The Revitalized Tudor and Chiron Myths in the Henriad: Reviewing Shakespeare as a Historiographer and Mythographer

The Tudor myth in Shakespeare’s Henriad is neither obsolete nor definitive; rather, it retains enduring literary significance through its intricate interplay with Ovidian mythology. Shakespeare constructs two distinct iterations of the Tudor myth—the Myth of Pedigree and the Myth of Divine Appointment—each revitalized through intertextual engagement with the archetypal figure of Chiron from Ovid’s Fasti. This dual mythological framework, mediated through the structural parallel between Chiron and Falstaff, serves to legitimize divine kingship while reinforcing the political messaging embedded in the plays. By weaving together mythic motifs and historical narrative, Shakespeare transforms the figure of Henry V into a “mythistorical” construct—a hybridized product of his imaginative historiographical method. This approach not only underscores Shakespeare’s dual identity as a humanist historiographer and a self-aware mythographer, but also invites a critical reexamination of the evolving relationship between myth and history within the context of his history plays.