A history play written in approximately 1599, Henry V presents events leading up to and following the Battle of Agincourt (1415). This famous speech is Henry's rousing call for action, delivered in response to Westmoreland's wish for more soldiers to join them in battle. Henry's contention is that if the battle is unsuccessful only a small fighting force will have been lost, whereas a victory would mean a 'greater share of honour'.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.
Read the full play here.
Two excellent films of the play have been made. The first was a propagandist film starring Laurence Olivier in 1944, the second starred Kenneth Branagh in 1989: