150
F
alstaff remembers hearing
London’s church clocks
chiming midnight when, as
a student at the Inns of Court, he
burned the candle at both ends. In
those days, the lateness of the hour
signaled a young man’s liberty.
Now, remembered in old age, it
marks the end of things. With their
blend of warmth and wistfulness
Falstaff‘s words capture perfectly
the bittersweet quality of this
play, in which for king, rebels,
and common folk alike, midnight
chimes finality and judgment.
The title Henry IV Part 2 leads
us to expect a sequel to Part 1, and
to a degree it is. As the title page to
the 1600 quarto promises, we are
to see again the comic knight John
Falstaff, meet his new companion,
Pistol, and follow the history to
Henry’s death and the coronation
of the hero-king Henry V. It was
a winning combination for the
Elizabethan audience who had
delighted in Part 1. But while there
is comedy in Part 2, the mood is
darker, and the historical events
are less valiant, tainted as they
are with political trickery.HENRY IV PART 2
The play appears to have been
written for an audience that has
seen Part 1, and it therefore uses
similarities between the two in
narrative and structure to make
the differences stand out. While
this play looks forward to the
coronation of Henry V, its main
focus is retrospective. It revisits
issues and relationships from Part 1
and reflects on them at a slower
pace and in a more nuanced way.Subjects to time
The three worlds of Part 1—the
court, the tavern, and the rebels—
now feel the debilitating effects
of time and mortality. Plump Jack
Falstaff, Hal’s father-substitute and
tavern-king, is in physical decline:
his first words in Part 2 are to
inquire about the health of his
urine. The king himself swaps the
robe of majesty for a nightgown as
sleepless anxiety about rebellion
and his inheritance contributes to
his deteriorating health. And the
rebels, too, admit that their long
dispute with the king has madeIN CONTEXT
THEMES
Time’s decay, loyalty and
betrayal, misrememberingSETTING
Court of Henry IV; Boar’s
Head Tavern, London;
Gloucestershire; Gaultree
Forest, YorkshireSOURCES
1587 Holinshed’s Chronicles of
England, Scotland, and Ireland.1594 The Famous Victories
of Henry V, an anonymous
play probably known to
Shakespeare.1595 Samuel Daniel’s poem
“The First Four Books of the
Civil War Between the Two
Houses of York and Lancaster.”LEGACY
Since Henry IV Part 2 is rarely
played as a solo drama, most
of the performance history is
shared with Part 1.Early 1700s Actor-manager
Thomas Betterton’s adaptation
extends the popular role of
Falstaff on the London stage.1821 The play is performed
as part of the coronation
celebrations for George IV.
1945 Laurence Olivier plays a
memorable Justice Shallow at
the New Theatre, London.1966 Orson Welles’ film The
Chimes at Midnight focuses on
Hal’s father-son relationship
with Falstaff and the King.2012 BBC’s “Hollow Crown”
series casts Simon Russell
Beale as a melancholy Falstaff.In an intriguing theatrical dynamic,
a dotard Falstaff was played by British
actor Timothy West alongside a cynical
Prince Hal, played by West’s son
Samuel, at the Old Vic, London, in 1997.O thoughts of men accursed!
Past and to come seems best;
things present, worst.
Archbishop of York
Act 1, Scene 3