In Defense of Shakespeare’s Queen Margaret of Anjou

Abstract

Margaret of Anjou, who appears in the four history plays known as the first tetralogy (1-3 Henry VI and Richard III), is unique among William Shakespeare’s characters. Almost the entirety of her life is played out on stage, from her real-life engagement to King Henry VI of England at the age of fourteen to her fictionalized self-banishment to France around age forty-five. Within this singular character, Margaret fulfills the roles of daughter, bride, wife, mother, lover, queen, avenging warrior, and grieving widow—a greater range than any other character in Shakespeare’s work, man or woman.

This thesis will argue that Shakespeare intended Margaret to be a central character in the first tetralogy. She is pivotal to the action, and powerful in her own right. She has influence over nearly every other character within this history cycle. In Margaret, Shakespeare creates a woman who is the strongest female counterpoint to the destructive men of the Henry VI plays. She is direct and decisive in both words and deeds while engaging in political intrigues; waging wars; and protecting her husband, son, and the crown from traitors. She pays a price for her actions equal to that of the men, ultimately losing the war, the crown, her husband, and her only child, while battling stereotypes of a woman’s role. This sexism saves her life in 3 Henry VI; because she is a woman, she is not executed by her enemies. Instead Shakespeare’s Margaret challenges all notions of gender, defies the banishment imposed by her enemies, and brings to an end Richard III’s reign of terror. Shakespeare rescues her from exile and anachronistically places her in Richard III so she can serve as the only character—man or woman—who is a match for Richard. In a gesture that might be seen as one of respect, at the end of the tetralogy, Shakespeare allows Margaret to choose her own anachronistic and unhistorical end.