Benjamin Smith & Mather Brown

Shakspeare. King Richard The Second. Act IV, Scene I. King Richard, Bolingbroke, York, Aumerle, etc. etc. Pub. June 4 1801, by J. & J. Boydell at the Shakspeare Gallery Pall Mall, & No. 90, Cheapside, London. Engraved by B. Smith. Painted by M. Brown.

Bolingbroke. Part of your cares you give me with your crown.

King Richard. Your cares set up do not pluck my cares down.
My care is loss of care, by old care done;
Your care is gain of care, by new care won;
The cares I give I have, though given away;
They tend the crown, yet still with me they stay.

Bolingbroke. Are you contented to resign the crown?

King Richard. Ay, no; - no, ay; - for I must nothing be;
Therefore no, no, for I resign to thee.
Now mark me how I will undo myself: -
I give this heavy weight from off my head,
And this unwieldy sceptre from my hand,
The pride of kingly sway from out my heart;
With mine own tears I wash away the balm,
With mine own hands I give away the crown,
With mine own tongue deny my sacred state,
With mine own breath release all duteous oaths:
All pomp and majesty I do forswear;
My manors, rents, revenues, I forego;
My acts, decrees, and statutes, I deny:
God pardon all oaths that are broke to me!
God keep all vows unbroke are made to thee!
Make me, that nothing have, with nothing griev'd;
And thou with all pleas'd, that hast all achiev'd!
Long may'st thou live in Richard's seat to sit,
And soon lie Richard in an earthly pit!
God save king Henry unking'd Richard says,
And send him many years of sunshine days!
What more remains?

This original engraving depicts a scene from one of William Shakespeare's plays, Act Four, Scene One, with King Richard II at the parliament house resigning the Crown to Henry of Bolingbroke, Duke of Hereford, the new ruler of England, King Henry IV. Also present are the Duke of York, the Duke of Aumerle, the Earl of Northumberland, the Duke of Surrey, Lord Fitzwater, Henry Percy, Northumberland's son (Hotspur), the Abbot of Westminster, the Bishop of Carlisle and other nobles.

King Richard the Second, also known as Richard of Bordeaux, son of Edward, Prince of Wales (Edward, the Black Prince), became the King of England at the age of ten. His first few years of reign were governed by councils, but due to jealousy and discord, the Lords Appellant, along with his cousin, Henry of Bolingbroke rebelled and secured their power. However, Richard soon regained control of his throne and executed or exiled many of the Lords Appellants, but pardoned Bolingbroke, and restored the peace for nearly a decade. Bolingbroke was again accused of treason and this time, Richard II was forced to exile his cousin, depriving him of his inheritance. Years later, while Richard was on campaign in Ireland, Bolingbroke returned to England to reclaim his patrimony. The invasion was met with little resistance forcing King Richard II to abdicate, and relinquished the throne. Henry of Bolingbroke became the new sovereign of England, King Henry IV. Richard II died in prison and was buried in Westminster Abbey.

Henry of Bolingbroke was the son of John of Gaunt. He was also known as Henry of Derby, & the Duke of Hereford. His father, John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster was Regent of England, and member of the house of Plantagenet, son of King Edward III of England, and uncle to King Richard II. Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York was Acting Keeper of the Realm after his nephew, King Richard and his entourage left to campaign in Ireland. Edmund of Langley raised an army to help King Richard, but eventually agreed to side with Henry Bolingbroke, his other nephew. Edmund of Langley was the younger brother of John of Gaunt and the father of Edward, 2nd Duke of York. Edward of Plantagenet, 2nd Duke of York was appointed, Earl of Rutland, Lord High Admiral of Warden of Cinque Ports, Duke of Aumerle during the reign of King Richard. He was one of the members of a commission who accused his uncle, the Duke of Gloucester, The Earl of Warwick and the Earl of Arundel of high treason. Although Edward denied taking part in Gloucester's murder during Richard's reign, he received a large grant from those estates, and was given the title of Duke of Aumerle, a title which belonged to his uncle. Edward was the son of Edmund of Langley, and cousin of both Richard and Bolingbroke.

This original engraving is an 'Artist Proof Impression'. 1. 'Artist's Proofs'. These are the earliest of states and were printed in only a handful of impressions. They are identified not only by their vibrant lines and tones but by the fact that they lack any letters along the lower margin. Note: As this is an original proof impression, it lacks the following text that appears in later impressions.

Shakspeare. King Richard The Second. Act IV, Scene I. King Richard, Bolingbroke, York, Aumerle, etc. etc. Pub. June 4 1801, by J. & J. Boydell at the Shakspeare Gallery Pall Mall, & No. 90, Cheapside, London. Engraved by B. Smith. Painted by M. Brown.

K. Rich. Give me with your crown: Here, cousin, seize the crown;
Here, Cousin, on this side, my hand; on that side, thine.__

An Important Note on Boydell States and Editions: Proof impressions and true first edition impressions are easily identified by their fine lines and strong contrasts of black and white tones. Later more common editions print in a more overall grey tone and contain areas of re-working. Briefly, the publishing history of these great engravings can be categorized into five states or editions:

1. 'Artist's Proofs'. These are the earliest of states and were printed in only a handful of impressions. They are identified not only by their vibrant lines and tones but by the fact that they lack any letters along the lower margin.
2. 'Proofs Before Title'. These impressions usually contain the names of the artist, publisher and engraver along the lower margin. They lack the title of the specific play depicted and usually the heading -- 'Shakspeare' -- is smaller than in the published edition. Once again, this state was printed in a very small numbers.
3. 'Open Letter Proofs'. These impressions bear the title of the play. the heading, 'Shakspeare' (Shakespeare), is yet to be filled in with stippling. These impressions were printed before the publication of the first edition and were probably struck from the plate at a customer's request. Perhaps ten to twenty Open Letter Proofs exist for each engraving.
4. 'First Edition Impressions'. The completed set of Boydell's Shakespeare engravings was published in London in 1803. The full publisher's address appears along the lower margin as well as the text for the play. The heading, 'Shakspeare', is now filled in with stippling. Both first edition impressions and proofs were most often printed on either hand-made, laid paper or wove paper bearing the 'J. Whatman' watermark.
5. 'Posthumous Impressions and Restrikes' As early as 1807, John Stockdale of London issued a second edition of the Shakespeare prints. They continued to be published throughout the first half of the nineteenth century. Finally, in 1852, an enterprising dentist in New York City (with the delightful name of Shearjashub Spooner) acquired the plates, restored them and produced the last edition. These prints are most commonly offered for sale.

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