About the work
History play by William Shakespeare, probably written between 1596 and 1599, likely shortly after The Merry Wives of Windsor. No premiere is documented; the earliest recorded court performances date only from 1612/13, and it is not certain which of the Falstaff plays these records refer to. The play was printed in 1600 as a quarto, entered in the Stationers' Register on 23 August of that year.
Plot
Continuing from Part 1, King Henry IV goes on fighting a noble rebellion led by the Archbishop of York, while Prince Henry increasingly distances himself from his drinking companion Sir John Falstaff. After the king's death, the prince is crowned Henry V and publicly and finally rejects Falstaff.
Cultural significance
The play is usually performed together with Part 1 and is generally considered less successful, since its principal characters meet less often; it is particularly valued for the elegiac Falstaff–Shallow scenes and the powerful final rejection scene. It inspired several operatic adaptations, including works by Antonio Salieri and Michael William Balfe.