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The Tragedy of King Richard the third is William Shakespeare's version of the short reign of Richard III of England, who receives a singularly unflattering depiction. The play is sometimes interpreted as a tragedy (as it is called in its earliest quarto); however, it more correctly belongs among the histories, as it is in the First Folio. It is a Shakespearean attempt to adapt history into theatre. It picks up the story from Henry VI, Part III and is the conclusion of the series that stretches back to Richard II. It is the second longest of Shakespeare's 38 plays, after Hamlet, and the longest one in the First Folio, the Folio version of Hamlet being shorter than the Quarto version. The length is generally seen as a drawback and the play is rarely performed unabridged. It is often shortened by cutting out various peripheral characters.