Narrative and political strategies at the deposition of Richard II
By C.D. Fletcher
Journal of Medieval History,Vol.30 (2004)
Abstract: This article deals with the use of a language of disinheritance in the coup d’e´tat by which Henry Bolingbroke overthrew Richard II in 1399. This rhetoric is placed in the context of its importance in informal political ideas. It is argued that disinheritance allowed Henry to be in the right when acting in a way which was technically treasonous. His use of this language was made powerful not only by its material significance for the landed classes, but also its deeper moral resonance, which spread beyond these classes to a wider public. This is explored through the importance of disinheritance in popular romance works. These works have to date been neglected in terms of their possible relationship to late medieval politics, despite their potential as sources. The article goes on to investigate how Henry expanded his claims from disinheritance to seize the entire kingdom of England, even though, in the letter of the law, he had not even been disinherited from his father’s lands. Richard II’s attention to legal forms was, however, not enough to protect him from Henry’s use of the powerful and emotive theme of disinheritance, though even Henry himself later abandoned it.
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