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In Act 4, scene 1, of Shakespeare's Richard II, Richard the eponymous king abdicates his throne to his cousin and rival Harry Bolingbroke. Earlier in the play, in an example of the caprice and malfeasance that apparently typified Richard's reign, the king had seized the property and financial assets of Harry, banished earlier, to fund a war against the Irish that England could ill afford. This strategic failure, having left Richard unprepared to defend his kingdom against his rival's unanticipated return, resulted in the loss of his throne. Though the abdication is portrayed as voluntary, Shakespeare makes clear that Richard had no choice. In a moving speech, Richard unravels before the audience:
For I have given here my soul's consentT'undeck the pompous body of a king,Made glory base and sovereignty a slave,Proud majesty a subject, state a peasant.