Henry VI Part 3 Act 5, Scene 6 Summary

Read the full text of Henry VI Part 3 Act 5 Scene 6 with a side-by-side translation HERE.


  • At the Tower, Richard enters Henry's cell. He tells the Lieutenant to leave them alone.
  • Henry knows that Richard has come to kill him. News travels quickly, because he's already heard about his son's death.
  • Richard says Henry must be guilty, then, because "suspicion haunts the guilty mind." Uh huh.
  • Henry predicts that everyone—men, widows, orphans, a thousand people—will "rue the hour" that Richard was born. Everyone will hate him and curse his name—even his own mother.
  • As last words go, these are pretty powerful. But Richard gets the last laugh: he doesn't even let Henry finish before stabbing him.
  • With Henry dead, Richard delivers a soliloquy. He thinks about what Henry just said, and he eventually decides that he doesn't have a brother. He doesn't even understand the word love.
  • Richard coldly says, "I am myself alone." Creepy.
  • Richard looks at his to-do list. He can check off "kill Henry" now... and move on to "get rid of George."