RICHARD                                                        Thou shalt think

Though he divide the realm and give thee half

It is too little, helping him to all.

He shall think that thou, which know’st the way

To plant unrightful kings, wilt know again,

Being ne’er so little urged, another way

To pluck him headlong from the usurped throne.

The love of wicked men converts to fear,

That fear to hate, and hate turns one or both

To worthy danger and deservèd death.

NORTHUMBERLAND            My guilt be on my head, and there an end.

Take leave and part, for you must part forthwith.(5.1.59-70)

Richard has moved from insult into prophecy: if Northumberland can expedite the deposition of one king, then he can do it again, and Bolingbroke needs to watch out. Thou (Northumberland) shalt think though he (Bolingbroke) divide the realm and give thee half it is too little, helping him to all. You won’t be happy with any reward he gives you for all you’ve done for him, even if he gives you half the kingdom (and like that’s going to happen); after all, you helped him to all, to the whole realm. Sly, putting the thought into Northumberland’s head—does he even realise he feels like that? he does now. But Bolingbroke’s already suspicious of you, you realise, don’t you? He shall think that thou, which know’st the way to plant unrightful kings, to enable usurpation, wilt know again, being ne’er so little urged, with hardly any encouragement or pretext at all, another way to pluck him headlong from the usurped throne. You’ve got form now, and Bolingbroke knows it; he knows that once you’ve done the thing you’ve done, you’re capable of doing it again. And you could, you will. None of you will ever trust each other or anyone else ever again, and you’ll always be watching your backs, Bolingbroke especially. Because the love of wicked men converts to fear—any friendship or alliance between wicked men like you, you traitors, all too easily turns into mistrust, suspicion, fear. And fear soon becomes hate, and that hate leads one or both of you to worthy, entirely well-deserved and well-founded danger—and so to death. You expect the worst of each other because you know it’s true of yourselves. Enjoy the new reign! Have a nice day! (For someone who essentially failed at kingship, Richard is a very sharp judge of character. And there’s a germ of Macbeth in this little exchange, too.)

So what, I can live with it, responds Northumberland. (But the audience knows that Richard very much speaks the truth, and 1 Henry IV will bear it out.) Just get on with it—take leave and part—I’m waiting, you need to make your farewells quickly and go your separate ways.