#472 Musings Beyond the Bunker (Monday October 3)
Good morning,
As I suggested a couple of weeks ago, some royal books and movies…
THE STORY OF ROYALS—SHAKESPEARE
The best studies of English royalty really come from Shakespeare. His tragedies, like Hamlet, Macbeth, and King Lear, are examples of brilliant literature addressing leadership, power, and intrigue. They generally constitute what many consider his greatest work. The comedies encompass a variety of storytelling techniques that include irony, parody, wordplay, mistaken identities, and even a bit of slapstick. But to me, Shakespeare’s greatest triumph is his histories. These span much of English history, from the tie of King John (in the early 12th century) through the 15th century, the War of the Roses, and the Hundred Years War.
No Sweat Shakespeare says, “We should never forget that they are works of imagination, based very loosely on historical figures. Shakespeare was a keen reader of history and was always looking for the dramatic impact of historical characters and events as he read. Today we tend to think of those historical figures in the way Shakespeare presented them.”
The author continues: “Not only do they give insight into the political processes of medieval and renaissance politics but they also offer a glimpse of life from the top to the very bottom of society – the royal court, the nobility, tavern life, brothels, beggars, everything…”
To my mind, the greatest of the histories are Richard II (centered on the War of the Roses), Henry IV Part 1 (and the emergence of silly Prince Hal, who is to become Henry V), Henry V (and the St. Crispin’s Day speech—reigned 1413-1422), and Richard III (the “deformed” evil king…at least as Shakespeare imagined him, reigned 1483-1485). What’s important about these plays is they are as much about the world of Elizabeth I, written to appeal to the Queen and the nobles of the time and their biases regarding those leaders (and family members) from the period encompassing the prior 100-200 years.
GREAT BOOKS ON BRITISH SOVEREIGNS
For some excellent books (both historic and historical fiction) covering royalty, I like these:
The Autobiography of Henry VIII, with Notes by his Fool, Will Somers
Elizabeth I, by Margaret George
The King at the Edge of the World, by Arthur Phillips, the imagined story of the rise of James VI of Scotland to become James I of England. Is he a papist or not?
The Royal Stuarts: A History, by Allan Massie
Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel. Haven’t read it; people love it. The Stuarts and Cromwell.
Cromwell, by Antonia Fraser
William and Mary: Heroes of the Glorious Revolution, by John Van der Kiste. They rose to the crown after the deposition in 1688 of Mary’s father, James II, because of his Catholicism and attacks on the Church of England.
We Two: Victoria and Albert: Rulers, Partners, Rivals, by Gillian Gill
Edward VIII: The Road of Abdication, by Frances Lonsdale Donaldson
MOVIES
I know The Crown is everyone’s favorite. It’s very, very good, particularly in its various choices of actresses to play Queen Elizabeth at various stages of her life. This November begins the next series (taking us to the death of Diana). But there is a lot more of British royalty available on TV or in the movies. Here is my biased selection, in chronological order):
A Lion in Winter. Henry II reigned in the 12th century.
Richard III (late 14th century). The Shakespeare play, starring Ian McKellen.
King Henry V (early 15th century). Kenneth Branagh with a modern, yet faithful, production of (arguably) Shakespeare’s greatest history. Spoil yourself and watch the St. Crispin’s Day speech:
. And here is a recording from 1951 of Richard Burton:
Mary, Queen of Scots. Focused on the relationship of Mary and her cousin, Queen Elizabeth. Mary’s son James ultimately became king of Great Britain and Scotland.
A Man for All Seasons. Fred Zinnemann’s classic starring Paul Scofield, Robert Shaw and Orson Welles. Really less about Henry than about Sir Thomas More, and his unwillingness to acknowledge Henry’s divorce. Yes, I know about The Other Boleyn, Anne of a Thousand Days, and other Henry-based movies. But this is the best.
Elizabeth. Cate Blanchett. About the early days of Queen Elizabeth I (reigned 1558-1603). Historically flexible but well done.
The Favourite. A curious movie about Queen Anne (1702-1707), starring Olivia Coleman. Historical? Well, a little… Her husband lived through the events of the movie but is nowhere to be found. But an excellent piece based upon her purported sexual dalliances and intrigue at the court.
The Madness of King George (late 18th century). An oft-forgotten period of British royal history. George III, the king during the American Revolution, starts as eccentric and becomes increasingly mentally ill. The Regency Crisis and a brilliant acting job by Nigel Hawthorne. A mix of drama and comedy.
Victoria. Some will say The Crown is the greatest royals miniseries. I think this one, starring Jenna Coleman, is the top dog in this category. Brilliant.
Edward VIII, The Traitor King. An important documentary series that shows Edward VIII’s abdication in 1936. While heralded as to be with the woman he loved (twice divorced American Wallis Simpson), he actually was pushed out for his extreme right wing and fascistic preferences.
The King’s Speech. George VI (reigned 1936-1952), Elizabeth II’s father, must react to his brother’s abdication and deal with his own severe stuttering. Geoffrey Rush, as the therapist, and Colin Furth, as the King, deliver outstanding performances.
The Queen. Elizabeth II and the events following Princess Diana’s death. There are certain actresses born to play royalty. Helen Mirren is one of these. Great film.
AUDEN AND GRIEF
Peter Bain and Susan Sawasy note that the Auden poem I shared a few weeks ago was delivered in Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Have a great day,
Glenn
From the archives: