How we cite our quotes: (Act.Scene.Line)
Quote #4
MORTIMER
Since Henry Monmouth first began to reign,
Before whose glory I was great in arms,
This loathsome sequestration have I had;
And even since then hath Richard been obscured,
Deprived of honor and inheritance. (2.5.23-27)
Every story has a backstory, and the Wars of the Roses have a heck of a backstory. There's a lot of backstabbing, quarreling, and fighting over who's the rightful heir to the throne, and it goes back a long way. Mortimer laments that he and Richard have had it tough since the beginning of Henry V's reign. We later find out it goes even further back, to Henry V's dad Henry IV, who Mortimer says shoved his nephew (also named Richard) off the throne (2.5.61-69).
Quote #5
GLOUCESTER
No, prelate, such is thy audacious wickedness,
Thy lewd, pestiferous, and dissentious pranks,
As very infants prattle of thy pride.
Thou are a most pernicious usurer,
Froward by nature, enemy to peace,
Lascivious, wanton, more than well beseems
A man of thy profession and degree. (3.1.15-21)
Whew—Gloucester sure has it in for Winchester. He accuses him of just about everything bad he can think of, from being proud to hating peace to being lustful (especially bad since Winchester is a member of the Catholic clergy and is supposed to be celibate). But the really scary part is that Gloucester is the more reasonable one in the quarrel between Gloucester and Winchester. If this is how the rational guy talks, you can see how bad it's gotten.
Quote #6
KING HENRY
Uncles of Gloucester and of Winchester,
The special watchmen of our English weal,
I would prevail, if prayers might prevail,
To join your hearts in love and amity.
O what a scandal is it to our crown
That two such noble peers as ye should jar!
Believe me, lords, my tender years can tell
Civil dissension is a viperous worm,
That gnaws the bowels of the commonwealth. (3.1.69-77)
This little speech shows so much of what's good about Henry VI—and so much of what's going to make it tough for him to be a good king. He's pretty decent at speeches, and he seems goodhearted enough. He wants to make peace, and he's very polite in asking his uncles to be pals again. But he is of "tender years," as he admits in the speech, and it's going to be hard for his uncles to take him seriously as the king.
And even though he's a nice guy, he's not really a man of prompt action. The "noise within" is Gloucester and Winchester's men starting to fight each other in the streets, so Henry could be doing a better job of enforcing the peace he pleads for. Later in the scene, he needs the help of others to calm the rioting down—which is decidedly not so kingly.