49 pages 1 hour read

William Shakespeare

Henry IV, Part 1

Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1597

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Act I

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Act I, Scene 1 Summary

King Henry IV delays his plan to wage a crusade in the Holy Land when he learns of unrest throughout his kingdom. The Earl of Westmorland informs him that nobleman Edmund Mortimer has been taken prisoner by the Welsh nobleman Owen Glendower after losing a thousand men in battle.

More positively, Henry Percy, nicknamed Hotspur, put down a rebellion in the North, taking prominent hostages in battle. The king praises Hotspur while lamenting that “riot and dishonor stain the brow” of his own son, also named Henry (1.1.84). However, Hotspur refuses to turn over the hostages to the king. The king calls a meeting at Windsor to assess the situation.

Act I, Scene 2 Summary

At a tavern, Prince Hal and Sir John Falstaff taunt each other. Falstaff and his companions are thieves, and Falstaff asks the prince to be merciful to thieves when he is king. Falstaff jokes that he would get a good reputation if he knew where to buy one. Ned Poins enters and informs them about a group of pilgrims bound for Canterbury; he suggests they rob them. Falstaff agrees and departs. Poins suggests he and Hal let Falstaff and his associates rob the pilgrims then rob them in turn.

Related Titles

By William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

All's Well That Ends Well

William Shakespeare

All's Well That Ends Well

William Shakespeare

STUDY + TEACHING GUIDE

logo

A Midsummer Night's Dream

William Shakespeare

A Midsummer Night's Dream

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Antony and Cleopatra

William Shakespeare

Antony and Cleopatra

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Coriolanus

William Shakespeare

Coriolanus

William Shakespeare

Plot Summary

logo

Cymbeline

William Shakespeare

Cymbeline

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Hamlet

William Shakespeare

Hamlet

William Shakespeare

Plot Summary

logo

Henry IV, Part 2

William Shakespeare

Henry IV, Part 2

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Henry V

William Shakespeare

Henry V

William Shakespeare

Plot Summary

logo

Henry VIII

William Shakespeare

Henry VIII

William Shakespeare

Plot Summary

logo

Henry VI, Part 1

William Shakespeare

Henry VI, Part 1

William Shakespeare

Plot Summary

logo

Henry VI, Part 3

William Shakespeare

Henry VI, Part 3

William Shakespeare

Plot Summary

logo

King John

William Shakespeare

King John

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Love's Labour's Lost

William Shakespeare

Love's Labour's Lost

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Measure For Measure

William Shakespeare

Measure For Measure

William Shakespeare

Study Guide

logo

Othello

William Shakespeare

Othello

William Shakespeare