King John Warfare Quotes

These are almost the opening lines of the play. From them, don't you get the strong sense that King John and King Philip are two complete egomaniacs? King Philip, at least, has had some time to think about what he is planning to say to King John. But King John, without even batting an eyelash, immediately promises to bring "war for war" and "blood for blood" and "controlment for controlment" against King Philip. Yet hundreds of lives are at stake—the lives of the soldiers, on both King John's and King Philip's sides, who will have to do their raging masters' bidding in this war. Also note the bizarre mood swing that has King John speaking about Châtillon's "own decay" one moment, and then ensuring his safe passage the next. What does this mixture of menace and politeness say about the role of war in King John's (or Shakespeare's) society?

What does King John mean when he says that his mission against France is "more than need"? When he tells Eleanor that he has to hurry to France, it's as if he's saying, "But I don't just need to invade France, I want to, too!" The problem is, when John puts it this way, doesn't it start to make you wonder if it's really "need" at all? And if the war isn't necessary, then isn't it irresponsible and unjust?

It looks like King John isn't the only one who mixes up what he needs to do and what he wants to do when it comes to waging war: his enemies fall into the same trap. Here, we see Austria and King Philip of France deciding to attack and utterly destroy the town of Angers without even waiting to hear Châtillon report back from King John. The citizens of Angers can thank their lucky stars that Constance had the presence of mind—and sense of justice—to get them to wait for the messenger before killing people.