William Shakespeare's Works/Histories
The Histories of Shakespeare
[edit | edit source]History was an important Elizabethan entertainment genre. In the theater and real life, Elizabethans were very interested in their kings and the mechanations of power, and Shakespeare was one of those that helped fill this demand. Incidentally, we learn quite a bit about the time.
Eight of Shakespeare's history plays concern the Wars of the Roses between the houses of Lancaster and York.
In historical sequence, the plays of the War of the Roses cycle are as follows:
- Richard II
- Henry IV, part 1
- Henry IV, part 2
- Henry V
- Henry VI, part 1
- Henry VI, part 2
- Henry VI, part 3
- Richard III
The other two plays of Shakespeare that are grouped with his histories are King John and Henry VIII.