richmond and the battle at Bosworth Field, and the opening 'Actus Primus. Scena Prima' in two columns of dense black-letter-style text.
William Shakespeare, Richard III, Second Folio edition, 1632.

About this source

What it is

Richard III is a play by William Shakespeare, probably written around 1592–1594. It tells of Richard of Gloucester's ruthless rise to the throne and his downfall at the Battle of Bosworth Field. It is the final part of Shakespeare's first tetralogy of history plays. The image shows a page from the 1632 Second Folio edition.

Why it matters

This early success helped establish Shakespeare's reputation in London theatre. The play also shaped how generations saw King Richard III, presenting him as a scheming villain — an image later historians have debated, since it reflects Tudor-era politics as much as historical fact.

Look closer

  • Why might a playwright writing under a Tudor monarch portray the last Plantagenet king so negatively?
  • What does the decorative border and layout of this page tell us about how books were made at the time?
  • How does Shakespeare use Richard's own words to shape the audience's opinion of him?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of William Shakespeare on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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