Shakespeare’s Royal Education

Host Dennis Leap begins discussing William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of King Richard II by providing background history of the lineage of eligible sons available to assume the throne of England after King John's death. The lineage began with King John's son Henry III, and included Henry's three sons Edward I, Edward II and Edward III. Richard II assumed the throne from Edward III.

Host Dennis Leap finishes discussing Shakespeare's play The Life and Death of King John. King John returns from France to England but he is caught in a war with an invasion from Lewis the Dauphin. Salisbury, Pembroke and Bigot side with the French. During the battle, John grows sick, likely from dysentery, and is poisoned by a Catholic bishop.

Host Dennis Leap reviews the startling conversation between Pandulph and Lewis from Act III, Scene 4. Pandulph encourages Lewis to seize the throne from King John, sure that King John has already executed Arthur. However, Arthur talked Hubert out of executing him. Escaping execution, he then falls to his death from a high wall of a building in Angiers.

Host Dennis Leap continues his discussion of Act III, one of the longest acts of the play. Scene 4 opens with King Philip, his son Lewis, Pandulph and his assistants. Philip laments the loss of his entire fleet of warships, which was destroyed by a violent storm at sea. Shakespeare likely borrowed the history of the loss of the Spanish Armada in 1565 to show that God was still protecting King John and England from enemies. Pandulph attempts to encourage Philip, but Philip rebuffs him. Lewis tries to solace his father. Constance, Arthur’s mother, scolds Philip for obeying Pandulph and breaking his peace pact with John. Constance also scolds Pandulph over the capture of Arthur.

Host Dennis Leap continues discussing Act III, Scene 4. Act 3 is Shakespeare’s history lesson of how the Roman Catholic Church wanted to control the governments of France and England. King John and Sir Richard resist papal influence, but Phillip caves in. Through King John, Shakespeare reveals that the Roman Catholic Church was actually begun by Simon Magus, exposing the church’s flawed doctrine of simony (the teaching that people could buy pardon of sin by paying money to the church). Pandulph convinced Phillip to fight King John to prevent his own excommunication.

Host Dennis Leap continues discussing Act 3: Scene I of William Shakespeare’s The Life and Death of King John. King Phillip nervously announces the arrival of Pandulph, Pope Innocent’s messenger. King John has ignored the pope’s request to have Stephen Langton hold the office of archbishop of Canterbury. His reason: God has made John king of England and that means John reports to God not the pope. Pandulph tells Phillip he must break his truce with John. But Constance and Eleanor warn Phillip to stand with John. Phillip hesitates to obey Pandulph.

Host Dennis Leap continues his discussion of Act II: Scene 1 of William Shakespeare’s challenging play The Life and Death of King John. The idea for Lady Blanche to marry the Dauphin was first suggested by Hubert the Angiers citizen standing on the city wall. Sir Richard, the illegitimate son of Richard the Lionheart, is the only one who sees the advantage for France not for England’s King John.

Host Dennis Leap continues discussion of Act II, Scene 1 of William Shakespeare’s The Life and Death of King John. King John and Phillip rush to gain the best fighting ground. The war advances and finishes. The English and French heralds return to the gates of Angiers and each declare their king as the victor.

Host Dennis Leap begins the discussion of Act 2: Scene I of William Shakespeare’s The Life and Death of King John. In this scene, King Phillip, Arthur, the Duke of Austria and Arthur’s mother, Constance, face the gates of John’s ancestral home with the plan to take the city and give it to Arthur, who is John’s nephew. John and his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, arrive at Angiers gates. John threatens Phillip with war. Phillip suggests that the people of Angiers decide who is the rightful king. The people request a battle between the two kings and their armies to decide the matter.

Host Dennis Leap begins the discussion of one of William Shakespeare’s most unusual plays about one of England’s most hated kings—John. King John was the son of the famous Plantagenets Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. John’s older brother was Richard the Lionheart. John’s terrible leadership led to the creation of one of the most important foundational documents for a free and lawful society: the Magna Carta. Shakespeare’s poetry gives a fascinating view of the history of this brutish monarch and his subjects. After an hour or two of experiencing England under King John, the Tudor dynasty could take on a fresh appeal.

Host Dennis Leap finishes the discussion of Shakespeare’s play King Lear, focusing on Act 5. The civil war between Cordelia’s French forces and her evil sisters, Regan and Goneril, explodes. Cordelia’s army loses the war and Edmund, Gloucester’s evil son, puts Lear and Cordelia in prison to be executed. Albany declares Edmund a traitor and appoints Edgar as ruler. Edgar accepts the job of healing the gored state of England, saying, “The weight of this sad time we must obey.”

Host Dennis Leap takes you back to Act IV, Scene 6 to discuss the important end of this scene. After Edgar convinces his father, Gloucester, that he fell down the precipitous White Cliffs of Dover, King Lear unexpectedly appears, completely insane. He is bedecked and crowned with weeds from the fields. In this scene, the two fathers face their failure in raising their children. Lear regrets the way his two eldest daughters have treated him. Gloucester regrets that he did not see the villainy in his illegitimate son, Edmund. This scene truly represents Shakespeare’s writing genius.

Host Dennis Leap discusses Lear’s madcap trial of his evil daughters Goneril and Regan in Act III, Scene 6. The Fool and Kent are legal aides, and Edgar (still pretending to be Poor Tom) is the judge. During the trial against Goneril (who is not there), Lear's descent into madness brings Edgar to tears and he fears being exposed. Back at his estate,Cornwall, Regan and Goneril put out Gloucester’s eyes and thrust him into the storm. Edgar finds his father blind and helpless and leads him to Dover where Gloucester wants to die. Cordelia also arrives in Dover with an army, a doctor and nurses to help her father Lear.

Host Dennis Leap discusses Act 3, Scene IV of King Lear. Loyal Kent and the Fool strive to protect Lear from the storm and descending further into madness. They lead Lear into a hovel where Edgar is still pretending to be Poor Tom. Gloucester finds them in the hovel, warns them that Lear’s daughters plan to kill Lear, and moves Lear, Kent, the Fool and Edgar (still playing poor Tom) into a dry place. Gloucester returns to his estate to get provisions for the king but does not return. Concerned, Edgar seeks out his father and discovers that Lear’s daughters have put out his eyes. Edgar remains disguised and helps his weakened father.

Host Dennis Leap discusses how Gloucester confides in his illegitimate son Edmund that he has received secret letters revealing that Cordelia and the King of France are landing at Dover to intervene on King Lear’s behalf in a civil war brewing between the dukes of Cornwall and Albany. Edmund betrays his father and informs the Duke of Cornwall in order to gain favor. Edmund is made Duke of Gloucester and wins his father’s estate. Cornwall, Regan and Gonneril torture Gloucester, gouging out his eyes and loosing him out of his estate in a storm.

Host Dennis Leap discusses how Lear’s and Gloucester’s evil children banish them from their lives. Act II, Scenes 3 and 4 show the wicked actions of Cornwall and Regan who push a heartbroken King Lear into a wicked nighttime storm, banishing him and his fool to a hovel in the wilderness.

Host Dennis Leap discusses the hateful disloyalty of King Lear’s lying daughters Gonneril and Regan. At the time of Lear’s ridiculous love test to divide the kingdom among his three daughters and their husbands, Goneril and Regan state that they love their father profusely. Yet Dennis shows their hatred for their elderly father.

Host Dennis Leap discusses the incredible loyalty Kent employs toward an outraged King Lear who banished him for giving wise council on why Lear should not banish his youngest daughter Cordelia. Dennis also explains that Shakespeare likely uses the character Kent to give King James I of England, formerly King James IV of Scotland, sagacious advice on how to connect with and win the support of the English aristocracy.

Host Dennis Leap gives a special lecture answering the question: Why did Shakespeare write the play King Lear? The answer shows how applicable this play is to today’s social, health and political news.

Host Dennis Leap discusses the role of the fool in Act I, Scene 4. The fool shows Lear in a humorous way how he made such bad decisions to give away his position as king and power to his daughters who actually hate him. My friend from England Richard reads the fool’s lines.