Original: Yet one word more: grief boundeth where it falls,
Modern: Wait, let me say one more thing: grief strikes hard wherever it lands,

Original: Not with the empty hollowness, but weight:
Modern: Not like an empty echo, but with real heaviness:

Original: I take my leave before I have begun,
Modern: I’m saying goodbye before I’ve even started talking,

Original: For sorrow ends not when it seemeth done.
Modern: Because sadness doesn’t end when it appears to be over.

Original: Commend me to thy brother, Edmund York.
Modern: Give my regards to your brother, Edmund York.

Original: Lo, this is all:—nay, yet depart not so;
Modern: Look, that’s everything—no wait, don’t leave just yet;

Original: Though this be all, do not so quickly go;
Modern: Even though that’s all I have to say, don’t go so fast;

Original: I shall remember more. Bid him—ah, what?—
Modern: I’ll remember something else. Tell him—oh, what was it?—

Original: With all good speed at Plashy visit me.
Modern: To come visit me at Plashy as soon as he can.

Original: Alack, and what shall good old York there see
Modern: But oh no, what will good old York see there

Original: But empty lodgings and unfurnish’d walls,
Modern: Except empty rooms and bare walls,

Original: Unpeopled offices, untrodden stones?
Modern: Rooms with no servants, walkways no one uses?

Original: And what hear there for welcome but my groans?
Modern: And what will he hear to welcome him except my crying?

Original: Therefore commend me; let him not come there,
Modern: So give him my love, but tell him not to come there,

Original: To seek out sorrow that dwells every where.
Modern: To look for sadness that lives everywhere in that place.

Original: Desolate, desolate, will I hence and die:
Modern: Alone and miserable, I will go away from here and die:

Original: The last leave of thee takes my weeping eye.
Modern: My tearful eyes are taking their final look at you.

In Act II, Scene ii of Richard II, the scene opens at Windsor Castle where the Queen expresses her inexplicable sadness to Bushy and Bagot, Richard’s favorites. Bushy attempts to comfort her by suggesting her grief stems from nothing more than shadows and imagination, but the Queen insists her sorrow has substance, though she cannot name its cause. Green enters with alarming news: John of Gaunt has died, and Richard has immediately seized all of Gaunt’s possessions to fund his Irish wars. More troubling still, Henry Bolingbroke has landed at Ravenspur with a small force and is gathering supporters, including the Percys and other nobles who are flocking to his banner.

The scene shifts to reveal the dire state of Richard’s kingdom as York enters, overwhelmed by the responsibility of governing England in Richard’s absence. He laments that he lacks the resources to defend the realm, as Richard has seized funds and alienated the nobility. Despite his loyalty to Richard, York acknowledges the justice in Bolingbroke’s cause, torn between his duty as regent and his recognition that Richard has wronged his nephew. As reports arrive of more nobles joining Bolingbroke’s growing army, York struggles with his decision but ultimately chooses to remain neutral, retreating to Berkeley Castle. The scene ends with Bushy, Bagot, and Green deciding to flee—Bushy and Green to Bristol Castle, and Bagot to join Richard in Ireland—as they recognize their precarious position as the King’s unpopular favorites.

Richard II opens with King Richard presiding over a dispute between Henry Bolingbroke (John of Gaunt’s son) and Thomas Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk. Both men accuse each other of treason, and when Richard cannot reconcile them, he arranges a trial by combat. However, just as the combat is about to begin, Richard stops the fight and banishes both men from England - Mowbray for life and Bolingbroke for six years, later reduced to four.

When John of Gaunt falls ill and dies, Richard seizes his lands and wealth to fund his wars in Ireland, effectively disinheriting Bolingbroke. This act alienates the nobility, who fear their own inheritances are now at risk. While Richard departs for his Irish campaign, Bolingbroke returns from exile with an army, ostensibly to reclaim his rightful inheritance. He quickly gains support from discontented nobles, including the Duke of York, who was left as regent in Richard’s absence.

Richard returns from Ireland to find his support has collapsed and his army has dispersed. After a series of encounters, including a pivotal scene at Flint Castle where Richard realizes his situation is hopeless, he agrees to abdicate. In a formal ceremony at Westminster, Richard hands over his crown to Bolingbroke, who becomes King Henry IV. Richard is imprisoned in Pomfret Castle, where he is eventually murdered by Sir Pierce Exton, who believes he is carrying out Henry’s wishes. The play ends with Henry expressing regret over Richard’s death and vowing to journey to the Holy Land to atone for his indirect role in the former king’s murder.