The poet claims that "Richard has been poorly advised, his kingdom mismanaged, his loyal subjects ill-served.
"[1] The author believes that the advice he imparts will be of great aid to any guiding the kingdom in future years.
Indeed, John Bale (1495–1563), an important early antiquarian, identified what Skeat named Richard the Redeless as "Mum, Soth-segger".
[2] This link between the two poems continued to the early 20th century, with Day and Steele declaring in their EETS edition that "the two fragments form part of one larger composition.
They both presume to advise a king, include satirical critiques, and imitate Piers Plowman, by far the most important source for both poems.