# Edward II: every role by lines, words, and stage time

> Christopher Marlowe. 47 speaking roles, 20,464 words, about 146 minutes of speech.

- URL: https://www.offbook.com/plays/edward-ii
- Last updated: 2026-10-08

**King Edward** has the most to say in Edward II: about 719 lines and 5,628 words, 27.5% of the play. Edward II is Marlowe’s verse history of a king whose devotion to his favorite Gaveston turns his nobles against him. King Edward holds over a quarter of the words. Younger Mortimer has about a sixth but speaks in more scenes than the king, 15 of 24. Gaveston, central to the early acts, does not speak after Act 3, Scene 1.

- Speaking roles: 47
- Scenes: 24
- Words: 20,464
- Speech time: 146 min

## Every role, largest first

| Role | Lines | Words | Share | Minutes | Scenes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| King Edward | 719 | 5,628 | 27.5% | 40.2 | 12 |
| Younger Mortimer | 450 | 3,437 | 16.8% | 24.6 | 15 |
| Queen Isabella | 263 | 2,032 | 9.9% | 14.5 | 11 |
| Gaveston | 159 | 1,199 | 5.9% | 8.6 | 7 |
| Lancaster | 149 | 1,111 | 5.4% | 7.9 | 8 |
| Kent | 120 | 908 | 4.4% | 6.5 | 13 |
| Younger Spenser | 115 | 899 | 4.4% | 6.4 | 8 |
| Warwick | 86 | 624 | 3% | 4.5 | 9 |
| King Edward III | 55 | 417 | 2% | 3.0 | 2 |
| Lightborn | 49 | 387 | 1.9% | 2.8 | 2 |
| Baldock | 50 | 382 | 1.9% | 2.7 | 6 |
| Matrevis | 45 | 325 | 1.6% | 2.3 | 4 |
| Arundel | 41 | 323 | 1.6% | 2.3 | 3 |
| Elder Mortimer | 40 | 276 | 1.3% | 2.0 | 3 |
| Pembroke | 36 | 249 | 1.2% | 1.8 | 5 |
| Archbishop of Canterbury | 31 | 234 | 1.1% | 1.7 | 3 |
| Leicester | 29 | 223 | 1.1% | 1.6 | 2 |
| Prince Edward | 27 | 222 | 1.1% | 1.6 | 4 |
| Niece | 27 | 220 | 1.1% | 1.6 | 3 |
| Sir John | 21 | 165 | 0.8% | 1.2 | 3 |
| Rice ap Howel | 20 | 157 | 0.8% | 1.1 | 2 |
| Gurney | 23 | 155 | 0.8% | 1.1 | 3 |
| Elder Spenser | 18 | 135 | 0.7% | 1.0 | 3 |
| Herald | 17 | 118 | 0.6% | 0.8 | 1 |
| Bishop of Winchester | 12 | 89 | 0.4% | 0.6 | 2 |
| Berkeley | 8 | 67 | 0.3% | 0.5 | 1 |
| Bishop of Coventry | 8 | 54 | 0.3% | 0.4 | 1 |
| Abbot | 7 | 53 | 0.3% | 0.4 | 1 |
| Levune | 6 | 45 | 0.2% | 0.3 | 1 |
| James | 5 | 39 | 0.2% | 0.3 | 1 |
| Champion | 4 | 31 | 0.2% | 0.2 | 1 |
| Messenger | 5 | 31 | 0.2% | 0.2 | 3 |
| First Soldier | 4 | 28 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 2 |
| First Lord | 3 | 27 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 1 |
| Second Lord | 3 | 26 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 1 |
| Trussel | 3 | 25 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 1 |
| Third Poor Man | 3 | 22 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 1 |
| Abbott | 2 | 18 | 0.1% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Guard | 3 | 17 | 0.1% | 0.1 | 1 |
| First Monk | 2 | 14 | 0.1% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Mower | 1 | 9 | 0% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Beaumont | 1 | 7 | 0% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Horse-boy | 1 | 7 | 0% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Mow | 1 | 7 | 0% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Poor Men | 1 | 6 | 0% | 0.0 | 1 |
| First Poor Man | 1 | 3 | 0% | 0.0 | 1 |
| Second Poor Man | 1 | 2 | 0% | 0.0 | 1 |

## Who speaks in which scene

Words each role speaks in each scene (scene: words). Scenes: 1.1 = Act 1, Scene 1; 1.2 = Act 1, Scene 2; 1.3 = Act 1, Scene 3; 1.4 = Act 1, Scene 4; 2.1 = Act 2, Scene 1; 2.2 = Act 2, Scene 2; 2.3 = Act 2, Scene 3; 2.4 = Act 2, Scene 4; 2.5 = Act 2, Scene 5; 3.1 = Act 3, Scene 1; 3.2 = Act 3, Scene 2; 3.3 = Act 3, Scene 3; 4.1 = Act 4, Scene 1; 4.2 = Act 4, Scene 2; 4.3 = Act 4, Scene 3; 4.4 = Act 4, Scene 4; 4.5 = Act 4, Scene 5; 4.6 = Act 4, Scene 6; 5.1 = Act 5, Scene 1; 5.2 = Act 5, Scene 2; 5.3 = Act 5, Scene 3; 5.4 = Act 5, Scene 4; 5.5 = Act 5, Scene 5; 5.6 = Act 5, Scene 6.

- **King Edward**: 1.1 (454), 1.4 (1,097), 2.2 (660), 2.4 (63), 3.2 (664), 3.3 (301), 4.3 (274), 4.5 (33), 4.6 (388), 5.1 (988), 5.3 (270), 5.5 (436)
- **Younger Mortimer**: 1.1 (107), 1.2 (161), 1.4 (729), 2.2 (441), 2.3 (62), 2.4 (66), 2.5 (152), 3.3 (79), 4.1 (34), 4.2 (164), 4.4 (98), 4.5 (188), 5.2 (441), 5.4 (498), 5.6 (217)
- **Queen Isabella**: 1.2 (106), 1.4 (567), 2.2 (63), 2.4 (304), 3.2 (90), 4.2 (211), 4.4 (105), 4.5 (125), 5.2 (237), 5.4 (53), 5.6 (171)
- **Gaveston**: 1.1 (667), 1.3 (33), 1.4 (140), 2.2 (167), 2.4 (12), 2.5 (134), 3.1 (46)
- **Lancaster**: 1.1 (100), 1.2 (127), 1.4 (250), 2.2 (392), 2.3 (68), 2.4 (60), 2.5 (66), 3.3 (48)
- **Kent**: 1.1 (129), 1.3 (4), 1.4 (9), 2.2 (131), 2.3 (58), 3.3 (17), 4.1 (89), 4.2 (51), 4.4 (8), 4.5 (169), 5.2 (96), 5.3 (76), 5.4 (71)
- **Younger Spenser**: 2.1 (285), 2.2 (13), 2.4 (9), 3.2 (210), 3.3 (110), 4.3 (128), 4.5 (25), 4.6 (119)
- **Warwick**: 1.1 (16), 1.2 (73), 1.4 (153), 2.2 (53), 2.3 (21), 2.4 (7), 2.5 (191), 3.1 (66), 3.3 (44)
- **King Edward III**: 5.4 (90), 5.6 (327)

## The longest speeches

| Speech | Scene | Words | Lines |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| King Edward: “Leicester, if gentle words might comfort me,” | Act 5, Scene 1 | 262 | 33 |
| King Edward: “Ah, Leicester, weigh how hardly I can brook” | Act 5, Scene 1 | 258 | 33 |
| Gaveston: ““My father is deceased! Come, Gaveston,” | Act 1, Scene 1 | 191 | 24 |
| Younger Mortimer: “The prince I rule, the queen do I command,” | Act 5, Scene 4 | 191 | 25 |
| Gaveston: “Do.” | Act 1, Scene 1 | 185 | 25 |
| Younger Mortimer: “The king must die, or Mortimer goes down;” | Act 5, Scene 4 | 176 | 22 |
| King Edward: “By earth, the common mother of us all,” | Act 3, Scene 2 | 150 | 20 |
| Younger Mortimer: “Uncle, his wanton humour grieves not me;” | Act 1, Scene 4 | 142 | 18 |
| Kent: “This way he fled, but I am come too late.” | Act 4, Scene 5 | 138 | 18 |
| King Edward: “Father, thy face should harbour no deceit.” | Act 4, Scene 6 | 138 | 18 |

## Small roles that can be doubled

These pairs of small roles never speak in the same scene, so one actor could play both. Check entrances and silent appearances in your script before you cast it this way.

- Kent and Arundel
- Kent and Leicester
- Kent and Herald
- Kent and Berkeley
- Kent and Abbot
- Kent and James
- Kent and First Lord
- Kent and Second Lord
- Kent and Trussel
- Kent and Abbott
- Kent and First Monk
- Kent and Mower

## Questions actors ask

### Who has the most lines in Edward II?

King Edward, with about 719 lines and 5,628 words, 27.5% of everything spoken in the play. Younger Mortimer is next, with about 450 lines (16.8%).

### How long is Edward II?

The full text has 20,464 spoken words, about 146 minutes at 140 words a minute before pauses, scene changes, and cuts. Most productions cut the text, so running times vary.

### How many speaking roles are in Edward II?

47 named roles speak in this edition, across 24 scenes. 38 of them have less than 2% of the words, which is why small parts are often doubled.

## How we count

Counts are computed from the full text of the [Standard Ebooks edition](https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/christopher-marlowe/edward-ii) (public domain; retrieved 2026-10-08). Words are every spoken word, with stage directions removed. Lines are verse lines as printed, plus prose at 10 words a line, because prose has no fixed line breaks; editions differ, so other sources give slightly different line counts. Time is words at 140 words a minute, before pauses and stage business. A role is counted in a scene when it speaks there. To count a script that is not in the library, paste it into the [script line counter](https://www.offbook.com/tools/script-line-counter).