Original: Nay, then I cannot blame his cousin king,
Modern: No, then I can’t blame his cousin, the king,

Original: That wished him on the barren mountains starve.
Modern: For wishing him to starve on desolate mountains.

Original: But shall it be that you, that set the crown
Modern: But should it be that you, who placed the crown

Original: Upon the head of this forgetful man
Modern: On the head of this ungrateful man

Original: And for his sake wear the detested blot
Modern: And for him carry the hated stain

Original: Of murderous subornation, shall it be,
Modern: Of being accessories to murder, should it be,

Original: That you a world of curses undergo,
Modern: That you suffer endless criticism,

Original: Being the agents, or base second means,
Modern: As the helpers, or lowly accomplices,

Original: The cords, the ladder, or the hangman rather?
Modern: The rope, the ladder, or really just the executioner?

Original: O, pardon me that I descend so low,
Modern: Oh, forgive me for stooping so low,

Original: To show the line and the predicament
Modern: To point out the position and the dangerous situation

Original: Wherein you range under this subtle king;
Modern: That you find yourselves in under this cunning king;

Original: Shall it for shame be spoken in these days,
Modern: Will it be shamefully said in our time,

Original: Or fill up chronicles in time to come,
Modern: Or fill up history books in the future,

Original: That men of your nobility and power
Modern: That men of your high rank and influence

Original: Did gage them both in an unjust behalf,
Modern: Pledged them both for an unjust cause,

Original: As both of you.God pardon it!.have done,
Modern: As both of you—God forgive it!—have done,

Original: To put down Richard, that sweet lovely rose,
Modern: To overthrow Richard, that beautiful innocent rose,

Original: An plant this thorn, this canker, Bolingbroke?
Modern: And put in his place this thorn, this disease, Bolingbroke?

Original: And shall it in more shame be further spoken,
Modern: And will it be spoken with even greater shame,

Original: That you are fool’d, discarded and shook off
Modern: That you’ve been tricked, thrown away and cast aside

Original: By him for whom these shames ye underwent?
Modern: By the very man for whom you endured these disgraces?

Original: No; yet time serves wherein you may redeem
Modern: No; there’s still time in which you can reclaim

Original: Your banish’d honours and restore yourselves
Modern: Your lost honor and restore yourselves

Original: Into the good thoughts of the world again,
Modern: Back into the world’s good opinion again,

Original: Revenge the jeering and disdain’d contempt
Modern: Get revenge for the mocking and scornful contempt

Original: Of this proud king, who studies day and night
Modern: Of this arrogant king, who works day and night

Original: To answer all the debt he owes to you
Modern: To repay everything he owes you

Original: Even with the bloody payment of your deaths
Modern: By paying you back with your own bloody deaths

In Act I, Scene 3 of “Henry IV, Part 1,” King Henry confronts the Percy family—Northumberland, Worcester, and Hotspur—about their refusal to surrender Scottish prisoners taken in battle. The scene begins with the King reprimanding Worcester for his insolent behavior and banishing him from the court. Hotspur then explains his earlier refusal to deliver the prisoners, describing how an effeminate courtier arrived at the battlefield immediately after the fighting and demanded the captives while Hotspur was exhausted and irritated. The King remains unmoved by this explanation and insists that Hotspur surrender the prisoners without ransom, except for Mortimer, Earl of March. When Hotspur pleads for the King to ransom Mortimer, who was captured fighting against the Welsh rebel Glendower and has married Glendower’s daughter, the King refuses and suggests Mortimer willingly defected to the enemy.

After the King exits, the Percy family discusses their grievances against Henry Bolingbroke, whom they helped place on the throne but who now shows them ingratitude. Worcester and Northumberland reveal that Mortimer has a legitimate claim to the throne as the heir designated by Richard II. Hotspur becomes increasingly agitated about the insult to his brother-in-law Mortimer and the family’s treatment by the King. Worcester begins to outline a rebellion plot involving an alliance with the Scottish Douglas, the Archbishop of York, and the Welsh Glendower. Hotspur eagerly embraces this conspiracy, though his father Northumberland urges caution. The scene concludes with the three conspirators agreeing to meet later to finalize their plans for revolt against King Henry.

Henry IV, Part I follows the political and personal struggles of King Henry IV as he faces rebellion from powerful nobles while dealing with his wayward son, Prince Hal. The play opens with Henry’s guilt over having deposed Richard II and his disappointment in his eldest son, who spends his time in taverns with the disreputable Sir John Falstaff rather than at court. Meanwhile, the Percy family—led by Henry “Hotspur” Percy, his father the Earl of Northumberland, and his uncle the Earl of Worcester—grows increasingly resentful of the king’s treatment of them despite their crucial role in placing him on the throne.

The Percys form an alliance with Welsh rebel Owen Glendower and Scottish rebel the Earl of Douglas to overthrow Henry IV. Hotspur, a fiery young warrior obsessed with honor, becomes the rebellion’s military leader. Simultaneously, Prince Hal reveals in soliloquy that he deliberately maintains his dissolute reputation to make his eventual reformation more impressive. When his father confronts him about his behavior and unfavorably compares him to the noble Hotspur, Hal promises to redeem himself by defeating his rival in battle.

The rebellion comes to a head at the Battle of Shrewsbury, where the royal forces face the rebel army. During the battle, Prince Hal saves his father’s life and fulfills his promise by killing Hotspur in single combat, finally proving his worthiness as heir to the throne. Falstaff, who has been cowardly throughout the battle, claims credit for Hotspur’s death after discovering the body. The king’s forces win the battle, with Worcester and Douglas captured, though some rebels escape. The play concludes with the king’s victory secured but the realm’s troubles not entirely resolved, as other rebels remain at large and the crown’s stability depends on continued military action.