John Falstaff
A fat, vain, boastful knight and companion to Prince Hal.
Sir John Falstaff is a made-up character who shows up in three of William Shakespeare’s plays and gets a eulogy in a fourth. He really comes into his own as a full-fledged figure in *Henry IV, Part 1* and *Part 2*, where he hangs out with Prince Hal—the guy who will later become King Henry V. Falstaff also pops up in *The Merry Wives of Windsor* as a ridiculous suitor chasing after two married women. Even though he’s mostly a comic character, he’s got the kind of depth you’d expect from Shakespeare’s big roles. He’s a fat, vain, boastful knight who spends nearly all his time drinking at the Boar’s Head Inn alongside small-time crooks, getting by on money he’s either stolen or borrowed. He leads the seemingly wayward Prince Hal into mischief, and when Hal finally becomes king, he cuts Falstaff off for good.
Falstaff has turned up in other works too, like operas by Giuseppe Verdi, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Antonio Salieri, and Otto Nicolai, a “symphonic study” by Edward Elgar, and Orson Welles’s 1966 film *Chimes at Midnight*. The operas mostly focus on his role in *The Merry Wives of Windsor*, while the film pulls from the Henriad plays and that same comedy. Welles, who played Falstaff in his movie, called him “Shakespeare’s greatest creation.” The word “Falstaffian” has made its way into English, meaning someone who’s fat, jolly, and given to wild behavior.
**Role in the plays**
Falstaff appears in three Shakespeare plays: *Henry IV, Part 1*, *Henry IV, Part 2*, and *The Merry Wives of Windsor*. His death gets mentioned in *Henry V*, but he doesn’t have any lines, and the script doesn’t call for him to appear on stage. Still, a lot of stage and film versions have felt the need to include him because of what he reveals about King Henry V’s character. The most famous movie examples are Laurence Olivier’s 1944 version and Kenneth Branagh’s 1989 film, both of which borrow extra material from the *Henry IV* plays.
The character was a huge hit with audiences back in Shakespeare’s day and stayed popular for a long time after. According to Leonard Digges, writing not long after Shakespeare died, while many plays couldn’t draw a crowd, “let but Falstaff come, Hal, Poins, the rest, you scarce shall have a room.”
**Henry IV, Part 1**
King Henry is worried about his son and heir, the Prince of Wales.
- Field
- Fictional character in Shakespearean drama
- Known for
- Companion to Prince Hal; fat, vain, boastful knight; appears in Henry IV, Part 1, Henry IV, Part 2, and The Merry Wives of Windsor
- First appearance
- Henry IV, Part 1
- Last appearance
- The Merry Wives of Windsor (on stage); death mentioned in Henry V
Lore & Background
Falstaff appears in three of Shakespeare's plays: Henry IV, Part 1, Henry IV, Part 2, and The Merry Wives of Windsor. His death is mentioned in Henry V, but he has no lines, nor is it directed that he appear on stage. In Henry IV, Part 1, King Henry is troubled by his son Hal's behavior; Hal spends time in taverns with low companions, chief among them Sir John Falstaff. Falstaff is fat, old, drunk, and corrupt, yet possesses a charisma and zest for life that captivates the Prince. Hal enjoys insulting Falstaff and makes sport of him, but also tells the audience he will soon abandon this life. Falstaff, having misused the King's press, is obliged to play a role in the Battle of Shrewsbury, where he feigns death to avoid attack and later claims credit for killing Hotspur.
Reader's Guide
In Henry IV, Part 2, the play focuses on Prince Hal's journey toward kingship and his ultimate rejection of Falstaff. The two characters meet only twice and very briefly. Falstaff is still drinking and engaging in petty criminality. He has a relationship with Doll Tearsheet, a prostitute, and is embarrassed when his derogatory remarks about Hal are overheard. When news of a second rebellion arrives, Falstaff joins the army again and raises forces, accepting bribes from potential recruits. In the final scene, Falstaff travels to London expecting great rewards, but Hal rejects him, saying he has changed. In The Merry Wives of Windsor, Falstaff, short on money, courts two wealthy married women for financial advantage, leading to great embarrassment when the women trick him. Falstaff has appeared in other works, including operas by Giuseppe Verdi, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Antonio Salieri and Otto Nicolai, a symphonic study by Edward Elgar, and Orson Welles's 1966 film Chimes at Midnight. The word 'Falstaffian' has entered the English language with connotations of corpulence, jollity, and debauchery.
Did You Know?
- Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth.
- He leads the apparently wayward Prince Hal into trouble and is repudiated when Hal becomes king.
- Orson Welles, who played Falstaff in his 1966 film Chimes at Midnight, considered the character 'Shakespeare's greatest creation'.
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