Contents
Henry IV Part 1.......................................................................................................................................1
Some Notes on the Play.....................................................................................................................1
the story, a tl;dr.............................................................................................................................1
the play, more than a history.........................................................................................................2
how to become a king....................................................................................................................2
time................................................................................................................................................2
from court to pub and back again..................................................................................................3
The Play, a Scene-by-Scene summary................................................................................................3
Act I Scene 1..................................................................................................................................3
Act I Scene 2..................................................................................................................................3
Act I Scene 3..................................................................................................................................4
Act II Scene 1..................................................................................................................................4
Act II Scene 3..................................................................................................................................5
Act II Scene 3..................................................................................................................................5
Act II Scene 4..................................................................................................................................5
Act III Scene 1.................................................................................................................................5
Act III Scene 2.................................................................................................................................6
Act III Scene 3.................................................................................................................................6
Act IV Scene 1................................................................................................................................6
Act IV Scene 2................................................................................................................................7
Act IV Scene 3................................................................................................................................7
Act IV, Scene 4...............................................................................................................................7
Act V, Scene 1................................................................................................................................7
Act V Scene 2.................................................................................................................................7
Act V Scene 3.................................................................................................................................7
Act V Scene IV................................................................................................................................8
Act V Scene 5.................................................................................................................................8
Some Notes on the Play
the story, a tl;dr
Richard II tells of Henry Bolingbroke successfully rebelling against Richard II. He becomes Henry IV,
but has to defend his title. Henry IV.i starts with Henry hoping for peace, but there is still unrest at
the borders with Wales and Scotland. The Welsh leader has taken the English army’s leader,
, Mortimer, captive. On the Scottish border, England has won, but the leader of that army, Hotspur,
refuses to yield his prisoners to the king until Mortimer (his brother in law) is freed. Henry, however,
sees Mortimer as a traitor due to his marriage. It also turns out Richard II appointed Mortimer as his
rightful heir.1 Hotspur frees the Scottish prisoners in the hope he can befriend them to rise up
against Henry.
Meanwhile, Prince Hal shows little interest in wars and affairs of state, spending more time in pubs
with Sir John Falstaff. Henry does not realise that Hal intends to abandon idle habits and low
company when he becomes king. Hal tricks Falstaff and, upon being confronted with his father, Hal
promises to fight Hotspur. Here the prince reveals his royal character and leads the army to victory.
the play, more than a history
It is easy to overlook that a play is also a narrative. There might not be a single narrative voice, just
action, but there is a poet behind it who has a story to tell beyond the action on stage. There is an
agency. The play is not merely a history, it leans towards a comedy: one of its major themes is
coming to terms with life as it is. Hal does this, Falstaff and Hotspur refuse to.
how to become a king
Throughout the play, we hear three different accounts of how Henry IV became king. None of them
correspond with the narrative told in Richard II.
1. III.2.39-90. King Henry IV.
a. Geared towards Hal, tells it as a warning.
b. Henry’s strategizing, the way he presents himself, led him to the throne. Henry is a
show of force, and his excellent timing brought him to this position.
2. IV.3.52-88. Hotspur.
a. Geared towards his uncles, tells it to justify his anger.
i. The moment this topic gets addressed, Hotspur becomes serious. His usual
overly honour-filled speech tones down.
b. Hotspur and his family are kingmakers, Henry was lucky.
3. V.1.30-71. Worcester.
a. Recounts the story towards Henry, tells it for the purposes of blaming him.
b. Emphasises that Henry was lucky, that the throne was won through deceit and
opportunism.
i. Just like in Love’s Labour’s Lost, broken vows and the mistrust that they
cause lead to the play ending as it does.
Which one is true? Or the truest? We don’t know the real story, and to what extent which
combination of situations led to the success of the rebellion.
time
Each of the narratives mention time, the importance of seizing the right moment. This theme is set
up from the opening speech: Henry’s lines are littered with temporal references, with many ‘no
more’s and ‘now’s. Henry and Hal can maybe not control, but perfectly navigate alongside time.
Falstaff and Hotspur are in defiance of time, and neither profits from it.
Hal knows when it is time to be serious. Where Falstaff asks as a sort of father figure to him at the
start of the play, a warm, welcoming figure to contrast his actual cold, calculating father, Hal knows
when it is time to get to business. This switch is not only internally for Hal, but externally played out
as well. In Act II Scene 4, Falstaff pretends to be King Henry as Hal plays himself. Once this play is
1
Shakespeare here merges two people with the same name.
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