King Henry VI, Part 2
1594

Shakespeare's ferocious early tragedy maps the precise moment England began eating itself. The weak King Henry VI sits on the throne while his wife Margaret forges alliances, the Duke of Gloucester is destroyed by political enemies, and the Earl of Suffolk trades away English territories for personal power. At the margins of court, a peasant named Jack Cade rallies thousands with promises of equality before the knives come out. But the real engine is Richard, Duke of York, who watches the chaos with cold calculation, already rehearsing the crown he will claim. This is Shakespeare at his most cynical: no one serves the realm, everyone serves themselves, and the only question is who survives the next assassination. The play crackles with the electricity of a system in collapse, every scene a countdown to the Wars of the Roses.
Editions
X-Ray
“The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.””
— William Shakespeare
“For where thou art, there is the world itself,With every several pleasure in the world,And where thou art not, desolation.””
— William Shakespeare
“What stronger breast-plate than a heart untainted!Thrice is he arm'd, that hath his quarrel just;And he but naked, though lock'd up in steel,Whose conscience with injustice is corrupted.””
— William Shakespeare
“Could I come near your beauty with my nails,I could set my ten commandments in your face.””
— William Shakespeare
“Let them obey that knows not how to rule.””
— William Shakespeare
“Well, lords, we have not got that which we have:'Tis not enough our foes are this time fled,Being opposites of such repairing nature.York:I know our safety is to follow them;For, as I hear, the king is fled to London,To call a present court of parliament.Let us pursue him ere the writs go forth.What says Lord Warwick? shall we after them?Warwick:After them! nay, before them, if we can.Now, by my faith, lords, 'twas a glorious day:Saint Alban's battle won by famous YorkShall be eternized in all age to come.Sound drums and trumpets, and to London all:And more such days as these to us befall!””
— William Shakespeare
“Deep night, dark night, the silent of the night,The time of night when Troy was set on fire;The time when screech-owls cry and ban-dogs howl,And spirits walk and ghosts break up their graves,That time best fits the work we have in hand.””
— William Shakespeare
“Thou hast most traitorously corrupted the youth of the realm in erecting a grammar school; and whereas, before, our forefathers had no other books but the score and the tally, thou hast caused printing to be used, and, contrary to the king, his crown, and dignity, thou hast built a paper-mill. It will be proved to thy face that thou hast men about thee that usually talk of a noun and a verb, and such abominable words as no Christian ear can endure to hear. Thou hast appointed justices of peace, to call poor men before them about matters they were not able to answer. Moreover, thou hast put them in prison, and because they could not read, thou hast hanged them; when, indeed, only for that cause they have been most worthy to live.””
— William Shakespeare
“Nothing so heavy as these woes of mine””
— William Shakespeare
Link to this book
Add a free, dofollow link to Lex on your blog, forum, syllabus, or reading list.
<a href="https://lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66f"><img src="https://lex-books.com/badges/read-on-lex.svg" alt="Read King Henry VI, Part 2 by William Shakespeare free on Lex" width="160" height="40"></a>[](https://lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66f)[url=https://lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66f][img]https://lex-books.com/badges/read-on-lex.svg[/img][/url]Read King Henry VI, Part 2 by William Shakespeare free on Lex: https://lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66fCite this book
Reading this edition for a paper or guide? Copy a citation.
Shakespeare, William. King Henry VI, Part 2. Lex, lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66f.Shakespeare, W. (1594). King Henry VI, Part 2. Lex. https://lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66fShakespeare, William. King Henry VI, Part 2. Lex. https://lex-books.com/book/king-henry-vi-part-2-20ee11b1-371f-4f75-a41b-65ec996bb66f.














































