Hamlet Facts for Kids

A picture of Hamlet.

An actor playing Hamlet.

The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a famous tragedy play. It was written by the well-known writer William Shakespeare. Many lines from this play are still used today as famous sayings. People often just call the play Hamlet.

Shakespeare wrote Hamlet between the years 1600 and 1602. It was first printed in 1603. Hamlet is Shakespeare's longest play. It has 4042 lines and 29551 words.

Discover the Story of Hamlet
Meet the Characters in Hamlet
Performing as Hamlet
Hamlet on the Big Screen
Images for kids
See also

Discover the Story of Hamlet

What Happens in Hamlet's Kingdom?

The story is about Hamlet, a young prince in Denmark. He was supposed to become king after his father, King Hamlet, passed away. But his uncle, Claudius, took the throne instead. Claudius also married Hamlet's mother, Gertrude.

One day, Prince Hamlet meets the ghost of his dead father. The ghost tells him a shocking secret. He says Claudius caused his death. The ghost asks Hamlet to get justice for him.

Hamlet's Plan to Find the Truth

Hamlet isn't sure if he should believe the ghost. So, he decides to investigate. He pretends to be acting strangely to hide his true plans. It becomes hard to tell if he is truly upset or just pretending.

His unusual behavior causes problems with Ophelia. She is a girl he cared about deeply. Hamlet then gets an idea. He asks some actors to perform a play. This play shows a king being harmed in the same way the ghost described. Claudius gets very upset when he sees the play. Hamlet sees this as proof that Claudius is guilty.

The Tragic End of the Royal Family

Hamlet has a chance to confront Claudius. But he hesitates. Later, he argues with his mother. He hears someone behind a curtain. Thinking it's Claudius, Hamlet takes action. He accidentally harms Polonius, a royal advisor and Ophelia's father.

Claudius then sends Hamlet away to England. He plans for Hamlet to be harmed there. But Hamlet escapes and returns to Denmark. Meanwhile, Ophelia becomes very sad after Hamlet's actions. She later drowns.

Hamlet appears at Ophelia's funeral. He gets into a fight with her brother, Laertes. Laertes blames Hamlet for the deaths of his sister and father. He wants to get even. Laertes challenges Hamlet to a sword fight. Hamlet agrees to the challenge.

The sword fight happens at the castle. Claudius arranges for Laertes to use a sword with a special substance on it. He also has some special wine ready. During the fight, Laertes wounds Hamlet. The swords get mixed up. Hamlet then wounds Laertes with the same sword. Laertes feels bad and tells Hamlet about the special substance. He then passes away.

By mistake, Gertrude drinks the special wine and dies. Realizing he is also dying, Hamlet confronts Claudius. He makes Claudius drink the rest of the wine. In his final moments, Hamlet tells his friend Horatio who should be the next King of Denmark. He names Fortinbras, a prince from Norway.

Meet the Characters in Hamlet

The main people in the story are:

Hamlet, the prince of Denmark
Ghost, the spirit of King Hamlet, the prince's father
Gertrude, the Queen and Prince Hamlet's mother
Claudius, the King, who is King Hamlet's brother and now married to Gertrude
Horatio, Hamlet's loyal friend
Polonius, the King's advisor
Laertes, Polonius's son
Ophelia, Polonius's daughter and Hamlet's girlfriend
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two members of Claudius's court who watch Hamlet

Performing as Hamlet

Playing the role of Hamlet is one of the most difficult parts for an actor. It is one of the longest roles Shakespeare ever wrote. Many people have different ideas about what Hamlet is truly thinking. For many actors, playing Hamlet is a very important part of their acting career.

Hamlet on the Big Screen

Many movies have been made based on the play. Most films show only parts of the play. This is because the entire play is very long. Some well-known movies include:

1948: Hamlet starring and directed by Laurence Olivier.
1960: A version made for German television. This version later appeared on Mystery Science Theatre 3000.
1990: Hamlet starring Mel Gibson. Directed by Franco Zeffirelli.
1996: Hamlet starring and directed by Kenneth Branagh. This movie shows the entire play.
2009: Hamlet starring David Tennant. Directed by Gregory Doran, this was a three-and-a-half-hour TV show for the BBC.
2014: The Bollywood movie "Haider" directed by Vishal Bhardwaj. Shahid Kapoor played the role of Hamlet.

Images for kids

Horatio, Hamlet, and the ghost (Artist: Henry Fuseli, 1789)
The gravedigger scene (Artist: Eugène Delacroix, 1839)
John Barrymore as Hamlet (1922)
A look at the famous 'To be, or not to be' speech in early editions of Hamlet. It shows how the text quality changed in the Bad Quarto, the Good Quarto, and the First Folio.
The title page for Hamlet, Prince of Denmark: A Tragedy from 1776.
A poster from around 1884 for an American show of Hamlet. It features Thomas W. Keene and shows several key scenes.
Mignon Nevada playing Ophelia in 1910.
Sarah Bernhardt as Hamlet, holding Yorick's skull (photographer: James Lafayette, around 1885–1900).