Miko: annotations

From 1571 to 1597, males ages six and up (except those of high rank) were required to wear wool caps on Sundays and official holidays. One of the purposes for the law was to support the ailing wool industry.

An attendant who clears a path for a procession.

soon

a fence or a field

Someone who engages in an evil practice, especially a pimp.

Henry V's helmet, saddle, sword, and shield were (and still are) on display in Westminster Abbey in London. The helmet has a dent in it.

Mustering, also called pressing, was the practice of capturing random men in public places and forcing them to serve in the army. In 1599 over 9,000 men in England had been mustered.

organized militia

The details of the Duke's oak are never explained. It may have been a specific tree or some other kind of landmark. It might be similar to Herne's oak in “The Merry Wives of Windsor”.

The First and Second folios have “perfect”, the First Quarto has “perfit”. The word was in the process of changing from “perfit” to “perfect” about the time this play was written. That may account for why it was “perfit” when the First Quarto was published in 1600 and “perfect” when the First Folio was published twenty-three years later.