Original Text |
Translated Text |
| Source: Folger Shakespeare Library |
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Enter the King, Lord John of Lancaster, and the Earl
of Westmoreland, with others. KING
So shaken as we are, so wan with care,
Find we a time for frighted peace to pant
And breathe short-winded accents of new broils
To be commenced in strands afar remote.
No more the thirsty entrance of this soil 5
Shall daub her lips with her own children’s blood.
No more shall trenching war channel her fields,
Nor bruise her flow’rets with the armèd hoofs
Of hostile paces. Those opposèd eyes,
Which, like the meteors of a troubled heaven, 10
All of one nature, of one substance bred,
Did lately meet in the intestine shock
And furious close of civil butchery,
Shall now, in mutual well-beseeming ranks,
March all one way and be no more opposed 15
Against acquaintance, kindred, and allies.
The edge of war, like an ill-sheathèd knife,
No more shall cut his master. Therefore, friends,
As far as to the sepulcher of Christ—
Whose soldier now, under whose blessèd cross 20
We are impressèd and engaged to fight—
Forthwith a power of English shall we levy,
Whose arms were molded in their mothers’ womb
To chase these pagans in those holy fields
Over whose acres walked those blessèd feet 25
Which fourteen hundred years ago were nailed
For our advantage on the bitter cross.
But this our purpose now is twelve month old,
And bootless ’tis to tell you we will go.
Therefor we meet not now. Then let me hear 30
Of you, my gentle cousin Westmoreland,
What yesternight our council did decree
In forwarding this dear expedience. | The year is 1402. King Henry delivers a lengthy speech to his council at his palace in London. He says he's totally spent from all the civil warfare the country has endured. But, he's looking forward to uniting English soldiers in a crusade against the "pagans" in the Holy Land. But, he says it's too bad he can't do this yet – he's recently learned some bad news that will force him to put the rumble in the Holy Land on hold. |
WESTMORELAND
My liege, this haste was hot in question,
And many limits of the charge set down 35
But yesternight, when all athwart there came
A post from Wales loaden with heavy news,
Whose worst was that the noble Mortimer,
Leading the men of Herefordshire to fight
Against the irregular and wild Glendower, 40
Was by the rude hands of that Welshman taken,
A thousand of his people butcherèd,
Upon whose dead corpse there was such misuse,
Such beastly shameless transformation
By those Welshwomen done, as may not be 45
Without much shame retold or spoken of. KING
It seems then that the tidings of this broil
Brake off our business for the Holy Land. WESTMORELAND
This matched with other did, my gracious lord.
For more uneven and unwelcome news 50
Came from the north, and thus it did import:
On Holy-rood Day the gallant Hotspur there,
Young Harry Percy, and brave Archibald,
That ever valiant and approvèd Scot,
At Holmedon met, where they did spend 55
A sad and bloody hour—
As by discharge of their artillery
And shape of likelihood the news was told,
For he that brought them, in the very heat
And pride of their contention did take horse, 60
Uncertain of the issue any way. | Westmoreland gives us the low-down – in a skirmish with the Welsh rebels, Edmund Mortimer, the Earl of March, has been taken captive by the Welsh leader, Owen Glendower. What's worse, 1,000 of Mortimer's English soldiers have been slaughtered in combat and the Welshwomen have mutilated the genitals of the corpses. Westmoreland also says there's more not-so-good news from the battle at Holmedon (in Northumberland near the border of Scotland). Harry Percy (a.k.a. Hotspur) has been duking it out with the leader of the Scottish forces, the Earl of Douglas. It's a real nail-biter and news of the outcome hasn't yet reached London since the messenger departed from the battlefield before the fight was over. (Remember, there was no such thing as text-messaging or Twitter. Messages were carried via horseback and it's a lengthy ride from Northumberland to London.) |
KING
Here is a dear, a true-industrious friend,
Sir Walter Blunt, new lighted from his horse,
Stained with the variation of each soil
Betwixt that Holmedon and this seat of ours, 65
And he hath brought us smooth and welcome news.
The Earl of Douglas is discomfited;
Ten thousand bold Scots, two-and-twenty knights,
Balked in their own blood, did Sir Walter see
On Holmedon’s plains. Of prisoners Hotspur took 70
Mordake, Earl of Fife and eldest son
To beaten Douglas, and the Earl of Atholl,
Of Murray, Angus, and Menteith.
And is not this an honorable spoil?
A gallant prize? Ha, cousin, is it not? 75 | Then, King Henry tells us that Sir Walter Blunt has just arrived at the palace from the battle at Holmedon, revealing that Hotspur has defeated Douglas in battle and taken him prisoner. Hotspur's army has also taken out 10,000 Scottish soldiers and 22 knights. |
WESTMORELAND
In faith, it is a conquest for a prince to boast of. KING
Yea, there thou mak’st me sad, and mak’st me sin
In envy that my Lord Northumberland
Should be the father to so blest a son,
A son who is the theme of Honor’s tongue, 80
Amongst a grove the very straightest plant,
Who is sweet Fortune’s minion and her pride;
Whilst I, by looking on the praise of him,
See riot and dishonor stain the brow
Of my young Harry. O, that it could be proved 85
That some night-tripping fairy had exchanged
In cradle-clothes our children where they lay,
And called mine “Percy,” his “Plantagenet”!
Then would I have his Harry, and he mine.
But let him from my thoughts. What think you, coz, 90
Of this young Percy’s pride? The prisoners
Which he in this adventure hath surprised
To his own use he keeps, and sends me word
I shall have none but Mordake, Earl of Fife. | King Henry and Westmoreland agree that Hotspur is awesome – he's the embodiment of "honour" and acts more like a prince than King Henry's own good-for-nothin' kid, Prince Hal. Wouldn't it be great, asks King Henry, if it turned out that some mischievous fairies had switched Prince Hal and Hotspur at birth? That way, Hotspur would be the king's son instead of Hal. Henry continues to admire Hotspur, even though Hotspur's dissed the king by refusing to give Henry his important prisoners. (Traditionally, the king's got dibs on all important captives.) |
WESTMORELAND
This is his uncle’s teaching. This is Worcester, 95
Malevolent to you in all aspects,
Which makes him prune himself, and bristle up
The crest of youth against your dignity. KING
But I have sent for him to answer this.
And for this cause awhile we must neglect 100
Our holy purpose to Jerusalem.
Cousin, on Wednesday next our council we
Will hold at Windsor. So inform the lords.
But come yourself with speed to us again,
For more is to be said and to be done 105
Than out of anger can be utterèd. WESTMORELAND I will, my liege. They exit. | Westmoreland says Hotspur's uncle, Worcester, is the reason why Hotspur's acting like such a punk about the prisoners. Worcester's a bad influence on the kid. Not to worry, says, King Henry. Hotspur's been summonsed to the court so the king can straighten him out.
In the meantime, given that the Scottish, the Welsh, and the Percy family are all acting up and giving Henry a big headache, the King's little trip to Jerusalem is going to have to wait while he deals with problems at home. (History snack: Technically, Shakespeare collapses events from the first couple of years of Henry's reign. The battle with the Scots at Holmedon (1402) came after the skirmish with the Welsh that resulted in Mortimer's capture (1401). While we're being technical, we should also note that Shakespeare conflates two historical figures – Lord Edmund Mortimer, who was captured by Glendower and his nephew, Edmund, the Fifth Earl of March – into one character. No big whoop for the story line, but we thought you might want to know.)
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