# Lady Percy — Henry IV, Part I character guide

> Lady Percy in Henry IV, Part I by William Shakespeare.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Kate, gentle Kate, Percy

**First appearance:** 0008-act-ii-scene-iii

## Snapshot

Hotspur's sharp-tongued wife, who loves her warrior husband and demands to know the secrets weighing on him.

## Who they are

Kate Percy is the wife Hotspur teases and adores, a woman whose wit matches his own. When he grows distant and sleepless with rebellion, she presses him to confide, refusing to be shut out of the life that consumes him. Her plea for intimacy humanizes Hotspur and shows what his obsession with honor costs at home.

## Relationships

### [Hotspur](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se/characters/hotspur)

_family_

Hotspur is married to Lady Percy, and their relationship is affectionate but strained by his obsessive focus on war and honor.

### [Hotspur](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se/characters/hotspur)

_family_

Hotspur is married to Lady Percy, and their relationship is affectionate but strained by his obsessive focus on war and honor.

## In the story

### [Scene III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se/chapters/act-ii-scene-iii)

Confronts Hotspur about his distant behavior and sleeplessness, demands to know his business, and expresses fear that Mortimer's claim is involved.

### [Scene I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se/chapters/act-iii-scene-i)

Lady Percy (Kate) exchanges playful banter with Hotspur, refusing to sing and teasing him about his oaths and humour.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se/characters/lady_percy
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/henry_iv_part_i_se/characters