24 pages • 48 minutes read
Christopher MarloweEdward II
Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1593A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Act IChapter Summaries & Analyses
Act I, Scene 1 Summary
The old king, Edward I, has died. In the aftermath of his death, Edward II, his successor, writes a letter to a man named Piers Gaveston. Gaveston, by Edward II’s order, will now be allowed to return to England. Not everyone is happy about this news. Among other powerful men, the Mortimers and the Earl of Lancaster find it unsuitable that the king would end Gaveston’s banishment. Edward II has only one supporter in the matter: the Earl of Kent, his brother. Despite the complaints of various lords, Edward holds fast and refuses to care what they think of the matter. Before leaving the room, the lords vow that they are willing to go to war if Gaveston is allowed to reenter the country.
Gaveston enters the room and is quickly showered with praise, embraces, and titles by Edward. Gaveston is suddenly the lord chamberlain, the Earl of Cromwell, and the royal secretary. Edward swears that he will use all of his powers to protect Gaveston from his foes. The Bishop of Coventry appears and shows great displeasure at seeing Gaveston. It was the Bishop who had ruled on Gaveston’s sentence prior to his exile. He says there will be consequences; Gaveston cannot break the law and return with impunity. Edward retaliates by taking all of the Bishop’s possessions, then gives them to Gaveston as a gift. The Bishop is sent to jail.
Act I, Scene 2 Summary
The enemies of Gaveston conspire against him. The Mortimers, the Earls of Lancaster, and the Earls of Warwick are the unhappiest. Gaveston’s new titles—and Edward’s harsh and rash treatment of the Bishop of Coventry—have enraged them. The Archbishop of Canterbury joins them. He is willing to join their cause, but only as an enemy of Gaveston. He cannot bring himself into open conflict with the king.
Queen Isabella enters the room. She is furious at the high treatment shown to Gaveston, when Edward seems to care little for her, his own wife. The lords pledge their support and swear to right these wrongs, but Isabella asks them not to go to war with Edward. The lords will not rule it out. If words and diplomacy do not change Edward’s mind, there will be violence.
Act I, Scene 3 Summary
Gaveston tells Kent that the lords have gone to Lambeth.
Act I, Scene 4 Summary
The lords have finalized a document that will legally force Gaveston to leave England, provided that the king will sign it. After the king, Gaveston, and Kent enter the chamber where the lords are waiting, the lords present their evidence in favor of the new exile. The king is distraught, promising them various high offices if they will just leave Gaveston in peace. They are relentless, however. Edward has no choice but to sign the decree. Satisfied, the lords leave the room.
Gaveston returns and he and Edward share a poignant moment. Isabella enters. She and Gaveston argue about his inappropriate relationship with her husband, and he accuses her of impropriety with Mortimer. Edward and Gaveston leave, prior to Gaveston’s exile to Ireland. When they are gone, the queen mourns her unfair circumstances. She decides that, above all, she must win Edward’s love. Ultimately, she concludes that the best method for achieving his favor is to appear to support Gaveston.
The lords return and are shocked to find that Isabella wishes for Gaveston to stay. They argue with her, but she pulls Mortimer aside to reveal her strategy. She believes that Gaveston should stay. However, this so she can make a show of support while plotting to have him killed. The lords agree to her plan. Edward returns and is thrilled at the news. He announces a series of tournaments to celebrate Gaveston’s return. In addition, Gaveston will marry Edward’s cousin, who is the heiress to the Earl of Gloucester.
Mortimers Senior and Junior stay in the room after the others leave. The father instructs his son to stay behind while he travels to Scotland, and to support the king however he can. His son is perturbed: he cannot understand how a man of such low morals as Gaveston can wield such influence with the king.
Act I Analysis
The purpose of Act 1 is to introduce the major characters and to maneuver them into place for the rising action that will begin in Act 2. Marlowe is masterful at sketching highly specific character traits through small bits of dialogue. It is instantly obvious that Edward is foolish and rash, and that his romantic notions will undo him, and possibly the entire kingdom. The lords are instantly shown as untrustworthy. Isabella’s self-pity is poignant, but there is also a note of uncertainty, as if there are reasons not to believe her. It is important that so much peril is produced by the fact that Edward cannot see the wisdom of showing restraint around Gaveston.
Act 1 also serves as the neutral stage of the Wheel of Fortune, the symbol representing fate. All of the characters are placed on it, but as it begins to turn, everyone will be displaced, with no clear idea of where they will land when the wheel stops turning.
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By Christopher Marlowe
