The Northumberland Family's Loss

Henry IV, Part 2

This thread follows the bond between Northumberland and Harry Percy as the father's political absence becomes inseparable from his son's death.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

The Expected Father The Expected Father from "Henry IV, Part 2". A Missing Support Percy's Hope Harry Percy expects his father to bring reinforcements and looks north for the promised support.

The Expected Father from "Henry IV, Part 2". A Missing Support Percy's Hope Harry Percy expects his father to bring reinforcements and looks north for the promised support.

A Missing Support Percy's Hope Harry Percy expects his father to bring reinforcements and looks north for the promised support. The absence leaves him facing danger without the aid he had counted on. A Grievance Becomes Personal The failure is more than a military miscalculation: it becomes a wound in the family bond. Lady Percy later recalls the moment as a measure of what was lost.

A False Victory A False Victory from "Henry IV, Part 2". Hope Before Knowledge A Misleading Account Lord Bardolph tells Northumberland that Harry Percy has won and that the king's forces have suffered heavily.

A False Victory from "Henry IV, Part 2". Hope Before Knowledge A Misleading Account Lord Bardolph tells Northumberland that Harry Percy has won and that the king's forces have suffered heavily.

Hope Before Knowledge A Misleading Account Lord Bardolph tells Northumberland that Harry Percy has won and that the king's forces have suffered heavily. Northumberland receives the report as the long-awaited reversal of fortune. A Father's Vulnerability The false news binds his political hopes to his son’s apparent success. Rumour makes private expectation especially dangerous because it reaches him before verified testimony does.

The Death Confirmed The Death Confirmed from "Henry IV, Part 2". The Son Is Lost Morton's Testimony Morton recounts how Prince Henry killed Harry Percy and how the rebel force broke after losing its leader.

The Death Confirmed from "Henry IV, Part 2". The Son Is Lost Morton's Testimony Morton recounts how Prince Henry killed Harry Percy and how the rebel force broke after losing its leader.

The Son Is Lost Morton's Testimony Morton recounts how Prince Henry killed Harry Percy and how the rebel force broke after losing its leader. His account ends Northumberland's hope of a victory for his son. Grief and Resentment Northumberland declares that the immediate grief has obscured his earlier plans. The personal loss does not end his politics; it intensifies them.

The Widow's Remembrance The Widow's Remembrance from "Henry IV, Part 2". A Widow's Appeal Lady Percy's Argument Lady Percy asks Northumberland not to rush into another war.

The Widow's Remembrance from "Henry IV, Part 2". A Widow's Appeal Lady Percy's Argument Lady Percy asks Northumberland not to rush into another war.

A Widow's Appeal Lady Percy's Argument Lady Percy asks Northumberland not to rush into another war. She recalls that Harry Percy once waited in vain for his father to support him. Honor Reconsidered She argues that the father should not prize his political honor above the son he failed to accompany. Her appeal forces Northumberland to confront the cost of his earlier absence.

The Father Withdraws The Father Withdraws from "Henry IV, Part 2". A Second Absence Retreat to Scotland Northumberland ultimately withdraws to Scotland rather than join the Archbishop's forces.

The Father Withdraws from "Henry IV, Part 2". A Second Absence Retreat to Scotland Northumberland ultimately withdraws to Scotland rather than join the Archbishop's forces.

A Second Absence Retreat to Scotland Northumberland ultimately withdraws to Scotland rather than join the Archbishop's forces. Once again, his allies act without the support they expected from him. A Family Pattern Repeated His decision recalls the earlier absence that Harry Percy suffered before Shrewsbury. Political survival again takes precedence over physical presence, now after the son can no longer be protected.

Before the Battle of Shrewsbury

When Lord Bardolph first reports from Shrewsbury

When Morton gives his account of Shrewsbury

After Northumberland declares his intention to rejoin the struggle

As the northern forces prepare to confront the royal army