Character Summary

King John: present king of England, brother to the deceased King Richard Cordelion, and son to Elinor

Chatillon: ambassador of France

Queen Elinor: widow to Henry II, and King John’s mother

Earl of Essex: a peer of England

Philip the Bastard: the half-brother of Robert Faulconbridge who repudiates his ties and claims to Sir Robert Faulconbridge and embraces his bastard status on the belief that his real father is the late King Richard Cordelion

Robert Faulconbridge: son of Sir Robert Faulconbridge and the younger half-brother of Philip, he stakes his claim to all of Sir Robert’s lands on account of Philip’s illegitimacy

Lady Faulconbridge: widow of Sir Robert Faulconbridge who had maintained that Philip was sired by Sir Robert only to admit the truth when her son presses the issue

James Gurney: servant to Lady Faulconbridge

Philip: King of France

Arthur: nephew to King John who is taken captive by his uncle and who dies while trying to escape

Lymoges: the Duke of Austria who is allied to the French and who is the one acknowledged to have vanquished King Richard Cordelion

Constance: widow of King John’s elder brother Geffrey and mother to Arthur

Hubert de Burgh: King John’s silent partner who is commissioned to kill Arthur but doesn't

Lewis: the French Dolphin who is married off to Blanch

Blanch of Spain: daughter to the King of Castile and niece to King John

Salisbury: the Earl of Salisbury who joins Lewis against King John, believing that his king had Arthur murdered

Cardinal Pandulph: the Pope’s legate who delivers King John an ultimatum to submit to Rome’s will or suffer the consequences

Executioner 1: a party to Arthur’s execution who has misgivings about the job

Earl of Pembroke: the English peer who, along with the Earl of Salisbury, requests King John to release Arthur from his confinement, arguing that Arthur’s welfare is critical to the people’s approval of King John

Messenger: the messenger who delivers news of the French incursion into England and of the rumored deaths of King John’s mother Elinor and Arthur’s mother Constance

Peter of Pomfret: a prophet who presages that King John will lose his crown on the Thursday forty days after Easter for which he is imprisoned and condemned to death

Lord Bigot: English peer in league with the Earls of Pembroke and Salisbury

Melune: a French lord who informs the English noblemen in league with the French of Lewis’ intention to betray them should the French manage to win the conflict

Prince Henry: son and heir to King John