RUE

13th March 2024

Photo Credit: Ilona5555 (Getty Images), CANVA

QUOTATION

Poor queen, so that thy state might be no worse,

I would my skill were subject to thy curse.

Here did she fall a tear. Here in this place

I’ll set a bank of rue, sour herb of grace.

Rue even for ruth here shortly shall be seen

In the remembrance of a weeping queen.

GARDENER: Richard II, Act 3, Scene 4

RUE/HERB of GRACE (Ruta graveolens)

Here the herb Rue is used a play on words, to indicate regret. Ophelia uses the same double meaning in Hamlet. The herb Rue was commonly grown in gardens and used for a wide variety of ailments and as an antidote to poison.

Rue is also mentioned in the Geneva Bible 1599 edition: But woe be to you Pharisees: for ye tithe the mint and the rue, and all manner herbs (Luke, 11:42)

Rue is a shrub of the Rutaceae family, the same family as the Citrus genus which include Oranges and Lemons. Rue is native to South Eastern Europe but is naturalised and grown in many countries.

More Information

Folger Shakespeare Library: Search Shakespeare’s Works

Geneva Bible 1599 edition: accessed via Biblegateway

Gerard, J. 1597 (first edition) The Herball or Generall Historie of Plantes (1636 edition accessed via Archive.org)

Kew Plants of the World Online: Ruta graveolens