Richard's opening speech also tells us that he is ‘subtle, false and treacherous.’ This is very true, as he is often false, lying about many things. For example, when persuading Lady Anne to marry him, he tells her how much he loves her, saying how beautiful she is, and how he killed King Henry, Anne’s father-in-law, and her husband Edward because of her beauty – it was her ‘heavenly face that set him on.’ This is all lies; he only wants Anne to be his wife as another step towards the throne – a king needs a wife.
He is ‘subtle’ because he very subtly worms his way to the throne. We see this when he makes everyone think he is friendly, and this also ties in with his being ‘false’. For example, in Act 3, scene 4, Richard sends Ely for strawberries, trying to prove he is kind and make a good atmosphere, so he does not seem to be a suspect. This is a very ‘subtle’ way of appearing friendly.
The way Richard blames the Woodvilles constantly is very subtle too –
“It is the queen and her allies that stir the king against the duke my brother... to be revenged on Rivers, Grey and Vaughan.”
He says these things to powerful lords such as Hastings, Derby and Buckingham so that rumours can be spread, and later the Woodvilles are executed due to Richard’s cunning.
Richard is ‘treacherous’ in the way he betrays Buckingham. Buckingham is a worthy ally of Richard’s until he refuses to kill the two young princes in the tower, so Richard has him executed too. Later, he ends up alone as Richmond’s army advances, and many of his allies join Richmond. However, he is still determined, even until the end.
Richard also betrays Clarence, his brother. Clarence believes Richard is his ally, but Richard has him murdered, as he is a barrier to Richard’s goal. The two young princes also think Richard is kind, until he betrays them by having them murdered too.
Prince: “I want more uncles here to welcome me.”
Richard: “The uncles which you want were dangerous.”
Here, Richard is once again being “subtle, false and treacherous,” as he is the dangerous uncle. This is seen again when he says to the prince “My dagger, little cousin? With all my heart” so that the prince can protect himself, but Richard is the person he needs protecting from, as he is the later murderer of the princes.
Richard’s opening speech also tells us about his physical deformity. It tells that his deformity is the main reason he is going to seize the throne, although he does not say it in exactly this way. He says because he is not "shaped for sportive tricks" he is “determined to prove a villain”. This shows that he is very bitter about his deformity, and could possibly be taking it out on the people around him.