Historical identity is the foundation and important component of national identity.In Richard Ⅲ,Shakespeare em-ploys the fictional and distorted historical writing to portray Richard Ⅲ and Richmond respectively as the villains of moral de-cay and abnormal hunchback,and the glorious and just monarch who rescued the country from evil rule,which combines his-torical tradition with national imagination,dramatically portrays the struggle between royal families and the final establishment of royal power,reflecting that historical writing is an important means of shaping the character of the country and maintaining national identity.