King Henry VI, Part 1

by William Shakespeare

"King Henry VI, Part 1" by William Shakespeare is a history play believed to have been written in 1591. It depicts England's crumbling hold on France following Henry V's sudden death, as noble rivalries and personal ambitions threaten the kingdom from within. Young King Henry inherits a fractured court where the heroic Lord Talbot battles French forces led by Joan of Arc, while back home, quarreling lords choose red and white roses in a dispute that will ignite catastrophic civil war.