What was William Shakespeare's view of King Henry V of England and was his portrayal of King Henry V accurate? Introduction: King Henry V is undoubtedly one of the best known English monarchs in the country's history, however this knowledge often comes from a single source, the works of William Shakespeare, namely King Henry IV (part 1 and part 2 ) or the more famous King Henry V. With public knowledge of King Henry V often coming exclusively from this single source, it is important to look at Shakespeare's perspective and the social and political climate in which he worked. William Shakespeare portrayed King Henry V as a hero, however the accuracy of this perspective can be questioned, due to reports of war crimes committed by the king in his campaigns in France. This investigation will examine the actual historical facts that can be established about King Henry V, the climate in which Shakespeare wrote, the differences his depiction has with that of modern historians, and also, of course, the actual details of his depiction of King Henry V However, where would a debate about the accuracy of a literary representation be without the historical facts, free from any trap of flavored language. The background of any historical figure is very important in understanding any subsequent literary recreation of it, for example facts may be altered to make the reader or viewer more sympathetic towards a character, or, on the other hand, they may become more hostile through manipulation of facts. King Henry V was born on 9 August 1387 at Monmouth Castle, located, now in modern Wales. , near the English border. His parents, King Henry IV (formerly Henry of Bolingbroke) and Mary de Bohun were...... middle of paper...... just over a year King Henry V returned to France and early of 1419 had taken Rouen, with the city's 70,000 inhabitants surrendering to King Henry's forces. In 1420 King Henry V had met with King Charles VI and together they had negotiated that upon Charles' death, Henry would become King of France. This treaty was further consolidated by Henry's marriage to King Charles VI's daughter, Catherine of Valois. While consolidating his position by attacking the Dauphin-held city of Meaux, King Henry V fell ill and after attempting to recover died, possibly of dysentery, at Bois de Vincennes on 31 August 1422, aged 35. King Henry V was succeeded by his son King Henry VI, who upon the death of King Charles VI a couple of months later became King of France, although in reality this only meant northern France, due to Dauphin resistance in the south.