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"King Cophetua"
Cultural Reference
Act 2,
Scene 1
Lines 14-15

Explanation of King Cophetua in myShakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 1.

Mercutio

Young Abraham Cupid — he that shot so true
When King Cophetua loved the beggar-maid.

This is a reference to a popular ballad “The King and the Beggar-maid,” which told the story of King Cophetua, who one day while looking out his palace window spied a beautiful beggar girl. He immediately fell in love with her and decided to make her his queen. After their marriage they lived happily ever after.