A history play by William Shakespeare. It is the first in a duology, the second being Henry IV Part 2. It actually also relates to two other Shakespearean plays-- Richard II (which it follows) and Henry V (which it precedes). Following the events in Richard II, Henry Bolingroke, now King Henry IV, wishes to wage a crusade to cleanse himself of the sin of Richard's death. It is not to be, as some of his former allies plot to overthrow him-- chief among them the Percy family, whose son Harry (known as "Hotspur") is one of the greatest warriors in England.