The Shakespeare Book

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with her to Milford Haven, where

she hopes to meet Posthumus

with the Roman army. The queen

has given Pisanio “poison,” for

Posthumus. In Wales, Pisanio shows

Innogen Posthumus’s letter. She

begs Pisanio to kill her but he

persuades her to follow the Roman

army in disguise. Cloten pursues

Innogen, disguised as Posthumus.

Disguised as the youth Fidele, an

exhausted Innogen is given shelter

by Guiderius and Arviragus.

Innogen takes the “medicine”

given her unwittingly by Pisanio.

Cloten challenges Guiderius, who

returns with Cloten’s head. Arviragus

finds Innogen, apparently dead, in

the cave. Belarius lays her next to

Cloten’s headless body. Innogen

wakes to see the corpse. She thinks

it is Posthumus and that she has

been betrayed by Pisanio and Cloten.

Lucius, now general of the

Roman army, makes Innogen his

servant. Posthumus rues that he

urged Pisanio to kill Innogen and

joins the British disguised as a poor

soldier. Thanks to Belarius and his

sons, the British beat the Romans.

Posthumus dresses as a Roman and

offers himself as a prisoner. He

THE KING’S MAN

3.3

3.4 4.2 4.2

3.6 4.2 5.1

In a remote cave,
banished Belarius
reveals that his two
sons are Cymbeline’s
lost sons.

Fleeing from court

with Innogen, Pisanio

shows her

Posthumus’s letter.

Disguised as

Posthumus, Cloten

is beheaded in a

fight by Belarius’s

son Guiderius.

Innogen, waking and

believing the corpse is

Posthumus, asks the

invading Romans to

help her bury him.

Persuaded by Pisanio

to travel in disguise as

a boy, Innogen is

taken in by

Belarius and

his sons.

Innogen appears to

die from the poison

and is laid to rest

beside Cloten’s

headless body.

Arriving in Britain with

the Roman army, a

desolate Posthumus

gives himself up as

a prisoner to the

Britons.

5.6

The Romans are

defeated, Giacomo

confesses, Innogen

is reunited with

Posthumus, and

Cymbeline finds

his lost sons.

Act 3 Act 4 Act 5

dreams of his dead family and the

god Jupiter urges justice. Belarius

and his sons are rewarded. The

queen dies and her wickedness is

exposed. The Roman captives are

brought before Cymbeline. Innogen,

still in disguise, sees Giacomo with

Posthumus’s ring. Giacomo admits

he lied to Posthumus. Posthumus

confesses his part in Innogen’s

“death.” Innogen shows she is alive,

but Posthumus does not recognize

her. Pisanio verifies it is Innogen,

and she and Posthumus are

reunited. Belarius reveals that the

two boys are Cymbeline’s lost sons.❯❯