Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index King John is one of Shakespeare's history plays. The play details the history of Richard the Lionhearted's younger brother, King John of England. The play opens with a demand from the French King that King John abdicate in favor of his elder brother, Geffery's son, Arthur. The five acts follow a dizzying change of alliances, Papal excommunication and subsequent acceptance, and ends finally with King John's death at the hands of a monk. Throughout the play, a character known as "The Bastard" delivers a commentary on nobility, "commodity" and English sovereignty. Cast King John Prince Henry, son to the King (the future Henry III) Arthur, Duke of Britain, nephew to the King (Arthur I, Duke of Brittany) Earl of Pembroke (William Marshal) Earl of Essex (Geoffrey FitzPeter) Lord Bigot Hubert de Burgh Robert Faulconbridge, son of Sir Robert Faulconbridge Philip the Bastard, his half-brother (also called Richard) James Gurney, servant to Lady Faulconbridge Peter of Pomfret, a prophet Philip, King of France (Philip II of France) Louis, the Dauphin (future Louis VIII of France) Lymoges, Duke of Austria Cardinal Pandolph, the Pope's Legate Melune, a French Lord Chatillion, ambassador from France to King John Queen Elinor, widow of Henry II, mother to King John (Eleanor of Aquitaine) Constance, widow to Geffrey (John's elder brother), mother to Arthur Blanch of Spain, daughter to the King of Castile, niece to King John Lady Faulconbridge, widow of Sir Robert Faulconbridge Lords, heralds, etc. External Links Complete Text of King John at MIT King John - searchable, indexed e-text See also: King John of England This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.