Mitarai Digital Folio
History • c. 1597

Henry IV, part 1

3,038Lines 5Acts 18Scenes 36Characters 97% / 3%Male / Female Lines

Henry IV, part 1 (c. 1597) fields a crowded stage: 36 named speakers share 3,038 lines across 5 acts and 18 scenes.

Opens (Act 1, Scene 1) — King Henry Iv: “So shaken as we are, so wan with care,”

Closes (Act 5, Scene 5) — King Henry Iv: “Let us not leave till all our own be won.”

Full cast of Henry IV, part 1 by line count

# Character Lines Share Acts Scenes
1 Falstaff ♂ 616 20.3% 5 8
2 Hotspur ♂ 562 18.5% 5 8
3 Prince Henry ♂ 551 18.1% 5 9
4 King Henry Iv ♂ 341 11.2% 3 6
5 Earl Of Worcester ♂ 188 6.2% 4 7
6 Poins ♂ 79 2.6% 2 3
7 Glendower ♂ 79 2.6% 1 1
8 Vernon ♂ 66 2.2% 2 3
9 Mortimer ♂ 60 2.0% 1 1
10 Lady Percy ♀ 57 1.9% 2 2
11 Hostess ♀ 49 1.6% 2 2
12 Earl Of Douglas ♂ 46 1.5% 2 5
13 Gadshill ♂ 44 1.4% 1 3
14 Westmoreland ♂ 41 1.3% 3 3
15 Sir Walter Blunt ♂ 41 1.3% 4 4
16 Archbishop Of York ♂ 34 1.1% 1 1
17 Bardolph ♂ 28 0.9% 3 4
18 Northumberland ♂ 26 0.9% 1 1
19 First Carrier ♂ 20 0.7% 1 1
20 Chamberlain ♂ 17 0.6% 1 1
21 Second Carrier ♂ 16 0.5% 1 1
22 Francis ♂ 15 0.5% 1 1
23 Peto ♂ 14 0.5% 1 2
24 Messenger ♂ 8 0.3% 2 2
25 Lancaster ♂ 8 0.3% 1 2
…11 additional speaking roles with fewer than 8 lines

Line counts act by act

Act Scenes Lines Speakers Density
Act 1 3 627 9
Act 2 4 850 21
Act 3 2 654 12
Act 4 4 387 13
Act 5 5 520 11

When each speaker first enters

  • Act 1 — 9 new speakers enter: Falstaff, Hotspur, Prince Henry, King Henry Iv, Earl Of Worcester, Poins, Westmoreland, Sir Walter Blunt, Northumberland
  • Act 2 — 17 new speakers enter: Lady Percy, Hostess, Gadshill, Bardolph, First Carrier, Chamberlain, Second Carrier, Francis, Peto, Sheriff (+7 more)
  • Act 3 — 3 new speakers enter: Glendower, Mortimer, Scene Iii
  • Act 4 — 6 new speakers enter: Vernon, Earl Of Douglas, Archbishop Of York, Messenger, Sir Michael, Worcester
  • Act 5 — 1 new speaker enter: Lancaster

How male and female voices share Act 1 through Act 5

Act Male lines Female lines Female share Balance
Act 1 627 0 0%
Act 2 791 59 7%
Act 3 607 47 7%
Act 4 387 0 0%
Act 5 520 0 0%

Female voices peak in Act 2 (7% of the act’s dialogue) and are quietest in Act 1 (0%).

Scene length across the play

Across 18 scenes: 2 very short (under 50 lines), 10 short (50–149 lines), 3 mid-length (150–299 lines), 3 long (300+ lines).

The shortest scene runs 42 lines, the longest 532 lines, with a mean of about 169 lines per scene.

Line-length signature

Of 3,038 total lines: 100% short (under 60 characters, typical of quickfire exchanges), 0% mid-length (60–180 characters), and 0% extended (over 180 characters). That makes this a fast-cut play — the text is dominated by brief exchanges and retorts.

Longest scenes in Henry IV, part 1

Scene Lines Speakers
Act 2, Scene 4 532 11
Act 3, Scene 2 385 7
Act 1, Scene 3 313 5
Act 3, Scene 1 269 5
Act 1, Scene 2 206 3

How Henry IV, part 1 compares to Shakespeare’s other histories

Play Year Lines Acts Scenes Speakers
Henry IV, part 1 (this play) c. 1597 3,038 5 18 36
Henry VI, part 2 c. 1591 3,122 5 24 64
Henry VI, part 3 c. 1591 2,931 5 28 46
Henry V c. 1599 3,230 5 28 46
Henry VIII c. 1613 3,236 5 17 46

Common questions

How long is Henry IV, part 1?

3,038 lines of dialogue across 5 acts and 18 scenes — roughly 169 lines per scene.

Who speaks the most in Henry IV, part 1?

Falstaff with 616 lines — about 20% of the play.

Which act of Henry IV, part 1 is longest?

Act 2 runs 850 lines across 4 scenes — noticeably heavier than the play’s other acts.
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