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The Earl of Lancaster
The Earl of Warwick is one of the nobles who opposes Gaveston's position at court and (ultimately) the rule of Edward himself. Edward describes Warwick as having "silver hairs," and suggests at one point that Warwick’s age make him suited for a position as the king's "chiefest counsellor." In fact, however, Warwick is nearly as hot-headed as Mortimer Junior, as evidenced by the role he plays in Gaveston's death. After Gaveston’s capture, the Earl of Pembroke had consented to allow Gaveston to see Edward before being executed, and sent him to the king under armed guard. Warwick, however, ambushed the group and murdered Gaveston, betraying his own ally (Pembroke) to satisfy his own anger and desire for vengeance.
Guy, Earl of Warwick Quotes in Edward II
The Edward II quotes below are all either spoken by Guy, Earl of Warwick or refer to Guy, Earl of Warwick . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Act 1, Scene 4 Quotes
Edward: Lay hands on that traitor Mortimer!
Mortimer Senior: Lay hands on that traitor Gaveston!
[The NOBLES draw swords]
Kent: Is this the duty that you owe your King?
Warwick: We know our duties; let him know his peers.
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Act 2, Scene 2 Quotes
Base leaden earls that glory in your birth,
Go sit at home and eat your tenants' beef,
And come not here to scoff at Gaveston,
Whose mounting thoughts did never creep so low
As to bestow a look on such as you.
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Act 3, Scene 2 Quotes
Edward: O, shall I speak, or shall I sigh and die?
Spencer Junior: My lord, refer your vengeance to the sword
Upon these barons.
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Act 3, Scene 3 Quotes
Mortimer Junior: Then, Edward, thou wilt fight it to the last,
And rather bathe thy sword in subjects' blood
Than banish that pernicious company?
Edward: Ay, traitors all! Rather than thus be braved,
Make England's civil towns huge heaps of stones
And ploughs to go about our palace gates.
Warwick: A desperate and unnatural resolution.
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Guy, Earl of Warwick Character Timeline in Edward II
The timeline below shows where the character Guy, Earl of Warwick appears in Edward II. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1, Scene 1
Gaveston is again interrupted, this time by the arrival of Edward and several nobles: Lancaster, Warwick, Mortimer Senior, Mortimer Junior, and Kent. Edward is attempting to persuade the nobility to allow...
(full context)
...saying that the nobles will “henceforth parley with [their] naked swords.” Mortimer Senior, Lancaster, and Warwick agree that they can each raise armies in their respective lands, and all four nobles...
(full context)
Act 1, Scene 2
Some time after The Bishop of Coventry's arrest, Warwick and Lancaster meet with Mortimer Senior and Mortimer Junior to discuss the situation. Warwick confirms...
(full context)
Act 1, Scene 3
Gaveston and Kent enter, deep in conversation. Gaveston explains that Warwick, Mortimer Senior, Mortimer Junior, and Lancaster (who “hath more earldoms than an ass can bear”)...
(full context)
Act 1, Scene 4
...nobles fume about the indignity of seeing the low-born Gaveston treated with such respect, and Warwick suggests that Gaveston is manipulating the King: “Ignoble vassal, that like Phaëthon / Aspir'st unto...
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Mortimer Junior and Warwick continue to defend the justice of their actions, but Edward refuses to speak to them....
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Lancaster, Warwick, Pembroke, Mortimer Senior, and Mortimer Junior enter and witness Isabella's distress. The nobles speculate that...
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...noble in turn, welcoming them back into his good graces and giving them various responsibilities: Warwick will be his “chiefest counsellor,” Pembroke will carry the sword of state on official occasions,...
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...all this, and leaves after they have restated their obedience to his wishes. Isabella, Pembroke, Warwick, and Lancaster also exit, leaving Mortimer Senior and Mortimer Junior alone.
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Act 2, Scene 2
Edward, Isabella, Lancaster, Mortimer Junior, Warwick, Pembroke, and Kent are waiting for Gaveston's arrival. The King is impatient and preoccupied with...
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...from court. Edward further implies that they are in danger of being executed, to which Warwick responds that Edward is in danger of losing his crown. Kent attempts to quiet Warwick,...
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Warwick, Mortimer Junior, Lancaster, and Pembroke are now more convinced than ever of the need for...
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...and Lancaster offers to go with him to make this case to the King. Meanwhile, Warwick and Pembroke depart to go to Newcastle to begin to raise an army.
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Act 2, Scene 3
Kent appears before Lancaster, Mortimer Junior, Warwick, and Pembroke, saying that “love to this [their] native land” has compelled him to join...
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Act 2, Scene 4
Lancaster, Warwick, and Mortimer Junior burst in. They are searching for Edward, and Mortimer interrupts Isabella's lament...
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Act 2, Scene 5
Lancaster, Warwick, Pembroke, Mortimer Junior, and their forces chase after Gaveston, who is taunting them as he...
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Warwick at first intends to hang Gaveston for “[his] country's cause,” but then decides to give...
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Act 3, Scene 1
As the scene opens, James and Gaveston realize that Warwick has betrayed Pembroke and is pursuing them. Gaveston desperately urges Pembroke's men to hurry so...
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Act 3, Scene 2
...is dead. Edward presses him for details, and Maltravers explains the events leading up to Warwick's ambush and the capture and beheading of Gaveston. Edward despairingly wonders whether he should “speak,...
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Act 3, Scene 3
Mortimer Junior, Kent, Lancaster, Warwick, and Pembroke appear, and the two sides exchange boasts and insults. Lancaster says Edward's followers...
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Act 3, Scene 4
...Senior, Spencer Junior, Baldock, and Levune appear, and they have a number of nobles (Kent, Warwick, Lancaster, and Mortimer Junior) under guard. Edward is boasting about his victory, which he attributes...
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...by ignoring his request to see Gaveston once more, and killing him in an ambush. Warwick and Lancaster, however, dismiss Edward's threats, saying they would rather die than “live in infamy...
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Act 4, Scene 2
...reassures her, saying that “right makes room / Where weapons want”: although he admits that Warwick and Lancaster are dead, he assures her that they still have friends in England. Kent...
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