Shakespeare’s Henry V: Historical Context, Plot, and Characters
Henry V
Context
The most influential writer in all of English literature, William Shakespeare, was born in 1564 to a successful middle-class glove-maker in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Shakespeare attended grammar school, but his formal education proceeded no further. In 1582, he married an older woman, Anne Hathaway, and had three children with her. Around 1590, he left his family behind and traveled to London to work as an actor and playwright. Public and critical acclaim quickly followed, and Shakespeare eventually became the most popular playwright in England and part-owner of the Globe Theater. His career bridged the reigns of Elizabeth I (ruled 1558–1603) and James I (ruled 1603–1625), and he was a favorite of both monarchs. Indeed, James granted Shakespeare’s company the greatest possible compliment by bestowing upon its members the title of King’s Men. Wealthy and renowned, Shakespeare retired to Stratford and died in 1616 at the age of fifty-two. At the time of Shakespeare’s death, literary luminaries such as Ben Jonson hailed his works as timeless.
Shakespeare’s works were collected and printed in various editions during the century following his death, and by the early eighteenth century, his reputation as the greatest poet ever to write in English was well established. The unprecedented admiration garnered by his works led to a fierce curiosity about Shakespeare’s life, but the dearth of biographical information has left many details of Shakespeare’s personal history shrouded in mystery. Some people have concluded from this fact and from Shakespeare’s modest education that Shakespeare’s plays were actually written by someone else—Francis Bacon and the Earl of Oxford are the two most popular candidates—but the support for this claim is overwhelmingly circumstantial, and the theory is not taken seriously by many scholars.
In the absence of credible evidence to the contrary, Shakespeare must be viewed as the author of the thirty-seven plays and 154 sonnets that bear his name. The legacy of this body of work is immense. A number of Shakespeare’s plays seem to have transcended even the category of brilliance, becoming so influential as to affect profoundly the course of Western literature and culture ever after.
Henry V is one of Shakespeare’s so-called history plays. It forms the fourth part of a tetralogy (a four-part series) dealing with the historical rise of the English royal House of Lancaster. (The three plays that come before it are Richard II, I Henry IV, and II Henry IV.) Henry V, probably written in 1599, is one of the most popular of Shakespeare’s history plays. It contains a host of entertaining characters who speak in many accents and languages. The play is full of noble speeches, heroic battles, and valiant English underdogs who fight their way to victory against all odds. Additionally, King Henry seems to be a perfect leader—brave, modest, and fiercely focused, but with a sense of humor to match.
The play’s treatment of King Henry V, however, is more problematic than it seems at first glance. Henry is a model of traditional heroism, but his value system is confusing. After all, his sense of honor leads him to invade a nonaggressive country and to slaughter thousands of people. He sentences to death former friends and prisoners of war while claiming to value mercy, and he never acknowledges that he bears any responsibility for the bloodshed he has initiated. It is useful to read the play with an eye toward these discrepancies, which Shakespeare examines in a complicated exploration of the nature of kingship. Whether or not he appears to be an admirable man, Henry is presented as a nearly ideal king, with a diamond-hard focus, an intractable resolve, and the willpower to subordinate his own personal feelings to the needs of his nation and his throne. The brilliance of Henry’s speeches and his careful cultivation of his image make him an effective and inspiring leader. Whether he emerges from the play as a heroic figure or merely a king as cold as he is brilliant depends largely on each individual reader’s interpretation.
Plot
The play is set in England in the early fifteenth century. The political situation in England is tense: King Henry IV has died, and his son, the young King Henry V, has just assumed the throne. Several bitter civil wars have left the people of England restless and dissatisfied. Furthermore, in order to gain the respect of the English people and the court, Henry must live down his wild adolescent past, when he used to consort with thieves and drunkards at the Boar’s Head Tavern on the seedy side of London.
Henry lays claim to certain parts of France, based on his distant roots in the French royal family and on a very technical interpretation of ancient land laws. When the young prince, or Dauphin, of France sends Henry an insulting message in response to these claims, Henry decides to invade France. Supported by the English noblemen and clergy, Henry gathers his troops for war.
Henry’s decision to invade France trickles down to affect the common people he rules. In the Boar’s Head Tavern in Eastcheap, some of the king’s former friends—whom he rejected when he rose to the throne—prepare to leave their homes and families. Bardolph, Pistol, and Nim are common lowlifes and part-time criminals, on the opposite end of the social spectrum from their royal former companion. As they prepare for the war, they remark on the death of Falstaff, an elderly knight who was once King Henry’s closest friend.
Just before his fleet sets sail, King Henry learns of a conspiracy against his life. The three traitors working for the French beg for mercy, but Henry denies their request. He orders that the trio, which includes a former friend named Scrope, be executed. The English sail for France, where they fight their way across the country. Against incredible odds, they continue to win after conquering the town of Harfleur, where Henry gives an impassioned speech to motivate his soldiers to victory. Among the officers in King Henry’s army are men from all parts of Britain, such as Fluellen, a Welsh captain. As the English advance, Nim and Bardolph are caught looting and are hanged at King Henry’s command.
The climax of the war comes at the famous Battle of Agincourt, at which the English are outnumbered by the French five to one. The night before the battle, King Henry disguises himself as a common soldier and talks to many of the soldiers in his camp, learning who they are and what they think of the great battle in which they have been swept up. When he is by himself, he laments his ever-present responsibilities as king. In the morning, he prays to God and gives a powerful, inspiring speech to his soldiers. Miraculously, the English win the battle, and the proud French must surrender at last. Some time later, peace negotiations are finally worked out: Henry will marry Catherine, the daughter of the French king. Henry’s son will be the king of France, and the marriage will unite the two kingdoms.
Characters
- King Henry V – The young, recently crowned king of England. Henry is brilliant, focused, fearless, and committed to the responsibilities of kingship. These responsibilities often force him to place his personal feelings second to the needs of the crown. Henry is a brilliant orator who uses his skill to justify his claims and to motivate his troops. Once Henry has resolved to conquer France, he pursues his goal relentlessly to the end.
- Chorus – A single character who introduces each of the play’s five acts. Like the group of singers who comprised the chorus in Greek drama, the Chorus in Henry V functions as a narrator offering commentary on the play’s plot and themes.
- The Dukes of Exeter, Westmorland, Salisbury, and Warwick – Trusted advisors to King Henry and the leaders of his military. The Duke of Exeter, who is also Henry’s uncle, is entrusted with carrying important messages to the French king.
- The Dukes of Clarence, Bedford, and Gloucester – Henry’s three younger brothers. Clarence, Bedford, and Gloucester are noblemen and fighters.
- The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Ely – Wealthy and powerful English clergymen. The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Ely do not go to fight in the war, but their urging and fund-raising are important factors in Henry’s initial decision to invade France.
- Cambridge, Scrope, and Grey – Three conspirators against King Henry. Cambridge, Scrope, and Grey are bribed by French agents to kill Henry before he sets sail for France. Scrope’s betrayal of his king is particularly surprising, as Scrope and Henry are good friends.
- York and Suffolk – Two noble cousins who die together at the Battle of Agincourt.
- The King of France Charles VI – A capable leader, Charles does not underestimate King Henry, as his son, the Dauphin, does.
- Isabel – The queen of France, married to Charles VI. Isabel does not appear until the final scene (V.ii), in which her daughter, Catherine, is betrothed to King Henry.
- The Dauphin – The son of the king of France and heir to the throne (until Henry takes this privilege from him). The Dauphin is a headstrong and overconfident young man, more inclined to mock the English than to make preparations to fight them. He also mocks Henry, making frequent mention of the king’s irresponsible youth.
- Catherine – The daughter of the king of France. Catherine is eventually married off to King Henry in order to cement the peace between England and France. She speaks little English.
- French noblemen and military leaders – The Constable of France, the Duke of Orléans, the Duke of Britain, the Duke of Bourbon, the Earl of Grandpré, Lord Rambures, the Duke of Burgundy, and the Governor of Harfleur are French noblemen and military leaders. Most of them are killed or captured by the English at the Battle of Agincourt, though the Duke of Burgundy survives to help with the peace negotiations between France and England. Like the Dauphin, most of these leaders are more interested in making jokes about the English than in taking them seriously as a fighting force, a tendency that leads to the eventual French defeat at Agincourt.
- Sir Thomas Erpingham – A wise, aged veteran of many wars who serves with Henry’s campaign.
- Captain Gower – An army captain and a capable fighter who serves with Henry’s campaign.
- Captain Fluellen, Captain MacMorris, and Captain Jamy – The captains of King Henry’s troops from Wales, Ireland, and Scotland, respectively, all of whom have heavy accents reflecting their countries of origin. Fluellen, a close friend of Captain Gower, is the most prominent of the three. His wordiness provides comic relief, but he is also very likable and is an intelligent leader and strategist.
- Ancient Pistol – A commoner from London who serves in the war with Henry, and a friend of Nim and Bardolph. Pistol speaks with a blustery and melodramatic poetic diction; he is married to the hostess of the Boar’s Head Tavern in London.
- Bardolph – A commoner from London who serves in the war with Henry, and a friend of Pistol and Nim. Bardolph is a former friend of King Henry from his wild youth. A thief and a coward, Bardolph is hanged in France for looting from the conquered towns in violation of the king’s order.
- Nim – A commoner from London who serves in the war with Henry, and a friend of Pistol and Bardolph. Like Bardolph, Nim is hanged in France for looting from the conquered towns.
- Boy – Formerly in the service of Falstaff, the nameless boy leaves London after his master’s death and goes with Pistol, Nim, and Bardolph to the war in France. The boy is somewhat touchy and embarrassed that his companions are cowardly thieves.
- Michael Williams, John Bates, and Alexander Court – Common soldiers with whom King Henry, disguised, argues the night before the Battle of Agincourt. Though he argues heatedly with Williams, Henry is generally impressed with these men’s intelligence and courage.
- Hostess – The keeper of the Boar’s Head Tavern in London. Mistress Quickly, as she is also known, is married to Pistol. We hear news of her death from venereal disease in Act V, scene i.
- Sir John Falstaff – The closest friend and mentor of the young Henry, back in his wild days. Falstaff doesn’t actually appear in Henry V, but he is a major figure in the Henry IV plays. He is a jovial and frequently drunken old knight, but his heart is broken when Henry breaks his ties with him after becoming king. We hear news of Falstaff’s offstage death in Act II, scenes i and iii.
- Alice – The maid of the French princess Catherine. Alice has spent time in England and teaches Catherine some English, though not very well.
- Montjoy – The French herald, or messenger.
- Monsieur le Fer – A French soldier and gentleman who is captured by Pistol at the Battle of Agincourt.