Loyalty In Oedipus The King

Without the support of his army and close friends, King Richard II’s final sliver of hope resided in the allegiance of his uncle, the Duke of York, who was a known loyalist to the rightful bearer of the crown. The Duke of York’s loyalty was a symbol throughout the play of which leader was divinely supported. While both Bolingbroke and Richard had “sacred blood” (1.1.123), only one could have the divine authority to govern at any given point in the play. The person who held the divine authority shifted mid-play, as Richard’s subjects analyzed his decisions--or, rather, indecision--and began to doubt his divinity, shifting popular faith from Richard to Henry.

Upon word of the Duke of York’s betrayal, King Richard didn’t proclaim damnations on

Kings were born inherently divine, anointed with heavenly power on their coronation, and died, when murdered, as martyrs. The line between being divine and having divine support was thin and blurred, in places faded and vanished altogether. While all royalty are born with divine blood, only the rightful king has divine authority to rule the kingdom. This is why, for example, Richard referred to both Henry Bolingbroke and himself as having “our sacred blood” (1.1.123). This is also why the queen was revered for her sacredness, but did not have the divine power to command the Kingdom when Richard was deposed. Because of this belief in heaven-guided authority, many Kings relied on God and fate to make decisions. As a result, King Richard was indecisive. Instead of considering the best course of action to suit his country, he made poor snap-judgments and expected that God would fix the situation. This reluctance to make decisions until a hasty makeshift-solution appeared was the driving force behind the challenge, duel, and banishment scenes in Act I. When Bolingbroke accused Mowbray of treason, and Mowbray accused Bolingbroke of slander, Richard was hesitant to decide whom to believe, and requested that they both forgive each other—“Let’s purge this choler without letting blood. … Forget, forgive; conclude and be agreed. … Let this end where it begun” (1.1.157-162). However, when the men were insistent

After Bolingbroke was banished, for example, his father, John of Gaunt, died of grief. Richard, who was in a financial crisis, seized Gaunt’s estate, despite York’s petitions that the wealth rightfully belonged to Bolingbroke, thereby completely undermining lineal succession, the principle that gave Richard his divine blood, and outfitting a rebellious Bolingbroke with a valid excuse to return to England. Those who absorbed the most shock from Richard’s decisions began to doubt his divinity. They saw flattering words, instead of beneficial actions, and total reliance on divine aid, instead of a self-sufficient commander. The qualities that Richard lacked were Bolingbroke’s strengths, which generated suspicion about the legitimacy of Richard’s divine authority, and shifted popular faith from Richard to