Sep 4, 2008

Richard II | Percy (Character Analysis)

Also: Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland

Hotspur's father, this Percy is usually referred to as Northumberland. He is a supporter of Bolingbroke, helping him to regain his inheritance and ultimately the crown. In II.i, Northumberland meets with two other of Bolingbroke's sympathizers, Lord Willoughby and Lord Ross, to complain about the banished duke's mistreatment by King Richard and to criticize Richard for relying on his corrupt favorites, for overtaxing both rich and poor, and for misgoverning the country in general. It is from Northumberland that we first learn of Bolingbroke's...