Henry V

By Robert Swindells

Robert Swindell's Henry V is
a gripping retelling of Shakespeare's famous historical play. Battles
and scenes of warfare are never far from the young King Henry. This
retelling brings to life the tumultuous struggle of the heroic young
monarch as he fights to protect his kingdom and his life.

The Shakespeare Today series captures the magic of Shakespeare's text and sets it in an accessible and contemporary style.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Release date: Nov 7, 2011
• ISBN: 9781408153413

Robert Swindells

Robert Swindells was born in Bradford, England. He was a primary school teacher, served in the Royal Air Force, and was involved in the peace movement before becoming a full-time author. Robert is the winner of numerous awards including the prestigious Carnegie Medal for his bestselling novel Stone Cold. He lives in England.

Book preview

Pistol

Act One

Imagine kings and soldiers, rogues and lovers

Compressed like microcircuits ’twixt these covers.

Here too are seas, and battlefields and horses:

The serried ranks of two opposing forces.

Now, having scanned the pages of our book,

To view the action, close your eyes and look.

One day, during the reign of King Henry the fifth, two worried men were talking in a side room at the king’s palace. One was the Archbishop of Canterbury, his companion, the Bishop of Ely.

‘Listen,’ growled the archbishop, ‘there’s talk of reviving that confounded Bill aimed at stripping the Church of half its wealth.’

Ely looked at him. ‘What Bill, my lord? When was this?’

The archbishop spoke impatiently. ‘Surely you remember – during the last king’s reign. Luckily, those were troubled times and his late Majesty had more urgent things to think about. Now the blessed thing’s back to haunt us.’

Ely pulled a face. ‘So how might we resist it, my lord?’

The archbishop shook his head. ‘I don’t know, Ely, but resist it we must: the Bill would ruin us.’

‘Will the king support us, d’you think?’

‘Well,’ said the archbishop, ‘he’s a good Christian and a level-headed monarch.’

Ely nodded. ‘And he seems to love the Church.’

His companion smiled. ‘Never thought we’d be saying that about him, Ely. Was he a wild youth or what?’

‘I’ll say,’ chuckled Ely. ‘I remember him in Henry the Fourth – both parts.’ He grinned, then looked grave. ‘But the Bill – is his Majesty for or against?’

The archbishop frowned. ‘Well, Ely, the king’s thinking of pressing certain claims in France that might lead to fighting, and fighting costs money, and I made him an offer – the biggest advance of Church money ever made to a king.’

‘And how did he react?’ asked Ely, eagerly.

The archbishop sighed. ‘I think it swayed him towards us, but we were interrupted…’

‘Interrupted?’

‘Yes. The French ambassador chose that moment to request an audience with His Majesty. Is it four o’clock?’

‘It is, my lord.’

‘The king is due, then. Let’s go in and find out what he wants.’ The archbishop smiled. ‘Not that I haven’t a pretty fair idea already.’

As the two churchmen made their way towards the Presence Chamber from one direction, the king and five nobles entered it from another.

The king looked around. ‘Where’s the archbishop?’ he asked.

‘Not here,’ said his uncle, the Duke of Exeter.

‘Then send for him, Uncle.’

The Duke of Westmoreland looked at Henry. ‘Shall we have the French ambassadors in, too, my lord?’

The king shook his head. ‘Not yet, cousin. I need the archbishop to clear up a couple of points for me first.’ He smiled wryly. ‘Having claimed dukedoms in France, I don’t want to have it turn out I’m not entitled to them.’

As King Henry spoke, the two churchmen entered the chamber. The archbishop spoke a loyal greeting. The king thanked him and said, ‘There’s a law, known as the Salic Law, which some say bars me from claiming the throne of France. I’d appreciate your opinion on it, and I want you to bear in mind that what you tell me might well lead to war, with all its dreadful consequences. Therefore, I want you to speak plainly and refrain from putting a spin on your advice. I don’t want to be responsible for the death or destitution of thousands of my innocent subjects, in pursuit of an

Reviews for Henry V

[petroglyph_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this one. There is some good banter at the beginning, the speeches over Caesar’s body are wonderful, and the scenes set at the battle of Philippi felt appropriately hopeful or despondent. Caesar is a bit of a non-entity, though, and I’d have wanted a little more friction between Mark Antony and Octavian Caesar. But a very enjoyable play on the whole.

[bookomaniac-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

1599, meest klassieke tragedie, bron is Plutarchus; perfecte tekst (bijna helemaal rijm), later verketterd als schooltekstBrutus is de hoofdrolspeler, maar Caesar beheerst wel de handeling. Brutus is een idealist die ten onder gaat door een gebrek aan praktisch doorzicht; het tegendeel is Cassius, maar toch meer medevoelen met hem; Antonius is de gehaaide opportunist, demagoog. Brutus’ motieven: II,1 (p 820)Moord III,1Verheven pathetiek van Marcus Antonius na de moord, p 826, 827 (maar wel vals)Redevoeringen bij begrafenis III,2 vormen het hoogtepunt, vooral die van Antonius (p 828-29): opruiend door details over de dood van Caesar en een verwijzing naar zijn testament, tegelijk vriendelijk ten aanzien van de samenzweerders.

[lhlogan1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good story.

[delta351 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love the Folger editions w awesome illustrations from the library. This is a larger sized paperback which is easy on the eyes. I have to say that Shakespeare is fairly neutral in presenting the main characters.Was happy to see "Let loose the dogs of war", though I previously thought that was from one of the Henry's.

[seraphinac.b4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In the book Julius Caesar, a group of conspirators lead by a man named Brutus plot to kill Julius Caesar. After succeeding in killing him, Brutus sees Julius Caesar's ghost who promises to see him in Philippi. On a battlefield in Philippi, Brutus fights with Cassius's army. Cassius being overthrown, commits suicide. When one member of Cassius's army finds Cassius dead, he then also kills himself. Brutus is defeated and runs upon his sword. Conflict in Rome is at an end. As a twelve year old this wasn't the best book I've ever read. It was a little confusing with a lot of characters and action. I thought the book was going to be about Julius Caesar but it was more about the conspirators getting rid of him. One of the morals was don't murder anyone because you will have to live with the guilt the rest of your life. This play taught me a little about Rome and war. I really enjoy reading Shakespeare. Overall this was a good book.

[msnikki · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Great Play, could easily see this as a modern re-telling set in the Italian Mob or as hotile financial take over...I see Macbeth the same way.But betrayal is a hell of a thing.

[bibliophile26 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I read this due to my interest in HBO's Rome series (which has been cancelled after only 2 seasons - why TV gods, WHY???). Anyway, as an English major I read tons of Shakespeare, so it wasn't a challenging read for me and I found my mind analyzing language/passages as I would have been required to do in school. Let's just say the history plays have never been my favorites; maybe knowing the ending spoils the play?

[sly_wit · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Julius Caesar is the first Shakeaspeare I ever read (in English I). I didn't remember much of it when I picked it up again in preparation for a performance at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, but was pleasantly surprised by how modern and relevant it seemed.

[shanaqui_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I think everyone knows parts of this play: "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears." The first part of it is maybe not so well known, but I think most people know something of Mark Antony's speech after Caesar's death. I think this might be my favourite Shakespeare play so far -- possibly partly due to already loving to read about Caesar, but also because of the strength of the rhetoric in it.

I have actually seen parts of this performed -- the speech I referred to, actually -- and when I'd read it, I looked on youtube for performances of my favourite parts. I'd go see this play in a heartbeat.

So, anyone remember why I disliked Shakespeare before...? I do wish schools wouldn't shove Romeo and Juliet down people's throats: it's far from my favourite.

[john257hopper · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this play just after finishing Goldsworthy's excellent biography of Caesar. The play focuses much more on the conspirators, especially Brutus and Cassius, rather than the titular subject, who indeed hardly appears in person and is only about three scenes, one of them as a ghost. It is splendid stuff, largely, at least in the initial acts based on the premise that the conspirators were freeing Rome of a tyrant through their act; only, when Antony makes his famous "friends, Romans, countrymen" speech does a more nuanced view of Caesar's positives and negatives enter the scene. Not one of the meatier plays, but a good supplement to other reading about the period.

[jwhenderson_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays and one that I have read and reread over the years in addition to seeing several performances of the play. The classic story is informed by history as we know from Roman accounts about the life and death of Julius Caesar. Shakespeare adhered closely to the version of the story in Plutarch's Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans. In comparing prominent figures from Greek and Roman history , Plutarch presented history as a compendium of the deeds of great men, portraying the characters with all the ambiguities and idiosyncrasies that were present in their lives. The writings of Marcu Tullius Cicero also informed Shakespeare. Cicero was a staunch republican and his dislike of Caesar preceded the conspiracy that led to his assassination, which conspiracy Cicero did not directly participate in. A final source for Shakespeare was the Roman historian Appian who chronicled the civil wars as part of his longer history of Rome. All of these sources inform the dramatic tension within this play adding a historical realism to Shakespeare's own dramatic genius. I especially like the relationship between Caesar and his wife. I also found the psychology of the characters, particularly Brutus, an important aspect of the drama. This helps make many of the characters from Brutus and Cassius to Mark Antony as memorable as the title character. It is one of the great Roman plays in Shakespeare's works, and it is both an historical and a dramatic achievement.

[ausie7 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the best William Shakespeare that I have ever read. I haven't read much but this one was really appealing to me. Even though I knew the ending, I couldn't put the book down until the end.

[shawnd_72 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look." This was one of Shakespeare's more excellent books in my opinion. While historical it wasn't as bad as one of the Richard books--it had a timeless story without being too historical or too political, especially British-ly political. One of the original eponymous tragedy, a story of a man's success and betrayal. A wonderful masterpiece and underrated.

[katieloucks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

did an adaptation of a scene of this! love it!

[lyzadanger · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Forgive me that it took me eight months to finish Shakespeare's shortest play. I kept picking it up, reading the first act, and then forgetting. It's strange reading about Roman history through compound filters: dramatization, Shakespearean England, what we know of the Roman Republic, modern norms. One gets so twisted around that nary an eyebrow is raised in Act 2 when Caesar asks "What is't o'clock?" (Brutus: "Caesar, 'tis strucken eight.") Such a tangle that it might not jump immediately to mind that there were probably not a whole lot of chiming clocks in the first century BC. We've got Centurions herein acting like they're on Queen Elizabeth's court. Strange.This play is brief. Brief enough that it doesn't feel like a story so much as a string of exchanges. Brutus (who refers to himself in the third person and thus puts me in the mind of Tarzan or other deep-voiced simpleton) seems instantly swayed to subterfuge. Caesar is full of lofty exaltations but kind of amounts to nothing when you think about it. Marc Antony does show a bit of craftiness, and Cassius is devious. I do like the way Casca responds to Cassius' invitation to dinner and I hope I can use it myself sometime: "Ay, if I be alive, and your mind hold, and your dinner worth the eating."I do feel like that sometimes.

[sweetsarah_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wow that Brutus was one sneaky guy he just wanted to be like Caesar. and then the scene when they killed Caesar was like WOW

[hlselz · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Had to read the play, cause I love the history. Im not a big fan of Shakespeare, but the loved the play because of the charectors.

[michael_rose-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One begins to understand cultural references the more one reads Shakespeare, and Julius Caesar is no exception to this rule (this is perhaps especially true for Star Trek fans). The fault being not in our stars but in ourselves is a great bit of poetry that everyone should heed.

[wealhtheowwylfing · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The first Shakespeare I ever read. I am wildly in love with Marc Antony (odd, because I actively despise him in [book: Antony and Cleopatra]).

[milti_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One of the most powerful of his plays. Yes, the characters are set in black and white in true Shakespearean style and there is no room for hman error, but therein lies the beauty and power of this drama.

[carterchristian1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I hope to see this again soon. The first time I saw it as a high school play, the next time in 1997 at a Pub theater (more members of the cast than the audience) next to the railroad station in Greenwich England...with a wonderful redo as a Mafia, Chicago script.

[rfewell_3 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I read this play during my Sophomore year of high school. I loved it! "Et tu, Brute!" I thought of it again because I'm reading "A Long Way Gone", and this play is referenced frequently.

[coach_of_alva · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Shakespeare’s dissection of the damage that idealism can do in politics is still relevant.

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

So dry. What a mistake to cram this down 15-year old throats just because it's short. How many 10th graders have been completely turned off by Shakespeare because this is over their head. I really didn't care much for this. Many of his history plays are far superior. Should've been called "The Rise and Fall of Brutus" because Caesar is such a minor character -- no development either.

[locriian · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

My favourite part of this play is the "Antony is an honest man" speech. Excellent.

[mstrust · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Cassius is quickly able to plant the idea of overthrowing Julius Caesar in the mind of Brutus, a man who claims to love Caesar. Cassius and Brutus gather a group of the Caesar's friends, who they join together to murder the leader, then tell each other that they did the man a favor and will be remembered for their courage in removing a tyrant. But then Marcus Antony gives a clever eulogy at the funeral, which causes the public to question the motives of the assassins, the conspirators no longer trust one another and Brutus finds his position threatened.A good example of how power corrupts, as even the good guy, Antony, tries to manipulate his friends to gain more for himself.

[cbl_tn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. Et tu, Brute. Beware the ides of March.” I'm a little embarrassed to admit that this is all I knew of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar up to this point in my life. There's so much more to this play. Shakespeare captures the tension and drama of the last years of the Roman Republic and the role of Julius Caesar's ambition in hastening its end. The L.A. Theatre Works audio production is outstanding. The cast includes Richard Dreyfuss, Kelsey Grammar, Stacy Keach, John De Lancie, and JoBeth Williams. I will listen to this recording again. Next time I will plan to do my listening when I'm able to follow along in the printed text.

[martinbodek · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

'Tis happened upon chance that mine eyes have read the tale of Julius Caesar. For sooth, a great tragedy were 't. Yet happiness was clutch't betwixt mine hands that such wordsmithings are imbued into my corpus of knowledge. Brutus was not a noble understood, know that I now. It has cometh to pass that Royal Antony's quotes sitteth in upon my vernacular at the ready. What pleasure shall I give mine eyes to scan upon next? Be it, I prayeth, one of Sir William's comedies, for these tragedic readings have ravaged vexings upon my soul. Twelfth Night? Much Ado About Nothing? Instruct me, fellow plebeians.

[jhudsui_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Enh I don't know what I can tell you about this. Antony's funeral oration is fairly amusing.

[clancy.coonradt · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful classic that truly speaks to the duality of man and his eternal search for not only power, but those that are truly pure at heart. Amazing how many quotes and sayings have come from this piece of literature.