The True Tragedy of Richard III a source for his play, though the majority tend to favour this judgement. Geoffrey Bullough treats "The True Tragedy" as a "probable source" for "Richard III", citing several commonalities (as when, in both plays, Richard calls for a horse on Bosworth Field, yet refuses to flee the battle) — though Bullough admits that the nature of the plays' relationship is "not clear." The uncertainty in dating has allowed a few commentators to propose a reversed priority, and to argue that the author (or reviser) of "The True Tragedy" may have borrowed from Shakespeare's play. Shakespeare appears to have known of
Richard III (1699 play) in the original version. Around the middle of the eighteenth century, David Garrick began to establish himself at the London stages, and eventually became one of the most widely known actors for the role of Richard III. In 1745, William Hogarth, generally considered the most influential painter of his generation, painted Garrick in his role as Richard II. The role became the one Garrick was most famous for, and the painting one of the best known images of the 18th-century theatrical world. The painting shows Richard III in the tent scene, in which he is haunted by the ghosts of