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Henry VI: Parts One, Two & Three (Shakespeare Project Lecture) (Patreon)

Published:
2023-03-11 19:51:51
Imported:
2026-06
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  • Shakespeare's Henry VI.mp3

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Content

'Hung be the heavens with black: yield, day, to night!'

Our journey through the works of William Shakespeare continues with a high-stakes political drama and bloodstained saga.

We’re discussing the young writer’s handling of the Wars of the Roses, civil strife, weak kingship, Shakespeare’s men and women, Tudor propaganda, and much more.

Timestamps:

  • 0:00 how to appreciate these plays
  • 2:00 understanding the Wars of the Roses
  • 3:20 the opening of the saga
  • 5:29 on the composition chronology
  • 9:00 on King Henry VI’s rule
  • 11:00 the Tudor Myth & propaganda
  • 14:30 the Elizabethan audience’s reaction
  • 15:30 didacticism in Shakespeare
  • 17:50 why were these plays so popular?
  • 19:50 how to stage the Henry VI plays?
  • 21:43 on the weakness of these plays
  • 24:00 weeping at the death of Talbot
  • 25:26 Joan of Arc & Shakespeare’s women
  • 29:17 Margaret of Anjou in Henry VI
  • 29:53 did parts two & three come first?
  • 32:00 the plucking of the roses
  • 36:22 appreciating Margaret’s scenes
  • 40:00 speaking for King Henry VI
  • 41:20 a case study on how not to rule
  • 44:00 the Yorkists seize the throne
  • 47:50 Margaret goes to war
  • 53:25 ‘my crown is in my heart’
  • 54:20 Richard kills Henry VI
  • 55:45 what do you make of these plays?

Recommended Resources:

  • The Hollow Crown: This television series is one of my personal favourite adaptations of Shakespeare's Histories. They do an extraordinary job bringing the story to life. Treat yourself to an immersion in the saga here.
  • RSC Edition: Although I'm a fan of the Arden series, I love the Royal Shakespeare Company edition when it comes to the Henry VI plays. All three plays are in one portable volume, with an introduction by Jonathan Bate.
  • Shakespeare's History Plays: If you're interested in learning more about the Elizabethan world view and Shakespeare's English Histories, I highly recommend E.M.W. Tillyard's influential work.
  • A Child's History of England: The great novelist Charles Dickens can also help us make sense of English History with his marvellous A Child's History of England.
  • The Wars of the Roses: For going deeper into the history, Trevor Royle has a splendid book called 'The Wars of the Roses: England's First Civil War'.
  • Britain's Bloody Crown: Historian Dan Jones has a tremendous documentary called 'Henry VI: Was This England's Worst Ever Ruler?' which you can check out here.
  • Story Summary: I recommend making use of act summaries in order to keep your bearings. Shakespeare Birthplace Trust have a concise and useful synopsis available here.
  • Scene Appreciation: Here is a curation of clips from the Hollow Crown series that you might enjoy: Duke of York attempts to seize the crown (clip), Queen Margaret vs Duchess of Gloucester (clip), Queen Margaret vs York (clip).

Questions for You:

1) How would you stage/produce this saga?

2) What unique challenges did the Henry VI plays present to you?

3) What line, passage, or idea most resonated with you? And what is your personal grading for these ones?

Happy reading, Bardolators!

Files

Previews only

Comments

Sarah Clark

Took me most of part 1 to get into the groove, but once I did the story kept me moving along! I've read the last few plays along to the Arkangel Shakespeare audio performances on Youtube and with a list of character profiles at hand. Between those two aids and watching a documentary on Henry VI before I dug into the trilogy, it was an easier read than I feared. That said, it was definitely a bit overlong for the story it told, and some of the tangents could have been cut without much loss. 1) How has this not already been made into a cheesy gore-fest action movie a la Braveheart? (Well, I guess Game of Thrones sort of counts, though it also owes a lot to Titus Andronicus...) 2) My biggest challenge was simply that I'm not very familiar with the wars of the roses. As Benjamin pointed out in his lecture, the audience he was writing for would all know the basic highlights of Henry VI's reign, much like we all know the main players and events in WWII. I mostly circumvented that knowledge with a little background prep, and although Shakespeare obviously took plenty of creative liberties, I went in knowing the most important facts. 3) I want to select two passages from this set of plays. The first is from Part 2, Act 4, Scene 10. Iden, by a considerable degree the most sensible character in the whole trilogy, says: "Lord, who would live turmoilèd in the court  And may enjoy such quiet walks as these?  This small inheritance my father left me  Contenteth me, and worth a monarchy.  I seek not to wax great by others’ ⌜waning,⌝  Or gather wealth, I care not with what envy.  Sufficeth that I have maintains my state  And sends the poor well pleasèd from my gate." Really, many of us would have better lives if we set our sights just a bit lower. Second is the end of Margaret's pre-battle speech in part 3, act 5, scene 4, where as arguably the most skilled player in this game of thrones she urges her army to have the courage of their convictions: "Why, Courage Then! What cannot be avoided 'twere childish weakness to lament or fear. " My Grade for Henry VI is B- for the whole trilogy, and currently second only to Lucrece. I'm a sucker for a good historical epic though, so that bias may be showing a bit. REALLY looking forward to Richard III, and I may need to watch The Hollow Crown to tide me over. Current rankings: Lucrece: B Henry VI: B- Taming of the Shrew: C Titus Andronicus: C Two Gentlemen of Verona: C- Comedy of Errors: D

Rachel Brown

Just finished part 3 - by the end, I was really enjoying these plays. Along with your lecture and some rabbit holes, I finally understand more about the War of the Roses - I had to take a picture of a massive family tree to find the who’s who - felt like I was back on War and Peace. Overall rating, B- ; I’m starting to really enjoy Shakespeare. These history plays are really fascinating.