Henry VI, part 1: 2,761 Lines, 52 Characters, Act-by-Act Breakdown

Henry VI, part 1 (c. 1592) is a history with 2,761 lines of dialogue distributed across 5 acts and 27 scenes. 52 named characters speak at least once; the top five voices account for 45% of the play. Dialogue splits 90% male and 10% female.

The play opens (Act 1, Scene 1) with Bedford: “Hung be the heavens with black, yield day to night!”

The play closes (Act 5, Scene 5) with Suffolk: “But I will rule both her, the king and realm.”

Full cast of Henry VI, part 1 by line count

#	Character	Lines	Share	Acts
1	Talbot ♂	416	15.1%	4
2	Joan La Pucelle ♀	255	9.2%	5
3	Gloucester ♂	212	7.7%	4
4	King Henry Vi ♂	187	6.8%	3
5	Suffolk ♂	170	6.2%	2
6	Charles ♂	134	4.9%	5
7	Messenger ♂	98	3.5%	3
8	Of Winchester ♂	96	3.5%	4
9	Mortimer ♂	95	3.4%	1
10	York ♂	95	3.4%	2
11	Plantagenet ♂	91	3.3%	2
12	Warwick ♂	79	2.9%	4
13	Lucy ♂	77	2.8%	1
14	Bedford ♂	76	2.8%	3
15	Somerset ♂	73	2.6%	3
16	Exeter ♂	61	2.2%	4
17	Reignier ♂	59	2.1%	4
18	Alencon ♂	49	1.8%	4
19	John Talbot ♂	47	1.7%	1
20	Of Auvergne ♂	45	1.6%	1
21	Burgundy ♂	44	1.6%	4
22	Margaret ♀	33	1.2%	1
23	Bastard Of Orleans ♂	29	1.1%	4
24	Vernon ♂	29	1.1%	3
25	General ♂	27	1.0%	1
…27 additional speaking roles with fewer than 27 lines

Line counts act by act

Act	Scenes	Lines	Speakers
Act 1	6	611	20
Act 2	5	530	24
Act 3	4	492	23
Act 4	7	559	21
Act 5	5	569	17

Longest scenes in Henry VI, part 1

Scene	Lines	Speakers
Act 3, Scene 1	218	9
Act 5, Scene 3	200	6
Act 4, Scene 1	196	11
Act 1, Scene 1	181	5
Act 5, Scene 4	177	8

Common questions

How long is Henry VI, part 1?

Henry VI, part 1 contains 2,761 lines of dialogue across 5 acts and 27 scenes — roughly 102 lines per scene on average.

Who speaks the most in Henry VI, part 1?

Talbot leads the cast with 416 lines — about 15% of the play.

Which act of Henry VI, part 1 is longest?

Act 1 runs 611 lines across 6 scenes.

Henry VI, part 1