Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays ''
Henry IV, Part 1
''Henry IV, Part 1'' (often written as ''1 Henry IV'') is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. The play dramatises part of the reign of King Henry IV of England, beginning with the battle at ...
'' and ''
Part 2'', where he is a companion to
Prince Hal
Prince Hal is the standard term used in literary criticism to refer to Shakespeare's portrayal of the young Henry V of England as a prince before his accession to the throne, taken from the diminutive form of his name used in the plays almost ex ...
, the future King
Henry V of England
Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the ...
. Falstaff is also featured as the buffoonish suitor of two married women in ''
The Merry Wives of Windsor
''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...
''. Though primarily a comic figure, Falstaff embodies a depth common to Shakespeare's major characters. A fat, vain, and boastful knight, he spends most of his time drinking at the
Boar's Head Inn
The Boar's Head Inn is the name of several former and current taverns in London, most famously a tavern in Eastcheap that is supposedly the meeting place of Sir John Falstaff, Prince Hal and other characters in Shakespeare's '' Henry IV'' plays ...
with petty criminals, living on stolen or borrowed money. Falstaff leads the apparently wayward
Prince Hal
Prince Hal is the standard term used in literary criticism to refer to Shakespeare's portrayal of the young Henry V of England as a prince before his accession to the throne, taken from the diminutive form of his name used in the plays almost ex ...
into trouble, and is ultimately repudiated after Hal becomes king.
Falstaff has since appeared in other media, including operas by
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
,
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...
, and
Otto Nicolai
Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of Shakespeare's comedy ''The Merry Wives of Wi ...
, and in
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...
' 1966 film ''
Chimes at Midnight
''Falstaff (Chimes at Midnight)'' (Spanish: ''Campanadas a medianoche'') is a 1966 period comedy-drama film directed by and starring Orson Welles. The Spanish-Swiss co-production was released in the United States as ''Chimes at Midnight'' and in ...
''. The operas focus on his role in ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'', while the film adapts from the
Henriad
In Shakespearean scholarship, Henriad refers to a group of William Shakespeare's history plays. It is sometimes used to refer to a group of four plays (a tetralogy), but some sources and scholars use the term to refer to eight plays. In the 1 ...
and ''The Merry Wives''. Welles, who played Falstaff in his film, considered the character to be "Shakespeare's greatest creation".
Role in the plays
![MerryWives](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/MerryWives.jpg)
Falstaff appears in three of Shakespeare's plays: ''
Henry IV, Part 1
''Henry IV, Part 1'' (often written as ''1 Henry IV'') is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. The play dramatises part of the reign of King Henry IV of England, beginning with the battle at ...
'', ''
Henry IV, Part 2'', and ''
The Merry Wives of Windsor
''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...
''. His death is mentioned in ''
Henry V Henry V may refer to:
People
* Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026)
* Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125)
* Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161)
* Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227)
* Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...
'', but he has no lines, nor is it directed that he appear on stage. However, many stage and film adaptations have seen it necessary to include Falstaff for the insight he provides into
King Henry V
Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the ...
's character. The most notable examples in cinema are
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
's
1944 version and
Kenneth Branagh
Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh (; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Branagh trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and has served as its president since 2015. He has won an Academy Award, four BAFTAs (plus t ...
's
1989 film, both of which draw additional material from the ''Henry IV'' plays.
The character is known to have been very popular with audiences at the time, and for many years afterwards. According to
Leonard Digges, writing shortly after Shakespeare's death, while many plays could not get good audiences, "let but Falstaff come, Hal, Poins, the rest, you scarce shall have a room".
''Henry IV, Part 1''
![Falstaff plays the king](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Falstaff_plays_the_king.jpg)
King Henry is troubled by the behaviour of his son and heir, the
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
. Hal (the future
Henry V Henry V may refer to:
People
* Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026)
* Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125)
* Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161)
* Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227)
* Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...
) has lost his authority at court and spends his time in taverns with low companions. He has become an object of scorn to the nobility and his worthiness to succeed his father is doubted. Hal's main companion in enjoying the low life is Sir John Falstaff. Fat, old, drunk, and corrupt as he is, he has a
charisma
Charisma () is a personal quality of presence or charm that compels its subjects.
Scholars in sociology, political science, psychology, and management reserve the term for a type of leadership seen as extraordinary; in these fields, the term "ch ...
and a zest for life that captivates the Prince.
Hal likes Falstaff but makes no pretence of being like him. He enjoys insulting his dissolute friend and makes sport of him. He and Poins pretend to go along with a plan by Falstaff and three friends to carry out a highway robbery, but then attack the robbers in disguise and in turn steal their loot, after which Hal returns it to its owner. Hal tells the audience that he will soon abandon this life and assume his rightful high place in affairs by showing himself worthy through some (unspecified) noble exploits. Hal believes that this sudden change will gain him additional approval and earn him respect at court.
Falstaff, who has "misused the King's press damnably", by taking money from able-bodied men who wished to evade service and by keeping the wages of those he recruited who were killed in battle ("food for powder, food for powder") is obliged to play a role in the Battle of Shrewsbury. Left on his own during Hal's duel with
Hotspur, he feigns death to avoid attack by Douglas. After Hal leaves both Hotspur and Falstaff on the field and being thought dead, Falstaff revives, stabs Hotspur's corpse in the thigh and claims credit for the kill. Though Hal knows better, he is merciful to Falstaff, who subsequently states that he wants to amend his life and begin "to live cleanly as a nobleman should do".
''Henry IV, Part 2''
![Edward Grutzner Goupil Falstaff at the Boars Head Tavern](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Edward_Grutzner_Goupil_Falstaff_at_the_Boars_Head_Tavern.jpg)
The play focuses on Prince Hal's journey toward kingship, and his ultimate rejection of Falstaff. However, unlike ''Part One'', Hal's and Falstaff's stories are almost entirely separate, as the two characters meet only twice and very briefly. The tone of much of the play is elegiac, focusing on Falstaff's age and his closeness to death, which parallels that of the increasingly sick king.
Falstaff is still drinking and engaging in petty criminality in the London underworld. He first appears, followed by a new character, a young page whom Prince Hal has assigned him as a joke. Falstaff enquires what the doctor has said about the analysis of his
urine
Urine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and in many other animals. Urine flows from the kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder. Urination results in urine being excretion, excreted from the body through the urethra.
Cel ...
, and the page cryptically informs him that the urine is healthier than the patient. Falstaff delivers one of his most characteristic lines: "I am not only witty in myself, but the cause that wit is in other men." Falstaff promises to outfit the page in "vile apparel" (ragged clothing). He then complains of his insolvency, blaming it on "consumption of the purse." They go off, Falstaff vowing to find a wife "in the stews" (i.e., the local brothels).
The Lord Chief Justice enters, looking for Falstaff. Falstaff at first feigns deafness in order to avoid conversing with him. When this tactic fails, Falstaff pretends to mistake him for someone else. As the Chief Justice attempts to question Falstaff about a recent robbery, Falstaff insists on turning the subject of the conversation to the nature of the illness afflicting the King. He then adopts the pretense of being a much younger man than the Chief Justice: "You that are old consider not the capacities of us that are young." Finally, he asks the Chief Justice for one thousand pounds to help outfit a military expedition, but is denied.
![Falstaff rebuked (Smirke, c](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Falstaff_rebuked_%28Smirke%2C_c._1795%29.jpg)
He has a relationship with
Doll Tearsheet
Dorothy "Doll" Tearsheet is a fictional character who appears in Shakespeare's play '' Henry IV, Part 2''. She is a prostitute who frequents the Boar's Head Inn in Eastcheap. Doll is close friends with Mistress Quickly, the proprietress of the t ...
, a prostitute, who gets into a fight with
Ancient Pistol
Ancient Pistol is a swaggering soldier who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare. Though full of grandiose boasts about his prowess, he is essentially a coward. The character is introduced in '' Henry IV, Part 2'' and reappears in ''The ...
, Falstaff's ensign. After Falstaff ejects Pistol, Doll asks him about the Prince. Falstaff is embarrassed when his derogatory remarks are overheard by Hal, who is present disguised as a musician. Falstaff tries to talk his way out of it, but Hal is unconvinced. When news of a second rebellion arrives, Falstaff joins the army again, and goes to the country to raise forces. There he encounters an old school friend, Justice Shallow, and they reminisce about their youthful follies. Shallow brings forward potential recruits for the loyalist army: Mouldy, Bullcalf, Feeble, Shadow and Wart, a motley collection of rustic yokels. Falstaff and his cronies accept bribes from two of them, Mouldy and Bullcalf, not to be conscripted.
In the final scene, Falstaff, having learned from Pistol that Hal is now King, travels to London in expectation of great rewards. But Hal rejects him, saying that he has now changed, and can no longer associate with such people. The London lowlifes, expecting a paradise of thieves under Hal's governance, are instead purged and imprisoned by the authorities.
''Henry V''
Although Falstaff does not appear on stage in ''Henry V'', his death is the main subject of Act 2, Scene 3, in which
Mistress Quickly
Mistress Nell Quickly is a fictional character who appears in several plays by William Shakespeare. She is an inn-keeper, who runs the Boar's Head Tavern, at which Sir John Falstaff and his disreputable cronies congregate.
The character appea ...
delivers a memorable eulogy:
There is a similarity in Shakespeare's description of the death of Falstaff, and in
Plato
Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
's description of the death of
Socrates
Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no te ...
. In a description in Plato's dialogue ''Phaedo'', after Socrates has drunk
hemlock, the man who gave him the poison
felt him, and after an interval examined his feet and legs; he then pinched his foot hard and asked if he would feel it, and Socrates said not. And then he felt his shins once more; and moving upwards in this way, he showed us that he was becoming cold and numb. He went on feeling him and said the when the coldness reached his heart, he would be gone.
''The Merry Wives of Windsor''
Falstaff arrives in Windsor very short on money. To obtain financial advantage, he decides to court two wealthy married women, Mistress Ford and Mistress Page. Falstaff decides to send the women identical love letters and asks his servants – Pistol and Nym – to deliver them to the wives. When they refuse, Falstaff sacks them, and, in revenge, the men tell Ford and Page (the husbands) of Falstaff's intentions. Page is not concerned, but the jealous Ford persuades the Host of the Garter Inn to introduce him to Falstaff as a 'Master Brook' so that he can find out Falstaff's plans.
When the women receive the letters, each goes to tell the other, and they quickly find that the letters are almost identical. The "merry wives" are not interested in the ageing, overweight Falstaff as a suitor; however, for the sake of their own amusement and to gain revenge for his indecent assumptions towards them both, they pretend to respond to his advances.
This all results in great embarrassment for Falstaff. Mr. Ford poses as 'Mr. Brook' and says he is in love with Mistress Ford but cannot woo her as she is too virtuous. He offers to pay Falstaff to court her, saying that once she has lost her honour he will be able to tempt her himself. Falstaff cannot believe his luck, and tells 'Brook' he has already arranged to meet Mistress Ford while her husband is out. Falstaff leaves to keep his appointment and Ford soliloquises that he is right to suspect his wife and that the trusting Page is a fool.
When Falstaff arrives to meet Mistress Ford, the merry wives trick him into hiding in a laundry basket ("buck basket") full of filthy, smelly clothes awaiting laundering. When the jealous Ford returns to try and catch his wife with the knight, the wives have the basket taken away and the contents (including Falstaff) dumped into the river. Although this affects Falstaff's pride, his ego is surprisingly resilient. He is convinced that the wives are just playing hard to get with him, so he continues his pursuit of sexual advancement, with its attendant capital and opportunities for blackmail.
Again Falstaff goes to meet the women but Mistress Page comes back and warns Mistress Ford of her husband's approach again. They try to think of ways to hide him other than the laundry basket which he refuses to get into again. They trick him again, this time into disguising himself as Mistress Ford's maid's obese aunt, known as "the fat woman of Brentford". Ford tries once again to catch his wife with the knight but ends up beating the "old woman", whom he despises, and throwing her out of his house. Black and blue, Falstaff laments his bad luck.
Eventually the wives tell their husbands about the series of jokes they have played on Falstaff, and together they devise one last trick which ends up with the Knight being humiliated in front of the whole town. They tell Falstaff to dress as "
Herne, the Hunter" and meet them by an old oak tree in Windsor Forest (now part of
Windsor Great Park
Windsor Great Park is a Royal Park of , including a deer park, to the south of the town of Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. It is adjacent to the private Home Park, which is nearer the castle. The park was, for many ...
). They then dress several of the local children as fairies and get them to pinch and burn Falstaff to punish him.
The wives meet Falstaff, and almost immediately the "fairies" attack. After the chaos, the characters reveal their true identities to Falstaff. Although he is embarrassed, Falstaff takes the joke surprisingly well, as he sees it was what he deserved. Ford says he must pay back the 20 pounds 'Brook' gave him and takes the Knight's horses as recompense. Eventually they all leave together and Mistress Page even invites Falstaff to come with them: "let us every one go home, and laugh this sport o'er by a country fire; Sir John and all".
Origins
John Oldcastle
Shakespeare originally named Falstaff "
John Oldcastle
Sir John Oldcastle (died 14 December 1417) was an English Lollard leader. Being a friend of Henry V, he long escaped prosecution for heresy. When convicted, he escaped from the Tower of London and then led a rebellion against the King. Eventual ...
".
Lord Cobham, a descendant of the historical John Oldcastle (d. 1417), complained, forcing Shakespeare to change the name. Shakespeare's ''Henry IV'' plays and ''Henry V'' adapted and developed the material in an earlier play called ''
The Famous Victories of Henry V
''The Famous Victories of Henry the fifth: Containing the Honourable Battel of Agin-court: As it was plaide by the Queenes Maiesties Players'', is an anonymous Elizabethan play, which is generally thought to be a source for Shakespeare's ''Henriad ...
'', in which Sir John "Jockey" Oldcastle appears as a dissolute companion of the young Henry. Prince Hal refers to Falstaff as "my old lad of the castle" in the first act of the play; the epilogue to ''Henry IV, Part 2'', moreover, explicitly disavows any connection between Falstaff and Oldcastle: "Oldcastle died a martyr, and this is not the man."
The historical Oldcastle was a
Lollard
Lollardy, also known as Lollardism or the Lollard movement, was a proto-Protestant Christian religious movement that existed from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catholic ...
who was executed for heresy and rebellion, and he was respected by many Protestants as a
martyr
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
. In addition to the anonymous ''The Famous Victories of Henry V'', in which Oldcastle is Henry V's companion, Oldcastle's history is described in
Raphael Holinshed
Raphael Holinshed ( – before 24 April 1582) was an English chronicler, who was most famous for his work on ''The Chronicles of England, Scotlande, and Irelande'', commonly known as ''Holinshed's Chronicles''. It was the "first complete printe ...
's ''Chronicles'', Shakespeare's usual source for his histories.
Cobhams
It is not clear, however, if Shakespeare characterised Falstaff as he did for dramatic purposes, or because of a specific desire to satirise Oldcastle or the Cobhams. Cobham was a common butt of veiled satire in Elizabethan popular literature; he figures in
Ben Jonson
Benjamin "Ben" Jonson (c. 11 June 1572 – c. 16 August 1637) was an English playwright and poet. Jonson's artistry exerted a lasting influence upon English poetry and stage comedy. He popularised the comedy of humours; he is best known for t ...
's ''
Every Man in His Humour
''Every Man in His Humour'' is a 1598 play by the English playwright Ben Jonson. The play belongs to the subgenre of the " humours comedy," in which each major character is dominated by an over-riding humour or obsession.
Performance and pu ...
'' and may have been part of the reason ''
The Isle of Dogs'' was suppressed. Shakespeare's desire to burlesque a hero of early English Protestantism could indicate
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
sympathies, but
Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham
Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham KG (22 November 1564 – 24 January 1618 (Old Style)/3 February 1618 (New Style), lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was an English peer who was implicated in the Main Plot against the rule of James I of England. ...
was sufficiently sympathetic to Catholicism that in 1603, he was imprisoned as part of the
Main Plot
The Main Plot was an alleged conspiracy of July 1603 by English courtiers to remove King James I from the English throne and to replace him with his cousin Lady Arbella Stuart. The plot was supposedly led by Lord Cobham and funded by the Spanish ...
to place
Arbella Stuart
Lady Arbella Stuart (also Arabella, or Stewart; 1575 – 25 September 1615) was an English noblewoman who was considered a possible successor to Queen Elizabeth I of England. During the reign of King James VI and I (her first cousin), she marrie ...
on the English throne, so if Shakespeare wished to use Oldcastle to embarrass the Cobhams, he seems unlikely to have done so on religious grounds.
The Cobhams appear to have intervened while Shakespeare was in the process of writing either ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or the second part of ''Henry IV''. The first part of ''Henry IV'' was probably written and performed in 1596, and the name Oldcastle had almost certainly been allowed by
Master of the Revels
The Master of the Revels was the holder of a position within the English, and later the British, royal household, heading the "Revels Office" or "Office of the Revels". The Master of the Revels was an executive officer under the Lord Chamberlain. ...
Edmund Tilney
Sir Edmund Tilney or Tylney (1536–1610) was a courtier best known now as Master of the Revels to Queen Elizabeth and King James. He was responsible for the censorship of drama in England. He was also instrumental in the development of English ...
.
William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham
Sir William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham, KG (1 November 1527 – 6 March 1597), lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and a member of parliament for Hythe. Although he was viewed by some as a religious radical d ...
may have become aware of the offensive representation after a public performance; he may also have learned of it while it was being prepared for a court performance (Cobham was at that time
Lord Chamberlain
The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main cha ...
). As father-in-law to the newly widowed
Robert Cecil, Cobham certainly possessed the influence at court to get his complaint heard quickly. Shakespeare may have included a sly retaliation against the complaint in his play ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' (published after the ''Henry IV'' series). In the play, the paranoid, jealous Master Ford uses the alias "Brook" to fool Falstaff, perhaps in reference to William Brooke. At any rate, the name is Falstaff in the ''Henry IV, Part 1''
quarto
Quarto (abbreviated Qto, 4to or 4º) is the format of a book or pamphlet produced from full sheets printed with eight pages of text, four to a side, then folded twice to produce four leaves. The leaves are then trimmed along the folds to produc ...
, of 1598, and the epilogue to the second part, published in 1600, contains this clarification:
Sir John Fastolf
The new name "Falstaff" probably derived from the medieval knight Sir
John Fastolf
Sir John Fastolf (6 November 1380 – 5 November 1459) was a late medieval English landowner and knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War. He has enjoyed a more lasting reputation as the prototype, in some part, of Shakespeare's charac ...
(who may also have been a
Lollard
Lollardy, also known as Lollardism or the Lollard movement, was a proto-Protestant Christian religious movement that existed from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catholic ...
). The historical John Fastolf fought at the
Battle of Patay
The Battle of Patay, fought on 18 June 1429 during the Hundred Years' War, was the culmination of the Loire Campaign between the French and English in north-central France. In this engagement, the horsemen of the French vanguard inflicted heavy ...
against
Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...
, which the English lost. Fastolf's previous actions as a soldier had earned him wide respect, but he seems to have become a scapegoat after the debacle. He was among the few English military leaders to avoid death or capture during the battle, and although there is no evidence that he acted with cowardice, he was temporarily stripped of his knighthood. Fastolf appears in ''
Henry VI, Part 1
''Henry VI, Part 1'', often referred to as ''1 Henry VI'', is a Shakespearean history, history play by William Shakespeare—possibly in collaboration with Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Nashe—believed to have been written in 1591. It is set ...
'' in which he is portrayed as an abject coward. In the''
First Folio
''Mr. William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies'' is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio, published in 1623, about seven years after Shakespeare's death. It is cons ...
''his name is spelled "Falstaffe", so Shakespeare may have directly appropriated the spelling of the name he used in the earlier play. In a further comic double meaning, the name implies impotence.
Robert Greene
It has been suggested that the dissolute writer
Robert Greene may also have been an inspiration for the character of Falstaff. This theory was first proposed in 1930 and has been championed by
Stephen Greenblatt
Stephen Jay Greenblatt (born November 7, 1943) is an American Shakespearean, literary historian, and author. He has served as the John Cogan University Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University since 2000. Greenblatt is the general edit ...
. Notorious for a life of dissipation and debauchery somewhat similar to Falstaff, he was among the first to mention Shakespeare in his work (in ''
Greene's Groats-Worth of Wit
''Greenes, Groats-worth of Witte, bought with a million of Repentance'' (1592) is a tract published as the work of the Elizabethan author Robert Greene.
It was published as a short book or pamphlet, a form that was popular and which contribut ...
''), suggesting to Greenblatt that the older writer may have influenced Shakespeare's characterisation.
Cultural adaptations
![Stratford upon Avon - panoramio (28)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Stratford_upon_Avon_-_panoramio_%2828%29.jpg)
There are several works about Falstaff, inspired by Shakespeare's plays:
Drama
*''
Falstaff's Wedding
''Falstaff's Wedding'' (1760 and 1766) is a play by William Kenrick (writer), William Kenrick. It is a sequel to Shakespeare's plays ''Henry IV, Part 2'' and ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''. Most of the characters are carried over from the two Shak ...
'' (1766), by
William Kenrick William Kenrick may refer to:
*William Kenrick (Member of Barebone's Parliament), MP for Kent (UK Parliament constituency)
*William Kenrick (writer) (1725–1779), English novelist, playwright and satirist
*William Kenrick (nurseryman) (1795&nda ...
was set after the events of ''Henry IV, Part 2''. To restore his financial position after his rejection by Hal, Falstaff is forced to marry Mistress Ursula (a character briefly mentioned by Shakespeare, whom Falstaff has "weekly" promised to marry). The play exists in two very different versions. In the first version Falstaff is drawn into
Scroop's plot to murder the king, but wins back Henry's favour by exposing the plot. In the second this story is dropped for a purely farcical storyline.
Music
![KembleFalstaff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/KembleFalstaff.jpg)
*''
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...
'' (1799),
Antonio Salieri
Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian classical composer, conductor, and teacher. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subject of the Habsburg monarchy ...
's
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
, with a libretto by Carlo Prospero Defranceschi, which is based upon ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''.
*''
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...
'' (1838), an opera by
Michael William Balfe
Michael William Balfe (15 May 1808 – 20 October 1870) was an Irish composer, best remembered for his operas, especially ''The Bohemian Girl''.
After a short career as a violinist, Balfe pursued an operatic singing career, while he began to co ...
to an Italian libretto by S. Manfredo Maggione that is based upon ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''.
*''
Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor
''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' (German: ''Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor'') is an opera in three acts by Otto Nicolai to a German libretto by Salomon Hermann Mosenthal based on the play ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' by William Shakespeare.
The ...
'' (1849) by
Otto Nicolai
Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of Shakespeare's comedy ''The Merry Wives of Wi ...
, based upon ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''.
*''
Le songe d'une nuit d'été
''Le songe d'une nuit d'été'' (''A Midsummer Night's Dream'') is an opéra-comique in three acts composed by Ambroise Thomas to a French libretto by Joseph-Bernard Rosier and Adolphe de Leuven. Although it shares the French title for Shakespeare ...
'' (1850), an opera by
Ambroise Thomas
Charles Louis Ambroise Thomas (; 5 August 1811 – 12 February 1896) was a French composer and teacher, best known for his operas ''Mignon'' (1866) and ''Hamlet'' (1868).
Born into a musical family, Thomas was a student at the Conservatoire de ...
in which Shakespeare and Falstaff meet.
*''
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...
'' (1893),
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
's last
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
, with a
libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...
by
Arrigo Boito
Arrigo Boito (; 24 February 1842 10 June 1918) (whose original name was Enrico Giuseppe Giovanni Boito and who wrote essays under the anagrammatic pseudonym of Tobia Gorrio) was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist, librettist and composer, best ...
. It is mostly based upon ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''.
*''
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...
'' (1913), a "symphonic study" (or
symphonic poem
A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ''T ...
) by
Edward Elgar
Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...
, depicts Falstaff's life.
*''
At the Boar's Head
''At the Boar's Head'' is an opera in one act by the English composer Gustav Holst, his op. 42. Holst himself described the work as "A Musical Interlude in One Act". The libretto, by the composer himself, is based on Shakespeare's '' Henry IV, ...
'' (1925), a short opera by
Gustav Holst
Gustav Theodore Holst (born Gustavus Theodore von Holst; 21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934) was an English composer, arranger and teacher. Best known for his orchestral suite ''The Planets'', he composed many other works across a range ...
based on the ''Henry IV'' plays.
*''
Sir John in Love
''Sir John in Love'' is an opera in four acts by the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams. The libretto, by the composer himself, is based on Shakespeare's ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' and supplemented with texts by Philip Sidney, Thomas Mi ...
'' (1929), an opera by
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...
based upon ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''.
* ''Plump Jack'' (1985/2005), an opera with both libretto and music by
Gordon Getty
Gordon Peter Getty (born December 20, 1933) is an American businessman and classical music composer, the fourth child of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty. His mother, Ann Rork, was his father's fourth wife. When his father died in 1976, Gordon assumed ...
, adapted from the text of ''Henry IV'' and ''Henry V ''.
Film and television
*On film, Falstaff appeared in
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
's acclaimed 1944
version
Version may refer to:
Computing
* Software version, a set of numbers that identify a unique evolution of a computer program
* VERSION (CONFIG.SYS directive), a configuration directive in FreeDOS
Music
* Cover version
* Dub version
* Remix
* ''Ve ...
of ''Henry V''. Although Falstaff does not appear in the play, Olivier inserted an original scene depicting the fat knight – played by
George Robey
Sir George Edward Wade, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (20 September 1869 – 29 November 1954),James Harding (music writer), Harding, James"Robey, George" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University P ...
, who first previously performed the role in a stage production of ''Henry IV, Part 1'' in 1935 – as a dying, heartbroken old man attended by Mistress Quickly, pathetically reliving in his mind his rejection by Henry. This was immediately followed by the actual scene from the play of Mistress Quickly describing Falstaff's death to his grieving followers.
*
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...
's ''
Chimes at Midnight
''Falstaff (Chimes at Midnight)'' (Spanish: ''Campanadas a medianoche'') is a 1966 period comedy-drama film directed by and starring Orson Welles. The Spanish-Swiss co-production was released in the United States as ''Chimes at Midnight'' and in ...
'' (1965) compiles the two ''Henry IV'' plays into a single, condensed storyline, while adding a handful of scenes from ''
Richard II
Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father died ...
'' and ''Henry V''. The film, also known as ''Falstaff'', features Welles himself in the title role, with film critic
Vincent Canby
Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...
stating in 1975 that it "may be the greatest Shakespearean film ever made, bar none".
*Falstaff appeared in the 1960 series ''
An Age of Kings
''An Age of Kings'' is a fifteen-part serial adaptation of the eight sequential history plays of William Shakespeare (''Richard II'', ''1 Henry IV'', '' 2 Henry IV'', ''Henry V'', '' 1 Henry VI'', '' 2 Henry VI'', '' 3 Henry VI'' and ''Richard ...
'', which was actually a 15 part series depicting Shakespeare's history plays from ''Richard II''
to ''Richard III''; in the ''Henry IV'' episodes he was played by
Frank Pettingell
Frank Edmund George Pettingell (1 January 1891 – 17 February 1966) was an English actor.
Pettingell was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, and educated at Manchester University. During the First World War he served with the King's Liverpool Re ...
.
*In the 1979 season of the ''
BBC Shakespeare
The ''BBC Television Shakespeare'' is a series of British television adaptations of Shakespeare's plays, the plays of William Shakespeare, created by Cedric Messina and broadcast by BBC Television. Transmitted in the UK from 3 December 1978 to ...
'' series, in both parts of ''Henry IV'' Falstaff was played by
Anthony Quayle
Sir John Anthony Quayle (7 September 1913 – 20 October 1989) was a British actor and theatre director. He was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his supporting role as Thomas Wolsey in the film ''Anne of the Thousand Days'' (1969). ...
, and in ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' which followed in the 1982 season, by
Richard Griffiths
Richard Thomas Griffiths (31 July 1947 – 28 March 2013) was an English actor of film, television, and stage. For his performance in the stage play ''The History Boys'', Griffiths won a Tony Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, the Drama Desk Aw ...
.
*In
Kenneth Branagh
Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh (; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Branagh trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and has served as its president since 2015. He has won an Academy Award, four BAFTAs (plus t ...
's acclaimed
1989 version of ''Henry V'', Falstaff, here played by
Robbie Coltrane
Anthony Robert McMillan (30 March 195014 October 2022), known professionally as Robbie Coltrane, was a Scottish actor and comedian. He gained worldwide recognition in the 2000s for playing Rubeus Hagrid in the ''Harry Potter'' film series. He ...
, as in the Olivier version is given an original scene, this time dying in his bed and attended by Mistress Quickly, while downstairs his followers share a flashback – put together from various bits from both parts of ''Henry IV'' – showing the fat knight carousing with Henry back when he was "madcap prince" Hal, but it ends abruptly when the prince makes an ominous hint that some day when he becomes King he will be banishing his old friend. Later, prior to the actual scene where Mistress Quickly describes his death, there is a fleeting close-up shot of her sadly examining the knight's now deceased body one last time before going downstairs to his followers.
*Falstaff appeared in the
Michael Bogdanov
Michael Bogdanov (15 December 1938 – 16 April 2017) was a British theatre director known for his work with new plays, modern reinterpretations of Shakespeare, musicals and work for young people.
Early years
Bogdanov was born Michael Bogd ...
/
Michael Pennington
Michael Vivian Fyfe Pennington (born 7 June 1943) is a British actor, director and writer. Together with director Michael Bogdanov, he founded the English Shakespeare Company in 1986 and was its Joint Artistic Director until 1992. He has writt ...
's
English Shakespeare Company
The English Shakespeare Company was an English theatre company founded in 1986 by Michael Bogdanov and Michael Pennington to present and promote the works of William Shakespeare on both a national and an international level. Funding came from th ...
's presentation of Shakespeare's plays concerning ''The Wars of the Roses''; originally taped live during their final tour with the series in 1989. In the ''Henry IV'' episodes, Falstaff was played by
Barry Stanton, who later played the Chorus in ''Henry V''. Although Falstaff never actually appeared in the production of ''Henry V'', there is a humorous scene in silhouette prior to the scene where Mistress Quickly describing his funeral, depicting Falstaff's funeral procession, with a group of soldiers staggering under the weight of his coffin (an obvious nod to the final scene in ''Chimes at Midnight'').
*
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, producer, photographer, and musician. He has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultur ...
’s ''
My Own Private Idaho
''My Own Private Idaho'' is a 1991 American independent adventure drama film written and directed by Gus Van Sant, loosely based on Shakespeare's ''Henry IV, Part 1'', '' Henry IV, Part 2'', and ''Henry V''. The story follows two friends, Mike ...
'' is partially a retelling of the ''Henry IV'' plays, set in the contemporary US, and with the character of Bob Pigeon (
William Richert
William Richert (1942 – July 19, 2022) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. He is known for writing and directing the feature films '' Winter Kills'', ''The American Success Company'', and '' A Night in the Life o ...
) representing Falstaff. In the scene immediately following Bob’s first appearance in the film, Scott Favor (Keanu Reeves)—the film’s version of Hal—is seen drinking from a bottle of Falstaff brand beer. Bob Pigeon's final scene in the film mirrors that of Falstaff, with Scott/Prince Hal delivering a version of the famous ''I know thee not, old man'' speech.
*In the 2012 television series
The Hollow Crown ''The Hollow Crown'' may refer to:
* a passage in Shakespeare's play ''Richard II
Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward t ...
, which likewise consisted of Shakespeare's plays concerning the ''Wars of the Roses'', Falstaff was played by
Simon Russell Beale
Sir Simon Russell Beale (born 12 January 1961) is an English actor. He is known for his appearances in film, television and theatre, and work on radio, on audiobooks and as a narrator. For his services to drama, he was knighted by Queen Elizabe ...
. Just as in Olivier's and Branagh's film versions of ''Henry V'', the Falstaff in this series appeared in the ''Henry V'' episode as well the ''Henry IV'' ones, sadly recollecting his rejection by his former friend while he is dying.
*In
Phyllida Lloyd
Phyllida Christian Lloyd, (born 17 June 1957) is an English film director and producer, best known for '' Mamma Mia!'' (2008) and '' The Iron Lady'' (2011). Her theatre work includes directing productions at the Royal Court Theatre and Royal N ...
's 2017 all-female
Donmar Warehouse
The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977.
Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage and Josie Rourke have all served as artistic director, a post held since 2019 by Micha ...
production of ''Henry IV'' (combining both parts), which was videotaped and broadcast,
Sophie Stanton
Sophie Stanton (born 1971 in London, England) is an English actress, director and playwright. She is best known for her role as DCI Jill Marsden in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' in which she has appeared on and off since 2001.
Career
Eas ...
played Falstaff.
*In the 2019 Netflix film ''
The King'', Falstaff (played by
Joel Edgerton
Joel Edgerton (born 23 June 1974) is an Australian actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his appearance in the ''Star Wars'' films ''Attack of the Clones'' (2002) and ''Revenge of the Sith'' (2005) as a young Owen Lars, a role he reprised i ...
) proposes to
Henry V Henry V may refer to:
People
* Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026)
* Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125)
* Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161)
* Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227)
* Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...
the
military tactics
Military tactics encompasses the art of organizing and employing fighting forces on or near the battlefield. They involve the application of four battlefield functions which are closely related – kinetic or firepower, Mobility (military), mobil ...
employed by the English in the
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt ( ; french: Azincourt ) was an English victory in the Hundred Years' War. It took place on 25 October 1415 (Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. The unexpected English victory against the numerica ...
and dies in the battle.
*In the comedy series ''
Upstart Crow
Upstart or upstarts may refer to:
* HMS ''Upstart'', a Royal Navy U-class submarine
*Upstart (company), an online lending marketplace
*Upstart (software), a process management daemon used in several operating systems.
* Upstart (sculpture), a publi ...
'', William Shakespeare, played by
David Mitchell, is inspired by his wastrel father's antics to create a character called ''John Foulstuff''.
Print
*Alexander Smith (pseud.) "Sir John Falstaff a Notorious Highwayman" in ''A Compleat History of the Lives and Robberies of the most Notorious Highway-Men, Foot-Pads, Shop-Lifts, and Cheats, of Both Sexes'' (London: J. Morphew, 1714)
*
James White's book ''Falstaff's Letters'' (1796) purports to be a collection of letters written by Falstaff, provided by a descendant of Mistress Quickly's sister. She had inherited them from Mistress Quickly herself, who kept them in a drawer in the Boar's Head Tavern until her death in "August 1419".
*''The Life of Sir John Falstaff'' (1858), a novel by
Robert Barnabas Brough
Robert Barnabas Brough (10 April 1828 – 26 June 1860) was an English writer. He wrote poetry, novels and plays and was a contributor to many periodicals.
Life and work
Brough was born on 10 April 1828 in London, the son of Barnabas Brough (c. 1 ...
.
*''Falstaff'' (1976), a novel by
Robert Nye
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
.
*
Volstagg the Voluminous
Volstagg is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a charter member of the Warriors Three, a trio of Asgardian adventurers and supporting cast of Thor. He is known for having multiple children. ...
, a
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
character and companion to Thor, is based on Falstaff.
References
Notes
All references to ''Henry IV, Part 1'', ''Henry IV, Part 2'', and ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'', unless otherwise specified, are taken from the
Folger Shakespeare Library
The Folger Shakespeare Library is an independent research library on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., United States. It has the world's largest collection of the printed works of William Shakespeare, and is a primary repository for rare material ...
's ''Folger Digital Editions'' texts edited by Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, and Rebecca Niles. Under their referencing system, 3.1.55 means act 3, scene 1, line 55.
Bibliography
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Further reading
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External links
''Henry the Fourth part 1''at
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg (PG) is a Virtual volunteering, volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks."
It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the ...
* All lines spoken by Falstaff in
*
''Henry IV, Part 1''*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Falstaff, John
Literary archetypes by name
Male Shakespearean characters
Comedy theatre characters
Inmates of Fleet Prison
Fictional knights
Fictional alcohol abusers
Characters in The Merry Wives of Windsor