The cast of Henry IV, Part 2
The people who make Henry IV, Part 2 move — what they want, who they love, who they hate, and how each one fits the story. Tap any name to read more.
Sir John Falstaff
Aging knight and false counselor; the dying world of appetite and misrule · Over sixty; in physical decline
Justice Robert Shallow
Country squire and justice of the peace; self-deluded relic of a misspent youth · Elderly (had caroused at Clement's Inn fifty-five years prior)
Prince Henry (later King Henry V)
The reluctant heir, caught between his father's dying kingdom and his own need to become king · Around twenty
Mistress Quickly
Tavern keeper and creditor; voice of the common people's survival
King Henry IV
Dying monarch haunted by guilt and insomnia; usurper seeking redemption · Aging, in decline
Ancient Pistol
Blustering soldier and comic braggard; Falstaff's loud, incompetent companion
Bardolph
Falstaff's red-faced companion and servant; minor comic foil and loyal follower
Doll Tearsheet
A sex worker and companion to Falstaff; embodies the tavern's vitality and crude honesty
Prince John of Lancaster
The king's pragmatic son; mediator between rebellion and crown
Poins
Prince Hal's witty companion and fellow tavern dweller
Silence
A country justice of the peace; Shallow's cousin and fellow magistrate · Elderly
Warwick
Loyal counselor and voice of measured reason; mediator between crown and rebels
Archbishop of York
Ecclesiastical rebel leader who weaponizes religion to justify political insurrection
Westmoreland
Royal ambassador and peacemaker; voice of the king's authority in negotiation · Middle-aged
Lord Bardolph
Rebel nobleman and messenger; herald of false tidings and military despair
The Earl of Northumberland
Broken rebel, consumed by grief over his son's death and the failure of his cause · Elderly
Lord Mowbray
Rebel nobleman, son of the executed Duke of Norfolk; voice of cautious dissent within the uprising · Middle-aged
Lord Hastings
Rebel nobleman; voice of caution and strategic argument within the insurgent council
Page
Falstaff's young attendant and messenger; comic foil to the aging knight
Davy
Justice Shallow's servant and estate manager; shrewd pragmatist
Thomas of Clarence
Prince of Wales; younger brother to Hal; voice of filial duty and dynastic concern
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
The King's younger son; a voice of concern for the realm's future
Fang
Debt collector and officer of the law
Francis Feeble
Reluctant soldier and woman's tailor, symbol of common courage
Servant
Falstaff's attendant; messenger and functionary
Morton
Messenger bearing news of Hotspur's death at Shrewsbury
Hear every line of Henry IV, Part 2, narrated.
