SCENE IV.
Changes to the Duke of York's Palace.
Enter York, Salisbury, and Warwick.
OW, my good Lords of Salisbury and
Warwick,
Our fimple fupper ended, give me leave,
In this clofe walk to fatisfy myfelf;
In craving your opinion of my Title,
LWhich is infallible, to England's Crown.
Sal. My Lord, I long to hear it thus at full.' War. Sweet Fork, begin; and if thy Claim be good, The Nevills are thy Subjects to command.
Edward the Third, my Lords, had feven fons:
The firft, Edward the black Prince, Prince of Wales;
The fecond, William of Hatfield; and the third,
Lionel Duke of Clarence; next to whom
Was John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster;
The fifth was Edmond Langley, Duke of York;
The fixth was Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Glo'ster.
William of Windfor was the feventh and last.
Edward the black Prince dy'd before his father,
And left behind him Richard, his only fon,
Who, after Edward the Third's death, reign'd King;
Till Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Lancaster,
The eldeft fon and heir of John of Gaunt,
Crown'd by the name of Henry the Fourth,
Seiz❜d on the realm; depos'd the rightful King;
Sent his poor Queen to France from whence fhe came,
And him to Pomfret; where, as all you know,
Harmless King Richard trait'rously was murder'd.
War. Father, the Duke hath told the truth;
Thus got the houfe of Lancaster the Crown.
In craving your opinion of crown.] I know not well
my Title,
whether he means the opinion or
Which is infullible, to England's the title is infallible.
York, Which now they hold by force, and not by
For Richard the firft fon's heir being dead,
The Iffue of the next fon fhould have reign'd.
Sal. But William of Hatfield dy'd without an heir.
York. The third fon, duke of Clarence, from whose
Line
I claim the Crown, had iffue Philip, a daughter,
Who married Edmond Mortimer, Earl of March.
Edmond had iffue, Roger Earl of March:
Roger had iffue, Edmond, Anne, and Eleanor.
Sal. This Edmond, in the reign of Bolingbroke,
As I have read, laid Claim unto the Crown ;
And, but for Owen Glendower, had been King
Who kept him in captivity, till he dy❜d.
But, to the reft
York. His eldeft fifter, Anne,
My mother, being heir unto the Crown,
Married Richard Earl of Cambridge,
Who was the fon to Edmond Langley,
Edward the Third's fifth fon."
By her I claim the Kingdom; fhe was heir
To Roger Earl of March, who was the fon
Of Edmond Mortimer, who married Philip,
Sole daughter unto Lionel Duke of Clarence.
So, if the iffue of the elder fon
Succeed before the younger, I am King.
War. What plain proceeding is more plain than this?
Henry doth claim the Crown from John of Gaunt,
The fourth fon; York here claims it from the third,
Till Lionel's iffue fail, his fhould not reign,
It fails not yet, but flourifheth in thee
And in thy fons, fair flips of fuch a ftock.
Then, father Salisbury, kneel we together,
And in this private Plot be we the first,
That fhall falute our righful Sovereign
With honour of his birth-right to the Crown.
Both. Long live our Sov'reign Richard, England's
King!
York. We thank you, Lords: but I am not your King,
'Till I be crown'd; and that my fword be ftain'd e
With heart-blood of the Houfe of Lancaster:
And that's not fuddenly to be perform'd,
But with advice and filent fecrecy.
Do you, as I do, in thefe dang'rous days,
Wink at the Duke of Suffolk's Infolence,
At Beauford's Pride, at Somerfer's Ambition, t
At Buckingham, and all the crew of them;
Till they have fnar'd the fhepherd of the flock.
That virtuous Prince, the good Duke Humphry,
'Tis that they feek; and they in seeking that
Shall feek their deaths, if York can prophesy.
Sal. My Lord, here break we off; we know your mind.
War. My heart affures me, that the Earl of Warwick
Shall one day make the Duke of York a King.
York. And, Nevill, this I do affure myself,
Richard fhall live to make the Earl of Warwick
The greatest man in England, but the King. [Exeunt.
SCENE V
Changes to a House near Smithfield.
Sound Trumpets. Enter King Henry and Nobles; the Dutchess, Mother Jordan, Southwel, Hume, and Bolinbrook, under guard.
K. Henry. STA Glofter's wife,
TAND forth, Dame Eleanor Cobbam,
In fight of God and us your guilt is great;
Receive the sentence of the law for fins,
Such as by God's Book are adjudg'd to death.
-You four from hence to prifon back again;
From thence unto the place of execution.
The Witch in Smithfield shall be burn'd to afhes.
And
you three fhall be ftrangled on the gallows.
You, Madam, for you are more nobly born,
Defpoiled of your honour in your life,
Shall after three days open Penance done,
Live in your country here, in Banishment,
With Sir John Stanley in the Isle of Man.
Elean. Welcome is exile, welcome were my death. Glo. The law, thou feeft, hath judg'd thee, Eleanor I cannot justify, whom law condemns.
[Exeunt Eleanor, and the others, guarded. Mine eyes are full of tears, my heart of grief. Ah, Humphry! this difhonour in thine age Will bring thy head with forrow to the ground. I befeech your Majefty, give me leave to gov Sorrow would Solace, and my age would Eafe.
K. Henry. Stay Humphry, Duke of Glofter; ere thou go,
Give up thy staff; Henry will to himself
Protector be, and God fhall be my hope,
My stay, my guide, and lanthorn to my feet.
And go in peace, Humphry, no lefs belov'd,
Than when thou wert Protector to thy King.
Q. Mar. I fee no reason, why a King of years
Should be to be protected like a child:
God and King Henry govern England's realm: *
Give up your ftaff, Sir, and the king his realm.
Glo. My staff? here, noble Henry, is my ftaff;
As willingly do I the fame refign,
As e'er thy father Henry made it mine;
And even as willing at thy feet I leave it,
As others would ambitiously receive it.
Farewel, good King; when I am dead and gone, fl ni
May honourable peace attend thy throne. [Exit Glo'fter.
2 Sorrow would folace, and my age would Eafe.] That is, for row would have, forrow requires folace, and age requires eafe.
God and King Henry govern England's realm: The word realm at the end of two:
lines together is difpleafing; and when it is confidered that much of this fcene s written in rhyme, it will not appear improbable that the author wrote, govern England's helm.
Q. Mar. Why, now is Henry King, and Margʻret
Queen,
And Humphry, Duke of Glofter, scarce himself,
That bears fo fhrew'd a maim; two pulls at once;
His lady banish'd, and a limb loft off.
This ftaff of honour raught, there let it stand,
Where beft it fits to be, in Henry's hand.
Suf. Thus drops this lofty pine, and hangs his
Sprays;
Thus Eleanor's pride dies in her younger days.
York. Lords, let him go, Please it your Majefty,
This is the day appointed for the combat,
And ready are th' appellant and defendant,
The armourer and his man, to enter the lifts,
So please your Highnefs to behold the fight.
Q. Mar. Ay, good my Lord; for purposely therefore Left I the court, to fee this quarrel try'd.
K. Henry, A'God's name, fee the lifts and all things
Here let them end it, and God guard the right!
York. I never faw a fellow worse bestead, 3
Or more afraid to fight, than is th' appellant,
The fervant of the armourer, my Lords.
Enter at one door the armourer and his neighbours, drink? ing to him so much, that he is drunk; and he enters with a drum befere bim, and his staff with a fand
|