Henry V

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The Life of King Henry V


The Life of King Henry V is a history play written by William Shakespeare. It was written around 1599 and was first published in 1600 (in quarto) and in 1623 (in folio). It is the sequel to Henry IV, Part 2, as well as to Richard II and Henry IV, Part 1. It is the fourth part in the tetralogy, which goes through the historical rise of the House of Lancaster. In this play, Henry V goes on a journey to France to take the crown that is his by birth. Henry launches a successful attack on France.


Characters:


  • The English
    • The Chorus
    • King Henry the Fifth
    • Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester – the King’s brother
    • John, Duke of Bedford – the King’s brother
    • Duke of Clarence – the King’s brother
    • Duke of Exeter – the King’s uncle
    • Duke of York – the King’s cousin
    • Earl of Salisbury
    • Earl of Westmorland
    • Earl of Warwick
    • Earl of Huntingdon
    • Archbishop of Canterbury
    • Bishop of Ely
    • Sir Thomas Erpingham – officer in the King’s army
    • Captain Gower – officer in the King’s army
    • Captain Fluellen – officer in the King’s army
    • Captain Macmorris – officer in the King’s army
    • Captain Jamy – officer in the King’s army
    • John Bates – soldier in the King’s army
    • Alexander Court – soldier in the King’s army
    • Michael Williams – solider in the King’s army
    • Herald
    • Pistol – Falstaff’s former tavern mate
    • Nym – Falstaff’s former tavern mate
    • Bardolph – Falstaff’s former tavern mate
    • Boy – formerly Falstaff’s page
    • Hostess – formerly Mistress Quickly, married to Pistol
  • Traitors
    • Richard, Earl of Cambridge – conspirator against the King
    • Henry, Lord Scroop of Masham – conspirator against the King
    • Sir Thomas Grey – conspirator against the King
  • The French
    • French King – Charles the VI
    • Queen Isabel – of France
    • Dauphin - Lewis
    • Katherine – Princess of France
    • Alice – a lady attending Katherine
    • Duke of Orleans
    • Duke of Berri
    • Duke of Bourbon
    • Duke of Brittany
    • Duke of Burgundy
    • Constable of France
    • Lord Rambures
    • Lord Grandpré
    • Governor of Harfleur
    • Monsieur le Fer – a French soldier
    • Montjoy – the French herald
    • French Ambassadors to England
    • Miscellaneous Lords, Ladies, Officers, Soldiers, Citizens, Messengers, and Attendants


Synopsis:
  • Act I
    • Prologue
      • The Chorus asks the audience to forgive them for not having real Kings and Queens and royalty to put the play on. They also ask the audience to picture “the vasty fields of France” (I.0.12) on the stage – the audience must use their imagination in order for the play to seem real.
    • Scene I
      • The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Ely talk about a bill that was not passed eleven years previously in Henry IV’s time. They want to keep it from being passed. Canterbury tells Ely what they will lose if it passes and Ely again asks what they can do to stop it. Canterbury tells him that Henry V is kind and Ely says he is a lover of the Holy Church. They reflect on how he was like in his earlier years –wild—and how after his father died he lost the wildness and matured into a good king.
      • Canterbury and Ely say that the King seems neutral to the subject of the bill that is being voted on, though he leans more toward their side than that of their opponents. Canterbury offered the King more money than the clergy ever “did to his predecessors part withal” (I.i.85). They want to know what Henry thought of the offer so they go to see him.
    • Scene II
      • King Henry requests for Canterbury; he and Ely enter. Henry tells Canterbury to explain all the legal and religious parts of the bill pertaining to the French Salic Law. Henry warns him to not lie because there will be many deaths no matter which side Canterbury convinces Henry to be on, especially since England and France are so great.
      • Canterbury tells Henry that the only thing in the way of his getting the French throne is the Salic Law, which states that “No woman shall succeed in Salic Land” (I.ii.41). This means that a woman cannot take over the throne in Salic Land because they have no right to inheritance. The French in power today put the Law into effect so that Henry cannot take the throne because one of his past relatives was a woman who took the throne.
      • Henry asks Canterbury if he has the right to do this and Canterbury says that in the Book of Numbers it is written “When the man dies, let the inheritance/Descend unto the daughter” (I.ii.122-123). Henry must take his French throne back from the people who took it from his family in the past. Canterbury, Ely, Exeter, and Westmoreland give Henry a pep talk about going to war to get the throne. Henry tells them that they can go to war with France but they must defend England from Scotland because they will try to take advantage of the situation.
      • Henry calls in French Ambassadors. Henry tells them to tell him what Dauphin has said in response to Henry claiming certain dukedoms. They tell him that Dauphin thinks Henry an immature youth and that he is unfit to rule; he sends Henry tennis balls in response. Henry tells the ambassadors that he will “play a set” (I.ii.288) and knock the French King’s crown right off of his head and win the French crown that way.
  • Act II
    • Prologue
      • The Chorus comes back out and tells the audience that the men of England have put their partying aside and are now only thinking about honor. They want to fight and win the war with France. The French king has figured out that there are some traitors in the midst of the army: Richard, Earl of Cambridge; Henry, Lord Scroop of Masham; and Sir Thomas Grey, knight of Northumberland. They are conspiring with the French in exchange for money.
      • Henry has left London and is in Southampton.
    • Scene I
      • Bardolph asks Nym if he is friends with Pistol. Nym is not and Bardolph offers to buy them both breakfast if it meant them being friends when they go off to France to fight. They talk about why Nym and Pistol are not friends – Nym was once engaged to Nell Quickly, who is now married to Pistol.
      • Pistol and his wife (Mistress Quickly) enter. Nym and Pistol threaten each other.
      • A boy enters and requests that they come help his master who is very ill. Mistress Quickly and the Boy exit and Bardolph asks Nym and Pistol to get along because they have to fight side-by-side. They threaten again. They put their differences aside and Mistress Quickly tells them to hurry to Sir John because he is sick with fever. They exit to go sit with the sick man.
    • Scene II
      • Bedford, Exeter, and Westmoreland talk briefly about traitors being let free by the King and how one of them was a trusted man to Henry. Henry enters, talking about boarding the ship to France. He asks Scroop, Cambridge, and Grey if England will win the war. They tell him there is no doubt about it as long as every man fights his hardest. The three men tell Henry that those people who once hated Henry IV have grown fond of Henry V.
      • Henry tells Exeter to release the man that was imprisoned the day before because he was only drunk which caused him to speak out against Henry. Scroop tells Henry that the man should be punished. Cambridge and Grey both say that Henry can be merciful but still punish the man by beating him and then letting him live. Henry says they will release the man, and ask who the new commissioners are. Scroop, Cambridge, and Grey are said commissioners. Henry hands the three of them a piece of paper and tells them to read it. They turn pale as they read; the three of them confess to their crimes of espionage. Henry says that whatever mercy he had “by your own counsel is suppressed and killed” (II.ii.81). Henry knows that Cambridge was going to kill him that night in Southampton, with Grey in on the plot. Scroop was one of Henry’s closest advisors and had he asked, he could have gotten money from Henry. The King can hardly believe that Scroop has betrayed him.
      • Exeter arrests the three traitors for high treason. Scroop asks for forgiveness from Henry and regrets his crime. Cambridge did not do it for the money, but it was an increased incentive. He asks God’s and Henry’s forgiveness. Grey rejoices in being caught and asks that Henry pardons his crime but not his person. Henry sends them to their deaths according to law and asks God to forgive them. They are taken away.
      • Henry tells his court that they are off to France. He is confident that they will win quickly since God exposed the traitors’ plot.
    • Scene III
      • Mistress Quickly asks Pistol if she can escort Pistol, Hostess, Nym, Bardolph, and the Boy as far as Staines. Pistol says no because they are grieving – Falstaff has died. Presumably he had a Sexually Transmitted Disease that he died from.
      • Pistol gives some last minute advice to Mistress Quickly to look after his possessions and to keep on her toes. Pistol kisses her, tells her to keep herself hidden, and they go off to France.
      • The King of France, Prince Dauphin, the Constable, the Dukes of Berry and Bretagne and others enter. The King comments on how fast the English army is advancing and says they must respond more majestically than carefully. Prince Dauphin must fortify the towns with men and weapons. He says it would be smart for them to prepare as well as possible because of past failures. Dauphin agrees and says they should check on the weaker towns that need defending. He says that King Henry is an immature youth and England is going to lose the war because of it. The Constable disagrees with Dauphin and tells him to talk to the ambassadors that returned from England about how Henry responded to their message. He cloaks his maturity and wisdom in immaturity. The King of France thinks that Henry is strong and everyone should arm themselves when meeting him.
      • Henry’s ambassadors show up and tell the King of France to give up. The King of France asks what will happen if he does not give up his title to Henry and Exeter tells him that the bloodshed will make him give up. The King of France will think it over and let them know in the morning. He tells the French King’s court to not take too long because Henry is already in France and will attack.
  • Act III
    • Prologue
      • The Chorus asks the audience to imagine Henry sailing from Southampton to Harfleur. Imagine the cannons focused on the walls of that city and the French ambassador going to Henry to tell him that the French King is offering his daughter and some dukedoms to Henry. Henry refuses, and guns sound offstage.
    • Scene I
      • Henry gives the soldiers a speech to rally them as they go to scale the walls of Harfleur with ladders. He speaks to every type of man there (noblemen, commoners, etc.), which makes them proud.
    • Scene II
      • Nym, Bardolph, Pistol, and the Boy enter. Bardolph urges them on to the breach, but Nym tells him to stop; he only has one life, not many. Pistol agrees with Nym, and the Boy wishes he was in an alehouse in London.
      • Fluellen enters and tells them to get up to the breach. Pistol tells him to be merciful to mortal men. Everyone but the Boy exits.
      • The Boy says he is a servant to those three men but sees that they are fakes. Bardolph is cowardly; he acts tough but does not fight. Pistol has a silver-tongue but cannot fight. Nym thinks that men of heroism do not speak much, and so refuses to pray or else others might think him a coward. The three of them steal anything and try to sell the items. They are thieves. The Boy decides to leave them and find better work.
      • Gower tells Fluellen that the Duke of Gloucester wants a word with him. Fluellen does not like how the underground tunnels were built; they are not supposed to be built the way that they were. He says that the enemy built theirs under the English’s and they may blow the tunnels up if they do not improve. Gower tells Fluellen that Captain Macmorris is in charge of the tunnels.
      • Captains Macmorris and Jamy enter. Fluellen says that Jamy knows much about warfare and he is a very good military man. Gower asks Macmorris how the tunnels are and if the excavators have stopped working. Macmorris tells them that it is a disaster and that the work is stopped. Fluellen requests that they speak about the “disciplines of the war” (III.ii.79) for satisfaction of his mind. Jamy says that he will talk with Fluellen about it. Macmorris says there is no time for a discussion. Jamy tells him that he will, by the end of the day, do some good fighting. He will kill as “valorously as I/may” (III.ii.95), but he wants to hear them talk about war. Fluellen talks to him and Macmorris does not like what he is saying, so they get into a scuffle.
      • There is a ceasefire on both sides and the town calls for a parley.
    • Scene III
      • Henry asks the governor what he has decided and gives a great speech, telling the town what he and his soldier’s will do to the village. They will rape the women, pillage the town, and kill the town’s children without mercy if they do not surrender. If they surrender, none of this will happen.
      • The governor tells Henry that Dauphin has sent word that there are not enough people to raise an army to help them. He gives up the town to Henry, asking for mercy. He gives his town and possessions for Henry to do what he likes with everything.
      • The gates open and Henry tells Exeter to stay in Harfleur to fortify it against the French. Henry says that they will retreat to Calais the next day.
    • Scene IV
      • Katherine and Alice speak in French for the entire scene. Katherine wants to learn English because she believes that it will come in handy in the future in dealing with King Henry. Alice teaches her English words, but they both butcher the language. Alice tells Katherine that she speaks like a native English speaker and Katherine has faith that she will be able to learn it.
    • Scene V
      • King of France knows that Henry has crossed the river Somme. The Constable says that if Henry advances with no one to stop him, they should leave France. They remember a previous invasion by the Normans on England and question how they have such spirit since everything is cold and foggy. Dauphin says the French wives mock the French, saying they will have children with the English because, even though they will be bastard children, they will be warriors.
      • The King of France says to send Montjoy to the English as soon as possible to tell them that the French will keep fighting. He calls upon many people to battle for their honor. He tells them to avenge the French blood that was spilled and to capture Henry as their prisoner. The Constable says that it is a worthy mission and Henry and his army will tremble with fear because they have so few numbers and they are sick and starving. The French King reminds the Constable to send Montjoy on his way to ask Henry what he is willing to pay the French to get out of the war.
    • Scene VI
      • Gower and Fluellen converse about “the bridge” – England is trying to take over one of the French bridges. Gower asks if Exeter is safe and Fluellen says that he is. He also mentions another man who is very brave: Pistol. Pistol enters and asks Fluellen to save Bardolph’s life. He has stolen a pax, which is metal tablet used in church. It is expensive and would give Bardolph a pretty penny. Bardolph is sentenced to death because of it. Pistol believes that Fluellen will save Bardolph’s life, but instead Fluellen thinks that his sentence should be continued because “discipline ought to be used” (III.vi.50). Pistol goes off. Gower says he recognizes Pistol as a pimp and a pickpocket; he is the type of man to join the army so that when he returns home he can boast and call himself a hero.
      • King Henry enters and asks Fluellen if he came from the bridge. Fluellen tells him that he did and that Exeter did well in maintaining the bridge. The enemy tried to hold it but they failed and England possesses it. Fluellen has lost some men, but Exeter did not lose any men except for Bardolph, but he is sentenced to death. Upon hearing the news, Henry says that he wants all lawbreakers to be dealt with that way. No one should steal anything just because the towns and cities are being taken over.
      • Montjoy enters with the King of France’s answer. He tells Henry that they only appear to be down and out but they are ready to fight. Henry is to be taken as a war prisoner, which will be compensation enough for the losses that they suffered. His kingdom and crown are too tiny a price for the war. Henry as a prisoner is a great enough payment to the King of France. He and his people will die because of their defiance.
      • Henry tells Montjoy to go back to the King of France with the message that they are going to march on to Calais even though his men are weak with illness, tiredness, and their numbers are lowered. He also says, “We would not seek a battle as we are,/Nor, as we are, we say we will not shun it” (III.vi.151-152). That is, Henry is not looking for a battle but will battle if need be to get his crown from the King. Montjoy leaves, leaving Henry to talk briefly to Gloucester. Gloucester hopes that France will not attack because of what Henry sent to the French king. Henry says they will not, and they should set up camp on the other side of the river until the morning.
    • Scene VII
      • There is witty banter between Dauphin, the Constable, and Orléans over the mounting of their horses. Dauphin exits, wanting to kill the English but he has to wait for morning. A messenger enters and tells them that the English are 1,500 paces from the French tents. The English are not looking forward to the battle as much as the French are, according to the Constable. They make fun of the English.
  • Act IV
    • Prologue
      • The Chorus sets up the scene. It is 3 AM, and both camps are getting ready for the morning when they will fight. Henry comes out and walks among his troops. He has a smile and good nature for all of them, which raises their spirits. He “calls them brothers, friends, and countrymen” (IV.0.34) and does not seem tired, which invigorates them. Everyone prepares for the battle of Agincourt, and the Chorus excuses their meager amount of actors and asks the audience to imagine many other soldiers.
    • Scene I
      • Henry tells Gloucester and Bedford that they are in great danger but their courage will be all the more because of it. Erpingham enters, and Henry comments on how it would be nice to have a pillow. Erpingham tells him that it’s better that way because he can say he lived like a King. Henry thinks it’s a good example for all the people in the camp to think that way. He asks Erpingham for his cloak and tells Gloucester and Bedford to send the princes in the camp to his tent. They go, leaving Henry with Erpingham, who asks if he should escort Henry. Henry declines and says he needs to be alone with his thoughts.
      • Henry puts the cloak on to disguise himself. Pistol enters and demands to know who is there. Henry tells him that he is “a gentleman of a company” (IV.i.40). Pistol tells him that he’s “as good a gentleman as the emperor” (IV.i.43). Henry says that Pistol is a better man than the king, and Pistol disagrees, saying that Henry is a great man. Henry lies and tells Pistol that his name is Harry Le Roy. Pistol asks if Henry knows Fluellen, and tells Henry to tell Fluellen that he will take the leek out of Fluellen’s hat and hit him with it on Saint Davy’s Day. Henry threatens Pistol, tells him he is a relative of Fluellen, and Pistol gives him the finger, then leaves.
      • Gower is yelling for Fluellen and Fluellen tells him to quiet down because the French can hear them. He tells Gower to study up on rules of war – to not be so loud. The enemy is loud, Gower complains. Fluellen asks that if they are being loud and obnoxious, does that mean the English get to be loud and obnoxious? Gower lowers his voice and they exit.
      • Henry comments that Fluellen has courage and then John Bates, Alexander Court, and Michael Williams enter. Court, Bates, and Williams comment on the dawn breaking over the horizon, and how they are not looking forward to the day. They see Henry and ask who he serves (Erpingham). Henry replies, “Even as men wracked upon a sand, that look to be/washed off the next tide” (IV.i.95-96). They are sitting ducks. They ask if Henry has told the King yet, and Henry tells them that he has not and it would not be the best thing. He compares the King to every other man and says that his fears are the same as every other mans’, but he also cannot show his fears because it would “dishearten his army” (IV.i.109). Bates says that he wish all of them were at the bottom of the Thames so they would not have to deal with the war and Henry tells him that he thinks the King would not want to be anywhere else but with his troops in their camp. They wish that he was alone in camp so that men’s lives would be saved, and Henry says that they cannot hate him that much to wish that on anyone. His case is honorable. Bates does not comment on that, other than to say that even if his case was not honorable, that he would be cleared of charges for it because it was an order to fight.
      • Henry then gives a long speech about not blaming one person for the death of another; it is God’s will that takes those lives. If they are a sinner, get away with it, and then die in the war, then that is God’s way of punishing him. If he does not die in war, then that is also God’s way. It is not the fault of any other person.
      • The three soldiers agree it is not King Henry’s fault that they are at war, though Williams is still angry. He believes that Henry puts on a false front and once people are dead he will become ransomed without anyone knowing. Henry says, “If I live to see it, I will never trust his word after” (IV.i.181) and Williams thinks it is a dim-witted thing to say. William challenges Henry to a quarrel, and they exchange a glove so that they might find each other again to complete it. Bates tells them to be friends since they have enough enemies to deal with on the French side. The three soldiers exit.
      • The next soliloquy is Henry talking about his responsibilities as a King and how he has to bear the load. People blame him for their trifles instead of figuring out their problems themselves. Henry says that he, too, has problems, but he cannot show them like regular people do because he must be a great example of man.
      • Erpingham comes in, telling Henry that people are looking for him all over camp. Henry tells them to meet in his tent. Henry has another small soliloquy, telling himself not to show his people fear, to get their courage up and to not let them see how outnumbered they are. Gloucester enters and beckons Henry, who goes with him.
    • Scene II
      • Dauphin, Orléans, Rambures, and others enter. Orléans realizes the sun is up and rouses everyone. Dauphin calls for his horse. Constable enters and tells them that it is time to go to battle. Dauphin tells the Constable to mount the horses and dig the spurs into the horse so “that their hot blood may spin in English eyes/And dout them with superfluous courage” (IV.ii.12-13).
      • A messenger comes in and tells them that the English are on the battlefield. In response, the Constable gives a small speech to his men, telling them that the starving army will cower in fear from the mere sight of the French army and that the French do not need to fight; they only need to blow on the English and they will fall over.
      • Grandpré enters and gives a similar speech, asking them why they are taking so long; the English are starved and scared. It will be an easy victory. Dauphin jokes that they should send the English some food, clothing, and feed for their horses before they battle. The Constable grows impatient and urges everyone to the battlefield.
    • Scene III
      • Back on the English side, Gloucester, Bedford, Exeter, Erpingham, Salisbury, and Westmorland enter. Gloucester asks where Henry went and Bedford tells him that he went out to see the French troops. The English are outnumbered five to one and the French are well fed and refreshed. Salisbury says that he hopes God is on the English side, and takes his troops to the battlefield.
      • Henry enters and overhears Westmoreland saying he wishes there were thousands of the men that were left at home to fight with them. He explains to Westmoreland that it is better that they do not have more men: if they lose, then fewer men will be killed; if they win, they each get a greater part of the honor that comes with winning. He admits to being selfish when it comes to honor. Henry tells his troops that whoever does not want to fight should go back to England and leave their little honor behind for those soldiers who actually want to fight. The men who stay will have honor and glory and will remember that St. Crispin’s Day better than everything else. Every man who fights will also be considered one of Henry’s brothers and the men not on French soil will kick themselves for not fighting with the English that day.
      • Salisbury comes in and tells Henry that the French are in position and about to attack. Montjoy, the French messenger comes in to ask for King Henry as ransom one last time before they start the battle. Henry says to take back the same answer he gave the King of France before. The Englishmen who die on the battlefield will go to heaven and the dead bodies will rot and make France smell and get a plague. The English army is tired and weary, but they are spirited. Henry tells the herald not to come back because his answer will still be the same. Montjoy says he will pass the message on and exits.
      • York enters and asks Henry if he can lead the vanguard. Henry says yes and they exit.
    • Scene IV
      • Pistol, a French Soldier, and the Boy enter. Pistol and the French soldier get in a quarrel – Pistol says he will kill the soldier unless he pays a large amount of money for his ransom. The soldier is scared and asks for mercy. The French solider offers 200 crowns to spare his life and Pistol agrees to the sum. Pistol and the French soldier exit, leaving the Boy to his thoughts once more. He says that Bardolph and Nym were much braver. He also says that he has to watch the tents even though they are sitting ducks because only a few young pages are guarding there.
    • Scene V
      • The Constable, Orléans, Bourbon, Dauphin, and Rambures enter. They are lamenting because they are losing the battle. They cannot believe that this army is the army of the King they were making fun of. The five of them consider running into battle to commit suicide. Orléans says that if they organized their numbers that they might have a chance to win.
    • Scene VI
      • King Henry, some soldiers, and Exeter enter. Henry is optimistic but the battle is still going on. Exeter tells Henry that the duke of York has died after Henry inquires if he is still alive or not. Exeter says that he died honorably in battle next to his cousin Suffolk. Henry says he is misty eyed, but the battle is still going on around them. They hear a commotion and Henry tells the Englishmen to kill their prisoners because the French have reinforced themselves.
    • Scene VII
      • Fluellen and Gower enter the scene, enraged that the French running away from the battle killed the young boys that were guarding the tents. They stole King Henry’s possessions as well. Gower says that it was a good thing that Henry ordered for all the prisoner’s throats to be cut. They compared him to Alexander the Great, using similar experiences in both their lives to do the comparison.
      • Henry, Warwick, Gloucester, and Exeter enter with a few others. Henry says he has not been angry since they got to France, but because of the killings of the young boys, he is now furious.
      • Montjoy enters again and asks Henry to let the French collect the bodies of their fallen to give them a proper burial. Henry tells him that he is not sure who won the battle because there are still horsemen on the field. Montjoy tells Henry that the English won the day. Henry declares the battle to be named “field of Agincourt,/Fought on the day of Crispin Crispianus” (IV.vii.86-87). Fluellen reminds Henry that his ancestors fought battles in France and wore a leek proudly; Henry says he will wear a leek as well. Henry sends messengers to count the dead on both sides.
      • The King sees the soldier Williams that he quarreled with with a glove in his hat. He beckons him over and asks why the glove is in the hat. Williams tells Henry that he must fight with the man who has the other glove that they traded. Henry tells him to keep his oath to fight the man and sends him to his Captain (Gower) and tells the soldier to send Gower over.
      • Henry puts Williams’ glove in Fluellen’s hat and tells him that it means he is a traitor. If anyone challenges him, he is an enemy of Henry and an ally of Alençon and Fluellen may arrest him. Henry gets Fluellen to escort Gower to his tent. He makes mischief as he sends Fluellen within Williams’ sight, and he knows that it will result in a quarrel. He follows them to make sure nothing bad happens between the two of them, along with Exeter.
    • Scene VIII
      • Gower and Williams enter first. Williams sees the glove in Fluellen’s hat and questions it, then strikes Fluellen. Fluellen believes he is a traitor and tries to arrest the soldier. Warwick and Gloucester enter, wondering what the commotion is about and then Henry enters. Henry asks what is going on and then admits to Williams that he was the one that he exchanged gloves with; he was in disguise. Fluellen offers to behead the soldier, but Henry asks how the soldier can make it up to him. Williams says that he did not mean the things he said, though they were said to his face, as Henry points out. Williams’ argument is to say that he did not know it was Henry in disguise and that anything he said could not be taken badly because he did not know it was Henry. It was Henry’s own fault for going in disguise. Williams asks for forgiveness. Henry grants it to him, filling the soldier’s glove up with crowns and also says that Fluellen must make it up to him. Fluellen gives the soldier twelve pence and tells him to stay out of quarrels. Williams does not want Fluellen’s money but Fluellen tells him to use it towards new shoes.
      • The English herald enters and tells them a total of 10,000 French died. He asks the Herald how many Englishmen died and he says only 29. Henry thanks God for their victory. Henry says they will have a procession through town, saying the number that died, but thanking God with it. They will perform the holy rites and then leave to Calais and then back to England.
  • Act 5
    • Prologue
      • The Chorus calls the audience to envision the King in Calais and returning to England to the shouts of men, wives, and boys congratulating him on their victory. He goes on to London; his lords think that he should lead a procession through London but he refuses, saying that it was all God’s doing that they won. The Holy Roman Emperor visits Henry, wanting to create a peace between France and England. Henry returns to France.
    • Scene I
      • The scene begins with Gower asking Fluellen why he still has his leek in his hat since Saint Davy’s Day is over. He tells Gower that Pistol told him to eat his leek with salt and bread, so he is keeping it in his hat until he sees Pistol again to give him a piece of his mind. Pistol enters and Fluellen and he quarrel. Fluellen hits Pistol with a club twice until he is stunned. Fluellen threatens to keep hitting him unless he eats the leek. Pistol eats the leek while grumbling. Fluellen gives him a penny to heal his head. He exits. Pistol says he will get revenge, but Gower calls him a “counterfeit cowardly knave” (V.i.62) and says that Pistol thought he could get away with bullying Fluellen just because he could not speak English well. Pistol decides to become a pimp and a pickpocket as he returns to England.
    • Scene II
      • King Henry, Exeter, Bedford, Gloucester, Warwick, Westmoreland and other lords enter from one door. From another come the French King, Queen Isabel, Katherine, Alice, the Duke of Burgundy, and others. King Henry invokes a peaceful setting, and the French King says he is welcome. Burgundy says that it was hard getting everyone together. He says that the French and English have to stop killing one another and to have peace. Henry tells him that they must meet his demands in order to have peace. The French King says that he will have to sit down with some of Henry’s council members to figure things out. Everyone leaves to talk over the demands and Henry is left with Katherine and Alice.
      • Henry asks Katherine what he should say in order to win her heart; Katherine tells him that she cannot understand his English. Henry asks for her to admit her feelings for him in broken English instead. Katherine says the tongues of men are full of deceits. Henry is glad that she cannot understand more because otherwise she would find him a boring commoner. He cannot woo her as men usually do because he does not know how. He says he could woo her with going into battle, though. He asks her to love him as he is, because that is all he ever will be. She does not want to love the enemy of France; Henry tells her that it will not be loving the enemy because he will own France and once they are married, they will both be a part of France. She does not understand him, so he says it in broken French and then says it does not matter what language they speak in because they are talking about love. She says that his French is enough to trick the wisest woman in France. Henry swears that he loves her and Katherine tells him that if it pleases her father, then they can get married. He asks to kiss her and Katherine says it is not proper for an unmarried woman to kiss, but Henry says that they do not have to abide by custom and kisses her.
      • The French King, Queen, Burgundy, and various lords enter. Burgundy asks Henry if he is teaching Katherine English. Burgundy remarks that she picks it up quickly and Henry says that it is hard to admit to his love fully because she cannot understand. Henry and Burgundy go back and forth with perverted talk of her being a virgin and love, a double entendre. Henry asks the French King is Katherine can be his wife and the King says yes. All of the terms are agreed upon. The King says to take Katherine so that they may have children and the kingdoms of England and France will not war again. The Queen says that God is the matchmaker of the two kingdoms and as such, joins the kingdoms as one. Henry says to prepare the wedding and hopes that the oaths made by the English and French will be kept.
      • The Chorus comes back and tells the audience that Shakespeare ends his porrly written play. Henry’s life was brief but it was a great life. He has a son and then died. The son, Henry VI, was crowned King of England and France. Later in his life, because of so many people controlling him, he lost France and England went in civil war. The Chorus once again asks the audience to not be so harsh with critiquing them.



Criticism and analysis:

While a great Shakespeare play, some believe that it is lacking conflict. In “A Kingdom for a Stage: The Achievement of Shakespeare's History Plays by Robert Ornstein,” he states that Henry V possesses conflict “but it is mainly conflict on the merely physical level” (Elliot 329). The play does not have the more intricate conflicts that Shakespeare’s other plays possess. Though this is true, it may be said that Henry V is a history play and so is based off of true, physical conflicting events.


Henry V is a controversial play in today’s day and age because of the past few wars the world has gone through. These experiences make us “wary of political leaders who … lay claim to and invade another country” (Bevington 399). George Bernard Shaw believes that Henry is nothing more than a warmonger. Historical critics warn readers of the play to keep in mind that the setting of the play was written in a Renaissance militaristic mind-set which was natural for Shakespeare’s time.


The tetralogy of plays was planned by Shakespeare to be a great sequence. Shakespeare, when he wrote the plays however, improvised the writing of each one. Henry V does not, as Shakespeare said, “continue the story, with Sir John in it, and make you merry with fair Katherine of France” (Bevington 399). Instead it “bring[s] to fulfillment the education of a politician-prince and … illustrate[s] the arts of political kingship that Prince Hal had derived from his experiences in his earlier plays” (399).


Performance History and Adaptations:


Henry V was first performed in the new Globe Theatre (after the first was burned down) in 1599.


Revivals of Henry V:

  • Princess’s Theatre, with Charles Kean as Henry V (1859) (Cockett)
  • Broadway, with Richard Mansfield as Henry V (1900) (“MANSFIELD AS HENRY V”)
  • American Shakespeare Festival Theatre, with Len Cariou as Henry V (1969) (“PLAYBILL”)
  • Shakespeare’s Globe, with Jaime Parker as Henry V (2012) (Cavendish)
  • Theatre Delicatessen, with Philip Desmeules as Henry V (2012) (“Henry V”)
  • Stratford Shakespeare Festival, with Aaron Krohn as Henry V (2012) (Windman)
  • Charles Calvert’s Henry V (Foulkes)

Film and Television:

  • Henry V – A 1944 movie starring Laurence Olivier as King Henry V




  • Henry V – A 1989 movie starring Kenneth Branagh as King Henry V



  • “The Hollow Crown” Henry V – A TV movie series starring Tom Hiddleston as King Henry V. Tom Hiddleston also stars as Prince Hal in Henry IV Parts I and II.




Sources: