Abstract

The transition of Richard II from lethargic English monarch to royal martyr, as viewed by various French commentators and chroniclers, is examined in three significant aspects: the political prophecy, the interlacing of marriage and peace-making, and the tragedy of deposition and death, on which rests Richard's posthumous reputation as a literary exemplum. Relevant writings of Eustache Deschamps and Philippe de Mézières are examined in greater detail than previously, with the added testimony of other contemporaries. These writers' reactions to Richard's fate varied, but they largely blamed his people for causing his death by foul play.

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