Character

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk in Henry VI, Part 2

Role: Ambitious courtier and lover; architect of England's downfall through marriage diplomacy Family: House of de la Pole First appearance: Act 1, Scene 1 Last appearance: Act 4, Scene 1 Approx. lines: 69

Suffolk enters the play as the architect of a catastrophic marriage. He has just returned from France, having negotiated the union between King Henry and Margaret of Anjou—a match that costs England two precious dukedoms (Anjou and Maine) while bringing no dowry in return. Suffolk presents this disastrous bargain with courtly eloquence, calling Margaret “the fairest queen that ever king received,” but beneath the flowery language lies a calculated act of political sabotage. He has used the marriage to cement his own power and, more importantly, to secure his relationship with Margaret, who arrives already in love with him. The marriage is less a diplomatic triumph than a love affair conducted at the kingdom’s expense.

Throughout the play, Suffolk wields language as a weapon. He whispers poison into Queen Margaret’s ear, turning her against the loyal Duke of Gloucester. He orchestrates Gloucester’s arrest and murder, working in concert with the Cardinal and others who fear the duke’s virtue and popularity. Yet Suffolk’s own words betray him. When accused before the king and commons, he cannot hide behind courtly phrases. The people rise up against him, demanding his exile or death. His final moments reveal the hollowness of his power: stripped of his title, at sea, facing the pirate Walter Whitmore, he attempts to command respect through genealogy and past favors, but these avail him nothing. Whitmore beheads him, and his severed head becomes a grotesque gift carried to the grieving Queen Margaret—the ultimate reduction of Suffolk’s eloquence to silence.

Suffolk’s tragedy is the tragedy of words unmoored from truth. He has spent his life manipulating language to serve ambition, but language, once corrupted, loses all power to protect its user. By the end, his protestations of innocence, his appeals to rank, his very name (which becomes the basis for crude puns about drowning: “Pole,” “Pool,” “water”) are rendered meaningless. He dies as he has lived—a performer in a plot he believed he was writing, but which was being written by others all along.

Key quotes

'Imprimis, it is agreed between the French king Charles, and William de la Pole, Marquess of Suffolk, ambassador for Henry King of England, that the said Henry shall espouse the Lady Margaret, daughter unto Reignier King of Naples, Sicilia and Jerusalem, and crown her Queen of England ere the thirtieth of May next ensuing. Item, that the duchy of Anjou and the county of Maine shall be released and delivered to the king her father'--

"First, it is agreed between the French King Charles, and William de la Pole, Marquess of Suffolk, ambassador for Henry King of England, that King Henry shall marry Lady Margaret, daughter of King Reignier of Naples, Sicily, and Jerusalem, and crown her Queen of England by the thirtieth of May next. Also, that the duchy of Anjou and the county of Maine shall be returned to her father."

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk · Act 1, Scene 1

Gloucester reads aloud the marriage contract that surrenders English territories to France, and in doing so, reads the ruination of the realm. The moment is the engine of the entire play—Gloucester's voice cracks as he realizes what has been done in the King's name. This single document, written on parchment and sealed with wax, becomes the play's central image of how words and writing can undo a kingdom.

Thy lips that kissed the queen shall sweep the ground;

Your lips that kissed the queen will kiss the ground;

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk · Act 4, Scene 1

Walter Whitmore's pun on Suffolk's name and status encapsulates the play's cruel wit. A pirate speaks more truth about Suffolk's fall than any courtier could—rank and love avail nothing against the sword. The line marries wordplay and violence in a way that shows how language and action are one thing in this play.

Look on my George; I am a gentleman: Rate me at what thou wilt, thou shalt be paid.

Look at my George; I am a gentleman: Whatever you ask, I'll pay.

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk · Act 4, Scene 1

Suffolk, captured at sea and facing death, tries to buy his way to safety by invoking his rank and his wealth. But Whitmore's response—that his very name means water—shows that rank and gold are nothing against the cruelty of those who have nothing to lose. Suffolk's plea reveals that power and status are illusions that vanish at the moment of true danger.

Was ever feather so lightly blown to and fro as this multitude? The name of Henry the Fifth hales them to an hundred mischiefs, and makes them leave me desolate.

Was there ever a crowd so easily swayed as this? The name of Henry the Fifth drags them into a hundred disasters, and makes them desert me in the process.

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk · Act 4, Scene 8

Cade watches his army abandon him for the promise of the king's name and a warrior's legacy. His cry reveals the fragility of rebellion—that the mob's loyalty is a feather blown by any strong wind. Yet it also shows that names, history, and symbols hold more power than actual force or rhetoric.

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk in Henry VI, Part 2

Key quotes

Relationships

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk & Queen Margaret of Anjou

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk & King Henry VI

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk & Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester

William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk & Earl of Warwick

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