King Claudius is a fictional character and the main antagonist of William Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet. He is the brother to King Hamlet, second husband to Gertrude and uncle and later stepfather to Prince Hamlet. He obtained the throne of Denmark by murdering his brother with poison and then marrying the late king’s widow. He is loosely based on the Jutish chieftain Feng who appears in Chronicon Lethrense and in Saxo Grammaticus’ Gesta Danorum. There has never been an actual Danish king of that name.
First Appearance The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet Prince of Denmarke (1603) by William Shakespeare — First Quarto
First Publisher N. L. and Iohn Trundell
Appearance List The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet Prince of Denmarke (1603) by William Shakespeare — First Quarto; Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (1623) by William Shakespeare — First Folio printing includes Hamlet; Tales from Shakespeare (1807) by Charles Lamb & Mary Lamb — prose retelling for young readers; Hamlet (1868) by Ambroise Thomas — opera; A Midsummer Night’s Dream: and Other Stories by E. Nesbit (1890) (A midsummer night’s dream.–Hamlet, prince of Denmark.–Twelfth night.–King Lear) [Internet Archive]; Hamlet (1921) directed by Svend Gade & Heinz Schall — silent film adaptation; Hamlet (1948) directed by Laurence Olivier; Hamlet (1964) directed by Grigori Kozintsev — Soviet feature film; Hamlet (1964) starring Richard Burton — filmed/videotaped Broadway performance; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1967) by Tom Stoppard — major derivative work expanding two minor Hamlet characters (first staged 1966; early book ed. 1967).
Sample Read Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [Internet Archive]
Description King Claudius is a fictional character and the main antagonist of William Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet. He is the brother to King Hamlet, second husband to Gertrude and uncle and later stepfather to Prince Hamlet. He obtained the throne of Denmark by murdering his brother with poison and then marrying the late king’s widow. He is loosely based on the Jutish chieftain Feng who appears in Chronicon Lethrense and in Saxo Grammaticus’ Gesta Danorum. There has never been an actual Danish king of that name.
