“A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!”
Permalink: William Shakespeare
About this quote
Richard, cornered and outnumbered at Bosworth, shouts for a horse to carry him out of the fight. The line is famous as a joke about what a king will trade away when the alternative is losing, and it is still the standard citation for the moment a plan collapses and someone reaches for the nearest emergency substitute.
Source: Richard III, Act 5, Scene 4