It’s as much Henry V’s fault as Richard II’s. That, along with Shakespeare’s foundational genius as an English dramatist has made his overarching version of events 1399-1485 hard to dislodge from our imaginations. I am by no means saying I agree with this as history - but what I do notice is that it is a tremendously effective story that is much easier to swallow than the reality. That was what happened at Bosworth, and after that, everything got back to normal. Only once all the evil of the age was concentrated in the person of Richard III could they be expunged. The deposition and murder of Richard II in 1399 was a form of original sin.
The dramatic shape Shakespeare gave the WOTR collectively in his history plays was simple and powerful.
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