Thy grandfather, Roger Mortimer, Earl of March.
I am the son of Henry the Fifth,
Who made the Dauphin and the French to stoop
And seized upon their towns and provinces.
WARWICK
Talk not of France, sith thou hast lost it all.
KING HENRY
The Lord Protector lost it, and not I.
When I was crowned, I was but nine months old.
RICHARD
You are old enough now, and yet, methinks, you lose.
(To York) Father, tear the crown from the usurper’s
head.
EDWARD (to York)
Sweet father, do so—set it on your head.
MONTAGUE (to York)
Good brother, as thou lov‘st and honour’st arms,
Let’s fight it out and not stand cavilling thus.
RICHARD
Sound drums and trumpets, and the King will fly.
YORK Sons, peace!
⌈NORTHUMBERLAND⌉
Peace, thou—and give King Henry leave to speak.
KING HENRY
Ah, York, why seekest thou to depose me?
Are we not both Plantagenets by birth,
And from two brothers lineally descent?
Suppose by right and equity thou be king—
Think’st thou that I will leave my kingly throne,
Wherein my grandsire and my father sat?
No—first shall war unpeople this my realm;
Ay, and their colours, often borne in France,
And now in England to our heart’s great sorrow,
Shall be my winding-sheet. Why faint you, lords?
My title’s good, and better far than his.
WARWICK
Prove it, Henry, and thou shalt be king.
KING HENRY
Henry the Fourth by conquest got the crown.
YORK
’Twas by rebellion against his king.
KING HENRY ⌈aside⌉
I know not what to say—my title’s weak.
(To York) Tell me, may not a king adopt an heir?
YORK What then?
KING HENRY
An if he may, then am I lawful king—
For Richard, in the view of many lords,
Resigned the crown to Henry the Fourth,
Whose heir my father was, and I am his.
YORK
He rose against him, being his sovereign,
And made him to resign his crown perforce.
WARWICK
Suppose, my lords, he did it unconstrained—
Think you ’twere prejudicial to his crown?
EXETER
No, for he could not so resign his crown
But that the next heir should succeed and reign.
KING HENRY
Art thou against us, Duke of Exeter?
EXETER
His is the right, and therefore pardon me.
YORK
Why whisper you, my lords, and answer not?
EXETER ⌈to King Henry⌉
My conscience tells me he is lawful king.
KING HENRY ⌈aside⌉
All will revolt from me and turn to him.
NORTHUMBERLAND (to York)
Plantagenet, for all the claim thou lay’st,
Think not that Henry shall be so deposed.
WARWICK
Deposed he shall be, in despite of all.
NORTHUMBERLAND
Thou art deceived—’tis not thy southern power
Of Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, nor of Kent,
Which makes thee thus presumptuous and proud,
Can set the Duke up in despite of me.
CLIFFORD
King Henry, be thy title right or wrong,
Lord Clifford vows to fight in thy defence.
May that ground gape and swallow me alive
Where I shall kneel to him that slew my father.
KING HENRY
O, Clifford, how thy words revive my heart!
YORK
Henry of Lancaster, resign thy crown.
What mutter you, or what conspire you, lords?
WARWICK
Do right unto this princely Duke of York,
Or I will fill the house with armed men
And over the chair of state, where now he sits,
Write up his title with usurping blood.
He stamps with his foot and the soldiers show
themselves
KING HENRY
My lord of Warwick, hear me but one word—
Let me for this my lifetime reign as king.
YORK
Confirm the crown to me and to mine heirs,
And thou shalt reign in quiet while thou liv’st.
KING HENRY
I am content. Richard Plantagenet,
Enjoy the kingdom after my decease.
CLIFFORD
What wrong is this unto the prince your son?
WARWICK
What good is this to England and himself?
WESTMORLAND
Base, fearful, and despairing Henry.
CLIFFORD
How hast thou injured both thyself and us?
WESTMORLAND
I cannot stay to hear these articles.
NORTHUMBERLAND Nor I.
CLIFFORD
Come, cousin, let us tell the Queen these news.
WESTMORLAND (to King Henry)
Farewell, faint-hearted and degenerate king,
In whose cold blood no spark of honour bides.
⌈Exit with his soldiers⌉
NORTHUMBERLAND (to King Henry)
Be thou a prey unto the house of York,
And die in bands for this unmanly deed.
⌈Exit with his soldiers⌉
CLIFFORD (to King Henry)
In dreadful war mayst thou be overcome,
Or live in peace, abandoned and despised.
Exit ⌈with his soldiers⌉
WARWICK (to King Henry)
Turn this way, Henry, and regard them not.
EXETER (to King Henry)
They seek revenge and therefore will not yield.
KING HENRY
Ah, Exeter.
WARWICK Why should you sigh, my lord?
KING HENRY
Not for myself, Lord Warwick, but my son,
Whom I unnaturally shall disinherit.
But be it as it may. (To York) I here entail
The crown to thee and to thine heirs for ever,
Conditionally, that here thou take thine oath
To cease this civil war, and whilst I live
To honour me as thy king and sovereign,
And nor by treason nor hostility
To seek to put me down and reign thyself.
YORK
This oath I willingly take and will perform.
WARWICK
Long live King Henry. (To York) Plantagenet, embrace him.
⌈York descends.⌉ Henry and York embrace
KING HENRY (to York)
And long live thou, and these thy forward sons.
YORK
Now York and Lancaster are reconciled.
EXETER
Accursed be he that seeks to make them foes. Sennet. Here York’s train comes down from the state
YORK (to King Henry)
Farewell, my gracious lord, I’ll to my castle. Exeunt York, Edward, and Richard, ⌈with soldiers⌉
WARWICK
And I’ll keep London with my soldiers.
Exit ⌈With soldiers⌉
NORFOLK
And I to Norfolk with my followers.
Exit ⌈With soldiers⌉
MONTAGUE
And I unto the sea from whence I came.
Exit ⌈with soldiers⌉
KING HENRY
And I with grief and sorrow to the court. ⌈King Henry and Exeter turn to leave.⌉
Enter Queen Margaret and Prince Edward
EXETER
Here comes the Queen, whose l
ooks bewray her anger. I’ll steal away.
KING HENRY Exeter, so will I.
QUEEN MARGARET
Nay, go not from me—I will follow thee.
KING HENRY
Be patient, gentle Queen, and I will stay.
QUEEN MARGARET
Who can be patient in such extremes?
Ah, wretched man, would I had died a maid
And never seen thee, never borne thee son,
Seeing thou hast proved so unnatural a father.
Hath he deserved to lose his birthright thus?
Hadst thou but loved him half so well as I,
Or felt that pain which I did for him once,
Or nourished him as I did with my blood,
Thou wouldst have left thy dearest heart-blood there
Rather than have made that savage Duke thine heir
And disinherited thine only son.
PRINCE EDWARD
Father, you cannot disinherit me.
If you be king, why should not I succeed?
KING HENRY
Pardon me, Margaret; pardon me, sweet son—
The Earl of Warwick and the Duke enforced me.
QUEEN MARGARET
I shame to hear thee speak! Ah, timorous wretch,
Thou hast undone thyself, thy son, and me,
And giv’n unto the house of York such head
As thou shalt reign but by their sufferance.
To entail him and his heirs unto the crown—
What is it, but to make thy sepulchre
And creep into it far before thy time?
Warwick is Chancellor and the Lord of Calais;
Stern Falconbridge commands the narrow seas;
The Duke is made Protector of the Realm;
And yet shalt thou be safe? Such safety finds
The trembling lamb environèd with wolves.
Had I been there, which am a seely woman,
The soldiers should have tossed me on their pikes
Before I would have granted to that act.
But thou preferr’st thy life before thine honour.
And seeing thou dost, I here divorce myself
Both from thy table, Henry, and thy bed,
Until that act of Parliament be repealed
Whereby my son is disinherited.
The northern lords that have forsworn thy colours
Will follow mine, if once they see them spread—
And spread they shall be, to thy foul disgrace
And the utter ruin of the house of York.
Thus do I leave thee. (To Prince Edward) Come, son,
let’s away.
Our army is ready—come, we’ll after them.
KING HENRY
Stay, gentle Margaret, and hear me speak.
QUEEN MARGARET
Thou hast spoke too much already.
⌈To Prince Edward⌉ Get thee gone.
KING HENRY
Gentle son Edward, thou wilt stay with me?
QUEEN MARGARET
Ay, to be murdered by his enemies.
PRINCE EDWARD (to King Henry)
When I return with victory from the field,
I’ll see your grace. Till then, I’ll follow her.
QUEEN MARGARET
Come, son, away—we may not linger thus.
Exit with Prince Edward
KING HENRY
Poor Queen, how love to me and to her son
Hath made her break out into terms of rage.
Revenged may she be on that hateful Duke,
Whose haughty spirit, winged with desire,
Will coast my crown, and, like an empty eagle,
Tire on the flesh of me and of my son.
The loss of those three lords torments my heart.
I’ll write unto them and entreat them fair.
Come, cousin, you shall be the messenger.
EXETER
And I, I hope, shall reconcile them all.
Flourish. Exeunt
1.2 Enter Richard, Edward Earl of March, and the Marquis of Montague
RICHARD
Brother, though I be youngest give me leave.
EDWARD
No, I can better play the orator.
MONTAGUE
But I have reasons strong and forcible.
Enter the Duke of York
YORK
Why, how now, sons and brother—at a strife?
What is your quarrel? How began it first?
EDWARD
No quarrel, but a slight contention.
YORK About what?
RICHARD
About that which concerns your grace and us—
The crown of England, father, which is yours.
YORK
Mine, boy? Not till King Henry be dead.
RICHARD
Your right depends not on his life or death.
EDWARD
Now you are heir—therefore enjoy it now.
By giving the house of Lancaster leave to breathe,
It will outrun you, father, in the end.
YORK
I took an oath that he should quietly reign.
EDWARD
But for a kingdom any oath may be broken.
I would break a thousand oaths to reign one year.
RICHARD (to York)
No—God forbid your grace should be forsworn.
YORK
I shall be if I claim by open war.
RICHARD
I’ll prove the contrary, if you’ll hear me speak.
YORK
Thou canst not, son—it is impossible.
RICHARD
An oath is of no moment being not took
Before a true and lawful magistrate
That hath authority over him that swears.
Henry had none, but did usurp the place.
Your oath, my lord, is vain and frivolous.
Therefore to arms—and, father, do but think
How sweet a thing it is to wear a crown,
Within whose circuit is Elysium
And all that poets feign of bliss and joy.
Why do we linger thus? I cannot rest
Until the white rose that I wear be dyed
Even in the luke-warm blood of Henry’s heart.
YORK
Richard, enough! I will be king or die.
(To Montague) Brother, thou shalt to London presently
And whet on Warwick to this enterprise.
Thou, Richard, shalt to the Duke of Norfolk
And tell him privily of our intent.
You, Edward, shall to Edmund Brook, Lord Cobham,
With whom the Kentishmen will willingly rise.
In them I trust, for they are soldiers
Witty, courteous, liberal, full of spirit.
While you are thus employed, what resteth more
But that I seek occasion how to rise,
And yet the King not privy to my drift,
Nor any of the house of Lancaster.
Enter a Messenger
But stay, what news? Why com’st thou in such post?
MESSENGER
The Queen, with all the northern earls and lords,
Intend here to besiege you in your castle.
She is hard by with twenty thousand men,
And therefore fortify your hold, my lord.
YORK
Ay, with my sword. What—think’st thou that we fear
them?
Edward and Richard, you shall stay with me;
My brother Montague shall post to London.
Let noble Warwick, Cobham, and the rest,
Whom we have left protectors of the King,
With powerful policy strengthen themselves,
And trust not simple Henry nor his oaths.
MONTAGUE
Brother, I go—I’ll win them, fear it not.
And thus most hu
mbly I do take my leave. Exit
Enter Sir John Mortimer and his brother Sir Hugh
YORK
Sir John and Sir Hugh Mortimer, mine uncles,
You are come to Sandal in a happy hour.
The army of the Queen mean to besiege us.
SIR JOHN
She shall not need, we’ll meet her in the field.
YORK What, with five thousand men?
RICHARD
Ay, with five hundred, father, for a need.
A woman’s general—what should we fear?
A march sounds afar off
EDWARD
I hear their drums. Let’s set our men in order,
And issue forth and bid them battle straight.
YORK ⌈to Sir John and Sir Hugh⌉
Five men to twenty—though the odds be great,
I doubt not, uncles, of our victory.
Many a battle have I won in France
Whenas the enemy hath been ten to one—
Why should I not now have the like success? Exeunt
1.3 Alarums, and then enter the young Earl of Rutland and his Tutor, a chaplain
RUTLAND
Ah, whither shall I fly to scape their hands?
Enter Lord Clifford with soldiers
Ah, tutor, look where bloody Clifford comes.
CLIFFORD (to the Tutor)
Chaplain, away—thy priesthood saves thy life.
As for the brat of this accursed duke,
Whose father slew my father—he shall die.
TUTOR
And I, my lord, will bear him company.
CLIFFORD Soldiers, away with him.
TUTOR
Ah, Clifford, murder not this innocent child
Lest thou be hated both of God and man.
Exit, guarded
⌈Rutland falls to the ground⌉
CLIFFORD
How now—is he dead already?
Or is it fear that makes him close his eyes?
I’ll open them.
RUTLAND ⌈reviving⌉
So looks the pent-up lion o‘er the wretch
That trembles under his devouring paws,
And so he walks, insulting o’er his prey,
And so he comes to rend his limbs asunder.
Ah, gentle Clifford, kill me with thy sword
And not with such a cruel threat’ning look.
Sweet Clifford, hear me speak before I die.
I am too mean a subject for thy wrath.
Be thou revenged on men, and let me live.
CLIFFORD
In vain thou speak’st, poor boy. My father’s blood
Hath stopped the passage where thy words should