26 June in Richard III
Inspirational
Rating: PG
Quality: (Quality: Unrated)
A note on a significant historical date to which an allusion is made in Richard III: The date in question is the 26th of June, for on this day Gloucester usurped power to become the king of England. This day was important in the medieval church calendar as a Saints Day honouring the Apostles Paul and John. Shakespeare was evidently conscious of this day as Richard swears by the apostle Paul on several occasions in the course of the dramatic history. A little odd perhaps, in view of several liberties Shakespeare took with historical events. Richard in the drama boasted he would teach Machiavelli a lesson or two, something which the historical Richard could never have done, as Machiavelli wrote his infamous "The Prince" about thirty years after Richard's death. A parallel case is when Henry V promises that the English and the French will throw the Turks out of Constantinople. When Henry lived the East Roman emperor was still in control of that city! On a different level, Richard's boast is poetically true. Machiavelli's teachings were the culmination of a philosophy that had been long established by Richard's time, being based on the Humanist emphasis on Man as the centre of human activity in politics and other realms. Cynicism about religion had crept into the minds of many scholars and politicians, especially after the Black Death. Richards feigns piety in order to legitimate his claim to power. It is a matter of interest that the first version of the Pied Piper story dates the arrival of this mysterious figure on the 26th of June. One critic by the name of Rossiter has even argued that the legend of the Pied Piper supplies the play with its underlying allegorical structure (check out my article on Google.com under "the Pied Piper of Hamelin"). Richard seems to represent the evil aspect of the Piper as one leading children to their deaths. The date falls in the first week of summer and the four references to the summer in the play are highly significant, the first being in the opening lines of the play. Oddly enough the word "piping" occurs a line or so afterwards. A coincidence?
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