Redemption and Loyalty for King Henry

            In the first act of Henry IV part 1, when the King is implored by Hotspur to ransom Mortimer from the Welsh, the King makes an interesting assertion about the value of Mortimer.  Mortimer, while captured during a battle, was taken by Glendower and married his daughter, both of whom are enemies to the English.  “Shall our coffers then/Be emptied to redeem a traitor home?” (1.3:87-88) the King asks.  In other works, he sees little reason to save Mortimer if he has chosen to betray the King and wed the daughter of the enemy.

            Throughout the play, a character’s redemption (or worthiness of redemption) centers heavily on their loyalty to the King.  This is seen in the confrontation between Prince Hal and the King, during which Hal promises “I shall hereafter…be more myself” (3.2:94-95) in response to the King’s assertions that he has been a disgrace as a son.  The Prince’s behaviors have harmed his image and gone against his father’s expectations, and has therefore fallen out of favor.  It is only after the Prince saves the King from Douglas’s attack during the battle that the Prince is restored to favor, the King saying “thou mak’st some tender of my life/In this fair rescue thou hast brought to me” (5.4:48-49).  The King’s changed opinion of Hal, therefore, relies heavily on the loyalty shown in the battle, much as the King’s refusal to save Mortimer relies on his betrayal of the King’s expectations of a loyal subject. 

This quote from the first act, therefore, is in tune with the rest of the play’s attitude toward the faithfulness that makes a man redeemable.  By marrying an enemy of the King, he has realigned himself and is no longer worthy of the King’s concern.