Battle of Bosworth Field a horse!" He refuses to withdraw, continuing to seek to slay Henry's doubles until he has killed his nemesis. There is no documentary evidence that Henry had five decoys at Bosworth Field; the idea was Shakespeare's invention. He drew inspiration from Henry IV's use of them at the Battle of Shrewsbury (1403) to amplify the perception of Richard's courage on the battlefield. Similarly, the single combat between Henry and Richard is Shakespeare's creation. "The True Tragedy of Richard III", by an unknown playwright, earlier than Shakespeare's, has no signs of staging such an encounter: its stage directions give no hint
Richard III (song) and the band liked the reference to the king Richard III and the Shakespeare play "Richard III" in which the king is depicted as a dark and evil character, as it matched the menacing tone of the song. Neither the king nor the play is mentioned in the song. Both the 2nd CD (of the CD release format) and the 7" vinyl format have the "Richard III" cover design but with the colours altered instead. A Peel session of the song was released on the CD single for "Mary". The B-side "Sometimes I Make You Sad" is an atypical song