Shakespearean histories
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Traditionally, the works of William Shakespeare have been grouped into three categories: tragedies, comedies, and histories.
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Definition
The plays normally described as histories are those based on the lives of English kings. The plays that depict older historical figures such as Pericles, Prince of Tyre, Julius Caesar, and the legendary King Lear are not usually included in the classification. Macbeth is also normally regarded as a tragedy, not a history.
Sources
The source for most of these plays is the well known Raphael Holinshed's Chronicle of English history. Shakespeare's plays focus on only a small part of the characters' lives and frequently omit significant events for dramatic purposes.
Politics
Shakespeare was living under the reign of Elizabeth I, the last monarch of the house of Tudor, and his history plays are often regarded as Tudor propaganda because they show the dangers of civil war and celebrate the founders of the Tudor dynasty. In particular, Richard III depicts the last member of the rival house of York as an evil monster ("that bottled spider, that foul bunchback'd toad"), a depiction disputed by many modern historians, while portraying his usurper, Henry VII in glowing terms. Political bias is also clear in Henry VIII, which ends with an effusive celebration of the birth of Elizabeth.