The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare

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Halle, Edward

Halle, Edward (c.1498–1547),
lawyer and historian to Henry VIII. Halle's admiration for the Tudor monarchy inspired him to compose The Union of the Two Noble and Illustrious Families of Lancaster and York, in which Henry Richmond ends the cycle of bloodshed caused by the murders of Richard II and Henry VI. Published posthumously by Richard Grafton in 1548, the Union was to form the basis for various works of English chronicle history, in particular Holinshed's Chronicles. It was particularly renowned for its emphasis on the horrors of civil war and the inevitability of divine retribution, and for its portrayal of characters such as Richard II and Joan of Arc. The Union's influence upon Shakespeare is most apparent in the Henry VI plays.

Jane Kingsley-Smith

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