The Dauphin
Play
Summary
Louis, the Dauphin of France, is the haughty and contemptuous French Crown Prince who fatally underestimates Henry V. It is the Dauphin who sends Henry the famous gift of tennis balls as a mock reply to his territorial claims — a provocation that Henry converts into a vow of conquest. At Agincourt the Dauphin's arrogant confidence in French superiority is shattered; he survives the battle but his role is overshadowed by the magnitude of the French defeat. His dismissiveness toward Henry at the play's outset makes him a perfect foil that amplifies Henry's ultimate triumph.
Notable Quotations
"We are glad the Dauphin is so pleasant with us; / His present and your pains we thank you for: / When we have matched our rackets to these balls, / We will, in France, by God's grace, play a set / Shall strike his father's crown into the hazard." *(Henry V, 1.2 — Henry's reply to the tennis balls)*
"What a wretched and peevish fellow is this King of England, to mope with his fat-brained followers so far out of his knowledge!" *(Henry V, 3.7 — the Dauphin on the eve of Agincourt)*