1439100 1623 Shakespeare. Henry V. Six leaves.

 

HENRY THE FIFTH - FRAGMENT FROM THE FIRST FOLIO OF SHAKESPEARE. The Life of Henry the Fift. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Six folio leaves, measuring 8 by 12-1/2 inches, disbound.  The first dozen pages of the 1623 printing, extracted from the landmark First Folio, "intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature" (Grolier 100 19). "The most active dramatic experience Shakespeare ever offered his audience" (Joel Altman).  Fragment contains Henry's immortal "Once more unto the breach" speech in its entirety.  First performed in 1599, Shakespeare’s dramatization of King Henry’s victory at Agincourt has long fascinated theatergoers and readers alike as either "a rousingly patriotic pro-war play or a slyly subversive critique of an unnecessary war" (New York Times). The text had already circulated in a "bad" quarto version of 1600, reprinted twice prior to the First Folio of 1623. These leaves present continuous text from the famous prologue through Gower’s speech in Act III, Scene 6 (modern designation; "Actus Secundus" in the text), "and this they conne perfitly in the phrase of Warre; which they tricke."  The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio.  Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Ornamental woodcut headpiece and small decorative intial to leaf h1r. Leaves h1-[h6]. See Jaggard, 336. Scattered light foxing. Closed tear to leaf h1, repaired. Restoration to extreme edges.repaired. Restoration to extreme edges.

 

These two fragments  comprise the first six leaves (twelve pages) of King Henry V and the final page, which is the recto page of the Henry VI fragment in this collection.  

The first fragment opens with the chorus lamenting the fact that this stage, this great “O” of the Globe theater, will not be nearly large enough to encompass the vista of action that the play will present.  Immediately following this rousing and majestic oratory are some of the most legthy and drawn-out speeches in the entire canon as the Archbishop of Canterbury and Exeter lay out the case why Henry should indeed be the king of France.  Further inducement to the invasion of France arrives as the French ambassador arrives with an answer to Henry’s claim to “some certain dukedoms” the French are holding.  The dauphin has sent Henry a “tun of treasure” in the form of tennis balls.

In Act Two, the Chorus gives a stirring account of all the youth of England being “on fire” as they prepare to sail for France.  The traitors, Lord Scroop, Lord Grey and the Earl of Cumberland are unmasked by the king and sentenced to death.  The action then switches to the French court where the French king is preparing for the English invasion.  The Dauphin tends to regard the English threat lightly, but the constable reminds him that the ambassador’s report was that Henry is very constant in his resolution.  Exeter, the English ambassador, urges the French king to relinquish the “borrowed glories” of his kingship.  He argues that Henry is the rightful king of France and clearly establishes the concept of the divine right of kings.  He urges the French king to respond quickly as Henry has already landed in France

The chorus in Act Three provides a vivid description of the English fleet crossing the channel. We learn that the French king has replied to Henry offering him marriage to his daughter Catherine with some “petty and unprofitable dukedom’s” thrown in. Henry refuses.

Act three scene one opens with the famous and stirring “once more unto the breach dear friends once more” and concludes with the rallying cry “God for Harry, England and St. George”.

The final part of the segment is the invasion of Harfleur with Henry’s harsh words to the people to make them stand down and not fight and lose with terrible consequences.  Harfleur does, and following the victory we see the beginning of seeds of discontent being sown in the English army.  Meanwhile, in France, the French King and his court express disdain for Henry and his “barbarous” followers.  He orders them to engage and bring in “Harry England” as a prisoner.

The second fragment is the single final page of the play.  In it, Henry and the French king sign a treaty, and Kate, the French king’s daughter are betrothed.  The Chorus then sums up the greatness of Henry V and laments that all his work will be largely undone during the tragic rein of his son, Henry VI “Which oft our stage has shown.”