Act 3, Scene 6 — Henry V — Study Shakespeare

The argument Fluellen reports gallant service at the bridge; Pistol begs him to intercede for Bardolph, condemned for stealing from a church. Fluellen refuses. Gower exposes Pistol as a fraud. Henry learns of Bardolph's fate and approves the execution, ordering strict no-looting discipline. The French herald Montjoy delivers a demand for ransom. Henry responds with startling honesty about his army's weakness — and defiance.

Enter Gower and Fluellen, meeting.

GOWER

How now, Captain Fluellen! come you from the bridge?

FLUELLEN

I assure you, there is very excellent services committed at the bridge.

I assure you, there is very excellent services committed at

GOWER

Is the Duke of Exeter safe?

FLUELLEN

The Duke of Exeter is as magnanimous as Agamemnon; and a man that I

love and honour with my soul, and my heart, and my duty, and my life,

and my living, and my uttermost power. He is not—God be praised and

blessed!—any hurt in the world; but keeps the bridge most valiantly,

with excellent discipline. There is an anchient lieutenant there at the

pridge, I think in my very conscience he is as valiant a man as Mark

Antony; and he is a man of no estimation in the world, but I did see

him do as gallant service.

The Duke of Exeter is as magnanimous as Agamemnon; and a man that I love and honour with my soul, and my heart, and my duty, and my life, and my living, and my uttermost power. He is not—God be praised and blessed!—any hurt in the world; but keeps the bridge most valiantly, with excellent discipline. There is an anchient lieutenant there at the pridge, I think in my very conscience he is as valiant a man as Mark Antony; and he is a man of no estimation in the world, but I did see him do as gallant service.

The Duke of Exeter is as magnanimous as Agamemnon; and a man

GOWER

What do you call him?

FLUELLEN

He is call’d Anchient Pistol.

Why it matters The setup for the joke: Fluellen, who has the highest standards for military valor, has just compared Pistol to Mark Antony. Gower will shortly tell him — and us — who Pistol actually is.

GOWER

I know him not.

Enter Pistol.

FLUELLEN

Here is the man.

PISTOL ≋ verse

Captain, I thee beseech to do me favours.

The Duke of Exeter doth love thee well.

Captain, I you beseech to do me favours. The Duke of Exeter does love you well.

captain, i you beseech to do me favours. the duke of exeter does love you well.

FLUELLEN

Ay, I praise God; and I have merited some love at his hands.

PISTOL ≋ verse

Bardolph, a soldier, firm and sound of heart,

And of buxom valour, hath by cruel fate

And giddy Fortune’s furious fickle wheel,

That goddess blind,

That stands upon the rolling restless stone—

Bardolph, a soldier, firm and sound of heart, And of buxom valour, has by cruel fate And giddy Fortune’s furious fickle wheel, That goddess blind, That stands upon the rolling restless stone—

bardolph, a soldier, firm and sound of heart, and of buxom valour, has by cruel

FLUELLEN

By your patience, Anchient Pistol. Fortune is painted blind, with a

muffler afore his eyes, to signify to you that Fortune is blind; and

she is painted also with a wheel, to signify to you, which is the moral

of it, that she is turning, and inconstant, and mutability, and

variation; and her foot, look you, is fixed upon a spherical stone,

which rolls, and rolls, and rolls. In good truth, the poet makes a most

excellent description of it. Fortune is an excellent moral.

By your patience, Anchient Pistol. Fortune is painted blind, with a muffler afore his eyes, to signify to you that Fortune is blind; and she is painted also with a wheel, to signify to you, which is the moral of it, that she is turning, and inconstant, and mutability, and variation; and her foot, look you, is fixed upon a spherical stone, which rolls, and rolls, and rolls. In good truth, the poet makes a most excellent description of it. Fortune is an excellent moral.

By your patience, Anchient Pistol. Fortune is painted blind,

"which rolls, and rolls, and rolls" Fluellen has completely derailed Pistol's plea into an iconography lecture. The repetition of 'rolls, and rolls, and rolls' shows Fluellen getting absorbed in his own explanation — he's forgotten entirely that Pistol was asking something.

Why it matters One of the great comic moments in Henry V — Pistol trying desperately to save Bardolph's life through theatrical rhetoric, and Fluellen interrupting him to explain the symbolism of Fortune's iconography in exquisite detail. It's funny, and it reveals that Fluellen's pedantry is impenetrable.

PISTOL ≋ verse

Fortune is Bardolph’s foe, and frowns on him;

For he hath stolen a pax, and hanged must ’a be,—

A damned death!

Let gallows gape for dog; let man go free,

And let not hemp his windpipe suffocate.

But Exeter hath given the doom of death

For pax of little price.

Therefore, go speak; the Duke will hear thy voice;

And let not Bardolph’s vital thread be cut

With edge of penny cord and vile reproach.

Speak, captain, for his life, and I will thee requite.

Fortune is Bardolph’s foe, and frowns on him; For he has stolen a pax, and hanged must ’a be,— A damned death! Let gallows gape for dog; let man go free, And let not hemp his windpipe suffocate. But Exeter has given the doom of death For pax of little price. Therefore, go speak; the Duke will hear your voice; And let not Bardolph’s vital thread be cut With edge of penny cord and vile reproach. Speak, captain, for his life, and I will you requite.

Fortune 's Bardolph’s foe, and frowns on him; For he has stolen a pax, and hanged must ’a be,— A damned death! Let gallows gape for dog; let man go free, And let not hemp h's windpipe suffocate. But Exeter has given the doom of death For pax of little price. Therefore, go speak; the Duke will hear your voice; And let not Bardolph’s vital thread be cut With edge of penny cord and vile reproach. Speak, captain, for h's life, and I will you requite.

fortune is bardolph’s foe, and frowns on him; for he has stolen a pax, and hange

FLUELLEN

Anchient Pistol, I do partly understand your meaning.

PISTOL

Why then, rejoice therefore.

FLUELLEN

Certainly, anchient, it is not a thing to rejoice at; for if, look you,

he were my brother, I would desire the Duke to use his good pleasure,

and put him to execution; for discipline ought to be used.

Certainly, anchient, it is not a thing to rejoice at; for if, look you, he were my brother, I would desire the Duke to use his good pleasure, and put him to execution; for discipline ought to be used.

Certainly, anchient, it is not a thing to rejoice at; for if

Why it matters Fluellen's refusal is one of the play's defining character moments. His loyalty to 'the disciplines of war' is absolute — more absolute than kinship, more absolute than friendship. It's admirable and slightly frightening. It also sets up Henry's identical response when he hears of Bardolph's execution.

PISTOL

Die and be damn’d! and _fico_ for thy friendship!

Die and be damn’d! and _fico_ for your friendship!

die and be damn’d! and _fico_ for your friendship!

FLUELLEN

It is well.

PISTOL

The fig of Spain.

[_Exit._]

FLUELLEN

Very good.

GOWER

Why, this is an arrant counterfeit rascal. I remember him now; a bawd,

a cutpurse.

Why, this is an arrant counterfeit rascal. I remember him now; a bawd, a cutpurse.

Why, this is an arrant counterfeit rascal. I remember him no

FLUELLEN

I’ll assure you, ’a uttered as prave words at the pridge as you shall

see in a summer’s day. But it is very well; what he has spoke to me,

that is well, I warrant you, when time is serve.

I’ll assure you, ’a uttered as prave words at the pridge as you shall see in a summer’s day. But it is very well; what he has spoke to me, that is well, I warrant you, when time is serve.

I’ll assure you, ’a uttered as prave words at the pridge as

GOWER

Why, ’t is a gull, a fool, a rogue, that now and then goes to the wars,

to grace himself at his return into London under the form of a soldier.

And such fellows are perfect in the great commanders’ names; and they

will learn you by rote where services were done; at such and such a

sconce, at such a breach, at such a convoy; who came off bravely, who

was shot, who disgrac’d, what terms the enemy stood on; and this they

con perfectly in the phrase of war, which they trick up with new-tuned

oaths: and what a beard of the general’s cut and a horrid suit of the

camp will do among foaming bottles and ale-wash’d wits, is wonderful to

be thought on. But you must learn to know such slanders of the age, or

else you may be marvellously mistook.

Why, ’t is a gull, a fool, a rogue, that now and then goes to the wars, to grace himself at his return into London under the form of a soldier. And such fellows are perfect in the great commanders’ names; and they will learn you by rote where services were done; at such and such a sconce, at such a breach, at such a convoy; who came off bravely, who was shot, who disgrac’d, what terms the enemy stood on; and this they con perfectly in the phrase of war, which they trick up with new-tuned oaths: and what a beard of the general’s cut and a horrid suit of the camp will do among foaming bottles and ale-wash’d wits, is wonderful to be thought on. But you must learn to know such slanders of the age, or else you may be marvellously mistook.

Why, ’t 's a gull, a fool, a rogue, that now and then goes to the wars, to grace himself at h's return into London under the form of a soldier. And such fellows 're perfect in the great commanders’ names; and they will learn you by rote where services were done; at such and such a sconce, at such a breach, at such a convoy; who came off bravely, who was shot, who d'sgrac’d, what terms the enemy stood on; and th's they con perfectly in the phrase of war, which they trick up with new-tuned oaths: and what a beard of the general’s cut and a horrid suit of the camp will do among foaming bottles and ale-wash’d wits, 's wonderful to be thought on. But you must learn to know such slanders of the age, or else you may be marvellously m'stook.

why, ’t is a gull, a fool, a rogue, that now and then goes to the wars, to grace

"what a beard of the general's cut and a horrid suit of the camp will do among foaming bottles and ale-wash'd wits" Gower's portrait of the fake war hero is one of the play's most acute social observations — the man who returns from war having done nothing, but equipped with the right vocabulary, beard, and costume to impress tavern drinkers. The insight is as fresh as it was in 1599.

Why it matters Gower's speech is a masterclass in social type. It nails something completely recognizable: the person who wasn't there, but knows enough of the vocabulary and has the right exterior to convince those who don't know better. Shakespeare is very deliberately setting up the contrast between Pistol's fake bravery and Henry's real leadership.

FLUELLEN

I tell you what, Captain Gower; I do perceive he is not the man that he

would gladly make show to the world he is. If I find a hole in his

coat, I will tell him my mind. [_Drum heard._] Hark you, the King is

coming, and I must speak with him from the pridge.

I tell you what, Captain Gower; I do perceive he is not the man that he would gladly make show to the world he is. If I find a hole in his coat, I will tell him my mind. [_Drum heard._] Hark you, the King is coming, and I must speak with him from the pridge.

I tell you what, Captain Gower; I do perceive he is not the

Drum and colours. Enter King Henry, Gloucester and his poor soldiers.

God bless your Majesty!

KING HENRY

How now, Fluellen! cam’st thou from the bridge?

How now, Fluellen! cam’st you from the bridge?

how now, fluellen! cam’st you from the bridge?

FLUELLEN

Ay, so please your Majesty. The Duke of Exeter has very gallantly

maintain’d the pridge. The French is gone off, look you; and there is

gallant and most prave passages. Marry, th’ athversary was have

possession of the pridge; but he is enforced to retire, and the Duke of

Exeter is master of the pridge. I can tell your Majesty, the Duke is a

prave man.

Ay, so please your Majesty. The Duke of Exeter has very gallantly maintain’d the pridge. The French is gone off, look you; and there is gallant and most prave passages. Marry, th’ athversary was have possession of the pridge; but he is enforced to retire, and the Duke of Exeter is master of the pridge. I can tell your Majesty, the Duke is a prave man.

Ay, so please your Majesty. The Duke of Exeter has very gall

KING HENRY

What men have you lost, Fluellen?

FLUELLEN

The perdition of the athversary hath been very great, reasonable great.

Marry, for my part, I think the Duke hath lost never a man, but one

that is like to be executed for robbing a church, one Bardolph, if your

Majesty know the man. His face is all bubukles, and whelks, and knobs,

and flames o’ fire; and his lips blows at his nose, and it is like a

coal of fire, sometimes plue and sometimes red; but his nose is

executed, and his fire’s out.

The perdition of the athversary has been very great, reasonable great. Marry, for my part, I think the Duke has lost never a man, but one that is like to be executed for robbing a church, one Bardolph, if your Majesty know the man. His face is all bubukles, and whelks, and knobs, and flames o’ fire; and his lips blows at his nose, and it is like a coal of fire, sometimes plue and sometimes red; but his nose is executed, and his fire’s out.

The perdition of the athversary has been very great, reasonable great. Marry, for my part, I think the Duke has lost never a man, but one that 's like to be executed for robbing a church, one Bardolph, if your Majesty know the man. H's face 's all bubukles, and whelks, and knobs, and flames o’ fire; and h's lips blows at h's nose, and it 's like a coal of fire, sometimes plue and sometimes red; but h's nose 's executed, and h's fire’s out.

the perdition of the athversary has been very great, reasonable great. marry, fo

"his nose is executed, and his fire's out" Fluellen ends with a dark pun — Bardolph's famous red nose (a recurring joke in the Falstaff plays) will be 'extinguished' at the gallows. It's grimly funny, and Fluellen delivers it with complete unconscious precision.

Why it matters Fluellen doesn't know he's telling Henry about an old friend. Henry barely reacts. The contrast with the warmth he showed Bardolph in Henry IV is the scene's sharpest moment of character insight — the king has truly separated himself from the tavern world.

↩ Callback to 1-2 Bardolph has appeared throughout the Falstaff plays (Henry IV Parts 1 and 2) as one of Henry's original tavern companions. His execution marks the final severing of the king from his former life — the tavern world is truly over.

KING HENRY

We would have all such offenders so cut off; and we give express

charge, that in our marches through the country, there be nothing

compell’d from the villages, nothing taken but paid for, none of the

French upbraided or abused in disdainful language; for when lenity and

cruelty play for a kingdom, the gentler gamester is the soonest winner.

Tucket. Enter Montjoy.

We would have all such offenders so cut off; and we give express charge, that in our marches through the country, there be nothing compell’d from the villages, nothing taken but paid for, none of the French upbraided or abused in disdainful language; for when lenity and cruelty play for a kingdom, the gentler gamester is the soonest winner. Tucket. Enter Montjoy.

We would have all such offenders so cut off; and we give exp

"when lenity and cruelty play for a kingdom, the gentler gamester is the soonest winner" Henry's most explicit statement of a strategic principle he has applied since 3-3. Mercy isn't sentimentality — it's good policy. The phrase is also a complete vindication of the Harfleur speech: the threat of cruelty produced surrender; mercy afterward consolidates the gain.

Why it matters Henry's approval of Bardolph's execution is one of the play's most debated moments. He knew Bardolph. He says nothing personal. He simply says all such offenders should die and issues his no-looting orders. Whether this is admirable royal justice, cold-blooded pragmatism, or a traumatic suppression of grief is for the actor and the audience to decide.

MONTJOY

You know me by my habit.

KING HENRY

Well then I know thee. What shall I know of thee?

Well then I know you. What shall I know of you?

well then i know you. what shall i know of you?

MONTJOY

My master’s mind.

KING HENRY

Unfold it.

MONTJOY

Thus says my King: Say thou to Harry of England: Though we seem’d dead,

we did but sleep; advantage is a better soldier than rashness. Tell him

we could have rebuk’d him at Harfleur, but that we thought not good to

bruise an injury till it were full ripe. Now we speak upon our cue, and

our voice is imperial. England shall repent his folly, see his

weakness, and admire our sufferance. Bid him therefore consider of his

ransom; which must proportion the losses we have borne, the subjects we

have lost, the disgrace we have digested; which in weight to re-answer,

his pettishness would bow under. For our losses, his exchequer is too

poor; for the effusion of our blood, the muster of his kingdom too

faint a number; and for our disgrace, his own person, kneeling at our

feet, but a weak and worthless satisfaction. To this add defiance; and

tell him, for conclusion, he hath betrayed his followers, whose

condemnation is pronounc’d. So far my King and master; so much my

office.

Thus says my King: Say you to Harry of England: Though we seem’d dead, we did but sleep; advantage is a better soldier than rashness. Tell him we could have rebuk’d him at Harfleur, but that we thought not good to bruise an injury till it were full ripe. Now we speak upon our cue, and our voice is imperial. England shall repent his folly, see his weakness, and admire our sufferance. Bid him therefore consider of his ransom; which must proportion the losses we have borne, the subjects we have lost, the disgrace we have digested; which in weight to re-answer, his pettishness would bow under. For our losses, his exchequer is too poor; for the effusion of our blood, the muster of his kingdom too faint a number; and for our disgrace, his own person, kneeling at our feet, but a weak and worthless satisfaction. To this add defiance; and tell him, for conclusion, he has betrayed his followers, whose condemnation is pronounc’d. So far my King and master; so much my office.

Thus says my King: Say you to Harry of England: Though we seem’d dead, we did but sleep; advantage 's a better soldier than rashness. Tell him we could have rebuk’d him at Harfleur, but that we thought not good to bru'se an injury till it were full ripe. Now we speak upon our cue, and our voice 's imperial. England shall repent h's folly, see h's weakness, and admire our sufferance. Bid him therefore consider of h's ransom; which must proportion the losses we have borne, the subjects we have lost, the d'sgrace we have digested; which in weight to re-answer, h's pett'shness would bow under. For our losses, h's exchequer 's too poor; for the effusion of our blood, the muster of h's kingdom too faint a number; and for our d'sgrace, h's own person, kneeling at our feet, but a weak and worthless sat'sfaction. To th's add defiance; and tell him, for conclusion, he has betrayed h's followers, whose condemnation 's pronounc’d. So far my King and master; so much my office.

thus says my king: say you to harry of england: though we seem’d dead, we did bu

"we could have rebuk'd him at Harfleur, but that we thought not good to bruise an injury till it were full ripe" The French King's explanation for why they didn't relieve Harfleur — they were waiting for the right moment to strike, like waiting for a wound to ripen before lancing it. The problem is that the moment they waited for is being used by Henry to march to Calais. The explanation sounds strategic; the reality is that Harfleur fell.

Why it matters Montjoy's speech is designed to psychologically crush Henry — outlining exactly how outmatched he is financially, militarily, and morally. It's a very well-constructed piece of diplomatic pressure. Henry's response to it is the scene's real revelation.

KING HENRY

What is thy name? I know thy quality.

What is your name? I know your quality.

What 's your name? I know your quality.

what is your name? i know your quality.

MONTJOY

Montjoy.

KING HENRY ≋ verse

Thou dost thy office fairly. Turn thee back,

And tell thy King I do not seek him now,

But could be willing to march on to Calais

Without impeachment; for, to say the sooth,

Though ’tis no wisdom to confess so much

Unto an enemy of craft and vantage,

My people are with sickness much enfeebled,

My numbers lessen’d, and those few I have

Almost no better than so many French;

Who when they were in health, I tell thee, herald,

I thought upon one pair of English legs

Did march three Frenchmen. Yet, forgive me, God,

That I do brag thus! This your air of France

Hath blown that vice in me. I must repent.

Go therefore, tell thy master here I am;

My ransom is this frail and worthless trunk,

My army but a weak and sickly guard;

Yet, God before, tell him we will come on,

Though France himself and such another neighbour

Stand in our way. There’s for thy labour, Montjoy.

Go, bid thy master well advise himself.

If we may pass, we will; if we be hind’red,

We shall your tawny ground with your red blood

Discolour; and so, Montjoy, fare you well.

The sum of all our answer is but this:

We would not seek a battle, as we are;

Nor, as we are, we say we will not shun it.

So tell your master.

you dost your office fairly. Turn you back, And tell your King I do not seek him now, But could be willing to march on to Calais Without impeachment; for, to say the sooth, Though ’tis no wisdom to confess so much Unto an enemy of craft and vantage, My people are with sickness much enfeebled, My numbers lessen’d, and those few I have Almost no better than so many French; Who when they were in health, I tell you, herald, I thought upon one pair of English legs Did march three Frenchmen. Yet, forgive me, God, That I do brag thus! This your air of France has blown that vice in me. I must repent. Go therefore, tell your master here I am; My ransom is this frail and worthless trunk, My army but a weak and sickly guard; Yet, God before, tell him we will come on, Though France himself and such another neighbour Stand in our way. There’s for your labour, Montjoy. Go, bid your master well advise himself. If we may pass, we will; if we be hind’red, We shall your tawny ground with your red blood Discolour; and so, Montjoy, fare you well. The sum of all our answer is but this: We would not seek a battle, as we are; Nor, as we are, we say we will not shun it. So tell your master.

you dost your office fairly. Turn you back, And tell your King I do not seek him now, But could be willing to march on to Cala's Without impeachment; for, to say the sooth, Though ’t's no w'sdom to confess so much Unto an enemy of craft and vantage, My people 're with sickness much enfeebled, My numbers lessen’d, and those few I have Almost no better than so many French; Who when they were in health, I tell you, herald, I thought upon one pair of Engl'sh legs Did march three Frenchmen. Yet, forgive me, God, That I do brag thus! Th's your air of France has blown that vice in me. I must repent. Go therefore, tell your master here I am; My ransom 's th's frail and worthless trunk, My army but a weak and sickly guard; Yet, God before, tell him we will come on, Though France himself and such another neighbour Stand in our way. There’s for your labour, Montjoy. Go, bid your master well adv'se himself. If we may pass, we will; if we be hind’red, We shall your tawny ground with your red blood D'scolour; and so, Montjoy, f're you well. The sum of all our answer 's but th's: We would not seek a battle, as we 're; Nor, as we 're, we say we will not shun it. So tell your master.

you dost your office fairly. turn you back, and tell your king i do not seek him

"My ransom is this frail and worthless trunk" Henry names his own ransom — his body — and calls it worthless. The line is simultaneously an acknowledgment of his army's desperate state and an act of profound defiance. He's saying: all you'd get from capturing me is this sick body. And we're still coming.

"Yet, God before, tell him we will come on" The pivot of the speech. After the honest confession of weakness, 'Yet' carries enormous weight. Henry is not pretending his army is strong; he is saying that its strength is irrelevant to whether it will fight. The theological grounding — 'God before' — shifts the battlefield from the material to the providential.

Why it matters This is arguably Henry's most revealing speech in the play. He is unusually honest — admitting weakness, even catching himself boasting and apologizing for it mid-speech. And then, out of that honesty, comes total defiance. The speech works because it refuses easy heroics. Henry doesn't pretend he's strong; he says he'll come on anyway. It's the most human and the most unconquerable he appears in the same moment.

🎭 Dramatic irony Henry admits to Montjoy that his army is sick and depleted. The audience who has just seen the French court in 3-5, with the Constable predicting Henry will offer ransom at first sight of the French army, knows that both sides now have accurate information about each other's strength — and yet the outcome will be the opposite of what the French expect.

MONTJOY

I shall deliver so. Thanks to your Highness.

[_Exit._]

GLOUCESTER

I hope they will not come upon us now.

KING HENRY ≋ verse

We are in God’s hands, brother, not in theirs.

March to the bridge; it now draws toward night.

Beyond the river we’ll encamp ourselves,

And on tomorrow bid them march away.

We are in God’s hands, brother, not in theirs. March to the bridge; it now draws toward night. Beyond the river we’ll encamp ourselves, And on tomorrow bid them march away.

We are in God’s hands, brother, not in theirs. March to the

Why it matters Henry's final line of the scene — 'We are in God's hands, brother, not in theirs' — is the play's most compressed statement of his theology of kingship. He is not in control; he has placed the outcome in God's hands, and that placement frees him from fear.

[_Exeunt._]

The Reckoning

Three scenes in one, each doing something different. The Bardolph sequence is almost funny — Fluellen taking Pistol's pompous poetry absolutely literally, Gower's hilariously precise take-down of the fake soldier type — and then suddenly it connects to Henry, who was Bardolph's friend in the tavern days. 'We would have all such offenders so cut off' is perhaps the coldest line Henry says in the play. He barely pauses. Then Montjoy arrives with the French demand for ransom, and Henry gives one of the play's most unexpected speeches: he admits, frankly, that his army is depleted and sick, almost nothing but his own frail body — and then says they're coming anyway. It's simultaneously humble and completely unconquerable.

If this happened today…

The startup CEO who, in response to a competitor's press release saying 'we expect them to sell soon,' sends back: 'Our runway is limited, our team is smaller than reported, and frankly we've been through a rough quarter. That said: we're not going anywhere, and we'll see you at the conference.' Everyone reads it and doesn't quite know what to make of it.

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