Original: For our advantage; therefore hear us first.
Modern: This benefits us; so listen to what we have to say first.

Original: These flags of France, that are advanced here
Modern: These French flags that are raised here

Original: Before the eye and prospect of your town,
Modern: In front of and in view of your city,

Original: Have hither march’d to your endamagement:
Modern: Have marched here to harm and destroy you:

Original: The cannons have their bowels full of wrath,
Modern: The cannons are loaded full of anger,

Original: And ready mounted are they to spit forth
Modern: And they are ready and positioned to fire out

Original: Their iron indignation ‘gainst your walls:
Modern: Their iron fury against your walls:

Original: All preparation for a bloody siege
Modern: All preparations for a violent attack

Original: All merciless proceeding by these French
Modern: All ruthless action by these French forces

Original: Confronts your city’s eyes, your winking gates;
Modern: Threatens your city’s sight, your closed gates;

Original: And but for our approach those sleeping stones,
Modern: And if not for our arrival, those quiet stones,

Original: That as a waist doth girdle you about,
Modern: That circle around you like a belt,

Original: By the compulsion of their ordinance
Modern: By the force of their artillery

Original: By this time from their fixed beds of lime
Modern: By now would have been torn from their mortar foundations

Original: Had been dishabited, and wide havoc made
Modern: And widespread destruction would have been made

Original: For bloody power to rush upon your peace.
Modern: For violent force to attack your peaceful city.

Original: But on the sight of us your lawful king,
Modern: But at the sight of us, your rightful king,

Original: Who painfully with much expedient march
Modern: Who with great effort and urgent marching

Original: Have brought a countercheque before your gates,
Modern: Have brought a defense force to your gates,

Original: To save unscratch’d your city’s threatened cheeks,
Modern: To save your city’s threatened face without a scratch,

Original: Behold, the French amazed vouchsafe a parle;
Modern: Look, the French are stunned and agree to talk;

Original: And now, instead of bullets wrapp’d in fire,
Modern: And now, instead of bullets wrapped in fire,

Original: To make a shaking fever in your walls,
Modern: To make your walls tremble and shake,

Original: They shoot but calm words folded up in smoke,
Modern: They only shoot peaceful words wrapped in smoke,

Original: To make a faithless error in your ears:
Modern: To deceive your ears with lies:

Original: Which trust accordingly, kind citizens,
Modern: Don’t trust these words, good citizens,

Original: And let us in, your king, whose labour’d spirits,
Modern: And let us in, your king, whose exhausted souls,

Original: Forwearied in this action of swift speed,
Modern: Worn out from this fast-paced action,

Original: Crave harbourage within your city walls.
Modern: Need shelter within your city walls.

In Act II, Scene i of “King John,” the action takes place before the walls of Angiers in France. The scene opens with King Philip of France and his forces, including the Dauphin Louis and the Duke of Austria, arriving at Angiers alongside Arthur, the young claimant to the English throne, and his mother Constance. They are soon met by King John of England, who has arrived with his own forces, including his mother Queen Eleanor, the Bastard Philip Faulconbridge, and Lady Blanche. Both kings demand that the citizens of Angiers acknowledge their authority—Philip supporting young Arthur’s claim to the English throne, and John asserting his own right as the current king of England. The citizens of Angiers, through their representative Hubert, declare they will remain loyal to the rightful King of England but refuse to open their gates until it is clear who that rightful king is.

The two sides engage in heated debate and accusations, with Constance passionately advocating for her son Arthur’s rights while Queen Eleanor defends John’s legitimacy. After the verbal confrontation proves fruitless, both armies prepare for battle to determine who will gain Angiers’ allegiance. Following an inconclusive military engagement, the citizens still refuse to declare for either side. The Bastard then suggests that both kings unite their forces to destroy the obstinate city, but before this can happen, Hubert proposes an alternative solution: a marriage alliance between Louis the Dauphin and Lady Blanche, John’s niece, which would bring peace between England and France. The kings agree to this arrangement, with John offering substantial territories as Blanche’s dowry, effectively abandoning Arthur’s claim and leaving Constance devastated and furious at this betrayal.

King John opens with King Philip of France supporting Arthur, the young son of John’s deceased brother Geoffrey, as the rightful heir to the English throne. John’s mother, Queen Eleanor, and the French court engage in heated disputes over legitimacy. Meanwhile, the Bastard (Philip Faulconbridge), illegitimate son of Richard the Lionheart, joins John’s cause after being legitimized. War breaks out between England and France, with the strategic town of Angiers caught between the two armies.

The conflict temporarily resolves when John’s niece Blanche marries the French Dauphin Lewis, uniting the two kingdoms. However, Cardinal Pandulph arrives from Rome and excommunicates John for refusing to accept Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury. The Cardinal persuades France to break the peace and resume war against the excommunicated English king. In the ensuing battle, Arthur is captured by John’s forces.

John orders Hubert to kill the young Arthur, but Hubert cannot bring himself to murder the child and instead hides him. When Arthur later dies attempting to escape from his prison tower, the English nobles believe John has murdered him and defect to join the invading French forces led by the Dauphin. As John faces rebellion from within and invasion from without, he submits to the Pope’s authority to regain legitimacy. However, he falls ill and is poisoned by a monk at Swinstead Abbey.

The Bastard rallies the remaining English forces and discovers that the French nobles plan to kill their English allies after victory. This intelligence helps reconcile the English lords to their king. John dies, and his young son Henry is crowned King Henry III. The Dauphin withdraws his forces, and Cardinal Pandulph negotiates peace. The play concludes with the Bastard delivering a patriotic speech about England’s strength when united against foreign threats.