Henry IV, Part 2
56 pages • 1-hour read
William ShakespeareHenry IV, Part 2
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Act IAct Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, illness, sexual content, and graphic violence.
Act I, Induction Summary
The play begins with a Prologue, narrated by Rumour, the embodiment of whispers and gossip. Introducing themselves, Rumour describes the task of carrying messages across the world. Countries prepare for war based on the messages that Rumour carries. Many people are prompted to make mistakes due to the “continual slanders” that Rumour passes along. People—especially in crowds—are liable to believe Rumour, so the task is often easy.
Rumour is visiting a lavish home in Northern England that belongs to the Earl of Northumberland, a powerful man who is deeply involved in the conspiracy against the king. Northumberland’s son, Hotspur, led the rebel army that was defeated at the end of Henry IV, Part 1 in a battle that “quench[ed] the flame of bold rebellion” and killed Hotspur himself (I.Induction.26). In spite of this, the rumors spreading through the country have the information mixed up. Rumour says that Hotspur won and the king was defeated. These lies are, according to Rumour, “worse than true wrongs” (I.Induction.40).
Act I, Scene 1 Summary
As Rumour exits, a messenger arrives at the Earl of Northumberland’s castle. The messenger is Lord Bardolph, and he has “certain news” about the Battle of Shrewsbury (depicted at the end of Henry IV, Part 1). According to Bardolph, King Henry is defeated and injured, while his allies—including Prince Hal—have been either captured or killed. Bardolph claims that Hotspur, Northumberland’s son, himself captured Prince Hal.
Then, another messenger arrives. The second messenger is Travers, the servant of Lord Bardolph. Travers brings more recent, more accurate news: The rebels’ army has been soundly defeated. Lord Bardolph does not want to believe Travers, but the arrival of a third messenger named Morton not only confirms the news of the rebels’ defeat but adds that Hotspur has been killed by Prince Hal. Seeing that Hotspur was dead, Morton explains, the rebel army “turned on themselves, like dull and heavy lead” (I.1.118). The Earl of Worcester—the brother of the Earl of Northumberland and a fellow conspirator—has been captured by the king. The Earl of Douglas, a Scottish noble, has also been captured.
The news has an immediate effect on Northumberland. Casting away his crutch and his coif, he swears that he will have his revenge. Bardolph and Morton try to calm Northumberland by pointing out that his son and his brother knew the risk of the rebellion when they set out. Morton also says that there are still some rebels and sympathetic forces who have not been defeated. The Archbishop of York, he says, is rallying rebel forces to challenge the king again, and his influence “turns insurrection to religion” (I.1.201). Northumberland regains control of himself and begins to compose letters to his fellow conspirators to resume the rebellion.
Act I, Scene 2 Summary
In London, Sir John Falstaff, a friend of Prince Hal despite his disreputable character, has grown in fame and stature. He claims that he was the person who killed Hotspur. In truth, Prince Hal killed Hotspur but agreed that Falstaff could take the credit.
Falstaff quizzes his page about minor matters. Having recently given a sample of his urine to a doctor, he is curious about the results. He also wants an update on a new outfit that he ordered following his increase in fame. According to the page, the doctor says that the provider of the urine may have “more diseases than he knew for” (I.2.5), and the merchant refused to make the clothes due to Falstaff’s terrible credit. Falstaff unleashes his wit against these perceived injustices.
The Lord Chief Justice, the highest authority on the law in England, comes to Falstaff to discuss a criminal charge. According to the Justice, Falstaff had been summoned to court to answer questions about a robbery at Gad’s Hill (which occurred in Henry IV, Part 1). Falstaff avoided this court date by joining Prince Hal’s fight against the rebels. The Lord Chief Justice is under no impression about Falstaff’s true character. He is not deceived by the sudden fame and adulation that have been directed at Falstaff, nor is he moved by Falstaff’s attempts to insult or mock him. He does, however, agree that Falstaff will avoid any legal repercussions on this occasion. Falstaff will soon be called back to battle to put down the latest rebel army, joining the forces that will be led by King Henry’s younger son, Prince John. Furthermore, the Justice says, the king has “severed” the bond between Falstaff and Prince Hal. As soon as the Justice exits, Falstaff sends the page away with a letter to the commanding officers of his army and readies himself to “turn diseases to commodity” (I.2.242-43).
Act I, Scene 3 Summary
In his palace, the Archbishop of York meets with Thomas Mowbray, Lord Hastings, and Lord Bardolph. All three were involved in Hotspur’s rebellion, and they continue to work against “the power and puissance of the King” (I.3.9). Key to their planning is to decide whether they can count on the Earl of Northumberland. With his forces, the rebel army will be large enough to challenge the king. If Northumberland does not join them, they will lack the numbers necessary to mount a challenge. Hastings has faith that Northumberland will join them since he is still angry with the king following the death of his son, Hotspur. The Archbishop and Bardolph, however, remind Hastings that Hotspur lost, in part, because of Northumberland’s refusal to send his troops to the Battle of Shrewsbury (a decision depicted in Henry IV, Part 1).
Hastings argues that King Henry faces threats on three fronts: He must send an army to quell Owen Glendower’s Welsh rebels, another to settle a dispute with France, and a third to deal with their rebellion. Thus, the king must divide his army and will be weaker in the field. Together, the three men agree to continue their rebellion with or without Northumberland’s support.
Act I Analysis
The use of a Prologue, delivered by the personification of Rumour, plays heavily on Classical tradition. Rumour’s overture, which sets the thematic tone for the play which is to follow, invokes a traditional Greek chorus in a way that ties English history to the Classical world. For Elizabethan audiences, the story of Henry IV is comparatively recent, so there is a political and nationalistic advantage in framing the history of England in the same manner as the history of Ancient Greece or Rome. The Prologue, an act of mythmaking that plays on the Classical traditions of the theater as well as the historical knowledge and expectation of the audience, subtly legitimizes the English state.
The content of the Induction is as significant as its form. Rumour warns against the spread of “false reports”—and against taking such reports at face value merely because they are palatable—which is a moral lesson told directly to the crowd. It also has direct relevance to the scene that follows, in which Northumberland receives conflicting reports of the death of his son. This scene relies heavily on dramatic irony; crowds who attended a production of Henry IV, Part 1 would have known that Hotspur was killed by Prince Hal at the Battle of Shrewsbury. The scene thus shows Northumberland trying to learn what the audience already knows, and the dangers of false reports are evident in his response to the conflicting messages. Northumberland does not want to believe that his son is dead. He is desperate for the false reports to be true, and his pain is heightened by the confusing nature of the conflicting reports. His emotions veer in different directions, only to leave him feeling worse for having believed the false reports. The scene is therefore a vindication of Rumour’s warning as well as a demonstration of the cost of war and rebellion.
Scenes 2 and 3 show the various social strata on which the play operates. In Scene 2, the comic figure of Falstaff defends himself against accusations of unpaid debts and general debauchery in a London tavern. In Scene 3, a trio of rebel lords discusses treason against the same king they helped put on the throne. The tone of the two scenes differs markedly, swinging from comedic to serious in a way that reflects the subject matter: a minor domestic scene versus a consideration of matters of state.
As much as the scenes offer a social contrast, however, they also contain many similarities. The rebel lords and Falstaff share a similar disregard for the law, for example, believing that rules should not apply to them. Likewise, Falstaff uses his wit and charm to talk himself out of his predicament, while Lord Bardolph reasons through the discussion of whether the rebellion should be continued with rhetorical allusions to the construction of a house. Also, like Falstaff, Hastings is able to bring people around to his view, even if he is just delaying the inevitable reckoning with the authorities for whom he shows little regard. These parallels unite the dramatic story of the rebellion with the more comic story of Falstaff. Rather than simply comic relief, therefore, Falstaff’s scenes echo the affairs of his social superiors, mimicking, mirroring, and satirizing their positions and actions.
Moreover, the suggestions of Falstaff’s poor health help introduce one of the play’s key themes: Confronting Aging and Mortality. If Falstaff serves as a foil to the rebels, he also serves as one to King Henry, who is likewise ill. In this context, the nature of Falstaff’s diseases is significant; he mentions “pox” (probably syphilis) and “gout,” which are associated with sex and food and drink consumption, respectively. That his illness stems from activities that would have been seen as vices at the time casts King Henry’s decline in a similarly moralized light, hearkening back to the dubiously legitimate nature of his rule. Northumberland, too, serves as a foil to the king. Though his sickness in Henry IV, Part 1 was largely feigned—a means of avoiding battle—the death of his son brings his mortality sharply into focus by robbing him of his heir. Thus, the news of Hotspur’s death temporarily causes him to shake off his “illness”: “[T]hese news, / Having been well, that would have made me sick, / Being sick, have in some measure made me well” (I.1.137-39). Falstaff, by contrast, is inclined simply to ignore his health, contributing to a spectrum of attitudes toward aging and death before King Henry himself appears.
Unlock all 56 pages of this Study Guide
Get in-depth, chapter-by-chapter summaries and analysis from our literary experts.
- Grasp challenging concepts with clear, comprehensive explanations
- Revisit key plot points and ideas without rereading the book
- Share impressive insights in classes and book clubs