Gloucester

Also known as: Earl of Gloucester / lord of Gloucester / the old Earl · Family: Lear's court · Role: nobleman · First appears: King Lear · Act I, Scene I

At the beginning, Gloucester acknowledges Edmund as a noble gentleman and Edgar as his son. When he accepts the letter presented as Edgar’s, he orders Edmund to help apprehend him, then commands that Edgar be pursued and executed if found, while promising to make Edmund capable of inheriting his land. He also calls Kent his honourable friend, and regards Cornwall as his master, patron, and friend, while Regan is counted among his good old friends.

As King Lear’s conflict with the Dukes deepens, Gloucester secretly resolves to support and relieve him. Though ordered to bar his doors, he seeks out King Lear and offers shelter, fire, and food, later arranging his removal toward Dover with Kent and the Fool after overhearing a plot against him: “I have o’erheard a plot of death upon him; There is a litter ready; lay him in’t And drive towards Dover, friend, where thou shalt meet Both welcome and protection.” Edmund betrays this support, and Cornwall and Regan seize and bind Gloucester; he is then treated as their enemy, while remaining allied with King Lear.

Cornwall removes both of Gloucester’s eyes, and Regan orders him expelled toward Dover. Gloucester learns that Edmund informed against him, and later seeks death by asking Edgar to lead him to a cliff; after surviving Edgar’s staged fall, he abandons a second attempt and accepts continued suffering. Albany vows to thank him for his love toward King Lear and avenge his eyes, while Edgar protects him from Oswald, killing him when he attacks.