II : Courting Catastrophe : 1 And 2 Henry Iv

As a king, Henry becomes known for being a man of resilience, strategy, and combat. These traits, according to Machiavelli, are necessary to become the “ideal king.” As stated by Machiavelli, “…a prince ought to have no other aim or thought, nor select anything else for his study, than war and its rules and discipline; for this is the sole art that belongs to him who rules.” (Machiavelli) This can be seen when the Dauphin presents Henry with a gift of tennis balls and an insulting speech practically telling him to stay out of grown men’s affairs. This gives Henry the leverage he needs to start a war with France without looking like the instigator. He can now put the blame of war on the Dauphin and the many lives of whom will be killed. Henry uses this to move toward his strength and show his full potential.

Henry V, a play narrating King Henry V’s journey to invading the French throne and take what is ‘rightfully’ his. The five act drama had been written by William Shakespeare, whose work had consisted of unrivalled plays and poems. This play, acts as a sequel to Henry IV, viewing Henry’s drastic growth from a reckless Prince to an unforgettable King. Like many other plays, Henry V consists of many major themes that shape the story; one being betrayal. This essay will further discuss the theme of betrayal and its impact on the play.

Born the second son of a royal family, Henry Tudor lived a very interesting life. His future was intended to be the head of the Roman Catholic Church and that fate ended with the death of his brother, Prince Arthur. Henry’s majestic life was full of sports, women, and faith. The young King acceded his father to the throne, married six women, and began the English Reformation when he broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and created his own religion.

To recap, King Henry V is telling his men that if they fight, they will become a brother to him, which means calling them his equal. He tells them it does not matter if they live or die, because they will forever be remembered by all. They will have

The Success of Henry VII in Improving Royal Finances Henry VII was a political realist, he knew he needed a good financial base from which to run the country, but on a more personal note, he also saw the need to create a strong financial situation upon which to secure his reign and dynasty. As Caroline Rodgers states 'Henry was acutely aware of the importance of strong finances if he was to remain safely on the throne.' However, it has often been said of Henry, 'No man has ascended to the throne with such a lack of financial experience and resources as Henry VII.' S. B. Chrimes.

Henry tells the convention, “Our petitions have been slighted; our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded, and we have been spurned with contempt from the foot of the throne! In vain, after these things, may we indulge the fond hope of peace and reconciliation.” By telling this to the convention, Henry attempts to provoke a feeling of humiliation and pity for themselves. He basically says that they brought this on themselves and they are being insulted all due to them wanting to clench on to their hope; which in Henry’s view no longer is going to work for them. Henry supports his idea of vanishing the feeling of hope in those present by saying, “There is no longer any room for hope. If we wish to be free, if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending if we not safely abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!” In this, Henry says that they should not clench to hope, instead they should fight for what they have “so long contending[ed].” This may have also given the attendants a different feeling of hope, not the hope that everything will be

Among the upper classes, he proved over and over again that he was not a good king. He rarely, if ever, participated in Parliament, and often did not attend sittings of the king's council. When the council sat at Westminster, Henry usually managed to be somewhere else (Storey, 35). These actions give a picture of a king who, though solicited for his opinions, did not want to get involved in the

King Henry VIII was an important figure in helping to kick start the Reformation in England, even though it was not his intent. His break with the Papacy and his constantly changing ideas on how the new Church of England should be run gave the Protestants the foothold they needed to gain popularity in Europe. Although his intentions were purely politically motivated, he started a change in the way the layman viewed the church and how it should be run.

The Realistic Objectives of Henry VII's Foreign Policy According to the source, Henry's objectives were to ensure the security of his country and dynasty and to avoid foreign military intervention i.e. build up good relationships with neighbouring foreign powers. I also think that trade and prestige came into his objectives. Trade was important to him as it ensured the power of his country and, again, was important to England's relationship with foreign powers. Also prestige was important for Henry, but more for himself than for the good of the country.

King Henry VIII was one of the most powerful rulers in the fifteenth century, who had a very captivating life many people are not aware of. Most people know Henry VIII as a berserk king with too many wives, but there is more to Henry VIII than that. Many few people know about his life and what he truly contributed to our world. Henry VIII was an almighty leader in England who won’t soon be forgotten.

In Henry IV, Part 1, Shakespeare establishes a theme of a broken chain of authority through Hotspur’s vivid language revealing the Percy’s regret in originally supporting the illegitimate king. Despite originally supporting him, Hotspur shows true disrespect for the King through symbolism whenever he calls him a “thorn” and a “cankered Bollingbroke.” In Medieval times subordinates of the King were supposed to show the utmost respect to their superior. Disrespecting and insulting your King was both taboo and forbidden at the time. Hotspur’s language shows how truly disgusted he is with his King.

Henry’s campaign found reinforcement through three main justifiable reasons for war. The first was his historical right as England’s monarch. The English crown bore a long-lasting relationship with the throne of France. To further back his claim as being enabled by his right as king, his lineage and marriage further reinforce this. His bloodline bears that of French nobility through his father’s family, which includes Isabella of France. Through marriage to Catherine, daughter of Charles VI, he also received legitimate right to pursue the French throne and lands. His second reason was that he saw this as an opportunity to end conflicts over the English’s stake in French lands. His third justifiable right would be one that the Church could agree with: the biblical right. As stated by Curry, “It too was justified in crusading terms, as well as by invocation of the laws of Deuteronomy, which gave a lord rights to act with

We belong to a world where we are constantly being manipulated to believe, feel and think differently. Our views being shaped in a the way the composer wants us to view it. You don’t believe me? Well I believe to some extent all representations of people and politics are acts of manipulation, it can be seen within the Shakespearean text “King Henry IV Part 1” and the RSC’s play within a play production. The very first scene of the play, the audience is introduced to King Henry speaking about how his son is rebellious and no good as the heir. Particularly in comparison to the reputable knight Harry Percy, or as you may know him as, Hotspur. We realise that Prince Hal’s presence in the world of politics is very insignificant. But why? Because

Henry V is a wise and loyal king, changing from a wild youth to a mature king. He is described to be an intelligent, thoughtful and an efficient statesman. He thinks carefully whether to invade France or not which represents his responsible character. King Henry gives a very strong speech which gave courage and confidence to his army that they could win the battle. This character describes him to be a king of great ability to fight and having good administrative skills. Throughout the play Henry’s nature is religious, merciful and compassionate.

Henry the Fifth has been noted as England’s best King throughout history. He was loved among the common people and nobles alike for his fairness, his effectiveness on the throne, his justness, and his ability to relate to people of all classes. The kings that reigned before him, especially his father King Henry IV and King John, provide a striking contrast to Hal’s attitude on the throne. Kings of the past had not experienced the life of the common people, and chose to lead their lives in the realm of the castle. As we witnessed in I Henry IV, Hal’s father even went as far to discuss this approach to ruling at length with Hal. Henry IV believed that a king was best admired and supplicated if he was kept