Henry IV

Henry IV, also known as Henry Plantagenet and Henry Bolingbroke, was the King of England during the late 14th and early 15th centuries.

In late 1399, he successfully led a group of barons in revolt against King Richard II, who was deposed. Henry seized the English throne for himself and Richard was imprisoned in Pomfret Castle where, having been denied food on the orders of the Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Arundel, he starved to death in early 1400.

Around this time, there was a failed attempt to assassinate him in Oxford. Shortly afterwards, Henry released Richard's wife Queen Isabella from her captivity in Sonning Palace. He hoped that she would marry his 13-year-old son Prince Hal, a marriage which would restore the alliance with the French crown. However, she had no intention of doing so, describing the prince as "a spotty boy".

He did not approve of many of the violent and murderous tactics employed by Arundel. His butler was Tom Chaucer, the son of the author Geoffrey Chaucer. Both Chaucers were involved in the assassination plot. (AUDIO: The Doctor's Tale)

At some point, Henry's son was nearly killed at a battle in Shrewsbury while fighting to help him keep his crown. By 1415, he had succeeded his father to the throne as Henry V. (PROSE: The Reign Makers)

Henry's reign was fictionalised in William Shakespeare's play Henry IV, Part 1. (AUDIO: The Kingmaker)