Henry iv part 1 themes
Henry IV soon realizes that he can only defeat the Celtic rebels and the Percy alliance by using tricks and warfare. The central problem of this play is for Henry IV to establish control over territories he did not inherit. Both Welsh and Irish were considered barbarous languages, and Shakespeare makes a point of comparing the two. The relationship between the Irish unrest and the Welsh rebellion is explicated several times in the play, notably by the use of language. In 1595, the Earl of Tyrone challenged English rule. The alliance between Northumberland and Wales is also mirrored in contemporary times by the unrest in Ireland. Indeed, as late as 1569 members of the Percy family attempted to overthrow Queen Elizabeth and put Mary Queen of Scots on the throne. The challengers to the throne are from Northumberland, a place considered lawless even in the late sixteenth century. In the play, it is the Percy family who rebels against Henry IV, forcing him to defend his rule. The history behind the play was remarkably current even in Shakespeare's time. Subsequent individual publications followed, indicating how sought after the play was. It was printed in two quarto versions in 1598 and five more editions were added before the 1623 First Folio appeared. In spite of comments by some contemporaries, notably Sir Philip Sidney, that this mixture of cultures violated social codes, the play proved immensely popular. Added to this mixture of bawdy commercialism and aristocracy is the magical world of Glyndwr's Welsh castle. Instead, the play moves rapidly from court life to street life, from the poetry of the nobles to the rituals of drinking in the tavern. Following Richard II as part of the tetrology, it does not conform to the traditional setting or subject matter of a chronicle play. Henry IV, Part One marks a new form of history play for Shakespeare. The First Folio of 1623 adopted the 1613 version of the play, but altered some of the scenes and oaths to conform with a profanity act passed in 1606. The second quarto serves as the standard text for most modern editions, and was followed closely by five more quartos in 1599, 1604, 1608, 1613, and 1622. Henry IV, Part One first appeared in print in 1598, when two separate quartos were made.