Sources

The original printed title of the play is: The Second Part of Henry the Fourth; Concerning his Death; and the Coronation of King Henry the Fifth.

As for many of the English histories, Shakespeare’s sources for The Second Part of Henry the Fourth look like the usual suspects:

  • Raphael Holinshed’s Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland–Holinshed was only one of a three main authors of the work (the other two being William Harrison and Richard Stanyhurst), and their work was first printed in 1577.
  • Edward Hall’s The Union of the Two Illustrious Families of Lancaster and York
  • Samuel Daniel’s The First Four Books of the Civil Wars Between the Two Houses of Lancaster and York

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