Henry VI, Part 3 Monologues & Audition Scenes

Characters: Queen Margaret

Queen Margaret furiously rebukes King Henry VI for disinheriting their son in favor of the House of York. She declares her independence from him and vows to lead her own northern armies to war.

Characters: RICHARD, YORK

Richard (later Richard III) persuades his father, the Duke of York, to break his oath of peace with King Henry VI and seize the throne by force, arguing that an oath made to a usurper is invalid.

Characters: CLIFFORD, RUTLAND

During the Wars of the Roses, the vengeful Lord Clifford corners the young Earl of Rutland. Despite Rutland's desperate pleas for mercy based on his innocence and youth, Clifford murders him in cold blood as revenge for his own father's death.

Characters: York

The Duke of York reflects on the devastating defeat of his army at the Battle of Wakefield. Exhausted and surrounded, he accepts his impending death while praising the bravery of his sons.

Characters: KING HENRY VI, QUEEN MARGARET

Queen Margaret furiously confronts King Henry VI after he agrees to disinherit their son in favor of the House of York. She denounces his cowardice and vows to lead her own army against their enemies.

Characters: Clifford

Lord Clifford urges King Henry VI to stop being overly lenient and to fight for his son's birthright. He uses metaphors of nature to argue that even the smallest creatures defend their young and their territory against usurpers.

Characters: Warwick

Warwick recounts the devastating defeat at the Battle of Saint Albans to Edward and Richard. He describes the loss of their father and the retreat of the Yorkist forces after the king's soldiers lost their will to fight.

Characters: Warwick

Warwick, feeling betrayed by King Edward's sudden marriage, publicly renounces his allegiance in the French court. He vows to restore Henry VI to the throne to reclaim his own lost honor.

Characters: WARWICK, RICHARD

Richard and Warwick discuss the military strategy and political betrayals during the War of the Roses. Warwick rallies the troops to march on London after the King's oath is broken by the Queen's faction.

Characters: Clifford

Lord Clifford, a fierce supporter of the House of Lancaster, delivers his final words as he dies on the battlefield. He reflects on the fall of King Henry VI and laments the king's leniency, which allowed the House of York to rise to power.

Characters: Son

During the Battle of Towton, a soldier who has just killed an opponent in hand-to-hand combat discovers to his horror that the man he slew is his own father. He laments the unnatural cruelty of civil war and the tragic irony of his actions.

Characters: KING HENRY VI

King Henry VI, wandering in a forest while in hiding, reflects on the political maneuvering happening in France. He laments that his wife Margaret's pleas for help will likely be overshadowed by Warwick's diplomatic mission to secure a marriage for his rival, Edward.

Characters: KING LEWIS XI, QUEEN MARGARET

Queen Margaret, having fled England after the Yorkist victory, appeals to King Lewis XI of France for military aid to restore her husband, Henry VI, to the throne.

Characters: KING HENRY VI, SECOND KEEPER

The deposed King Henry VI, wandering in a forest while in hiding, reflects on his wife's efforts to gain French support before being discovered and questioned by two keepers.