The later years of Henry IV’s reign have been marked by serious health problems.

He has a disfiguring skin disease and, more seriously, suffers acute attacks of some grave illness in June 1405, April 1406, June 1408, during the winter of 1408–09, December 1412; and finally in March 1413 a fatal bout.

Medical historians have long debated the nature of this affliction or afflictions.

The skin disease might have been leprosy (which did not necessarily mean precisely the same thing in the fifteenth century as it does to modern medicine), perhaps psoriasis, or some other disease.

The acute attacks have been given a wide range of explanations, from epilepsy to some form of cardiovascular disease.

Some medieval writers felt that he was struck with leprosy as a punishment for his treatment of Richard le Scrope, Archbishop of York, who had been executed in June 1405 on Henry's orders after a failed coup.

According to Holinshed, it had been predicted a that Henry would die in Jerusalem, and Shakespeare's play repeats this prophecy.

Henry had taken this to mean that he will die on crusade.

In reality, he dies in the "Jerusalem" chamber of the house of the Abbot of Westminster, on March 20, 1413, during a convocation of Parliament.

His executor, Thomas Langley, is at his side.