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prisoner by King John and placed
in the custody of Hubert, who
is ordered to murder him. The
Cardinal is cheered by the fact that
King John will have to kill Arthur,
which will turn the English against
him. He recruits Louis the Dauphin
to march on England.
Hubert cannot bring himself to
kill Arthur and instead promises
to tell King John that he is dead.
John has had himself crowned for
a second time. When the king
announces that Arthur is dead of a
sudden sickness, the nobles angrily
renounce him. A messenger tellsthe king that French troops are
about to land on English soil. The
Bastard brings in Peter of Pomfret
who prophesies that John will give
up the crown by noon on Ascension
Day. John throws him in prison.
John is relieved when Hubert
confesses that the prince is still
alive. But Arthur falls to his death.
His body is found by Pembroke,
Salisbury, and Bigot, who don’t
believe the death was accidental.
John submits to the authority
of the Pope, on condition that
Cardinal Pandolf disarm the
French. It is Ascension Day whenTHE LORD CHAMBERLAIN’S MAN
3.4
4.1 4.3 5.2
4.2 5.1 5.4
Lady Constance mourns
the loss of Arthur.
Cardinal Pandolf advises
Louis to claim the English
throne after Arthur’s murder.
Hubert prepares to burn out
Arthur’s eyes with hot irons,
but Arthur’s pleas move him to
be merciful and spare the boy.Arthur tries to
escape, but falls to
his death from the
castle walls.King John’s
disaffected nobles
swear loyalty to the
Dauphin and prepare to
fight on his side.King John learns that
French troops are
preparing to
invade, and both
Queen Eleanor and
Lady Constance are
dead. Hubert reveals
that Arthur is
still alive.King John submits to
the authority of the Pope.In the battle,
Salisbury and
Pembroke discover
that the French are
planning to put them
to death afterward,
and return to King
John’s side.5.7
King John dies,
apparently poisoned by
a monk. The nobles are
reconciled to the new
king, Henry III.Act 4 Act 5
John resigns his crown into
Pandolf’s hands, only to have it
returned. The Bastard condemns
this and insists that the king
should continue to defy the
dauphin. The latter is eager to
fight, and refuses to be deflected
by the Cardinal. The French are
weakened by a loss of supplies and
the defection of English nobles.
As fortune turns in the favor of the
English, King John is ill. He dies in
the presence of his son, now King
Henry III. English nobles offer their
allegiance to the new king, and the
Cardinal negotiates a truce. ❯❯