Lex

Browse

GenresShelvesPremiumBlog

Company

AboutJobsPartnersSell on LexAffiliates

Audio

Lex StudioVoicesFirst chapter freeAudiobook pricingAudiobook samplesAudiobook guidesAudio blog

Resources

DocsInvite FriendsFAQ

Legal

Terms of ServicePrivacy Policygeneral@lex-books.com+1 951-551-2243WhatsApp (international)

© 2026 LexBooks, Inc. All rights reserved.

King Richard III

1896

William Shakespeare

Read

King Richard III

William Shakespeare

1896

British Literature, Classics of Literature, History - British, Plays/Films/Dramas

He's not a monster. He's worse. He's a man who knows exactly what he is and tells you so anyway. King Richard III opens with one of theater's most notorious villains stepping directly into the light, bare-faced and unrepentant, to confess his intentions: to play the villain so well that history will have no choice but to remember him. Richard, Duke of Gloucester, is deformed in body and aggrieved in spirit, passed over for the throne while his brother Edward wears the crown. So he does what any brilliant, bitter man might: he destroys everyone in his path. Brothers, friends, wives, innocent children, all become fuel for his ascent. Shakespeare transforms real historical carnage into propulsive, darkly entertaining theater, with Richard as both puppet master and narrator, pulling the audience into his conspiracies with disarming charm. The play seduces us into his confidence, then forces us to watch what that confidence costs. This is for readers who love a compelling antagonist, who appreciate villainy with self-awareness, who want their theater dangerous and morally uncomfortable. Richard III endures because it asks an uncomfortable question: what if the villain is the most honest person in the room?

Project Gutenberg

A historical play written during the late 16th century. The work dramatizes the life and ambitions of Richard, Duke of G...

Goodreads

KING RICHARD III BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE WITH BEAUTIFUL CLASSIC COVER. PERFECTLY FOR EVERYONE WHO LOVES CLASSIC BOOKS OR...

3.9(58K)

Editions

Ebooks4
King Richard III
King Richard IIICurrent
Project Gutenberg · 124 pages
EPUB
King Richard III
King Richard III
Project Gutenberg · 124 pages
EPUB
King Richard III
King Richard III
Project Gutenberg · 128 pages
EPUB
King Richard III
King Richard III
Project Gutenberg · 121 pages
EPUB

X-Ray

“Dispute not with her: she is lunatic.””

— William Shakespeare

“So wise so young, they say, do never live long.””

— William Shakespeare

“And thus I clothe my naked villainyWith odd old ends stol'n out of holy writ;And seem a saint, when most I play the devil.””

— William Shakespeare

“Out of my sight! Thou dost infect mine eyes.””

— William Shakespeare

“And therefore,”

— William Shakespeare

“Now is the winter of our discontentMade glorious summer by this sun of York;And all the clouds that lour'd upon our houseIn the deep bosom of the ocean buried.””

— William Shakespeare

“What do I fear? Myself? There’s none else by.Richard loves Richard; that is, I and I.Is there a murderer here? No. Yes, I am.Then fly! What, from myself? Great reason why:Lest I revenge. What, myself upon myself?Alack, I love myself. Wherefore? For any goodThat I myself have done unto myself?O, no! Alas, I rather hate myselfFor hateful deeds committed by myself.I am a villain. Yet I lie. I am not.Fool, of thyself speak well. Fool, do not flatter:My conscience hath a thousand several tongues,And every tongue brings in a several tale,And every tale condemns me for a villain.Perjury, perjury, in the highest degree;Murder, stern murder, in the direst degree;All several sins, all used in each degree,Throng to the bar, crying all, “Guilty! guilty!”I shall despair. There is no creature loves me,And if I die no soul will pity me.And wherefore should they, since that I myselfFind in myself no pity to myself?””

— William Shakespeare

“I have set my life upon a cast,And I will stand the hazard of the die.””

— William Shakespeare

“Conscience is but a word that cowards use,Devis'd at first to keep the strong in awe:Our strong arms be our conscience, swords our law.March on, join bravely, let us to't pell-mell;If not to heaven, then hand in hand to hell.””

— William Shakespeare

Link to this book

Add a free, dofollow link to Lex on your blog, forum, syllabus, or reading list.

Read King Richard III by William Shakespeare free on Lex
HTML
<a href="https://lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9"><img src="https://lex-books.com/badges/read-on-lex.svg" alt="Read King Richard III by William Shakespeare free on Lex" width="160" height="40"></a>
Markdown
[![Read King Richard III by William Shakespeare free on Lex](https://lex-books.com/badges/read-on-lex.svg)](https://lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9)
BBCode
[url=https://lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9][img]https://lex-books.com/badges/read-on-lex.svg[/img][/url]
Plain link
Read King Richard III by William Shakespeare free on Lex: https://lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9

Cite this book

Reading this edition for a paper or guide? Copy a citation.

MLA
Shakespeare, William. King Richard III. Lex, lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9.
APA
Shakespeare, W. (1896). King Richard III. Lex. https://lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9
Chicago
Shakespeare, William. King Richard III. Lex. https://lex-books.com/book/king-richard-iii-0a62b21f-d528-4d88-9c36-58f1bae309d9.

Across the web

aggregate ratings
Goodreads3.9158k ratings↗

More books from this author

William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
1564-1616

Iconic English playwright known for his profound tragedies and innovative comedies.

A MidsummerNight’sDream(Comprehe...

William Shakespeare

A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Comprehensive Summary)
Premium

JuliusCaesar(Comprehen...Summary)

William Shakespeare

Julius Caesar (Comprehensive Summary)
Premium

King Lear(Comprehen...Summary)

William Shakespeare

King Lear (Comprehensive Summary)
Premium

King Lear

William Shakespeare

King Lear

Othello

William Shakespeare

Othello

Hamlet

William Shakespeare

Hamlet

Henry V

William Shakespeare

Henry V

The Tamingof the Shrew

William Shakespeare

The Taming of the Shrew

Poetry

William Shakespeare

Poetry

Henry IV,Part II

William Shakespeare

Henry IV, Part II

Edward III

William Shakespeare

Edward III

King John

William Shakespeare

King John

Coriolanus

William Shakespeare

Coriolanus

Henry VIII

William Shakespeare

Henry VIII

The TwoGentlemen ofVerona

William Shakespeare

The Two Gentlemen of Verona

The MerryWives ofWindsor

William Shakespeare

The Merry Wives of Windsor

All’s WellThat EndsWell

William Shakespeare

All’s Well That Ends Well

Henry VI,Part III

William Shakespeare

Henry VI, Part III

Cymbeline

William Shakespeare

Cymbeline

Henry IV,Part I

William Shakespeare

Henry IV, Part I

Much AdoAboutNothing

William Shakespeare

Much Ado About Nothing

Macbeth(Comprehen...Summary)

William Shakespeare

Macbeth (Comprehensive Summary)
Premium

Henry VI,Part I

William Shakespeare

Henry VI, Part I

The Comedyof Errors

William Shakespeare

The Comedy of Errors

Troilus andCressida

William Shakespeare

Troilus and Cressida

Timon ofAthens

William Shakespeare

Timon of Athens

A MidsummerNight’sDream

William Shakespeare

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Love’sLabour’sLost

William Shakespeare

Love’s Labour’s Lost

Measure forMeasure

William Shakespeare

Measure for Measure

The Winter’sTale

William Shakespeare

The Winter’s Tale

TitusAndronicus

William Shakespeare

Titus Andronicus

Richard II

William Shakespeare

Richard II

Henry VI,Part II

William Shakespeare

Henry VI, Part II

The TwoNobleKinsmen

William Shakespeare

The Two Noble Kinsmen

Romeo andJuliet

William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet

Pericles

William Shakespeare

Pericles

Hamlet(Comprehen...Summary)

William Shakespeare

Hamlet (Comprehensive Summary)
Premium

Richard III

William Shakespeare

Richard III

More books like this

right arrow

Don Juan

1819

George Gordon Byron, Baron Byron

TheAdventuresof FerdinandCount Fat...

T. Smollett

The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom — Complete

Pride andPrejudice

1813

Jane Austen

Now We AreSix

1927

A. A. Milne

Now We Are Six

The Rainbow

1915

D. H. Lawrence

The Rainbow

Nostromo: ATale of theSeaboard

1904

Joseph Conrad

New GrubStreet

George Gissing

The CompleteProse Worksof MartinFarquhar...

Martin Farquhar Tupper

Men andWomen

Robert Browning

Phantasmag...and OtherPoems

1869

Lewis Carroll

Outlines ofEnglish andAmericanLiteratur...

William J. Long

Sybil, Or,the TwoNations

1845

Benjamin, Earl of Beaconsfield Disraeli

KiplingStories andPoems EveryChild Sho...

Rudyard Kipling

TheGourmet'sGuide toLondon

Lieut.-Col. Newnham-Davis

The Gourmet's Guide to London

The Works ofJohnMarston.Volume 3

John Marston

The Works of John Marston. Volume 3

OldMortality,Complete

Walter Scott

Old Mortality, Complete