The Dramatic Works of William Shakspeare

When they should serve their sovereign in the f west?

Stan. They have not been commanded, mighty
king:

Pleaseth your majesty to give me leave,
I'll muster up my friends; and meet your grace,
Where and what time your majesty shall please.
K. Rich. Ay, ay, thou wouldst be gone to join
with Richmond:

I will not trust you, Sir.

Stan. Most mighty sovereign,

You have no cause to hold my friendship doubtful;

I never was nor never will be false.

K. Rich. Well, go, muster men. But, hear you, leave behind

Your son, George Stanley; look your heart be
firm,

Or else his head's assurance is but frail.
Stan. So deal with him, as I prove true to
you.
[Exit STANLEY.

Enter a MESSENGER.

Mess. My gracious sovereign, now in Devonshire,

As I by friends am well advertised,

Sir Edward Courtney, and the haughty prelate,
Bishop of Exeter, his elder brother,
With many more confederates, are in arms.

Enter another MESSENGER.

2 Mess. In Kent, ny liege, the Guildfords are in arms;

And every hour more competitors

SCENE V.-A Room in Lord STANLEY'S
House.

Enter STANLEY and Sir CHRISTOPHER
URSWICK..

Stan. Sir Christopher, tell Richmond this
from me :-

That, in the sty of this most bloody boar,
If I revolt, off goes young George's head;
My son George Stanley is frank'd + up in hold;
The fear of that withholds my present aid.
But tell me where is princely Richmond now?
Chris. At Pembroke, or at Ha'rford-west in
Wales.

Stan. What men of name resort to him?
Chris. Sir Walter Herbert, a renowned sol-
dier ;

Sir Gilbert Talbert, Sir William Stanley;
Oxford, redoubted Pembroke, Sir James Blunt,
And Rice ap Thomas, with a valiant crew;
Aud many other of great fame and worth:
And towards London do they bend their course,
If by the way they be not fought withal.
Stan. Well bie thee to thy lord; commend
me to him;

Tell him, the queen hath heartily consented
He shall espouse Elizabeth her daughter.

Flock to the rebels, and their power grows These letters will resolve him of my mind.

strong.

3 Mess. The news I have to tell your ma-
jesty,

Is, that by sudden floods and fall of waters,
Buckingham's army is dispers'd and scatter'd ;
And he himself wander'd away alone,
No man knows whither.

K. Rich. Oh! I cry you mercy:
There is my purse to cure that blow of thine.
Hath any well-advised friend proclaim'd
Reward to him that brings the traitor in?
3 Mess. Such proclamation hath been made,
my liege.

Enter another MESSENGER.

4 Mess. Sir Thomas Lovel, and lord marquis Dorset,

'Tis said, my liege, in Yorkshire are in arins. But this good comfort bring I to your high

ness,

The Bretagne navy is dispers'd by tempest:
Richmond, in Dorsetshire, sent out a boat
Unto the shore, to ask those on the banks,
f they were his assistants, yea or no;
Who answer'd him, they came from Buckingham
Upon his party: he, mistrusting them,
Hois'd sail, and inade his course again
Bretagne.

K. Rich. March on, march on, since we
up in arms;

If not to fight with foreign enemies,
Yet to beat down these rebels here at home.

Enter CATESBY.

for

are

Farewell. [Gives papers to Sir CHRISTOPHER. [Exeunt.

ACT V.

SCENE I.-Salisbury.—An open place. Enter the SHERIFF, and Guard, with BUCKINGHAM, led to execution.

Buck. Will not king Richard let me speak with him?

Sher. No, my good lord; therefore be patient.

Buck. Hastings, and Edward's children, Ri-
vers, Grey,

Holy king Henry, and thy fair son Edward,
Vaughan, and all that have miscarried
By under hand corrupted foul injustice;
If that your moody discontented souls
Do through the clouds behold this present
hour,

Even for revenge mock my destruction!
This is All-Souls' day, fellows, is it not?
Sher. It is, my lord.

Buck. Why then, All-Souls' day is my body's
doomsday.

This is the day, which, in king Edward's

time,

I wish'd might fall on me, when I was found
False to his children, or his wife's allies:
This is the day, wherein I wish'd to fall
By the false faith of him whom most I trusted;
This, this All-Souls' day to my fearful soul,
Is the determin'd respite of my wrongs. Į
That high All-seer which I dallied with,
Hath turned my feigned prayer on my head,
And given in earnest what I begg'd in jest.
Thus doth he force the swords of wicked men
To turn theis own points on their masters'
bosoms:
Margaret's

Thus

neck,

curse falls heavy on my

When he, quoth she, shall split shy heart with | Enter, on the other side of the field, RICH

sorrow,

Remember Margaret was a prophetess.-
Come, Sirs, convey me to the block of

shame ;

Wrong bath but wrong, and blame the due of blame.

[Exeunt BUCKINGHAM, &c. SCENE II.-Plain near Tamworth. Enter, with drum and colours, RICHMOND, OXFORD, Sir JAMES BLUNT, Sir WALTER HERBERT, and others, with forces, marching.

MOND, Sir WILLIAM BRANDON, OXFORD, and other Lords. Some of the soldiers pitch RICHMOND's tent.

Richm. The weary sun hath made a golden
set,

And, by the bright track of his fiery car,
Gives token of a goodly day to-morrow.-
Sir William Brandon, you shall bear my stan-
dard.

Give me some ink and paper in my tent;
I'll draw the form and model of our battle,
Limit each leader to his several charge,
And part in just proportion our small power.
My lord of Oxford,-you, Sir William Bran-
don,-

Richm. Fellows in arms, and my most loving And you, Sir Walter Herbert, stay with me:

friends,

Bruis'd underneath the yoke of tyranny,

Thus far into the bowels of the land
Have we march'd on without impediment;
And here receive we from our father Stanley
Liues of fair comfort and encouragement.
The wretched, bloody, and usurping boar,
That spoil'd your summer fields and fruitful
vines,

Swills your warm blood like wash, and makes
his trough

In your embowell'd bosoms, this foul swine
Lies now even in the centre of this isle,
Near to the town of Leicester, as we learn:
From Tamworth thither, is but one day's
march.

In God's name, cheerly on, courageous friends,
To reap the harvest of perpetual peace
By this one bloody trial of sharp war.
Oxf. Every man's conscience is a thousand
swords,

To fight against that bloody homicide.

The earl of Pembroke keeps his regiment ;-
Good captain Blunt, bear my good night to

him,

And by the second hour in the morning
Desire the earl to see me in my tent:-
Yet one thing more, good captain, do for me;
Where is lord Stanley quarter'd, do you know?
Blunt. Unless I have mista'en his colours

(Which well I am assur'd I have not done,)
much,
His regiment lies half a mile at least
South from the mighty power of the king.
Richm. If without peril it be possible,
Sweet Blunt, make good some means to speak
with him,

And give him from me this most needful note.
Blunt. Upon my life, my lord, I'll undertake
it;

And so, God give you quiet rest to-night!
Richm. Good night, good captain Blunt.
Come, gentlemen,

Let us consult upon to-morrow's business;

Herb. I doubt not, but his friends will turn in to my tent, the air is raw and cold.

to us.

[They withdraw into the Tent.

Enter, to his Tent, King RICHARD, Nor-
FOLK, RATCLIFF, and CATESBY.

K. Rich. What is't o'clock ?
Cate. It's supper time, my lord:
It's nine o'clock.

K. Rich. I will not sup to-night.
Give me some ink and paper.
What, is my beaver easier than it was?
And all my armour laid into my tent?

Cate. It is, my liege; and all things are in
readiness.

K. Rich. Good Norfolk, hie thee to thy
charge;

Use careful watch, choose trusty sentinels.
Nor. I go, my lord.

K. Rich. Stir with the lark to-morrow, gentle

Norfolk.

Nor. I warrant you, my lord.

K. Rich. Ratcliff,

Rat. My lord?

power

[Exit.

Stanley's regiment; bid him bring his
K. Rich. Send out a pursuivant at arms
Before sun-rising, lest his son George fall
Into the blind cave of eternal night.-
Fill me a bowl of wine.-Give me a watch; t-
[To CATESBY.
Saddle white Surrey for the field to-morrow.-
Look that my staves ý be sound, and not too
heavy.

• Appoint. + Remains with. [Exeunt. A watch-light. Wood of the lances.

Twilight,

K. Rich. I am satisfied. Give me a bowl of By thee was punched full of deadly holes : wine: Think on the Tower and me; Despair, and die ;

I have not that alacrity of spirit,

Nor cheer of mind that I was wont to have.-
So, set it down.-Is ink and paper ready?
Rat. It is, my lord.

K. Rich. Bid my guard watch; leave me.
About the mid of night, come to my tent
And help to arm me.-Leave me, I say.

[King RICHARD retires into his Tent. Exeunt RATCLIFF and CATESBY.

Harry the sixth bids thee despair and die.Virtuous and holy, be thou conqueror ! [To RICHMOND Harry, that prophesy'd thou should'st be king, Doth comfort thee in thy sleep: Live and flourish!

The GHOST of CLARENCE rises. Ghost. Let me sit heavy on thy soul

morrow!

RICHMOND'S Tent opens, and discovers him, I, that was wash'd to and his officers, &c.

Enter STANLEY.

Stan. Fortune and victory sit on thy helm ! Richm. All comfort that the dark night can afford,

Be to thy person, noble father-in-law !
Tell me, how fares our loving mother?
Stan. I, by attorney, bless thee from thy
mother,

Who prays continually for Richmond's good;
So much for that.--The silent hours steal on,
And flaky darkness breaks within the east.
In brief, for so the season bids us be,
Prepare thy battle early in the morning;
And put thy fortune to the arbitrement
Of bloody strokes, and mortal-staring war.
I, as I may, (that which I would, I cannot,)
With best advantage will deceive the time,
And aid thee in this doubtful shock of arms:
But on thy side I may not be too forward,
Lest, being seen, thy brother, tender George,
Be executed in his father's sight:
Farewell The leisure and the fearful time
Cuts off the ceremonious vows of love,
And ample interchange of sweet discourse,
Which so long sunder'd friends should dwell

upon;

God give us leisure for these rites of love!
Once more, adieu :-Be valiant, and speed

well!

wine,

[To King RICHARD. death with fulsome

Poor Clarence, by thy guile betray'd to death! To-morrow in the battle think on me,

And fall thy edgeless sword; Despair and

die!

Thou offspring of the house of Lancaster, [To RICHMOND. The wronged heirs of York do pray for thee; Good angels guard thy battle! Live, and flourish !

The GHOSTS of RIVERS, GREY, and VAUGHAN, rise.

Riv. Let me sit heavy on thy soul to-morrow, [To King RICHARD. Rivers, that died at Pomfret! Despair, and die ?

Grey. Think upon Grey, and let thy soul despair! [To King RICHARD. Vaugh. Think upon Vaughan; and, with guilty

fear,

Let fall thy lance! Despair, and die!—

[To King RICHARD. All. Awake! and think, our wrongs in Richard's bosom [To RICHMOND. conquer him; - awake, and win the day!

Will

The GHOST of HASTINGS rises. Ghost. Bloody and guilty, guiltily awake; [To King RICHARD.

Richm. Good lords, conduct him to his regi-And in a bloody battle end thy days!

ment;

I'll strive with troubled thoughts, to take a Think on lord Hastings; and despair and

nap;

Lest leaden slumber peiset me down to-mor

The GHOST of Prince EDWARD, son to HENRY the sixth, rises between the two tents. Ghost. Let me sit heavy on thy soul to-morrow ! [To King RICHARD. Think, how thou stab'dst me in my prime of youth

At Tewksbury; Despair therefore, and die!Be cheerful, Richmond; for the wronged soul's [To RICHMOND.

Of butcher'd princes fight in thy behalf: King Henry's issue, Richmond, comforts thec. The GHOST of King HENRY the sixth rises. Ghost. When I was mortal, my anointed body [To King RICHARD.

in joy;

Good angels guard thee from the boar's annoy ! Live, and beget a happy race of kings! Edward's unhappy sons do bid thee flourish.

The GHOST of Queen ANNE rises. Ghost. Richard, thy wife, that wretched Anne thy wife, That never slept a quiet hour with thee, Now fills thy sleep with perturbations; To-morrow in the battle think on me, And fall thy edgeless sword; Despair, and die

Thou, quiet soul, sleep thon a quiet sleep; [To RICHMOND Dream of success and happy victory; Thy adversary's wife doth pray for thee.

The GHOST of BUCKINGHAM rises. Ghost. The first was I, that help'd thee to the crown; [To King RICHARD.

The lights burn blue.-It is now dead

night.

midCold fearful drops stand on my trembling flesh. What do I fear? myself? there's none else by:

Richard loves Richard; that is, I am I.

Is there a murderer here? No?-Yes; I am :
Then fly, What, from myself? Great reason:
Why ?

Lest I revenge, What? Myself on myself?
I love myself. Wherefore ? for any good,
That I myself have done unto myself?
O no: alas, I rather hate myself,
For hateful deeds committed by myself.
I am a villain; Yet I lie, I am not.
Fool, of thyself speak well :-Fool,

flatter.

not

What thinkest thou? will our friends prove all true?

Rat. No doubt, my lord.

K. Rich. Ratcliff, I fear, I fear,

Rat. Nay, good my lord, be not afraid of shadows.

K. Rich. By the apostle Paul, shadows tonight

Have struck more terror to the soul of Richard, Than can the substance of ten thousand soldiers,

Armed in proof, and led by shallow Richmond.
It is not yet near day. Come, go with me;
Under our tents I'll play the eaves-dropper,
To hear, if any mean to shrink from me.

[Exeunt King RICHARD, and RATCLIFF. RICHMOND wakes. Enter OXFORD and others.

Lords. Good morrow, Richmond.

Richm. 'Cry mercy, lords, and watchful gen-
tlemen,

That you have ta'en a tardy sluggard here.
Lords. How have you slept, my lord?
Richm. The sweetest sleep, and fairest-boding
dreams,

That ever enter'd in a drowsy head,
Have I since your departure had, my lords.
Methought, their souls, whose bodies Richard
murder'd,

Came to my tent, and cried-On! victory!
I promise you, my heart is very jocund
In the remembrance of so fair a dream.
How far into the morning is it, lords?
Lords. Upon the stroke of four.
Richm. Why, then 'tis time to arm, and give
direction.-
[He advances to the troops.
More than I have said, loving countrymen,
The leisure and enforcement of the time
Forbids to dwell on. Yet remember this,-
God, and our good cause, fight upon our
side;

The prayers of holy saints, and wronged souls, Like high-rear'd bulwarks, stand before our faces;

Richard except, those whom we fight against,
Had rather have us win, than him they follow.
For what is he they follow? truly, gentlemen,
A bloody tyrant, and a homicide;

One rais'd in blood, and one in blood establish'd;

One that made means to come by what he hath,

And slaughter'd those that were the means to help him:

A base foul stone, made precious by the foil
Of England's chair, where he is falsely set;
One that hath ever been God's enemy:
Then, if you fight against God's enemy,
God will, in justice, wardt you as his sol-
diers ;

If you do sweat to put a tyrant down,
You sleep in peace, the tyrant being slain;
If you do fight against your country's foes,
Your country's fat shall pay your pains the
hire;

If you do fight in safeguard of your wives,
Your wives shall welcome home the con-
querors;

If you do free your children from the sword, Your children's children quit it in your age. Then in the name of God, and all these rights,

Advance your standards, draw your willing swords.

For me, the rausom of my bold attempt
Shall be this cold corpse on the earth's cold
face;

But, if I thrive, the gain of my attempt
Sound, drums and trumpets, boldly and cheer.
The least of you shall share his part thereof.

fully:

God and Saint George! Richmond and victory! [Exeunt.

Re-enter King RICHARD, RATCLIFF, attendants, and Forces:

K. Rich. What said Northumberland, as touching Richmond ?

Rat. That he was never trained up in arms. K. Rich. He said the truth: And what said Surrey then?

Rat. He smil'd, and said the purpose.

better for our

K. Rich. He was i'the right; and so, indeed, it is. [Clock strikes. Tell the clock there.-Give me a calendar.Who saw the sun to-day?

Rat. Not I, my lord.

K. Rich. Then he disdains to shine; for, by the book,

Nor. Arm, arm, my lord; the foe vaunts in the field.

K. Rich. Come, bustle, bustle ;-Caparison my horse ;

Call up lord Stanley, bid him bring his power :-
I will lead forth my soldiers to the plain,
And thus my battle shall be ordered.
My foreward shall be drawn out all in length,
Consisting equally of horse and foot;

Nor. My lord, the enemy is pass'd `the marsh ;

After the battle let George Stanley die.
K. Rich. A thousand hearts are great within
my bosom :

Advance our standards, set upon our foes;
Our ancient word of courage, fair Saint
George,

Inspire us with the spleen of fiery dragons!
Upon them! Victory sits on our helms.

[Exeunt.

Our archers shall be placed in the midst :
John duke of Norfolk, Thomas earl of Surrey,
Shall have the leading of this foot and horse.
They thus directed, we ourself will follow
In the main battle; whose puissance on either | Alarum: Excursions. Enter NORfolk and

side

A thing devised by the enemy.-
Go, gentlemen, every man unto his charge:
Let not our babbling dreams affright our
souls;

Conscience is but a word that cowards use,
Devis'd at first to keep the strong in awe ;
Our strong arms be our conscience, swords our
law.

March on, join bravely, let us to't pell-mell;
If not to heaven, then hand in hand to hell.-
What shall I say more than 1 bave inferr'd?
Remember whom you are to cope withal ;-
A sort of vagabonds, rascals, and run-aways,
A scum of Bretagnes, and base lackey pea-
sants,

Whom their o'er-cloyed country vomits forth
To desperate ventures and assur'd destruction.
You sleeping safe, they bring you to unrest;
You having lands, and bless'd with beauteous

wives,

They would restrain the one, distain the other.
And who doth lead them, but a paltry fellow,
Long kept in Bretagne at our mother's cost?
A milk-sop, one that never in his life
Felt so much cold as over shoes in snow?
Let's whip these stragglers o'er the seas
again;

Lash hence these over-weening rags of France,
These famish'd beggars, weary of their lives;
ho, but for dreaming on this foud exploit,
or want of means, poor rats, bad hang'd them-
selves :

we be conquer'd, let men conquer us,

And not these bastard Bretagues; whom our fathers

Have in their own land beaten, bobb'd, and

thump'd,

And, on record, left them the heirs of shame. Shall these enjoy our lands? lle with our

wives?

SCENE IV.-Another part of the field.

Forces; to him CATESBY.

Cate. Rescue, my lord of Norfolk, rescue,

rescue!

The king enacts more wonders than a man,
Daring an opposite to every danger;
His horse is slain, and all on foot he fights,
Seeking for Richmond in the throat of death:
Rescue, fair lord, or else the day is lost!

Alarum. Enter King RICHARD.

R. Rich. A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!

Cate. Withdraw, my lord, I'll help you to a horse.

K. Rich. Slave, I have set my life upon a

Alarums. Enter King RICHARD and RICHMOND and exeunt fighting. Retreat, and flourish. Then enter RICHMOND, STANLEY, bearing the crown, with divers other Lords, and Forces.

Richm. God and your arms be prais'd, victorious friends;

The day is ours, the bloody dog is dead.
Stan. Courageous Richmond, well hast thou
acquit thee !

Lo, here, this long-usurped royalty,
From the dead temples of this bloody wretch
Have I pluck' off, to grace thy brows withal;
Wear it, enjoy it, and make much of it.

Richm. Great God of heaven, say, Amen, to all:

But tell me first, is young George Stanley liv ing?

Stan. He is, my lord, and safe in Leicester

town;

Whither, if it please you, we may now withdraw us.

Rick. What men of name are slain on either side?

Stan. John duke of Norfolk, Walter lord Ferrers,

Sir Robert Brakenbury, and Sir Willian Bran don.

Richm. Inter their bodies as becomes their births.

Proclaim a pardon to the soldiers fled,
That in submission will return to us;

Fright the skies with the shivers of your lanca

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The Dramatic Works of William Shakspeare: With Glossarial Notes, a Sketch of ...