Shakespeare’s Henry V is based on Holinshed’s Chronicles and other sources, depicting the King of England’s victory over the French at Agincourt. The play portrays Henry as a heroic ruler and may have been intended to bolster James I’s position as Elizabeth I’s heir.
Shakespeare’s Henry V is one of his best known historical plays and is about the King of England’s military campaign in France, culminating in an against all odds victory at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. sources. His primary source is Holinshed’s Chronicles, an English historical text known to have been used by Shakespeare for many of his plays. It is also based on elements of Shakespeare’s earlier plays, as well as contemporary events.
The second edition of Holinshed’s Chronicle, published in 1587, was the source for many of Shakespeare’s history plays, and Henry V is no exception. The main story of the play, relating to Henry’s victory over the French, is present in Holinshed’s play. Also, the story that the king was drunk and debauched in his youth, which provides much of the story arc between Henry IV Part 1, Henry IV Part 2 and Henry V, occurs in the Chronicle. Shakespeare used this central story as the structure of his own work, adding additional scenes and characters to create the narrative he wanted.
In addition to Holinshed, Shakespeare consulted other sources relating to Henry V. One of these may have been Edward Hall’s The Union of the Two Illustrious Families of Lancaster and York. Shakespeare may also have read a Latin biography of Henry, Henrici Quinti Angliae Regis Gesta, which dated from the time of Henry’s reign.
Henry V follows on from Richard II and the two parts of Henry IV to form a four-part narrative dealing with matters of government and war. Henry V is portrayed in many ways as a heroic ruler, combining political prudence and astuteness with military courage and prowess. The game also illuminates the impact of warfare on ordinary people, both by depicting the hardships suffered by ordinary soldiers and by celebrating the role of ordinary British in defeating the much larger French army.
The opera was first performed for the new King of England, James I, who had previously reigned as James VI of Scotland. Some scholars have suggested that Henry V, like the other plays in the sequence, intended, through discussion of the traits of the ideal king, to bolster James’s position as Elizabeth I’s heir. Like many of Shakespeare’s history plays, the political elements of Henry V can be interpreted in several ways, with 16th and early 17th century politics perhaps as important as 15th century history.
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