The Burden of Power

Immediately after Henry IV puts the crown he seized from Richard II on his head he inherits a kingdom's worth of troubles: threats to his legitimacy, Welsh blades itching to find themselves down his throat, and all the weights of statecraft and reputation hanging heavy on his shoulders. The play opens with a speech to this effect: "So shaken as we are, so wan with care/ Find we a time for frighted peace to pant/ And breathe short-winded accents of new broils..." (1.1 1-3) One wonders what this Henry Bolingbroke wants with the powers of Kingship, since the only thing Henry IV seems be be doing with his royal privilege is scrambling to maintain his power from threats internal (Mortimer and Northumberland) and external (the Scots and the Welsh led by Owain Glyndwr). This and his heir-apparent is a constant drag on his reputation.
It is easy to see why the Eastcheap lifestyle of raucous and bawdy merrymaking appeals so much to Prince Harry, considering what his father goes through on a daily basis. Knowingly, Falstaff, his drinking buddy, comments "when thou art a king, as God save thy grace- majesty/ I should say, for grace thou wilt have none-" (1.2 14-15) to suggest that the Prince would no longer be able to enjoy himself when he assumes the throne; he would lose his 'grace'. Prince Harry himself seems to believe he can readily assume the throne when the time comes, looking even better shining against a filthy background: "My reformation, glittering o'er my fault/ Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes/Than that which hath no foil to set it off" (1.2 191-3). On the surface he seems to believe he will be an excellent king, rising like a glorious sun, yet he idles about with thieves rather than practicing statecraft. One wonders if he is ignorant to all of the responsibilities that come with the crown like his beleaguered father as Duke of Lancaster before ascension.
While his son fools around in the underworld King Henry is under assault from all sides. "That great magician, damned Glyndwr" is Henry's known threat, but Hotspur and Northumberland also plot behind his back for the sake of Edmund Mortimer, Hotspur's brother. This is going on while Prince Harry and Poins conspire to play a prank on the fat knight Falstaff. The juxtaposition is marvelous: conspirators in jest with the Prince, and conspirators in warfare within the court. Prince Harry in disguise scares Falstaff away after he robs a fat purse and then goes to return it. In a sense, Prince Harry is governing much more effectively than the titled ruler, who is so consumed with protecting his position that he may as well not even exist to his subjects. Harry is much more real to the people (and more likable) than veiled hell of the court.