The Greatest King? Shakespeare's Henry V

Back with our once-a-month Shakespeare, this week wrapping up the trilogy of Henry plays with my personal favorite, Henry V.

This week I did a quick review of how I read Shakespeare--movie, Folgers Shakespeare edition--and then we jumped into the play. After the humor of Falstaff and the exploits of our Prince Harry, Henry V is decidedly more serious. Prince Harry has become King Henry V, and he's going to war to claim the French throne.

Shakespeare gives us a guide, the Chorus, who navigates the action as we watch Harry lead his army through the siege at Harfleur and the slog to Calais. The ragged army arrives at the field of Agincourt vastly outnumbered by a fresh French army when Henry gives what I think is one of the finest speeches in all of Shakespeare (although I have only nine other plays to compare to!). The "band of brothers" St. Crispin's Day speech is one for the ages!

The play isn't only about battles, though. We see Harry struggle with betrayal and the consequences of leadership, and we see him court Princess Katherine of France in some of the lighter moments of the play. And while we no longer have Falstaff, the French leadership provide their own share of comic relief, which must have played well in Elizabethan England, too.

By the way, you truly MUST watch the Kenneth Branagh movie, Henry V. As of July 2026 it's included in Amazon Prime--this is a movie that will win over the most anti-Shakespeare person in your life.

Next month we take on our first comedy, As You Like It. And we are choosing plays to read in the coming months over on the Substack chat--please let me know what you want to read! That link is below.

And next week, we take a closer look at the historical Henry V with Dan Brown's 2024 biography. Will the real Henry V please stand up?

BOOKS IN THIS EPISODE

The Folgers Shakespeare Library: Henry IV Part 1, Part 2; Henry V; As You Like It

Dan Brown's Henry V

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