William Shakespeare: The Complete Works 2nd Edition (56 page)

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Authors: William Shakespeare

Tags: #Drama, #Literary Criticism, #Shakespeare

BOOK: William Shakespeare: The Complete Works 2nd Edition
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RICHARD
Oft have I seen a hot o’erweening cur
Run back and bite, because he was withheld;
Who, being suffered with the bear’s fell paw,
Hath clapped his tail between his legs and cried;
And such a piece of service will you do,
If you oppose yourselves to match Lord Warwick.
CLIFFORD
Hence, heap of wrath, foul indigested lump,
As crooked in thy manners as thy shape!
YORK
Nay, we shall heat you thoroughly anon.
CLIFFORD
Take heed, lest by your heat you burn yourselves.
KING HENRY
Why, Warwick, hath thy knee forgot to bow?
Old Salisbury, shame to thy silver hair,
Thou mad misleader of thy brainsick son!
What, wilt thou on thy deathbed play the ruffian,
And seek for sorrow with thy spectacles?
O, where is faith? O, where is loyalty?
If it be banished from the frosty head,
Where shall it find a harbour in the earth?
Wilt thou go dig a grave to find out war,
And shame thine honourable age with blood?
Why, art thou old and want’st experience?
Or wherefore dost abuse it if thou hast it?
For shame in duty bend thy knee to me,
That bows unto the grave with mickle age.
SALISBURY
My lord, I have considered with myself
The title of this most renowned Duke,
And in my conscience do repute his grace
The rightful heir to England’s royal seat.
KING HENRY
Hast thou not sworn allegiance unto me?
SALISBURY I have.
KING HENRY
Canst thou dispense with heaven for such an oath?
SALISBURY
It is great sin to swear unto a sin,
But greater sin to keep a sinful oath.
Who can be bound by any solemn vow
To do a murd’rous deed, to rob a man,
To force a spotless virgin’s chastity,
To reave the orphan of his patrimony,
To wring the widow from her customed right,
And have no other reason for this wrong
But that he was bound by a solemn oath?
QUEEN MARGARET
A subtle traitor needs no sophister.
KING HENRY (
to an attendant
)
Call Buckingham, and bid him arm himself.
Exit attendant
 
YORK (
to King Henry
)
Call Buckingham and all the friends thou hast,
I am resolved for death or dignity.
CLIFFORD
The first, I warrant thee, if dreams prove true.
WARWICK
You were best to go to bed and dream again,
To keep you from the tempest of the field.
CLIFFORD
I am resolved to bear a greater storm
Than any thou canst conjure up today—
And that I’ll write upon thy burgonet
Might I but know thee by thy household badge.
WARWICK
Now by my father’s badge, old Neville’s crest,
The rampant bear chained to the ragged staff,
This day I’ll wear aloft my burgonet,
As on a mountain top the cedar shows
That keeps his leaves in spite of any storm,
Even to affright thee with the view thereof.
CLIFFORD
And from thy burgonet I’ll rend thy bear,
And tread it under foot with all contempt,
Despite the bearherd that protects the bear.
YOUNG CLIFFORD
And so to arms, victorious father,
To quell the rebels and their complices.
RICHARD
Fie, charity, for shame! Speak not in spite—
For you shall sup with Jesu Christ tonight.
YOUNG CLIFFORD
Foul stigmatic, that’s more than thou canst tell.
RICHARD
If not in heaven, you’ll surely sup in hell.
Exeunt
severally
 
5.2

An alehouse sign: a castle.

Alarums to the battle
.
Then enter the Duke of Somerset and Richard fighting
.
Richard kills Somerset

under
the
sign

 
RICHARD So lie thou there—
For underneath an alehouse’ paltry sign,
The Castle in Saint Albans, Somerset
Hath made the wizard famous in his death.
Sword, hold thy temper; heart, be wrathfull still—
Priests pray for enemies, but princes kill.
Exit

with Somerset’s body. The sign is removed

5.3

Alarum again
.⌉
Enter the Earl of Warwick
 
WARWICK
Clifford of Cumberland, ’tis Warwick calls!
An if thou dost not hide thee from the bear,
Now, when the angry trumpet sounds alarum,
And dead men’s cries do fill the empty air,
Clifford I say, come forth and fight with me!
Proud northern lord, Clifford of Cumberland,
Warwick is hoarse with calling thee to arms!
CLIFFORD (
Within
)
Warwick, stand still; and stir not till I come.
Enter the Duke of York
 
WARWICK
How now, my noble lord? What, all afoot?
YORK
The deadly-handed Clifford slew my steed.
But match to match I have encountered him,
And made a prey for carrion kites and crows
Even of the bonny beast he loved so well.
Enter Lord Clifford
 
WARWICK (
to Clifford
)
Of one or both of us the time is come.
YORK
Hold, Warwick—seek thee out some other chase,
For I myself must hunt this deer to death.
WARWICK
Then nobly, York; ‘tis for a crown thou fight’st.
(
To Clifford
) As I intend, Clifford, to thrive today,
It grieves my soul to leave thee unassailed. Exit
YORK
Clifford, since we are singled here alone,
Be this the day of doom to one of us.
For know my heart hath sworn immortal hate
To thee and all the house of Lancaster.
CLIFFORD
And here I stand and pitch my foot to thine,
Vowing not to stir till thou or I be slain.
For never shall my heart be safe at rest
Till I have spoiled the hateful house of York.
Alarums. They fight. York kills Clifford
 
YORK
Now, Lancaster, sit sure—thy sinews shrink.
Come, fearful Henry, grovelling on thy face—
Yield up thy crown unto the prince of York. Exit
Alarums, then enter Young Clifford
 
YOUNG CLIFFORD
Shame and confusion, all is on the rout!
Fear frames disorder, and disorder wounds
Where it should guard. O, war, thou son of hell,
Whom angry heavens do make their minister,
Throw in the frozen bosoms of our part
Hot coals of vengeance! Let no soldier fly!
He that is truly dedicate to war
Hath no self-love; nor he that loves himself
Hath not essentially, but by circumstance,
The name of valour.
He sees his father’s body
 
O, let the vile world end,
And the premised flames of the last day
Knit earth and heaven together.
Now let the general trumpet blow his blast,
Particularities and petty sounds
To cease! Wast thou ordained, dear father,
To lose thy youth in peace, and to achieve
The silver livery of advised age,
And in thy reverence and thy chair-days, thus
To die in ruffian battle? Even at this sight
My heart is turned to stone, and while ’tis mine
It shall be stony. York not our old men spares;
No more will I their babes. Tears virginal
Shall be to me even as the dew to fire,
And beauty that the tyrant oft reclaims
Shall to my flaming wrath be oil and flax.
Henceforth I will not have to do with pity.
Meet I an infant of the house of York,
Into as many gobbets will I cut it
As wild Medea young Absyrtus did.
In cruelty will I seek out my fame.
Come, thou new ruin of old Clifford’s house,
He takes his father’s body up on his back
 
As did Aeneas old Anchises bear,
So bear I thee upon my manly shoulders.
But then Aeneas bare a living load,
Nothing so heavy as these woes of mine.
Exit with the body
5.4

Alarums
again
.
Then enter three or four bearing the Duke of Buckingham wounded to his tent.

Alarums still. Enter King Henry, Queen Margaret, and others
 
QUEEN MARGARET
Away, my lord! You are slow. For shame, away!
KING HENRY
Can we outrun the heavens? Good Margaret, stay.
QUEEN MARGARET
What are you made of? You’ll nor fight nor fly.
Now is it manhood, wisdom, and defence,
To give the enemy way, and to secure us
By what we can, which can no more but fly.
Alarum afar off
 
If you be ta’en, we then should see the bottom
Of all our fortunes; but if we haply scape—
As well we may if not through your neglect—
We shall to London get where you are loved,
And where this breach now in our fortunes made
May readily be stopped.
Enter Young Clifford
 
YOUNG CLIFFORD (to King Henry)
But that my heart’s on future mischief set,
I would speak blasphemy ere bid you fly;
But fly you must; uncurable discomfit
Reigns in the hearts of all our present parts.
Away for your relief, and we will live
To see their day and them our fortune give.
Away, my lord, away!
Exeunt
5.5
Alarum. Retreat. Enter the Duke of York, his sons Edward and Richard, and soldiers, including a drummer and some bearing colours
 
YORK (
to Edward and Richard
)
How now, boys! Fortunate this fight hath been,
I hope, to us and ours for England’s good
And our great honour, that so long we lost
Whilst faint-heart Henry did usurp our rights.
Of Salisbury, who can report of him?
That winter lion who in rage forgets
Aged contusions and all brush of time,
And, like a gallant in the brow of youth,
Repairs him with occasion. This happy day
Is not itself, nor have we won one foot
If Salisbury be lost.
RICHARD My noble father,
Three times today I holp him to his horse;
Three times bestrid him; thrice I led him off,
Persuaded him from any further act;
But still where danger was, still there I met him,
And like rich hangings in a homely house,
So was his will in his old feeble body.
Enter the Earls of Salisbury and Warwick
 
EDWARD (
to York
)
See, noble father, where they both do come—
The only props unto the house of York!
SALISBURY
Now, by my sword, well hast thou fought today;
By th’ mass, so did we all. I thank you, Richard.
God knows how long it is I have to live,
And it hath pleased him that three times today
You have defended me from imminent death.
Well, lords, we have not got that which we have—
’Tis not enough our foes are this time fled,
Being opposites of such repairing nature.
YORK
I know our safety is to follow them,
For, as I hear, the King is fled to London,
To call a present court of Parliament.
Let us pursue him ere the writs go forth.
What says Lord Warwick, shall we after them?
WARWICK
After them? Nay, before them if we can!
Now by my hand, lords, ’twas a glorious day!
Saint Albans battle won by famous York
Shall be eternized in all age to come.
Sound drums and trumpets, and to London all,
And more such days as these to us befall!

Flourish.

Exeunt
ADDITIONAL PASSAGES
A. We adopt the 1594 Quarto version of the Queen’s initial speech, 1.1.24—9; the Folio version, which follows, is probably the author’s original draft.
QUEEN MARGARET
Great King of England, and my gracious lord,
The mutual conference that my mind hath had—
By day, by night; waking, and in my dreams;
In courtly company, or at my beads—
With you, mine alder liefest sovereign,
Makes me the bolder to salute my king
With ruder terms, such as my wit affords
And overjoy of heart doth minister.

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