num_pages: 400
description: Under the rule of King John, England is forced into war when the French challenge the legitimacy of John's claim to the throne and determine to install his nephew Arthur in his place. But political principles, hypocritically flaunted, are soon forgotten, as the French and English kings form an alliance based on cynical self-interest. And as the desire to cling to power dominates England's paranoid and weak-willed king, his country is threatened with disaster.
language: English
title: King John
titlecomplete: King John
characters: French Herald, Philip Faulconbridge, later Sir Richard Plantagenet (the Bastard), William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, Cardinal Pandulph, Blanche of Castille, James Gurney, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Robert Faulconbridge, Citizen of Angiers, Geoffrey Fitz Peter, 1st Earl of Essex, Hubert de Burgh, Lady Faulconbridge, William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, Philippe II of France, Louis VIII of France, English Herald, Roger Bigod, 2nd Earl of Norfolk, English Messenger, Arthur I, Duke of Brittany, John of England, French Messenger, Constance Penthièvre, Duchess of Brittany, Second Executioner, Viscount of Melun, Limoges, Duke of Austria, Henry III of England, Sheriff, Chatillon, First Executioner, Peter of Pomfret
genres: 16th Century, Historical Fiction, Theatre, Drama, Plays, Poetry, Literature, Classics, British Literature, Fiction
ratings_count: 6999
places: Angers, England
publisher: Penguin UK