The cast of Henry VI, Part 2
The people who make Henry VI, 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.
King Henry VI
Anointed ruler of England, spiritually inclined toward holiness rather than statecraft · Approximately 23 at the start of the play
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
Lord Protector of England; voice of conscience against corruption · Middle-aged
William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk
Ambitious courtier and lover; architect of England's downfall through marriage diplomacy · Middle-aged
Jack Cade
Kentish rebel leader; cipher for popular discontent and York's ambition
Queen Margaret of Anjou
Ambitious foreign queen who manipulates Henry VI and becomes a warrior for her son's claim · Young woman, newly married at play's opening
Richard, Duke of York
Ambitious nobleman and hidden claimant to the throne, architect of Jack Cade's rebellion · Adult, mature
Earl of Warwick
Military commander and kingmaker who emerges as protector of the realm after Gloucester's death · Middle-aged
Cardinal Beaufort
Ambitious churchman and conspirator against Gloucester
Buckingham
Ambitious nobleman and conspirator against Gloucester
Dick the Butcher
Jack Cade's lieutenant and voice of the commons' rage
Eleanor Cobham, Duchess of Gloucester
Ambitious noblewoman undone by her hunger for power and witchcraft · Middle-aged
Saunder Simpcox
Fraudulent miracle-worker exposed by Gloucester's test
Clifford
Yorkist soldier and enforcer; voice of vengeance against the house of York
Earl of Salisbury
Elder statesman and kingmaker; Warwick's father and voice of noble reason · Elderly
Lord Say
Victim of mob justice; learned nobleman
All
Collective voice of the commons and assembled crowds
Captain
Pirate captain commanding the seizure of Suffolk at sea
Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset
Ambitious nobleman and target of York's vengeance; ambitious peer caught between court factions
John Holland
Kentish commoner and follower of Jack Cade's rebellion
Alexander Iden
Honest Kentish squire who kills Jack Cade and becomes a knight · middle-aged
George Bevis
Kentish commoner and follower of Jack Cade's rebellion
Peter
Apprentice armourer, accuser of his master in trial by combat
Smith the Weaver
Rebel craftsman and Jack Cade's follower
Walter Whitmore
Pirate captain and executioner; instrument of Suffolk's fate
Roger Bolingbroke
Conjurer and accomplice in Eleanor's witchcraft scheme
Wife of Simpcox
Accomplice in a false miracle; wife to a fraudulent blind man
Richard
York's ruthless younger son; future nemesis of the crown · young man
Sir Humphrey Stafford
Royalist knight sent to suppress the rebellion of Jack Cade
Sir John Hume
Corrupt priest and conjurer's accomplice; broker of forbidden magic
Thomas Horner
Armourer accused of treason; victim of trial by combat
Hear every line of Henry VI, Part 2, narrated.
