1. 1. You are a new, young, untested King Your people have no faith in you to lead them. In order to win their trust, you will need to lead them into war, and conquer your enemies. Your foes outnumber you five to one
2. 2. Henry V is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1599. Its full titles are The Cronicle History of Henry the fift (in the First Quarto text) and The Life of Henry the Fifth (in the First Folio text). It tells the story of King Henry V of England, focusing on events immediately before and after the Battle of Agincourt (1415) during the Hundred Years' War.
3. 3. The play is the final part of a tetralogy, preceded by Richard II, Henry IV, Part 1 and Henry IV, Part 2. The original audiences would thus have already been familiar with the title character, who was depicted in the Henry IV plays as a wild, undisciplined lad known as "Prince Harry" and by Falstaff as "Hal". In Henry V, the young prince has become a mature man and embarks on a successful conquest of France.
4. 4. Henry V (16 September 1386 31 August 1422) was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of 35 in 1422. He was the second English monarch who came from the House of Lancaster. After military experience fighting various lords who rebelled against his father, Henry IV, Henry came into political conflict with the increasingly ill king. After his father's death, Henry rapidly assumed control of the country and embarked on war with France. From an unassuming start, his military successes in the Hundred Years' War, culminating with his famous victory at the Battle of Agincourt, saw him come close to conquering France. After months of negotiation, the Treaty of Troyes recognized Henry V as regent and heir- apparent to the French throne, and he was subsequently married to Charles's daughter, Catherine of Valois. Following Henry V's sudden and unexpected death in France, he was succeeded by his infant son, who reigned as Henry VI.
5. 5. The cast is divided into three competing groups: The English Henry V Duke of Gloucester Henry's brother Duke of Bedford Henry's brother Duke of Clarence Henry's brother Duke of Exeter Henry's uncle Duke of York Henry's cousin; he is the Duke of Aumerle of Richard II, and the traitor Cambridge's brother; Archbishop of Canterbury Bishop of Ely The traitors Earl of Cambridge -Henry's cousin Lord Scroop Sir Thomas Grey The French King of France Queen Isabel Louis their son, the Dauphin Katharine their daughter
6. 6. The play is set in England in the early fifteenth century. The political situation in England is tense: King Henry IV has died, and his son, the young King Henry V, has just assumed the throne. Several bitter civil wars have left the people of England restless and dissatisfied. Furthermore, in order to gain the respect of the English people and the court, Henry must live down his wild adolescent past, when he used to consort with thieves and drunkards at the Boars Head Tavern on the seedy side of London.
7. 7. Henry lays claim to certain parts of France, based on his distant roots in the French royal family and on a very technical interpretation of ancient land laws. When the young prince, or Dauphin, of France sends Henry an insulting message in response to these claims, Henry decides to invade France. Supported by the English noblemen and clergy, Henry gathers his troops for war.
8. 8. The climax of the war comes at the famous Battle of Agincourt, at which the English are outnumbered by the French five to one. The night before the battle, King Henry disguises himself as a common soldier and talks to many of the soldiers in his camp, learning who they are and what they think of the great battle in which they have been swept up. When he is by himself, he laments his ever-present responsibilities as king. In the morning, he prays to God and gives a powerful, inspiring speech to his soldiers. Miraculously, the English win the battle, and the proud French must surrender at last.
9. 9. O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend The brightest heaven of invention! King Henry V. Prologue. Consideration, like an angel, came And whipped the offending Adam out of him. King Henry V. Act i. Sc. 1. I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips, Straining upon the start. King Henry V. Act iii. Sc. 1. Men of few words are the best men. King Henry V. Act iii. Sc. 2. There is some soul of goodness in things evil, Would men observingly distil it out. King Henry V. Act iv. Sc. 1. Every subjects duty is the kings; but every subjects soul is his own. King Henry V. Act iv. Sc. 1. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers. King Henry V. Act iv. Sc. 3. There is occasions and causes why and wherefore in all things. King Henry V. Act v. Sc. 1. Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more, Or close the wall up with our English dead! In peace there s nothing so becomes a man As modest stillness and humility; But when the blast of war blows in our ears, Then imitate the action of the tiger: Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood. King Henry V. Act iii. Sc. 1.
10. 10. The histories were those plays based on the lives of English kings. Therefore they can be more accurately called the "English history plays," a less common designation. English histories King John Edward III Richard II Henry IV, Part 1 Henry IV, Part 2 Henry V Henry VI, Part 1 Henry VI, Part 2 Henry VI, Part 3 Richard III Henry VIII
11. 11. There have been two major film adaptations. The first, directed by and starring Laurence Olivier in 1944, is a colorful and highly stylized version which begins in the Globe Theatre and then gradually shifts to a realistic evocation of the Battle of Agincourt. Olivier's film was made during the Second World War and was intended as a patriotic rallying cry at the time of the invasion of Normandy. The second major film, directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh in 1989, attempts to give a more realistic evocation of the period and lays more emphasis on the horrors of war. It features a mud-spattered and gruesome Battle of Agincourt. Where Olivier staged the comic scenes as comedy, Branagh played them as serious drama, because he felt the humor was outdated and incomprehensible to modern audiences.
12. 12. There have also been three major television adaptions, all made by the BBC in England: The first was part of an abridged Henriad entitled An Age Of Kings in 1960. [VIDEO] The second was a 1979 BBC Production as part of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare series. [VIDEO] The most recent was a new four- film Henriad produced in 2012 entitled The Hollow Crown. [VIDEO]
13. 13. Despite being a play about a war that occurred eight hundred years ago, Shakespeare wasnt trying to teach a history lesson. Instead, he entertained his audiences with portraits of vibrant characters and heroic deeds from their past. Giving them human qualities such as courage, honor, loyalty, and brotherhood makes Henry V still powerfully resonate with audiences today.
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