#richardii — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #richardii, aggregated by home.social.
-
From time to time I go back to this awesome play, because I like #RichardII, especially the version played by #DavidTennant - if you haven't watched it yet, I strongly recommend it!
-
“I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore”*…
Wat Tyler’s death (left to right: Sir William Walworth, Mayor of London (wielding sword); Wat Tyler; King Richard II; and Sir John Cavendish, esquire to the king, bearing decorated sword (source)Your correspondent is headed into a melange of meetings (and their attendant travel), so (Roughly) Daily will be on pause for a few days. Regular service should resume on or around June 19. I’ll leave you with a (timely?) tale from the past…
“Steve” publishes a wonderful weekly newsletter, Dates With History. In a recent post he shares the story of Wat Tyler and the Peasants’ Revolt…
If you walked into Smithfield in the City of London in the small hours of the morning, you’d find the great Victorian iron-and-glass halls of the old meat market, traders hard at work while dazed club-goers spill out of nearby Fabric nightclub, uncertain for a moment what century they’re in.
A few steps away stands St Bartholomew’s Hospital—Barts—the oldest hospital in London still on its original site, patching people up since 1123.
On one of the blocked window bays of the hospital’s north wall, a memorial marks where the Scottish hero William Wallace was hanged, drawn and quartered in 1305, alongside remembrances of the Protestant martyrs burned here under Queen Mary between 1555 and 1558.
A third plaque, on another blocked window bay, recalls an event 645 years ago next Monday—15 June 1381.
That day, a man rode into Smithfield at the head of a rebel army and tilted the course of English history. The fact that he was dead before the day was out is beside the point.
His name was Wat Tyler…
[Steve explains the origins and workings of the feudal system in England, the (extraordinary) impact of the Black Death, the Poll Tax, the subsequent rise of peasant resistance, the Revolt itself, Wat’s demise, and the immediate aftermath. He concludes…]
… Wat Tyler enters the historical record on 7 June 1381 and exits eight days later, 15 June 1381, when he was executed. That’s his lot.
The revolt failed.
But the idea it carried—that labour had value, that taxation required some semblance of fairness, that the common man had rights—survived.
The Peasants’ Revolt echoed what the barons had done at Runnymede in 1215—confront a king and extract written concessions from him. Tyler’s rebels knew their history. Had they succeeded, those sealed charters would have amounted to a Magna Carta for the poor.
Over the three centuries that followed, the power of English rulers to do as they pleased eroded steadily. By 1689, the Bill of Rights made explicit what three hundred years had been quietly establishing—that rulers governed within limits they did not set themselves.
Wat Tyler hadn’t written that principle. But he had fomented one of its earliest and most violent proofs of concept.
There wouldn’t be another poll tax in England for six hundred years—until Margaret Thatcher introduced one in 1990 and was promptly removed from office.
History, it turns out, has a long memory for bad ideas…
(Trying to) hold power to account: “It’s 1381 and the peasants are revolting.”
* “Howard Beale” (Peter Finch) in Paddy Chayefsky‘s and Sidney Lumet‘s Network
###
As we ponder power, we might recall that it was on this date in 1939, at Hyde Park, that President Franklin D. Roosevelt hosted a luncheon for King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of England. Despite his mother’s horror, FDR wanted to show the King and Queen an old-fashioned, American style picnic– featuring that most proletariat of dishes, the hot dog. In the U.S. to raise support U.S. for Britain’s cause in World War II, the royal couple at least appeared to enjoy the meal.
#culture #feudalism #FranklinDRoosevelt #history #hotDog #JohnOfGaunt #KingGeorgeVI #PeasantsRevolt #picnic #politics #pollTax #RichardII #WatTyler #WatTylersRebellion -
QUEEN: Uncle, for God’s sake speak comfortable words.
YORK: Should I do so, I should belie my thoughts.
Comfort’s in heaven, and we are on the Earth,
Where nothing lives but crosses, cares, and grief.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 2, sc. 2, l. 82ff (2.2.82-83) (1595)More about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #pessimism #burden #cares #comfort #grief #hope #humancondition #life #misery #world
-
KING HENRY: Though I did wish him dead,
I hate the murderer, love him murderèd.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 5, sc. 6, l. 39ff (5.6.39-40) (1595)More about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespares #richardii #death #killing #mixedfeelings #murder
-
RICHARD: I wasted time, and now doth time waste me.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 5, sc. 5, l. 50 (5.5.50) (1595)More about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #dying #monotony #mortality #oldage #regret #wastingtime #passageoftime
-
SALISBURY: O, call back yesterday, bid time return ….
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 3, sc. 2, l. 70 (3.2.50) (1595)More about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #lateness #regret #tardiness #toolate #yesterday
-
KING RICHARD: You may my glories and my state depose
But not my griefs; still am I king of those.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 4, sc. 1, l. 201ff (4.1.201-202) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #autonomy #emotion #glory #grief #innerself #mourning #power #prestige #remorse
-
KING RICHARD: For within the hollow crown
That rounds the mortal temples of a king
Keeps Death his court, and there the antic sits,
Scoffing his state and grinning at his pomp,
Allowing him a breath, a little scene,
To monarchize, be feared, and kill with looks,
Infusing him with self and vain conceit,
As if this flesh which walls about our life
Were brass impregnable; and humored thus,
Comes at the last and with a little pin
Bores through his castle wall, and farewell, king!William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 3, sc. 2, l. 165ff (3.2.165-175) (1595)More about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #autocrat #death #dust #ego #hubris #invulnerability #king #mortality #power #pride #royalty
-
KING RICHARD: For God’s sake, let us sit upon the ground
And tell sad stories of the death of kings —
How some have been deposed, some slain in war,
Some haunted by the ghosts they have deposed,
Some poisoned by their wives, some sleeping killed,
All murdered.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 3, sc. 2, l. 160ff (3.2.160-165) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #autocrat #death #fate #kings #mortality #power #regicide #storytelling
-
KING RICHARD: Not all the water in the rough rude sea
Can wash the balm off from an anointed king.
The breath of worldly men cannot depose
The deputy elected by the Lord.
For every man that Bolingbroke hath pressed
To lift shrewd steel against our golden crown,
God for His Richard hath in heavenly pay
A glorious angel. Then, if angels fight,
Weak men must fall, for heaven still guards the right.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 3, sc. 2, l. 55ff (3.2.55) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #angels #anointing #blessing #divineblessing #divineintervention #divinepower #divineright #divinewill #God #kings #royalty #hubris
-
GAUNT: This royal throne of kings, this sceptered isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,
This blessèd plot, this earth, this realm, this England ….William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 2, sc. 1, l. 45ff (2.1.45-56) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #Britain #England #island #patriotism
-
GAUNT: His rash fierce blaze of riot cannot last,
For violent fires soon burn out themselves;
Small showers last long, but sudden storms are short;
He tires betimes that spurs too fast betimes;
With eager feeding food doth choke the feeder;
Light vanity, insatiate cormorant,
Consuming means, soon preys upon itself.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 2, sc. 1, l. 37ff (2.1.37-44) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #blowingover #brevity #burningout #fierceness #fuel #selfconsumption #transience
-
KING RICHARD: Why, uncle, thou hast many years to live.
GAUNT: But not a minute, king, that thou canst give.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 1, sc. 3, l. 231ff (1.3.231-232) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #king #lifespan #lifetime #mortality #power #time
-
BOLINGBROKE: How long a time lies in one little word!
Four lagging winters and four wanton springs
End in a word; such is the breath of kings.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 1, sc. 3, l. 218ff (1.3.218-220) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #williamshakespeare #richardii #decree #diktat #king #power #royalty #sentence #time
-
BOLINGBROKE: O, who can hold a fire in his hand
By thinking on the frosty Caucasus?
Or cloy the hungry edge of appetite
By bare imagination of a feast?
Or wallow naked in December snow
By thinking on fantastic summer’s heat?
O no, the apprehension of the good
Gives but the greater feeling to the worse.
Fell sorrow’s tooth doth never rankle more
Than when he bites but lanceth not the sore.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 1, sc. 3, l. 301ff (1.3.301-310) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #comparison #imagination #memory #perspective #reality #sorrow #truth #unhappiness
-
GAUNT: What is six winters? They are quickly gone.
BOLINGBROKE: To men in joy; but grief makes one hour ten.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 1, sc. 3, l. 266ff (1.3.266-267) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #grief #joy #passageoftime #patience #perspective #sorrow #time #unhappiness
-
KING RICHARD: Wrath-kindled gentlemen, be ruled by me.
Let’s purge this choler without letting blood.
This we prescribe, though no physician.
Deep malice makes too deep incision.
Forget, forgive; conclude and be agreed.
Our doctors say this is no month to bleed.William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 1, sc. 1, l. 156ff (1.1.56) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #anger #animosity #calm #duel #feud #forgiveness #peace #peacemaking #reconciliation #wrath
-
KING RICHARD: In rage, deaf as the sea, hasty as fire.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Richard II, Act 1, sc. 1, l. 20 (1.1.20) (1595)More info about this quote: wist.info/shakespeare-william/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #shakespeare #richardii #anger #focus #fury #rage #unhearing
-
A nice bit of relief from dismal current events by going to see #Shakespeare 's #RichardII, a tale of delusional power, national division, presumptuous wealth, and leaders behaving badly.
Wait...
-
Made a foolish error coming back from the theatre tonight, chose the cheap transport instead of fast, and so got home after the chippy had closed. Disaster! But #RIchardII at the #BridgeTheatre was good. It's on for several more weeks and I recommend it. #London #theatre #Shakespeare #hashtag
-
‘Richard II’ Review: Jonathan Bailey Shows Off His Shakespearean Chops in a Stern, Stripped-Down Production
#Variety #Reviews #JonathanBailey #NicholasHytner #RichardIIhttps://variety.com/2025/legit/reviews/richard-ii-review-jonathan-bailey-1236312255/
-
For those of you who love historical medieval fiction with a dark touch:
My friend Mette Holm has released a new book in her Mowbray Chronicles series today (Book 4).
I've read some of her series (not really my genre) and I will say the stories are quite detailed and fascinating, if a little too dark for my liking. But life was hard back then, even for a nobleman, full of intrigue, secrets and betrayal.
Find her book here:
https://books2read.com/legacy-of-kings -
Richard II was tall and handsome. Contemporary writers described him as "most beautiful king" although they said he had a feminine face. When his tomb was opened in 1871 he was found to be six feet tall.
10 things you might not know about Richard II:
https://topicaltens.blogspot.com/2016/01/january-6th-richard-ii.html
#RichardII #BirthAnniversary #KingsAndQueens #BritishHistory #History
-
The #RSC’s 2018 production of Troilus and Cressida is #Shakespeare Beyond Thunderdome. You may watch it on #MarqueeTV (on which you may also see other great RSC productions like #GregoryDoran’s #RichardII starring #DavidTennant).
#AmberJames is a strong and beautiful Cressida. And #OliverFordDavies is a captivating, mischievous Panderus. But the tiny, standout star is surely #SheilaReid as a spritely Glaswegian Thersites.
-
Panelist Andrea is traveling to Canada this week to see Brad Fraser's adaptation of Shakespeare's #RichardII at the #StratFestivals! Super queer and set in the disco era, the majority BIPOC cast puts on a decadent and provocative play that would make Bill Shakes proud. #podcast #podcasts #GPCDCultureClub