1
ill
sf
If
:>i\S
Tf^
W
:s^$^
THE ARDEN SHAKESPEARE
GENERAL EDITOR : W. J. CRAIG
THE SECOND PART
OF
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
THE WORKS
OF
SHAKESPEARE
THE SECOND PART OF
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
EDITED BY
H. C. HART
?
METHUEN AND CO.
36 ESSEX STREET: STRAND
LONDON
First Published in igog
\,V^ ^^ ^i ^
<^''..
C>
Fi
957822
,"■"' " -^
CONTENTS
PAGE
Introduction vii
The Second Part of King Henry the Sixth . . . %
INTRODUCTION
The text of 2 Henry VI. as here presented, is that of the first
Folio (1623) ; with a few very sHght, but not unimportant
emendations due to the play on which it is founded : The
1 First Part of The Con | tention betwixt the Two Fam-
ous Houses of Yorke | and Lancaster, with the death of the
good I Duke Humphrey : | And the banishment and death of
the Duke of | Suffolke, and the tragicall end of the proud
Cardinall | of Winchester, with the notable Rebellion | of
lacke Cade : | And the Duke of Yorkes first claime unto the \
Crowne. [T. C.'s device and motto] LONDON. Printed by
Thomas Creed, for Thomas Millington, | and are to be sold at
his shop under Saint Peters | church in Cornwall | I594- |
As I have collated the Contention (Q i) into the Folio text,
collation with the late Folios became impossible. It is, however,
needless, and in the very few instances where an iliteresting
reading arises from the later Folios it is noticed in the notes, or
intended to be so.
A second edition of the Quarto appeared in 1600, "Printed
by Valentine Simms for Thomas Millington." Otherwise the
titles are the same. This is a careless reprint of the first
edition with unimportant variations.
A third edition (Q 3) appeared, undated, in 1619. It was
printed by Isaac Jeffard, and included The True Tragedy of
Richard, Duke of York. It was titled : The | Whole Conten-
tion I betweene the two Famous | Houses, Lancaster and |
Yorke. | With the tragicall ends of the good Duke ] Humfrey,
Richard Duke of Yorke, ] and King Henrie the ] Sixt. ]
Divided into two parts : And newly corrected and | enlarged.
Written by William Shakespeare, Gent. ] Printed at London
for T. P. I
The words at the end of this title are catchpenny insertions
vii
viu THE SECOND PART OF
of T. P.'s (Thomas Pavier), who has been called the pirate
publisher. They are said to be no proof of Shakespeare's hand
in this Quarto. But this third edition contains four main
changes and a considerable number of smaller changes from
Q I . They all tend to be real corrections or improvements,
and their tendency leads to the belief that the publisher had
access to some material, whether manuscripts or player's copies,
which was that from which the Folio text was printed. They
are preliminary indications of the forthcoming authorised ver-
sions oi Henry VI. Parts II. and III. Furnivall, who summar-
ised and examined these changes carefully in the facsimile
reprint of 1619, Q i, thinks that none of them are due at first
hand to Shakespeare. And Miss Jane Lee coincides. Furni-
vall's words on the title-page of the facsimile reprint " (Q i having
been revised by Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Greene into ' The
second part of Henry the Sixt ') " are, in my humble opinion,
very regrettable in such a position. It is obvious that a num-
ber of them are merely common-sense corrections of misprints,
but their consideration has no place here. However, they
emphasise one all-important fact, and that is the badness of the
state of the text of Q i, the text collated into this edition. It
abounds in three sorts of mistakes — mistakes in spelling, errors
against simplest grammar and misdivision of lines to the
destruction of poetic reading.
I think it is well to ponder on this for a second. It im-
plies that when Shakespeare worked out, with or without help,
the final state of 2 Henry VI. from The Contention, he had a
better state of that latter text to work on than any we now
possess. Probably it was his own manuscript copy. Surely
this is more than admissible — it is most probable. It enables
one to explain away some anomalous discrepancies between
the two printed states if we keep before the memory the
phantom of this better text of Q i in the worker's hands.
The consideration of the texts is a comparatively simple
matter, and in view of the amount of work called for in some
shape or other in this Introduction no more need be said about
them, but more will appear from time to time in matters of
detail. I will give you a sketch-plan here of the matters I
propose to deal with, which are by no means of equal im-
portance.
KING HENRY THE SIXTH ix
I. Robert Greene's Attack on Shakespeare (and
Others) in 1592.
" Greene's Groatsworth of Wit, bought with a MilHon of
Repentaunce. Describing the follie of Youth, the falsehoode
of makeshift flatterers, the miserie of the negligent, and mis-
chiefes of deceiving Courtesans. Written before his death, and
published at his dying request." — was written in 1 592 and pub-
lished immediately afterwards by his friend Henry Chettle, in
the same year, the year of Greene's death. It is practically
an autobiography of Roberto, i.e., Robert Greene. I am using
here Grosart's edition of Greene's works which prints the tract
from the 1596 edition, in vol. xii. The edition of 1596 is
the earliest now known : but as Chettle's Ki7id Harts Dream
alludes to the book, and was registered in December 1592,
Greene's tract must have been printed before that date. At-
tention was first directed to this important passage by Tyr-
whitt in 1766 according to Grant White. At 137 he says:
" Heere (gentlemen) breake I off Robertos speech whose life
in most parts agreeing with mine, found one selfe punishment
as I haue doone. Heereafter suppose me the said Roberto, and
I will go on with that hee promised : Greene will send you
now his groatsworth of wit, that neuer shewed a mitesworth in
his life ... (p. 1 39) : Learne wit by my repentance (gentlemen)
and . . . (p. 141) : to my fellow Schollers about this Cittie, will
I direct these few ensuing lines. To those Gentlemen his quon-
dam acquaintance, that spend their wits in tnakifig Plates, R.
G. wisheth a better exercise, and wisdome to preuent his ex-
tremities. If woefull experience may mooue you (Gentlemen) to
beware, or vnheard of wretchednes intreate you to take heed :
I doubt not but you will looke backe with sorrow on your time
past, and endeuour with repentance to spend that which is to
come. Wonder not (for with thee wil I first (p. 142) begin),
thou famous gracer of Tragedians, that Greene, who hath said
with thee like the foole in his heart. There is no God, should
now giue glorie vnto his greatnesse : for penitrating is his
power, his hand lies heauie vpon me, he hath spoken vnto me
with a voice of thunder, and I haue felt he is a God that can
punish enemies. Why should thy excellent wit, his gift, be so
blinded, that thou shouldst give no glory to the giuer ? Is it
X THE SECOND PART OF
pestilent Machiuilian follie that thou hast studied ? O punish
follie ! What are his rules but meere confused mockeries, able
to extirpate in small time, the generation of mankinde. For
if Sic volo, sicjubeo, hold in those that are able to command ;
and if it be lawfull, Fas & nefas to doe any thing that is bene-
ficiall, onely Tyrants should possesse the earth and they striuing
to exceede in tyranny, should each to other bee a slaughter
man : till the mightiest outliuing all, one stroke were left for
Death, that in one age man's life should ende. The brother of
this Diabolicall Atheisme is dead, and in his life had neuer the
felicitie he aimed at ... (6 lines) and wilt thou my friend
(143) be his Disciple? Looke vnto me, by him perswaded to
that libertie and thou shalt finde it an infernal bondage . . .
(6 lines).
" With thee I ioyne young luvenall, that byting Satyrist,
that lastlie with mee together writ a comedie, Sweete boy,
might I aduise thee, be aduised, and get not many enemies by
bitter words ... (5 lines) treade on a worme and it will turne :
then blame not schollers vexed with sharpe lines if they re-
proue thy too much libertie of reproofe.
" And thou no lesse deseruing then the other two, in some
things rarer, in nothing inferiour ; driuen (as my selfe) to ex-
treame shifts, a little have I to say to thee ; and were it not an
idolatrous oth, I would sweare by sweet S. George, thou art
unworthie better hap, sith thou dependest on so meane a stay.
Base minded men al three of you, if by my miserie ye be
not warned: for vnto none of you (like me) (144) sought
those burres to cleaue : those Puppits (I meane) that speake
from our mouths, those Anticks garnisht in our colours. Is it
not strange that I, to whome they all haue beene beholding : is it
not like that you, to whom they al haue beene beholding, shall
(were ye in that case that I am now) be both at once of them
forsaken ? Yes trust them not : for there is an vpstart Crow,
beautified with our feathers, that with his Tygers heart wrapt in a
Players hide, supposes he is as well able to bumbast out a blanke
verse as the best of you : and being an absolute lohannes fac-
totum, is in his owne conceit the only Shake-scene in a countrie.
O that I might intreate your rare wits to be imployed in more
profitable courses : & let those Apes imitate your past excel-
lence, and neuer more acquaint them with your admired in-
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xi
uentions. I know the best husband of you all will neuer proue
an Usurer, and the kindest of them all will neuer prooue a
kinde nurse ; yet whilst you may, seeke you better Maisters ;
for it is pittie men of such rare wits, should be subiect to the
pleasures of such rude groomes.
" In this I might insert two more, that both haue writ against
these buckram Gentlemen : but let their owne works serue to
witnesse against their owne wickednesse, if they perseuer to
mainteine any more such peasants. For other new commers,
I leaue (145) them to the mercie of these painted monsters,
who (I doubt not) will driue the best minded to despise them :
for the rest it skils not though they make a ieast at them.
" But now returne I againe to you three, knowing my
miserie is to you no news : and let me heartily intreate you to
bee warned by my harmes . . . (20 lines). Trust not then (I
beseech yee) (146) to such weake stales: for they are as change-
able in minde, as in many attires. Well, my hand is tired and
I am forst to leaue where I would begin ; for a whole booke
cannot containe these wrongs, which I am forst to knit vp in
some few lines of words. Desirous that you should Hue, though
himselfe be dying, Robert Greene."
II. What this attack on Shakespeare means: with
Contemporary References to it: and views of
SOME Critics.
The three quondam acquaintances that spend their wits in
making plays, are Marlowe, Nashe and Peele. Marlowe is
obvious. Nashe is called Juvenal by Meres and others of the
time ; Dyce (followed by Fleay) believed the biting satirist was
Lodge, because of his having written with Greene A Looking
Glassefor London, and because of his satires A Fig for Momus.
But Lodge was abroad at this time and his satires have not
any bite, like Nashe's. The weight of evidence is in favour of
Nashe, I think, but the question is not vital here. The play
may be one of the many unknown, or unidentified. There is
more reason to place Lodge as one of the two buckram
gentlemen.
The third acquaintance is Peele, " Sweet S. George " gives
evidence enough of that identification. This tirade of Greene's
against the players should be read in connection with words of
xii THE SECOND PART OF
his (on pages 136, 137) immediately preceding the above ex-
tract. He describes himself there as "liuing in extreame
pouerty, and hauing nothing to pay but chalke, which now his
Host accepted not for currant, the miserable man lay languish-
ing, hauing but one groat left." The unhappy man had been
depending on monies from the sale of his plays — from the actors
and their companies — and he can get no more. His bitterness
is levelled against his paymasters and their profession, and in
advising his friends Marlowe, Nashe (or Lodge) and Peele to be
no longer beholding to them, incidentally he levels his animosity
against Shakespeare (Shake-scene), a successful actor, who had
the audacity to write blank verse himself, and who beautified
himself with the feathers of all three of them. He can do any-
thing this upstart crow, or Johannes factotum, whether it is to
act plays or to write them. So far the inferences are easy.
But whether the words ''beautified with your feathers" mean
acting in our plays, or mean that in his writings he (Shake-
speare) made use of theirs (or of their titbits) is more con-
jectural. Probably Greene means the latter implied in the
former — that is to say he means both. After these words, he
clinches his reference to Shakespeare by quoting in a parody
a line from The True Tragedy (also in j Henry VI. I. iv. 137) :
" O tiger's heart wrapp'd in a woman's hide." A speech un-
doubtedly by Shakespeare in both those places, and quoted (or
parodied) as his by Greene.
Greene is evidently incensed with the whole crew of them,
but especially angry and jealous against Shakespeare. He has
a much more ill-omened crow than -^sop's to pluck with our
"gentle Willie." We get at least a limit of date for The True
Tragedy (it is fresh in Greene's memory in 1592): and we
might fairly infer that the play in which it occurs is an especi-
ally sore subject, whether from its success or because it contains
his feathers. Or we might go a step further in the latter in-
ference and let the part include the whole, and not unfairly
conceive that Greene was enraged at the success of the whole
trilogy (now finished so far as Part I., Contention, and True
Tragedy are concerned, for certain — and probably so far as
Parts I. H. and HI.). But these can only be inferences. Yet
there hangs on to Greene's tract a little more contemporary
matter that must be now looked into.
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xiii
In "a lytel plaunflet" by R. B. Gent, 1594, in the Bodleian
Library, there is the following passage, the ninth "sonnet" in
the tract : —
Greene is the pleasing of an eie :
Greene pleasde the eies of all that lookt vpon him.
Greene is the ground of euerie Painters die,
Greene gaue the ground to all that wrote vpon him,
Nay more, the men that so eclipst his fame
Purloyned his plumes, can they deny the same.
This is confirmation of the inference that Shakespeare was
accused by Greene of having plagiarised from him, purloined
Greene's plumes and beautified himself with his feathers.
Others are included in the charge here, just as Greene added
the other three to those purloined from. At this date, 1592,
it must be remembered, Shakespeare had produced (besides
Henry VI.) Love's Labour 's Lost, The Two Gentlemen of Verona,
and The Comedy of Errors — these plays may therefore also
contain some of the plumes. No doubt they do, but trifling
affairs. Greene meant something serious. However, " R. B.
Gent." reads to me like an importunate partisan, echoing Greene's
words, of no weight in himself And is there not something
grotesque in Greene's daring to accuse another writer of plagi-
arism, if he does so? Greene, who in his tales insets many
pages word for word from another writer, without a trace of
acknowledgment except the self-convicting one in change of
style — that other writer being Thomas Bowes' translation of
Peter de la Primaudaye's French Academy ? — to say nothing of
yet other writers. I hardly think he can have made the charge
seriously (such proceedings being deemed quite usual at the
time), but that his invective against Shakespeare arose from
jealousy and a depleted purse. No doubt if he considered the
latter arose from an unfair use of his own work in the dramatic
market, plagiarism became a different sort of sin altogether.
In that feeling, which is hard to read into the wording, he may
have written . At best, excepting with regard to the history of
these plays, the passage is a poor exhibition of personal grudg-
ing and ill-will.
Upon publishing Greene's Groatsworth of Wit, Chettle
wrote an introduction "To the Gentlemen Readers" to his
Kind Harts Dreame (Dec. 1592) containing the following
xiv THE SECOND PART OF
passage {New Shakespeare Society, 1874, p. 37). He is a
prosy writer, and to be curtailed : " It hath beene a custome,
gentlemen ... to begin an Exordium to the Readers, . , .
To obserue custome, ... He shew reason for my present
writing, and after proceed to sue for pardon. About three
moneths since died M. Robert Greene, leauing many papers
in sundry Booke sellers hands, among others his Groatsworth
of wit, in which a letter written to diuers play-makers, is
offensively by one or two of them taken ; and because on the
dead they cannot be auenged, they wilfully gorge in their
conceits a liuing Author : and after tossing it to and fro, no
remedy ; but it must light on me. How I haue all the time of
my conuersing in printing hindred the bitter inueying against
schollers, it hath been very well knowne ; and how in that 1
dealt, I can sufficiently prooue. With neither of them that
take offence was I acquainted, and with one of them, I care
not if I neuer be : The other, whome at that time I did not so
much spare, as since I wish I had, for that as I haue moderated
the heate of liuing writers, and might haue usde my owne
discretion (especially in such a case) the Author being dead,
that I did not I am as sory as if the originall fault had beene
my fault, because my selfe haue seene his demeanor no lesse
ciuill, than he exelent in the qualitie he professes : Besides,
diuers of worship haue reported his uprightness of dealing,
which argues his honesty, and his facetious grace in writing,
that approues his Art. For the first, whose learning I reuer-
ence, and at the perusing of Greene's Booke, stroke out what
then in conscience I thought he in some displeasure writ:
or had it been true, yet to publish it was intollerable : him I
would wish to use me no worse than I deserue. I had onely
in the copy this share : it was il written, as sometimes Greene's
hand was none of the best : licened it must be, ere it could bee
printed, which could neuer be if it might not be read. To be
briefe, I writ it ouer ; and as neare as I could, followed the
copy ; onely in that letter I put something out, but in the
whole booke not a worde in ; for I protest it was all Greene's,
not mine nor Maistre Nashe's, as some uniustly haue affirmed.
Neither was he the writer of an epistle to the second part of
Gerileon, though by the Workemans error T, N., were set to the
end ; that I confesse to be mine and repent it not. Thus gentle-
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xv
men, hauing noted the priuate causes that made me nominate
my selfe in print; being as well to purge Master Nashe of that
he did not, as to iustifie that I did, and with all to confirme
what M. Greene did : I beseech ye accept the publike cause
. . . under the Title of Kind-hearts Dreame. . . . Henrie
Chettle."
In this valuable testimony to Shakespeare's merits, Chettle
defends him against dishonest dealing, which can only refer to
Greene's suggestion that he had made an unjustifiable use of
his (Greene's) material. That is to say, he defends him as
being incapable of such conduct. Both Marlowe and Shake-
speare had evidently complained to Chettle, or of Chettle for
publishing the Groatsworth, and both had sufficient cause.
But Chettle deals with Shakespeare's complaint, as though he
was one of the play writers to whom Greene's letter was written,
and this is not the case. Shakespeare does not come in that
way at all, but quite collaterally, and expressly as an actor who
also wrote. I suppose this is Chettle's inaccuracy with no
further meaning. Chettle did not hear that Peele complained
nor had he any reason to. Chettle's anxiety to purge Nashe of
having been the writer of the Groatsworth, is taken as an argu-
ment by Malone and others, against his being the Juvenal in
the piece — since he could not have been thought to have been
the writer, if part of it had been addressed professedly to him-
self. This is too laboured. Those who thought it by Nashe
may have identified or noticed that passage about him, but
only the prominent features, the attacks on Marlowe and the
actors, including Shakespeare. Moreover those who thought
so had unimportant opinions, since the Groatsworth is not in
the least like Nashe's work.
III. The Views of some Critics.
Very much more has been read into Greene's letter than it
seems to me to be capable of sustaining, by some writers. But
the generally accepted effect is important enough, and that is
that he (Greene) accused Shakespeare of plagiarising from
himself, from Marlowe, from Peele, and from Nashe (or Lodge).
Some are not nearly content with this, Furnivall says (Introd.
to Contention facsimile) the passage " is of course a sneer at
Shakespeare, and a claim by Greene that he — if not also all
xvi THE SECOND PART OF
or some of Marlowe, Lodge and Peele — were part authors of
the Third Part of King Henry the Sixth, in which "Oh Tygres
Heart, etc., occurs." This is quite reckless. At the very
highest the words quoted need only refer to The True Tragedie,
But I disagree with the line of argument entirely. Greene used
Shakespeare's line as an appropriate vehicle to enforce his
personal attack and make it more personal. Of course if we
are to assume that Shakespeare had no hand in The True
Tragedy (an impossible assumption), or that Greene thought
he had no hand in it when he wrote (which we have no right
to imagine) then the quotation must refer to j Hemy VI., be-
cause it is Shakespeare's. This seems to me to be Miss Jane
Lee's position, and it is important, because it enables her to
put the whole trilogy before the date of summer, 1592. I don't
believe she has any right to that argument. But then she does
not (or did not, I hope she changed) believe " that any part of
The Contention or of The True Tragedy was written by Shake-
speare." Here she is constrained to say that Shakespeare
did not write the Cade scenes in 2 Henry VI., since they are
practically identical with those in The Contention, but the reason
she gives is that he was too young. And many passages in
3 Henry VI., must be denied to Shakespeare on the same
grounds. Take Clifford's dying speech (j Hejiry VI. II. vi.)
for example, which is in The True Tragedie word for word : or
Gloster's solo in ill. ii., at the end, which has most of its best
lines identical with those in The True Tragedie ; which of the
three victims could have written these ? And much more the
same.
In a Table, at the end of her careful and most praiseworthy
attempt. Miss Lee gives Marlowe's and Greene's shares. The
latter has all the Cade scenes, and at least two-thirds of The
Contention, Marlowe the remainder. In The True Tragedie
she allots the major part to Marlowe and the remainder to
Greene, with two or three doubtful ascriptions to Peele, his only
innings.
I differ so radically here that I will not further specify
these allotments. But it surprises one that after finding cer-
tain strong resemblances to and evidences of Peele's work, in
her paper (see pages 257-260, footnotes), she should dismiss
him so unceremoniously in her Table.
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xvii
IV. Further Views of Critics.
In my Introduction to Part I., I have given a slight general
survey of the views of some of the best-known critics with re-
gard to authorship, especially dwelling upon what seems to me
the ablest, the best reasoned, and the most clearly written
essay on the subject — that of Grant White {Shakespeare s
Works, vol. vii. Boston, i88i). He does what is necessary,
except for those who will do it for themselves — he makes
copious extracts from the old plays side by side with their
resultant forms in the final play. This is done by my collation.
He quotes what he deems to be some of the most noteworthy
passages in Marlowe's, Greene's and Peele's plays that serve as
parallels for passages in the plays in dispute. There is no
space for such an exponential method here ; but my notes will,
I trust, serve instead. He extracts as a sample from Marlowe's
best work outside Edward the Second (which is he says without
a doubt his best play) the speeches of Barabas in The Jezv of
Malta beginning "Ay, policy! that's their profession" to
"appointed me" (Dyce's one-vol. edition, p. 150). And he
makes this important statement with regard to Edward the
Second, so constantly referred to as affording opposite parallels
in this dispute — and erroneously made use of — " in which,
especially in the scene of Edward's murder, he attained a drama-
tic power and a freedom of versification not found elsewhere in
his own undoubted works or in those of any other of Shake-
speare's early contemporaries. But this play affords unmis-
takable evidence that it was Marlowe's last ; and he was killed
in a fray in June, 1593, the year in which Edward the Second
was entered upon the Stationers' Register. Whereas The True
Tragedy had surely been long enough upon the stage when
Greene died, in 1592, to be well known — a year or two, we may
safely assume ; and The True Tragedy was a later play than the
First Part of the Contention . . . Edward the Second was written
some time after the appearance of The True Tragedy and still
longer after that of the First Part of the Contention. . . ."
" Peele's plays afford no better lines than these from David
and Bethsabe : ' Cusay. The stubborn enemies to David's peace,
. . . And bursts with burden of ten thousand griefs ' " (Dyce's
one-vol. edition, pp. 484, 485).
b
xviii THE SECOXD PART OF
Of Greene, as a " comedian," he says " the following passage
... is cleaner and cleverer than it was his wont to be." He
quotes from A Looking Glasse for London and England : ^^ First
Ruffian. Come on. Smith ... a horse of thine own this seven
year" (Dyce's one-vol. edition, pp. 119, 120). And as serious
poetry he quotes again from Greene's Alphonsus, King of Arra-
gon, the speech of " Belinus. Thus far, my lords, we trained
have our camp" (p. 228) ; and again from A Looking Glasse
for London, a passage in his best style, " Rasni. So pace ye on,
triumphant warriors" (the first speech). Furnivall gives an
abstract of Grant White's arguments and extracts in his Intro-
duction to the 1594 Contention fascimile. Grant White dwells
largely on one — his main position. He assigns to Shakespeare
all the matter in the two old plays that is obviously by the
same hand as the identical matter in 2 and j Henry VL. This
is a logical and comfortable standpoint. It is based on the
view that Shakespeare only took what was his own into the
final plays. But to turn this argument the other way, as is his
tendency, and assume on the basis of Greene's attack I pre-
sume, that all that is quite different from anything in the
finished plays which occurs in the old ones is of a necessity by
Marlowe, Greene, or Peele — that is where I do not agree. I do
not think the Greene attack warrants the idea to start with ;
and I do think that in many places Shakespeare wrote and
altered his own original {Contention) work, with something
almost wholly new. I should mention here that at the close
of Furnivall's abstract, he seems to identify his views with those
of Miss Lee.
There is a footnote in Grant White (p. 443) that should be
quoted. I had already thrown out a hint to the same effect.
He says : " After much consideration of the subject, I have little
or no doubt that Greene alludes to other plays besides the
Second and Third Parts oi King Henry VI.,to The Taming of
the Shrew and perhaps to Titus Andronicus and even A Mid-
summer Night' s Dream and the old King fohn." This is true
in purport even if we disagree with the chosen plays, and it
affords a fortunate breach for us in the chain armour of those
who insist on Henry VI. alone being referred to by Greene.
Indeed Grant White here rather overlooks what he has said on
p. 412: "this line is one of the large number in the Third
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xix
Part of King Henry the Sixth which are taken bodily from The
True Tragedy which was published in 1595. It was to a share
in the latter play, therefore, that Greene meant to set up a
claim. . . ." So that the critics, in endeavouring to affix certainty
where there is the barest vagueness, disagree with themselves
as well as each other. Grant White continues here : " We have
already seen that The True Tragedy was published as having
been ' sundrie times acted by the Right Honourable the Earle of
Pembroke his servants' " ; and there is this support of Greene's
claim, — that while Shakespeare is not known to have had any
connection with the Earl of Pembroke's servants, we have the
testimony of Nashe, in his Apologie for Pierce Penilesse, pub-
lished in 1593, that Greene was "chief agent of the companie,
for he wrote more than four other." And in this paragraph
he concludes with the words " he would show himself either
incompetent or foolhardy, I think, who denied that Greene's
title to the older versions of those two plays (for one is but the
continuation of the other) was thus far more clearly established
than Shakespeare's." Grant White says this on the strength of
Greene's passage, Chettle's apologia, and R. B.'s lines. At the
utmost Greene's title is but a part title. But he quotes one
sentence from the body of Chettle's Kind Hart's Dream of
interest : " of whom (Greene) however some suppose themselves
injured, I have learned to speak, considering he is dead, nil
nisi necessariuni. He was of singuler plesaunce, the verye
supporter, and, to no man's disgrace bee this intended (Chettle
was a play-writer) the only Comedian of a vulgar writer in
this country." This is a sort of defence of Greene by Chettle
against Shakespeare's umbrage.
As Grant White has quoted one paragraph from Pierce
Penilesse, another which refers to this subject should be also
cited, from Nashe's epistle prefixed to it : " Other newes I
am aduertized of, that a scald triuiall lying Pamphlet, called
Greens Groatsworth of wit is given out to be of my doing.
God neuer haue care of my soule, but vtterly renounce me
if the least word or syllable in it proceeded from my penne
or if I were any way priuie to the writing or printing of it "
(Grosart's Nashe, ii. 7). This should be set beside Chettle's
denunciation of Greene's words about Shakespeare.
It is my misfortune to be compelled to differ with Grant
XX THE SECOND PART OF
White in his conclusions. I approached the subject in a differ-
ent manner, arguing rather from the particular to the general
and endeavouring to construct a whole piecemeal, from minutiae
and details. Accepting the consensus of opinion that those
two old plays, as well as probably the three final parts, have
amongst them portions and parcels of the work of Marlowe,
Greene and Peele, I studied those authors with as much care
as I was capable of. Insensibly I arrived at certain conclusions
at first largely in support of Greene's being the major hand,
the usual verdict : but by degrees in the play which we are now
dealing with (or rather its original The Contention) Peele came
more and more to the front and shouldered Greene out of court
into a back place. I will now bring forward what evidence I
have for this view,
I had written this much when I obtained through Doctor
Bowden's kindness (always so helpful to me when the need of a
special Shakespearian volume is felt), Fleay's Who Wrote
Henry VI. ? (Macmillan, Nov. 1875). I have read it carefully
and though greatly at variance with it, one or two points are
useful. I will specify them first. He decides that Peele is
largely concerned in these plays, giving him a more prominent
position than any other critic does. He believes the " principal
arranger or plotter" of j Henry VI. to be Marlowe and Peele
his subordinate. But Fleay is very vague ; even here, who
does the writing ? He gives the best poetry in 2 Henry VI.
III. iii. and ix. to Marlowe but the Cade scenes are necessarily
allotted to Peele, and the wooing scene between Edward and
the widow in Part HI., as being impossible by Marlowe. He
allots / Henry VI. to Marlowe with the exception of IV. iv. ;
V. i. ; V. v. which belong to some one else, not Greene or Peele
or Marlowe. And one scene in that play (ll. iv.) is certainly
by Shakespeare, while another (II. v.) is " neither Marlowe's
nor Greene's; is it Shakespeare's?" But this last Marlowe (of
/ Henry VI.) is the Marlowe of Tamburlaine, not of Faustus
and Edward II. ; while " an inferior hand, exactly in Greene's
style has . , . written I. ii. ; I. iv. ; I. v. ; I, vi. ; II. i. ; il. ii. ;
II. iii. ; III. ii. ; III. iii. ; IV, ii, ; IV. iii. ; IV. iv. ; IV. v. ; IV. vi. ;
IV. vii, ; V. ii. So that Fleay's general conclusion here is " that
7 Henry VI. is the production of Marlowe and Greene, with a
few additions ; 2 Henry VI. and j Henry VI. of Marlowe and
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxi
Peele ; that Marlowe was the original plotter and constructor of
all three plays." With regard again to 2 Henry VI. he selects
Beaufort's death speech (III, iii.) and places it alongside Mar-
lowe's Faustus's death with the remark that "not even in
Shakespeare is there a death scene of despair like either of
these two" — both are therefore Marlowe's. (But see Marlowe's
parallels from King John and Macbeth)
I am glad to find that I arrived at agreement with Fleay
with regard to Peele and Greene. I merely replace Marlowe
by Shakespeare, speaking very generally, and only with regard
to /, 2 and 3 Henry VI. But there is so much in Fleay that
rouses opposition that I will not inflict myself upon him much
longer. He entirely agrees with Mr. Simpson that the Groats-
worth refers to Shakespeare only as a player. That I maintain
is not demonstrable by Fleay, Simpson or any other critic.
But Fleay is so positive that one cannot reason with him. He
finds " a little point" in the position of the quoted line in the
Groatszvorth which is not in the paragraphs addressed to Mar-
lowe or Juvenal, but comes closest to that addressed to Peele
— an argument that the line may be Peele's — the line not being
taken from Shakespeare according to Fleay's views. And it
cannot certainly be his (Greene's own) says Fleay, " This little
point seems to indicate Peele as one of them (authors of The
Contention) and Greene as not one of them. Peele and Mar-
lowe are therefore (a great leap from a little point) so far the
winning horses for the authorship of The Contention, and all
three for that of Henry VI. " " The Contention " here is the
two plays Contention and True Tragedy {i.e., the First and
Second Contention, the two old plays, issued in 1600 as The
Whole Contention). That is the result of Fleay's external
evidence, which includes, besides the passage in the Groats-
zvorth, an examination into the connection of those three writers
with the various companies of players (Lord Strange's, Earl of
Pembroke's and the Admiral's or Chamberlain's) and their
rights of possession in the plays and their copyrights. I set
no great faith in this evidence. It is built upon sandy plains
of presumption and probabilities. But his conclusion on this
evidence must be quoted, that it "simply goes to exclude
Shakespeare from any authorship of The Whole Contention as
he was never in connection with any company but the Cham-
xxii THE SECOND PART OF
berlain's (afterwards the King's, 1603), and perhaps Lord
Strange's ; and even in the title-page of The Whole Contention
in 1600 only the Earl of Pembroke's servants, and not the
Chamberlain's, are mentioned. A sackful of this evidence will
not weigh with me against a handful of what the writings them-
selves advance. None of the writers about it agree amongst
themselves in any detailed or hard-and-fast platform. All
their " facts " are open to contingencies or built on probabilities.
So is Fleay's paper continuously in this part. It is a matter of
" What can be traced."
One final word on Fleay's position. He opens his paper
with the words : "I shall merely promise that there is no
evidence whatever for Shakespeare's having any share in either
the early or late editions, except the solitary fact that the
editors of the first Folio included Henry VI. in their collection."
And he closes: "But there is a greater difficulty behind.
There is such a similarity between parts of 2 and j Henry VI.
and Richard III. as distinctly to show a unity of authorship.
Phrases not occurring elsewhere in Shakespeare are frequently
repeated in these plays and there is continuity in the plot, and
in the character of Richard III., that is unmistakable." After
some special pleading and an assumption or two that are useful
to his argument, if argument it be, he gets out of this dilemma
by the following structure. Peele wrote a play of Richard III.
which he left unfinished (to complete the trilogy of 2 and j
Henry VI.) and Shakespeare hurriedly revised and finished it
into the 1597 Quarto of Richard III. There is one pleasing
note in all this — a tribute to Peele's powers. I see little else
but increasing confusion and weariness of soul. I notice in
the Introduction to this last play in the Arden edition that
Fleay is stated to ascribe the early Richard III. to Marlowe,
and I find in Fleay's Chronicle History of Shakespeare (1886,
p. 279) that he believes " the anterior play was Marlowe's " ;
with no apology for the words (Macmillan, p. 60) quoted
about Peele of whom he seems to have wearied. But Marlowe
is given far too big a burthen for his working years these days.
The date of Marlowe's death (i 593) is not suitable for the above
ascription.
With respect to the allotment of parts to Marlowe above,
in 2 Henry VI., Fleay gives little or no proof. Two or
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxiii
three quotations and a metrical note on a supposed extra
syllable in the mid-line. A similar remark might be made
(with all due apologies) about Miss Jane Lee's attributions to
Greene dealt with specifically. In both cases they are no more
than personal opinions.
For the late Mr. Craig's views, see Introduction to Part III.
IV. Something About Peele. Peele the Author
OF The Life and Death of Jack Straw.
George Peele was about half a dozen years older than
Shakespeare. He died probably in 1597. Nashe outlived
him three or four years while he (Peele) survived Greene for
about five years and Marlowe a year less. It must be remem-
bered here that it does not in the least follow that any of these
writers agreed with Greene in his hostility towards Shake-
speare. On the contrary his rancour might have been en-
hanced by their attraction towards him. Nashe had no such
feelings. At a later date Marlowe is referred to in almost
affectionate terms by Shakespeare (in As You Like It, in. v.
82). Peele gives one a pleasant feeling of amiability in his
ways. I believe he was generally beloved and may have been
naturally enough a friend, even a useful friend, of Shakespeare's,
and worked with him. Peele and Shakespeare had a warm
patriotism in common. Peele's love for England and her
heroes is constantly cropping up. It is one of the pleasantest
points about him. Peele was steeped in Spenser, there was
that in common. His Arraignment of Paris, his best piece,
shows that to be the case. The T amburlaine influence, that
of Marlowe, was bad for him, yet he had a nice natural gift in
ranting of his own according to the method of his days and of
earlier days — a gift that is badly lost and badly needed in these
prosaic artificial times of critical self-consciousness and intro-
spection. Peele had the saving gift of humour, in a sort of
Shakespearian way, such as few of his contemporaries were
blessed with. Nashe, in his address prefixed to Menaphon (by
Greene) speaks very highly of him when referring to his
Arraignment of Paris, and when Peele ventures to tread rather
heavily on Gabriel Harvey's sensitive toes, in his Old Wives'
Tale, the latter seems to have borne it patiently and made no
retort that I can find — evidence of goodwill towards him in an
xxiv THE SECOND PART OF
unexpected quarter — perhaps from a mutual regard for Spenser.
He was employed as a civic and state poet and seems to have
had influential friends and patrons. He wrote blank verse
addresses on public events with ease and grace and dignity.
His David and Bethsabe is usually selected as his best piece, or
the best to select samples from, but there are passages in his
other plays I far prefer, such as the opening of Edward /., or
parts of his Arraignment of Paris. David a7id Bethsabe is an
unnatural piece in many ways, full of stilted and unnatural
quasi-Biblical writing that becomes wearisome with its load of
thous and thees and thys, Peele's natural writing is ver}^ good
English indeed, as a rule, and often comes nearer, in choice of
language, to that of Shakespeare than most of those of his time.
Without any great depth of thought or gift of characterisation
he has a harmonious method of descriptive writing, coupled with
plenty of swing and energy, that carries one along with him.
We have a good deal of signed work of Peele's. In addition
to that there is plenty of evidence of his hand in anonymous
plays of the time. Chettle has told us of the quantity of
matter Greene left unfinished in the booksellers' hands — prob-
ably mainly dramatic, as was Greene's latest work. It is
likely that Peele revised, expanded, or finished Greene's work
on several occasions possibly acquired or supplied to him from
such sources. Mr. J. M. Robertson has proved, I think, that
he had a share in the final state of Titus Andronicus, no very
welcome ascription to " Sweet St. George." Many notes in
my pages of these plays will further that belief. Again, I have
no doubt, he assisted in the play of Locrine, a very compound
production, with a curious blend of excellence and inanity
running through its composition in a most puzzling and interest-
ing way. Selimiis also had some polish or rearrangement
from him.
Amongst the many shots at a venture that Fleay makes at
the authorship of anonymous plays or other identifications —
shots which are often as good as they can be, often as bad as
they can be — he made an undoubted hit when he wrote down
Jack Straw as Peele's. It was the parallelism of scenes and
situations in this unimportant little play, with some of the Cade
work in The Contention that made me feel on sure ground with
regard to Peele. I studied Jack Straw when I found the Wat
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxv
Tyler rebellion in Cade : and I found Peele at once in the
play. It will be appropriate and indeed necessary here to try
and establish this. My edition is that of Hazlitt's Dodsley,
vol. V. It was first printed in 1593. Fleay dates it confid-
ently as written in 1587 on very insufficient evidence. He
ascribes it to Peele on the strength of his " sign-manual," the
" sandy plain," near the end, but there are plenty more echoes
and signs manual of Peele in Jack Straw. In the first place
the metre at once strikes the reader with surprise. It begins
with lines of irregular length, only to be sorted by their rhymes
— lines that give one the feeling they were food for revision and
very easily digested, but evidently this play never had a second
handling. There is plenty of such unscannable verse in Peele's
Edivaf'd I. and Arraignment of Paris, dependent for harmony
on the rhyme, but usually the lines are long, often fourteeners.
Then it breaks into a page or two of lines with four feet or
accents, still rhyming and quite musical, just as Peele does in The
Old Wives' Tale every now and then. And a little later when
dignity comes on the stage in the shape of the " Lord Treasurer,
Lord Archbishop and Secretary," we have regular orthodox
well-finished blank verse of which there is plenty (see Act iv.)
in the Arraignmetit. Moreover, we get Peele's favourite
trochaic endings, as on p. 388, lenity, extremity, injury, courtesy,
policy, doing yeoman's work for rhyme. A lesson he learned
from the Faerie Queene in its early career. No other writer
comes near Peele in this fluidity of verse at this time, and this
evidence greatly strengthens Fleay's attribution. It also
supports his date, which he places from an allusion in the
words "this last benevolence" (p. 384) to the great distress in
1587 in London, when money and ships were raised; the
insurrection of apprentices in the previous year, and there
being no mention of the Armada. I will give a i&y^ parallels.
In Jack Straw, here is a parson's character (p. 381): —
What, is he an honest man ? The devil he is ! he is the parson of the
town ;
You think there's no knavery hid under a black gown ?
Find him in a pulpit but twice in the year,
And I '11 find him forty times in the ale-house tasting strong beer.
In the Old Wives' Tale (p. 450) a Friar is introduced "with a chine
of beef and a pot of wine," solely for the purpose of these remarks: "Is
xxvi THE SECOND PART OF
this the veriest knave in all Spain ? Sac. Yes. Del. What, is he a friar ?
Sac. Yes, a friar indefinite and a knave infinite." He appears only
here.
Jack Straw (p. 382) : " But merrily with the world it went, When men
ate berries of the hawthorn-tree. An thou help me, I '11 help thee."
Old Wives' Tale (p. 447) : " Hips and haws, and sticks and straws! why,
is that all your food, father ? "
Jack Straw (p. 384): "it seemeth strange. . . . That being won
with reason and regard Of true succeeding prince, the common sort
Should be so slack to give." And p. 399 : ^^ King. It is enough ; believe
me, if you will ; For as I am your true succeeding prince, I swear."
The Battle of Alcazar (p. 434): "calls for wars, Wars^ wars, to plant the
true succeeding prince." And p. 440 : " From him to thee as true-suc-
ceeding prince. With all allegiance." "True-succeeding seed " occurs
on p. 422 in the same play. I know no other examples. True suceeders
occur in Richard III. v. v. 30.
Jack Straw (pp. 385 and 409) : " Well I wot." In Peele's Tale of Troy
(p. 556, a) ; and Honour of the Garter (p. 587, a, twice). Not especially
Peele's, but characteristic of Spenser, Greene and Peele.
Jack Straw (p. 387) : " I have his wife and children pledges. . . .
T. M. Let him take heed ... or else his pledges goes to the pot.'
Edward I. (389, b): " we will admit no pause, For goes this wretch, this
traitor, to the pot."
Jack Straw (p. 387): "Gog's blood, Jack have we . . . ? " Sir Clyomon
(p. 502) : " Nay, Gog's blood, I '11 bee gone."
Jack Straw (p. 387) : " have we the cards in our hands ? " And p. 411 :
" I would lay a surer trump Ere I would lose so fair a trick." Peele is
fond of illustrations from cards. Edward I. (p. 387) : "Aye there's a
card that puts us to our trump." And at p. 393 : "since the King hath
put us amongst the discarding cards, and, as it were, turned us with
deuces and treys out of the deck." And Old Wives' Tale (p. 446) :
" What, shall we have a game at trump or ruff to drive away the time ? "
Jack Straw (p. 390) : " I cannot think so good a gentleman As is that
knight. Sir John Morton I mean, Would entertain so base and vile a
thought." Speeches at Theobald's (p. 577, b) : "with sacred rites Prepared
myself to entertain good thoughts." For "I mean" here, see note
7 Henry VI. v. v. 20. And Sir Clyomon (p. 522, a).
Jack Straw (p. 390) : " Were it not for fear or policy, So true a bird
would file so fair a nest." Anglorum Ferice (p. 596, b) : "He durst not
openly disgorge at home. In his own nest filed with so foul a bird."
Jack Straw (p. 384): "Tyburn, standfast; I fear you will be loden."
Sir Clyomon (p. 509, b) : " there was never poor ass so loaden ! "
Jack Straw (p. 392): "And so amidst the stream may hover safe."
(at Greenwich). Tale of Troy (p. 554, b) : " The flower of Greece . . .
For want of wind had hover'd long in Aulis. "
Jack Straw (p. 395) : " It was a world to see what troops of men."
Sir Clyomon (p. 515): "But 'tis a world to zee what merry lives we
shepherds lead."
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxvii
Jack Straw (p. 395): " 'Gan strew the gravel ground and sandy
plain." Anglortim Ferice (p. 595, a): "Over the wild and sandy Afric
plains." See note at 2 Henry VI. i. iv. 39. And Battle of Alcazar
(p. 440, a) : " The fields and sandy plains we have survey'd."
Jack Straw (p. 395) : " did an echo rise, That pierced the ears of our
renowned king." Battle of Alcazar (p. 436, a): "the reasons of the
king, Which so effectually have pierc'd mine ears." And Descensus
Astrcece (p. 541, a): "Whose pure renown hath pierced the world's large
ears." In Spenser's Daphnaida.
Jack Straw (p. 398): "have secret wreak in store." David and
Bethsabe (p. 472, a) : " in the holy temple have I sworn Wreak of his
villany" (the noun is much less common than the verb).
Jack Straw (p. 400): "It skills not much: I am an Englishman."
Sir Clyomon (p. 493, b) : "Whither I go, it skills not, for Knowledge is my
name."
Jack Straw (p. 401): "I have read this in Cato, Ad concilium anti-
quum voceris : Take good counsel, while it is given." Edward I. (p.
401): " I remember I read it in Cato's Pueriles, that Cantabit vacuus
coram latrone viator ; a man purse-penniless may sing before a thief."
Jack Straw (p. 402) : " Riddle me a riddle, what 's this, I shall be
hanged, I shall not be hanged. Here he tries it with a staff." Old Wives'
Tale (p. 449, a) : " if it be no more but . . . ' riddle me, riddle me what 's
this ' ? I shall have the wench."
Jack Straw (p. 403) : " But there 's no such matter ; we be no such
fools." Arraignment of Paris (p. 352): "There's no such matter, Pan;
we are all friends."
Jack Straw (p. 404): " Parson Ball, I will tell thee, And swear it of
mine honesty. Thou shalt be hanged as well as we." The run of these
lines is exactly Peek's. See Edward I. p. 392-95 in several places, e.g.
Jack Straw (p. 407) : " Lord Mayor, and well-belov'd friends."
Battle of Alcazar, p. 423, a : " for no distrust Of loyalty, my well-beloved
friends, But that," etc.
Jack Straw (p. 408) : "mercy in a prince resembleth right The glad-
some sunshine in a winter's day." David and Bethsabe (p. 468) : " The time
of year is pleasant for your grace. And gladsome summer in her shady
robes." . . . "Gladsome beams " occurs in p. 485, b (same play).
Jack Straw (p. 409) " Pleaseth your grace, they have been rid apace.
. . . And yet survives this Ball." The Tale of Troy (p. 556, a): "Sir
Paris than With poisoned arrow rid the heedless man." And Edward I.
(p. 408, a) : "I rid her not ; I made her not away." But frequent at this
time.
A few more general points might be mentioned, as the
touch of heraldry about the city arms and knighting of William
Walworth (p. 413); the verbal iteration, as in p. 385, " Your
words . . . tend unto the profit of the king, Whose profit is the
profit of the land " ; and the culling of bits of prophecy from
^^Hh.
xxviii THE SECOND PART OF
Grafton (or other chroniclers), as at p. 381, "when Adam
delved " (see Edward I. passim) : these are all in Peele's manner.
I am satisfied this piece is an early product of Peele's, and it
seemed a useful link in the chain of evidence connecting Peele
with 2 Henry VI. (or The Contention). Presently, when we
come to look for Peele in these two plays, we shall see that
certain passages or incidents occurring in Jack Straw, occur
identically in them, in the rebellion of Jack Cade, where they
are historically untrue. But the rebellions have so much
similarity that if Peele had anything to do with the Cade scenes
he would be certain to weave in, consciously or unconsciously,
memories of his previous work. Or put the case the other way,
Peele would be put on to that job (in company with Shake-
speare) on account of his extant work and his knowledge of
the chronicles. I say " in company with Shakespeare " be-
cause the latter did the larger part of the Cade scenes, but
another hand (Peele's) is unmistakably present, so much so
that we have two Cades in detail. I am not claiming for Peele
a work of any importance in Jack Straiv. It is only a slight
four-act piece, written to flatter and amuse the people, very
likely, as Fleay says, at a time of popular commotion — and
hardly worthy of the name of a drama. There are some
passions in it, but no characters distinctly drawn.
It is as well to give here another "sign manual" of Peele,
though not in these plays. It is " numberless " ; which may
be added to "true-succeeding" and "sandy plains" as his
especial badges. He uses it in Alcazar (p. 434, b) : " Besides a
number almost numberless Of drudges " ; Order oj the Garter
(585, b) ; "A number numberless appointed well For tourna-
ment " ; Angloruni Ferice (596, b) : " Small number of a number
numberless." And he introduces himself into 5^/mz^j- (Grosart,
xiv. 197) : " Gathering to him a number numberless Of big-
bond Tartars."
Peele's fashion of rhetorical repetition in his poetry, not
silly iteration, but purposeful {Epanadiplosis, Epanalepsis, Ana-
phora, etc.), is more apparent in his later work than in The
Arraignment and other his earlier work. This was due perhaps
to the Faerie Queene's example, where such methods are largely
and suitably used, though not appropriate in dramatic poetry.
They were not due to Spenser, but greatly beautified and de-
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxix
veloped by him. In Peele they are nowhere so abundant (and
misplaced) as in Alcazar, and David and Bethsabe.
It is perhaps the same case with that I have called sing-song
or trochaic endings. In Faerie Queene, II. i. 57, lingered
mortality, tyranny, regality, linfirmity ; and see again in II. xii.
16 and elsewhere. But there the melody is suitable, and more-
over the sing-songishness is checked by intervening lines. But
when Marlowe uses it in / Tamburlaine, I. i. (Dyce, p. 8, b), and
II. i. and elsewhere, it is a blemish. In Peele's Arraignment of
Paris, it is less out of place. Later in Peele's work he became
a slave to it. In such plays as Locrine (Greene) it becomes
most irksome. Some patches of it occur in Jack Straw. And
here and there in all three parts of Henry VI. Whether it is
the least displeasing or the most tiresome form of end-stopped
line depends upon taste, or upon its excess. All forms occur
in I Henry VI., and yet there is good poetry. But there is
more beautiful poetry in Edward III. {anon.), almost wholly of
end-pausing lines, with little or none of the sing-song — a later
play than any of those just mentioned. See / Henry VI. II. i.
43, III. ii. 137 for notes and examples from Greene, who
murdered the device with surfeiting the trespass of the lyric
muse. The steady decrease of end-pausing from Henry VI.
(Part I.) to Richard III. is always to be observed — to Shake-
speare's credit.
VI. Evidences of Peele in Phrases, Passages, and
Composition in 2 Henry VI. : with a Running
Comment on the Texts Compared.
Only prominent ones are selected ; others will be found in
my notes, which should be referred to also for further informa-
tion on those here given since the context is usually important,
and dwelt upon there. And those from Peele are in earlier
work.
I. i. 65, 66. till term of eighteen months Be full expired. Peele, Sir
Clyonion (Dyce's one-vol. ed. p. 506): "Now are the ten days full ex-
pired wherein." Not in Q. Perhaps merely legal or technical.
I. i. 79. Summer's parching heat. Peele, An Eclogue Gratulatory
(p. 562, b) : " where he with swink and sweat Felt foeman's rage and
summer's parching heat." This speech should also be compared with
David and Bethsabe (p. 468, b) about " Joab and his brother in the fields
XXX THE SECOND PART OF
suffering the wrath of winter." See note in passage here on the develop-
ment from the last scene but one in 1 Henry VI. Parching heat occurs
in Lucrece, but was not an old expression. "Summer's parching heat"
has been borrowed from Peele into Arden of Feversham (1592) also (Act
II.) attributed by Fleay to Kyd. Open fields in the preceding line is in
Peele's Old Wives' Tale (p. 452, b). Peele has names in books of memory
twice in later work (1593), Dyce, pp. 601, 602.
I. i. 123. In Contention, has my thrice valiant son. See Introduction
to Part I. on this construction, a favourite with Peele and Shakespeare.
At I. i. 157-159 three lines about Humphrey occur (in Q) that are nearly
repeated below at in. i. 20 in Q, and there carefully omitted.
Shakespeare opened the Act, as he usually (or often) does and wrote
the first scene with Peele's help here and there. Peele has less to do
with this scene (which is Shakespeare's) in Contention than in Part II.,
where both developed it together.
I. ii. 25. office-badge. Peele, Honour of the Garter (p. 587, a): "his
office-badge Was a black rod whereof he took his name."
I. ii. 64. remove stumbling blocks. Peele, Edward I. : " 'tis a deed of
charity to remove this stumbling block." Not in Q.
I. ii. 82-86. In the Duchess's speech here in Q occurs " backside
of my Orchard." (Shakespeare has " backside of the town" in Cymbeline.)
Peele, Old Wives' Tale (p. 455, a): " He looks as though he crept out of
the backside of the well, and speaks like a drum perished at the west
end." But earlier in New Eng. Diet.
I. ii. 82-86. In the same speech occurs " And cast their spells in
silence of the night." See i. iv. 16, note at "silent of the night"
perhaps a mere misprint. "Silence of the night" as in Q again below.
Peele, Battle of Alcazar, 11. i. : " Nor may the silence of the speechless
night (Dire) architect of murders and misdeeds." ("Quiet silence of
the night" occurs in Selimus, later, a play in which Peele had a final
hand.) Joan has used spells in Part I. v. iii. 2.
I. ii. 99. And buz these conjurations in her brain. Peele, Tale of Troy
(P- 55i> a-). 1589 : "Till one, I say, revengeful power or other Buzz'd in
the brain of her unhappy mother A dreadful dream." Greene often uses
" buz in the ears " of a slander, etc.
The opening of Scene ii. is again Shakespeare's, who with Peele did
the expansion in the finished play. Note the many Shakespearianisms
introduced in the opening speech. The stage business of Hume, Jour-
dain and Bolingboke would be allotted to Peele, who wrote this part
alone in Q.
I. iii. 133-135. See note at iii. i. 61, 62 on the repetition of these
charges against Gloucester. And again at i. iii. 107-118 in Gloucester's
reply, where the racking of the Commons is repeated from i. iii. 125, 126,
the Cardinal's accusation. See notes at i. iii. 210, 211 and in. i. 292.
The confusion and repetition is due to a divided, or a distributed
authorship.
I. iii. 137. In Q the stage direction is "The Queene . . . hits the
Duches of Gloster a boxe on the eare." This incident is paralleled by
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxxi
one in Peek's Edward I. (p. 392) where the Queen " longs to give your
Grace a boxe on the ear," and does it. It may have been introduced by
him into the play, but there is little evidence of any hand other than
Shakespeare's in either play in this scene, but much of his. The im-
provements are very considerable, and the eliminations are noticeable,
as " Somerset . . . Regent over the French " twice in four lines (Q) at
the end of scene. There is revising and inserting in these first three
scenes showing the Cardinal's implacable hate for Gloucester (Hum-
phrey) which does not appear in Contention. This is what would be
natural in Shakespeare, whether author of Contention or not, who had
constructed 7 Henry VI. A later play than Contention.
I. iv. 22,23. It thunders and lightens . . . spirit. Adsum." Peele
has similar arranging in The Old Wives' Tale where Sacrapant is the
magician: " Re-enter Sacrapant : it lightens and thunders: the second
Brother falls down [Jourdain grovels on the earth here]. . . . Sacrapant
. . . Adeste, dcsmons ! Enter two Furies (p. 450, b). . . . ' It thunders and
lightens.'" Again at p. 454, b. But Marlowe was familiar with all such
machinery, and to him the passages in Q (that are completely altered)
are due, Peele's modelling remaining and being even extended in the
present play. See under " Marlowe " in this Introduction.
I. iv. 16. silent of the night. See above at i. ii. 82-86. This speech
is Shakespeare's, the variation of the good expression of Peele's is
quaint, but both hands are at work. Not in Q.
I. iv. 17. The time of night when Troy was set on fire. Compare
Peele, Tale of Troy (p. 557, b) : " It was the time when midnight's sleep and
rest With quiet pause the town of Troy possess'd. . . . Now Troy as
was foretold began to burn." Not in Q.
I. iv. 36, 68. Sandy plains. See above at Jack Straw (p. 395).
InQ.
I. iv. 38. / hardly can endure. Similarly a spirit (angel of provid-
ence) says to Neronis in Peele's Sir Clyomon (p. 521, a) : " Let desperation
die in thee — I may not here remain. [Ascends^ " In Q : " I must hence
again."
I. iv. 75. A sorry breakfast for my Lord Protector. Peele, Edward I.
(p. 398, a) : " By Gis, fair lords, ere many days be past England shall give
this Robin Hood his breakfast"; and (p. 407, a): "Ah, gentle Richard,
many a hot breakfast haue we been at together ! " Not in Q.
With regard to these "blind prophecies/' and their frequent use by
Peele, see note at i. iv. 62. And also above at Jack Straw "(when Adam
delved)." This repetition here in identical words side by side is not so
inartistic in Q on account of the interposition there of the next scene
(II. i.).
Act II.
II. i. 24. Tanta^ne animis ccelestibus irce ? Peele might have sug-
gested this quotation ; he used it in Speeches to the Queen at Theobalds
(1591). It was used also in Speeches to the Queen at Sudely (1592).
Nichols, III. 137.
xxxii THE SECOND PART OF
I attribute this scene in both plays wholly to Shakespeare under
Peek's guidance with regard to stage-directions. A few touches of his
hand (perhaps) appear in illustrations from him, but none of weight.
Note sing-song end-paused lines at the end of the scene.
Henry's holiness begins to be attended to here, as compared with
Q. See also in last Act at i. iii. 54-59. And in this at 11. i. 66. And
so throughout. See in. ii. 232, iv. iv. 35, etc.
II. ii. Chiefly genealogical. Shakespeare had a bias for royal pedi-
gree-work, and down to Warwick's last speech in Q i, the readings are al-
most identical with some corrections of genealogy in Folio (see note at
1. 4). This part also connects us with 1 Henry VI. (11. iv. and iv. v.).
Warwick's speech often lines (53-62) becomes two lines in 2 Henry VI.,
and is replaced by one to Buckingham by Shakespeare. This is the sort
of place the scent gets warm. It is a bit of rant by Peele that is ex-
punged, at least most likely by Peele, but certainly not by Shakespeare.
See note at 11. ii. 78. Shakespeare closes the scene.
II. iii. Down to the entrance of the Armourer, it is Peele's in Q,
re-written very carefully by Shakespeare in 2 Henry VI., and extended
from forty to sixty lines. One of the rejected lines " For sorrowes teares
hath gript my aged heart" (an allusion to "blood-drinking sighs," etc.)
is recalled in 3 Henry VI. i. iv. 171. Peele uses the noun similarly
" Winding about his heart with mortal gripes " {David and Bethsabe, (p.
475, a) and elsewhere. " Fountains of mine eyes " is not again in Shake-
speare, and is properly Peele's unless it belongs earlier to Kyd.
" O eyes no eyes but fountains of my tears " {Spanish Tragedy). But I
am wholly unable to separate Peele from some of Kyd's accepted work
{i.e. Soliman and Perseda). See again David and Bethsabe {p. 475, a):
"David's soul dissolves, Lading the fountains of his drowned eyes."
We then have depart twice in four lines (" depart away" occurs in
Romeo and Juliet). Humphrey's succeeding speech is altogether in
Peele's manner of harping on a string or two, " as willing . . . thine,
as erst . . . mine, and even as willing . . . leave it, as others . . .
receive it." This is left standing.
We are surely indebted to Peele also for the interesting stage in-
structions prefixed to the trial by combat. In this scene the Queen's
"manliness" is developed (1. 28). In the next her hatred of Gloucester
(iv. 52) receives attention as compared with Q.
II. iv. I. See note at "mourning cloaks " (stage-direction).
II. iv. 6. " Ten is the houre," etc. Hard at hand, with reference to
time, occurs here in Q. It is a favourite expression (referring to place)
with Peele, and occurs in Marlowe's Tamburlaine (Dyce, p, 15, b). But the
Shakespearian use in Othello, iii. i. 267. The opening words, the note of
the scene, are added by Shakespeare in 2 Henry VI. On the whole
evidence the opening of the scene is Shakespeare's in Q, and is Shake-
speare's improved in 2 Henry VI. But there is no need to dwell upon
other writers in this pathetic scene, which is wholly Shakespeare's in
both plays. Plenty of Shakespearian touches occur. Eleanor's speeches
after Gloucester leaves (in Q) are much improved in the revision, and
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxxiii
as usual commonplace writing has been deleted, whether bits of Peele's
work or his own.
Act hi.
In this Act one of the noticeable results in the reformation of the
old play is the production of harmony by the alteration, often, of a
single word or so, from lines that won't scan to lines that will, or from
lines that will to others that will more musically. One of the broadest
Shakespearian results. Take iii. ii. 275 : " But all the honour Salisbury
hath got," and sound it with " But all the honour Salisbury hath won."
This is an extreme example in delicacy. Shakespeare put out this use
of got elsewhere, in " get the day."
III. i. There are a few expressions of Peele's in the revised play,
as, " heart unspotted " (iii. i. 100) ; the metaphor of " choking weeds " (iii.
i. 31), etc. But none of any consequence. " Thrice-noble " is here the
property of 2 Henry VI., not of Q. " It skills not," noted on at Jack
Straw above, is also inserted, and not in Q. " Now or never " (iii. i.
331), and "make commotion" (iii. i. 358) are also used earlier by Peele
(the latter in Jack Straw, see note). All of these, I believe, belong only
to 2 Henry VI. (not Q). The whole scene is Shakespeare's written
lightly for a shorter play and expanded fully by the same writer. At
11. 154-160 certain changes of epithets to Beaufort and Suffolk, seem to
be merely capricious.
in. ii. Note the careful stage-instructions in Q, at the opening. The
same conclusion as in the last scene, holds good of authorship in this, but
there are even fewer signs of Peele in either play. See note at "The
commons like an angry hive of bees " (125) with parallel from Jack Straw,
and at " breathless corpse " (132) ; "three days space " (295) ; " chalky
cliffs" (ioi'> ; " grove of cypress trees" (323); "serpent's hiss" (326).
All from the finished play. Shakespeare develops greatly in this scene.
He has made Warwick and Margaret all his own no matter who started
them. None of the suspected ones could have approached the varied
and powerful language in Margaret's and Suffolk's dialogue ; both of
which abound in unmistakable Shakespearianisms (as my notes amply
demonstrate), not a few of which are also in the earlier Quarto form.
The Quarto affords another "thrice " adjective, "thrice-famous " altered
to "thrice-famed " (157). There is hardly a line in it to challenge, and
hardly a line not accepted for the final play. Scene iii. is all Shake-
speare's. The alterations from one text to the other are unimportant in
any respect other than that of gracing the old and careless text, which
contains some sad corruptions, if metre was considered. There are
signs of Peele in the short original. See note at "gripe " replaced by
" grin " (24) ; " Forbear to " (31) ; and the last line " see his funerals be
performde " is illustrated by the last line in Peele's Battle of Alcazar :
" So to perform the prince's funerals." We may allot this part of Act
III., and only this part (in Q), to Peele. As the play progresses so does
Peele stand aside in important situations. Note in Scene iii., the ex-
cision of a patch of Oh's from the final play. A like experience occurred
c
xxxiv THE SECOND PART OF
in Lovers Labour's Lost. Note corrupt readings in Q (as at in. ii. 197).
Shakespeare's own work, corrected by Shakespeare.
Act IV.
IV. i. Opened by Shakespeare, and the opening seven lines awk-
wardl_y tacked on to Peele's opening, for I think he wrote this scene
down to Suffolk's exit in Q. The stage direction here is both explicit
and important since it gives us Walter (Water) Whitmore's name.
Note too the prophecies and the quibbling on "Pole" (70) as in Jack
Straw (see note). But the revision is Shakespeare's work, although a
few touches or rememberings of Peele occur, as in "gaudy day" (i) ;
" name and port of" (ig) ; " senseless winds " (77). He is probablj', the
borrower (in Q) of Greene's Abradas, altered to Bargulus by Shake-
speare. See an odd note at the end of iv. i. on the Quarto expression
" Come let 's go." The omission of the ship passage (Q) " like as it were
a fight at sea " from the final play is interesting. Possibly it was found
too difficult of stage management. In this scene The Contention supplies
the Folio with a missing line (48). The same thing happens a couple
of times in Part III.
IV. ii. 8. 'twas nevermerry world . . . since gentlemen came up. Peele,
Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 382). " But merrily with the world it
went. When men ate berries of the hawthorn tree." From Grafton (see
note at 1. 68).
IV. ii. 18. labouring men. Peele, Old Wives' Tale {p. 453, b) " Go get
you in, you labouring slaves."
IV. ii. 61. his coat is of proof . Peele, David and Bethsabe (p. 465, a) :
" He puts on armour of his honour 's proof."
IV. ii. 133. Adam was a gardener. Feele, Jack Straw {p. ^81): "When
Adam delved and Eve span."
IV. ii. 145. His son am I, deny it if yon can. Peele, Old Wives' Tale
(p. 455, b) : " are not you the'man, sir, deny it if you can, sir," etc. In Q.
IV. ii. 151. That speaks he knows not what. Peele, Edward L (p. 413,
a) : " Bereav'd her sense and memory at once, so that she spoke she knew
nor how nor what." Not in Q.
IV. ii. 182. 'tis for liberty. Peele, Jack Straw (p. 399) : " we will
have wealth and liberty." [Cry all: Wealth and Liberty !] King. " It is
enough . . . You shall have liberty."
The parallelism with Peele's work here lies more in the as-
sumption that Jack Strazv was written by Peele, connected with
the fact that Shakespeare makes use of Jack Straw's rebellion
from the chroniclers, as shown in my notes. Two passages in
this scene in Q, here (47-52 and 77-82) are transferred to
Scene vii. in the final play (6-1 1, 8, 9). But there is little
omitted or altered from one scene to the other: the difference
lies mainly in extension. There is, however, one suggestive
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxxv
little point. In Q Dick Butcher is knighted before
Stafford's entry, by Cade at the same time as he knights him-
self, to encourage him to the fight, and the result is satisfactory.
This little structural detail need not have been rejected. It is
quite in Peek's way since he celebrates knighthood and knights
and orders in and out of season. Peele's sympathy is much
more with the people (as in Jack Straw) ; he does not address
them as " filth and scum of Kent, marked for the gallows."
IV. iii. 7, 8. a hundred lacking one. See note at passage, from
Peele, Old Wives' Tale (p. 451, b). In Q.
IV. iii. 16. break open the gaols and let out the prisoners. Peele, Jack
Straw (396): "they have ... let out all the prisoners, broke up the
Marshalsea and the King's Bench." Not in Q.
This scene is reduced to five lines in Q, that is to say to Cade's single
speech (11. 3-8). The development as well as the original may be byPeele.
But the belief grows that they worked out Cade together in both plays.
IV. iv. 10-12. / myself . . . will parley with Jack Cade. In Peele's
Jack Straw (391). Richard II. says: " Tell them that we ourselves will
come to them " by Sir John Morton's advice : " Thus would I deal with
these rebellious men: I would find time to parley with some of them."
It appears from Neia^ Eng. Diet, the verb was not common before 1600.
In Q Shakespeare opened this scene with ten added lines, calculated
to make Margaret's character more objectionable, not to say abomin-
able.
IV. iv. 40. " Ah, were the Duke of Suffolk now alive " is found lower
down in Scene ix. (Q). Unaccountable change.
IV. V. 10. gather head. Peele, Battle of Alcazar (p. 432,' a): "The
Spaniard ready to embark himself. Here gathers to a head." The
expression has occurred already in Q. See note. In Q.
IV. vii. I, 2. pull down the Savoy ; others to the Inns of Court : down
with them. This from the 1381 rebellion. The Inns of Court are re-
ferred to in Jack Straw : "We '11 not leave a man of law, Nor a paper
worth a haw," etc. (394). In Q.
IV. vii. g-ii. John's and Smith's asides should have remained where
they were in Scene ii. in Q. They belong there from 6 to 12. See note.
IV. vii. 14. burn all the records of the realm. See extract from Fabyan
at IV. vii. I. Peele, Jack Straw (401); "Enter Tom Miller to burn
papers ... I have made a bonfire here Of a great many bonds and
indentures, And obligations: faith I have been amongst The ends of the
Court, and among the records ... in the Guildhall." In Q.
IV. vii. 18, 19. all things shall be in common. And above at ii. 68,
All the realm shall be common. Feele, Jack Straw (^82): "it were better
to have this community, Than to have this difference in degree." In Q
(in first quotation). This scene.
IV. vii. 120-122. tribute . . . maidenhead. Peele, Jack Straw (be-
ginning). See note at passage in text.
xxxvi THE SECOND PART OF
This scene in both plays is by Shakespeare, with trifling
hints from Peele. The humour is altogether of a higher class,
and more witty, than anything of Peele's for so long a spell.
We have to remember always not only what is before us, but
to reflect upon what probably would have been there, or the
sort of writing that would have inevitably appeared, had it
been all Peele's — from a knowledge of his writing. I am not
referring here to grossness of quality. See note at 1. 124,
dealing with two slight scenes (of Q) omitted from final play.
Note the reduction of repetition of " head " in Cade's speech
(105-112) and around it.
IV. viii. The scene between Buckingham with Clifford and Cade
in Q has been entirely rewritten by Shakespeare. I have given in a
note at 1. 14, several arguments pointing to Peele as the writer of the
original, which need not be repeated here. Cade's speech (in Q) is
quite impossible. Peele must have been thinking of his Parson Ball in
Jack Straw. In altering this extravagant departure, Shakespeare dealt
gently with his coadjutor's work leaving in the feather simile and
"through the midst of you" — but Cade is spoiled. He becomes too
wise and eloquent. Cade's speech in Q (the one preceding the feather
speech) is entirely appropriate to Parson Ball's principles in Jack Straw,
see note at 1. 26, but not to the present rebellion. Shakespeare has left
it so in matter, but not in the same words. And he has imported
into it the "ravish your wives" of the omitted scene or passage between
Dick, Sergeant and Cade, also belonging to the Jack Straw system.
See note at 1. 29.
IV. ix. The preliminary speech of the King's is added by Shake-
speare to the situation. In Q, Buckingham, Clifford, and the Rebels
with halters, together, and Clifford addresses the King with their sub-
mission, which Henry receives, with the news of Cade's flight, and
makes a pious thankful speech. To which say, All. "God save the
King, God save the King." This is the whole of Scene ix. in Q, ac-
counting for that in the facsimile. Scene ix. being treated as non-existent.
Probably by Peele in Q. The King's speech that follows it (unrepre-
sented in 2 Henry VI.): " Come let us haste to London " is in the stock
style of either Peele or Greene, but more like Peele who uses "laud"
(noun) several times. The rest of the scene is wholly Shakespeare's.
See notes.
IV. X. Note the realistic stage instruction. In Q Cade is coarser,
using an objectionable expression (omitted here) and used before (at viii.
63) and omitted also. He indulges also in unsuitable language, " Thou
hast slaine the flower of Kent for chivalry," which Shakespeare refused,
but admitted word for word (Kent = Europe) into Part III. But "best
blood of the Realme" in Q is not much more unsuitable to Cade
(speaking of himself) than his " unconquered soul" in Part II. Too
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxxvii
many cooks spoilt Cade. There are signs of Nashe. See notes at 57-59.
And for Peele, see note at last line, and observe Iden's verse, in finished
scene as a foil to the prose of Cade. In Iden's last speech in the
finished play — a very revolting one — we have the version of Stafford
(iv. ii. 122, 123) recalled, and certainly those murderous wretches are en-
titled to no gentle thoughts. It is very different in Q however. One
is inclined to suggest Marlowe's hand, or at any rate his influence. One
might also suggest that it was a relief to escape for a little from the
strain of Henry's elaborated and unpleasing piety. It is the boastful-
ness of the victor that makes up the needless brutality,
V. i. 1-5. Agrees with Q very closely, and here Peele seems to have
opened ; but Marlowe has similar lines, which are merely descriptive of
what took place. From this point to the entry of King Henry (55) the
part is rewritten (by Shakespeare) and nearly doubled in length. In Q
we have again those wretched lines about leaving Somerset, and the
towns in France, the former is saved for 61 below. But the latter
we have three times elsewhere in the play. Several other lines in Q
are accounted for, three in York's last speech (44-47), and "these abject
terms " (25). There is no proof here that this part is due to Peele in
Q, beyond the improvement in the later stage which is after all not re-
markable. There is proof of the revision being Shakespeare's in several
places. See note at " Ajax Teiamonius " (26). But he never wrote " ap-
proach so neere. . . . Whereas the person of the king doth keep." See
note at 22. From the entry of King Henry we are assured of Shake-
speare's hand, he is accountable for him always, and has modified the
description of Cade's head, adding the usual religious exclamations or
sentiments. Compare Peele's knighting again with Jack Straw, and
Sir William Walworth, already noted upon (79). The Q description of
Cade's head recalls Marlowe again. See notes at 71-79.
V. i. 87-105. York's speech is wholly rewritten by Shakespeare.
He used one line of the original in Q above (6) : "Nor will I subject be
to such a king, that knowes not how to governe nor to rule " ; and again
here at 94. Points like these enforce the conviction that Shakespeare
had a large share in Q here, and the Marlovian passages may be re-
garded simply as the results of examples set. We have here some of
the plumes that worried Greene (100).
V. i. 105-216 (end of scene). Forty-eight lines in Q are expanded
into a hundred and ten. Both are absolutely by the same hand,
Shakespeare's, and the steady bettering in metre, in imagery and in
poetic dignity is most noticeable. It is not true to say the Q is re-
written here — it is added to, and in a harmonious way that could only
belong to the one writer of both. The chief addition lies in King Henry,
what he says or what is said to him. He is only allowed three lines in
Q, but his growth in the full play is always attended to.
V. ii. There is considerable alteration in composition and structure
in this scene from one copy to the other. Peele opens it with his pro-
phecy, which is shortened and removed from its too prominent position
in the revision. There is much evidence of Peele in Q and not much
xxxviii THE SECOND PART OF
of Shakespeare ; vice versa there is little of Peele left in, and we find
numerous undoubted evidences of Shakespeare in the final play. I
refer to my note at the end of the scene, at the word "uncurable " (86).
There is no need for repetition. There is one pair of lines (14, 15),
identical in both plays (nearly), which belong to Shakespeare, and which
he repeats (nearly) in 3 Henry VI. 11. iv. 11, 12. One of the many little
strands in those complicated plays that bind them together with a rope
of undivided, or at least of prominent, if not single, authorship. When
Peele's prophecy was cut short, we may allot to him the line " Priests
pray for enemies, but princes kill " (71), not altogether on the grounds
of inferiority — he clung to alliterative clauses ; such as " for want of a
priest the priest's part I will play " (518, b), and " Meat of a princess, for
a princess meet " (428, b). Another startling line in this scene (4), " And
dead men's cries do fill the empty air " may be given to Peele. He has
a very similar one in Jack Straw : " That fill'd the air with cries and
fearful noise " (395). From Spenser. By dead men he means ghosts.
Peele was fond of ghosts who talked. He has a jocular ghost in Old
Wives' Tale (455, b) ; a good idea. Just below there are two omitted
lines of prose poetry undoubtedly Peele's ; he has " hew a passage with
your conquering swords " in A Farewell to the General (549, b). " Faint-
ing troops " (failing in courage) is not Shakespeare's, probably Peele's or
Marlowe. Another line in this scene " Come stand not to expostulate,
let 's go " at the end of Q, which is here omitted, is used in 3 Henry VI.
II. v. 135 to close.
V. iii. seems to be a joint production of Peele and Shakespeare in
Q. "Thickest throng" omitted here, and omitted again from True
Tragedie is noted on in 3 Henry VI. 11. i. 13. The parallels between
Clifford's fightings here and in 3 Henry VI. afford several similarities.
But the last two scenes in this play betray a weariness of the work.
There are reminders again of Marlowe in Q ("faint heart," "eternised,"
"thickest throng"), but he would have thrown much more carnage about
were it his work. Peele copies him in a mild way. See note at line 7.
VII. Evidences of Greene or Nashe in 2 Henry VI.
From the preceding section it will be surmised that I do not
attach great weight to such evidence — but nevertheless it must
be dealt with and summarised.
The most prominent reminders of Greene are the Abradas
one at IV. i. 108 in Q. We may regard this as one of the plumes
whose pulling hurt Greene, and it might also be argued that
Shakespeare relieved himself of the imputation by erasing it
in Part II. For the scene is by Shakespeare.
The other prominent passage is the Achilles' spear allusion
(v. i. 100). But that was common property perhaps. See
note. Several minor echoes occur (such as " alderliefest " "my
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xxxix
princely head," "map of honour") but they are of little conse-
quence. Several more that have been confidently advanced as
Greene's by previous editors are, my notes will show, unavail-
ing. Some, such as "pick a sallet" (iv. x. 8), though only
illustrated by me from Greene, have merely a fictitious value
and quite likely were commonly used.
Marlowe's influence appears in several places. Whether he
appears himself is beyond decision finally, perhaps. I do not
find myself able to come to a conclusion that he does so appear.
Some of his case disappears if the Edward II. passages are re-
garded as taken from here by him. See I. iii. 49, 50 ; I. iii. 79 ;
III. i. 282, The middle one of these Marlovian passages is not
in the first edition, but appears in Q 3 (16 19). The others are
in Q, and also in 2 Henry VI. but altered, especially the last.
It may be said therefore that Marlowe wrote these passages
into Q, and made use of his own property in Edward II.
The fact of Shakespeare altering or omitting them as his own
final work, points the same way.
In The Contention also I. iv. 14-20 (in this play), is un-
doubtedly Marlowe's work, carefully revised out of recognition
as his in 2 Henry VI.
But Marlowe in connection with Henry VI. is best con-
sidered by a study of Tainburlaine (both parts), and I reserve
that for Introduction to Part III. Very interesting conclusions
are arrived at.
There remains but the young Juvenal, Nashe. He appears
here and there in meteoric fashion, much as he did, but not so
vividly, in i Henry VI. Close below Abradas (IV. i. 134, 135),
the terms " bezonian " and " banditto," are best illustrated from
Nashe's writings. In the Cade scenes also Nashe is recalled,
as in the " cade of herrings " (IV. ii. 34) ; in the " hooped pots "
and "small beer" (iv. ii. 66-68); "burly-boned" and "hob
nails" (IV. X. 57-59)- Nashe may have learned all these things
here. Nashe's work being mainly prose, is not to be traced in
poetry, except sporadically.
VIII. Other Influences: Bible, Golding.
There are a good many Biblical passages referred to. They
come in with King Henry's pious tone of language. The refer-
ences here are to A.V. (161 1), which of course was not Shake-
xl THE SECOND PART OF
speare's Bible. Notes at some passages, therefore, become his-
torically unavailing, as for example at slaughter-men in Part I.
III. iii. 75. I have checked the ones referred to with an earlier
version, the Geneva text, I. iii. 37; I. ii. 64; II. i. 184; II. iii.
25 (A.V. reads lamp; R.V. lost an opportunity); iii. i. 71 ;
III. i. 381 ; IV. vii. 31 ; IV. ix. 13 ; iv. iv. 37 ; v. ii. 33-35. In
another reference (iv. iv. 10) both examples of " perish by
the sword " in Job read " pass by the sword " in the earlier
versions. (See, however, Matthew xxvii.) The above cuUings
do not exhaust the examples in my notes.
A number of parallels have been adduced from Golding's
Ovid, a favourite volume with Shakespeare in his early days. I
refer to this with the proviso that the examples from Golding
are not cited as necessarily containing the earliest use of the
expressions dealt with. Generally speaking they do. See i.
iii. 75; il. i. 17; III. ii. 103; III. ii. 162; ill. ii. 315; III. ii.
358; III. ii. 371, 391 ; III. ii. 403 ; III. iii. 16; IV. i. 62; iv. i.
84, 85; IV. ii. 124; IV. ii. 148; IV. ii. 82; IV. ii. 124. Several
of these are desiderata in New Eng. Did.
In order to economise space the words or phrases illustrated
are not quoted here (as in Part I. Introduction). But in most
cases they will be found worth turning to, and I plead for their
examination.
It is well known that Drayton affords several parallels in his
Heroical Epistles. It is enough to refer to them. They are
obviously from Shakespeare in these plays at the same situa-
tions, on which they were founded.
IX. Spenser.
I had intended merely to collect and refer to the passages
where my notes indicate that the author of 2 Hemy VI. had
Spenser in his memory. But on closer examination of the
selected ones, I found they were of more importance than I
thought. These are conspicuous examples — very likely there
are others. They disclose an interesting fact — with barely
one exception they do not occur in The Contention.
I. ii. 11-13. Put forth thy hand, . . . heaved it up. Faerie Queene, i.
vii. 14: " His heavie hand he heaved up on hie."
II. i. 18. The treasury of everlasting joy ■ Astrophel, st. 27: "And
her faire brest, the threasury of joy, She spoyled thereof and filled with
annoy."
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xli
II. ii. 26. As all you know. All refers to two expressly here, and
again (as Malone pointed out) in 2 Henry IV. iii. i. 35. Compare
Faerie Queene, 11. i. 61 : "The dead knight's sword out of his sheath he
drew, With which he cutt a lock of all their haire. Which medling with
their blood and earth he threw Into the grave." All are the parents,
Mordant and Amaria.
III. iii. 22. the busy meddling fiend That lays strong siege unto this
wretch's soul. Faerie Queene, 11. xi. 8, g: "All those were lawlesse lustes
. . . Those same against the bulwarke of the sight Did lay strong
siege." And 11. xi. 5 (in a literal sense): "that wicked band of
villeins . . . lay strong siege about it."
IV. i. 3-5. the jades that drag . . . the night . . . with flagging
wings. The Dragon in Faerie Qtieene, i. xi. 10 has "His flaggy wings,
when forth he did display, Were like two sayles." Possibly the adop-
tion of the dragon's wings here explains how Shakespeare in other
places {Midsummer Nighfs Dream, Troilus and Cressida, Cymbeline), makes
the horses of the night (Ovid's noctis equi) dragons ; a much finer con-
ception when Spenser's dragon is considered.
IV. viii. 44. / see tliem lording it in London Streets (playing the
lord). Spenser, Shepheards Calender, July. " They reigne and rulen over
all. And lord it as they list."
v. ii. 4. cries do fill the empty air. See note. This from Jack
Straw in a Peele part, rather than Shakespeare's. But " empty air " is
in Faerie Queene, i. viii. 17: "scourging th' emptie ayre with his long
trayne " — probably earlier than Faerie Queene ?
v. ii. 52. tears virginal. Compare Faerie Queene : " mildnesse
virginall " (11. ix. 20) ; and " honour virginall " (11. i. 10).
For further proof of Shakespeare's indebtedness to or affec-
tion for Faerie Queene, I must refer to my Introduction to
Part I., where it is more evident. But a good deal of my
evidence there relates to this play also. I think there is suffi-
cient to show it in both cases. How does it happen then that
little or no sign of that great poem appears in The Contention,
where I maintain that Shakespeare had a considerable share ?
I answer that by the following positions : —
Shakespeare had no knowledge of the Faerie Queene until it
was a published work in 1590.
The Contention was written before 1590. Any evidence or
influence of Spenser in that play may be Peele's work ; as for
example at the last line quoted (v. ii. 4) ; and the adjectives
with " thrice-" which Peele had worked out long before, and
which occur in The Contention ; and those numerical emphases of
"ten thousand," and "Thrice . . . Thrice . . . And twice";
and the line-formations of " Was never " . . . " The fairest
xlii THE SECOND PART OF
ever , . . " — all of these are from earlier works than Faerie
Queene.
Peele, being a Londoner, was probably long in possession
of a copy of, or a knowledge of the manuscript of Faerie
Queene (written as early as i 580) ; which Marlowe quotes from
as early as 1586. Shakespeare, recently come to town, may
not have had this advantage until its printed appearance.
These assumptions, if well founded, would place the Q or
First Part of The Contention before 1 590 ; / Henry VI. im-
mediately after, or in, 1 590 ; followed closely by 2 Henry VI.
Certainly The Contention has all the appearance of being an
earlier play than / Henry VI., although it follows it historically.
That is, however, a matter of detail. There is more evidence
to be brought forward.
X. Kyd, The Spanish Tragedie.
One of the few plays preceding " harey the vj." in Henslowe's
Diary is " spanes comodye donne oracoe." This may or
may not be the Spanish Tragedy — Boas says not. But a little
below comes Jeronymo the 14th of March, 1591, just a week
after Henry the Sixth. This is no doubt The Spdnish Tragedy.
It is the only play therein that rivals Henry the Sixth in
popularity, judging from its appearances ; and from external
evidence no play of the time got such a hold of the people's
fancy as the old Jeronymo. The earliest known dated edition
is that of 1594. But an undated edition in the British
Museum is probably of 1 592, in which year The Spanish
Tragedy was entered in the Stationers' registers.
I mention this much because the correlation of the date of
this play with the plays here dealt with is of much interest.
Ben Jonson's words in Bartholomew Fair (1614) are taken
literally by Boas, and are his main argument for a date possibly
as early as 1584. Jonson's words are "He that will swear
leronimo or Androniciis are the best plays yet, shall pass unex-
cepted at here as a man whose judgment shows it is constant,
and hath stood still these five and twenty or thirty years."
Therefore says Boas: "This fixes the date between 1584-9."
In my opinion it does not. Jonson was born in I573' ^'^^ ^t
the age of ten or eleven his observations on plays would be a
little too previous. His first connection with the stage was in
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xliii
1597. These years, I take it, are merely a random shot
equivalent to " when I was a boy." The coupling of two
plays makes the remark yet vaguer. But one piece of evidence
that is quite reliable is found in Nashe's famous preface to
Greene's Menaphon in 1589, where Kyd receives rough hand-
ling. This has been ably dealt with by Professor J. Selrick in
his excellent edition of TJie Spanish Tragedy (Dent & Co.,
1898). No doubt then the play was written before 1589, and
since it appears to be a pre-Armada play, dealing as it does
with bits of Peninsular history with no allusion to the coming
invasion, or to the preparations against it — it may date to
1587-8. There are many more arguments, very subtle ones,
tending to an earlier allocation. But enough has been said to
show that it probably preceded the First Part of Henry VI.
taking that as "harey the vj." in Henslowe. Preceded it,
I mean, in composition. Let us examine the internal evidence
of parallels, or loans, that I have collected. Once a play was
acted, it must be remembered, quotations from it were regarded
as public property. No known play was ever so promptly
afforded this proof of popularity, that of being immediately
quoted from, as The Spanish Tragedy. Shakespeare himself
quotes from it in The Taming of the Shrew (Induction, 11. 7-10).
In these excerpts I shall, if necessary, include Cornelia
(undoubtedly Kyd's) ; and Solirnan and Perseda, certainly Kyd's
(in part). The two prose pieces {The Householders Philo-
sophie, and The Murder of I ohn Breiuen) included in Professor
Boas's edition of Kyd are not dealt with. With regard to
these plays of Kyd's and their dates, together with that of Arden
of Fevers ham (1592) ascribed to Kyd by Fleay and proved, I
think, to be so by Mr. Charles Crawford, I will make some
further remarks a little later, embodying the results of Mr.
Crawford's careful researches. Let us first see how matters
stand in the present inquiry, with regard to that epoch-making
piece The Spanish Tragedy. And in order to present a total
result we may consider here the effect of that play on the
whole Henry VI. series.
I Henry VI. and The Spanish Tragedy may be rapidly dis-
posed of. Two expressions only are common to both, that
demand notice so far as I have observed. To have a fling at
a person (III. i. 64) is in ill. xii. 21 of Kyd's play, but it is
xliv THE SECOND PART OF
earlier in Greene's Mamillia and elsewhere. And " to exclaim
on a person " (ill. iii. 60) is well illustrated from The Spanish
Tragedy (ill. xiv. 70). These being the only ones, show with
emphasis that there is no community of thought or workman-
ship between the two plays. There is, however, one exception.
The general's stirring and elaborate description of the battle
(l. ii. 22-84) illustrates almost every unfamiliar military expres-
sion of the time : as " squadrons pitched " (IV. ii. 23) ; " Cornet "
(IV, iii. 25) ; "chosen shot" (I. iv. 53). And a little later in The
Spanish Tragedy (I. iv. 60-65), where another short notice of the
battle appears, "wondrous feats of arms" is paralleled in
/ Henry VI. I. i. 64.
There is an important bearing in these latter parallels.
They are found in many cases in Peele's work, from whom I
have illustrated some of them (" launciers," not in Shakespeare,
is in Peele), and they point to a conclusion borne out in many
other ways and places that Peele made free use of Kyd, either
copying him or working in parallel lines. There is much mili-
tary writing in The Battle of Alcazar (later than The Spanish
Tragedy ?) of the same description. As a concise whole, Kyd's
battle-piece probably fixed itself at once as an exemplar in the
minds of the dramatists. But as all used some well-known
text-book of the time on warfare, too much stress cannot be
laid here.
2 Henry VI., and The Spanish Tragedy.
Act I.
I. i. 180. Behoves it us to labour for the realm. The Spanish Tragedy,
IV. iii. 27 : " Behooues thee then, Hieronimo, to be reuenged." Not in
I. i. 214. the state of Normandy, Stands on a tickle point, now they are
gone. The Spanish Tragedy, iii. iv. 78 : " Now stands our fortune on a
tickle point." Not in Q.
I. i. 256. And, force perforce, I'll make him yield the crown. The
Spanish Tragedy, in. ix. 12 : "Well, force perforce, I must constraine
myselfe To patience, and apply me to the time." Not in Q (but it is in
True Tragedy at 3 Henry VI. 11. iii. 5 ; it is omitted there in 3 Henry VI.,
but Shakespeare uses it elsewhere in King John and 2 Henry IV.)
I. i. 81. And did my brother Bedford toil his wits, To keep ? The
Spanish Tragedy, in. vi. 8 : "This toyles my body, this consumeth age."
Not in Q.
I. ii. 79. A spirit raised from depth of underground. The Spanish
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xlv
Tragedy, i. vi. i, 2. Andrea (Ghost) : " Come we for this from depth of
under ground, To see him feast that gave me my deaths wound ? " See
again 11. i. 172, below. In Q.
I. ii. 88. Marry and shall. The Spanish Tragedy, iii. xiv. 156: "I
marry, my Lord, and shall." Not in Q. See below at 3 Henry VI. v.
V. 42. It occurs also in 7 Henry IV. v. ii. 34; in Richard III. iii. iv.
36 ; in True Tragedy and in 3 Henry VI. v. v. 42.
I. ii. go. The business asketh silent secrecy. The Spanish Tragedy, 11.
iv. 23 : " Why sit we not ? for pleasure asketh ease." Not in Q.
I. iii. 22. I am but a poor petitioner for a whole township. The Spanish
Tragedy, in. xiii. 46 : " Heere are a sort of poore Petitioners." In Q.
I. iv. 39. Descend the darhiess and the burning lake. The Spanish
Tragedy, iii. i. 55 : " He lend a hand to send thee to the lake, Where
those thy words shall perish with thy workes " ; iii. xii. 11 : "the lake
where hell doth stand." Not in Q.
I. iv. 14. to this gear, the sooner the better. The Spanish Tragedy, iii.
vi. 23 : " come on, when shall we to this geere ? " Ibid. 42, 43 : " To doo
what, my fine officious knave?" Hangman. "To goe to this geere"
(but probably older). Not in Q.
Act II.
II. i. 172. Raising up wicked spirits from underground. The Spanish
Tragedy, 1. vi. i, 2 (quoted above at i. ii. 79).
II. iv. 34. The ruthless flint doth cut my tender feet. The Spanish
Tragedy, iii. vii. 71 : "Wearing the flints with these my withered feet."
" Ruthless" is in the The Spanish Tragedy, i. iv. 23. In Q.
Act III.
III. i. 54. As next the king he was successive heir. The Spanish Tragedy,
III. i. 14 : " The onely hope of our successive line." Not in Q. Better
in Marlowe.
III. i. 272. Say but the word and I will be his priest. The Spanish
Tragedy, in. iii. 37 : " Who first laies hands on me, He be his Priest."
This is from the Watch's scene in The Spanish Tragedy which furnished
a hint or two for 3 Henry VI. iv. ii. Not in Q.
III. i. 302, 303. a raging fire of wind and fuel be brought to feed it with.
The Spanish Tragedy, in. x. 74 : "That were to adde more fewell to your
fire." See 3 Henry VI. v. iv. 70. Not in Q.
in. i. 325. And so break off ; the day is ahnost spent. The Spanish
Tragedy, iv. iv. 74 : "Here breake we off our sundrie languages." Not
inQ.
III. i. 331. Now, York, or never, steel thy fearful thoughts. The Spanish
Tragedy, in. iv. 29 : " Now, Pedringano, or never play the man." See 3
Henry VI. iv. iii. 24. Also in Peele. Not in Q. See 3 Henry VI.
in. ii. 142,143. todraine Upon his face an ocean of salt tears. The Span-
ish Tragedy, 11. v. 23 : " To drowne thee with an ocean of my teares."
Not in Q.
III. ii. 318. My hair be fixed on end as one distract. The Spanish
xlvi THE SECOND PART OF
Tragedy, iii. xii. 89: "Distract and in a manner lunaticke." But in
earlier use. In Q.
III. ii. 340. That I may dew it {thy hand) with my mournful tears. The
Spanish Tragedy, i. iv. 36: "There laid him downe, and dew'd him with
my teares." And twice in Cornelia. Not in Q.
III. ii. 404. though parting be a fretful corrosive It is applied to a
deathful wound. The Spanish Tragedy, 11. v. 22: " darke and deathfull
shades." And for applied, meaning adapted (suitable), see quotation
at I. i. 256, above. " Fretful " here, is earliest in New Eng. Diet. (1593 ?).
See Kyd's Cornelia, v. i. 352 : " Say, freatfuU heavens, what fault have I
committed?" And 1. 387, "thy freatfuU ielosie." The latter expres-
sion occurs also in Arden of Fever sham (see Crawford's Concordance), 1592.
Deathful, meaning deadly, was an old, but a rarely used word. Not in Q.
Act IV.
IV. I. loi. And to conclude, reproach, etc. The Spanish Tragedy, in.
xiii. 20 : " And to conclude, I will revenge his death." Again in Cornelia.
See also 3 Henry VI. 11. v. 47. Not in Q.
IV. ii. 179. hang'd up for example. . . . The Spanish Tragedy, 11. v.
10 : " A man hang'd up." Not in Q.
IV. vii. 124. as free as heart can wish {think Q), or tongue can tell.
The Spanish Tragedy, i. i. 57, 58 : "I saw more sights then thousand
tongues can tell. Or pennes can write, or mortall harts can think." In
Q. See, however, Halliwell's note about " ancient grants" in his edition
ofQ.
J Henry VI. and The Spanish Tragedy.
Act I.
I. i. 13. Whom I encountered as the battles joined; and 11. i. 13. Me-
thought he bore him in the thickest troop. As doth a lion. The Spanish
Tragedy, i. iii. 60, 61: "When both the armies were in battell ioynd,
Dom Balthazar, amidst the thickest troupes, To winne renowne did
wondrous feates of armes." The first is in Q, the second not in Q
(here). " Wondrous feats " is in 1 Henry VI. i. ii. 64 (already noted).
See at Marlowe, Introduction, Part III. Here is evidence of Tambur-
laine in Tlie Spanish Tragedy.
I. iv. 15. To triumph, like an Amazionian trull, Upon their woes
whom fortune captivates. The Spanish Tragedy, 11. i. 130, 131 : "Thus hath
he tane my body by his force, And now by sleight would captivate my
soule." In Q.
Acts i.-ii.
I. iv. 49. I stain'd this napkin with the blood That valiant Clifford
with his rapier's point, Made issue from, the bosom of the boy. And 11. i. 62:
The ruthless queen gave him to dry his cheeks A napkin steeped in the Harm-
less blood Of sweet young Rutland, The Spanish Tragedy, 11. v. 52, 53 :
"Seestthou this handkercher besmerd with blood? It shall not from
me till I take reuenge." And iv. iv. 133-124 : " this bloudie hand-kercher.
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xlvii
Which at Horatios death I weaping dipt Within the riuer of his bleed-
ing wounds." In Q the queen says : " I dipt this napkin in the blood "
(first passage) ; and the messenger says : "gaue him a handkercher . . .
dipt in the blood " (second passage). Not unlikely The Spanish Tragedy
furnished the idea. Note Shakespeare's developed uses of "issue."
Act II.
II. i. 187. Ne'er may he live to see a sunshine day, That cries " retire."
The Spanish Tragedy, iii. vi. 5, 6: "But shall I never live to see the day
That I may come." In Q. (Very likely older but I have no example.)
II. ii. 124. By Him that made us all, I am resolved, That. The
Spanish Tragedy, 11. i. 89: "I sweare to both, by him that made us all."
In Q (a line lost here ?)
II. iii. 40. thy brazen gates of heaven may ope. And give sweet passage
to my sinful soul. The Spanish Tragedy, iii, vii. 9, 10 : ",And broken
through the brazen gates of hell, Yet still tormented, is my tortured
soule." In Q.
II. v. 47. And to conclude, the shepherd's homely curds, etc. See 2
Henry VI. above, iv. i. loi. Not in Q.
Act III.
III. i. 42-47. Compare this with Balthazar's speech, The Spanish
Tragedy, i. ii. 161-165: "To him in curtesie, to this perforce: He spake
me faire, this other gave me strokes; He promisde life, this other
threatned death ; He wan my love, this other conquered me ; And
sooth to say I yield myselfe to both." In Q.
III. i. 57. A man at least, for less I should not be. The Spanish
Tragedy, 1. iv. 40 : "Yet this I did, and lesse I could not doe : I saw him
honoured." In Q.
III. ii. 33-35. Lords, give us leave . . • Ay, good leave have yoti ; for
you will take leave, Till youth take leave and leave you to the crutch. The
Spanish Tragedy, iii. xi. 1-3 : " By your leaue Sir. Hier. Good leave
have you : nay, I pray you goe. For He leaue you if you can leaue me
so," In Q.
III. ii. 58, 59. His the fruits of love I mean. L. Grey. The fruits of
love I mean, my love's liege. The Spanish Tragedy, 11. iv. 55 : " I thus, and
th«s: these are the fruits of love. They stab him." Not in Q.
III. iii. 55-59. to grant . . . thy fair sister To England's king in law-
ful marriage. Queen. If that go forward Henry's hope is done. The
Spanish Tragedy, u. iii. 17, 18: "He grace her marriage with an uncle's
life ; And this it is : in case the match goe forward." In Q.
III. iii. 81. fohn of Gaunt, Which did subdue the greater part of Spaine.
See The Spanish Tragedy, i. iv. 48-52 (quoted at passage).
III. iii. 200. And I forgive and quite forget old faults. The Spanish
Tragedy, in. xiv. 112 : " We have forgotten and forgiven that."
Act IV.
IV. iii. 1-28. Compare the Watchmen's scene (not in Q) with The
Spanish Tragedy, in. iii. 16-48 (end). See note at iv. iii. i. First watch-
xlviii THE SECOND PART OF
man. Come on, my masters, each man take his stand. The Spanish
Tragedy, iii. iii. i6: " Heere therefore will I stay and take my stand."
IV. iii. 20. halberds. See above (The Spanish Tragedy, iii. i. 31).
IV. iii. 23. now or never. See Part II. iii. i. 331.
IV. vii. 57. Fie, brother, fie, stand you upon tearmes ? Q. The Spanish
Tragedy, in. x. 20 : " And if she hap to stand on tearmes with us."
Act V.
V. IV. 34. // case some of you would. The Spanish Tragedy, 11. i. 58:
" If case it lye in me." But see note. Earlier in Peele.
V. VI. 66. // any spark of life be yet remaining. The Spanish
Tragedy, 11. v. 17 : " O speak if any sparke of life remaine."
V. iv. 70. I need not add more fuel to your fire. See above (Part II.
IV. i. 302) for this expression from The Spanish Tragedy.
v. V. 42. Marry, and shall. See at 2 Henry VI. above (i. ii. 88).
V. V. 62. How sweet a plant have you untimely cropt. The Spanish
Tragedy, 11. v. 47 : " Sweet lovely Rose, ill pluckt before thy time." Kyd
repeats this (nearly) in Soliman and Perseda, v. iv.
Perhaps it is wrong to make those last references here, and
not in Introduction to Part III.: but it seems better to clear
the way, and finish with Kyd's play.
There is practically nothing of The Spanish Tragedy in
/ Henry VI. ; in the same way that that play bears little evid-
ence of Peele's workmanship.
But in 2 Henry VI., and in j Henry VI. (in a less degree),
there is unassailable proof that The Spanish Tragedy was made
use of. This applies, oddly enough, to the two foundation
plays in an opposite direction. Were it not for a single ex-
pression (repeated), at I. ii. 79 and XL i. 172, the influence of
the earlier play in The Contention is indiscernible. But that one
cannot be lightly set aside. In 2 Henry VI. there are enough
parallels, in Shakespearian parts of the play, to make it certain
that Shakespeare knew The Spanish Tragedy well at that time.
The suggestions may have arisen from Peele who is often hard
to separate from Kyd. In reading Soliman and Perseda Peele
is constantly recalled. When Mr. Robertson followed Mr.
Fleay in ascribing Arden of Fever sham to Kyd (further estab-
lished by Mr. Crawford) he says (in Did Shakespeare Write
Titus Andronicus? p. 153): "In Arden as in Soliman, there
are several words and phrases which seem to belong to the
special vocabulary of Peele." The " revenge model " (of play)
was common to Peele and Kyd" (p. 85) : " In one or two places
KING HENRY THE SIXTH xlix
it {Cornelia) suggests that phrases which we have been led to
assign to Peele might be Kyd's" (pp. 114, 115) and so on.
Here, however, we are on firmer ground. We have the Kyd
passages undoubtedly. It is likely that The Spanish Tragedy
preceded all these plays. We find nothing of that play in /
Hoiry VI. (where Greene is chiefly in evidence besides Shake-
speare), so little that it may be assumed it had not made its
mark — or that Shakespeare did not know it — for I do not
hesitate to say that the introduced bits of Kyd are due to him
at least as much as to Peele. And the almost total absence of
Kyd in The Contention, like the total absence of Spenser in the
same play, tends to disassociate it by some space of time from
2 Henry VI. (where both are in strong evidence), and to push
it backward to a date even earlier than / Henry VI. It is an
interesting fact that the later standard quotations from The
Spanish Tragedy do not appear in these plays. Probably be-
cause of their non-standardisation, as yet, by some well-graced
actor. We have rather the memories of a reader.
It might be said here, would it not simplify this bit of dis-
cussion to assign a part of the authorship actually to Kyd ? I
would reply that it is better to confine ourselves to the original
quartette — Shakespeare, Peele, Marlowe and Greene, with a pos-
sible fifth (Nashe or Lodge), to keep them in a ring-fence and
let in no outsiders. That is where Greene placed the issue.
Moreover, Kyd was never a chronicle drama writer, as were
these four. I am aware that Mr. Fleay draws Kyd (usually
with a query) into the welter two or three times in his Life a?td
Work of Shakespeare (pp. 258, 270, 273, 274), but I can find
no evidence from him ; only the mention of the name. Further,
I find Mr. Crawford says in Collectanea (ist series, p. 113):
" An exhaustive and painstaking examination of Kyd's work
convinces me that The Spanish Tragedy, and, perhaps, Soliman
and Perseda, as we know them now, are old plays revised."
Possibly he may have ascribed some pieces of the revision in
The Spanish Tragedy, to a date later than 2 Henry VI., in order to
simplify this difficulty, and let the reviser have borrowed from
our play. He gives no reasons for it, and it is better to omit
any further confusion of dates. He goes further still and says :
" It can be proved that they did not assume any of their known
forms prior to the year 1590." With regard to The Spanish
d
1 THE SECOND PART OF
Tragedy, the proof will needs be very cogent indeed. With
regard to the others there is no question he is right. His proof
will depend on the dates of matter borrowed (probably) from
Spenser or Marlowe.
But one conclusion he comes to is of interest, that " there
has been gross copying by Kyd" — chiefly, it seems, from Mar-
lowe's Edward 11. , to which is given "the accepted date" of
1590. To place The Spanish Tragedy after Edward II., would
relegate all chronological order of those years plays to the
melting pot.
These reminiscences from Kyd's play by the young author,
Shakespeare, are harmless pieces of ingenuousness. They are
unimportant but unmistakable, and an instance of what seems
to have been a common and recognised practice (in spite of
Greene's denunciations) amongst the brotherhood of actors and
playwrights.
We will leave Kyd now for the present. His later work is
of no such importance as The Spanish Tragedy, and probably
comes later than 2 Henry VI. After this date outside in-
fluences— influences outside his own teeming imagination — are
an ever-diminishing factor in Shakespeare's work.
I hope Mr. Crawford, to whose accuracy and research I am
continually and delightedly indebted, will forgive me for dis-
agreeing with him in these points. Perhaps his proofs may
yet be too much for me.
I leave it to my notes to point out a continuously running
series of Shakespearianisms in 2 Henry VI. It is interesting to
see how many times parallels appear from Lucrece, from Venus
and Adonis, and oddly enough from King Lear. In i Henry VI.
some such evidence had to be adduced, to convince, if it were
possible, those unbelievers in Shakespeare's presence there at
all. But I believe there are fewer supporters of those tenets
nowadays.
At the end of my notes above on The Spanish Tragedy, I
have concluded that The Contention preceded 2 Henry VL by
some considerable space of time, and preceded also / Henry
VI. in all probability, and I conceive that this is a likely
statement from the nature of the plays themselves although
dislocating their natural sequence. To that question I propose
to return at the proper place in Introduction to Part III. But
KING HENRY THE SIXTH li
I was greatly satisfied to find this view confirmed by Grant
White. He says, " The First Part of King Henry the Sixth,
though primitively nude and puerile in its structure and stage
effect, is much less antiquated in its fashioning, and more
polished in its diction and versification, than The First Part of
the Contention and The True Tragedy, and is very far superior
to any other surviving play that was produced before 1 590 or
1592." Nor does Part I. (in my opinion) present any appear-
ance what ever of having been a twice written, or a re-written
play. For a continuation of this line of argument, see Introduc-
tion to Part III., on Soliman and Perseda. And again on the
parallels found in Marlowe's Tamburlaine.
The following is P. A. Daniel's summary of his Time-
analysis of this play {New Shaks. Soc., 1 879) : " The interval
between the First and the Second Part of Henry VI., is sup-
posed to be occupied by Suffolk's negotiations for the marriage
of the King with Margaret of Anjou. . . . Time of this play,
fourteen days represented on the stage : with intervals, sug-
gesting a period in all of say, at the outside, a couple of years.
Day I. Act l. Scene i., interval (?) eighteen months: Day 2.
Act I. Scenes ii.-iv. Day 3. Act II. Scenes i. and ii., interval,
a month at least. Day 4. Act II. Scene iii., interval, at least
two days. Day 5. Act II. Scene iv., interval, about twenty-
seven days. Day 6. Act ill. Scene i., interval, a few days.
Day 7. Act III. Scenes ii. and iii., interval, three days or more.
Day 8. Act III. Scene i. Day 9. Act IV. Scenes ii. and iii.
Day 10. Act IV. Scenes iv. to vii. Day 11. Act IV. Scene viii.
Day 12. Act IV. Scene ix., interval, three or four days. Day
13. Act IV. Scene x. Day 14. Act V. Historic Period, 22
April, 1445, to 23 May, 1455.
The interval between The Second Part and The Third Part
of Henry VI., is to be supposed no greater than would be re-
quired for the flight and pursuit from St. Albans to London.
Richard makes his appearance in Scene i. with the head of
Somerset, cut off in the battle.
In conclusion, I have to mention that my Introductions to
each of these three plays cannot be judged separately. They
form a continuous whole in many ways, and I have distributed my
matter among them in the way that seemed feasible, according
as it accumulated. I must refer to the last (3rd) Introduction
lii KING HENRY THE SIXTH
for one section, my "Table of Continued Expressions" which
covers all three plays as well as the Quartos, and appeared to
me a useful and desirable piece of work. Whether my con-
clusions find supporters or not, I have at least placed an
armoury of weapons for use to demolish them in the hands of
those who wish to do so. A determined believer in Marlowe's
authorship will point triumphantly to the schedule of Tanibur-
laine parallels in the same Introduction as the very thing that
was needed. I take another meaning from it.
THE SECOND PART OF
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
DRAMATIS PERSONS
King Henry the Sixth.
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, his Uncle.
Cardinal Beaufort, Bishop of Winchester, Great-uncle to the King.
Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York.
Edward and Richard, his Sons.
Duke of Somerset.
Duke of Suffolk.
Duke of Buckingham.
Lord Clifford.
Young Clifford, his Son.
Earl of Salisbury.
Earl of Warwick.
Lord Scales, Governor of the Tower.
Lord Say.
Sir Humphrey Stafford and William Stafford, his Brother.
Sir John Stanley.
Vaux.
Matthew Goffe.^
Walter Whitmore.
A Sea Captain, Master, and Master s-Mate.
Two Gentlemen, Prisoners ivith Suffolk.
John Hume a;?^/JoHN Southwell, Priests.
Bolingbroke, a Conjurer.
Thomas Horner, an Armourer.
Peter, his Alan.
Clerk of Chatham.
Mayor of Sai?it Albans.
SiMPCOX, an Impostor.
Jack Cade, a Rebel.
George Bevis, John Holland, Dick the Butcher, Smith the
Weaver, Michael, etc., Followers of C\T)'E.
Alexander Iden, a Kentish Gentleman.
Two Murderers.
Margaret, Queen to King Henry.
Eleanor, Duchess of Gloucester.
Margery Jourdain, a Witch.
Wife to Simpcox.
Lords, Ladies, and Attendants ; Herald ; Petitioners, Aldermen,
a Beadle, Sheriff, and Officers ; Citizens, 'Prentices, Fal-
coners, Guards, Soldiers, Messetigers, etc.
A Spirit.
Scene: In various Parts of England.
I Dramatis PersoncB] Cambridge (first given imperfectly by Rowe).
8 Matthew Goffe] Cambridge.
2
THE SECOND PART OF
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
ACT I
SCENE I. — London. The palace.
Flourish of trumpets : then hautboys. Enter the KING, Duke
Humphrey, Salisbury, Warwick, and Cardinal By. au-
FORT on the one side ; the OUEEN, led in by SUFFOLK ;
York, Somerset, and Buckingham, on the other.
Suf. As by your high imperial majesty
I had in charge at my depart for France,
Note
Collation : The text being that of the First Folio, notice is taken only of
variations from it, in order to save space to present the parallel lines in The
Contention to the reader. The Contention, first printed in 1594, is the
foundation of the present play. It is styled here Q i. A second edition (Q 2)
appeared in 1600; and a third (Q 3) in i6ig. All preceded the Folio, 1623. Q 2
contains a few important corrections. Q 3 has only trifling literal variations from
Q 2. The text of Q i is that printed in Cambridge Shakespeare, vol. ix.
I. iuajesty] Maiesties command Q i.
1-3. Asby . . . procuratorlThe O'p&n- able ceremonies ended, the Marques had
ing of this play is a direct continuation the Lady Margaret to him delyuered,
from Part I. In the last speech, Suffolk which in great estate, he conueyed
announces his departure to procure through Normandy to Deepe, and so
Lady Margaret ; he has now returned to transported her into Englande, where she
present her to the king. The espousals landed at Portesmouth, in the Moneth
are thus told in Grafton (The XXIIJ ofAprill." She was " coupled in matri-
Yere) : " This noble company came to monie " at " the toun of Southwike in .
the Citie of Toures in Tourayne, where Hamshire," after which " she was . . .
they were honorably receyued both of conveyed to London, and so to Westmin-
the French King, and of the King of ster, where upon the xxx day of May,
Sicile. Where the Marques of Suffolke, she . . . was crowned Queene" (p. 625).
as procurator to King Henry, espoused i. your high imperial ma}esty]Sha.ke-
the sayde Lady, in the Church of saint speare uses this expression "yonr most
Martins. At which mariage were pre- imperial majesties " in Henry V. v. ii. 26.
sent . . . the Dukes of Orleaunce, of Compare Greene, James the Fourth
Calaber, of Alaunson, and of Britayne, (xiii. 2ig): "Most gratious and im.-
Seauen Erles, xij Barons, xx Bishops, periall Alaiestie." Marlowe preferred
beside knightes and gentlemen. There " imperious " ; Shakespeare is about
were triumphant lustes, costly feastes, equally divided,
and delicate banquets . . . these honor- 2. at my depart] Compare Greene,
4 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
As procurator to your excellence,
To marry Princess Margaret for your grace,
So, in the famous ancient city, Tours, 5
In presence of the Kings of France and Sicil,
The Dukes of Orleans, Calaber, Bretagne, and Alengon,
Seven earls, twelve barons, and twenty reverend bishops,
I have performed my task, and was espoused :
And humbly now upon my bended knee, 10
In sight of England and her lordly peers.
Deliver up my title in the queen
To your most gracious hands, that are the substance
Of that great shadow I did represent ;
The happiest gift that ever marquess gave, 1 5
The fairest queen that ever king received.
King. Suffolk, arise. Welcome, Queen Margaret :
I can express no kinder sign of love
Than this kind kiss, O Lord ! that lends me life,
Lend me a heart replete with thankfulness ; 20
For thou hast given me in this beauteous face
A world of earthly blessings to my soul,
If sympathy of love unite our thoughts.
Queen. Great King of England and my gracious lord,
3. to'] for Q I, ^. famous ancient [^auncient famous (^ i. 8, twenty] then
the Q I. 9, have performed] did performe Q i. 10. humbly now upon]
now, most humbly on Q i. knee] knees Q i. 11, lordly] royall Q i. 13. To
your most gracious hands] Vtito your gratious excellence Q i. 16. received]
possest Q I, ly-iQ- Quehi Margaret . . . kind kiss] Queene Margaret to
English Henries Court, The greatest shew of kindnesse yet we can bestow. Is
this kinde kisse Q i, 19. O , . , life] 20. Oh gracious God of heaven Q i.
21, For . . . face] 22. For in this bcautious face thou hast bcstowde Q i,
22. earthly . . . sonl]22,. pleasures to my perplexed souleQ^i. 23. If sympathy
. . . thoughts] omitted Q i. 24-31. Great King . , . doth minister] 24-29,
T/t' excessive love I beare unto your grace. Forbids me to be lavish of my tongue.
James the Fourth (xiii. 212): "And 13, 14. substance . . . shadow] See
since thy griefe exceeds in my depart, I note at i Henry VI. v. iv. 133-135. And
leave my Dorithea." He has it several at Merry Wives of Windsor, 11. ii. 216,
times again in the same play. New 217 (Arden edition, p. 95).
Eng. Diet, quotes fvom Spenser's Faerie 15,16. The happiest . . . The fairest]
Queene. See again 3 Henry VI. iv. i. See Introduction to Parti. A Spenserian
92 ; Tivo Gentlemen of Verona, v. iv. construction. Compare the lines begin-
96. Not uncommon and usually as here, ning " A braver ... A gentler " in Part
3. procurator] substitute, procurer for I. in. ii. 134, 135.
another. Only here in Shakespeare. 20. replete with] See Part I. i. i. 11
From the Chroniclers. and i. vi. 15 (notes).
II. lordly] Occurs only in 1 and 2 22. A world of] See Part I, 11. ii. 48
Henry VI. and Lucrece. See note at and iv. iv. 25 (notes). Compare (Peele's)
Part I. III. i. 43. "Lordly peers" Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v.
occurs a second time in Q at line 36 399) : " a mean to shed a world of
below. One of the most noticeable blood."
points in the remodelling of the old play 24. lavish of my tongue] Omitted here,
is the regular reduction of repetitions, but in Q is noted elsewhere. An older
See note at "proud prelate," line 140. expression than "lavish tongue,"
Greene uses it more than once.
sc. i] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 5
The mutual conference that my mind hath had 25
By day, by night, waking, and in my dreams,
In courtly company, or at my beads,
With you mine alderliefest sovereign.
Makes me the bolder to salute my king
With ruder terms, such as my wit affords, 30
And over joy of heart doth minister.
King. Her sight did ravish, but her grace in speech,
Her words y-clad with wisdom's majesty,
Makes me from wondering fall to weeping joys ;
Such is the fulness of my heart's content. 35
Lords, with one cheerful voice welcome my love.
All\kneeling\ Long live Queen Margaret, England's happiness !
Queen. We thank you all. S^Flourish.
Suf. My lord protector, so it please your grace,
Here are the articles of contracted peace 40
Between our sovereign and the French King Charles,
For eighteen months concluded by consent.
Glou. " Imprimis, It is agreed between the French King
Charles and William de la Pole, Marquess of Suffolk,
ambassador for Henry King of England, that the said 45
Henry shall espouse the Lady Margaret, daughter unto
Least I should speake more than besecmes a woman ; Let this suffice, my blisse is
in your liking. And ywthing can make poore Margaret miserable, Vnlesse the
frowne of mightie Englands King Q i. 32-36. Her sight . . . my love] Her
lookes did wound, but tiow her speech doth pierce. Lovely [Queene Margaret sit
doTn'i by my side : And vnckle Gloster, and you Lordly Peeres, With one voice
welcome my beloiied Queene Q i. 38. {Flourish] Sound trumpets (after We
thank you all 35) Q i. 40. of contracted \ 37. confirmde of (^ 1. 42. For
. . . consent] 39. Till terme of eighteene months be full expirde. 46. shall
espouse] 42, 43. shal wed and espouse Q i. 46. unto] to Q i.
28. alderliefest] dearest of all. Not latest used perhaps in " yclept," as in
again in Shakespeare. Greene has Love's Labour's Lost, i.'i. 7.i^2 [ycXeTpftd)
"mine aldertruest love" in jfames the and v. ii. 602 (ycliped) ; "y-ravished"
Fourth (Grosart, xiii. 322). " Alderlie- and " y-slaked " are in Pmc/f5. Greene
fest" occurs several times in Chaucer, has "yblent" (viii. 122). Spenser em-
from " alder," the old genitive plural of ploys it very commonly. Not in Q.
"all." See New Eng. Diet, in v. All, D3. 34. weeping joys] Malonesays: " This
It was in use down to 1600. Not in Q. weeping joy, of which there is no trace
31. over joy] greater, higher joy. in the original play, Shakespeare was
"Over" is an adjective here. "Lavish extremely fond of ; having introduced it
of my tongue," in Q (25), is noted on at in Much Ado About Nothing, King
" lavish tongue," Part I. 11. v. 47. In Richard II., Macbeth and King Lear."
the same speech "Let this suffice" 43. /w^Wwns] in the first place. See
(27) is a Shakespearian expression. See again Two Gentlemen of Verona, m. i.
Winter's Tale, i. ii. 235 ; 3 Henry IV. 274, 302, and Taming of the Shrew, IV.
III. ii. 178. It is in Greene's Orlando i. 68, iv. iii. 135. In Marlowe's J^je' 0/
Furioso several times. Not in Q. Malta (1590) and Greene's Looking
33. y-clad] an archaism, at this time ; Glasse for London {ante 1592) in trivial
the old past participle with ge. It was use.
6 THE SECOTs^D PART OF [act i.
Reignier King of Naples, Sicilia, and Jerusalem, and
crown her Queen of England ere the thirtieth of May
next ensuing. Item, that the duchy of Anjou and
the county of Maine shall be released and delivered 50
to the king her father " — {^Lets the paper fall.
King. Uncle, how now !
Glou. Pardon me, gracious lord ;
Some sudden qualm hath struck me at the heart
And dimmed mine eyes, that I can read no further.
King. Uncle of Winchester, I pray, read on. 55
Car. " Item, It is further agreed between them, that the
duchies of Anjou and Maine shall be released and de-
livered over to the king her father, and she sent over
of the King of England's own proper cost and charges,
without having any dowry." 60
King. They please us well. Lord marquess, kneel down :
We here create thee the first Duke of Suffolk,
47, Raynard . . . Sicilia] 44. Regnier . . . Cysscls Q i. 48. thirtieth of
May next ensuing'] 45. 30 of the next month Q i. 49. Item, that] 46. Item.
It is further agreed betweene them that Q i. " Q 1 " will be omitted in future ;
collations not otherwise referenced will belong to Q i. 50- delivered] 47.
delivered over. 51. Lets the paper fall] 48. Duke Humphrey lets it fall Q;
omitted Ff. 52. Uncle . . . lord] 50, 51. How now vnkle, whats the matter
that you stay so sodenly. Humph. Pardon, my lord. 53. some . . . heart]
50. a sodain qualme came over my heart. 54. And dimmed . . . further] 51.
which dimmes . . . more. 55. King. Uncle . . . read on] 52. Vncle . . . you
reade on. 57. Maine] 54. of Mayne. 60. without having any dowry] 56.
without dowry. 61-68. They please . . .] prose in Q i. 62. the] 58.
omitted Q.
48. ere the thirtieth of May] See under " Charge." " Upon their own
extract at beginning of scene. For the proper costs and charges " is a translation
remainder of this "article," and the oi suis &' eoi-um propriis sumptibus &•
following " item " relative to Anjou and expensis in Letters Patents granted to the
Maine, see Part I. v, iii. 154 and notes. Cabots by Henry VII., 1495 (Hakluyt
53. sudden qualm] "Qualm" is in edition, 1810-1812, pp. 25-26, vol. ni.),
Love's Labour '5 Lost, v. ii. 279 (see note, 1600. Compare Peele, Old Wives Tale
Arden edition) and in Much Ado (Dyce, 452, a) : " I '11 bestow one peal
About Nothing. "Sudden qualm" is of Jack at mine own proper costs and
in Greene's iames the Fourth (xiii. charges." And in Nashe, Unfortunate
297) :— Traveller (Grosart, v. 70), 1594- See
" Woes me, for him I moane : below, 1. 132.
Helve now helpe a. suddaine qualme 62. create thee the first Duke of
Assayles my heart" Suffolk] This occurred the year after-
(fwa 1590-1591). Kyd used this in wards (1445, The XXIIIJ Yere) :" This
Soliman and Perseda, 11. i. 49-50; and Marques thus gotten up into fortunes
(probably) in Arden of Feversham, v. trone, not content with his degree, by
i' 308. the meanes of the Queene was shortly
=^7.' released] surrendered, given up. erected to the estate and degree of
An old use. a Duke, & ruled the King at his
59. own proper cost and charges] An pleasure" (Grafton, p. 627). He had
old expression generally used in connec- been raised from Earl to Marquis before
tion with large expenses involved in sailing to France for the conveyance of
state affairs. Not dealt with in New the Queen. In the same year (1445),
Eng. Diet, although this passage is cited Grafton says (p. 626) : " It was openly
sc. I.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 7
And girt thee with the sword. Cousin of York,
We here discharge your grace from being regent
r the parts of France, till term of eighteen months 65
Be full expired. Thanks, uncle Winchester,
Gloucester, York, Buckingham, Somerset,
Salisbury, and Warwick ;
We thank you all for this great favour done,
In entertainment to my princely queen. 70
Come, let us in, and with all speed provide
To see her coronation be performed.
[Exeunt King^ Queen, and Suffolk.
Glou. Brave peers of England, pillars of the state,
To you Duke Humphrey must unload his grief,
Your grief, the common grief of all the land. 75
What ! did my brother Henry spend his youth.
His valour, coin, and people, in the wars ?
Did he so often lodge in open field,
In winter's cold, and summer's parching heat,
63. girt'\ Q, Ff ; gird, Cambridge. 65. /' the\ Ff ; in the Q. 67. Bucking-
ham] 62. ami Buckingham. 72. Exeunt . . . ] 65. Exet . . . and Duke
Humphrey staies all the rest. Exit . . . Manet the rest. F i. 73. Glou.] 67.
Humphrey (and throughout). 74. unload] 68. unfold. 75. Your . . . land]
omitted Q. 76. spend Jiis youtli] 6g. toyle Iiiinselfe. 77-8o. His valour . . .
inheritance] 70. And waste his subjects for to conqucre France?
knowen, that the French king was redie That might strike terror to our
in all thinges to make open warre, if daring foes ? "
no peace . . . were agreed. For which 78. lodge in . . . field] Compare
consideracion, money was graunted, men Love's Labour's Lost, 11. i. 85: "He
were appoynted, and a great armie rather means to lodge you in the field."
gathered together, and the Duke of " Lodge " in the sense of " lie " is a
Sommerset was appoynted Regent of favourite verb with Shakespeare. A
Normandie, and tlie Duke of Yorke common Biblical sense. It occurs com-
thereof discharged" (Hall, p. 206). monly in the Chroniclers, as in Grafton's
See line 64. military operations of Edward the III. :
63. girt] See Part I. in. i. 171 and " /orf^e^ on the sandes " (363); "lodged
note. in the feldes" {^jo).
" My colours I advance, 78. open field] Not elsewhere in
And girt me with my sword, and Shakespeare. Compare Peele, Old
shake my lance " Wives Talc (452, b) : "Away with
(Peele, Descensus Astrcrce (Dyce, 542, him into the open fields." See quota-
fa), 1591). And see pp. 549, a, and 557, b, tion from Locrine at " burgonet," v. i.
for other examples. Compare "rents," 204.
Part HI. III. ii. 175. In Greene and 79. In winter's cold . . . parching
Spenser. heat] Compare Lucrece, 1145 : "That
65,66. term . . .full expired] Com- knows not parching heat nor freezing
pare Peele, SiV C/>'o?MOM (506, b) :" Now cold"; "Sun's parching heat" occurs
are the ten days full expired wherein," in Part 1. 1. ii. 77. Compare this speech
etc. and the succeeding ones by York and
73. pillars of the state] Similarly in Warwick with those by York and War-
Locrine, v. i. : — wick to the same purpose in the last
" Now who is left to helpless Albion, scene but one of Part I. They are less
That as a pillar might uphold our developed here in the Quarto. This
state, may imply that the Quarto is by the
8 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
To conquer France, his true inheritance ? 80
And did my brother Bedford toil his wits,
To keep by policy what Henry got?
Have you yourselves, Somerset, Buckingham,
Brave York, Salisbury, and victorious Warwick,
Received deep scars in France and Normandy ? 85
Or hath mine uncle Beaufort and myself,
With all the learned council of the realm,
Studied so long, sat in the council-house
Early and late, debating to and fro
How France and Frenchmen might be kept in awe? go
And hath his highness in his infancy
Crowned in Paris, in despite of foes?
And shall these labours and these honours die ?
Shall Henry's conquest, Bedford's vigilance,
Your deeds of war and all our counsel die ? 95
O peers of England ! shameful is this league,
Fatal this marriage, cancelling your fame,
Blotting your names from books of memory,
Razing the characters of your renown,
81. And . . . toil his 'o.'its]ji. And . . . spend his time. 82. To . . . got?]
72. To kcepe in awe that stout vnruly Realme ? S3-85. Have you . . Nor-
mandy] omitted Q. 86-95. Or hath mine tincle Beaufort . . . all our counsel
die ?] 7 V75. And have not I and mine vncle Bewford here, Done all we could to
keepe that lande in peace? And is all our labours then spent in vaine. 96-
loi. 0 peers . . . had fiever been] ~g-Si. Ah lords, fatall is this marriage can-
selling our states. Reversing Monuments . . . as none had nere bene done
same hand as Part I., in this position, 88. council-house] Occurs again,
and that he did not feel called on to Richard III. iii. v. 38. Not in Q.
labour those peers' grumbling a second 89. to and fro] See Part I. 11. i. 69;
time. "Summer's parching heat" is and below, iv. viii. 57 ; and A'iw^ L^nr,
an expression of Peele's. See An iii. i. 11. Not in Q in either passage
Eclogue Gratulatory (Dyce, 562, b), in this play. In Kyd, Spanish Tra-
1589 : — gedie ; Golding's Ovid ; Spenser, Faerie
"From sea, from shore, where he Q'leene, etc.
with swink and sweat, 97- cancelling . . . fame] Often so
Felt foeman's rage and summer's used in Shakespeare : " cancel all
parching heat, grudge " {Two Gentlemen of Verona,
Safe is he come." v. iv. 143) ; " ca7icell'd love" {Romeo
And for the whole passage, compare ".^^d yidiet, iii. iii. 98); '' cancelled
Peele's David and Bethsabe (468, b) :— '^°^<, ^^P"!"-^^ ^°^- . . .
" Joab and his brother m the fields, , 9^' ^^''^^l^'S ■ • .600.^5] Compare
Suffering the wrath of winter and I-'icrece,g^b : To blot old books and
the sun " ^ '" '"^u' contents.
98. 600^5 o/;«fwor>'] This expression
Note omission of " for to " from Q. See is in Part 1. 11. iv. loi. Not in Q. Peele
Tamburlame, Part II. in. n. (55, a) for uses it similarly, but later. Compare
parallel. It is found later (1592) in Marlowe, raw6«r/a»Ktf, Part II. iii. i.:—
Arden of Feversham, Act n., attributed "all the world should blot his
to Kyd by Fleay. dignities
81. toil his wits] Kyd has "This Out of the book of base-born
toyles my body, this consumeth age " infamies."
{Spanish Tragedy, in. vi. 8). gg. Razing . . . renown] Compare
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
9
Defacing monuments of conquered France, lOO
Undoing all, as all had never been.
Car. Nephew, what means this passionate discourse,
This peroration with such circumstance ?
For France, 'tis ours ; and we will keep it still.
Glou. Ay, uncle ; we will keep it, if we can ; 105
But now it is impossible we should.
Suffolk, the new-made duke that rules the roast,
Hath given the duchy of Anjou and Maine
Unto the poor King Reignier, whose large style
Agrees not with the leanness of his purse. 1 10
Sal. Now, by the death of Him that died for all.
These counties were the keys of Normandy.
But wherefore weeps Warwick, my valiant son ?
102. Nephew . . . discourse'] 82. Why how now cosin Gloster, what needs this ?
103, 104. This peroration . . . keep it still] omitted Q. 105, 106. Ay, uncle
. . . we should] omitted Q. 107-110. Suffolk . . . purse] (transfer to Glou-
cester's last speech) 76-78. For Suffolke he, the new made . . . roast, Hath given
away for our King Henries Queene, The Dutches of Anioy and Maync unto her
father. in, 112. Sal. Now by . . . keys of Normandy] omitted Q. 113.
But . , . %)aliant son?] (transferred to Salisbury's next speech, last line, 130
But . . . noble sonne.
Sonnet 25 : "Is from the book of
honour razed quite." Not in Q.
103. peroration] Not again in Shake-
speare. The earliest example in New
Eng. Diet, in the untechnical sense.
Not in Q.
107. new-made duke] See note, 1. 62.
107. rules the roast] domineers, takes
the lead — as if presiding over the head
of the table. Not again in Shakespeare.
An attempt to translate this phrase into
"rule the roost" is against the history
of the expression and entirely false.
A few early references may be given,
but it is needless to quote so common
a phrase which is in all the collections.
It occurs in Debate of the Carpenter's
Tools (Hazlitt, Early Popular Poetry, i.
85), circa 1500 in Skelton, Colin Clout
(1518), and his Why Come Ye not to
Courte (1522) ; in Heywood, The Four
PP. (Hazlitt's Dodsley, i. 361), circa
1540 ; in Udall's Erasmus (Robert's re-
print, p. 294), 1542 ; in North's Plutarch,
Solon (Tudor Trans, i. 223), 1579 ; in
Lyly's Euphues (Arber, p. 134), 1580 ;
in Watson's Poems (Arber, p. 82),
ante 1590, and abundantly later. It is
possible some writers capriciously gave
it the roosting sense. Here, however,
we are concerned with Greene's inter-
pretation, which is undoubted. Com-
pare Mamillia (Grosart, ii. 285), 1583 :
" as the common prouerbe saith, to
rule the rost after her owne diet."
Greene repeats these words in The
Carde of Fancie (Grosart, iv. 133),
1587. The expression is appropriate
here, since it occurs in Hall and
Grafton, of Queen Margaret : " Which
then ruled the rost and bare the whole
rule" (TheXXXIIJ Yere).
log. large style] grandiose title. The
closing \yords of this speech are un-
doubtedly Shakespeare's. Grafton has :
" For King Reyner, her father, for all
his long style, had to short a pursse,
to send his daughter honorably to the
king her spouse " (p. 625).
111. by . . . Him . . . all] Compare
Kyd, Spanish Tragedy : " I sweare to
both by him that made us all" (11. i. 89)
(Boas). And Peele's yack Straw (Haz-
litt's Dodsley, v. 406) : " By him that
died for me I will not dine Till I," etc.
See Part III. 11. ii. 124.
112. keys of Normandy] See note at
line 214 below. The expression occurs
in a different connection in Grafton (and
Hall). The XXVJ Yere: " Pount-
larche taken and surprised, which
towne was the key and passage over
the Riuer of Some, from Fraunce to
Normandie" (p. 633).
10 THE SECOND PART OF [act i
War. For grief that they are past recovery :
For, were there hope to conquer them again, 1 1 5
My sword should shed hot blood, mine eyes no tears.
Anjou and Maine ! myself did win them both ;
Those provinces these arms of mine did conquer :
And are the cities, that I got with wounds,
Delivered up again with peaceful words? 120
Mort Dieu !
York. For Suffolk's duke, may he be suffocate.
That dims the honour of this warlike isle !
France should have torn and rent my very heart
Before I would have yielded to this league, 125
I never read but England's kings have had
Large sums of gold and dowries with their wives ;
And our King Henry gives away his own,
To match with her that brings no vantages.
Glou. A proper jest, and never heard before, 130
That Suffolk should demand a whole fifteenth
114-121. War. For grief . . . Mort Dicii !] 131-134. War. For griefe tJiat
all is lost that Warivick won. Sonnes, Anjoy, and Maine, both giuen away at
once, Why, Warwick did win them &• must that then which we wonnc with our
swords he giuen away with wordes. 122-125. For Suffolk's duke . . . this
league] omitted Q. 126-128. I never read . . . his own] 135-137. As I have
read, our Kingcs 0/ England were woont to have large dowries with their wives,
but our . . . his owne. 129. To match . . . vantages] om\X.t& A C^. 130-135.
Glou. A proper jest . . . grow too hot] omitted Q.
118. these arms of mine] Occurs This wrathful hand should strike
again Part III. 11. v. 114 : " These arms thee to the heart."
of mine shall be thy winding sheet." 122. Suffolk . . . suffocate] This is
The construction is frequent in Shake- paralleled by the Maine quibble below,
speare. See note at the latter line 1. 207. And see protector in Part I. (i.
for reference to Marlowe. " Of thine" iii. 8, 9) ; and the nominal puns at i. iv.
occurs several times, but only, I think, 107 (Part I.). See too Pool and Pole at
in the earliest work. See Part I. 11. iv. i. 70.
iii. 39: "I will chain these legs and 129. match with] Compare Part I. v.
anns of thine." And Marlowe, Tarn- v. 66. Match (verb), meaning " marry,"
burlainc. Part II. iv. iii. (65, a) : " This is frequent in Shakespeare. Not in Q.
unconquered arm of mine," and else- 129. vantages] advantages. Common
where. in Shakespeare. Not in Q.
iig, 120. got with wounds, Delivered 130. A proper jest] Compare Much
. . . with words] "Won w\\.\\ swords" Ado About Nothing, i. iii. 54: "A
and "given with words," in Q, is proper squire!"; and iv. i. 312: "A
neater ; and it is not forgotten. See proper saying ! " And Henry VIII. i. i.
Merry Wives of Windsor, iii. i. 44, and 98 : "A proper title ! "
note in Arden edition, p. 113. And in 1^1. fifteenth] a tax of one-fifteenth
2 Henry IV. iv. ii. 10. It is in Gosson, levied on personal property. The term
School of Abuse (Arber, p. 52), 1579: occurs often in the Chronicles. See
"Let . . . the word and the sword be note at Part I. v. v. 93. Grafton has
knit togither." (XIX Yere of Edward the Thirdc) :
121. MorifDJf?(./] This expletive is not "And in the sayde Parliament was
again in Shakespeare. It is used by graunted unto the king toward the
Marlowe, Massacre at Paris (237, a) : — finishj-ng and ending of his v.-arres with
" Mort Dieu ! were not the fruit Fraunce, of the commons and of the
within thy womb . . . Townes and Cities of the Realme of Eng-
sc. i] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 11
For costs and charges in transporting her !
She should have stayed in France, and starved in France,
Before —
Car. My Lord of Gloucester, now ye grow too hot : 135
It was the pleasure of my lord the king.
Glou. My lord of Winchester, I know your mind :
'Tis not my speeches that you do mislike.
But 'tis my presence that doth trouble ye.
Rancour will out: proud prelate, in thy face 140
I see thy fury. If I longer stay
We shall begin our ancient bickerings.
Lordings, farewell ; and say, when I am gone,
I prophesied France will be lost ere long. {Exit.
Car. So, there goes our protector in a rage. 145
'Tis known to you he is mine enemy.
Nay, more, an enemy unto you all.
And no great friend, I fear me, to the king.
135, 136. Car. My Lord . . . the king] 82-87. Card. Why how now cosin
Gloster, what needs this? As if our king were bound unto your will, And might
not do his will without your leave, Proud Protector envy in thine eyes I see, The
big swolne venonie of thy hatefull heart. That dares presume gainst that thy
Soueraigne likes. 137-144. Gloji. My lord . . . ere long] 88-92. Humphr.
Nay my Lord tis not my words that troubles you, But tny presence, proud Prelate
as thou art : But He begone and giiie thee leave to speakc. Farewell my Lords,
and say when . . . would . . . ere long. 145, 146. So, there goes . . . mine
enemy] 93, 94. There goes . . . My Lords you know he is my great enemy.
147-155. Nay, more . . . be wise and circumspect] omitted Q.
lande, foure fiftenes to be paide in two 140. proud prelate] A.i2i.vo\inte{orma.-
yeres next folowing. And likewise ye tion of Greene's, especially when allit-
Clergy graunted unto him three fiftenes eration lent its artful aid. In The
to be paid in three yeres " (p. 358). In Contention "Proud Protector" occurs
Arnold's Chronicle (1500), in "A Proui- four lines higher up than "proud pre-
sion to brynge Henry the VI. oute of the late," and a little lower down is " proud
debt," the term is a quynzymc. Lancaster." Shakespeare omits the
132. costs and charges] See note first of these. See note at " lordly," line
above, line 59, Frequent in Hall and 11.
Grafton. See the latter at p. 233 {King 142. bickerings] wranglings, conten-
lohn, The VIIJ Yere) : "Of his awne tion. In this secondary sense Gabriel
costes and charges he sent his messen- Harvey uses the word earlier (1573).
gers vnto Rome " ; and p. 379: " he hath 143. Lordings] An early form of ad-
suftered me to abide here so long, the dress equivalent to "Sirs!" " Gentle-
which hath beene greatly to my costes men!" amply illustrated in New Bug,
and charges." It occurs in Grafton's Diet, back to 1200. The contemptuous
earlier Continuation 0/ Hardyjig,^. ^^8 sense of "little lord" (See Puttenham,
{1543). 1589, Arber, p. 229) is not present here.
135, 136. big-swolne] In the Cardinal's Shakespeare uses the word again in
speech here Q has " big-swolne Winter's Tale. Not in Q. Peele is
venom." See note at Part III. 11. ii. iii very fond of it : '^ Lordings adieu" (Fto\.
where this line occurs (almost) in Trw^ to Arraignment); " Lordings behold"
Tragedie and in the final text. One of {Descensus Astrcece) ; and elsewhere,
the many proofs of continuity of author- And Locrine, i. i. : "And in you, lord-
ship in these plays. " Big swolne ings, doth the substance lie." See 3
phrases " occurs in jferonvmo, i. i. 56 Henry VI. i. i. 50 (note).
(1605).
12 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
Consider, lords, he is the next of blood,
And heir apparent to the English crown : 150
Had Henry got an empire by his marriage,
And all the wealthy kingdoms of the west,
There 's reason he should be displeased at it.
Look to it, lords ; let not his smoothing words
Bewitch your hearts ; be wise and circumspect. i 5 5
What though the common people favour him.
Calling him "Humphrey, the good Duke of Gloucester,"
Clapping their hands, and crying with loud voice
" Jesu maintain your royal excellence ! "
With " God preserve the good Duke Humphrey ! " 160
I fear me, lords, for all this flattering gloss,
He will be found a dangerous protector.
Buck. Why should he then protect our sovereign,
He being of age to govern of himself?
156-160. What though the common people . . . good Duke Humphrey] 97-100.
For well you see, if he but walke the streets, The comttion people swarme about
him straight, Crying, lesiis hlesse your royall exellence. With . . . Hum-
phrey. 161, 162. I fear me . . . protector] 95-96 and loi, 102. And though he
be Protector of the land. And thereby covers his deceit full thoughts, . . . And
many things besides that are not knowne, Which time will bring to light in
smooth Duke Humphrey. 163, 164. Why should . . . of himself ] omitted Q.
165-167. Cousin of . . . his seat] 106-108.' Cosen of Somerset be rulde by me,
Weele watch Duke Humphrey and the Cardinall too. And put them from the
marke they faine would hit. 163-166. Btick . . . join . . . Suffolk] 109.
Somerset, thanks cosin Buckingham, joyne thou with me. And both of us . . .
Suffolke.
154. Look to it] be on your guard, yet wanted he backbiters and privie en-
Characteristic of Shakespeare. vyers " (p. 630). This passage is neither
154. smoothing words] Occurs again in Hall nor Holinshed. Again, at p.
in Richard HI. i. ii. i6g. Not in Q. 633 : "that William de la Poole, late
155. circumspect] Shakespeare uses created Duke of Suffolke, and diuers
this word again only in Richard III. iv. other, were the occasion of the death
ii. 31. Not in Q. It is in (Peele's) of the sayd Duke of Gloucester, which
yack Straw : — was the very father of the countrie, and
" A little spark hath kindled all this the shielde and defence of the poore
fire Commonaltie." See note at iii. i. 20:
Which must be quench'd with cir- " Humphrey is no little man."
cumspect Tegavd" 157. calling him ''Humphrey"] See
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 389). And Seli- note below at iii. i. 20.
mus (Grosart's Greene, xiv. 222): "be 161. ^/oss] A favourite term in Shake-
close and circumspect." It is not a speare, both literally and in transferred
Greene word. use. Not in Q.
156,157- the common people . . .good 162, 163. protector . . . protect our]
Duke of Gloucester] Gva.i:tonha.s: " And See note at suffocate, above, 1. 122.
thus much for the noble prowesse and Two lines in Q (loi, 102) omitted here,
vertue, ioyned with lyke Ornamentes of appear below (with a little difference in
knowledge and learning shyning in this the first) at iii. i. 64, 65, gi/en to Buck-
Duke : For the which as before hath ingham.
appered, he was both loued of the com- 163, 164. Why should he then . . .
mons and well spoken of of all men, and being of age] Grafton says this of Queen
no lesse deserving the same, being called Margaret (pp. 628, 629) : " This woman
the good Duke of Gloucester : so neythei perceyving that her husbande . . . did
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 13
Cousin of Somerset, join you with me, 165
And all together, with the Duke of Suffolk,
We'll quickly hoise Duke Humphrey from his seat.
Car. This weighty business will not brook delay ;
I '11 to the Duke of Suffolk presently. \Exit.
Som. Cousin of Buckingham, though Humphrey's pride 170
And greatness of his place be grief to us,
Yet let us watch the haughty cardinal :
His insolence is more intolerable
Than all the princes' in the land beside :
If Gloucester be displaced, he'll be protector. 175
Buck. Or thou or I, Somerset, will be protector,
Despite Duke Humphrey or the cardinal.
\_Exeuni Buckingham and Somerset.
Sal. Pride went before, ambition follows him.
While these do labour for their own preferment,
Behoves it us to labour for the realm. 180
167. Buck. . . . We 'II . . . seat] 112. Somerset. . . . Weele quickly heave
Duke Humphrey from his seate. 168, 169. Car. This weighty . . . presentlyl
103-104. (end of speech beginning 93) But I will after him, and if I can He laie
a plot to heave him from his seate. Exet. Cardinall. 170-171. omitted Q.
172. Somerset. . . . Yet let us watch this hanghtie Cardinally 105. Buck. But
let us watch this hanghtie Cardinall. 173-175. His insolence . . . protector]
omitted Q. 176, 177. Buck. Or thou or I . . . Cardinal] 112, 113. Buck.
Content, Come then let ns about it straight. For either thou or I will be Protector.
Exet. Buckingham atid Somerset . 178-180. Pride . . . for the realm] 11^-116.
Pride . . . follows after. Whilst these do seeke their owne preferments thus,
My Lords, let us seeke for our Countries good.
all thing by the aduise and counsayle Ft«m50 (xiii. 185) :" To vaile thy plumes
of Humfrey, Duke of Gloucester . . . and heave thee from thy pompe." The
determined ... to take uppon her the latter expression is also in Peele. See
rule and regiment . . . least men should note at v. i. 61. And below, 1. 241.
say and report that she had neyther wyt 172. haughty cardinal] See note at
nor stomack, which would permit and Part I. i. iii. 23, 85. "Let us watch"
suffer her husband, being of perfite age in this line is repeated in the Quarto,
... to be governed by the disposition next line but one.
of an other man." See below, iii. 45, 46. 175. displaced] See quotation at " de-
167. hoise . . . from his seat] The faced," below, iv. i. 42.
process of rewriting is interesting here. 178. Pride went before, ambition fol-
The expression "hoise from his seat" is lows him] A modification of an ancient
not again in Shakespeare. In the Con- proverb (in Ray, ed. 1742, p. 148) :
;tf»ifJOM it is "heave from his seat," which ''Pride goes before, and shame follows
is repeated immediately afterwards. This after." See Skelton, Poems against
would necessitate its elimination ; but at Garnasche (Dyce, i. 131), circa 1500;
V. i. 36 below, "heave proud Somerset Barclay, Ship of Fooles (Reprint, ii.
from out the court" in the Contention 164), 1509; Heywood's Proverbs (ed.
is altered to "remove proud Somerset Sharman, p. 46), 1546; Nashe, Pierce
from the king," while at v. i. 61 " To Penilesse (Grosart, ii. 14), 1592 ; Jon-
heave the Duke of Somerset from son. Chapman and Marston, Eastward
hence" is hardly changed. In this Ho! iv. i (1605); Taylor's Works, ii.
speech the Quarto {Contention) has " the 133 (1630). And in Camden's Remaines
mark they fain would hit." This occurs Halliwell gives a reference to Wyntoun's
below{inboth)at 1. 241. Hence its omis- Chronicle (circa 1400).
sion here. Compare Greene, Orlando 180. Behoves it us] Compare Spanish
14
THE SECOND PART OF
[act
I never saw but Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester,
Did bear him like a noble gentleman.
Oft have I seen the haughty cardinal
More like a soldier than a man o' the church,
As stout and proud as he were lord of all, 185
Swear like a ruffian and demean himself
Unlike the ruler of a commonweal.
Warwick, my son, the comfort of my age.
Thy deeds, thy plainness, and thy house-keeping.
Hath won the greatest favour of the commons, 190
Excepting none but good Duke Humphrey :
And, brother York, thy acts in Ireland,
In bringing them to civil discipline,
181,182. I never . . . Jioble gentlemaji] omitted Q. iS^-iSy. Oft have I seen
... a commo7iweal] 117-iig. Oft . . . this haughtie Cardinall sweare, and
forsweare himselfe, and brave it out, More like a Rtiffin then a man of Church.
188-190. Warivick,my son . . . favour of the commo)is] I2yi2^. And thou, brave
Warwicke, my thrice valiant sonne, Thy simple plainnesse and thy house-keeping.
Hath wonne thee credit amongst the common sort. igi. Excepting . . . Hum-
phrey] omitted Q. 192-196. And, brother Yorke . . . the people] 120, 121.
Cosin Yorke, the victories thou hast wonne, In Ireland, Normandie, and in France,
Hath wonne thee immortal praise in England.
Tragedy, iv. iii. 27: " Behooues thee
then, Hieronimo, to be reueng'd."
186. demean himself] behave himself.
See Comedy of Errors, iv. iii. 83 and
V. i. 88. And below, i. iii. 106 ; and
Part III. I. iv. 7. In Q at i. iii. 106.
187. commonweal] In his later plays,
excepting once in Measure for Measure,
II. i. 42, Shakespeare has " common-
wealth." " Commonweal " occurs four
times in this play, four times in Titus
Andronicns, and once in Part I. Not
in Q.
188. Warwick, my son] " Thrice-
valiant son" of the Contention. The
adjective occurs in Tit^is Andronicns
and in Henry V. It occurs in Peele's
Edward I. {circa 1589) : " Simon de
Montfort, her thrice-valiant son." See
Introduction to Part I.
188-190. Warwick . . . thy house-
keeping . . . favour of the cointnons]
Grafton says : " Erie of Warwike . . .
This Richard was not only a man
of excellent qualities, but also from
his youth . . . set himselfe forward
with wittie and gentle demeanour, to
all persons of high and of lowe
degree, that among all sortes of
people he obteyned great love ... by
fiis abundant liberalitie and plentifull
house keeping ... by reason of which
doings, he was in suche favour and
estimation among the common people,
that they iudged him able to doe all
things" (p. 652, The XXXIJ Yere).
This is a much more satisfactory source
than that quoted by Boswell Stone
from Holinshed. See below, i. iii. 72.
i8g. house-keeping] hospitahty. See
Love's Labour's Lost, 11, i. 104 (and
note, Arden edition).
191. good Duke Humphrey] See note
at line 156.
192. 193. York . . . in Ireland . . .
civil discipline] In the twenty-seventh
year (p. 634) Grafton writes: "A new
rebellyon began in Ireland, to the
great displeasure of the King and
his counsaill ; for repressing whereof,
Richard Duke of Yorke, with a con-
venient number of men, was sent
thether as lieutenant to the king, which
not onely appeased the fury of the
wilde & savage people there, but also
gat him such loue and favor of the
countrey and the inhabitaunts that their
sincere loue and friendly aifection coulde
never be separated from him and his
lignage, as in the sequele of this storie
you shall more plainely perceive."
See below, iii. i. 309, 310.
193. to civil discipline] Compare
(Peele's) Jack Strazi' (Hazlitt's Dods-
ley, v. 39S) :—
" If clemency may win their raging
minds
To civil order I '11 approve it first."
I
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 15
Thy late exploits done in the heart of France,
When thou wert regent for our sovereign, 195
Have made thee feared and honoured of the people.
Join we together for the public good,
In what we can to bridle and suppress
The pride of Suffolk and the cardinal,
With Somerset's and Buckingham's ambition ; 200
And, as we may, cherish Duke Humphrey's deeds,
While they do tend the profit of the land.
War. So God help Warwick, as he loves the land,
And common profit of his country ! 204
York. [Aside.] And so says York, for he hath greatest cause.
Sn/. Then let 's make haste away, and look unto the main.
War. Unto the main ! O father, Maine, is lost !
That Maine which by main force Warwick did win.
And would have kept so long as breath did last :
Main chance, father, you meant ; but I meant Maine, 210
Which I will win from France, or else be slain.
[Exeunt Warwick and Salisbury.
York. Anjou and Maine are given to the French ;
Paris is lost ; the state of Normandy
Stands on a tickle point now they are gone.
197-202. yoin we together . . . profit of the land] 126-129. The reverence of
mine age, and Nevels name, Is of no little force if I command. Then let us
ioyne all three in one for this. That good Duke Humphrey may his state
possesse. 198-200. In what . . . ambition] omitted Q. 203-205. Omitted
Q. 206-211. Then let 's . . . the main . . . be slain] 138-142. Come sonnes
away and lookc . . . War. Which Warivicke by tnain force did win from France
. . . or else be slaine. Exet Salsbjiry atidWarwicke. 212-233. Anjoii • • • of
Calydon] omitted Q.
194. exploits] military undertakings. 206. look unto the main] A gambling
A favourite word in Shakespeare, term. It occurs in Lyly's Euphues,
familiar from the Chroniclers' usage. 1580: "Always have an eye to the
"Employed upon the cxployte and wa)'«^, whatsoeuer thou art chaunced
expedition of the full fynishing and at the buy" (Arber, p. 430). See
ending of the warres with Fraunce " Grosart's Greene, vol. x. Name
(Grafton, Edward the Thirde, The quibbling is plentiful in these plays,
XVIIJ Yere, p. 358). And in the and always in Shakespeare.
XX Yere (p. 366): "For Goddes sake 213, 214. the state of Normandy . . .
asswage somewhat your courage . . . no7u they are gone] See above, line 112 :
ye have a great exployt to do before " These counties were the keys of Nor-
ye come to Calice." mandy." Grafton says (p. 625) : "For
197. Join we] See note at " embrace her mariage, the Duchie of Aniow, the
we," Part I. 11. i. 13. An old construe- Citie of Mauns, and the whole Countie
tion very much affected by Shakespeare, of Mayne were delivered and released
Not in Q. to King Reyner her father, which
ig8, 199. bridle . . . the pride] See Countries were the very stayes and
below, IV. vii. 112 ("bridle remorse") ; backestandes to the Duchie of Nor-
and Part III. iv. iv. ig (" bridle pas- mandie."
sion"). Restrain. An ancient usage, not 214. tickle] Greene has the word
common in Shakespeare, but frequent earlier in Mamillia and in The Carde
in Greene, in Alphonsiis, and elsewhere, of Fancie. Compare Hamlet, 11. ii. 337.
16
THE SECOND PART OF
[act I.
Suffolk concluded on the articles, 215
The peers agreed, and Henry was well pleased
To change two dukedoms for a duke's fair daughter.
I cannot blame them all : what is 't to them ?
'Tis thine they give away, and not their own.
Pirates may make cheap pennyworths of their pillage, 220
And purchase friends, and give to courtezans,
Still revelling like lords till all be gone ;
While as the silly owner of the goods
Weeps over them, and wrings his hapless hands,
And shakes his head, and trembling stands aloof, 225
While all is shared and all is borne away.
Ready to starve and dare not touch his own :
So York must sit and fret and bite his tongue
While his own lands are bargained for and sold.
Methinks the realms of England, France, and Ireland 230
Bear that proportion to my flesh and blood
As did the fatal brand Althaea burned
Unto the prince's heart of Calydon.
Anjou and Maine both given unto the French !
234-257. Anjou and Maine . . . fair England down^ii\yiQ6.Yorke, Anioy and
Maine . . . faire England downe. Q reads: 236. £^2^/a>^rf's soiZj 145. England.
See, too, Lodge, The Wounds of Civil
War (Hazlitt's Dodsley, vii. 128): —
" The greatest townsand lords of Asia
Have stood on tickle terms through
simple truth "
{ante 1594). But the expression here,
"stands on a tickle point," is in Kyd's
Spa}iish Tragedy, iii. iv. 78. See note
at " now or never," 3 Henry VI. iv. iii.
24. See Introduction.
220. pennyworths] value. " Make
cheap pennyworths" means make easy
bargains. To equate the word with
" trifles," as Schmidt does throughout,
is quite wrong. See Winter's Tale, iv.
iv. 650 ; Merchant of Venice, i. ii. 77.
And Greene, Mamillia (Grosart, ii. 92) :
" I should stand to my pennyworth,
having made my market like a foole."
222. revelling like lords] Compare
"lording it," iv. viii. 47 below. "To
swear like a lord " occurs in Elyot, The
Governour (1884 edition, p. 87), 1531.
223. While as] while ; " as " is super-
fluous, as it often is with expressions of
time, such as now, then (or tho'), yet, etc.
In Golding's Ovid it constantly occurs
superfluously, though it stands the first
word of the connection. Compare
" whereas " and "whenas" ; also " while-
are" {Tempest,iu. ii. 127) for "ere while."
224. hapless] unlucky. Only in
Shakespeare's earliest works : in these
three Parts, Lucrece, Two Gentlemen
of Verona, and Comedy of Errors.
Often in Greene's plays : " haplesse
hour" (xiv. 197); "haplesse breath"
(xiv. 241); " haples hap" (xiii. 398).
228. bite his tongue] keep silence.
See 3 Henry VI. i. iv. 47.
232, 233. Althcsa . . . Calydon]
"Althasa . . .
There was a certaine firebrand
which when Denies wife did lie
In childebed of Meleager, she
chaunced to espie
The Destinies putting in the fire :
and in the putting in,
She hearde them speake these
words as they his fatall threede
did spin :
O lately borne, like time we give
to thee and to this brand.
And when they so had spoken, they
departed out of hand,
Immediatly the mother caught the
blazing bough away,
And quenched it . . .
And now . . . she like a foe did
kindle fire thereto"
(Golding's Ovid, viii. 594-605). See 2
Henry IV. 11. ii. 93-96.
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
17
Cold news for me, for I had hope of France, 235
Even as I have of fertile England's soil.
A day will come when York shall claim his own ;
And therefore I will take the Nevils' parts
And make a show of love to proud Duke Humphrey,
And, when I spy advantage, claim the crown, 240
For that 's the golden mark I seek to hit.
Nor shall proud Lancaster usurp my right,
Nor hold the sceptre in his childish fist,
Nor wear the diadem upon his head,
Whose church-like humours fits not for a crown. 245
Then, York, be still awhile, till time do serve :
Watch thou and wake when others be asleep,
To pry into the secrets of the state ;
Till Henry, surfeiting in joys of love,
With his new bride and England's dear-bought queen, 250
And Humphrey with the peers be fallen at jars:
Then will I raise aloft the milk-white rose,
With whose sweet smell the air shall be perfumed.
And in my standard bear the arms of York,
To grapple with the house of Lancaster ; 255
245. fits] 154- fit- 255. grapple] 164. graffle.
235. Cold news] See again, iii. i. 86,
87 below. Unwelcome, disagreeable,
bad news. Often used by Shakespeare
in this sense. " Cold comfort " occurs
in King yohn, and in The Taming of a
Shrew ; " colder tidings" is in Richard
III. ; " cold words " is in Two Angry
Women of Abingdon (Hazlitt's Dodsley,
vii. 334) ; in Day, and in Heywood.
" Cold comfort " is several times in
Nashe. In Kyd's Soliman and Perseda,
in. i. 155, " Colde and comfortles news "
occurs.
236. fertile . . .soil] Compare (Peele's)
Jack Straw : " loyal hearts . . . Shall
grow like grains sown in a fertile soil "
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 413).
240. spy advantage] A favourite use.
Elsewhere Shakespeare has ^^ spy en-
tertainment " ; " spy comfort " ; " spy
marks of love " ; " spy a kind of hope " ;
"spy some pity," etc. etc. Cf. Spanish
Tragedy : " I spy your knavery " (in.
vi. 47) (Boas).
241. golden mark I seek to hit] See
note at line 167 above. The " golden
mark " is here the crown, not the centre
of the target, which was white. Other-
wise this might do duty for " hit the
gold." Peele has " If honour be the
marke whereat thou aimst" in Alcazar,
n. iv. (430, b).
244. wear the diadem] So Peele,
Edward I. (396, a) : " And wears the
royal Scottish diadem."
245. Whose church-like humour s] See
note at line 156 above. And at iii. 53,
54-
249. Till] while.
249. surfeiting] cloyed, oversatiated,
sick from excess. A thoroughly Shake-
spearian sense. See Measure for
Measure, v. i. 102, etc. etc.
251. fallen at jars] Compare iv. viii.
43. Earlier examples are given in New
Eng. Diet, of "living at jar," etc., but
it does not occur in Shakespeare.
252. tnilk-white rose] See note below
at II. iii. 78.
255. grapple with] contend with.
Compare King John, v. i. 61, Equiva-
lent to " buckle with," used in these
plays. See note at i. ii. 90 below.
256. force perforce] by force. See
again King John, in. i. 142, and 2
Henry IV. iv. i. ii5. " Perforce " is very
frequently used by Shakespeare. In 3
Henry VI. 11. iii. 5, " spite of spite "
reads " force perforce " in The True
Tragedie (Quarto). The expression is
18
THE SECOND PART OF
[act I.
And, force perforce, I '11 make him yield the crown,
Whose bookish rule hath pulled fair England down.
[Exi'L
SCENE II. — T/ie Duke of Gloucester's house.
Enter Duke HUMPHREY, and his wife ELEANOR.
Duch. Why droops my lord, like over-ripened corn,
Hanging the head at Ceres' plenteous load ?
Why doth the great Duke Humphrey knit his brows,
As frowning at the favours of the world ?
Why are thine eyes fixed to the sullen earth.
Gazing on that which seems to dim thy sight ?
What seest thou there ? King Henry's diadem
Enchased with all the honours of the world ?
If so, gaze on, and grovel on thy face.
Until thy head be circled with the same.
10
Scene ii. The . . . house'] Theobald. Enter . . .] Ff; Enter Duke
Humphrey, and Dame Ellanor Cobham his wife Q. i. Duch.] i. Elnor.
(and throughout). 2. Ceres'] 2. Cearies. 3-16. Why doth . . . the ground]
3-7. What seest thou Duke Humphrey King Henries Crowne ? Reach at it, and
if thine arme be too short. Mine shall lengthen it. Art not thou a Prince,
Vnckle to the King, and his Protector? Then what shouldst thou lacke that
might content thy minde.
in Kyd's Spanish Tragedy. See Intro-
duction.
257. bookish] See Othello, i. i. 24, and
Winter's Tale, iii. iii. 73. " Bookish "
occurs frequently in Greene, as in Fare-
well to Follie, ix. 248 : " You are farre
more bookish than wise " ; and in Seli-
vius (xiv. 204) : " The schoolemen are
prepard To plant 'gainst me their
bookish ordinance."
The last part of this speech, 143-166,
is identical with The Contention ; and
it is clear proof that the latter play is
not only not wholly due to Greene, but
is partly due to Shakespeare. Greene
was incapable of this composition. It
has the stamp of Shakespeare, and of
no one else.
Scene ii.
I. over-ripened] No other example
of this is known (except Q). Shake-
speare uses a large assortment of such
terms for the first time.
I. droops . . . like . . . corn] A
similar simile occurs in 1 Henry VI.
II. V. 12 : —
" like to a wither'd vine
That droops his sapless branches."
3. knit his brows] Only in 2 Henry
VI., 3 Henry VI., and Lucrece. See
note at 3 Henry VI. ii. ii. 20. In
Grafton (1543).
5. sullen earth] See Sonnet 29. Not
in Q. Gloomy, dark. Seel Henry IV.
I. ii. 236.
8. Enchased with] studded, adorned
with. A favourite phrase of Greene's
but not again in Shakespeare. Com-
pare Menaphon (Grosart, vi. 79) : " His
face is not inchacte with anie rusticke
proportion " ; and later (p. 123) in a
beautiful " Eglogue " : —
" Hir christall chin like to the purest
molde
Enchac'dc with daintie daysies soft
and white."
It occurs earlier in Spenser, Faerie
Queene (11. ix. 24) ; —
" a wandering vine
Enchaced with a wanton yvie
twine."
And in Marlowe's T amburlaine , Part I.
(Dyce, 10, b), 1586: '' Enchas'd with
precious jewels of mine own." Not
in Q.
10. circled with] Compare 3 Henry
VI. IV. viii. 21 ; Titus Andronic7is, iii.
i. 277, and Richard III. iv. iv. 382.
Not in Q.
sc. H] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 19
Put forth thy hand, reach at the glorious gold.
What ! is 't too short ? I '11 lengthen it with mine ;
And, having both together heaved it up,
We '11 both together lift our heads to heaven,
And never more abase our sight so low 15
As to vouchsafe one glance unto the ground.
Glou. O Nell, sweet Nell, if thou dost love thy lord,
Banish the canker of ambitious thoughts :
And may that thought, when I imagine ill
Against my king and nephew, virtuous Henry, 20
Be my last breathing in this mortal world.
My troublous dream this night doth make me sad.
Duck. What dreamed my lord ? tell me, and I '11 requite it
With sweet rehearsal of my morning's dream.
Glou. Methought this staff, mine office-badge in court, 25
Was broke in twain ; by whom I have forgot.
But, as I think, it was by the cardinal ;
17-22. O Nell, sweet Nell . . . make me sad] 8-11. My louely Nell, far be it
from my heart, To thinke of Treasons gainst my soveraigne Lord, But I was
troubled with a dreame to night, And God I pray, it do betide no ill. 23, 24.
What dreanid . . . morning's dream] 12-14. What drempt my Lord. Good
Humphrey tell it me. And He interpret it, and when thats done, He tell thee
then, what I did dreame to night. 25-31. Methought this staff . . . God
knows] 15-19. Th/i'! night when I was laid in bed, I dreampt that This my . . .
in two, and on the ends were plac'd, The heads of the Cardinall of Winchester,
And William de la Poule first Duke of Suffolke.
13. heaved it up] Occurs again (of " morning hastes to come in view
hands) Venus and Adonis, 351, and And all the morning dreams are
Lucrece, 11. 11 1, 638 ; and (of a leg) Two true."
Gentlemen of Verona, iv. iv. 40. In Pantagruel, it will be recalled, directs
Peele's Edward I. (Dyce, 410, b), he Panurge " to try the Future good or
uses it of another part of the human bad luck of his Marriage by dreams,
body : — . . . when the jolly and fair Aurora
" Lluellen, after much ado, draweth aside the Curtains of the Night
Should in spite heave up his chin . . . bend your spirits wholly to the
And be the highest of his kin ? " Task of sleeping sound" (iii. 13).
See, too, Spenser, Faerie Queene, vi. 25. office - badge] Compare Peele,
viii. 15 : " His dreadfull hand he heaved Honour of the Garter (587, a) : —
up aloft." " his office-badge
21. my last breathing] my last (or Was a black rod, whereof he took
latest) gasp, which occurs several times his name."
in these plays. See note, Part I. i. ii. 26. in ttvain] " in two" in Q. Very
127. Compare the two following quota- much used by Shakespeare,
tions in New Eng. Diet. : " Forsake me 27. by the cardinal] See what Somer-
not, I pray thee, in my last breathing " set says of the Cardinal, line 177 above.
(Hieron, Works, i. 736, 1608) ; and The two hang together and are addi-
" surrendered up his last breathings at tional to Q. Inserted perhaps to
his house " (Wood, Atheii. Oxon. i. emphasise the Cardinal's hatred of
260, 1691). Not in Q. Peele has "all Duke Humphrey, a leading motive
the hope oiUie a.nd breathing" m yack of Part I. and II. See Part I. i. iv.
Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 408). and iii. i. We have yet another in-
24. morning's dream] the true dream, sertion to the same effect in line 94
An ancient superstition. So Ben Jon- below; and see note at line 117 (scene
son, Love Restored : — iii.).
20 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
And on the pieces of the broken wand
Were placed the heads of Edmund Duke of Somerset,
And WilHam de la Pole, first Duke of Suffolk. 30
This was my dream : what it doth bode, God knows.
Dzich. Tut ! this was nothing but an argument.
That he that breaks a stick of Gloucester's grove
Shall lose his head for his presumption.
But list to me, my Humphrey, my sweet duke : 3 5
Methought I sat in seat of majesty
In the cathedral church of Westminster,
And in that chair where kings and queens are crowned ;
Where Henry and Dame Margaret kneeled to me,
And on my head did set the diadem. 40
Glou. Nay, Eleanor, then must I chide outright :
Presumptuous dame ! ill-nurtured Eleanor !
Art thou not second woman in the realm,
And the protector's wife, beloved of him ?
Hast thou not worldly pleasure at command, 45
Above the reach or compass of thy thought ?
And wilt thou still be hammering treachery,
To tumble down thy husband and thyself
From top of honour to disgrace's feet ?
32-40. Tut I this was nothing . . . set the diadem] 20-28. Titsh my Lord, this
signifies nought but this That . . . grove, Shall for th' offence, make forfeit of
his head. But now my Lord, He tell you what I dreampt, Me thoxight I ivas in
the . . , At . . . and seated in the chaire Where . . . and at my feete Henry
and Margaret with a Crowne of golde Stood readie to set it on my Princely head.
41-50. Nay, Eleanor . . . no more] 29-33. -P'^ Nell. Ambitious woman as thou
art, Art thou . . . in this land, And the . . . of him, Ajid wilt . . . treason
thus. Away I say . . . no more.
40. wj /;(?arf] The alteration from " my menne " (Grafton's Continuation of
princely head " is worthy of note. Hardyng, p. 600, 1543).
Stukely speaks of " my lordly breast " 45. at command'] when you wish it,
in Alcazar, n. ii. (427, b). And in available. Compare Merry Wives of
Selimus (Grosart, xiv. 288) : " scorn to Windsor, iv. iii. 12. Earlier in New
stoupe or bend my Lordly knee." Lng. Diet. Not in Q.
42. Presjcmptuous dame I] See note, 46. Above the reach] See Titus An-
Part I. III. i. 8. dronicus, 11. i. 4. Compare Peele, Battle
42. ill-mirtured] ill-bred, ill-natured, of Alcazar, i. i. : "whose pride doth
Occurs again Venus and Adonis, 134. swell to sway beyond his reach" (423, a).
Compare Greene, George - a - Greene 46. compass] reach. Common in
(Grosart, xiv. 175) : — Shakespeare, Not in Q.
" Nay, good my Liege, ill-nurtured 47. hammering] devising, designing,
we were, then : A favourite expression of Greene's,
Though we Yorkeshire men be usually within the head, or brains
blunt of speech, added. See Philomela (xi. 117):
And little skill'd in court, or such " hammering thus betwixt feare and
quaint fashions, hope he built castles in the ayre";
Yet nature teacheth vs duetie to our and p. 159: " liamring how he might
king." bring both Lutesio and her to con-
Compounds in "nurtured" are old, as fusion." The nearest parallel in Shake-
"all well-nurtered and gentle wedded speaiTe is in Titus Andronicus, 11. in. 'ig.
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 21
Away from me, and let me hear no more ! 50
Duch. What, what, my lord ! are you so choleric
With Eleanor for telling but her dream ?
Next time I '11 keep my dreams unto myself,
And not be checked.
Glou. Nay, be not angry ; I am pleased again. 5 5
Enter Messenger.
Mess. My lord protector, 'tis his highness' pleasure
You do prepare to ride unto Saint Alban's,
Where as the king and queen do mean to hawk.
Glou. I go. Come, Nell, thou wilt ride with us ?
Duch. Yes, my good lord, I '11 follow presently. 6o
[Exeunt Gloucester and Messenger.
Follow I must ; I cannot go before,
While Gloucester bears this base and humble mind.
Were I a man, a duke, and next of blood,
I would remove these tedious stumbling-blocks
And smooth my way upon their headless necks ; 65
51-54. What, what . . . be checked] 34-36. How now my Lord, What angry
with your Nell For . . . drcame. The next I haue He keepe to my selfe, and not
be rated thus. 55. Nay . . . again] 37, 38. Nay Nell, He give no credit to a
dreame, but I would haue thee to thinke on no such things. 56-58. My lord
. . . mean to hazvk] 39-41 (prose). And it please your grace, the King and Queene
to morrow morning will ride a hawking to Saint Alboncs, and craves your company
along with them. 59. I go . . . tis] 42, 43. With all my heart, I will attend
his grace: Come Nell, thou wilt go with us I am sure. Exet. Humphrey.
60-67. Yes, my good lord . . . Fortune's pageant] 44-46. He come after you, for
I cannot go before. But ere it be long. He go before them all, Despight of all
that seeke to crosse me thus.
Grafton (and Hall) refer to Glou- 64. remove . . . stumbling-blocks]
cester's marriage with Eleanor Cobham Compare Peele, Edward I. {ante
the end of "The ThirdeYere" (1424-5) 1588?): "'tis a deed of charity to
(he had been previously illegally united retnove this stumbling-block, a fair
to Lady laquet or lacomyne, wife of wench " (382, a). The compound word
the Duke of Brabant) : " he, by wanton is old and familiar from its Biblical fre-
affection blinded, toke to his wyfe Elianor quency. Not in Q.
Cobham daughter to the Lorde Cobham, 65. smooth my way] Compare Henry
of Sterborow, which before (as the fame V. 11. ii. 188 : " Every rub is smoothed
went) was his soueraigne Lady and on our way." Not in Q.
paramour, to his great slaunder and 65. headless necks] This elaborately
reproche. And if he were vnquieted bloodthirsty line is too smooth for
wyth his other pretenced wyfe, truely Greene, and not grandiose enough for
he was ten tymes more vexed, by oc- Marlowe. Like a good many other
casion of this woman, as you shall here- lines, it recalls the hand of Peele
after playnely perceyue: so that he (Battle of Alcazar). In the 1619
beganne his mariage with euill, and Quarto the line corresponding to this
ended it with worse " (Grafton, p. 561). reads : " I'de reache to th' crowne, or
63. next of blood] Not again in Shake- make some hop headlesse " (Halliwell's
speare. A very old expression, found in edition for Shakespeare Library). New
Robert de Brunne's Chronicle {circa Etig. Diet, finds this " grimly jocular "
1330). expression for beheading back as far as
22 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
And, being a woman, I will not be slack
To play my part in Fortune's pageant.
Where are you there ? Sir John ! nay, fear not, man,
We are alone ; here 's none but thee and I.
Enter HuME,
Hume. Jesus preserve your royal majesty ! 70
Duch. What say'st thou ? majesty ! I am but grace.
Hume. But, by the grace of God, and Hume's advice,
Your grace's title shall be multiplied.
Duch. What say'st thou, man ? hast thou as yet conferred
With Margery Jourdain, the cunning witch, 75
And Roger Bolingbroke, the conjurer ?
And will they undertake to do me good ?
Hume. This they have promised, to show your highness
A spirit raised from depth of under-ground,
68, 6g. Where are you . . . and I. Enter Hume.] ^y, ^S. Who is within there ?
Enter Sir lohn Hum. What Sir lohn Hum, what newes with you ? 70. Hume]
49. Sir lohn (and throughout). 70. your royal majesty] 49. your maicstic.
71. What . . . grace] 50. My Maiestie. Why man I . . . grace. 72. Hume]
51. Hum (and throughout). 72, 73. But, by the . . . be multiplied] 51, 52. /,
but by the . . . state shall be aduaiist ere long. 74-77« What sayst thou . . .
good?] 53-55 (prose). What hast thou confcrd . . . Witch of Ely, with Roger
Bullingbrooke and the rest, and . . . good? 78-81. This they . . . A spirit
rais'd from . . . propounded him] 56-58 (prose). / have Madame, and they have
promised me to raise a Spirite from . . . that shall tell your grace all questions
you demaund.
Robert de Brunne's Chronicle [circa 68. Sir jfohn] A common early desig-
1330). See Greene, in his play, James nation for clerks in holy orders. See
the Fourth (Grosart, xiii. 255) : — Grafton's Chronicle, i. 241 : " Till the
" On paine of death, proud Bishop, king had payde all which their Clergie
get you gone, had demaunded . . . yea every sawcy
Vnlesse you headlesse mean to Sir Ihon for his part,"
hoppe away." 6g. silence of the night (Contention)]
Compare Tlie Troublesome Raigne of See below, i. iv. 16, note. For " back-
King John (a play where Greene's side of my orchard," compare " backside
hand is evident) ; Hazlitt's Shake- of the well," Peele, Old Wives Tale
speare Library, p. 255 : " He make (455, a).
him hoppe headlesse " (1591). And in 75, 76. Jourdain . . . Bolingbroke]
The True Chronicle History of King See extract from Grafton at the be-
Leir (Shakespeare Library, p. 342) : ginning of Scene iv. below.
" I will make him hop without a head " 76. conjurer] See Part I. i. i. 26.
(1593). 77. do me good] enable me to succeed.
66, 67. slack to play] See quotation Compare Merry Wives of Windsor, i.
at common sort, Part III. v. v. 87. iv. 152 ; and below, in this play, iv. lii.
67. play . . . pageant] Compare Hall, 17. Similarly in Golding's Ovid (bk.
Chronicle (Xlth Yere), p. 169: "This xiv. I.411): " Where for the thicknesse
pageant plaied, the Regent sent Peter of the trees a horse myght doe no
of Luxenborough ... to besiege the good." See below, iii. i. 19. " Do thee
toune of Sainct Valerie." And again, good " occurs twice in Soliman and
p. 279 : " The Erie of Warwickes Perseda.
doynges, which must needes play a 79. depth of under-ground'] See 11. i.
pageaunt in this enterlude, or else the 172. And The Spanish Tragedy (i. vi.
plai wer at a poynt." i, 2) (Boas) : —
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 23
That shall make answer to such questions 80
As by your grace shall be propounded him.
Duch. It is enough : I '11 think upon the questions.
When from Saint Alban's we do make return
We '11 see these things effected to the full.
Here, Hume, take this reward ; make merry, man, 85
With thy confederates in this weighty cause, \Exit.
Hume. Hume must make merry with the duchess' gold ;
Marry and shall. But how now, Sir John Hume !
Seal up your lips and give no words but mum :
The business asketh silent secrecy. 90
Dame Eleanor gives gold to bring the witch :
Gold cannot come amiss, were she a devil.
Yet have I gold flies from another coast :
I dare not say from the rich cardinal
82-86. It is enough . . . this weighty cause. Exit.] 59-67. Thanks, good Sir
lohn. Some two dales hence I gesse Will fit our time, then see that they be here :
For now the King is riding to Saint Albones. And all the Dukes and Earles along
with him, When they be gone, then safely they may come. And on the backside of
my orchard here, There cast their Spelles in silence of the night. And so resolue vs
of the thing we wish. Till when, drinke that for my sake. And sofarwell. Exet
Elnor. 87-91. Hume must . . . witch] 68-71. Now Sir lohn Hum, No words
but mum, Seale vp your lips, for you must silent be, These gifts ere long will make
me mightie rich. The Duches she thinks now that all is well. 92, 93. Gold
cannot . . . another coast] 72. But I have gold comes from another place. 94-99.
I dare not . . . in her brain] 73-80. From one that hyred me to set her on. To
plot these Treasons gainst the King and Peeres, And that is the mtghtie Duke of
"Come we for thee from depth of 89. no words but mum] Compare
under ground Peele, Old Wives Tale (457, a) :
To see him feast that gave me my " What, not a word but mum ? " And
deaths wound." Skelton, Garlande of Laurell (Dyce, i.
Spenser has : — 406), 1515 : " There was amonge them
" Merlin whylome wont (they say) no worde then but mum." The pro-
To make his wonne, low under- verbial form is not in Shakespeare,
neath the ground " exactly, again.
{Faerie Queene, iii. iii. 7). 90. asketh] requires. Compare Tam-
Si. propounded] Not elsewhere in ing of the Shrew, u. i. 115 : " My busi-
Shakespeare. Greene uses it of evi- ness asketh haste " ; and elsewhere in
dence in his Philomela (Grosart, xi. 187). Shakespeare. Not in Q. Compare
The Duchess is fuller in her arrange- Kyd, Spanish Tragedy : " Why si*- we
ments in the Quarto, for the obvious not ? for pleasure asketh ease " (Act 11.
reason, that there is repetition to be iv. 23).
avoided. See note at "silence of the 90. silent secrecy] See below, 11. ii.
night," I. iv. 10 below. It is more 68. Not in Q.
artistic to shift these details to their 93. coasi] quarter, direction. Schmidt
place of action. omits to distinguish this sense, which
88. Marry and shall] See again 1 is not met with again in Shakespeare.
Henry IV, v. ii. 34, and Richard III. In the Quarto it is " place."
in. iv. 36. Compare Kyd's Spanish 94. from the rich cardinal] Yet
Tragedy (ii.xiv. 156) (Boa.a) : "Imarry, another insertion to lay stress on the
my Lord, and shall." cardinal's relentless hate for Gloucester.
89. Sea/ z</>] Frequent in Shakespeare, In the Contention (or Quarto) Hume
with " eyes," " mouth," etc. distinctly states his other source is
89. mum] Note the rhyming couplet Suffolk alone.
(Hum, mum) in the Quarto, 1. 68.
24 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
And from the great and new-made Duke of Suffolk ; 95
Yet I do find it so : for, to be plain,
They, knowing Dame Eleanor's aspiring humour,
Have hired me to undermine the duchess
And buz these conjurations in her brain.
They say " A crafty knave does need no broker " ; 100
Yet am I Suffolk and the cardinal's broker.
Hume, if you take not heed, you shall go near
To call them both a pair of crafty knaves.
Well, so it stands ; and thus, I fear at last
Hume's knavery will be the duchess' wrack, 105
And her attainture will be Humphrey's fall.
Sort how it will I shall have gold for all. [Exit.
SCENE 111.— The pa/ace.
Enter three or four Petitioners, PETER, the Ar^nourer's inan^
being one.
First Petit. My masters, let 's stand close : my lord pro-
tector will come this way by and by, and then we
may deliver our supplications in the quill.
Sttffolke. For he it is, but I must not say so, That by my meanes must worke
the Duches fall, Who now by Conjurations thinkcs to rise. But whist Sir lohn,
no more of that I trow, For feare you lose your head before you goe. Exet.
Scene hi.
Scene ///.] omitted Q. Enter . . .] Enter two petitioners, and Peter the
Armourer's man. Q. 1-3. First Petit. My masters . . . quill] 1-3 (verse).
97. aspiring hiimour~\ See note at should appeare that there can hardlie
" aspiring French," Part I. v. iv. 99. bee a craftier knave then a Broker "
99. buz] This verb occurs again, {Third Part of Conny Catching
3 Henry VI. 11. vi. 95 and v. vi. 86. (Grosart, x. 185), 1592). It is also in
And in Titus Andronicus, iv. iv. 7, Nashe (/I Prognostication, Grosart, ii.
and Richard II. 11. i. 26. See, too, i5i) in the plural. Not in Q.
Henry VIII. 11. i. 148. Not in Q. 105. wrack] See Part I. iv. i. 56
Peele has it exactly in The Tale of (note).
Troy (551, a), 1589: — 106. attainture] disgrace. Compare
"Till one, I say, revengeful pov/er taifiture, 11. i. 188 below. New Eng.
or other Diet, gives the word here the sense
JB!<s2'(i in the brain of her unhappy of attainder, conviction, with earlier
mother illustrations.
A dreadful dream."
Greene often has " buzz in the ears " Scene hi.
of a tale, or slander. 2. by and by] immediately. Very
100. A crafty knave does need no frequent in Shakespeare. Compare
broker] The old form of this proverb, Edward's £)a;«o« a«(/ Pi^/zias (Hazlitt's
which was very common, was " Two Dodsley, iv. 93) : " do thine office
fase knaves need no broker," which is in by and by." And Sidney's Arcadia :
Heyvvood's Proverbs (edited Sharman, " And by and by called him to fight
p. 62), 1546. Greene, however, always with him, protesting that one of them
used it as in the text : " It hath been two should die " (bk. i.). Not in Q.
used as a common byword, a craftie 3. in the quill] simultaneously {New
knave needeth no Broker, wherby it Eng. Diet.). Unexplained. Compare
sc.
iii.J KING HENRY THE SIXTH 25
Second Petit. Marry, the Lord protect him, for he 's a
good man ! Jesu bless him ! 5
Enter SUFFOLK and QuEEN.
Peter. Here a' comes, methinks, and the queen with him.
I '11 be the first, sure.
Second Petit. Come back, fool ! this is the Duke of Suffolk,
and not my lord protector.
Suf. How now, fellow! would'st any thing with me? 10
First Petit. I pray, my lord, pardon me : I took ye for
my lord protector.
Queen. " To my Lord Protector ! " Are your supplications
to his lordship ? Let me see them : what is thine ?
First Petit. Mine is, an 't please your grace, against John 15
Goodman, my lord cardinal's man, for keeping my
house, and lands, and wife, and all, from me.
Suf. Thy wife too ! that 's some wrong indeed. What 's
yours ? What 's here ! " Against the Duke of Suffolk,
I. Peti. Come sirs let 's linger here abouts a while, Vntill my Lord Protector come
this way, That we may show his Grace our sexicirall causes. 4, 5. Second
Petit. Marry . . . bless him /] 4-8. 2. Peti. I pray God sane the good Duke
Humphries life. For but for him a many were undone That cannot get no succour
in the Court, But see where he comes with the Queene. 6, 7. Peter. Here
a' comes . . . sure] included in Second Petitioner's last speech. 8, 9. Second
Petit. Come . . . protector] Enter the Duke of Suffolke with the Queene, and
they take him for Duke Humphrey and give him their writings. 1. Peti. Oh
we are undone, this is the Duke of Suffolke. 10. How now . . . with me]
g. Queene. Now good fellowes, whom would you spcake withall ? 11-14. First
Petit. I pray . . . Queen. " To my . . ." thine?] 11-15. Queene. Are your sutes
to his grace. Let us see them first, Looke on them my Lord of Suffolke. Suffolke.
A complaint against the Cardinals man, What hath he done ? (as if verse).
15-17. Mine is . . . from me] 16, 17. 2 Peti. Marry my Lord, he hath stole
away my wife, And th' are gone togither, and I ktiow 7iot where to finde them
(as verse). 18, 19. Thy wife, . . . What's yours ?] 18, 19. Hath he stole thy
wife, thats some iniury indeed, But what say you ? 19-21. Whafs here !
Against the . . . Melford . . . knave] ^^-^S. W hats here ? A complaint against
. . . long Melford . . . knave.
The Devonshire Damsel's Frolic, 1685 19. Against the Duke of Suffolk]
(Appendix to Ebsworth's Westminster The " articles proponed by the commons
Drollery, p. 341):^ — • against the Duke of Suffolke" are set
" Thus those Females were all in a forth by Grafton in ten Items in " The
quill XXVIIJ Yere" (1450). They relate
And following on their pastime chiefly to the King's marriage and
still." other French affairs. At the close of
See Davie's Supplementary English them it is stated : " All these obiections
Glossary for quotations from Roger he utterly denied, or faintly auoyded,
North's Examen, 1740. See, too, Ains- but none fully excused. Diuers other
worth's Latin Dictionary (1741), "ex crimes were laide to his charge, as en-
compacto agere." " Qu'lls " at the date ryching hymselfe with the King's goods,
of this play meant water-pipes, as in and landes, gathering together and
North's Plutarch, Cato (Tudor Trans, making a Monopoly [' money pollde '
iii. 26). Many unavailing alterations in Hall] of officies, fees, wards and
and explanations have been offered, fermes " (p. 639). The special act of
Not in Q. enclosing here referred to has not been
26 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
for enclosing the commons of Melford." How now, 20
sir knave !
Second Petit. Alas ! sir, I am but a poor petitioner of our
whole township.
Peter. Against my master, Thomas Horner, for saying
that the Duke of York was rightful heir to the 25
crown.
Queen. What sayest thou ? did the Duke of York say he
was rightful heir to the crown ?
Peter. That my master was ? No, forsooth : my master
said that he was, and that the king was an 30
usurper.
Suf. Who is there ?
Enter Servants.
Take this fellow in, and send for his master with a
pursuivant presently. We '11 hear more of your matter
before the king. [^Exeunt Servants with Peter. 35
Queen. And as for you, that love to be protected
Under the wings of our protector's grace,
22, 23. Second Petit. Alas ! sir, I am . . . of . . . township] 39, 40. i Peti.
I beseech your Grace to pardon me, me, I am . . . town-ship. He teares the
papers. 24-26. Peter. Against . . . crown] 20-24. Peter Thump. Marry sir I
come to tel you that my maister said, that the Duke of Yorke was true heire unto
the Crowne, and that the King was an vsurer. Queene. An usurper thou wouldst
say. Peter. I forsooth an usurper. 27-31. Queen. What sayest . . . usurper]
25. Queene. Didst thou say the king was an usurper ? Peter. No forsooth, I saide
tny maister saide so, th' other day, when we were scowring the Duke of Yorks
Armour in our garret. 32-35. Suf. Who is . . . before the King] 29-33.
Suffolke. I marry this is something like. Whose within there ? Enter one or two.
Sirra take in this fellow and kccpe him close. And send out a Piirseuant for his
maister straight, Weele . . . of this . . . King {verse). Exet. with the Armorer's
man. 36-39. Queen. And as . . . let them go] 41-43. Suffolke. So now show
your petitions to Duke Humphrey, Villaines get you gone and come not neare
the Court, Dare these pesants write against me thus. Exet. Petitioners.
noted upon. Long Melford, in Suffolk, 1. igo. For the authority for the Ar-
had for its chief family, in Henry Vlth's mourer incident, see note below, iv. 175.
time, de Clopton (Lewis). The allu- 29. /Hrts^cr] The first three Folios have
sion here may be to an occurrence of the misprint " mistress," first altered by
Shakespeare's times. Warburton. But possibly Peter got
22. poor petitioner] Perhaps an usual confused about the Jady he was talking
term, as in Spanish Tragedy, in. xiii. to. He has already (Q) used "usurer"
46 : " Heere are a sort of poore Peti- for " usurper."
tioners." 32. Who is there ?] The expression
23. township] Not again in Shake- " this is something like " of the Quarto
speare. Compare Golding's Ovid, viii. is noteworthy. It is still common col-
858: "all this wicked towneship shall loquially. "This is somewhat yet"
Abye their gylt " (1567). occurs in Narcissus (1602J, p. 4. It
23-26. In the collation here Peter is means " now we're getting at it," half
"Peter Thumpe" in the Contention, contemptuously.
See II. iii. 82-84. And for "scouring 37. Under the wings] Compare Part
armour " of the next lines, see below, I. v. iii. 57. In King John, 11. i. 14,
sc.
Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
27
Begin your suits anew, and sue to him.
[ Tears the petition.
Away, base cullions ! Suffolk, let them go.
All. Come, let 's be gone. [Exeunt Petitioners. 40
Queen. My Lord of Suffolk, say, is this the guise,
Is this the fashion in the court of England ?
Is this the government of Britain's isle,
And this the royalty of Albion's king?
What ! shall King Henry be a pupil still 45
Under the surly Gloucester's governance ?
Am I a queen in title and in style.
And must be made a subject to a duke ?
I tell thee, Pole, when in the city Tours
Thou rann'st a tilt in honour of my love, 50
40. All. Come let 's be gone] omitted Q. 41-48. My lord . . . to a dtike]
44-51. My lord of Suffolke, you may see by this, The Commons lone unto that
haughtie Duke, That seekes to him more then to King Henry, Whose eyes are
alwaies poring on his booke, and nere regards the honour of his name, But still
must be protected like a childe, And governed by that ambitious Duke, That scarse
will move his cap nor speake to us. 49-53- / tell thee, Pole . . . proportion]
59-62. / tell thee Poull, when thou didst runne at Tilt, And stolst away our
Ladaies hearts in France, I . . . been like to thee. Or else thou hadst not brought
me out of France.
the same phrase refers to the wings of
a battle. The metaphor here is from
the Bible, Ruth ii. 12 (and elsewhere).
39. cullions] wretches. Compare
Peele, Old Wives Tale (452, b) :
" Hence, base cullion ! " Not in Q.
Shakespeare uses this opprobrious
epithet again in Taming of a Shrew,
and in Henry V. It is in Gammer
Gurton's Needle, v. ii.
40. Exeunt Petitioners] For the
source of the Armourer's episode, see
extract at 11. iii. (end). Note the
omission of "Marry" in the opening
conversation, which occurs three times
in Q.
41. guise] recognised custom or
fashion ; as in Cymbeline, v. i. 32.
The word was often used as here of
the custom of a country, as in Timothie
Kendall's Floivers of Epigrams (reprint,
p. 54), 1577 : " all disordered lye my
locks, after the Spanish guise." And
several times in Golding's Ovid :
"When judgement should bee giuen
it was the giiyse in auncient tyme "
(bk. XV. 1. 48). These first four lines
{41-44) have no parallel in The Conten-
tion. " Guise of the court" occurs in
Caxton's Reynard the Fox, 1481.
44. Albion] Shakespeare only uses
" Albion " while working at the
Chronicles, once in King Lear, once in
Henry V., and twice in this and twice
in the following part of Henry VI.
Greene has it often in Frier Bacon.
Not in Q. The queen's speech here
differs more from Q than anything we
have yet met with. Note passage here
in Contention : " eyes . . . poring on
his book." Shakespeare has this twice
in Love's Labour 's Lost — nowhere else.
45, 46. King Henry be a pupil . . .
Gloucester's governance] See note above,
I. i. 163, 164. Almost the exact words
are in Hall and Grafton (The XXV
Yere) : "like a yong Scholer or inno-
cent Pupile to be governed by the dis-
position of an other man " (p. 629) ; and
a little higher, he (King Henry) " passed
not much on the aucthoritie and govern-
aunce of the realme." " Governance "
is not found again in Shakespeare. It is
frequent in Hall (p. 242, i8og, e.g.). And
in Hawes' Pastime of Pleasure, 1509.
49, 50. Pole, when in the city Tours
Thou rann'st a tilt] at the " triumphant
lustes" held there when Suffolk went
for the queen as procurator. See ex-
tract, I. i. 1-3, These lines recall or are
imitated by Marlowe in Edward the
Second (220, a) : —
" Tell Isabel the queen, I look'd not
thus,
28
THE SECOND PART OF
[act I.
And stol'st away the ladies' hearts of France,
I thought King Henry had resembled thee
In courage, courtship, and proportion:
But all his mind is bent to holiness,
To number Ave-Maries on his beads ;
His champions are the prophets and apostles,
His weapons holy saws of sacred writ,
His study is his tilt-yard, and his loves
Are brazen images of canonised saints,
I would the college of the cardinals
Would choose him pope, and carry him to Rome,
And set the triple crown upon his head :
That were a state fit for his holiness.
55
60
54-63. But all his mind
his holiness'] See 11. 46, 47, quoted at 1. 44 above.
When for her sake I ran at tilt in
France,
And there unhors'd the Duke of
Cleremont."
It is important that they occur also in
The Contention. The expression is in
Grafton's Continuation of Hardyng
(466), 1543 : " the duke of Albany
. . . fled into Fraunce, & there was
kylled runnynge at the tylte in
Parys."
54-63. bent to holiness . . . his holi-
ness] Boswell Stone quotes here a de-
scription of Henry given at his murder
in the Tower, in the tenth year of King
Edward IV, But the living description
of him in the Chroniclers is to be pre-
ferred for many reasons. It is a piece
of the same account as the queen's
manly disposition (The XXV Yere) :
" King Henry . . . was a man of a
meeke spirite, and of a simple witte,
preferring peace before wane . . , And
to the intent, that all men might per-
ceiue, that there coulde be none, more
chaste, more meeke, more holye, nor a
better creature : In him raigned shame-
fastnesse [note in 3 Henry VI. iv. viii. 53,
"the shame-faced Henry"], modesty,
integritie and patience to be maruayled
at , , , hewasgouernedof them whome
he shoulde have ruled . . . He gaped
not for honor, nor thristed for riches
but studied onelye for the health of hys
soule : the sauing whereof, he esteemed
to be the greatest wisedome, and the
losse thereof, the extremest folic that
coulde be " (Grafton, p. 628), See the
opening of Scene vi. in the last Act of
Part III, Henry's holiness is again
made prominent in iv, i, 18, by lines not
in the original, in several places,
55. number Ave-Maries on his beads]
Repeated in 3 Henry VI. 11, i, 162 ; see
lines from Faerie Quecne there quoted,
59. canonised saints] Polydore Vergil
bears the fullest testimony to Henry's
holiness. He says (Camden Society,
p, 157) ; " These and suche lyke actions
and offices of parlyte holynes, made, that
for his cause God shewj'd many myracles
in hys lyfe time. By reason whereof
King Henry the Vllth not without
desert, began a few yeres past to pro-
cure at the hande of Julius byshop of
Rome that he might be canonyzd for a
Saint, but being preventid by hasty
death he could not perform that honor-
able fact," We have one of these
miracles presently. See 3 Henry VI.
II, i, 156,
62, triple crown] of the pope. This
expression Shakespeare found in Hall
(or Grafton), See extract at the be-
ginning of HI, iii. It is used also by
Peele in a rant against popery in A
Farewell to the Generals (Portugal
Voyage), 1589 ;—
" To steel your swords on Avarice'
triple crown,
And cleanse Augeas' stalls in Italy "
(Dyce, 549, b). And also by Marlowe,
Massacre at Paris, iii. 5 (240, a) (as
pointed out by Robertson in Did Shake-
speare write Titus Andronicus ? who
does not give this ulterior source).
Spenser's l3uessa is sometimes given
the mitre {Faerie Queene, i, viii, 25);
sometimes the " triple crown " (i, vii,
16),
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 29
Stif. Madam, be patient ; as I was cause
Your highness came to England, so will I 65
In England work your grace's full content.
Quee?z. Beside the haughty protector, have we Beaufort
The imperious churchman, Somerset, Buckingham,
And grumbling York ; and not the least of these
But can do more in England than the king. 70
Suf. And he of these that can do most of all
Cannot do more in England than the Nevils :
Salisbury and Warwick are no simple peers.
Queen. Not all these lords do vex me half so much
As that proud dame, the lord protector's wife: 75
She sweeps it through the court with troops of ladies,
More like an empress than Duke Humphrey's wife.
Strangers in court do take her for the queen :
She bears a duke's revenues on her back,
And in her heart she scorns our poverty. 80
Shall I not live to be avenged on her ?
Contemptuous base-born callat as she is,
64-66. Madam , . . content'\^'>,-^^. Madame content your ^elfealittle luhile, As
I was cause of your camming to England, So will I in England worke yoJtr full
content. 67. haughty protector] 45. haughtie Duke. 67-70. Queen. Beside
the . . . ^/i^ ^/h^] speech omitted Q. 71-73- Suf . And he . . . no simple peers]
speech omitted Q. 74. Not all . . . much] omitted Q. 75-78. As that proud
dame . . . queen] ^2-5^. And his proud wife, high minded Elanor, That ruffles it
with such a troope of ladies. As strangers in the Court takes her for the Queene.
79. She . . . back] Q 3 (1619) inserts after 54. She beares a dukes whole
reuennewes on her backe. 80-82. And in her heart . . . as she is] omitted Q.
"] 2. in England than the Nevils] Qee Miserie : "A weakling of womankind
I. i. 188-igi, and note. to weare whole lordships and manor-
75. lord protector's wife] Replaces houses on her backe." And several times
" high-minded Elanor " of Contention, in Ben Jonson. For Gloucester's
See note, Part I. i. v. 12. " wife's attire," see below, 11. 129, 130.
76. sweeps it through the court] See note above at 11. 49, 50.
Compare Henry V. iii. v. 48. And 82. Contemptuous] despicable, con-
Goldmg's Ofjfi, xi. 217, 218 : — temptible. Occurs again (disdainful) in
" Apollo after this revenge from King John, 11. i. 384 ; and the adverb
Tmolus tooke his flyght : (disdainfully) in Tivo Gentlemen of
And sweeping through the ayre, did Verona, i. ii. 112. These words in tuous
on the selfsame syde alyght." (sumptuous, presumptuous, tempestuous
79. She bears . . . revenues on her and virtuous) seem to be just receiving
6at:;t] This line, accidentally dropt out in acceptation. Not in Q. Compare
Q I, is restored in Q 3 (i6ig). Or it Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part II. iv. 3 :
may be regarded as an interpolation in " To bridle their contemptuous cursing
the latter from Shakespeare's play before tongues."
us. Compare Marlowe, Edward the 82. base-born] Occurs again below,
Second (193, a) : " He wears a lords iv. viii. 39, and in Part III. n. ii. 143.
revenue on his back." It became a very Earlier in New Eng. Diet, in Spenser,
common sentiment in those days of 1541. Peele has
extravagance in dress. Cyril Tourneur " What, am I then a friar's base-born
has the line " walk with a hundred acres brat ?
on their backs " in The Revenger's Presumptuous wretch, why press
Tragedy (Act ii.). And Lodge, Wits [prease] I 'fore my king ?"
30 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
She vaunted 'mongst her minions t' other day,
The very train of her worst wearing gown
Was better worth than all my father's lands, 85
Till Suffolk gave two dukedoms for his daughter.
Suf. Madam, myself have limed a bush for her,
And placed a quire of such enticing birds
That she will light to listen to the lays.
And never mount to trouble you again. 90
So, let her rest : and, madam, list to me ;
For I am bold to counsel you in this.
Although we fancy not the cardinal,
Yet must we join with him and with the lords
Till we have brought Duke Humphrey in disgrace. 95
As for the Duke of York, this late complaint
Will make but little for his benefit :
So, one by one, we '11 weed them all at last,
And you yourself shall steer the happy helm,
83-85. She vaunted . . . father's lands] 55-5S. The other day she vanted to
her maides, That the very traine of her worst gowne, Was worth more wealth
then . . . lands, Can any grief e of tninde be like to this (this last line (5 ^) may
be equated with half of 74 above). 86. Till . . . daughter] omitted Q. 87-
gi. Madam, myself . . . let her rest] 66-69. And as for proud Duke Humphrey
and his wife, I have set lime-twigs that will intangle tliem. As that yojcr grace
ere long shall understand. But stale Madame, here comes the King. 91-99-
And, madame list to me . . . happy helm] omitted Q. Sound a sennet . . .] Enter
King Henry, and the Duke of Yorke and the Duke of Somerset on both sides of the
King, whispering with him, and enter Duke Humphrey, Dame Elnor, the Duke of
Buckingham, the Earle of Salsbury, the Earle of Warwicke, and the Cardinall
of Winchester.
[Edward I. 413, b). Not in Q. Peele 87. limed a bush] smeared it with
hsis the word a.\so in David and Bethsabe birdlime. The alteration from "set
{465, b). Stern-born, home-born, free- lime-twigs" is Shakespeare's method,
born and true-born all occur in Kyd's He has the verb "to lime" in Much
Cor«cZia (flH^^ 1595), probably later than Ado About Nothing, All's Well that
this play. Often in Tamburlaine, Part Ends Well, Twelfth Night 2ind Hamlet,
I. : " base-born Tartars," ii. 2. as well as again in this play and twice
82. callat] An abusive term to a in Part III. See note 3 Henry VI. v.
woman used by Skelton. See Othello, vi. 13.
IV. ii. 122, and note, Arden edition, p. 88. quire of such enticing birds]decoy
206. Also in Winter s Tale, 11. iii. 90, birds. Compare Cymbeline, iii. iii. 43.
and 3 Henry VI. 11. ii. 145. In Lodge " Enticing " has the sense of bewitchmg,
andGieene's Looking Glasse for London enchanting by magic. Compare Peele,
(xiv. 57) it is correctly applied to an Old Wives Tale (457, a): "because
old woman : " What, succour me ? false you shall not be enticed with his (the
callet hence, avant ; Old dotard, pack." magician's) enchanting speeches, with
(Irish, calliagh or calliasht.) Golding this same wool I '11 stop your ears."
has it in his Ovid's Metamorphoses, bk. See note at "incaged birds," 3 Henry
VI. line 170. Not in Q. VI. iv. vi. 12.
83. minions] sen.ile favourites. So 91. So, let her rest] Compare Peele,
Grafton (p. 637) : " the Queene with her Alcazar (end) : " So let it rest, and on
Minions and vnprofitable Counsaylors." this earth bestow this princely corse."
86. two dukedoms] We have had this No more about that. See " But let it
before, i. i. 217. It is not in the Con- rest" in Contention below at line 144.
tention. 99- helm] helm, or rudder, of state.
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 31
Sound a sennet. Enter tJie KiNG, Duke HUMPHREY of
Gloucester, Cardinal Beaufort, Buckingham, York,
Somerset, Salisbury, Warwick, and the Duchess of
Gloucester.
King. For my part, noble lords, I care not which ; lOO
Or Somerset or York, all 's one to me.
York. If York have ill demeaned himself in France,
Then let him be denayed the regentship.
Som. If Somerset be unworthy of the place,
Let York be regent ; I will yield to him. 105
War. Whether your grace be worthy, yea or no,
Dispute not that: York is the worthier.
Car. Ambitious Warwick, let thy betters speak.
War. The cardinal 's not my better in the field.
Buck. All in this presence are thy betters, Warwick. no
War. Warwick may live to be the best of all.
Sal. Peace, son ! and show some reason, Buckingham,
Why Somerset should be preferred in this.
Queen. Because the king, forsooth, will have it so.
Glou. Madam, the king is old enough himself 1 1 5
To give his censure : these are no women's matters.
Queen. If he be old enough, what needs your grace
To be protector of his excellence ?
100, loi. For my part . . . to me] 70, 71 (prose). My lords I . . . who be
Regent in France, or York, or Somerset, all's . . . me. 102, 103. If York
. . . regentship] 72, 73. My Lord, if . . . himself e, Let Somerset enjoy his place
and go to France. 104, 105. // Somerset . . . to him] 74, 75. Then whom
your grace thinke wort hie, let him go, And there be made the Regent oner the
French. 106, 107. Whether . . . worthier] 76, 77. Whom soeuer you account
worthie, Yorke is the worthiest. 108. Ambitious . . . speak] 78. Pease War-
wicke. Give thy betters leaue to speake. log, no. The Cardinal's . . . betters,
Warwick] 79, 80. The Cardinals . . . this place , . . betters farre. iii.
Warwick . . . of all] 81. And Warwicke . . . of all. 112, 113. Sal. Peace, son I
. . . in this] omitted Q. (Compare collation above, line 108). 114. Because
. . . it so] 82. My Lord in mine opinion, it were best that Somerset were Regent
oner France (prose). 115, 116. Madame the king . . . matters] 84, 85. Madame
our King is . . . his answ ere without your consent. iij, iiS. If he be . . . of
his excellence ?] 86, 87. If he be . . . ouer him so long.
103. denayed] Occurs again Twelfth Fenton, 1579. See note at " protector-
Night, II. iv. 127. An old form. Com- ship," 11. i. 30.
lia.reGreene, A Maidens Dreame: "The 115. old enough] See i. i. 163; and
poore were neuer at their neede denaid " 11. 45, 46 below.
(Grosart, xiv. 310). 117, 118. what needs your grace To
103. the regentship] In 1445 (The be protector] This intrigue against
XXIIIJ Yere) (Grafton, p. 626) "the Gloucester is thus told: "first of all
Duke of Sommerset was appoynted she excluded the Duke of Gloucester
Regent of Normandie, and the Duke of from all rule and gouvernaunce, not pro-
Yorke thereof discharged." The term hibityng suche as she knewe to be his
"regentship" is in Contention; see mortall enemies, to inuent and imagine
collation below at 11. 121 -126. An earlier causes and griefes agaynst him and hys :
example is in New Eng. Diet, from so that by her permission and favour
32 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
Glou. Madam, I am protector of the realm,
And at his pleasure will resign my place. 120
Suf. Resign it then and leave thine insolence.
Since thou wert king, as who is king but thou ?
The commonwealth hath daily run to wrack ;
The Dauphin hath prevailed beyond the seas ;
And all the peers and nobles of the realm 125
Have been as bondmen to thy sovereignty.
Car. The commons hast thou racked ; the clergy's bags
Are lank and lean with thy extortions.
So7n, Thy sumptuous buildings and thy wife's attire
Have cost a mass of public treasury. 130
Buck. Thy cruelty in execution
Upon offenders hath exceeded law,
And left thee to the mercy of the law.
Queen. Thy sale of offices and towns in France,
If they were known, as the suspect is great, 135
Would make thee quickly hop without thy head.
\^Exit Gloucester. The Queen drops her fan.
iig, 120. Madam . . . place] 8g, 90. Madame I am but Protector ouer the
land. And when it please his grace, I will resigne my charge. 121-126. Resign
. . . sovereignty] 90-95. Resigne it then for since that thou wast King, As who
is King hut thee. The common state Doth as we see, all wholly go to wracke,
And Millions of treasure hath bene spent And as for the Rcgentship of France, I
say Somerset is more worthie then Yorke. 127-136. Car. The Commons . . .
hop without thy head] omitted Q. 136. Exit Gloucester . . .] 129. Exet Hum-
phrey. 136. The Queen drops her fan] 133. Exit with them (Suffolk and " the
. . . the Duke of Suffolke, and the her, to looke into the revenewes of the
Duke of Buckyngham to be the chiefe, Crowne, to call for an accompt thereof,
not unprocured by the Cardinall of and so should she well understande that
Winchester and the Archebishop of the duek had used the same, not for
Yorke. Dyuers articles both heynous the common wealth but for his owne
and odious were layde to hys charge private commoditie." This is Somer-
in open counsayle, and in especiall one, set's charge (130).
that he had caused men admdged to 121-126. Suffolk's charges and like-
dye, to be put to other execution, then wise that of Queen Margaret concerning
the law of the land had ordered or France, are the charges (some of them)
assigned : for surely the Duke being that were " put up to the King and the
very well learned in the law ciuill, de- Lordes" by the Commons of the nether
testing malefactors, . . . gat great house (pp. 628, 629) against Suffolk
malyce and hatred of such, as feered to himself! This seems rather a crafty
have condigne reward for their . . . point. The Cardinal's charge comes
mischieuous doyngs " (Grafton, p. 629). under the same heading. See extract at
This last paragraph is Buckingham's the passage (iii. 19, 20) about Suffolk's
accusation (131-133). It is very notice- enclosure of the commons. The
able that there is no charge on the Cardinal's charge against " the good
Cardinal's part in the Co7i<eM<Jo«, though Duke Humphrey" is especially out-
it is authentic, at this " open counsayle." rageous. For more about all this, see
See note line 27 above in Scene ii. iii. i. 58-118.
Polydore Vergil says (p. 71, Camden 127. racked] See above, i. ii. 105
Soc.) : " There were forthwith a com- (note).
panye readie to sedition . . . who . . . 136. hop without thy head] See note
did urge forwarde, exhorte, and perswade above (ii. 65) at " headless necks."
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
33
Give me my fan : what, minion ! can ye not ?
\_S he gives the Duchess a box on the ear.
I cry you mercy, madam ; was it you ?
Dudi. Was 't I ! yea, I it was, proud Frenchwoman :
Could I come near your beauty with my nails 140
I 'd set my ten commandments in your face.
King. Sweet aunt, be quiet ; 'twas against her will.
Duch. Against her will ! Good king, look to 't in time ;
She '11 hamper thee and dandle thee like a baby :
Though in this place most master wear no breeches, 145
Armourer and his man," entered 1, 105). The Queene lets fall her gloue, and
hits the Ditches of Gloster a box on the eare. 137. Give . . . not ?] 134. Give
. . . glove. Why Minion can you not see ? She strikes her. 138. was it you]
^^35) I36. I did mistake, I did not thinke it had bene you. 139-141. Was''t I
. . . your face] 137-139. Did you not proud French-woman, Could . . . daintie
vissage . . . face. 142. Sweet . . . will] 140, 141. Be patient gentle Aunt It
was . . . will. 143-146. Against . . . unrevenged] 142-145. Against . . .
sheele dandle thee, If thou wilt alwaies thus be rulde by her. But let it rest.
As sure as I do Hue, She . . . unrevengde.
142. Sweet aunt, be quiet] The king's
only remonstrance at this outrage reads
very lamely. One would not expect to
find his temperate rebuke to the Queen
(Q) omitted.
144. hamper] fetter, clog, obstruct.
Perhaps with a back-sense of the cradle.
Not in Shakespeare again. Not in Q.
A common early word.
144. dandle . . . a baby] Compare
Titus Andronicus, iv. ii. 161 ; the only
parallel in Shakespeare. The expression
" But let it rest" here, in Contention, is
found in Peele's Battle of Alcazar, Act
V. (Dyce, 440, a), noted already.
145. tnost master] the greatest master,
i.e. the King. But the sense is con-
fused. Craig thinks a line has been
dropped out after 144. Not in Q.
145. wear no breeches] Compare 3
Henry VI. v. v. 24, where " breech "
stands for breeches — an old sense. The
proverb seems to have been originally
used as here, of the husband being in
command (wearing the breeches) and
transferred later. Compare Heywood
(ed. Sharman, p. 100), 1546 : " Who had
the worse end of the staffe (quoth I),
now ? Shall the mayster weare a
breeche, or none, say you ? " And The
Boke of Mayd Emlyn (Hazlitt, Early
Popular Poetry, vol. iv. 88),«rtai5i5 : —
" All women be suche,
Thoughe the man here the breche,
They w^'U be euer checkemate.
Faced lyke an aungell,
Tonged lyke a deuyll of hell,
Great causers of debate ! "
137. can ye not ?] Our " can't you ? "
The contraction occurs only in Corio-
lanus.
137. She gives the Duchess a box on
the ear] This incident recalls one in
Peele's Edward I. (Dyce, 392), where
the Queen "longs to give your grace
a box on th' car," and accomplishes it.
Q have the phrase in full. There is
much transposition in this scene from Q.
At a later date (1608) Chapman had to
withdraw a scene from Byron's Con-
spiracie, introducing the Queen of
France rating a lady of the court and
boxing her ears (Ward).
138. I cry you mercy] See Part I. v.
iii. 109 (note).
141. set my ten command mefits] An old
expression. Compare Hey^vood, The
Four PP. (Hazlitt's Dodsley, i. 381),
1540:—
" Nay ten times I beseech him that
high sits.
Thy wife's ten commandments may
search thy five wits "
(cited by Steevens). And Udall's
Erasmus (Roberts' reprint, p. 27), 1542 :
" To auenge soche a naughtie touche or
pranke, with his tenne commandements."
And Selimus, by Greene and Marlowe
(Grosart's, Greene, xiv. 264), 1594 : " I
would set a tap abroach and not Hue
in daily feare of the breach of my wiues
ten command ements." The most exact
parallel is from Locrine, iv. ii. : " fearing
she would set her ten commandments in
my face " (a play, be it remarked, that
bears strong marks of Peele's hand).
3
34 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
She shall not strike Dame Eleanor unrevenged. [Exit.
Buck. Lord cardinal, I will follow Eleanor,
And listen after Humphrey, how he proceeds :
She 's tickled now ; her fume needs no spurs,
She '11 gallop far enough to her destruction. 1 50
{Exit.
Re-enter GLOUCESTER.
Glou. Now, lords, my choler being over-blown
With walking once about the quadrangle,
I come to talk of commonwealth affairs.
As for your spiteful false objections,
Prove them, and I lie open to the law : 155
But God in mercy so deal with my soul
As I in duty love my king and country !
But to the matter that we have in hand.
I say, my sovereign, York is meetest man
To be your regent in the realm of France. 160
Suf. Before we make election, give me leave
To show some reason, of no little force,
That York is most unmeet of any man.
147-150. Buckingham. Lord Cardinal . . . destruction] omitted Q. (Bucking-
ham's speech replaced by) King. Bcleeue me my love, thou wart much to blame,
I would not for a thousand pounds of gold, My noble vnckle had bene here in
place. Enter Duke Humphrey. But see where he comes, I am glad he met her
not. Vnckle Gloster, what answer makes your grace Concerning our Regent for
the Realme of France, Whom thinks your grace is meetest for to send (145-151).
151-160. Now, lords . . . realm of France] 153-158. My gratious Lord, then this
is my resolue, For that these words the Armourer should speake (transferred to
the speech of Gloucester after Armourer's entry, 11. 205, 206). 161-163. Suf.
Before . . . any man] omitted Q.
In Heywood's Epigrams upon Proverbs 149, 150. spurs , . . gallop] a com-
(1562) there is a useful parallel : — mon proverb, modified. See Richard
" The master weareth no breech : IL iv. i. 72. And Lodge, Euphues
then I protest! Golden Legacie (1590): "The words
The master is a girl, a boy, or a of Saladyne were but spurres to a free
beast." horse " (Shakespeare Library, p. 25) :
This continues the sense of the king spur a free horse, he '11 run himself
being a child. Not in Q. to death" (Ben Jonson, Tale of a Tub,
148. listen after] endeavour to hear. iii. iv.).
Compare 2 Henry IV. i. i. 29: "whom 151. over-blown] blown over. Com-
I sent ... to listen after news." It pare Richard II. iii. ii. 190. And
occurs in The True Tragedie of Richard Peele's Tale of Troy (551, b) : "that
the Third (Hazlitt's Shakespeare Lib- this fear mighit soon be overblown."
rary, p. 86) : " But hearst thou Catesbie, "Let this wind overblow" occurs in
meane whilel will/zs^^Ha/if^r successeof Heywood's Proverbs; see 3 Henry VI.
the Duke of Buckingham." An oldexpres- v. i. 53 (note),
sion, seemingly revived by Shakespeare. 152. quadrangle] The earliest example
149. fume] passion, rage. Occurs in New Eng. Diet., and only one in
again Venus and Adonus, 316 (also of Shakespeare.
a horse, metaphorically).
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 35
York. I '11 tell thee, Suffolk, why I am unmeet :
First, for I cannot flatter thee in pride ; 165
Next, if I be appointed for the place,
My Lord of Somerset will keep me here,
Without discharge, money, or furniture.
Till France be won into the Dauphin's hands.
Last time I danced attendance on his will 170
Till Paris was besieged, famished, and lost.
War. That can I witness ; and a fouler fact
Did never traitor in the land commit.
Suf. Peace, headstrong Warwick !
War. Image of pride, why should I hold my peace? 175
Enter HORNER the Armourer, and his man PETER,
guarded.
Suf. Because here is a man accused of treason :
Pray God the Duke of York excuse himself!
York. Doth any one accuse York for a traitor ?
King. What mean'st thou, Suffolk ? Tell me, what are these?
Suf. Please it your majesty, this is the man 180
That doth accuse his master of high treason.
His words were these : that Richard Duke of York
Was rightful heir unto the English crown,
And that your majesty was an usurper.
164, 165. Yovke. I 'II tell thee . . . fiattcr thee in pride] 96, 97 Yorke. lie tell
thee Suffolkc why I am not worthie, Because I cannot flatter as thou canst.
166-171. Next . . . lost] omitted Q. 172, 173. War. That can I 2vitness . . .
cotmnit] 98, gg. And yet the worthie deeds that York hath done, should make him
worthie to be honoured here, 175. Image . . . peace] loi. Image of pride,
wherefore should I peace ? 176, 177. Suf. Because . . . himself] 102-104. Suf.
Because . . . do cleare himsclfc Ho, bring hither the Armourer and his man.
Enter the Armourer and his man. 178, 179. York. . . . traitor ? King. . . .
these?] omitted Q. 180-184. Please it . . . usurper] 105-108. prose (continued
to Suffolk's last speech). If it please your grace this fellow here, hath accused
his master of high Treason, And his . . . That the Duke . . . lawfull . . . the
Crowne, and that your grace . . . usurper.
168. furniture] equipment for war ; datince attendaunce at the dore." And
stores and arms. Compare Golding's earlier in North, Doni's Philosophie
Ovid, xii. 514: "His furniture was (Jacob's edition, p. 231), 1570.
then a swoord, a target and a lawnce, 175. Itnage of pride] type, typical
/Emathian like." Frequent in the representation of pride. Compare King
general sense in the Chronicles : "And Lear, iv. vi. 162: "the great image
then leauyng sufficient furniture for of authority." The only earlier illustra-
defence in Scotland, he returned into tion in New Eng. Diet, (from Hall's
England" (Grafton, i. 308). See 1 Chronicle) is not good. See Kyd's
Henry IV. iii. iii. 226. Spanish Tragedy : ^^ the lively image of
170. Last time] See Part I. iv. iii. my grief" and " this earth, image o/my
170. danced attendance] See again melanchollie."
Richard 1 1 1. m.V\\.^Q3.n^ Henry VIII. 176. accused of treason] For the Ar-
V. ii. 31. Compare Gascoigne, Steel mourer incident, see below (extract from
Glas (Arber, p. 75): " while suitours Chronicle) at the combat, end of 11. iii.
36 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
King. Say, man, were these thy words ? 185
Hor. An 't shall please your majesty, I never said nor
thought any such matter : God is my witness, I am
falsely accused by the villain.
Pet, By these ten bones, my lords, he did speak them to
me in the garret one night, as we were scouring my 190
Lord of York's armour.
York. Base dunghill villain, and mechanical,
I '11 have thy head for this thy traitor's speech.
I do beseech your royal majesty
Let him have all the rigour of the law, 195
Hor. Alas ! my lord, hang me if ever I spake the words.
My accuser is my prentice ; and when I did correct
him for his fault the other day, he did vow upon
his knees he would be even with me : I have good
witness of this : therefore, I beseech your majesty, 200
do not cast away an honest man for a villain's
accusation.
185. Say . . . words] iii. Come hether fellow, didst thou speake those words?
186-188. Hor. An't . . . said nor thought . . . villain] 113, 114. Arm. Ant
. . . said . . . villain here. iSg-igi. By these . . . armour'] 115. Tis no
matter for that, you did say so (for Peter's other words here, see collation at
ii. 27-31). 192-195. Base dunghill villain . . . the law] log, no. I beseeche
your grace let hitn haue what punishment the law will afford, for his villaney
(and) 116. / beseech your grace, let him haue the law. 196-202. Hor. Alas I
my lord . . . knees he would . . . therefore, I beseech . . . accusation] 117-122.
Arm. Alasse my Lord . . . knees that he would . . . And therefore I beseech
. . . accusation.
189. By these ten bones] an ancient At the date 1435 (14th year) Speed says :
adjuration. It occurs in The Digby " Each man hereupon (saith Serres)
Mysteries (ed. Furnival, p. 4), circa 1485 : sharpens his sword and scowres his
"by thes bony s ten" ; and in Hie kscorner Armes, to recover that by force."
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, i. 155), 1520: "Now, 192. dunghill villain] See note at
by these bones she hath beguiled me" "dunghill groom," Part I. i. iii. 14.
(Thcrsites (Hazlitt's Dodsley, i. 429), Not in Q. "Dunghill thoughts" is in
I537)- "By these ten bones" (Roy, Gascoigne, 1576 (Arber, p. 18).
Rede mc, etc. (Arber, p. 71), 1528). And 192. mechanical] Compare Merry
in Greene, yatncs IV. iii. ii., and in Wives of Windsor, 11. ii. 290; and see
Beaumont and Fletcher's Woma7i's note in Arden edition, page 99. Not
Prize, Coxcomb, and Monsieur Thomas, in Q.
Dekker has "by these two hands" 195. rigour of the law] "law" only
(Match mee in London). In Jonson in Q. Compare Romeo and jfuliet, v.
and Davenport. It must have been in iii. 269: "rigour of severest law" ; and
common colloquial or provincial use. Winter's Talc, iii. ii. 115 : "'tis rigour
igo,iqi. scouring .. .armour]Tx3ins- and not laio"; an expression which
ferred here from Peter Thump's appear- Shakespeare took from his original,
ance (Scene iii.) in Co«^CM/JOK. Compare Greene's Pandosto (Grosart, iv. 256):
Golding's Ovid, ix. 320-324 : — " if she were condemned without any
" And as the serpent slye further proofe, it was rigour and not
In casting of his withered slough. Law."
renewes his yeeres thereby 201. cast away] ruin, destroy. Fre-
And wexeth lustyer then before, quent in Shakespeare, as in Love's
and looketh crisp and bryght Labour 's Lost, v. ii. 682.
With scoured scales."
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 37
King. Uncle, what shall we say to this in law ?
Glou. This doom, my lord, if I may judge :
Let Somerset be regent o'er the French, 205
Because in York this breeds suspicion ;
And let these have a day appointed them
For single combat in convenient place ;
For he hath witness of his servant's malice.
This is the law, and this Duke Humphrey's doom, 210
Som. I humbly thank your royal majesty.
Hor. And I accept the combat willingly.
Pet. Alas ! my lord, I cannot fight ; for God's sake ! pity
my case ; the spite of man prevaileth against me. O
Lord ! have mercy upon me ; I shall never be able to 2 1 5
fight a blow. O Lord ! my heart.
Glou. Sirrah, or you must fight or else be hanged.
King. Away with them to prison ; and the day
203. Uncle . . . law'\ 123. Vnckle Gloster, what do you thinke of this ?
207-210. And let , . . Humphrey's doom'\ 124-126. The law my Lord is this
by case, it rests suspitious, That a day of combat be appointed, And there to trie
each others right or zvrong (continued at 218-220). 204-206. This doom . . .
suspicion] 153-157. My gratioiis Lord, then this is my resolue. For that these
words the Armourer should speake Doth breed suspiiion on the part of Yorke,
Let Somerset be Regent oner the French, Till trials made, and Yorke may cleare
himselfe. 211. Som. Thank . . . majesty] 158-165. King. Then be it so
my Lord of Somerset. We make your grace Regent over the French, And to
defend our rights gainst forraine foes. And so do good vtito the Realme of
France. Make haste my Lord, tis time that you n; ere gone, The time of Truse
I thinke is full expirde. Somerset, I humbly . . . majesty. And take my leaue
to poste with speed to France. Exet Somerset. 212. Hor. And . . .
willingly] 130. And . . . willingly. 213-216. Alas I my lord . . . my
heart] 131. Alasse my Lord, I ajn not able to fight. 217. Glou. Sirrah . . .
hang'd] 132, 133. Suffolke. You must cither fight sirra or else be hangde : Go
take them hence agaiiie to prison. Exet with them. 218. King. Away . . .
prison] (see Suffolk's last speech) : and the day . . . next month] (Humphrey's
speech at 207-210 continued) Which shall be on the thirtieth of this month. With
Eben staves, and standbaggs combatting In Smythficld, before your Royall
Majestic, Exet Humphrey.
205. Let Somerset be regent] In the on his appointment." He gives this as
XXnn Yere : " The Kyng called his evidence that this play, " however after-
high court of Parliament . . . and the wards worked up by Shakespeare," was
Duke of Somerset was appoynted Regent the work of another author originally,
of Normandy, and the Duke of Yorke and that the Quarto was printed from
thereof discharged" (Hall, p. 206). See that author's copy. It certainly is
III. i. 83. evidence, though not very weighty, in
210, 211. Theobald, followed by that direction. He (Malone) was
Steevens (1793), inserted between these arguing against Steevens, who thought
two lines the two (15S, 159) from the the Contention might be " an imperfect
Contention, wherein the King gives surreptitious copy of Shakespeare's
Somerset the appointment. Malone play," obtained piecemeal from players'
says that this speech " was not intended or other transcripts. See below, in. i.
to be preserved, appears from the con- 292, in note.
eluding line of the present scene in 217-220. For " Eben staves and stand-
which Henry addresses Somerset ; bagges " in the Contention here, see
whereas in the Quarto Somerset ^o^son^ below, 11. iii. 58, 59.
38
THE SECOND PART OF
[act I.
Of combat shall be the last of the next month.
Come, Somerset, we '11 see thee sent away. 220
\Flourish. Exeunt.
SCENE IV. — Gloucester's Garden.
Enter Margery Jourdain, Hume, Southwell, and
BOLINGBROKE.
Hume. Come, my masters ; the duchess, I tell you, expects
performance of your promises.
Baling. Master Hume, we are therefore provided. Will
her ladyship behold and hear our exorcisms ?
Hume. Ay ; what else ? fear you not her courage.
220. Come
away'\ (see two last lines of King's speech at 211. King's
speech in Q reads at this close) 165-168. Come vnckle Gloster, now let 's liaue
our horse, For ive will to Saint Albones presently, Madame, your Hawke they
say, is swift of flight, And we will trie how she willflie to day. Exet omnes.
Scene iv. . . . 1-12. Come
Scene iv.
Scene iv.
. to our zvork] omitted Q (see below, line 13).
Enter Margery Jourdain . . .] Graf-
ton's account (from Hall) is as follows
(XXth Yere) : " Divers secret attempts
were aduanced forward this season,
agaynst the noble Duke Humfrey. . . .
For first this yere. Dame Elyanour
Cobham, wyfe to the sayde Duke was
accused of treason, for that she by
sorcerie and enchaunment entended to
destroy the King, to the entent to
aduaunce and promote her husbande to
the crowne : upon thys she was examined
in Saint Stephens Chapell, before the
Bishop of Canterbury, and there by
examination conuict and judged to doe
open penaunce, in three open places,
within the Citie of London, and after
that adiudged to perpetuall prison in the
Isle of Man, vnder the keeping of Sir
lohn Stanley knight. At the same
season were arrested as ayders and
counsaylers to the sayde Duches,
Thomas Southwell priest and Chanon
of saint Stephens in Westminster, lohn
Hum priest, Roger Bolyngbroke, a
cunning Nigromancier, and Margery
lourdayne, surnamed the Witch of Eye,
to whose charge it was layde, that they
at the request of the Duches, had
deuised an Image of waxe, representing
the King, which by their sorcery, a little
and little consumed entendyng thereby
in conclusion to wast, and destroy the
kings person, and so bring him to
death, for the which treason, they were
adiudged to dye, and so Margery
lordayne was brent in Smithfield, and
Roger Bolyngbroke was drawen and
quartered at Tyborne, taking upon his
death, that there was neuer any such
thing by them imagined, lohn Hum
had his pardon, and Southwell died in
the towre before execution : the Duke
of Gloucester toke all things paciently
and sayde little " (i. p. 622, 1441-1442).
Southwell does not appear in the Con-
tention, but in all the Chronicles,
Stowe has not Hum, or Hume, but
he agrees with Shakespeare and the
Contention in rejecting the waxen image.
See note at the end of Act ii.
4. exorcisms'\ Improperly used here
of a conjuration for raising spirits.
The same remark applies to Cymbeline,
IV. ii. 276 ; All 's Well that Ends
Well, V. iii. 305 ; and Julius Ccesar,
II. i. 323. New Eng. Diet, has a
reference to Lydgate for a similar use
of exorcism. Correctly used by Greene,
A Looking Glasse for London (xiv. 62).
Not in Q.
5. what else ?] a strong affirmation
— certainly. See Atitony and Cleo-
patra, III. vii. 29. Very commonly
used by Jonson. See Lyly's Midas :
" But canst thou blow it ? H. What
else ? " And A Warning for Faire
Women : " Must I go to Greenwich,
sc. iv] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 39
Boling. I have heard her reported to be a woman of an
invincible spirit : but it shall be convenient, Master
Hume, that you be by her aloft while we be busy
below ; and so, I pray you, go, in God's name, and
leave us. \^Exit Hiiuie.\ Mother Jourdain, be you lO
prostrate, and grovel on the earth ; John Southwell,
read you ; and let us to our work.
Enter DuCHESS aloft, HUMY. following.
Duck. Well said, my masters, and welcome all. To this
gear, the sooner the better.
Boling. Patience, good lady ; wizards know their times : 1 5
II. prostrate . . . earth (transferred to Witches' speech (9-13)). 12.
Enter Dtichess . . . ] Cambridge ; Enter Elianor aloft Ff ; Enter Elenor, with
Sir lohn Hum, Koger (Roger, Q 3), Bullenbrooke a Conitirer and Margery
lourdaine a Witch. 13, 14. Duch. Well said . , . the better] 1-13. Elnor.
Here Sir lohn, take this scrole of paper here, Wherein is writ the questions you
shall aske, And I will stand upon this Tower here, And here the spirit what
it saies to you, And to my questions, write the answeres downc. She goes vp to
the Tower. Sir lohn. Now sirs begin and cast your spels about. And charm the
fendcsfor to obey your wils. And tel Dame Elnor of the thing she askes. Witch.
Then Roger Roger Bullenbrooke about thy taske, And frame a Cirkle here upon
the earth, Whilst I thereon all prostrate on my face. Do talke and whisper with
the diuels below. And coniure them for to obey my will. She lies downe upon her
face. Bullenbrooke makes a Cirkle. 15-22. Boling. Patience . . . verge]
14-20. Bullen. Darke Night, dread Night, the silence of the Night, Wherein the
Furies maskc in hellish troupes, Send up I charge you from Sosetus lake, The
spirit Askalon to come to me, To pierce the bowels of this Centricke earth, And
sir ? Barnes. What else ? And Kyd, 15-20. Bohngbroke's speech in the
Spanish Tragedy, iii. xiv. 164 (Boas Contention (14-20) bears evidence of
edition). Marlowe's hand at this point. He has
7. invincible spirit] Com^parel Henry "Ye Furies that can mask invisible"
VI. IV. ii. 32. in Tamburlaine, Part I. iv. iv. (Dyce,
II. grovel on the earth] " Grovel on 29, a); and "Furies from the black
thy face " is found above, figuratively Cocytus' lake " {ibid. v. i., 34, a) ; and
(ii. 9) ; but the expression is not in " the island where the Furies mask "
Shakespeare again. [Tamburlaine, Part II. iii. ii., 54, b) ;
13. Well said] Well done. Fre- and " Infernal Dis is courting of my
quently so used by Shakespeare, irrela- love Inventing masks" {ibid. iv. ii., 64,
tively of any conversation. Compare b). Dis is in Bohngbroke's next speech
Peele's Old Wives Tale (453, b) : but one, a name for Pluto. Again,
"Well said, thou pliest these pioners " The substance of this centrick earth "
well." And Marlowe, Tamburlaine, is a line in Marlowe's Faustus, vi.
Part II. V. I (69, b), where Dyce noted {circa 1590), and is the earliest example
this sense. of the word in New Eng. Diet. But
14. To this gear] let us get on with although Marlowe undoubtedly wrote,
the business in hand. Compsire Richard or dressed, this scene in the Conten-
III. I. iv. 158, and Titus Andronicus, tion, it is obvious that Shakespeare
IV. iii. 52. And in (Peele's) Jack eliminated his peculiarities carefully.
Straw : " let us roundly to this gear. See note at i. iii. 49 and 79. For Ditis
'Tis more than time that we were (nigrantis regia Ditis) and Styx to-
gone " (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 383). gether, see Albanact's dying speech
And several times in The Spanish (in Latin) in Locrine, 11. v. See on
Tragedy. And in Tamburlaine, Part Marlowe again at iii. i. 282. See
!• II. ii. I. Faerie Queene, 1. i. 37-39.
40
THE SECOND PART OF
[act I.
Deep night, dark night, the silent of the night,
The time of night when Troy was set on fire ;
The tin:ie when screech-owls cry, and ban-dogs howl,
And spirits walk, and ghosts break up their graves,
That time best fits the work we have in hand. 20
Madam, sit you, and fear not : whom we raise
We will make fast within a hallowed verge.
[^Here they do the ceremonies belonging, and make the
circle; Bolijtgbroke or Southwell reads, Conjuro
te, etc. It thunders and lightens terribly ; then
the Spirit riseth.
Spir. Adsum.
M. Jourd. Asmath !
By the eternal God, whose name and power 25
hither come in twinkling of an eye, Askalon, Assenda, Assenda. It thunders and
lightens, and then the spirit riseth vp. 23-27. Spir. Adsum. M, Jourd. Asmath I
. , . hence] omitted Q.
16. Deep flight] Compare " deep of
night" (Merry Wives of Windsor and
Julius Casar), and " deep midnight "
(Midsummer Night's Dream, i. i. 223).
"Silent night" occurs in Faerie
Queene, iii. iii. 61, and in Visions of
the World's Vanitie. Also in Kyd's
Spanish Tragedy, i. i.
16. silent of the night] may be a
mere slip for "silence of the night"
which we have twice in Q (i. ii. 65,
I. iii. 14). Peele has the expression in
The Battle of Alcazar, 11. i. : " Nor
may the silence of the speechless night,
(Dire) architect of murders and mis-
deeds" (Dyce, 425, a). And in Selimus
(Grosart's Green, xiv. 278) : " in the
quiet silence of the night . . . ere the
windows of the morne be ope " (partly
by Peele).
17. The time of night] Compare
Midsummer Night's Dream, v. i.
386 ; Hamlet, iii. ii. 406, and i. i.
46.
17. The time of night when Troy]
Compare Peele's Tale of Troy, 1589
(557. b) :-
" It was the time when midnight's
sleep and rest
With quiet pause the town of Troy
possess'd . . .
Now Troy, as was foretold, began
to burn."
18, 19. screech-owls cry, and ban-
dogs howl, And spirits walk] Shake-
speare had Golding's Ovid in his mind
here. See note to " Julius Cassar's
star," Part I. i. i. 60. Golding has
(XV. 887-895) :—
" The moone had also spottes of
blood. The screech-owle sent
from hell
Did with her tune unfortunate in
every corner yell . . .
The doggs did howle, and
everywhere appeered ghastly
spryghts."
"Screech-owls" appears againbelow,iii.
ii. 327, and elsewhere ; the " ban-dog " is
here only. In another place in Golding
(bk. V.) the " sluggish screeching owl "
is termed a " filthy fowl." In Thersites
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, i. 399) Cerberus is
called the "bandog". Sometimes it was
" banddogge " in early writers ; one tied
on account of his ferocity. See King
Henry's last speech in Part III. v. vi.
44-46.
19. break up their graves] Occurs
again Henry V. iv. i. 22.
22. verge] border, circle.
22, 23. It thunders and lightens . . .
Adsum] This machinery is like Peele's
in the Old Wives Tale (Sacrapant is
a magician) : " Re-enter Sacrapant :
It lightens and thunders : thy second
Brother falls down . . . Sacrapant . . .
Adeste, daemones ! Enter Two Furies "
(450, b). " It thunders and lightens "
again at p. 454, b.
24. Asmath] Probably " Asmenoth,
guider of the North," in Greene's
Frier Bacon. See note at " monarch
of the north," Part I. v. iii. 6.
sc. IV.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 41
Thou tremblest at, answer that I shall ask ;
For till thou speak thou shalt not pass from hence.
Spir. Ask what thou wilt. That I had said and done !
Baling. " First, of the king : what shall of him become ? "
{^Reading out of a paper.
Spir. The duke yet lives that Henry shall depose; 30
But him outlive, and die a violent death.
\As the Spirit speaks, Southwell tvrites the answer.
Boling. " What fates await the Duke of Suffolk ? "
Spir. By water shall he die and take his end.
Boling. " What shall befall the Duke of Somerset ? "
Spir. Let him shun castles : 35
Safer shall he be upon the sandy plains
Than where castles mounted stand.
Have done, for more I hardly can endure.
Boling. Descend to darkness and the burning lake :
False fiend, avoid ! 40
[ Thunder and lightning. Exit Spirit.
28. spir. Ask . . . done I] 21. Now Bnllenbrooke what would'st thou have me
do ? 2g. Boling. (Bullen always in Q) First . . . of him become ?] 22. First
. . . become of him ? 30, 31. The . . . depose ; . . . death] 23, 24. The . . .
depose . . . death. 31. [As the spirit . . .] omitted Q. 32. fates] 25. fate.
34. befall] 27. betide. 35-38. Let him . . . can endure] 28-30 (prose). Let
him . . . stand. Now question me no more, for I must hence againe. He sinkes
downe againe. 39, 40. Descend . . . avoid /] 31-37. Then downe I say, unto
the damned ponle, where Pluto in his frie Waggon sits, Ryding amidst the
singde and parched smoakes. The Rode of Dytas by the Riuer Stykes, There
howle and burne for ever in those flames. Rise lordaine rise and staie thy charm-
ing spels. Sonnes, we are betraide. Enter the Duke of Yorke, and the Duke of
Buckitigham and others.
28. That I had said and done !] 38. / hardly can endure] See note
Steevens says here, that spirits who at 1. 28 above. The Quarto has " I
remained above ground, answered must hence again." See Hamlet, i. v.
questions with reluctance. Malone re- 4-7. In Peele's Sir Clyomon (521, a)
fers to " Dismiss me, enough! " {Mac- the angel " Providence " says similarly
beth, IV. i. 72). to Neronis : " Let desperation die in
29. Bolingbroke] Shakespeare fol- thee, I may not here remain . . .
lows the Contention in giving Boling- [Ascends]."
broke the reading of the questions, 39. the burning lake] This is a piece
forgetting that he has said (1. 11) : of Marlovian rant that escaped the
" Southwell, read you." That is to reviser ; see note at 11. 15-20 above. It
say, he forgets his own alterations, occurs again in Titus Andronicns, iv.
for there is no Southwell in Q. iii. 43. Pistol takes it in hand in
34, 35. Somerset . . . Let him shun 2 Henry IV. 11. iv. 170 ("to Plutos
castles] See v. ii. 6g (note). damned lake, by this hand "). It has
36. sandy plains] An expression of the Tamburlaine taint. In Part II.
Peele's in The Battle of Alcazar (at occurs "the burning gulf," "the lake
the end) : " The fields and sawfi^y //aj«s of hell," etc. etc. The Contention
we have survey'd." Every little helps I has " damned poule " here. Kyd has
And in his Anglorum Ferice : " Over " the lake where hell doth stand,"
the wild and saw^j Afric//a?Hs. " And and the " firie lakes," in Spanish
see quotation at " hive of bees," in. ii. Tragedie. Perhaps he set the ex-
125 (note). Fleay makes this expression ample,
a test of Peele's writings.
42 THE SECOND PART OF [act i.
Enter YORK and BUCKINGHAM, hastily, ivith their guard.
York. Lay hands upon these traitors and their trash.
Beldam, I think we watched you at an inch.
What ! madam, are you there ? the king and commonweal
Are deeply indebted for this piece of pains :
My lord protector will, I doubt it not, 45
See you well guerdoned for these good deserts.
Duch. Not half so bad as thine to England's king,
Injurious duke, that threatest where 's no cause.
Buck. True, madam, none at all. What call you this ?
Away with them ! let them be clapped up close, 50
And kept asunder. You, madam, shall with us :
Stafford, take her to thee.
\Exeunt above Duchess and Hume, guarded.
We '11 see your trinkets here all forthcoming.
All, away!
[Exeunt guard, with Southwell, Bolingbroke, etc.
41-46. York, hay hands . . . good deserts] 38-42. Yorke. Come sirs, laie hands
on them, and bind them sure, This time was well zvatch'd. What Madame are
you there ? This will be great credit for your husband. That you are plotting
Treasons thus with Cuniiirers, The King shall have notice of this thing. Exet
Elnor above. 47, 48. Duch. Not . . . cause] omitted Q. 49-54- Buck.
True . . . away!] 43. Bucking. See here my Lord what the diiiell hath ivrit.
42. Beldam] old woman, hag. See and p. 404: "Now I lie Clapt up
again King John, iv. ii. 185, and Mac- in Irons and with bolts of Steele."
beth. III. V. 2. Schmidt's lumping together of all the
42. at an inch] closely, at close " clap up's " in Shakespeare is quite
quarters. So in Laneham's Letter indigestible.
(Burn's reprint, p. 88), 1575: " if the 53. trinkets] trifles of any sort, but
Council sit I am at hand : wait at an usually of wearing articles, ornaments
i?2c// I warrant you." See also Mamag-f and suchlike. Pentacles and conjuring
of Wit and Science (Hazlitt's Dodsley, garb, as well as the writings, may
"• 338» 365), 1570; and Greene, Third be included. " Triviall trinkets and
Part of Conny Catching (Grosart, x. threedbare trash " (in writing) occurs
180) : " The rest following the gentle- in one of the " Conny Catching "
man at an inch " (where Grosart tracts attributed to Greene (Grosart, xi.
volunteers the characteristic remark, 49).
" usually at inches "). Greene has it 53. see . . . forthcoming] A proper
again in Frier Bacon, quoted by Craig, legal term of any person or thing given
who also quotes the Marriage of Wit into one's charge. See below, 11. i.
and Science passages. Not in Q, and 179 ; and Taming of the Shrew, v. i.
not in Shakespeare. 96. " I will give my word hee shall
46. guerdoned^ rewarded. As a verb, hefoorth comming to-morrow morning "
again, only in 3 Henry VI. iii. iii. 191. (Greene, Hee and Shce Conny Catcher,
But common. Grosart, x. 220). " I will take a course
50. clapped up close] shut up, or im- to see you forthcoming'' (Naunton,
prisoned, closely. From the clapping of Frag?nenta Regalia (Harl. Misc. v. 124),
the door, as in 1 Henry IV. n. iv. 305. 1641). " Bounde to keepe him forth-
See Greene's Alphonsus (Grosart, xiii. coming" (Miles Philips in Hakluyt, iii.
^02) : — 568 (reprint 1811), 1582). See below,
" But call to mind that thou a 11. i. 177 for another example. Not
prisoner art, in Q.
Clapt up in chaines " ;
sc. IV.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 43
York. Lord Buckingham, methinks you watched her well: 55
A pretty plot, well chosen to build upon !
Now, pray, my lord, let 's see the devil's writ.
What have we here ?
" The duke yet lives that Henry shall depose ;
But him outlive, and die a violent death." 60
Why, this is just
" Aio te, ^acida, Romanos vincere posse."
Well, to the rest :
" Tell me what fate awaits the Duke of Suffolk ?
By water shall he die and take his end. 65
What shall betide the Duke of Somerset ?
Let him shun castles :
Safer shall he be upon the sandy plains
Than where castles mounted stand."
Come, come, my lords ; these oracles 70
Are hardly attained, and hardly understood.
The king is now in progress towards Saint Alban's ;
With him the husband of this lovely lady:
Thither go these news as fast as horse can carry them :
55-58. York. Lord Buckingliam . . . here ?'] 44, 45. Yorhe. Give it me my
Lord, He show it to the King. Go sirs see them fast lockt in prison. Exet
with them. 59-75- The duke yet lives . . . lord protector] omitted Q.
52. Aiofe . . . ^osse] The ambiguous the comfort of those blinde prophecies
answer the Pythian Apollo gave Pyrrhus many insurrections and rebellions have
{according to the Annals of Ennius) bene stirred up in this Realme, as that
when he inquired whether he would of lacke Strawe and lacke Cade in
vanquish Rome (Cicero, Dc Divin. ii. Richard the seconds time." This
56). It may mean either " I affirm passage from Puttenham sums up the
that thou, descendant of ^acus, position in such a remarkable way that
mayest conquer the Romans," or " I one feels it is more than a coincidence,
affirm that the Romans may vanquish I have endeavoured to show in Love's
thee, descendant of ^acus " (Craig). Labour '5 Lost that Puttenham was a
Puttenham deals with this subject favourite with Shakespeare. With re-
(Arte of English Poesie, Arber, p. 267, gard to these blind prophecies of the
1586-89) under the heading of Am- Chroniclers, sneered at by the later
phibologia, or the Ambiguous: "these ones (like Grafton in several places),
doubtfull speaches were vsed much in no contemporary of Shakespeare seems
the old times by their false Prophets more at home amongst them than Peele.
as appeareth by the Oracles of Delphos See his Edward the First and his Old
and of the Sybilles prophecies deuised Wives Tale. For further examples of
by the religious persons of those " Sibillaes goulden prophesies " forward
days to abuse the superstitious . . . and backward thus the same, with
Lucianus, the merry Greeke, reciteth a double sense, see Lyly's Woman in the
great number of them devised by a Moone, in. i. (circa 1580). And see
coosening companion, one Alex- Marlowe's Edward the Second (Dyce,
ander, to get himselfe the name and 217, b) : " Edwardum occidere nolite
reputation of the God ^sculapius, and timere bonum est." With reference
in effect all our old Brittish and Saxon to Puttenham, see a quotation from
prophesies be of the same sort, that, him in Part I. i. vi. 27.
turne them on which side ye will, the 68. sandy plains'] See note above, 1.
matter of them may be verified ... by 39.
44
THE SECOND PART OF
[act
A sorry breakfast for my lord protector.
Buck. Your grace shall give me leave, my Lord of York,
To be the post, in hope of his reward.
York. At your pleasure, my good lord. Who 's within
there, ho !
75
Enter a Servingnian.
Invite my Lords of Salisbury and Warwick
To sup with me to-morrow night. Away !
80
[Exeunt.
76, 77. Buck. Your grace . . . reward] 46, 47. Bucking. My lord, I pray
you let me go post vnto the King Vnto S. Albones, to tell this newes. 78-80.
York. At your . . . /I way /] 48-54. Yorke. Content, Away then, about it straight.
Buck. Farewell, tny lord. Exet Buckingham. Yorke. Whose within there ?
Enter one. One. My lord. Yorke. Sirrha, Go will the Earles of Salsbury and
Warwicke, to sup with me tonight. Exet Yorke. One. I will my lord. Exet.
75. A sorry breakfast] Shakespeare
does not give us another example of
this figure of speech, which sounds
provincial. But it occurs in Peele : —
" By Gis, fair lords, ere many days
be past,
England shall give this Robin
Hood his breakfast "
{Edward I., Dyce, 398, a). And again :
" Ah, gentle Richard, many a hot
breakfast have we been at together 1 "
(ibid., 407, a). Not in Q.
79, 80. Invite . . . to sup] Q has
" will the Earles ... to sup," which
is paralleled in Henry V. u. iv. 77, and
Titus Andronicus, v. i. 160.
ACT II. sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 45
ACT II
SCENE \.—Samt Albafis.
Enter the KING, QuEEN, Gloucester, Cardinal, and
Suffolk, with Falconers halloing.
Queen. Believe me, lords, for flying at the brook,
I saw not better sport these seven years' day :
Yet, by your leave, the wind was very high.
And, ten to one, old Joan had not gone out.
King. But what a point, my lord, your falcon made,
5
Enter the King and Queenc with her Harvke on her fist, and Duke Humphrey
and Suffolke, and the Cardinally as if they came from hawking. 1-4. Queen.
Believe me . . . gone out] 1-3. Qneene. My lord how did your grace like this
last flight ? But as I cast her off the winde did rise. And 'twas ten . . . gone
out. 5-8. King. But what . . . climbing high] 4-7. King. How wonderfull
the Lords workes are on earth, Eticn in these silly creatures of his hands, Vnckle
with Falconers] We have had
notice of this hunting scene at i. ii.
56-58 ; and it has a semi-historical
basis. In the XXX VI J Yere Graf-
ton writes : " Queene Margaret, whose
breath ruled . . . caused the king to
make a progresse into Warwickeshire,
for hys health and recreation, and so
with Hawking and hunting, came to
the Citie of Couentrey, where were
diuers wayes studied priuely . . . her
hartes ease and long desired purpose :
which was the death and destruction
of the Duke of Yorke, the Erles of
Salisburie and Warwick . . . they
auoyded this net and narrowly escaped
the snare " (p. 657). These three peers
were the last referred to in the pre-
vious scene, and though they escape
this snare, which serves another pur-
pose and place, the queen's hawking
holds good.
I. at the brook] See my note to
" we '11 a-birding together," Merry
Wives of Windsor, in. iii. 246 (Arden
edition, pp. 142, 143). Hawking at
the river or brook was the true royal
sport of falconry ; mallards, herons,
etc., being the quarry. Craig gives a
quotation from Drayton's Polyalbion,
Song XX. Chaucer, in Sir Thopas, tells
that the goshawk was expressly for the
river. James I. delighted in it to the
end of his days. " The king looked
abroad in his litter, to see some flights
at the brook " {Court and Times of
jfames I., Letter dated Jan. 8, 1624-5).
2. these seven years' day] This ex-
pression occurs in Heywood's Pro-
verbs (edited by Sharman, p. 124),
1546 ; and see note at " This seven
year," Part I. iv. iii. 37. Lyly has
"at every five yeeres day" in Gal-
lathea, i. i. (Fairholt, p. 221). Com-
pare (Peek's) Jack Straw : " Myself
was not so scared this seven years "
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 396).
4. gone out] taken her flight.
Scarcely a necessary remark, but
Johnson suggested that the meaning
was " flown quite away," making a
question where none exists. It is even
more obvious in Q.
4-7. The Contention here contains
the hawking term " soused." Shake-
speare has a good show of hawking
language ; see King John, v. ii. 150.
5. point . . . falcon made] gained
46
THE SECOND PART OF
[act II.
And what a pitch she flew above the rest !
To see how God in all his creatures works !
Yea, man and birds are fain of climbing high.
Suf. No marvel, an it like your majesty,
My lord protector's hawks do tower so well; lo
They know their master loves to be aloft,
And bears his thoughts above his falcon's pitch.
Glou. My lord, 'tis but a base ignoble mind
That mounts no higher than a bird can soar.
Car. I thought as much ; he 'd be above the clouds. 1 5
Glou. Ay, my lord cardinal ? how think you by that ?
Were it not good your grace could fly to heaven ?
King. The treasury of everlasting joy.
Car. Thy heaven is on earth ; thine eyes and thoughts
Glostcy, how hie yotir Hawke did sore? And on a sodaine sonst the Partridge
doune. 9-12. No marvel . . . falcons pitch} S-zo. No mar iiell if it please . . .
done toure . . . He knowes his . . . aloft. 13, 14. Glou. My lord . . . soar']
II, 12. Humphrey . Faith my Lord, it is but a base minde That can sore no
higher then a Falkons pitch. 15. / . . . clouds'\ 13. / . . . your grace
would be . . . cloudcs. 16, 17. Ay . . . that ? Were . . . heaven P] 14,
15. / . . . heaven (omitting hoiv . . . that ?). 18. King. . . .] omitted Q.
ig-22. Thy . . . thine eyes . . . pernicious . . . That smoothest it so . . .
a secure position to windward, from
whence she could wait the fowl. " The
Lanner never lieth upon the Wing
after she hath flown to Mark, but
after once stooping she maketh a Point,
and then, like the Goshawk, waits the
Fowl. . . . They are excellent Hawks
for the River, lying long upon the
Wing, and will fly the Field also very
well " (Nicholas Cox, The Gentleman's
Recreation, pp. 180-181, ed. 1721).
Seems to be an uncommon expression,
judging from the editor's notes to it.
I have not found it elsewhere. Schmidt
and Harting are wide of the mark. It is
to be noticed that the flight is not at
the brook in Q ; it is a partridge that
is soused at. The alteration is very
proper, since partridges did not require
high-flying hawks.
6. pitch] The recognised expression
for the falcon's height, especially ex-
tremest height, of flight. See note at
Part I. II. iv. II. And figuratively in
yulius Ccssar, i. i. 78 ; and compare
line 12. Compare too Brewer's Lingua,
v. 16 : —
" And by the lofty towering of their
minds.
Fledged with the feathers of a
learned muse
They raise themselves unto the
highest pitch."
10. tower] soar, fly high. Hawking
language also. See Macbeth, 11. iv.
12, and Lucrece, 506. It occurs in
Golding's Ovid, bk. xii. 11. 581, 582 :
" For he did see a broune Bird flying
from amid the stacke and towrtng
up and downe " ; and again, 11. 624,
625 :—
" hee towring lay
Among the cloudes."
Note the archaism done {doen, they do)
in Q I. Spenser uses it.
14. mounts . . . soar] Compare
Richard IL i. i. 109, " How high a
pitch his resolution soars," with the
Contention (line 12) here.
15. above the clouds] See Romeo and
jfulict, IV. V. 74: '^ Above the clouds,
as high as heaven itself."
16. how think you by that ?] what
mean you by that ? What does that
import you to be thinking of.
18. treasury of . . . joy] Compare
Spenser's Astrophel (1588), stanza 27 : —
" And her faire brest, the threasury
of joy.
She spoyld thereof and filled with
annoy."
18. everlasting joy] Omitted in the
Contention, where Henry's holiness is
not insisted upon as it is here. See the
development at i. iii. 54-64. And see
below, 11. 66, 67, and elsewhere.
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 47
Beat on a crown, the treasure of thy heart ; 20
Pernicious protector, dangerous peer,
That smooth'st it so with king and commonweal !
Glou. What! cardinal, is your priesthood grown peremptory?
TantcBfie aniniis coslestibus ircB ?
Churchmen so hot? good uncle, hide such malice ; 25
With such holiness can you do it ?
Suf. No malice, sir ; no more than well becomes
So good a quarrel and so bad a peer.
Glou. As who, my lord ?
Suf. Why, as you, my lord ;
An 't like your lordly lord-protectorship. 30
Glou. Why, Suffolk, England knows thine insolence.
Queen. And thy ambition, Gloucester,
King. I prithee, peace,
Good queen, and whet not on these furious peers ;
For blessed are the peacemakers on earth.
Car. Let me be blessed for the peace I make 35
Against this proud protector with my sword.
commonweal] 16-18 (prose). Thy . . . thy words . . . proude . . . to smooth it
thus . . . commonwealth. 23-26. What I ... do if] 19, 20. How now my
Lord, why this is more than tieeds, Churchmen so hole. Good vnckle can yon
doate. 27, 28. No malice . . . peer] 21. Why not Hauing so good a
quarrell <&> so bad a cause. 29, 30. ^5 who . . . Why as you . . . An't . . .
lord-protectorship] 22-24. As how . . . As yon . . . And it . . . Lords Pro-
tectorship. 31. thine] 25. thy. 32-34. And . . . I prithee, peace, Good
queen . . . furious peers For . . . earth] 26-29 (prose). And . . . cease gentle
Queene . . . furious Lordes to wrath, for . . . earth. 35, 36. Let me . . .
sword] 30, 31. Let me . . . sword.
20. Beat on a crown] hammer, or simply " can you behave so, in the
ponder upon (Schmidt). So the sun's presence of such holiness " (as the
rays beat upon a thing. See The King's) ? Staunton and others would
Tempest, v. i. 246. See Steevens' excel- read " dote," from the Contention, where
lent note and parallels, to the confusion the word is certainly an interesting
of Johnson's suggested falcon sense, misprint.
Compare Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part 30. lordly] A favourite word, as
I. V. i. (33, a) : — already noted at " lorldly sir " (Part I.
" And every warrior that is rapt with in. i. 43), with Greene ; but only used
love in Lucrece and 1 and 2 Henry VI, in
Of fame, of valour, and of victory, Shakespeare. Peele uses it in a stilted
Must needs have beauty beat on his fashion : " my lordly breast " (Battle
conceits." of Alcazar, 11. ii., Dyce, 427, b). And
And see Marlowe, Edward IL (Dyce, see note, Part I. in. i. 43 ; also note
192, a). above at i. ii. 40.
22. smooth'st it] flatters it. See i. 30. protectorship] See again below,
i. 156 above, and Richard IIL i. iii. 48. iii. i. 60; iii. i. 21. Only in this play.
24. Tantane . . . ires] Virgil, Mneid, Compare " regentship," i. iii. 103, which
i. II. Peele quotes this in Speeches to is also peculiar to this play. Both from
the Quee7i at Theobald's, i^gi. See also the Contention. Similarly we have
Speeches to the Queen at Sudeley "attorneyship" in Part I. v. v. 56, and
(Nichols (1592), iii. 137). not elsewhere. The formation is much
26. With . . . do it] This line is older. " Portership " (as an office) is
held to be corrupt, and many emenda- quoted for circa 1450, New Eng.
tions have been proposed. It may mean Diet.
48 THE SECOND PART OF [act n
Glou. [Aside to Car.] Faith, holy uncle, would 'twere come to
that!
Car. [Aside to Glou.'] Marry, when thou darest.
Glou. [Aside to Car.] Make up no factious numbers for the
matter ;
In thine own person answer thy abuse. 40
Car. [Aside to Glou.] Ay, where thou dar'st not peep: an if
thou dar'st,
This evening on the east side of the grove.
King. How now, my lords !
Car. Believe me, cousin Gloucester,
Had not your man put up the fowl so suddenly,
We had had more sport. [Aside to Glou.] Come with
thy two-hand sword. 45
Glou. True, uncle.
Car. [Aside to Glou.] Are ye advised ? the east side of the
grove.
37. would 'twere] 32. I would it were. 38. Marry] 33. Even. 39,
40. Make . . . numbers . . . abuse] 40, 41 (transferred). Make . . . numbers,
but even in thine own person mecte me at the East end of the groue (prose). 41,
42. Ay, where . . . grove] 33-39. Even when thou darest. Humphrey. Dare, I
tell thee Priest, Plantagenets could neuer brooke the dare. Card. I am Plantagenet
as well as thou, and sonne to lohn of Gaunt. Hump. In Bastardie. Cardin. I
scorne thy words. 43. Hoiv . . . my lords I] 43. Why, how now. Lords?
43-45. Believe me . . . sword] 44-46. Faith, Cousin Gloster, had not your tnan cast
off so soone, we had had more sport to-day. Come with thy swoord and buckler
(prose). 46.] omitted Q. 47. Are ye . . . grove] 42. Hcres my hand, I will.
39. factious] joining in the quarrel, hung up over fire-places or in halls,
partisan. See Richard III. 1. iii. 128 Nashe speaks of its rust in Foure
and II. i. 20. Different from the usual Letters Confuted : " Flourishing about
sense, rebellious. my lares with his two hande sworde of
44. put tip the fowl] sprung, sprung Oratory and Poetry, peradventure shakes
up, flown, raised or started (the game) some of the rust of it on my shoulders "
are the usual words at this date, and I (Grosart, ii. 186), 1592-1593. Peele
have no example of so early a use as brings it in ludicrously in the Old
this of our common expression. Schmidt Wives Tale (Dyce, 448, b), 1595:
says it means put the hawk up (in a " Enter Huanebango with his two-
bag?) and take him away! Which is /mwi sworrf, and Corebus " (and several
terrible. The Cow /c«<Jo« has the normal times in the play); while in Jonson's
hawking phrase " cast off," for beginning Epicene, iv. ii., it is spoken of as a
the sport, viewed from another stand- curiosity (1G09) : " He has got some
point. The alteration is due to the body's old two-hand sword, to mow
transference of the pastime from field to you off at the knees ... he is so
river, probably — but it is not easy to say hung with pikes, halberds, petronels,
why. " Fowl " is always prey or game calivers, and muskets, that he looks like
in this connection. See Measure for a justice-of-peace's hall." N. Breton
Measure, in. i. 92 ; Peele, David and compares the tongue to a two-hand
Bethsabe (Dyce, 484, a), etc. etc. sword (Pasquils Fooles-cap), from the
45. two-hand sword] Not {onnd again two-edged sword of the Bible. The
in Shakespeare ; " sword and buckler " sword and buckler of the Quarto was
in Quarto. In the Merry Wives of not dignified enough for these grim
Windsor (Quarto), at 11. i. 131, " two- sirs ; at this date it was becoming
hand sword " is changed into " long vulgar. Often in Peele's play.
sword" in the received version (11. i. 47. Are ye advised] See "are you
232). It was out of use probably, and avised," Merry Wives of Windsor, 1.
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
49
Glou. [Aside to Car.] Cardinal, I am with you.
King. Why, how now, uncle Gloucester !
Glou. Talking of hawking ; nothing else, my lord. 50
\A side to Car.] Now, by God's mother, priest, I'll shave
your crown
For this, or all my fence shall fail.
Car. [Aside to Glou.] Medice, teipsum
Protector, see to't well, protect yourself.
King. The winds grow high; so do your stomachs, lords. 55
How irksome is this music to my heart !
When such strings jar, what hope of harmony ?
I pray, my lords, let me compound this strife.
Enter One, crying " A miracle ! "
Glou. What means this noise ?
Fellow, what miracle dost thou proclaim ?
One. A miracle ! a miracle !
60
49, ^o. King. . . . uncle Gloucester. Glou. Talking of hawking . . .] omitted
Q. 51)52. Now by . . . fail] ^j. Faith priesi, He shave your crowne. 53,
54. Medice . . . yourself] 48. Protector, protect thyselfe well. 55-58. The
winds . . . strife]/^g. The wind growes high, so doth your chollojtr Lords. Enter
one crying, A miracle, a miracle. 59, 60. Glou. What . , . proclaim] 50.
King. How now, now sirrha, what miracle is it? 61, 62. A miracle . . .
zvhat miracle] omitted Q.
iv. 106, and note, Arden edition, p. 55 ;
and also Measure for Measure, 11. ii.
132. Ben Jonson has it in Bartholomew
Fair, iv. i. ; and in Gipsies Metamor-
phosed (Cuningham's Gifford, iii. 152, b).
Have you taken it in ? Not in Q.
Compare Kyd's Spanish Tragedie :
" Hieronimo, you are not well advisde "
(hi. xii. 67) (Boas edition).
48. I am with you] I '11 meet you, I 'II
match you. Compare Romeo and yuliet,
II. iv. 78 : "Was / with you there for
the goose ? "
51. I'll shave your crown] Compare
" bald pate " to the friar in Measure for
Measure, v. i. 329, 357. No other direct
personal reference to the tonsure, I
think, occurs in Shakespeare. Com-
pare Peele, Edward I. (Dyce, 381, a) :
" Friar. Here swear I by my shaven
crown. Wench," etc.
52. fence] fencing ; as in " Master of
Fence" {Merry Wives of Windsor, i.
i. 295). Compare Much Ado About
Nothing, V. i. 75 ; Twelfth Night, iii.
iv. 312 ; and elsewhere. Not in Q.
53. Medice, teipsum] From Luke iv.
23-
55. stomachs] tempers. " Cholers "
in Q.
57. jar] grow out of tune. A
favourite word in this musical sense
with Shakespeare. Not in Q.
58. compound this strife] Occurs
again in Taming of a Shrew, 11. i. 343 ;
and in Richard III. 11. i. 74. " Com-
pound this quarrel " is also in Taming
of a Shrew, i. ii. 27. An expression of
Peele's also : " To calm, to qualify, and
to compound Th' ambitious strife of
Scotland's climbing peers " {Edward I.,
Dyce, 385, a), circa 1590 ? And Faerie
Queene, iii. iii. 23 : " Till universall
peace compound all civill jarre."
61. A miracle] Shakespeare probably
took this from Grafton (it is not in Hall
or Holinshed), who found it in Sir
Thomas More's Dialogue, 1530. Graf-
ton says it is " in the xiiij. chapter of the
same booke, in thys wise following.
In the time of King Henry the sixt as
he roade in Progresse, there came to
the towne of Saint Albons a certaine
begger with hys wyfe, and there was
walking about the towne begging fiue
or six dayes before the kinges comming
thether, sayeng that he was borne blinde
and never sawe in all his life, and was
warned in his dreame that he should
come out of Berwike, where he sayd
50
THE SECOND PART OF
[act II.
Suf. Come to the king and tell him what miracle.
One. Forsooth, a blind man at Saint Alban's shrine,
Within this half hour hath received his sight;
A man that ne'er saw in his life before.
King. Now, God be praised, that to believing souls
Gives light in darkness, comfort in despair !
65
Enter the Mayor of Saint Alban's and his brethren ; and SlMP-
COX, borne between two persons in a chair ; his Wife and a
great multitude following.
Car. Here comes the townsmen on procession,
To present your highness with the man.
King. Great is his comfort in this earthly vale, 70
Although by his sight his sin be multiplied.
63-65. One. Forsooth . . . before] 51, ^2. One. And it please your grace, there
is a man that came blinde to S. Albones, and hath recemcd his sight at his shrine.
66, 67. Now . . . despair I] 53. Goe fetch him hither, that wee may glorifie the
Lord with him. Enter . . . brethren with Miisicke, bearing the man that had
bene blind, betweene two in a chaire. 68, 69. Here . . . man\ omitted Q.
70, 71. Great . . . multiplied'] 55, 56. Thou happie man, gitie God eternall
praise. For he it is that thus hath helped thee.
that he had ever dwelled, to seke Saint
Albon, and that he had bene at his
Shrine, and was not holpen, and there-
fore he would go seeke him at some
other place : For he had heard some
saye sence he came, that Saint Albons
body should be at Colyn, and in dede
such a contention hath there bene. . . .
But to tell you foorth when the King
was come, and the towne full of people,
sodainely this blind man at Saint Albons
Shryne had his sight & the same was
solemnply rong for a miracle, and Te
Deum songen, so that nothing was talked
of in all the towne, but this miracle. So
happened it then that Duke Humfrey of
Gloucester, a man no lesse wise, then
also well learned, hauing great ioy to
see suche a miracle, called the poore
man vnto him, and first shewying him-
selfe ioyous of Gods Glorie, so shewed
in the getting of his sight, and exhort-
ing him to mekenesse, and to no
ascribyng of any part of the worship to
himselfe, nor to be proude of the peoples
praise, which would call him a good
& a godly man therby, at the last he
looked well upon his eien, & asked
whether he could euer see anything at
al in all his life before. And when as
well his wife as himselfe affirmed fastly,
no, then he looked aduisedlj' upon his
eyen agayne, and sayde, I beleue you
very well, for me thinketh that ye cannot
see well yet. Yes Sir quoth he, I
thanke God and his holy Martir, I can
see now as well as any man : yea can,
quod the Duke, what colour is my
Gowne ? Then anone the begger told
him. What colour quod he is this mans
Gowne ? he tolde him also without anye
stayeng or stomblyng, and tolde the
names of all the coloures that coulde
be shewed him. And when the Duke
sawe that he bade him \\alke Faytoure,
and made him to be set openly in the
stockes : For though he could haue sene
sodaynely by miracle the difference be-
twene dyuers coloures, yet could he not
by sight so sodainely tell the names of
all these coloures, except he had knowne
them before, no more then he coulde
name all the men whome he should
sodainely see, thus farre mayster Moore "
(The XXV Yere). For a reference to
miracles shown in Henry's lifetime, on
account of his " parfyte holines," see in
Polidore Vergil, at i. iii. 59 above (note).
66, 67. God be praised . . . comfort
in despair] Here as in earlier passages
(see note at 1. 18 above). Henry's piety
is enlarged upon from the Contention.
See too 11. 84-S6.
70. earthly vale] Shakespeare is fond
of this metaphorical use. See Comedy
of Errors, v. i. 120 ; Othello, iii. iii. 266.
sc. I ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 51
Glou. Stand by, my masters ; bring him near the king :
His highness' pleasure is to talk with him.
King. Good fellow, tell us here the circumstance,
That we for thee may glorify the Lord. 75
What ! hast thou been long blind, and now restored ?
Simp. Born blind, an 't please your grace.
Wife. Ay, indeed, was he.
Suf. What woman is this ?
Wife. His wife, an 't like your worship. 80
Glou. Hadst thou been his mother, thou could'st have
better told.
King. Where wert thou born ?
Simp. At Berwick in the north, an 't like your grace.
King. Poor soul ! God's goodness hath been great to thee :
Let never day nor night unhallowed pass, 85
But still remember what the Lord hath done.
Queen. Tell me, good fellow, cam'st thou here by chance,
Or of devotion, to this holy shrine ?
Simp. God knows, of pure devotion ; being called
A hundred times and oftener in my sleep, 90
By good Saint Alban ; who said, " Simpcox, come;
Come, offer at my shrine, and I will help thee."
Wife. Most true, forsooth ; and many time and oft
Myself have heard a voice to call him so.
Car. What ! art thou lame ?
Simp. Ay, God Almighty help me ! 95
72, 73. Stand by . . . with him] 57. Where wast thou born ? 74-76. Good
fellow . . , restored?] omitted Q (see 53 above). 76. King. . . . hast thou
been long blind] 6g. Humph. But tell me wart thou borne blinde ? 77. Simp.
Born . . . grace] 70. Poore man. I truly sir. 78. Wife. Ay . . . he] 71.
Woman. I indeed, sir, he ivas borne blinde. 79. Suf. What . . . tins ?] 72.
Hufnphrey. What art thou his tnother ? 80. Wife. His . . . worship] 73.
Woman. His wife sir. 81. Glou. Hadst . . . told] 74, 75. Humphrey. Hadst
. . . told (two lines). 82. King. Where . . . born ?] 57. Humphrey. Where
wast thou borne? 83. Simp. At . . . grace] ^S, 59. Poore man. At Barwicke
Sir, in the North. Humphrey. At Banvicke, and come thus far for helpe.
84-86. Poor soul I . . . Lord hath done] omitted Q. 87, 88. Queen. Tell me
. . . shrine ?] omitted Q. 89-92. Simp. God knows . . . help thee] 60, 61,
Poore man. I sir, it was told me in my sleepe, That sweet saint Albones, should
give me my sight againe. 93, 94. Wife. Most true ... so] omitted Q. 95.
Car. What I . . . lame ?] 62. Humphry. What art thou lame too ? 95. Simp.
Ay . . . me] 63. Poore man. I indeed sir, God helpe me.
77, 83. your grace] The tiresome itera- times in Shakespeare : as The Merchant
tion of this expression, or title, is notice- of Venice, i. iii. 107; 1 Henry IV. 1.
able in these plays; but perhaps most ii. 56, etc. See, too, Disobedient Child
so in Richard III. It is a characteristic (Hazlitt's Dodsley, ii. 292), circa 1560;
with Peele. It occurs fifteen times in and Nashe, Christes Teares (Grosart,
the first Act of yacA S/razw. A popular iv. 196), 1593. It occurs in Golding's
trick of the time in stage-dialogue. Ovid, i. 93 ; and as " full many a time and
93. many time and oft] Several 0/^," four or five times, later (1565-1567).
52 THE SECOND PART OF [act ii.
Suf. How cam'st thou so ?
Sirup. A fall off of a tree.
Wife. A plum-tree, master.
Glou. How long hast thou been blind ?
Simp. O ! born so, master.
Glou. What ! and would'st climb a tree ?
Simp. But that in all my life, when I was a youth.
Wife. Too true; and bought his climbing very dear. lOO
Glou. Mass, thou lov'dst plums well, that would'st venture
so.
Simp. Alas ! master, my wife desired some damsons,
And made me climb with danger of my life.
Glou. A subtle knave ! but yet it shall not serve.
Let me see thine eyes: wink now: now open them. 105
In my opinion yet thou see'st not well.
Simp. Yes, master, clear as day, I thank God and Saint
Alban.
Glou. Say'st thou me so? What colour is this cloak of?
Simp. Red, master ; red as blood.
Glou. Why, that 's well said. What colour is my gown
of? no
Simp. Black, forsooth ; coal-black as jet.
96. How cam'st thou so ?] 64. Humphry. How cam'st thou lame ? 96, 97.
Simp. A . . . tree. Wife. A . . . master] 65. Poorc man. With falling off on
a plum-tree. 97, 98. Glou. How . . . blind ? Simp. 0 1... master] omitted
Q. 98. Glou. What I . . . tree?] 66. Humph. Wart thou blind &> wold clime
plumtrees ? 99. Simp. But . . . youth] 66, 67. Poore man. Never but once sir
in all my life, My wife did long for plums (see text 102. wife . . . damsons).
100-105. Wife. . . . Simp. . . . Glou. A subtle . . . them] omitted Q. 105,
106. Let me see . . . yet . . . well] 76. Humphry . . . Why let me see I thinke
thou canst not see yet. 107. Yes . . . Alban] 77. Yes truly maistcr, as cleare
as day. 108. Say'st . . . cloak of] 78. Saist thou so. What colours his
cloake ? log. Red . . . blood] 79. Why red . . . as red . . . 110-112.
Glou. Why ...of. Simp. Black . . . jet. King. Why . . . jet is of] 80-86.
Humphry. And his cloake? Poore man. Why thats greene. Humphry. And
what colours his hose ? Poore man. Yellow maister, yellow as gold. Humphry.
And what colours my gowne ? Poorc man. Black sir, as black as leat. King.
Then belike he knowes what colour leat is on.
107. clear as day] Gabriel Harvey meygernesse and coleblacke hue " (1567).
has " Is it not cleerer than the sonne Marlowe has " The Ocean, Terrene,
at noonedayes ?" (Letters to Spenser and the Coal-black sea." in Tamburlaine,
(Grosart, i. 123), 1580). Not in Shake- Part I. iii. i. (1586). In Shakespeare
speare again. it occurs again in Richard II. v. i.
108. Say'st thou me so] A favourite 49 ; in 5 Henry VI. v. i. 54, and three
mode with Shakespeare, Nashe and times in Titus Androtiicus. Not in Q.
others. Schmidt gives a good collec- It occurs in Chaucer, and very often
tion (pp. 565, 566). in the Faerie Queene.
log. reti as i/00^] Not in Shakespeare iii. black as jet] Again only in
again. Several times in Peele's Old Titus Andronicus, v. ii. 50. It occurs
Wives Tale (Dyce, 446, b ; 447, b). in the fourth book of Golding's Ovid,
III. coal-black] In Golding's Ovid 1. 602: "The poastes began to quake
(book vii. 824) : " Did shift their and doores looke blacke as jet." And
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 53
King. Why then, thou know'st what colour jet is of ?
Suf. And yet, I think, jet did he never see.
Glou. But cloaks and gowns before this day a many.
Wife. Never, before this day, in all his life. 115
Glou. Tell me, sirrah, what 's my name ?
Simp. Alas ! master, 1 know not.
Glou. What 's his name ?
Simp. I know not.
Glou. Nor his ? 120
Simp. No, indeed, master.
Glou. What 's thine own name ?
Simp. Saunder Simpcox, an if it please you, master.
Glou. Then, Saunder, sit there, the lyingest knave in
Christendom. If thou hadst been born blind, thou 125
might'st as well have known all our names as thus to
name the several colours we do wear. Sight may
distinguish of colours, but suddenly to nominate them
all, it is impossible. My lords, Saint Alban here hath
done a miracle; and would ye not think his cunning 130
to be great, that could restore this cripple to his legs
again ?
Simp. O master, that you could !
113. Suf. And . . . see\ Sy. Suffolke. And . . . see. 114 and 116. Glou.
But . . . name ?'\ 88, 8g. But . . . ere this day many a one. But tell . . .
name? 115. Wife. Never . . .] omitted Q. 117. Alas . . . not'\go. Alasse
maister . . . not. 1 18-120. Glou. What's . . . his] 91-93. Humphry. Whats
. . . his. 121. No . . . master] g^-qb. No truly sir. Humph. A^or his name .^
Poore man. No indeed maister. 122. What's . . .] 97. Whats . . . 123.
Saunder Simpcox . . .] 98. Sander, and it please you maister. 124-132. Then
Saunder . . . Alban (Albones Q) . . . ye not think (you not think Q) . . .
again ?] 99-105. Then Sander . . . againe. 133. that] 106. / would.
in Peele, Polyhymnia (Dyce, p. 570, a), " the prettiest Kate in Christendom "
1590 ; and Marlowe's Tamburlaine, (same play, 11. i. 188) ; and " The
Part II. I. iii. It is in Hawes' Pastime bluntest wooer in Christendom" (5
o/P/fasz(>'e(reprint, p. 135) : " Andevery Henry VI. iii. ii. 83). New Eng,
tothe as blacke as any gete." Diet, has an example in a serious use
114. a many] "many a one" in Q. of date 1460: the "mightest King in
As a noun, again in ^ Henry IV. i. iii. Christendom." Crawford (Collectanea,
gi ; and still, and earlier, in expression pp. 118, iig) dwells on the occurrence
" a good many." of this expression in Soliman and
124. sit there] there you are, or there Perseda, and in Arden of Feversham.
you go. You are proclaimed. There See note at 3 Henry VI. iii. ii. 83 :
you have your existence. Compare " The bluntest wooer in Christendom."
" them that sit in darkness and in the 128. nominate them] give them their
shadow of death" (Psalm 107). true names; implying recognition.
124,125. the lyingest knave in Christ- Earlier in Love's Labour's Lost, i. ii.
endom] The line occurs again in Tam- 16, but the sense is different. Compare
ing of a Shrew, Induction, 2-26, an un- Greene, Blacke Booke (Grosart, xi. 6) :
usual occurrence in Shakespeare, and " to shadowe his villany the more would
apparently overlooked by the commen- nominate himselfe to be a Marshall
tators, down to the Arden edition of man." A favourite word with Gabriel
Taming of a Shrew. Compare, too, Harvey.
54 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
Glou. My masters of Saint Alban's, have you not beadles
in your town, and things called whips? 135
Mayor. Yes, my lord, if it please your grace.
Glou. Then send for one presently.
Mayor. Sirrah, go fetch the beadle hither straight.
{Exit an Attendant.
Glou. Now fetch me a stool hither by and by. Now,
sirrah, if you mean to save yourself from whipping, 140
leap me over this stool and run away.
Enter Beadle.
Simp. Alas ! master, I am not able to stand alone :
You go about to torture me in vain.
Glou. Well, sir, we must have you find your legs. Sirrah
beadle, whip him till he leap over that same 145
stool .
Bead. I will, my lord. Come on, sirrah ; off with your
doublet quickly.
Simp. Alas ! master, what shall I do ? I am not able to
stand. 1 50
[After the Beadle hath hit him once, he leaps over the
stool and runs away ; and they follow and cry,
" A miracle ! "
134-138. My masters . . . straight. [Exit an Attendant] 107-112. My Maisters
. . . straight. Exet one. 139-150. Now fetch me . , , to stand] 113-122.
{Humphry and ' Poore man ') Noiv fetch me . . . to stand. 150. [After . . .
hit him once . . . A miracle t] 122. After . . . hit him one girke . . . ruu after
135. things called whips] " A humor- " Deepest hell
ous method of expression, occasionally Where bloudie furies shake their
used satirically at the present day" whips of Steele"
(Halliwell). Collier noticed that these (i. i. 65) (Boas), from Virgil's Mneid.
vfoxd?, occviV in Armms' Nest of Ninnies, But Peele is better in Tlie Battle of
160S : "There are as Hamlet says, Alcazar: —
things called whips in store " (Grosart's " Furies . . .
reprint, p. 58). He continually has Range through this army with your
playscraps from Shakespeare. The ex- iron whips "
pression occurs in Jonson's additions (436, b). And : —
to Kyd's Spanish Tiagedie (iii. x.) " Nemesis with bloody zei/ii/" in hand,
(Boas) : — Thunders for vengeance "
"heaven is heaven still, (425, a). And especially : —
And there is Nemesis, and Furies, " Nemesis, high mistress of revenge,
And things called whippes." That with her scourge keeps all
The date of these additions is 1602. the world in awe "
It is suggested that the quotation (for (421, b). I say especially, because these
such it seems), or tag, is out of the old last words occur in Hamlet, v. i. 238 :
Hamlet, probably by Kyd, in which " Kept the world in awe " — establishing
Armins appears to have acted. Evi- a connection between Peele and the old
dently the words in the original referred Hamlet. Nemesis is especially Peele's.
to the whips (of iron or steel) of Professor Boas's parallels from Hamlet,
Nemesis and the Furies. These appear Q i, with Kyd's Spanish Tragedy are
in Locrine and Selimus (of Erynnis and not so weighty as this.
Furies), later plays. Earlier Kyd has : — 150. hit him once] " hit him one
sc. I ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 55
King. O God ! seest thou this, and bearest so long ?
Queen. It made me laugh to see the villain run.
Glou. Follow the knave ; and take this drab away.
Wife. Alas ! sir, we did it for pure need.
Glou. Let them be whipped through every market-town 155
till they come to Berwick, from whence they came.
\Exeunt Mayor, Beadle, Wife, etc.
Car. Duke Humphrey has done a miracle to-day.
Suf. True ; made the lame to leap and fly away.
Glou. But you have done more miracles than I ; 160
Vou made in a day, my lord, whole towns to fly.
Enter BUCKINGHAM.
King. What tidings with our cousin Buckingham ?
Buck. Such as my heart doth tremble to unfold.
A sort of naughty persons, lewdly bent.
Under the countenance and confederacy 165
Of Lady Eleanor, the protector's wife,
him, crying, A miracle, a miracle. 151-154. King. O God I . . . Long ? . . .
Wife. Alas I . . . need] omitted Q. i55-i57- Let . . . came'] 123-126. A
miracle, a miracle, let Iiim be taken againe, &> whipt through euery Market
Towne til he comes at Barwick where he was borne. Mayor. It shall be done
my Lord. Exet. Mayor. 158, 159. Car. . . . to-day. Suf. . . . away] 127,
128. Suffolke. My Lord Protector hath done wonders to-day, He hath made the
blinde to see, and halt to go. 160, 161. Glou. But . . . to fly] 129-132.
Humph. I but you did greater wonders, when you made whole Dukedoms file
in a day. Witnesse France. King. Haue done I say, and let me hear no more
of that. Enter the Duke of Buckingham. 162. What . . . Buckingham]
133. What 7iewes brings Duke Humphrey of Buckingham .^ 163-174. Siich as
. . . understand] 134-142. /// new es for some my Lord, and this it is. That proud
dame Elnor our Protectors wife. Hath plotted treason Against the King and Peerse,
By zvichcrafts, sorceries and conitirings. Who by such meanes did raise a spirit
girke" of the Contention is a neat displace"; and p. 244: " Burne up the
stage-direction ; and it is worthy of fields, and ouerthrow whole towns."
note that Peele has a most interesting Peele had a hand in Selimus. But
series of stage-directions in all his Tamburlaine, Part II., mentions a
signed plays. They continually repay greater miracle: "And make whole
study. "Jerk," the proper word for a cities caper in the air" (iii. ii., 55, a),
stroke of a whip, is only used once in 164. A sort of naughty persons] a
Shakespeare, metaphorically, in Love's crew, pack. Used contemptuously
Labour 's Lost, iv. ii. 129. In a note often : " A sort of vagabonds "
to the Arden edition of that play (p. (Richard IIL v. iii. 316) and "a
82), I have given a good example from sort of tinkers" (below, iii. ii. 277).
Greene's Never too Late to Mend Similarly in Grafton (King John, The
(Grosart, viii. 193), 1590. XIII Yere), p. 241 : 'M sort also there
153. <fm6]Seenote to Partl.v.iv. 32. were of prelates that time which were
161. whole towns] An exaggerated not pleased . . . yea euery sawcy Sir
form of speech found in Peele, Ihon for his part." Not in Q.
Edward I. (Dyce, 388, a) : " Sending 164. bent] inclined.
whole centuries of heathen souls to 165. confederacy] league, conspiracy.
Pluto's house." And in Selimus In this bad sense Shakespeare uses the
(Grosart's Greene, xiv. 201) : " And word several times (King Lear, Mid-
seeke with swoord whole kingdomes to sitmmer Night's Dream, etc.) Not in Q.
56 THE SECOND PART OF [act h.
The ringleader and head of all this rout,
Have practised dangerously against your state,
Dealing with witches and with conjurers : '
Whom we have apprehended in the fact ; 170
Raising up wicked spirits from underground,
Demanding of King Henry's life and death,
And other of your highness' privy council,
As more at large your grace shall understand.
Car. And so, my lord protector, by this means 175
Your lady is forthcoming yet at London.
This news, I think, hath turned your weapon's edge ;
'Tis like, my lord, you will not keep your hour.
Glou. Ambitious churchman, leave to afflict my heart :
Sorrow and grief have vanquished all my powers; 180
And, vanquished as I am, I yield to thee,
Or to the meanest groom.
vp. To tell her what hap should betide the state, But ere they had finisht their
diuellish drift, By Yorke and my selfe they were all surprisde, And heres the
answere the diiiel did make to them. 175.] 143-153. King. First of the King,
what shall become of hitn ? Reads. The Duke (as at i. iv. 23, 24, Yet for Btit} :
146. Gods will be done in all : 147, 148. What . . . end (as at i. iv. 25, 26) : 149,
150. Suffolke. By water must the Duke of Snffolke die ? It must be so or else
the diiiel doth lie. 151-153. Let Somerset . . . For safer . . . stand (as at i. iv,
27-29). 175-178. Car. And so . . . hour] 154-156. Heres good stuffe, how now
my Lord Protector This newes I think hath turndc your weapons point, I am in
doubt youle scarsly keepe yo7ir promise. 179-182 and 187-196. Ambitious . . .
groom, (and) Madam . . . honest name] 157-165. Forbeare ambitious Prelate to
167. ringleader] Not elsewhere in SLnd Midsummer Nigh fs Dream : in Two
Shakespeare. Occurs in Udall's Eras- Gentlemen of Verona and Comedy of
mus (Roberts, p. 373), 1542 : "One of Errors; but in no late work. Probably
the chief ringleders and capitaines." one of the many instances that could be
And in Heywood's Proverbs (ed. Shar- adduced of the result of his early (per-
man, p. 41), 1546 : — haps earliest) reading for his work, in
" Shee is as sure to hold as an eele the Chronicle Histories. Not in Q.
by the taile, 176. forthcoming] See note, i. iv. 53.
Shee is neither fish nor flesh nor 177. turned . . . edge] Surely an im-
good red herring, provement on " turned the point " in the
Shee is a ringleader there." Contention, especially of a sword. See
And in Hall's Chronicle (1809, p. 242), below, iv. x. 60, for another example.
I548' 178. keep your hour] Compate Comedy
i6y. head] leader. So in (Peele's) 0/ Errors, iii. i. 2 :" My wife is shrewish
yack Strajv : " Following desperately when I keep not hours." The Contention
your lewd and misgoverned heads, has " promise." This and the last are
which have haled you on " (Hazlitt's the evidence that comes in grains to
Dodsley, v. 410). make up the weight for the work of a
171. spirits from underground] See different hand in the text,
above, i. ii. 72. 179. Ambitious churchman] The ad-
174. at large] at length, in full detail, jective is used thus, in addressing, half
This is a characterism of Shakespeare's a dozen times in the three parts, but
historical and earlier plays. It occurs not, I think, elsewhere in Shakespeare,
half a dozen times in the first two parts 179-182. Ambitious . . . meanest
of Henry VL up to this ; and twice groom] These touching and dignified
each in Richard II. and Henry V.; in words have no counterpart in the
" Henry IV., Merry Wives of Windsor original. They at once win our
o
sc. 1] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 57
King. O God ! what mischiefs work the wicked ones,
Heaping confusion on their own heads thereby.
Queen. Gloucester, see here the tainture of thy nest, 185
And look thyself be faultless, thou wert best.
Glou. Madam, for myself, to heaven I do appeal,
How I have loved my king and commonweal ;
And, for my wife, I know not how it stands.
Sorry I am to hear what I have heard : 19O
Noble she is, but if she have forgot
Honour and virtue, and conversed with such
As, like to pitch, defile nobility,
I banish her my bed and company,
And give her as a prey to law and shame, 195
That hath dishonoured Gloucester's honest name.
King. Well, for this night we will repose us here :
To-morrow toward London back again,
To look into this business thoroughly.
And call these foul offenders to their answers ; 200
And poise the cause in justice' equal scales.
Whose beam stands sure, whose rightful cause prevails.
{^Flourish. Exeunt.
urge my grief e. And pardon me my gratious Soueraigne, For here I sweare vnto
your Maiestie, That I am guiltlasse of those hainous crimes Which my ambitious
wife hath falsly done, And for she would betraie her soueraigne Lord, I here
renounce her from my bed and boord. And leaue her open for the law to iudge,
Vnlesse she cleare her selfe of this foiile deed. 183-185. King. O God I . . .
Queen. Gloucester] omitted Q. 197-202. King. Well . . . prevails. Exeunt]
166-170. King. Come my Lords this night weele lodge in S. Albones, And to
morrow we will ride to London, And trie the utmost of these Treasons forth, Come
vnckle Gloster along with us, My mind doth tell me thou art innocent. Exet omnes.
sympathy for Gloucester as they are 193. pitch, defile] Again in Much Ado
meant to do, forming a corollary to the About Nothing, in. iii. 60.
second scene in the play. 194. bed and compatiy] " bed and
183. the wicked ones] the wicked, hoard" in the Cotitention ; which occurs
Compare Lomwe (by Peele and Greene?), transposed in As You Like It, v. iv.
i. i:— 148.
"wear a wreath of sempiternal 199. thoroughly] Notice here the
fame trochaics or triple-endings so plentiful
Sorted amongst the glorious happy in this scene ; thoroughly, repose us
ones." here, company, nobility, how it stands,
Biblical (Matthew xiii. 38). in the style of Peele. This metrical
185. tainture] blemish, defilement, fashion may have been due to Spenser's
Compare " attainture," above, i. ii. 106. Faerie Queene. It abounds in the plays
Both are peculiar to this play in of about this date, but not in earlier
Shakespeare, but neither occurs in the ones. Shakespeare soon shook it off.
Contention. 201. poise . . . injustice' . . . scales] This
190, 191. Sorry I am . . . Noble metaphor, including the beam, occurs
she is] This ineffective transposition, again in All's Well that Ends Well,
smacking of a beginner, is not peculiar 11. iii. 161. And compare Othello, i.
to this passage. " Sorry I am "occurs iii. 331, and Hamlet, iv. v. 157.
in Richard IIL iii. vii. 88 ("sorry 202. beam] "A needle or tongue
am I" is frequent). ''Noble she was, of a balance or beam (Examen)" (J.
and thought I stood engaged," is in Rider, Bibliotheca Scholastica, Oxford,
All's Well that Ends Well, v. iii, 95. 1589).
58 THE SECOND PART OF [act h.
SCENE II. — London. The Duke of Yo^yC'^, Garden.
Enter YORK, SALISBURY, and Warwick.
York. Now, my good Lords of Salisbury and Warwick,
Our simple supper ended, give me leave
In this close walk to satisfy myself,
In craving your opinion of my title,
Which is infallible, to England's crown. 5
Sal. My lord, I long to hear it at full.
War. Sweet York, begin ; and if thy claim be good,
The Nevils are thy subjects to command.
York. Then thus :
Edward the Third, my lords, had seven sons : 10
The first, Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales ;
The second, William of Hatfield ; and the third,
Lionel Duke of Clarence ; next to whom
Was John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster ;
The fifth was Edmund Langley, Duke of York; 15
Scene ii, . . . Garden] omitted Q (as throughout). Enter . . .] Enter the
Diike of . . . and the Earles of . . . 1-5. York. Now . . . crozvn] 1-4. My
Lords our simple supper ended, thus, Let me reueale vnto your honours here. The
right and title of the house of Yorke, To Englands Crowne by liniall desent.
6. Sal. My . . . full] omitted Q. 7, 8. War. Sweet York . . . command]
5, 6. Then Yorke . . . command. 9, 10. Then . . . sons] 7, 8. Then thus
my Lords. Edward the third had seuen sonnes. 11. The first . . . Wales]
9, 10. The first was . . . Wales. 12. The second . . . Hatfield] 11, 12. The
second was Edmund of Langley, Duke of Yorke. 12, 13. And the third . . .
Clarence] 13. The third was Lyonell , . . Clarence. 13, 14. next . . . Lan-
caster] 14, 15. The fourth was lohn . . . Lancaster. 15. The fifth . . . York]
16. The ffth zvas Roger Mortemor, Earle of March.
3. close] private. edition from Holinshed. There must
4. title] We have had this before, on have been a variant text of the first.
a smaller scale in Part I. 11. iv. and The confusion between Sir Edmund
VI. V. Boswell Stone deals with this Mortimer (brother to Roger Mortimer,
intricate question, shovi'ing that Shake- fourth earl of March), and Edmund
speare drew from Holinshed, who took Mortimer, fifth earl of March (from
the pedigree from Stow's Annates. It Holinshed) is increased on the next
is noteworthy that the Contention has page (11. 41, 42). See note at line 41
three mistakes of its own : at the second below.
son ; at the order of the sixth and 5. Which is infallible] Grafton has
seventh sons ; and at the fifth son. the words " the very true and infallible
The edition of 1619 corrects these in heyre" in his summary of York's title
the Contention, reading as the amended (p. 666). The earlier part of the
play does in the Folio. This 1619 pedigree is given more fully in Grafton
edition has another difference here, at the end of Edward the Third's reign
giving (from Holinshed) after "died (pp. 411, 412). The words " by lineal
before his father " (line 18) the following descent" used here in the Contention
words : " Leaning behinde him two are found in Part I. iii. i. 166, when
sonnes; Edward, borne at Angolesme, the King is restoring to Plantagenet
7vho died young, and Richard that was his rights, in an unhappy moment,
after crowned King." It is not in the Grafton has : " I am the very true and
least probable that these words were lyneall heyre which discent all you
expressly introduced into the third (1619) cannot justly gayne say" (p. 667).
sc. II ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 59
The sixth was Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester ;
William of Windsor was the seventh and last.
Edward the Black Prince died before his father,
And left behind him Richard, his only son,
Who, after Edward the Third's death, reigned as king ; 20
Till Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Lancaster,
The eldest son and heir of John of Gaunt,
Crowned by the name of Henry the Fourth,
Seized on the realm, deposed the rightful king,
Sent his poor Queen to France, from whence she came, 25
And him to Pomfret ; where, as all you know.
Harmless Richard was murdered traitorously.
War. Father, the duke hath told the truth ;
Thus got the house of Lancaster the crown.
York. Which now they hold by force and not by right ; 30
For Richard, the first son's heir, being dead.
The issue of the next son should have reigned.
Sal. But William of Hatfield died without an heir.
York. The third son, Duke of Clarence, from whose line
I claim the crown, had issue Philippe, a daughter, 35
16, The sixth . . . Gloucester] 17. The sixt was sir Thomas of Woodstocke.
17. William . . . last.] 18. William . , . last. 18-20. Edward , . . king]
ig-2i. Now, Edward the blacke Prince he died before his father, and left behinde
him Richard, that afterwards was King, Crownde by the name of Richard the
second, and he died without an heire. 21-27. Till Henry . . . traitorously]
27-33. Now sir. In thy time of Richards raigne, Henry of Bullingbrooke, sonne
and heire to lohn of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster fotirth sonne to Edward the
third, he claimde the Croivne, deposde the Mcrthfull King, and as both you know,
in Pomphret Castle harniclesse Richard was shamefully murthered. 28, 29.
War. Father . . . crown] 32, 33. (continued from murthered) and so by Richards
death came the house of Lancaster vnto the Crowne. 30-33. York. Which . . .
heir] omitted Q. 34-38. The third son . . . Clarence . . . Elinor] 22-27. Edmund
of Langley Duke of Yorke died, and left behind him two daughters, Anne and
Elinor. Lyoncll Duke of Clarence died and left behind Alice, Anne and
Elinor, that was after married to my father, and by her I clainie the crowne, as
the true heire to Lyonell Duke of Clarence, the third sonne to Edivard the third.
(Now sir, etc.).
24. rightful king] " MerthfuU king" With which he cutt a lock of all
in the Contention (1600 and i6ig). The their heare,
word appears in 3 Henry VI. v. vii. 43 ; Which medling with their blood
nowhere else. and earth he threw
26. as all you know] All is used Into the grave."
again by Shakespeare, addressing only " All " are the parents, Mordant and
two persons in 2 Henry IV. iii. i. 35 : Amavia.
"Why then good morrow to you all, 27. traitorously] Three times in this
my lords" (addressing Warwick and pla}'. Elsewhere only in All's Well
Surrey). Malone called attention to that Ends Well. Compare Peele, Sir
this. I find a good example in the Clyomon (532, a) : " And traitorously
Faerie Qtieene, 11. i. 61 : — did them betray in prison for to
" The dead knights sword out of keep."
his sheath he drew,
60 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
Who married Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March ;
Edmund had issue, Roger, Earl of March ;
Roger had issue, Edmund, Anne, and Eleanor.
Sal. This Edmund, in the reign of Bolingbroke,
As I have read, laid claim unto the crown ; 40
And, but for Owen Glendower, had been king,
Who kept him in captivity till he died.
But to the rest.
York. His eldest sister, Anne,
My mother, being heir unto the crown.
Married Richard, Earl of Cambridge, who was son 45
To Edmund Langley, Edward the Third's fifth son.
By her I claim the kingdom : she was heir
To Roger, Earl of March, who was the son
Of Edmund Mortimer, who married Philippe,
Sole daughter unto Lionel Duke of Clarence : 50
So, if the issue of the elder son
Succeed before the younger, I am king.
War. What plain proceeding is more plain than this ?
39-43. Sal. This Edmund . . . to the resf] 34-36. Sals. Sailing your tale
my Lord, as I haue heard, in the raigne of Bullenbrooke, the Duke of Yorke did
claime the Crowne, and but for Owin Glendor, had bene King. 43-52. York.
His eldest . . . king] 37-41. True. But it so fortuned then, by meanes of that
monstrous rebel Glendor, the noble Duke of Yorke was done to death, and so etier
since the heires of lohn of Gaunt haue possessed the Crowne. But if the issue of
the elder should sucsecd before the issue of the yonger, then am I lawfull heire
vnto the kingdome. 53-62. What pain . . . crown] 42-49. What plaine pro-
ceedings can be more plaine, hee claimes it from Lyonel Duke of Clarence, the
42. kept him in captivity till he died] which he was Lord of by his aforesayd
" He appears to have been at liberty mother. But while he was there oc-
during the whole reign of King Henry cupied about the same, the wylde Irishe
V. — and there is no proof that he ever came upon him in a great number, and
was confined, as a state-prisoner, by slue him and many of his company.
King Henry IV. . . . The historian has This Sir Roger had issue, Edmond, and
confounded Mortimer with Lord Gray Roger, Anne, Alice, and Alianor that
of Ruthvin, who was likewise taken was made a Nonne. The two afore-
prisoner by Glendower, and actually sayd sonnes dyed without issue, and
did marry his daughter " (Malone). See Anne the eldest daughter was maryed
Part L II. V. It is better here to quote to Richarde Erie of Cambridge, which
Grafton about these Mortimers (IX Richard had issue by the sayd Anne,
Yere of Richarde the Seconde, p. 431), Isabell ladie Boucher, and Richard that
and the title then : " and by aucthoritie was after Duke of Yorke, and father
of the same Parliament, Sir Roger to King Edward the fourth, which
Mortimer Erie of March, and sonne sayd Richard Erie of Cambridge was
and heyre unto Sir Edmond Mortimer, put to death by Henrie the fift at
and of Dame Philip eldest daughter Southhampton."
and heyre unto Sir Lyonell the second 53. proceeding] " process, course,"
Sonne of Edward the thirde, was sone says Schmidt, who equates it with
after proclaymed heyre apparaunt to " your hate's proceeding " in Romeo and
the Crowne of Englande. The which Juliet, in. i. 193. The Contention (Q i)
Sir Roger shortly after sayled into Ire- has it in the plural. The word refers to
land, to suppresse the rebellion . . . of theproceedingor process of events in the
the people of his Lordship of Wolster, pedigree, not to the narration of them.
sc. II ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 61
Henry doth claim the crown from John of Gaunt,
The fourth son ; York claims it from the third. 55
Till Lionel's issue fails, his should not reign :
It fails not yet, but flourishes in thee.
And in thy sons, fair slips of such a stock.
Then, father Salisbury, kneel we together,
And in this private plot be we the first 60
That shall salute our rightful sovereign
With honour of his birthright to the crown.
Both. Long live our sovereign Richard, England's king !
York. We thank you, lords ! But I am not your king
Till I be crowned and that my sword be stained 65
With heart-blood of the house of Lancaster ;
And that 's not suddenly to be performed.
But with advice and silent secrecy.
Do you as I do in these dangerous days,
Wink at the Duke of Suffolk's insolence, 70
At Beaufort's pride, at Somerset's ambition,
At Buckingham and all the crew of them,
Till they have snared the shepherd of the flock.
That virtuous prince, the good Duke Humphrey:
'Tis that they seek ; and they in seeking that 75
Shall find their deaths, if York can prophesy.
third Sonne to Edward the third, and Henry from lohn of Gaunt the fourth
Sonne. So that till Lyonels . . . flourisheth (57) . . . brauc slips . . . noble father
. . . both togither . . . place, be we the first to honor him with birthright to the
Crown. 63. Long . . . king] 49. Long line Richard Englands royall King.
64-66. York. We thank . . . Lancaster] 50-52. Yorke. I thanke you both. But
Lords I am not your King, vntil this sword be sheathed euen in the hart blood of
. . . Lancaster. 67-76. And that's not . . . prophesy] omitted Q.
58. slips] cuttings. Still in use 83. Always so in Shakespeare ; occurs
amongst gardeners. A favourite word in each of the three Parts, three times
with Shakespeare, and occurring again in Richard IL and in Troilus and
in this play, in. ii. 214. See note Cressida once. The term here is from
thereto. Compare Soliman and Per- the Contention. In the Trne Tragedie,
seda, I. ii. 75 (Boas's Kyd): "Yong 11. i. 52, 53, occurs : —
slippes are neuer graft in windy dales" " I cannot joy till this white rose be
(1592). dide
59. 60, 77. kneel we ... be we .. . Euen in the hart blond of the house
break we] The first two of these are in of Lancaster."
the Contention, the third not. See These lines are omitted in 3 Henry VI.
note to Part I. 11. i. 13 ; and see Schmidt 11. i. 79-87. The repetition is eliminated
(1343, a) for the extreme prevalence of at this distance, showing Shakespeare's
this trick in the historical plays. But carefulness perhaps, for all the passages
it occurs in several others as well. See are his. And see 1 Henry VL 11. iv. 61.
below, II. iv. 106. 68. advice] deliberate consideration ;
60. private plot] "private place" in as in King John, iii. iv. 11, and else-
original. Capell places this scene in where. Peele has : —
the Duke of York's garden ; Pope had " For wisdom govern'd by advice
" Palace." The Folio does not separate Makes many fortunate and wise "
it. {Old Wives Tale, Dyce, 451, a).
66. heart-blood] See note, Part 1. 1. iii. 75, 76. 'Tis that they seek . . . Shall
62 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
Sal. My lord, break we off; we know your mind at full.
War. My heart assures me that the Earl of Warwick
Shall one day make the Duke of York a king.
York. And, Nevil, this I do assure myself: 80
Richard shall live to make the Earl of Warwick
The greatest man in England but the king. {Exeunt.
SCENE III .—A hall of justice.
Sound trumpets. Enter the YjmG, the Qx^^Y.^, GLOUCESTER,
York, Suffolk, and Salisbury ; the Duchess of Glou-
cester, Margery Jourdain, Southwell, HuxME, and
Bolingbroke, under guard.
King. Stand forth, Dame Eleanor Cobham, Gloucester's wife.
In sight of God and us, your guilt is great :
77. Sal. My lord . . . full] omitted Q. 78, 79. Way. My heart . . . king]
53-61. War. Then Yorke adnise thy sclfe and take thy time, Clainie thou thee
Crowne, and set thy standard vp. And in the same adiiance the milke-white Rose,
And then to gard it, will I rouse the Beare, Inuiron' d with ten thousand Ragged-
staues To aide and helpe thee for to win thy right, Maugre the proudest Lord
of Henries blood. That dares deny the right and claime of Yorke, For why my
minde presageth I shall Hue To see the noble Duke of Yorke to be a king. 80-
82. York. And Nevil . . . king] 63-65. Yorke. Thanks noble Warwicke, and
Yorke doth hope to see. The Earle of Warwicke live, to be the greatest man in
England but the King. Come let's goe ; Exet omnes.
Scene hi.
Enter King Henry, and the Qiieene, Duke Humphrey, the Duke of Suffolke,
and the Duke of Buckinghain, the Cardinall, and Dame Ehior Cobham led zvith
the officers, and then enter to them the Duke of Yorke, and the Earlcs of Salsbury
and Warwicke. 1-13. King. Stand . . . Isle of Man] 1-9. King. Stand . . .
yzKrf] This is Peele's style, but it is also why I make it not so great desert"
Sidney's ; and a greater than either is {Battle of Alcazar (427, a)), meaning
Spenser : " Her now I seeke . . . And because (often in Golding's Ovid, Peele's
seeking misse, and missing doe lament" favourite book). He is nearly as fond
{Daphnaida, st. 24). But Spenser was of" the proud" or "the proudest people"
not enslaved by it. as Greene : " spare not the proudest he
78. lyarwic^] The notable bit of rant That," etc. (Edward I. {406, a.)). And
here, in the Contention, omitted from there is not in the Contention passage
the revised play is very much in the the repetition of words inevitable in every
manner of Greene, or his imitator few lines of Greene. In the Battle of
Peele ; characteristically so. He has Alcazar, "Myself, environ'd \vith my
"milk-white steed" and "milk-white way" trust}' guard Of janizaries" (435, b), is a
in The Arraignment of Paris and in Ed- good parallel, for the expression is more
ward I. (both from Golding's Ovid), often used of hostile surroundings. The
He has "maugre" several times, but "ragged-staff" occurs below, v. i. 203,
Greene much oftener (in his prose), in company with the bear, the Nevil's
Both of them rejoice continually in the cognizance. The "milk-white rose" we
wretched "for to" often (Alphonsus, have had already at i. i. 252 in an almost
Grosart, xiii. 342, 362,363 (twice) and identical line (in both plays). Hence its
Selimus, xiv. 246), and in Peele's un- omission here.
doubted work : "in despair and torture 82. cotnc let's goe] m Q. See note at
for to dwell " [Old Wives Tale, Dyce, 3 Henry VI. i. ii. 75. It occurs again
450, b), and "shifts for to defer your three times in Q. See note at iv. i.
labour " (453, a). Peele too has " For 141 below, in this play.
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 63
Receive the sentence of the law for sins
Such as by God's book are adjudged to death.
You four, from hence to prison back again ; 5
From thence unto the place of execution :
The witch in Smithfield shall be burned to ashes,
And you three shall be strangled on the gallows.
You, madam, for you are more nobly born,
Despoiled of your honour in your life, lo
Shall, after three days' open penance done,
Live in your country here in banishment,
With Sir John Stanley, in the Isle of Man.
Duch. Welcome is banishment ; welcome were my death.
Glou. Eleanor, the law, thou seest, hath judged thee : 1 5
I cannot justify whom the law condemns.
{^Exeunt Duchess and other Prisoners, guarded.
Mine eyes are full of tears, my heart of grief.
Duches of Gloster, and here the sentence pronounced against thee for these Treasons,
that thou hast committed against vs, our States and Peeres, First for thy
hainous crimes, thou shalt two dales in London do penance barefoote in the
streetes, with a white sheete about thy bodie, and a waxe Taper burning in thy
hand. That done, thou shalt be banished for euer into the He of Man, there to
ende thy wretched daies, and this is our sentence irreuocable. Away with her.
14. Welcome . . . death] 10-14. Etien to ?ny death, for I have lined too long.
Exet some with Elnor. King. Greene not noble vncle, but be thou glad, Ifi that
these Treasons are thus come to light, Least God had pourde his vengeance on thy
head. For her offences that thou heldst so deare. 15, 16. Eleanor . . . con-
demns] omitted Q. 17-21. Aline eyes . . . ease] 15-19. Oh gratious Henry,
giue me leaue awhile, To Icaue your grace and to depart away. For sorrowes
teares hath gript my aged heart, And makes the fountaines of mine eyes to swell.
And therefore good my Lord, let me depart.
3. Receive the sentence] See extract whose sorcery and witchcraft the said
at the beginning of i. iv. " This trial is Elianor had long time used, wherefore
an historical anachronism, having actu- the same witch was burnt in Smithfield "
ally taken place some time before (Stow, Abridgment, p. 172 (1618)).
Henry's marriage " (Halliwell). It took ?>. strangled] hznged; choked with a
place in 1441 ; the marriage in 1444. halter, as in 1 Henry IV. 11. iv. 547.
The duplication of the enactments of Compare (Peele's) Jack Straw : —
the sentence, here and at its execution " so many of my countrymen
(sc. iv.) in the Contoition, is erased in All done to death and strangled in
the revision. But there is a much more one day "
needful addition in the complete play, (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v, 408).
the sentence upon the four confederates. 13. Sir John Stanley] This name is
This must be unintentionally absent not in the Contention. Shakespeare
from the Contention. I see no allusion here, as in many places, follows Hall
to it. Grafton tells that " the gallows " (or Grafton for choice). Holinshed has
was Tyborne, a place Shakespeare seems Sir Thomas Stanlie, which happens to
purposely to avoid mentioning (excepting be also correct (Fabian, Stow). "In
allusion, Love 's Labour 's Lost). Stow 1446 it was ordered that letters under
says {Abridgment, p. 172): "The 18 Henry's privy seal should be directed to
of November, Roger Bolinbroke was Sir Thomas" Stanley, authorizing him
araigned, drawne from the Tower to to convey Eleanor Cobham to the Isle
Tiburne, and there hangedand quartered, of Man" {Proc. Priv. Co. vi. 51 (Bos-
7. Smithfield] " Then was taken also well Stone). See note at " Sir John
Margerie Gurdmain, a witch of Ely, Montgomery," Part III. iv. vii. 4T.
64 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
Ah ! Humphrey, this dishonour in thine age
Will bring thy head with sorrow to the ground.
I beseech your majesty, give me leave to go ; 20
Sorrow would solace and mine age would ease.
King. Stay, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester : ere thou go,
Give up thy staff: Henry will to himself
Protector be ; and God shall be my hope,
My stay, my guide, and lantern to my feet. 25
And go in peace, Humphrey, no less beloved
Than when thou wert protector to thy king.
Queen. I see no reason why a king of years
Should be to be protected like a child.
God and King Henry govern England's realm ! 30
Give up your staff, sir, and the king his realm.
Glou. My staff ? here, noble Henry, is my staff :
As willingly do I the same resign
As e'er thy father Henry made it mine ;
And even as willingly at thy feet I leave it 35
As others would ambitiously receive it.
Farewell, good king ! when I am dead and gone,
May honourable peace attend thy throne. \^Exit.
22-27. S/oy . . . king\ 20-23. With all my hart good vnkle, when you please,
Yet ere thou gocst, Hmnphrey, resigne thy staffc, For Henry will be no more
protected, The Lord shall be tny guide both for my land and me (and) 31-33.
Vnkle Gloster, stand vp and go in peace, No Icsse beloucd of us, then when
Thou 7S)eart Protector ouer my land. Exct Gloster, 28-31. Queen. I see . . .
rcaltn] omitted Q. 32-38. My staff . . . throne] 24-30. My staffe, I noble
Henry, my life and all. My staffc I yeeld as willing to be thine, As erst thy
noble father . . . as willing . . . And long hereafter when . . . throne.
21. Sorrow . . . ease] Johnson ex- and in various other places. A note-
plains this wretched line by giving worthy instance is in line 52 (Scene
"would" thesenseof" requires "in both iv.), where the words in the Contention
cases. For the line here containing (spoken by the Duchess to Gloucester),
"gripes" in Q, see Introduction at " her that loves him so " — i.e. the queen
Peele's part in this play ; and 3 Henry that loves Suffolk so — are very neatly
VI. I. iv. 171. altered into "her that hateth thee" —
25. lantern to my feet] " Thy word a wholly different meaning, enforcing
is a lantern to my feet " (Psalm cxix. what I refer to.
105 (Prayer-Book, Geneva and Wyclif ; 29. protected like a child] See quota-
" lamp " in Authorised Version). For tion from Marlowe at 1 Henry VI. i. i.
some occult reason Shakespeare (appar- 36 : " like a schoolboy."
ently) and his editors are still in some 31. Give up your staff] There is no
cases undecided how best to spell this historical authority for Gloucester's dis-
word. In Bartlett's Concordance it is six missal from office consequent upon his
on one and half a dozen on the other wife's disgrace. The nearest approach
(lantern). to this political change lies in a passage
28, 39, 52. Queen] These speeches of quoted at i. i. 163, 164 ; and see i. iii.
the queen's displaying her animosity 45, 46 (note). For a reference to
against Gloucester, and the manly dis- Henry's coronation at Westminster
position told of her by the Chroniclers, (when nine months old), see 3 Henry
are not in the original play, or only in a VI. i. i. 112.
lesser degree. In the last scene, at line 37. dead and gone] See Part I. i. iv.
184, we see the same process at work, 93 (note).
sc. in] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
65
Queen. Why, now is Henry king, and Margaret queen ;
And Humphrey Duke of Gloucester scarce himself, 40
That bears so shrewd a maim : two pulls at once;
His lady banished, and a limb lopped off;
This staff of honour raught : there let it stand,
Where it best fits to be, in Henry's hand.
Suf. Thus droops this lofty pine and hangs his sprays ; 45
Thus Eleanor's pride dies in her youngest days.
York. Lords, let him go. Please it your majesty
This is the day appointed for the combat ;
And ready are the appellant and defendant.
The armourer and his man, to enter the lists, 50
So please your highness to behold the fight.
39-44. Queen. Why, now . . . hayid^^ 34. 35. Queene. Take up the staffe,
for here it ought to stand, Where should it be, but in King Henries hand?
45, 46. Suffolke. Thus . . . days} omitted Q. 47-51. Lords . . .fight} 36-
39. Please it . . . day That was appointed for the combating Betweene the
Armourer and his man, my Lord, And they are readie when your grace doth
please.
41. maim} mutilation, disablement.
" Shrewd " (evil, bad) is a favourite word
with Shakespeare. Kyd (?) has " a
shrewd losse " in Soliman and Perseda.
Note that these lines are not in Q.
41. pull} that which is pulled or torn
off. An uncommon sense in literature ;
but a pull, or plucking, of fruit, etc., is,
I think, common provincial ly. The two
pulls which go to make up poor Glou-
cester's mutilation are, of course, his
wife and his staff. These words in the
queen's mouth give an intenseness to
her malice, not found in the Contention
(see above at 1. 28).
42. lopped} cut, pruned. Compare
Spenser, Faerie Queene, vii. vii. 42 :
" And from the trees did lop the need-
lesse spray." And Peele, Edward L :
" I must lop his longshanks " (Dyce,
403, a).
43. raught} snatched or torn from
me. An old preterite of " reach." The
nearest parallel in Shakespeare is in
Antony and Cleopatra, iv. ix. 30 : " The
hand of death hath raught him." Spen-
ser uses it somewhat similarly, and
Golding, but Peele gives exactly the
sense : " This gallant bow raught from
the oaken tree" {Arraignment of Paris,
Dyce, 354, a) ; and again :—
" the fatal 1 fruit,
Raught from the golden tree of
Proserpine "
(351. a).
45. pine} The same metaphor occurs
in Antony and Cleopatra, iv. xii. 23.
It is a very familiar one, whether fir,
cedar or pine. Compare Zachariah
xi. 2.
45. sprays} young growth. See
Richard IL iii. iv. 34, and 3 Henry
VI. II. vi. 50. See quotation from
Spenser at " lopped, " line 42.
46. youngest days} Eleanor is not,
nor even supposed to be, a young
woman here. Either " her " refers to
pride, or else we are to suppose that
her ambition for the crown had only
just begun to exist. These two lines
have the air of being crammed in here
from some other connection ; as if they
belonged to Part III. 11. vi. 46-49, for
example (Rutland),
49. appellant and defendant} chal-
lenger and challenged in single com-
bat. New Eng. Diet, gives an example
from Caxton. Grafton uses the terms :
" In thys yeare (1383) also was a Bat-
taile or Combate done and holden in
the Kings Palayce at Westminster,
betwene one called Garcon Appel-
launt, and Sir lohn Anslye Knight
Dcfendaunt, of the which fight the
knight was at length the Victour and
forced his enemie to yeelde vnto him.
For the which the sayde Garcon was
immediatly from that place drawen to
Tiborne and there hanged for his false
accusation " (p. 430). See Richard II.
I. iii., in several places. And Ben
Jonson's New Inn, in. ii.
66
THE SECOND PART OF
[act II.
Queen. Ay, good my lord ; for purposely therefore
Left I the court to see this quarrel tried.
King. O' God's name, see the lists and all things fit :
Here let them end it ; and God defend the right !
York. I never saw a fellow worse bested,
Or more afraid to fight, than is the appellant,
The servant of this armourer, my lords.
55
Enter, at one door, the Armourer, and his Neighbours drinking
to him so much that he is drunk ; and he enters bearing his
staff with a sand-bag fastened to it ; a drum before him :
at the other door, his man with a drum and sand-bag ; and
Prentices drinking to him.
First Neigh. Here, neighbour Horner, I drink to you in
a cup of sack : and fear not, neighbour, you shall do
well enough.
60
Second Neigh.
charneco.
And here, neighbour, here 's a cup of
52, 53. Queen. Ay, good . . . tried] omitted Q. 54-55. King. O' God's name
. . . right] 40. King. Then call them forth, that they may trie their rightes.
56-58. York. I never . . . lords] omitted Q. Enter . . . to him] Enter . . .
that he is drunken . , . to him.
55. God defend the right] See Love's
Labour 's Lost, i. i. 216, and Richard
II. I. iii. loi.
56. bested] situated, circumstanced.
A favourite word with Spenser ; and
occurs several times in Golding's Ovid.
Not elsewhere in Shakespeare.
58. sand-bags] Warburton wrote :
" According to the old laws of duels,
knights were to fight with the lance
and sword ; so those of inferior rank
fought with an ebon staff or battoon,
to the further end of which was fixed
a bag cramm'd hard with sand " (one
would think he saw them at it !). He
quotes from Hudibras. Halliwell, sad
to say, merely repeats Warburton's re-
marks without acknowledgment : and
that is all ; echoed again by Grant
White, Rolfe and others. There is no
mention in Strutt on this practice of
antiquity, and he is very full on the
subject. Stowe {Survey of London, re-
print, 142, 143) rehearses " joustings in
Smithfield," and thus " Trial by battle "
(more satisfactorily told by Grafton) ;
but there are no sand-bags, no ebony
battoons. Perhaps the fullest account
of a trial by combat (amongst com-
moners) is that of Thome and Nailer
in 1571, in Nichols' Progresses, i, 277-
279. George Thome had *' his baston
(a staffe of an ell long, made taper wise,
tipt with home) with his shield of hard
leather." In the story of Othello, told
by Cinthio, the Moor kills Desdemona
with a stocking full of sand — still heard
of, and supposed to leave little evidence
behind. I find ebon staves as the staves
of pilgrims in The Seven Champions
(1595). A "speare of heben wood" is
mentioned in Faerie Queene, i. vii. 37.
See I. iv. 217 (in collation).
63. charneco] There are frequent
later mentions of this wine, but none
earlier has been traced. New Eng.
Diet, has an odd collocation of dates
for these two plays at this word, not
adhered to later, fortunately. It is
stated there (and elsewhere) that
Steevens derived " charneco " from the
name of a village near Lisbon, but he
does not do so in 1793 edition. [Steevens
got his information from " the European
Magazine for March, 1794.] On the con-
trary, after several later quotations, he
says : " None of these passages (as Mr.
Malone observes) ascertain either its
quality or where it is produced." War-
burton said that charneca was the name
of a kind of turpentine-tree. That were
a jest indeed. See Nares. From the
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 67
Third Neigh. And here 's a pot of good double beer,
neighbour: drink, and fear not your man. 65
Hor. Let it come, i' faith, and I '11 pledge you all ; and a
fig for Peter !
First Pren. Here, Peter, I drink to thee ; and be not
afraid.
Second Pren. Be merry, Peter, and fear not thy master : 70
fight for credit of the prentices.
Peter. I thank you all : drink, and pray for me, I pray
you ; for I think I have taken my last draught in
this world. Here, Robin, an if I die, I give thee my
apron ; and. Will, thou shalt have my hammer : and 75
here, Tom, take all the money that I have. O Lord,
bless me ! I pray God, for I am never able to deal
with my master, he hath learnt so much fence already.
Sal, Come, leave your drinking and fall to blows. Sirrah,
what 's thy name ? 80
Peter. Peter, forsooth.
Sal. Peter ! what more ?
Peter. Thump.
Sal. Thump! then see thou thump thy master well.
Hor. Masters, I am come hither, as it were, upon my man's 85
instigation, to prove him a knave, and myself an
honest man : and touching the Duke of York, I will
take my death I never meant him any ill, nor the
king, nor the queen : and therefore, Peter, have at
thee with a downright blow. 90
64. And here's] 44. Heres. 65. drink, and fear not] 45. drink And be merry,
andfearcnot. 66. Hor. Let . . . and I'll] a^Q. Armourer. Let . . . He. 6g.
afraid] 48. ajfeard. 70, 71. Second P. Be merry . . . prentices] 49-51. 2
Pren. Here, Peter, heres a pintc of Claret-wine for thee. 3 Pren. And heres a
quart for me, and be tnerry Peter, Andfeare not thy maister, fight for the credit of
the Prentises. 72-74. I thank you . . . in this world] $2. I thanke you all, but
He drinke no more. JA'^A- Here, Robin . . . thy master well] 53-63. Here
Robin . . . thy maister. 85-go. Horner. Masters . . . downright blow] 64-68.
Armour. Heres to thee neighbour, Jill all the pots againe, for before we fight,
omission of "claret-wine" here (from iii. 322, note (Arden edition, p. 53), for
the Contention), Shakespeare may have early examples : "a^?^ For all my uncle's
deemed there was repetition — that the friendship " (Marlowe, Edward II.,
words had the same meaning. Howell's Dyce, 207, a). The " claret-wine " of
Vocabulary, Section xviii., 165,9, has : the Contention occurs later, iv. vi. 4, in
" Claret wine ; Vino chiaretto, b chiar- the revised play, where the Contention
ello." " Charneco " maybe a corruption has " red wine."
of that Italian name — which is also in 87, 88. / will take my death] I will
Florio. " Claret-wine" occurs later, IV. die on it. See 3 Henry VI. i. iii. 35,
vi. 4. " Take one's death " of cold, and is
66. Let it come] let the glass go common provincially. Not again in
round. A drinking expression. See Shakespeare.
2 Henry IV. v. iii. 59, 60. 90. downright blow] Warburton (fol-
67- a fig for Peter I] See Othello, i. lowed by Steevens) inserted into his
68
THE SECOND PART OF
[act II.
York. Dispatch : this knave's tongue begins to double.
Sound, trumpets, alarum to the combatants.
[Alarujn. They fight, and Peter strikes him down.
Hot. Hold, Peter, hold ! I confess, I confess treason. \^Dies.
York. Take away his weapon. Fellow, thank God, and
the good wine in thy master's way. 95
Peter. O God ! have I overcome mine enemies in this
presence ? O Peter ! thou hast prevailed in right.
King. Go, take hence that traitor from our sight ;
For by his death we do perceive his guilt :
And God in justice hath revealed to us 100
The truth and innocence of this poor fellow,
Which he had thought to have murdered wrongfully.
Come, fellow, follow us for thy reward.
[Sound a flourish. Exeunt.
looke you, I tvill tell you my minde,for I am come hither as it were of my mans
instigation, to proue my selfe a?i honest man, and Peter a knave, and so haue at
you Peter with down-right blowes, as Beuys of South-hampton fell vpon Askapart.
91, 92. York. Dispatch . . . combatants] omitted Q. [Alarum . . . down.]
93. Hor. Hold . . . treason. [Dies.] 68-70. Peter. Law you now, I told you hees
in his fence alreadie. Alarmes, and Peter hits him on the head and fels him.
Armou. Hold Peter, I confesse, Treason, treason. He dies. 94,95. York. Take
. , . way] omitted Q. 96, 97. Peter. O God . . . right] 71, 72. Peter. 0 God
I giue thee praise. He kneeles downe. Pren. Ho well done Peter. God sane the
King. 98-103. King. Go take . . . reward. Exeunt] 73-78. King. Go take
. . . reward. Exet omnis {murthered for murder' d, 102).
edition the words about Bevis and
Ascapart from the Contention. The
" downright blow " is not mentioned
in that romance as belonging especially
to Morglay, the famous sword of Bevis.
Bevis is more often mentioned in con-
temporary literature than any of the
heroes perhaps. See Todd's notes to
Spenser, Laneham's Letter (or Captain
Cox, edited Furnivall), Gabriel Harvey,
Ben Jonson, etc. etc. " Downright
blow" occurs again in 3 Henry VI. i.
i. 12. Cotgrave has " aplomb : m. A
perpendicular, or downe-right fall, seat,
or forme; a plumpe descent." See
note in 3 Henry VL i. i. 12.
91. to double] to talk thick, or double,
from intoxication. Peele has a similar
expression : —
" Nemesis upon her doubling
drum,
Mov'd with this ghastly moan "
(Battle of Alcazar, n. (425, a^). The
sounds run into one another.
The incident in the play is founded on
history. Grafton says (p. 628) : " This
Yere (The XXIIIJ Yere) an Armorers
servaunt of London, appeled his Master
of Treason, which offered to be tried
by battaile. At the day assigned, the
frends of the master, brought him
Malmesye and Aqua vite to comforte
him with all, but it was the cause
of his and their discomfort : for he
poured in so much, that when he came
into the place in Smithfelde where he
should fight, both his witte and strength
fayled him : and so hee being a tall
and hardie personage, overladed with
hote drinkes, was vanquished of his
seruaunt, being but a cowarde and a
wretch, whose bodie was drawen to
Tiborne, and there hanged and be-
hedded." Stow [Survey of London,
edited by Thoms, p. 143) tells their
names, " John David appeached his
master Wil. Catur." He adds (omitting
the dead body " drawen to Tiborne,"
etc.) : " but that False servant (for he
falsely accused his master) lived not
long unpunished, for he was after
hanged at Teyborne for felony. Let
false accusers note this . . . John Davy,
a false accuser of his master, of him
was raised the by-word, — If ye serve
me so, I will call you Davy,"
SC. IV.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
69
SCENE IV.— A street.
Enter GLOUCESTER and his Serving men, in inour7iing
cloaks.
Glou. Thus sometimes hath the brightest day a cloud ;
And after summer evermore succeeds
Barren winter, with his wrathful nipping cold :
So cares and joys abound, as seasons fleet.
Sirs, what 's o'clock ?
Serv. Ten, my lord. 5
Glou. Ten is the hour that was appointed me
Enter . . .] Enter Duke Humphrey and his men, in mourning cloakes. 1-4.
Glou. Thus . . . fleet] omitted Q. 5. Sirs . . . lord] i, 2. Humph, sirrha,
what's a clock? Serving. Almost ten my Lord. 6-9. Ten is . . . tender-
feeling feet] 3-5. Then is that wofull houre hard at hand, That tny poore Lady
should come by this way. In shamefull penance ivandring in the streetes.
For the sentence and punishment of
the Duchess, see extract at the beginning
of I. iv. Stowe gives further details (I
quote from the Abridgment (1618), p.
172) : " The ninth of November, dame
Elianor appeared before the Archbishop
and others and receiued penance, which
she performed. On the xvii of Novem-
ber she came from the temple bridge,
with a taper of waxe of two pound in
her hand through Fleet streete to Paules,
where she offered her Taper at the Alter.
On the Wednesday next she went
through Bridge-streete, Grace-church
streete to Leaden-hall, and so to Christ-
Church by Algate. On Friday she went
through Cheape to St. Michaels in
Cornehill, in form aforesaid."
mourning cloaks] from Q. The
expression is not in Shakespeare. Peele
has {Old Wives Tale, 451, b) : "he
gave fourscore and nineteen mourning
gowns to the parish." Peele may have
been, it seems to me, entrusted with
the stage-directions in this play {Con-
tention). They are very copious, and
much condensed in the finished versions.
Peele was the eldest of the syndicate at
work, as far as publication goes, his
Arraignment at Paris (1584) preceding
any dramatic piece of Marlowe's or
Greene's, so far as we know. Unusual
attention was paid to stage-directions in
that play as in his later work. Terms
of interest occur that occur also in the
plays undoubtedly due to the author.
The arrangement of stage-direction
would involve a good deal more of the
dramatic craftsman.
1. brightest day a cloud] Compare
All 's Well that End's Well, v. iii. 35 ;
or Sonnet 33.
2. 3. summer , . . winter] These
simple sentiments or metaphors are
constantly found in Shakespeare's work ;
the lines are not in the Contention.
Compare Spatiish Tragedy, i. i. 11, 12 : —
" in the haruest of my summer
ioyes
Deaths winter nipt the blossomes
of my blisse."
3. winter . . . nipping cold] Compare
Golding's Ovid, xiii. 954, 955 (1567) : —
" No Sun in sommer there
can swelt,
No nipping cold in wintertyme
within the same is felt."
In the same passage Galatea is said to
be " More fleeting than the waves " ;
and in bk. x. 1. 596 : " Away slippes
fleeting time unspyde and mocks us too
our face." Peele speaks of " the wrath
of winter" in David and Bethsabe (Dyce,
468, b) ; and of " wrathful storms of
winter's rage " {Lovely London (538, a),
1585). Spenser has " wrathful wreck "
of " wintry storm " {Faerie Queene, i, xi.
4. fleet] See last note. Shakespeare
uses the verb "fleet" (slip away, float,
glide by) several times, as in Merchant
of Venice, iii. ii. 108 ; iv. i. 135, etc.
6. Ten is the hour] The words in the
Contetition ^^ hard at hand" point, like
the rest of the lines of Humphrey's
speech, to Peele. Shakespeare uses it
once, it is true, in Othello, 11. i. 268,
But it was a favourite earlier with Peele :
70 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
To watch the coming of my punished duchess :
Uneath may she endure the flinty streets,
To tread them with her tender-feeling feet.
Sweet Nell, ill can thy noble mind abrook lo
The abject people gazing on thy face
With envious looks, laughing at thy shame,
That erst did follow thy proud chariot wheels
When thou didst ride in triumph through the streets.
But soft ! I think she comes ; and I '11 prepare 1 5
My tear-stained eyes to see her miseries.
Enter the Duchess of GLOUCESTER, in a white sheet, feet bare,
and a taper burning in her hand ; with SzVJOHN STANLEY,
the Sheriff, and Officers.
Serv. So please your grace, we '11 take her from the sheriff.
Glou. No, stir not, for your lives ; let her pass by.
Duch. Come you, my lord, to see my open shame?
10-14. Sweet Nell . . . the streets] 6-10, Sweete Nell . . . the streetes. 15,
16, But soft ! . . . miseries] omitted Q. 16. Enter . . . Officers] Theobald (not
in Ff). 10. Enter Dame Elnor Cobham bare-foote, and a white sheet about her,
with a waxe candle in her hand, and verses ivrittcn on her backe and pind on, and
accompanied with the Sheriffes of London, and Sir lohn Statidly, and Officers,
with billes and holbards. 17, Serv. So . . . sheriff] 11, 12. Serving. My
grations Lord, see where my Lady comes. Please it your grace, wcele . . . Sheriffes ?
18. No . . . by] 13-15. / charge you for your Hues stir not afoote. Nor offer once
to draw a weapon here, But let them do their office as they should. 19, 20.
Come . . . Now thou . . . too] 16, 17. Come . . . Ah Gloster, now . . . too
{doest for dost).
" here hard At hand two slaves do work 10. abrook] brook, endure. The
and dig ior gold" {Old Wives Tale, prefix "a" is very commonly used as a
Dyce, 453, a) ; and " How Greeks poetical license by Spenser. Compare
with all their power were hard at hand" "agazed" in Part L
{Tale of Troy (555, a)) ; and in Poly- 12. envious] malicious, spiteful.
hymnia (572, b). And Marlowe, Tambur- 13. erst] formerly. Occurs in ^45 You
laine. Part L 11. iii. : " The king your Like It and Henry V. Peele uses it
brother, is now hard at hand." And in frequently (Dyce, 464, b (twice) ; 471, a,
Spenser, Faerie Qtieene, 11. xii. 18: " hard etc.) ; and Spenser.
at hand they spy That quicksand." In " 15. But soft!] This, and "soft!"
all the places I have met with the phrase, occur perhaps fifty times in Shake-
it means close by in place. But in speare's undoubted work. We may take
Othello diwdi here in Contention \i x&iexs them as tests. "So// you!" occurs in
to time. In Faerie Queene (later), vi. Greene, George-a-Greene ; and in Peele,
ix. 16, "night arrived hard at hand," Edward L : " So/^ you now I " "Sofia.
is parallel. while" and "But soft" ate both in
8. Uneath] with difficulty, uneasily. Whetstone's Promos and Cassandra.
Not again in Shakespeare, but especially Peele has " soft you, now " ; " but, soft
in Spenser, from Chaucer downwards, now"; "Nay, so//."
Compare Golding's Ovid, ii. 378, 379 : — 16. tear stained] Elsewhere " tear-
" Behold how Atlas ginnes to faint, stained face" is in Ardcn of Feversham,
his shoulders though full strong, iii. vi. 85. Shakespeare has given us
Unneth are able to uphold the "blood-stained" {1 Henry IV.) and
sparkling Extree long." "lust-stained" {Othello). Not in Q.
Not in Q. For " flinty," see Part I. 11. ig. opeti shame] public disgrace.
i. 27. Shakespeare has the expression again in
SC. IV.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
71
Now thou dost penance too. Look ! how they gaze. 20
See ! how the giddy multitude do point,
And nod their heads, and throw their eyes on thee.
Ah ! Gloucester, hide thee from their hateful looks,
And, in thy closet pent up, rue my shame,
And ban thine enemies, both mine and thine. 25
Glou. Be patient, gentle Nell ; forget this grief.
Duch. Ah! Gloucester, teach me to forget myself;
For whilst I think I am thy married wife,
And thou a prince, protector of this land,
Methinks I should not thus be led along, 30
Mailed up in shame, with papers on my back.
And followed with a rabble that rejoice
20-25. hook . . . thine] 18-22. See how the giddie people looke at thee, Shak-
ing their heads, and pointing at thee heere, Go get thee gone, and hide thee from
their sights, And in thy pent vp studie rue . . . enemies. Ah mine and thine.
26. Be patient . . . grief] 23, 24. Ah Nell, sweet Nell, forget this extreme
grief. And beare it patiently to ease thy heart. 27, 28. Ah . . . married
wife] 25-27. Ah . . . wedded wife, Then thought of this doth kill my wofull
heart. 29. And . . . land] omitted Q. 30, 31. Methinks . . . back] 31,
32. And thus with bnrning Tapor in my hand,Malde . . . backe. 32, 33. And
. . . deep-fet groans] omitted Q.
Lucrece, 890 ; and in Comedy of Errors,
IV. iv. 70. In Hebrews vi. 6 : " put
him to an open shame " (" scorn " in
Wyclif). But it is found in the third
book of Golding's Ovid (328, 329) :
" Now (with a mischiefe) she is bagd and
beareth out before Hir open shame,"
whence probably it became familiar.
This expression has eluded my search in
New Eng. Diet.
21. giddy] See Part III. iv. viii. 5.
22. nod their heads] a nod, or to nod.
Occurs several times in Shakespeare in
the sense of a contemptuous gesture or
grimace.
24. closet] Altered from "study" in
Co7itention. We have had " study " al-
ready in a passage, not in Q and un-
doubtedly Shakespeare's (i. iii. 62) :
" whose study is his tilt-yard." Shake-
speare is often as careful to avoid
repetition as Peele and Greene were to
adopt it. Having used the word in his
earlier insertion, he was careful to re-
move it from occurring so soon again.
24. pent up] See Lovers Labour's
Lost, I. ii. 160; and Part III. i. iii.
12.
31. Mailed up] packed up, made up
into a parcel like a mail-bag or wallet.
The ' 'up" is a frequent addition by Shake-
speare to verbs already implying com-
pleteness or finality, to render them
more so. Compare " poisons up "
{Love's Labour's Lost, iv. iii. 305) ;
" finish up " (3 Henry VL u. v. 28) ;
" kill them up " {As You Like It, 11. i.
62) ; and " eat up," " drink up," " kill
up," in several passages. Drayton uses
this line in his Heroical Epistles, 1598.
I purposely refrain from transcribing
further from Drayton, since these
Epistles constantly reproduce the
thoughts and words of Shakespeare,
on whose situations they are founded.
The verb to mail had a special hawk-
ing sense. Dyce quotes from Randle
Holmes's Academy of Armory : " ' Mail
a hawk ' is to wrap her up in a handker-
chief or other cloth, that she may not
be able to stir her wings or to struggle."
[See "muster up," iii. i. 319.] Peele
has "shrined up in mould" in Sir
Clyomon (522, a), circa 1580.
31. with papers] See Love's Labour's
Lost, IV. iii. 45, and note, Arden
edition, p. 87. But the Coyitention
stage-direction (line i5 above) is the
best comment. The papers narrating
the culprit's offence were part of the
public penance.
32. followed with] Compare King
Lear, ii. iv. 255 : " But kept a reserva-
tion to be follow' d With such a num-
ber." Seems to be the only legitimate
parallel.
72 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
To see my tears and hear my deep-fet groans.
The ruthless flint doth cut my tender feet,
And when I start, the envious people laugh, 35
And bid me be advised how I tread.
Ah ! Humphrey, can I bear this shameful yoke ?
Trow'st thou that e'er I '11 look upon the world,
Or count them happy that enjoy the sun ?
No ; dark shall be my light, and night my day ; 40
To think upon my pomp shall be my hell.
Sometime I '11 say, I am Duke Humphrey's wife,
And he a prince and ruler of the land :
Yet so he ruled and such a prince he was
As he stood by whilst I, his forlorn duchess, 45
Was made a wonder and a pointing-stock
To every idle rascal follower.
But be thou mild and blush not at my shame ;
Nor stir at nothing till the axe of death
Hang over thee, as, sure, it shortly will ; 50
For Suffolk, he that can do all in all
34-36. The . . . tread] 28-30. The ruthlesse Jlints do . . . cruell people . . .
And bids . . . tread. 37. Ah . . . yoke] 33. Ah, Gloster, can I endure this
and Hue. 38-41. Trow'st thou . . . my hell] omitted Q. 42, 43. Sometime
. . . ruler of the land] 34, 35. Sometime . . . Protector of the land. 44, 45.
Yet so . . . Duchess] 36, 37. But so . . . Duches. 46, 47. Was . . . pointing-
stock, To . . . follower] 38, 39. Was led with shame, and made a laughing stocke,
To , , . rascald follower. 47, 48. Additional speech] 40-43. Humphrey. My
louely Nell, what wouldst thou haue me do ? Should I attempt to rescue thee
from hence, I should incurre the danger of the law, And thy disgrace would not
be shadowed so. 48-30. But be . . . will] 44-46. Elnor. Be thou milde and stir
not at my disgrace Vntill the axe of death hang ouer thy head As shortly sure
it will. 51. he that can] 46, 47. he. The new-made Duke, that may.
33. deep-fet] deep-fetched. Compare stoode as they had bene turned into
Henry V. iii. i. 18 ; and " far-fet," stones for wonder of this shamefull
below, III. i. 293. A familiar archaic sermond." Peele's David and Bethsabe
form, living long in proverbs, such as (466, b), where the clouds " bear this
" far fet and dear bought is good for wonder round about the world," the tale
ladles." The author of Arden of of Thamar's dishonour and disgrace.
Feversham (Kyd) remembered this ex- 46. pointing-stock] butt. See note at
pression : "What pity-moving words, " flouting-stock " (" vlouting-stog ") in
\\\\2lX. deep-fetched ii\gh&" (in. i.) [See Merry Wives of Windsor, in. ii. iig
Crawford's Collectanea, pp. 121, 122.] (Arden edition, p. 118), It is an im-
34. ruthless flint] Peele has the same provement here to read this instead of
thought in David and Bethsabe: "to "laughing-stock." Sidney has" gazing-
cast thee on her (Israel's) ruthless stock" {Arcadia); and Gascoigne has
stones" ^Dyce, 475, a). See Spanish " mocking stocke " in The Steele Glas
Tragedy, in. vii. 71 : " Wearing the (Arber, p. 65), 1576.
/lints with these my withered feet." 51. do all in all] See again Richard
35. envious] malicious, ill-natured. ///. iii.i. 168. "All in all" occurs else-
36. bid me be advised] See Richard where several times in Shakespeare.
///. n. i. 107. Be deliberate, cautious. Compare Three Ladies of London
46. wonder] disgraceful exhibition. (Hazlitt's Dodsley, vi. 249), 1584 :
Compare Grafton's Continuatioti of " 'Tis Lucre now that rules the rout ;
Hardyng, p. 507 : " The people . . . 'tis she is all in all." And Barnaby
sc. IV.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 73
With her that hateth thee, and hates us all,
And York, and impious Beaufort, that false priest,
Have all limed bushes to betray thy wings ;
And, fly thou how thou canst, they '11 tangle thee : 55
But fear not thou, until thy foot be snared.
Nor never seek prevention of thy foes.
Glou. Ah ! Nell, forbear : thou aimest all awry ;
I must offend before I be attainted ;
And had I twenty times so many foes, 60
And each of them had twenty times their power,
All these could not procure me any scath,
So long as I am loyal, true, and crimeless,
Would'st have me rescue thee from this reproach ?
Why, yet thy scandal were not wiped away, 65
But I in danger for the breach of law.
Thy greatest help is quiet, gentle Nell :
I pray thee, sort thy heart to patience ;
These few days' wonder will be quickly worn.
Enter a Herald.
Her. I summon your grace to his majesty's parliament, 70
holden at Bury the first of this next month.
52. hateth thee] 48. loues him so. 53. York . . . Beaufort] 49. impious
Yorke and Bewford. 54, 55. Have . . . thee] 50, 51. Have . . . can they
will intangle thee. 56-69. But fear . . . quickly worn] omitted Q. (Gloucester
speaks above, 47, 48.) See below, 63-65. 64-66. Would'st have . . . law]
40-43. (above at 47, 48), 69. worn. Enter a Herald] 51. intangle thee.
Enter a Herald of Armes. 70, 71. I . . . month] 52, 53. / . . . vnto his
highnesse . . . saint Edmunds-Bury, the first of the next month.
Googe's Popish Kingdom (reprint, p. 59. attainted] See 1 Henry VI. 11. iv.
36), 1570: " Shee is all in all, and 96. Compare Peele, Arraignment of
heares and sees what can be done or Paris, iv. i. : —
thought." " I bring the man whom he did late
52. her that hateth thee] An in- attaint,
teresting alteration from the Contention To answer his indictment orderly"
reading. See note above (iii. 28, 39), (365, a).
showing how the queen's hatred is 62. scath] injury, damage. Else-
developed in the finished play. where in King John, Richard III. and
54. /fm«rf 6?<5/!fs] See note at I. iii. 31. Titus Andronicus.
5J. seek prevention]look{ov hindrance. 63. crifneless] There was a vogue
The foregoing speech is pregnant with amongst writers, especially dramatists
interest. It is (in the Contention) prob- (Peele, Marlowe), for coining words
ably some of Shakespeare's earliest with -less. Part I., Introduction,
work, rewritten and perfected to this 67. Thy greatest help] Johnson says
beautiful form. Both are obviously here :" The poet has not endeavoured to
and undoubtedly Shakespeare's. raise much compassion for the duchess,
58. aimest all awry] Compare who indeed suffers but what she had
(Peele's) fack Straw : — deserved. Shakespeare's two earliest
" And ii I ta.ke my aim not all awry, women, if these be they, are not
The Multitude," etc. attractive."
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 384). 69. few days' wonder] A reference to
74 THE SECOND PART OF [act n.
Glou. And my consent ne'er asked herein before !
This is close dealing. Well, I will be there.
{^Exit Herald.
My Nell, I take my leave : and, Master sheriff,
Let not her penance exceed the king's commission. 75
Sher. An 't please your grace, here my commission stays,
And Sir John Stanley is appointed now
To take her with him to the Isle of Man.
Glou. Must you, Sir John, protect my lady here ?
Stan. So am I given in charge, may 't please your grace. 80
Glou. Entreat her not the worse in that I pray
You use her well. The world may laugh again ;
And I may live to do you kindness if
You do it her: and so, Sir John, farewell.
Duck. What! gone, my lord, and bid me not farewell. 85
Glou. Witness my tears, I cannot stay to speak.
[^Exeunt Gloucester and Servingmen.
Duch. Art thou gone too ? All comfort go with thee !
72, 73. And . . . there] 54-56. A Parliament and our consent neuer craude
Therein before. This is sodeine. Well, we will be there. Exet Herald. 74,
75. My Nell . . . cow»u'ssfo«] 57, 58. Maister Sheriff e, I pray proceede no further
against tny Lady, then the course of law extendes (prose). 76-78. An 't please
. . . Man] 59-61. Please it your grace, my office here doth end. And I must
deltuer her to Sir lohn Standly, To be conducted into . . . Man. 79. protect]
62. conduct my lady ? 80. Stan. So . . . grace]bi,6^. Stayidly. I my gratious
Lord, for so it is decreede. And I am so commanded by the King. 81, 82.
Entreat . . . well] 65, 66. I pray you Sir lohn, Vse her neare the worse, hi
that I i7itreat yoti to vse her well. 82-84. ^^^ • • • la^gh . . . kindness . . .
farewell] 67-69. The . . . smile . . . favour . . . farewell. 85, 86. What
. . . me not . . . tears . . . to speake] 70, 71, What . . . not me . . . bleeding
heart . . . to speake. Exet Humphrey and his men. 87-93. Art thou . . . com-
manded] 72-75. Then is he gone, is fioble Gloster gone. And doth Duke Humphrey
710W forsake me too ? Then let me haste from out faire England's boundcs, Come
Standly come, and let vs haste away.
the old saying " a nine days' wonder " ; of " the commission." See Introduc-
see again 3 Henry VI. in. ii. 113, 114, tion to Merry Wives of Windsor (Arden
and ^s yo»LJ^d' //, III. ii. 185. The pro- edition). The word is not in the Co n-
verbial phrase is in Chaucer's Troilus and tention. Compare : —
Cressida (iv. 1. 588), and in Heywood's " He hath commission from my wife
Proverbs, 1546 (ed. Sharman, p. go). and me
73. c/ose rf^a/Jw;?'] secret contriving or To hang CordeHa "
plotting. A favourite use with Shake- {Kiyig Lear, v. iii. 3, 252). Compare
speare. He has hard dealing, bad deal- Grafton, i. 338 : " It was aunswered by
ing, open dealing, elsewhere. Here Q the Englishe Ambassadors, that their
has " This is sudden," as in Measure commission stretched not so farre,
for Measure, 11. ii. 83. neyther that their Prince had geuen
75, 76. king's commission] royal or them any suche aucthoritie." And
state warrant, or instrument. A favour- Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 379):
ite term with Shakespeare. He uses it " thou goest beyond the commission of
most often of an unpleasant use or un- the king " (to a collector of tasks),
popular exercise of authority, as it is 82. The world may laugh again]
here. In his early days he is believed better times may be in store. Why
to have had an unpleasant experience alter " smile " ?
sc. IV.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 75
For none abides with me : my joy is death ;
Death, at whose name I oft have been afeard,
Because I wished this world's eternity. 90
Stanley, I prithee, go, and take me hence ;
I care not whither, for I beg no favour,
Only convey me where thou art commanded.
Stan. Why, madam, that is to the Isle of Man ;
There to be used according to your state. 95
Duck. That's bad enough, for I am but reproach :
And shall I then be used reproachfully ?
Stan. Like to a duchess, and Duke Humphrey's lady :
According to that state you shall be used.
Duch. Sheriff, farewell, and better than I fare, lOO
Although thou hast been conduct of my shame.
Sher. It is my office ; and, madam, pardon me.
Duch. Ay, ay, farewell ; thy office is discharged.
Come, Stanley, shall we go ?
Stan. Madam, your penance done, throw off this sheet, 105
And go we to attire you for our journey.
Duch. My shame will not be shifted with my sheet :
No ; it will hang upon my richest robes,
And show itself, attire me how I can.
Go, lead the way; I long to see my prison. 110
\Exeunt.
94-101. Why, madam . . . my shatne] omitted Q. 105, 106. Madam . . .
journey'] 76, 77. Madam lets go vnto some house hereby. Where you may shifte
your selfe before we go. 107-110. My shame . . . prison] 78-81. Ah, good Sir
lohn, tny shame cannot be hid, Nor put away with casting off my sheete, But come
let vs go, maister Sheriffe farewell, Thou hast but done thy office as thou shoulst.
Exet omnes.
8g. afeard] Nearly as common as above. And in Part I. 11. i. 13. Much
"afraid" in Shakespeare. commoner in the historical plays than
go. / wished . . . eternity] Compare elsewhere. A mannerism grown out of
iii. 46, above. The Duchess is ap- later.
parently a very would-be-young and no. I long to see my prison] "One
worldly woman. of those touches that certainly came
loi. conduct] conductor, guide. See from the hand of Shakespeare . . .
Romeo and Juliet, iii. i. 129; v. iii. not in the old play" (Malone).
116. no. come let 's go] in Q. See above
106. go we] See note at 11. ii. 59 at the end of 11. ii.
76 THE SECOND PART OF [act. m.
ACT III
SCENE I. — The Abbey at Bury St. Edutmids.
Sound a sennet. Enter King, Margaret, Beaufort, SUF-
FOLK, York, Buckingham, Salisbury, and Warwick,
to the Par'liament.
King. I muse my Lord of Gloucester is not come :
'Tis not his wont to be the hindmost man,
Whate'er occasion keeps him from us now.
Queen. Can you not see ? or will ye not observe
The strangeness of his altered countenance ? 5
With what a majesty he bears himself,
How insolent of late he is become,
How proud, how peremptory, and unlike himself?
We know the time since he was mild and affable,
Sound a sennet . . . Parliament] Enter to the Parlameni, Enter two Heralds
before, then the Duke of Buckingham, and the Duke of Suffolke, and then the
Duke of Yorke, atid the Cardinall of Winchester, and then the King and the
Queene, a7id then the Earle of Salisbury, and the Earle of Warwicke. _ 1-3.
King. . . . I wonder . . . long] i. King. 1 wonder our Vnkle Gloster stales so
long. 4. Can . . . observe] 2. Ca}i . . . you not perceiue. 5-8. The . . .
himself] 3. How that ambitious Duke doth use himself e ? g. We know . . .
affable] 3, 4. The time hath bene, but now that time is past, That none so humble
as Duke Humphrey was.
I. / tnuse] I wonder. Shakespeare For cause she was foriudged for
is fond of tiiis opening. He has it in sossery,
Coriolanus, Richard III., King John, For enchaunmentees, that she was
2 Henry IV. and 1 Henry VI. 11. ii. in workyng
19. Compare Spenser, Faerie Queene, Agayne the churche and kyng cur-
II. i. 19 : — sedly,
" much I muse By helpe of one mayster Roger
How that same knight should doe Oonly :
so fowle amis." And into Wales he went of froward-
And Peele, Sir Clyomon (504, a) : — nesse
" but much / muse, indeed, And to the kyng had greate heuy-
What he means to do." nesse "
Boswell Stone quotes here from Har- (Ellis, 400, 1812).
dyng's Chronicle (1461), in proof of 9. affable] Hardly inco mmon use ;
Gloucester's altered demeanour (which " affability " is oftener met with.
was to be expected) : — " Affable and curteous at meales "
"He waxed then straunge eche day (Puttenham (Arber, p. 298), 1586-1589).
unto ye kyng, Not in Q ; four times in Shakespeare.
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
77
And if we did but glance a far-off look,
Immediately he was upon his knee,
That all the court admired him for submission :
But meet him now, and, be it in the morn.
When every one will give the time of day,
He knits his brow and shows an angry eye,
And passeth by with stiff unbowed knee,
Disdaining duty that to us belongs.
Small curs are not regarded when they grin,
But great men tremble when the lion roars ;
And Humphrey is no little man in England.
First note that he is near you in descent,
And should you fall, he is the next will mount.
Me seemeth then it is no policy,
Respecting what a rancorous mind he bears.
And his advantage following your decease,
That he should come about your royal person
Or be admitted to your highness' council.
By flattery hath he won the commons' hearts,
And when he please to make commotion,
'Tis to be feared they all will follow him.
lo
15
20
25
30
10-12. And if . . . submission] omitted Q. 13, 14. But . . . day] 6, 7. But
now let one meete him euen in . . . day. 15-19. He knits . . . lion roars] 8-12.
And he will neither moue nor speake to vs. See yon not how the Commons follow
him In troupes, crying, God saue the good Duke Humphrey, And with long life,
lesus preserve his grace (this line omitted 1619 Q), Honouring him as if he were
their King. 20. And . . . England] 13. Gloster is no litle . , . England.
21-28. First note . . . commons' hearts] omitted Q. 29, 30. And when . . .
him] 14, 15. And if he list to stir commotions, Tys likely that the people . . . him.
10. far-off'] indistinct, doubtful, un-
certain. Compare " afar off," Merry
Wives of Windsor, i. i. 215 (note, Ar-
den edition, p. 22). Both expressions
are frequent in the Bible.
14. give the time of day] the day's
greeting, good-morrow. Compare
Love's Labour's Lost, v. ii. 339: "All
hail, sweet madame, and fair time of
day ! " A rattling salutation. See P.
Stubbs, A Perfect Pathway to Felicitie,
1592 : " When thou goest forth of thy
chamber salute thy bedfellow (if thou
hast anie) giving him the time of day,
and in meeting others doe the like for
so civilitie requireth."
18. curs] Used contemptuously of
human beings many times by Shake-
speare. Compare Greene, Arbasto
(Grosart, iii. 236), 1584: " Doest thou
thinke with the spaniell by fawning
when thou art beaten to make thy foe
thy friend ? no, let others deeme of
thee what they list, I will still compt
thee a curre." And Marlowe, Tatn-
burlaine. Part II. iv. i : "ye cankered
ctirs of Asia."
18. grin] show the teeth. Compare
Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part II. in. 5 :
" legions of devils . . . grin with their
teeth."
20. Humphrey is no little man] Very
much the reverse. Akin to the use
(ironical) in " here 's no knavery,"
"here's no vanity," etc. The passage
in the Contention preceding these
words, which is omitted in our text, has
occurred before in both texts in almost
identical words at i. i. 156-160 above ;
and see 11. 190, igi in the same scene.
Hence the omission here. But these
repetitions have not been always erased.
Tliere is a noteworthy example immedi-
ately below, at " cold news" (11. 87, 88).
29. make commotion] See below, in. i.
358. To raise an insurrection.
78 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
Now 'tis the spring, and weeds are shallow-rooted ;
Suffer them now and they '11 o'ergrow the garden,
And choke the herbs for want of husbandry.
The reverent care I bear unto my lord
Made me collect these dangers in the duke. 35
If it be fond, call it a woman's fear;
Which fear if better reasons can supplant,
I will subscribe and say I wronged the duke.
My Lord of Suffolk, Buckingham, and York,
Reprove my allegation if you can; 40
Or else conclude my words effectual.
Suf. Well hath your highness seen into this duke ;
And had I first been put to speak my mind,
I think I should have told your grace's tale.
The duchess by his subornation, 45
Upon my life, began her devilish practices :
Or if he were not privy to those faults,
Yet, by reputing of his high descent,
31-35. Now His . . . duke] omitted Q. 36. //. . .fear] 16, 17. My Lorde,
if you imagine there is no such thing, Then let it passe, and call . . . fear.
37) 38. Which . . . duke] 20, 21. And by your speeches if you can reproue me, I
will . . . Duke. 39, 40. My lord . . . can;] 18, ig. My Lord . . . Disproue
my Alligations . . . can. 41. Or . . . effectual] omitted Q. 42-44. Well
hath . . . tale] 22-2^. Well . . . grace foreseen . , . that Duke, And if I had bene
licenst first to speake, I thinke . . . talc. 45-52. The duchess . . . fall] omitted Q.
31-33. weeds . . . choke the herbs] Coh^^k^jom reads "disprove." New Eng.
Compare Richard II. iii. iv. 42-44. Diet, brings this word back to Chaucer,
And Peele, Edward I. (Dyce, 407, a) : — Boethius, in this sense.
" O gracious fortune, that me happy 40. allegation] assertion. Only once
made again in Shakespeare (in the legal sense
To spoil the weed that chokes fair which is eldest), below, at 1. 181. It
Cambria ! " is used by Greene, Quip for an Upstart
35. collect] gather. Shakespeare's Courtier (Grosart, xi. 226) : " Whereas
thoughts are still in the garden, whence thou doost boast that I am little re-
he loved to draw imagery. See Hamlet, garded ... I grant thy allegation in
III. ii. 268 ; IV. vii. 175. part, but not in whole."
36. fond] foolish. For the omitted 41. effectual] " to the point, per-
expression " let it pass," see Love's tinent, conclusive " {New Eng. Diet.,
Labour '5 Lost, v. i. go. " Let that which gives this passage as earliest in
pass " is much commoner. See Arden the obsolete sense). Not in the Cow-
edition of Love's Labour 's Lost, v. i. tention. The queen's speech affords
g3, note, p. 118. another excellent study in develop-
38. SMfcsm'fei^] yield, admit I am wrong, ment. Her character, the king's, and
Compare Part I. 11. iv. 44, and King the characters of the Gloucesters seem
Lear, iii. vii. 65. Compare Greene, to have interested Shakespeare and been
Never too Late (Grosart, viii. 170): — entrusted to him. He doubles her speech
" Thus he whom love and errour did here.
betray, 45. subornation] instigation to crime :
Subscribes to thee, and takes the a transferred use from the proper sense
better way." of procurement for perjury, or perjury
But with " to " it is frequent. itself. See below, line 145 ; and 1
40. Reprove] disprove, confute. See Henry IV. i. iii. 163.
Venus and Adonis, 787, and Much 48. reputing of] thinking of (Intro-
Ado About Nothing, 11. iii. 241. The duction). An uncommon use. See
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 79
As next the king he was successive heir,
And such high vaunts of his nobility, 50
Did instigate the bedlam brain-sick duchess
By wicked means to frame our sovereign's fall.
Smcoth runs the water where the brook is deep,
And in his simple show he harbours treason.
The fox barks not when he would steal the lamb : 55
No, no, my sovereign ; Gloucester is a man
Unsounded yet, and full of deep deceit.
Car. Did he not, contrary to form of law,
Devise strange deaths for small offences done ?
York. And did he not, in his protectorship, 60
Levy great sums of money through the realm
For soldiers' pay in France, and never sent it ?
By means whereof the towns each day revolted.
Buck. Tut ! these are petty faults to faults unknown.
Which time will bring to light in smooth Duke Hum-
phrey. 65
53. Smooth . . . deep] 25. Smooth . . . brooke whereas the streame is deepest.
54. And . . . treason] omitted Q. 55. The fox . . . lamb] 121. The foxe . . .
lambe (later speech of Suffolk). 56, 57, No, no . . . deceit] 26, 27. No, no
. , . deceit. 58-81. Did he not . . . fraudful man] omitted Q. (lines 64, 65,
the latter identical, are given to Cardinal, Q i, i. loi, 102).
New Eng. Diet. It occurs in Jonson's in Shakespeare they are coupled in
Cynthia's Revels. Measure for Measure, v. i. ■^00; Troilus
49. successive heir] So in Marlowe's and Crcssida, iii. ii. 200 ; Timon of
Tamburlaine, Part II. in. i : "son and Athens, iv. iii. 331, etc. The nearest
successive heir to the late mighty em- sentiment to the one here I can recall
peror Bajazeth." Kyd has •' successive is in Greene's Mamillia (Grosart, ii.
line " in the S^awjs/i Tragedy, ui. i. i^. 27): "The Foxe wins the favour of
See Titus Andronicus, i. i. 4. the lambcs by play, and then deuoures
51. bedlam] frantic. See below, v. them."
i. 132. " Like a bedlam " occurs three 57. Unsounded] in the literal sense,
times in Golding's Ovid : " lyke a in Two Gentlemen of Verona, in. ii. 81.
bedlem with her toong " (ix. 757). For 58, 59. contrary to . . . laiv . . . small
" brainsick " see Part I. iv. i. 3 (note). offences] This is a repetition of Buck-
53. Smooth runs the water] Lyly ingham's charge (i. iii. 130-132). And
gives us this proverb (often varied later yet once more below,by York, 11. 121-123.
to " still water," etc.) earlier : "Where 61, 62. money . . .pay in France]
the stream runs smoothest the water The queen broached these French ac-
is deepest" [Euphues (Arber, p. 287), cusations already (i. iii. 133-135). And
1580) ; and in Sapho and Phao, 11. iv. : see the charges collected again in
"water runneth smoothest, where it is Gloucester's reply below, 11. 107-118,
deepest" (1584). It is frequent later, where the taxing ("racking," Cojz<f;ih'oM)
Of the many similes in these speeches, of the Commons is mentioned again
to the entry of Somerset with his cold from i. iii. 125, 126, the cardinal's
news, this is the only one in the Con- accusation. The developed play has
tention. enhanced these repetitions in a very
54. harbours] makes a home for, inartistic way. See the notes at i. iii.
entertains. See iv. vii. 109, and Two 210, 211, and iii. i. 292.
Gentlemen of Verona, i. ii. 42. 64, 65. faults . . . smooth Duke
55. fox . . . lamb] The fox and lamb Humphrey] Repeated (but not in the
occur in a variety of adages and fables ; Contention) from i. i. loi, 102.
80
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
King. My lords, at once : the care you have of us,
To mow down thorns that would annoy our foot,
Is worthy praise ; but shall I speak my conscience,
Our kinsman Gloucester is as innocent
From meaning treason to our royal person, 70
As is the sucking lamb or harmless dove.
The duke is virtuous, mild, and too well given
To dream on evil, or to work my downfall.
Queen. Ah ! what 's more dangerous than this fond affiance.
Seems he a dove ? his feathers are but borrowed, 75
For he 's disposed as the hateful raven :
Is he a lamb ? his skin is surely lent him,
For he 's inclined as is the ravenous wolf
Who cannot steal a shape that means deceit?
Take heed, my lord ; the welfare of us all 80
Hangs on the cutting short that fraudful man.
67. ajinoy] injure. See Henry V. ii.
ii. 102, and elsewhere.
68. speak my conscience] tell my sin-
cere belief in what is true. See Henry
V. IV. i. 123, where the expression occurs
again. And in Menechmi, ii. i. (Hazlitt's
Shakespeare Library, Part II, vol. i. p.
11): "Wei yet I must speake my con-
science.'" New Eng. Diet, has an ex-
ample of " tell my conscience " earlier,
from Foxe.
71. sucking lamb . . . harmless dove]
I Samuel vii, g ; Matthew x. i6. Natur-
ally the king uses Biblical language. See
the Contention below at in. ii. 19-22, and
note.
72. given] addicted. Occurs half a
dozen times so in Shakespeare, with an
adverb as here.
73. work my downfall] See Locrine,
V. I : " And seek to work her downfall
and decay."
74. affiance] confidence. Compare
Cymbeline, i. vi. 163, and Henry V.
II. ii. 127. Compare Peele, Battle of
Alcazar, 11. iii. :—
" when this haughty offer takes
effect
And works affiance in Sebastian."
And The Troublesome Raigne of King
John: "There 's no affiance after per-
jury." Hall has it in this connection
(XXV Yere) : " Such affiance had he
(Gloucester) in his strong truthe, and
such confidence had he in indifferent
iustice " (p. 209).
75,76. dove . . . raven] Compare "a
raven's heart within a dove " (Twelfth
Night, V. i. 134).
77, 78. lamb ? his skin . . . wolf]
An ancient saying : " truste not these
prechours, for thei be not good, fPor thei
flatter and lye as thei wer wood ; ther is
a wolfe in a lombe skynne, ya, I wyll no
more row a-geyn the fflode, I wyll sett
my soule on a mery pynne " (Digby
Mysteries (ed. Furnivall, pp. 155, 156),
circa 1485). " Of trothe she is a wolfe
in a lambe's skinne " (Heywood's Pro-
verbs (ed. Sharman, p. 48), 1546). And
Peele, Sir Clyomon (515, a) : " For, like
a wolf in lambskin clad, he cometh with
his aid."
81. cutting short] Craig thinks a re-
ference to shortening by the head (as in
Richard II. iii. iii. 12) is here intended.
See note at " headless necks," i. ii. 65.
" Shorter by the head" occurs in Mar-
lowe's Edward II. (Dyce, 212, a). And
in Grafton, i. 627 : " He (Duke of Suf-
folke) . . . was taken upon the Sea and
made shorter by the head." And see
Hall, p. 275, quoted at 3 Henry VI.
IV. iii. 54. But I think it is merely
the phrase " cut him off," as below :
" bloody war shall cut them short " (iv.
iv. 12). Exterminate him. But com-
pare Lodge, Wounds of Civil War
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, vii. 129) : —
" Enter the chamber where as Marius
lies,
hnA cut him short ; the present of
whose head
Shall make the Romans praise us."
Si. fraudful] "full of deep deceit"
(line 57) ; treacherous. New Eng.
Diet, brings this word back to 1400
in Scottish writers, Dunbar (1500-1520)
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
81
Enter SOMERSET.
Som. All health unto my gracious sovereign !
King. Welcome, Lord Somerset. What news from France ?
Som. That all your interest in those territories
Is utterly bereft you : all is lost, 85
King. Cold news, Lord Somerset : but God's will be done !
York. [Aside.] Cold news for me ; for I had hope of France
As firmly as I hope for fertile England.
Thus are my blossoms blasted in the bud,
And caterpillars eat my leaves away ; 90
But I will remedy this gear ere long.
Or sell my title for a glorious grave.
82. E7iter Somerset. So7n. All . . . sovereign I] 27, 28. Enter the Duke of
Somerset. 83. King. Welcome . . . France ?~\ 28. King. Welcome . . . France ?
84, 85. Som. That . . . lost] 29-31. Somer. Cold newes, my lord, and this it is,
That all your holds and Townes within those Territores, Is overcome, my Lord,
all is lost. 86. Cold news. Lord . . . done] 32, 33. Cold newes indeed, Lord
. . . done. 87, 8S. Cold news . . . Eiigla7id] 34, 35. Cold newes . . . Euen
as I have of fertill England (these lines, reading England's soil, occur in both
texts above, i. i. 235-236). 89-92. Thtis . . . grave] omitted Q.
yielding an example. Shakespeare has
several words, seemingly introduced
from Scottish historians, in these plays.
This term was immediately seized on
by Kyd (?) in Soliman and Perseda, and
(probably) by him also in Arden of
Feversham. See Crawford's Collec-
tanea, p. 129. See below at "slaughter-
house," 1. 212.
83. Somerset. What news from
France] Somerset was appointed Re-
gent of France (i. iii. 205). The Con-
tention informs us at that point (11.
iS"^. 159) that he is to make haste tor
the time of truce is expired. At the
yielding of Caen (1449, Hall) " The
Duke of Somerset . . . made an agre-
ment with the Frenche kyng, that he
would rendre the toun so that he and
all of his might depart in sauegardwith
all their goodes and substaunce ; whiche
offre the Frenche kyng gladly accepted
. . . Sir Davie Hall . . , departed to
Chierburgh and from thence sailed into
Irelande to the Duke of Yorke, making
relacion to hym . . . whiche thyng
kyndeled so greate a rancoure in his
harte & stomache that he never left
persecutynge of the Duke of Somer-
sette . . . Now rested English onely
the toune of Chierburgh. . . . Thus
was the riche duchie of Normandy lost
6
ye whiche had continued in the english-
mennes possession XXX. yeres, by the
conquest of Kyng Henry the fifth . . .
Other say, that the Duke of Somerset,
for his owne peculiar profit, kept not
halfe his nombre of souldiors, and put
their wages in his purse " (Hall, pp.
215, 216).
85. bereft you] Similarly used in
Othello, I. iii. 258.
86. God's will be done] A little earlier
in Hall (212, 213) : " Which mischiefes
(while the kyng, as thinges of the world,
and of no great moment, did neglect
and omit, as he which preferred and ex-
tolled godly thinges aboue all worldly
affaires . , .) dayly so muche increased
. . . the French nacion knew in what
case the realme of England stode."
87. 88. Cold news . . . England]
Another repetition. See collation
above ; and see note, i. i. 235. Hey-
wood has this expression in If You
Know Not Me, Part II. (Pearson, vol. i.
P- 293)-
89. blasted in the bud] See Two
Gentlemen of Verona, i. i. 48. " Blast"
in this sense is frequent in Shakespeare.
See reference to Golding's Ovid at Part
III. IV. iv. 23. Peele has it frequently,
as in Battle of Alcazar, 11. iii. and i. ii.
(425, b ; 427, b), etc.
82 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
Enter GLOUCESTER.
Glou. All happiness unto my lord the king !
Pardon, my liege, that I have stayed so long.
Siif. Nay, Gloucester, know that thou art come too soon, 95
Unless thou wert more loyal than thou art.
I do arrest thee of high treason here.
Glou. Well, Suffolk, thou shalt not see me blush,
Nor change my countenance for this arrest :
A heart unspotted is not easily daunted. roo
The purest spring is not so free from mud
As I am clear from treason to my sovereign.
Who can accuse me ? wherein am I guilty ?
York. 'Tis thought, my lord, that you took bribes of France,
And, being protector, stayed the soldiers' pay ; 105
By means whereof his highness hath lost France.
Glou. Is it but thought so ? What are they that think it ?
I never robbed the soldiers of their pay,
Nor ever had one penny bribe from France.
So help me God, as I have watched the night, no
Ay, night by night, in studying good for England,
That doit that e'er I wrested from the king,
93, 94. Enter Gloucester. Glou. All . . . long] 35. Ejiter Duke Humphrey.
Hum. Pardon . . . long: 95-97- Nay . . . here] 37-39. Nay . . . proue more
. . . We do . . . (on for of) here. 98, gg. Well, Suffolk . . . this arrest] 40,
41. Why Suffolkesi Duke . . . thine arrest. 100-102. A heart . . . sovereign]
omitted Q. 103. Who . . . guilty ?] 42. Whereof am I guilty, who are my
accusers? 104. Aly lord that you] 43. My lord, your grace. 105. And, being
protector, stay'd] 44. And stopt. 106. By . . . France] 45. By which his
Maiestie hath lost all France. 107. Is it . . . What . . . it] 46. Is it . . .
and who are they that thinkc so? 108. I . . . pay] 51. / . . . . paie. log,
114. Nor ever . . . France (and) Be . . . day] 49, 50. That penie that euer I
tooke from France, Be brought against me at the iudgement day. no, in.
So . , . night, Ay . . . England'] 47, 48. So . . . night, Eucr intending good for
England still. 112, 113. That doit . . . use] omitted Q.
97. arrest thee of] Occurs in Richard " But though from court to cottage
//., Henry IV. (Part II.), Henry V. and he depart,
Henry VIII. See below, v. i. 106. The His saint is sure of his unspotted
Contention reads " on," as in King Lear, heart."
v.iii.82. ItoccuvsinMailowe'sEdward loi. spring . . . mud] Compare
//. Sonnet 35 : " Roses have thorns and
98. Sz<_^oi^] Malonesupphed "duke" silver fountains mud." No one fault-
from the old play for the sake of the less. See also Titus Androtiicus, v. ii.
metre, followed by some modern editors. 171.
Steevens added "yet" from the second 108. robbed . . . soldiers of . . . pay]
folio. This was expressly charged against
100. A heart unspotted] Compare 1 Somerset. See 1. 83 (extract).
Henry VI. v. iii. 182. The expression 112. doit] Occurs half a dozen times
occurs in Peele's sonnet, " His golden in Shakespeare. Not in Coyitention,
locks " (Po()'/jyw;ifa, 1590) : — which reads "penie." See note, on
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 83
Or any groat I hoarded to my use,
Be brought against me at my trial-day !
No ; many a pound of mine own proper store, 1 1 5
Because I would not tax the needy commons,
Have I dispursed to the garrisons,
And never asked for restitution.
Car. It serves you well, my lord, to say so much.
Glou. I say no more than truth, so help me God ! 1 20
York. In your protectorship you did devise
Strange tortures for offenders, never heard of,
That England was defamed by tyranny.
Glou. Why, 'tis well known that, whiles I was protector,
Pity was all the fault that was in me ; 125
For I should melt at an offender's tears,
And lowly words were ransom for their fault.
Unless it were a bloody murderer,
Or foul felonious thief that fleeced poor passengers,
115. No; many . . . store\ 52. Many . . . cost. 116. tax] 54. racke,
117. Havel . . . garrisons] ^^. Have I sent oner for the soldiers wants. 118,
And . . . restitution] omitted Q. 119, 120. Car. It serves . . . Glou. I say
no . . . ] omitted Q. 121-123. York. In your . . . tortures . . , tiever heard
of, That . . . tyranny] Car. In your . . . torments . . . by which meanes Eng-
land hath bene . . . tyrannie. 124, 125. Why . . . whiles . . . in me] 58,
59. Why . . . whilst . . . in me. 126, 127. For I . . . fault] omitted Q.
128-132. Unless it . . . trespass else] 60-62. A murthcrer or foule felonous theefe,
that robs and murthers silly passengers, I turtord aboiie the rate of common
law.
this charge, at I. iii. 117 (from Polydore 124. whiles] v^hWst. Not unfrequent
Vergil). in Shakespeare. It occurs in the
114. trial-day I] See Richard II. i. i. Faerie Queene, 11. i. 27 : " Whiles cursed
151. "Judgment-day" of Contention Steele against that badge I bent."
was perhaps altered to give an air of jus- 129. fieeced] plundered. See I Henry
tice to the arrest ; Gloucester no doubt IV. 11. ii. 90. New Eng. Diet, quotes
expected a trial, though he got none. from Holinshed, 1579. Greene has it
115. own proper] for "own proper once in The Art of Conny-Catching
cost " and " rack the commons " in this (Grosart, x. 28), 1591 : "he laughs in
speech (in Contention), see i. i. 61 and his sleeue, thinking he hath fleest the
I. iii. 13 1; barnacle of all."
117. (/is/«;'s^(/] The fourth Folio reads 129. poor passengers] poor wayfarers
"disbursed." This is probably again or travellers on foot. One of these
from some Scottish chronicle. The only foot-passengers meets with a crocodile
other example in New Eng. Diet, is from just below (1. 227). " Poor passengers "
Scottish Acts, 1625-1640. For "gar- and silly women are liable to outrages in
risons," see Part I. v. iv. 168 (note). Two Gentlemen of Verona, iv. i. i ; or
121. protectorship] See 11. i. 30, note. " some unhappy passenger " is held in
121-123. devise . . . tortures . . . chase (ibid. v. iv. 15) ; or they are
tyranny] See note at 11. 58, 59 above, robbed [Richard II. v. iii. g) ; or they
"Defamed by tyranny" — by the report perish from thirst (Venus and Adonis,
of tyranny. More properly with " of." gi). But they never have happy men-
Compare Grafton, i. 453 : " That where- tion in Shakespeare, since everyone rode
as , . . Gloucester . . . Arondell and who was not prohibited by poverty. In
. . . Warwike have bene defamed of Spenser's Faerie Queene, 11. ii. 22, a bear
Treason by certeyne of our counsaylors: and tiger give up their own quarrel to
We." divide " a traveller with feete surbet."
84 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
I never gave them condign punishment: 130
Murder indeed, that bloody sin, I tortured
Above the felon or what trespass else.
Suf. My lord, these faults are easy, quickly answered ;
But mightier crimes are laid unto your charge,
Whereof you cannot easily purge yourself. 135
I do arrest you in his highness' name ;
And here commit you to my lord cardinal
To keep, until your further time of trial.
King. My Lord of Gloucester, 'tis my special hope
That you will clear yourself from all suspense: 140
My conscience tells me you are innocent.
Glou. Ah ! gracious lord, these days are dangerous.
Virtue is choked with foul ambition,
And charity chased hence by rancour's hand ;
Foul subornation is predominant, 145
And equity exiled your highness' land.
133. My lord . . , answered] 63. Tush my Lord, these be things of no account.
12-^. mightier crimes] 6^. greater matters. 135. Whereof . . . yourself ] omitted
Q. 1^6. you in . . . name] 64. thee on high treason here. 137. Here commit
you . . . lord] 66. commit thee . . . good Lord. 138. To . , . trial] 67. Untill
such time as thou canst cleare thy selfe. 139-141. My Lord . . . innocent]
68-70. Good vnkle obey to his arrest, I haue no doubt but thou shalt cleare thy
selfe My . . . thou art innocent. 142. Lord] 71. Henry. 143-147. Virtue
. . . life] omitted Q.
1^0. condign] well - deserved. See " Suspense" (doubt) is not elsewhere in
Love's Labour 's Lost, i. ii. 27. An Shakespeare, so it may be well to
old word, but not a favourite in poetry. quote a few parallels. " In suspense "
132. /e/on] Is " felon " used here in the occurs three times in the Geneva
early sense [Cursor Mundi) of felony? Version {1560), Luke iii. 15, xii. 29,
" Felonious" (1. 129) replaces" felonous" and John x. 24. Spenser has it as an
of Q, a much earlier form, as in Faerie adjective. Faerie Queene, iv. vi. 34.
Queene, 11. vii. 62 : "And did acquite a J. Rider, Bibliotheca Scholastica, 1589,
muTdrer felonous." has it only " in suspense." Cotgrave
132. what trespass else] whatever as an adjective. Gabriel Harvey gives
other trespass. Compare 3 Henry VL a good example : " They that know
III. i. 51. Peele has similar wording: the daunger of Truces . . . mustbegge
" What dukedom, island, or province leave to ground their repose upon more
else, to me now are not tributary ? " cautels, then one : and to proceede
(Sir Clyomon (498, a)). Sir Climclam in termes of suspence, or Pause, till
might do as name for this weary piece, they may be resolued with infallible
which Peele may have touched up, but assurance" (A New Letter (Grosart,
not redeemed. i. 287), 1593). The fact of it occurring
136. / do arrest you] Suffolk says nowhere in Shakespeare is no argu-
this twice in both texts. The Con- ment. But as a biblical word it com-
tention has "arrest thee on" each mended itself for the King's use.
time. Moreover it is an object to avoid
140. clear yourself ] A repetition of the repetitions of words so irksomely
these words is saved in " purge your- common with Greene, and not much
self " above, 1. 135. less so with Peele. " Suspect " occurs
140. suspense] " suspence " is the read- a few lines below,
ing of the old editions. Capell altered it 145. subornation] See above, line 45.
to •• suspect," followed by modern edi- 146. exiled] Not used without
tors, including Cambridge {2nd edition), "from" elsewhere in Shakespeare.
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
85
I know their complot is to have my h'fe ;
And 'f my death might make this island happy,
And prove the period of their tyranny,
I would expend it with all willingness ; 150
But mine is made the prologue to their play ;
For thousands more, that yet suspect no peril.
Will not conclude their plotted tragedy.
Beaufort's red sparkling eyes blab his heart's malice,
And Suffolk's cloudy brow his stormy hate; 155
Sharp Buckingham unburthens with his tongue
The envious load that lies upon his heart ;
And dogged York, that reaches at the moon,
Whose overweening arm I have plucked back,
By false accuse doth level at my life : 160
148-150. And if . . . willingness] 72, 73. And would my death might end these
miseries, And staic their moodes for good King Henries sake. 151. mine is]
74. / am. 152, 153. For thousands . . . tragedy] 75, 76. And thousands more
must follow after me That dreads not yet their Hues destruction. 154. Beau-
fort's . . . malice] 78. Bewfords firie eyes showes his envious minde. 155.
And Suffolk's . . . hate] 77. Suffolkes hatefull tongue blabs his harts malice,
156, 157. Sharp Buckingham . . . heart] 79. Buckinghams proud looks bewraies
this cruel thoughts. 158, 159. reaches at . . . pluck'd back] 80, 81. leuels up
. . . held backe. 160. By . . . life] omitted Q.
147. complot] The substantive is
found elsewhere only in Richard III.
and Titus Andronicus ; the verb in
Richard II. alone. Shakespeare found
it in Holinshed, 1577 (see New Eng.
Diet.). It occurs in Selimus and in
Kyd's Spanish Tragedy.
151. prologue] Compare Greene's
Farewell to Follie (Grosart, ix. 249) :
" you sir, induce a souldiour as prologue
to your comedie of pride, whereas you
schollers ought to be formost in the
scene " ; and Selimus \x\v. 200) : —
" But this his marriage with the
Tartars daughter
Is but the prologue to his crueltie."
The alteration in this line is perhaps
significant.
154. blab his heart's malice] Several of
these trifling changes seem capricious,
and even, as here, for the worse. It
is better to speak of tongues blabbing,
than of eyes. See Twelfth Night, i.
ii. 63. And why transpose these
personal traits of Beaufort, Suffolk and
Buckingham ? They are presumably
imaginary. Certainly the rhythm is
often improved.
155. cloudy . . . stormy] These words,
used of persons and passions, are quite
Shakespeare-like. " Stormy passions "
is in 2 Henry IV. i. i. 165. " Cloudy "
in several places. " Furrowes of her
clouding brow " occurs in Soliman and
Perseda. Compare Spenser's "stormy
wind Of malice" {Faerie Queene, 11.
vi. 8).
158. dogged York] " dogged war "
occurs in King John, as does also
" dogged spies " (iv. i. 129 ; iv. iii. 149).
Peele has " Cerberus . . . the dogged
fiend " in Sir Clyomon (492, b).
158. reaches at the mooti] Compare
Pericles, 11. ii. 20. To cast beyond the
moon was a common earlier expression.
160. accuse] This reminds one of
Lodge, who takes an adjective or a
verb and nouns it at his will. In
The Wojinds of Civil War, Lodge has
the substantives resist, clear, repent,
relent. Lodge has most of the tricks
of his contemporaries, with a con-
siderable fluency of language. But he
is distinctly dull. Compare Osric's
"assigns" (Hamlet, v. ii. 157).
160. level at my life] In 3 Henry VI.
n. ii. 19, occurs " Ambitious York did
level at thy crown." The change in
1. 158 above to " reaches " was made to
allow this line. Sometimes one feels
as if the altering of so many words
had the simple sordid explanation of
proper costs and charges for such and
such a quantity of reformation. See
86
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III,
And you, my sovereign lady, with the rest,
Causeless have laid disgraces on my head,
And with your best endeavour have stirred up
My liefest liege to be mine enemy.
Ay, all of you have laid your heads together ;
Myself had notice of your conventicles,
And all to make away my guiltless life.
I shall not want false witness to condemn me,
Nor store of treasons to augment my guilt ;
The ancient proverb will be well effected :
A staff is quickly found to beat a dog !
165
170
161, And . . , rest] 82. And you my gratious Lady and soucraignc mistresse.
162. disgraces on] 84. complaints upon. 163, 164. And , , . enemy] omitted Q,
165. Ay . . . together] 82. All you have ioynd to betraie me thus. 166, 167.
Myself . . . life] omitted Q. 168, i6g, 7 , , . witness to condemn me, Nor
, , . guilt] 85, 86, / . . . witnesses inough, That so amongst you, you may haue my
life. 170, The , . . effected] 87. The Prouerbe no doubt will be well performed.
171, A . . . dog] 88, ^ . . . dog.
Cunningham's Revels Accounts (Shake-
speare Society), p. 92, 1574 (and often) :
" For his paines in perusing and
Reformyng of plays."
162. Causeless] causelessly. A very
old use.
164. My liefest liege] See i. i. 28.
" Liefest " is not again in Shakespeare.
Peele has " My liefest lord and sweetest
sovereign " (Edwatd I., Dyce, 388, b).
Greene has " our liefest liege " and
" my liefest Lord" in James the Fourth
(Grosart, xiii. 303, 313). One of the
many examples that might be adduced
of Spenser's influence. " My liefest
liefe" occurs in the Faerie Queene, in.
ii. 33 (last vifords) and " My liefest
Lord," II. ii. 30. Greene's jfames the
Fourth is often quoted from in these
notes. A passage at page 216 contains
a reference to the pretty song " Love
in my bosom like a bee " in Lodge's
Euphues Golden Legacie (1590), in the
issuing of which I believe Greene had
a hand : —
And weele 1 wot I heard a shepheard
sing
That like a Bee, Love hath a little
sting."
This gives a lower limit, 1590, for the
date of the play.
165. laid your heads together] This
expression is played upon by Marlowe,
Edward the Second (Dyce, 206, b) : —
" thou seest
These barons lay their heads on
blocks together."
It occurs in the old play of Leir.
Shakespeare has it again in The Taming
of the Shrew, i. ii. 139, He may have
taken it from Grafton, i. 155 (reprint,
1809), 1568 : " But for all that, at the
last they laid all their heades together
and aduysed themselues howe and which
way they might honestly submit them
selues vnto the sayde Duke " {William
Conquerour, The First Yere). See
again, below, iv. viii. 57. This expres-
sion, as well as the following, have
been adduced as proof of Marlowe's
hand — mistakenly. Grafton has it in
his Continuation of Hardyng, 1543,
p. 458 : " The quene counsayled theim
all to laye their heedes together, and
caste all the wayes."
166. conventicles] irregular or clan-
destine meetings of a supposed sinister
character (New Eng. Diet.). Frequently
so used in the Chronicles, Fabyan,
Hall, Grafton, etc., and occurring at
this particular juncture as here in Hall
(37th Year) : " The Erles of March
and Warwicke, and other beyng at
Calice, had knowledge of all these
Aoynges. a.n&sQCX&iQconucnticles " (1809,
p. 242).
167. make away] destroy. Compare
Venus and Adonis, 763, and Sonnet 11,
1. 8. It occurs in Mai\o-we's Edward the
Second, II. ii. (quoted in New Eng.
Diet.). Compare Edward's Damon and
Pythias (Hazlitt's Dodsley, iv. 46), ante
1566 :-
" To make means to them which
can do much with Dionysius,
That he be not made away, ere his
cause be fully heard."
170, 171, ancient proverb . . . A
sc. i] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 87
Car. My liege, his railing is intolerable.
If those that care to keep your royal person
From treason's secret knife and traitors' rage
Be thus upbraided, chid, and rated at, 175
And the offender granted scope of speech,
'Twill make them cool in zeal unto your grace.
Suf. Hath he not twit our sovereign lady here
With ignominious words, though clerkly couched,
As if she had suborned some to swear 180
False allegations to o'erthrow his state ?
Queen. But I can give the loser leave to chide.
Gloii. Far truer spoke than meant : I lose, indeed ;
Beshrew the winners, for they played me false !
And well such losers may have leave to speak. 185
Buck. He '11 wrest the sense and hold us here all day.
Lord cardinal, he is your prisoner.
Car. Sirs, take away the duke, and guard him sure.
Glou. Ah ! thus King Henry throws away his crutch
172-177. Car. My liege . . . grace] omitted Q. 178-181. Hath he . . . his
state'] 89-91. Doth he not twit our Soueraigne Lady here. As if that she with
ignomious wrong, Had sobornde or hired some to sweare against his life. 182.
But I . . . chide] 92. / but I . . . speake. 183, 184. Far . . . me false] 93,
94. Far . . . Beshrow the winners hearts, they plaie me false. 185. And . . .
speak] omitted Q. 186. hold] 95. keep. 187. Lord . . . prisoner] 96. My
Lord of Winchester, see him sent away. 188. Sirs . . . sure] 97, 98. Who's
within there? Take in Duke Humphrey, And see him garded sure within my
house. 189. Ah I . . . throws] 99. 01... casts.
staff] I have only one earlier example, 179. clerkly] Greene uses this adverb
from Udall's Diotrephes (Arber reprint, (which is also in Two Gentlemen of
p. 24), 3588: "was there ever any man Verona, 11. i. 114) in Never too Late :
that went to beat a dogg but he could " all her sweet potions were found to bee
easily find out a staff to doe it ? " It is poysons, though shee covered them
in Camden's Remaines, and in Tell neuer so darkly" (Grosart, viii. 143).
Troths New Years Gift (New Shaks. Adroitly, cleverly.
Soc. p. 14), 1593. 179. clerkly couched] cleverly framed.
178, 179. twit . . . With] See Part I. Compare Greene, Card of Fancie (iv.
III. ii. 55, note. Not afew of the expres- 13): " each line so perfectlie co!/c/r^rf " ;
sions in Part I. are echoed in Parts II. and again p. 179.
and III. See v. v. 40, in Part III., 181. allegations] See above, line 40
and Two Gentlemen of Verona, iv. ii. 8. (note).
179. ignominious] See note, Part I. 182. give the loser leave to chide] See
IV. i. 97; and see below, iv. viii. 66. again Titus Andronicus, iii. i. 233.
Nowhere else in Shakespeare, but " igno- "When winners boast, leesers speak
miny " occurs in 1 Henry IV. " Ignomy" their fill " (Harington, Orlando Furioso,
(a word used by Peele and Greene) is xxiii. 27 (1591 ?)). And in Nashe's
in Shakespeare three times, Titus An- Pierce Penilesse (Grosart, ii. 14), 1592:
dronicus being one. The Contention '^ ^&&\egiue leasers leaiie to taXke" ; 2inA
has " ignomious wrong " here ; a word " Alway to let the losers haue their
of Peele's also : " Wherein, as well as words " (Heywood's Proverbs (Shar-
famous facts, ignomious placed are" man's edition, p. 31), 1546).
{Sir Clyomon (Dyce, 490), Prologue). 186. wrest the sense] d\^tovt the m&a.vi-
Later in the same drama (496, a) " Ig- ing.
nomy " occurs.
88
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Before his legs be firm to bear his body : 190
Thus is the shepherd beaten from thy side,
And wolves are gnarling who shall gnaw thee first.
Ah ! that my fear were false ; ah ! that it were ;
For, good King Henry, thy decay I fear. [^Exit, guarded.
King. My lords, what to your wisdoms seemeth best, 195
Do or undo, as if ourself were here.
Queen. What ! will your highness leave the parliament ?
King. Ay, Margaret ; my heart is drowned with grief,
Whose flood begins to flow within mine eyes.
My body round engirt with misery, 200
For what 's more miserable than discontent?
Ah ! uncle Humphrey, in thy face I see
The map of honour, truth, and loyalty ;
igo. he firm to . . . body'\ loo. can . . . bodie up. igi. Thus . . . side'\
loi. And puts his watchfull shcpheard from his side. 192. And . . . first]
102. Whilst wolues stand snarring who shall bite him first. 193, 194. Ah!
. . . I fear] 103, 104. Farewell my soneraigne, long maist thou enioy. Thy fathers
happie dates free from annoy. Exet Humphrey with the Cardinals men. 195.
seemeth] 105. shal seem. 196. or undo] 106. and undo. 197, 198. What
. . . drown' d with grief. 107, 108. What . . . kild with grief e. 199-220.
Whose blood . . . vowed enemies] omitted Q.
192. gnarling] snarling: "snarring"
in Contention. Craig quotes from
Nashe's Have with you : " What will
not a dogge doo that is angered ? bite
and gnarle at anie bone" (1596). An
onomatopoeic word with no fixed
spelling. Golding has : — •
" Queene Hecub ronning at a stone,
with gnarring seazed theron,
And wirryed it . . . in stead of
speche she barkt"
(Ovid's Metamorphoses, xiii. 680-682).
And : " Tone of them callde Jolly boy
. . . the tother Chorle who euer gnoor-
ring went" (iii. 268, 269).
igS. my heart is drowned with grief]
"kill'd with grief" in Contention points
to Peele ; "slain my wretched heart"
and " slays my heart with grief" occur
in David and Bcthsabe ; and see 11. iv.
29 above, where " killes my wofull
heart " is left out from the present play.
But the expression is old and probably
common. See my note in Love's
Labour's Lost, v. ii. 149 (Arden edition,
p. 131). See Robertson's Did Shake-
speare write Titus Andronicus ? for
references to Marlowe, to Arden of
Feversham, and to Alphonsus, Emperor
of Germany, in which Peele is claimed
by him to have had a hand. The ex-
pression is in Titus Andronicus, in. ii.
54-
200. engirt] See v. i. gg lor this
word in literal use. And Lucrece,
221, 1173 ; Venus and Adonis, 364;
but not in the later works of Shake-
speare. Marlowe has it in Edward
the Second (see below, v. i.), and
Spenser later (1596) in Globe edition,
602, b. Surrounded.
202, 203. in thy face I see The map of
honour] An expression apparently due
to Greene, originally. Perhaps one of
the borrowed plumes here that raised
the row, for there is nothing of Greene's
writing in this speech. See Euphties his
Censure (Grosart, vi. 234) : " Hector,
whose countenance threatned warres, &
in whose face appeared a map of mar-
tiall exploits" ; and Never too Late
(viii. 39) : " Her countenance is the
verie map of modestie " ; and Meva-
phon (vi, 44) : " In his face appeared
the mappe of discontent " ; and in
Orpharion (xii. 14) : " Thy face the
map of sorrowes." These are earlier
than Henry VL The simile became a
favourite. See Titus Andronicus, iii.
ii. 12, and Richard H. v. i. 12. In
Twelfth Night, in. ii. 85, it is made a
flouting-stock of. The expression seems
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 89
And yet, good Humphrey, is the hour to come
That e'er I proved thee false, or feared thy faith. 205
What low'ring star now envies thy estate.
That these great lords, and Margaret our queen,
Do seek subversion of thy harmless life ?
Thou never didst them wrong, nor no man wrong ;
And as the butcher takes away the calf, 210
And binds the wretch, and beats it when it strays.
Bearing it to the bloody slaughter-house ;
Even so, remorseless, have they borne him hence ;
And as the dam runs lowing up and down,
Looking the way her harmless young one went, 2 1 5
And can do nought but wail her darling's loss ;
Even so myself bewails good Gloucester's case
With sad unhelpful tears, and with dimmed eyes
Look after him, and cannot do him good ;
So mighty are his vowed enemies. 220
His fortunes I will weep ; and 'twixt each groan
Say " Who 's a traitor ? Gloucester he is none."
[Exeunt all but Queen, Cardinal, Suffolk, and York.
Somerset standing apart.
Queen. Free lords, cold snow melts with the sun's hot beams.
221, 222. His fortunes . . . he is none] log, no. Where I may sit and sigh in
endlesse mone, For who's . . . he is none. Exet King, Salsbury and Warwicke.
223-230. Free lords . . . excellent] omitted Q.
to have supplanted " mirror " and " pat- speare again (see deep-fet, fraudful) :
tern" for a time. And in Kyd's Spanish " To leade a lambe into the slaughter-
Tragedy (ill. X. 91) (Boas) : " Thine house" in Soltman and Pcrscda. See
ivorie front ; my sorrowes map." Crawford's Collectanea, First Series,
208. subversioji] Not elsewhere in p. 129. See " sudden qualm," i. i. 54.
Shakespeare. It is frequent in Hall 218. dimmed eyes] See above, i. i. 55 ;
and Grafton. Overthrow. " To bring and Part III. v. ii. 16. "Dimm'deyes"
this your realme vnto subuersio7i " occurs in the Faerie Qtieene, bk. i.
(Grafton, i. 269), and again p. 305, are (earliest in New Eng. Diet.).
examples. 219. do him good] further his cause,
212. slaughter-house] and slaughter- profit him. See above, i. ii. 77; and
man are met with several times in 3 Henry VI. in. ii. 39. In Genesis
Shakespeare, especially in the histori- xxxii. 12, and often elsewhere.
cal plays. They seem to be charac- " Promiseth aid of arms, and swears
teristic. The butcher and the calf, by us
lamb, or heifer ; the chicken and the kite ; To do your majesty all the good he
the fox — these metaphors appeal to can "
Shakespeare, in preference to the bears, (Peele, Battle of Alcazar, in. i. (p.
tigers, lions and dragons of his greatest 431, b)).
contemporary, Spenser, who followed 220. vowed enemies] sworn foes,
more closely the romance writings as " Vowed friend " occurs in Part III.
was his province. "Slaughterman" in. iii. 50. Later, in Shakespeare,
occurs twice in the Bible (Authorised "sworn friend" (Winter's Tale) and
Version, 1611), but not in early texts. " sworn enemy" [Twelfth Night) appea-t
See note at " crocodile," 1. 226. It once each,
is noticeable that Kyd follows Shake- 223. Free lords] lords who are not
90
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Henry my lord is cold in great affairs,
Too full of foolish pity; and Gloucester's show 225
Beguiles him as the mournful crocodile
With sorrow snares relenting passengers ;
Or as the snake, rolled in a flowering bank,
With shining checkered slough, doth sting a child
That for the beauty thinks it excellent. 230
Believe me, lords, were none more wise than I,
And yet herein I judge mine own wit good,
This Gloucester should be quickly rid the world,
231-234. Believe me . . . of him] 111-115. Queene. Then sit we downe againe
my Lord Cardinall, Suffolke, Buckingham, Yorke and Somerset. Let us consult
of proud Duke Humphries fall. In mine opinion it were good he dide, For safetie
of our king and commomvealth.
tied up by such precise regard to re-
ligion as the king (Warburton) — " men
of the world who know how to live."
This, I opine, is nonsense. "Free" is
an old and honourable epithet, meaning
generous, magnanimous, etc. See
New Eng. Diet. Best known in the
expressions " fair and free " (in old
romances), and in "frank and free"
(three times in Golding's Ovid). A
later example is in The Interlude of
Youth (1554): "that \d.&y free" (Haz-
litt's Dodsley, ii. 28). See Spenser,
Faerie Queene, i. x. 6.
224. cold] not zealous or interested.
See note at " God's will be done,"
above, 1. 86. The only great affairs to
Queen Margaret are affairs of state.
225. foolish pity] ill-advised sym-
pathy. There was an old proverb,
" Peevish pity {foolish pity, too much
pity were variants) spoils a city." " An
olde proverb, over much pittie spoileth
a cittie" (Whetstone, Censure of a Loyal
Subject, Collier's Early English Prose
Literature, p. 11, 1587).
226-228. crocodile . . . snake] Hall
has these two metaphors coupled in
Hejiry VI. (XXXVII Yere) : " Thys
cancard crocodryle (corrected in Graf-
ton) and subtile serpent coud not longe
lurke in malicious hertes nor venomous
stomackes." Perhaps a subconscious
reminiscence. The best account of
the crocodile myth came home with
Hawkins' Second Voyage, 1565. See
Sparke's Narrative in Hakluyt. It is
also in Sir John Mandeville, but not in
Pliny or Physiologus. See, however,
Trevisa's translation of Bartholome's
De Prop. Rcrum, 1397 : " If the croco-
dile fineth a man by the brim of the
water, or by the cliff, he slayeth him,
if he may, and then he weepeth upon
him and swalloweth him at the last."
These are the true "crocodile's tears."
Greene revels in the crocodile. See
a good parallel passage in Selimus
(Grosart, xiv. 209). But it is to the
Faerie Queene, i. v. 18, we should turn
for poetical use.
1228. S7iake, rolled] See Titus Androni-
cus, II. iii. 13.
229. checkered slough] Golding has
this simile (ix. 320) in Ovid, quoted at
"scouring armour," above, 1. iii. 191.
And in Grafton, i. 657 : " In the serpent,
lurcking under the grasse, and under
sugred speeche, was hid pestyferous
poyson." Shakespeare has the snake's
slough elsewhere in Twelfth Night and
in Henry V. Golding has it again,
" freckled slough," iii. 77 (rhyming
with tough, enough ; elsewhere in
Golding tough rhymes with though,
and plough with rough ; we haven't
improved). For the snake in the grass
(latet anguis in herba), see Chaucer's
Somnours Tale, 1. 286. " Checkered "
(" chequered ") occurs again in Titus
Androniciis, 11. iii. 15, and the verb in
Romeo and Juliet and in Venus and
Adonis. Greene has it several times.
A much older word in the sense of
" diversified with different colours."
233. rid the world] cleared out of the
world. " Rid " is very common provin-
cially (northern) in this use. " Rid " can
mean destroyed, but the following words
forbid that sense here. Peele has " I rid
her not ; I made her not away," in
Edward I. (408, a). Frequent in Shake-
speare. See 3 Henry VI. v. iii. 21
(note). And see Grafton's Continua-
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
91
To rid us from the fear we have of him.
Car. That he should die is worthy policy ; 235
But yet we want a colour for his death.
'Tis meet he be condemned by course of law.
Suf. But in my mind that were no policy :
The king will labour still to save his life ;
The commons haply rise to save his life ; 240
And yet we have but trivial argument,
More than mistrust, that shows him worthy death.
York. So that, by this, you would not have him die.
Suf. Ah ! York, no man alive so fain as I.
York. 'Tis York that hath more reason for his death. 245
But, my lord cardinal, and you, my Lord of Suffolk,
Say as you think, and speak it from your souls,
Were 't not all one an empty eagle were set
To guard the chicken from a hungry kite.
As place Duke Humphrey for the king's protector? 250
Queen. So the poor chicken should be sure of death.
235-237. Car. That he . . . of law'\ 126, 127. Car. Then let him die before the
Commons know, Forfeare that they doe rise in Armes for him. 238-251. Suf.
But in my mind . . . Queen . . . sure of death] omitted Q.
tion of Hardyng (519) : " He thought
therfore without delaye to ryd theim,
as though the kyllyng of his kynsmen
might ende his cause."
234. To rid ns . . . of him] In both
plays the queen is the first to pronounce
the murder necessary. But there is one
important structural alteration in the
final play. The Folio has " Manent
Queen, three lords," to plot his death.
The Conteyition represents the queen as
summoning the five (Cardinal, Sufi"olk,
Buckingham, York, Somerset) to the
conspiracy. But they agree in leaving
the deed to the Cardinal and Suffolk for
execution. Hall says : " Diuers writers
affirme, the Duke of Suffolke, and the
Duke of Buckyngham to be the chiefe,
not unprocured by the Cardinall of Win-
chester, and the Archebishop of Yorke."
He was arrested at a parliament kept at
Bury " by the Lorde . . . high con-
stable . . . the Duke of Buckyngham,
and other." For dates and further
authorities on the facts, see Boswell
Stone. See below at 1. 240.
236. colour] excuse. I fear the
Cardinal must be credited with a very
unseemly pun. But it is not unique.
Compare Narcissus (ed. Miss Lee,
p. II):—
" Shall wee dye quickly both ?
I pray what colour."
240. commons haply rise] " his Capitall
enemies and mortall foes, fearing that
some tumult or commocion might arise,
if a Prince so well beloued of the people,
should be openly executed . . . de-
termined to trap and vndoe him " (Graf-
ton, p. 629). Hence the parliament at
Bury. See note, 1. 234.
241. trivial] unimportant, worthless.
In Cotgrave : " Triuiall, common ... of
small worth." "Taught and used in com-
mon high waies" (Trivialis, J. Rider),
1589. Shakespeare has the word several
times ; it was used by Gabriel Harvey,
who calls Greene " a Triviall and trio-
bular [three half-penny] Autor for knaves
& fooles " [Foiire Letters (Grosart, i. 190),
1592). And in The Trimming of Thomas
Nash (Grosart, iii. 6) : " To tell you
what the man is, and the reason of
this book, were but triviall and super-
fluous." And Peele, Honour of the
Garter (Dyce, 584, Prol.) : " With trivial
humours to pastime the world" (1593).
245. York . . . hath more reason] Ex-
plained by the two last lines in this
scene.
249. chicken . . . kite] See note at
"puttock," below, iii. ii. 191.
92 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
Suf. Madam, 'tis true ; and were 't not madness then
To make the fox suiveyor of the fold ?
Who, being accused a crafty murderer,
His guilt should be but idly posted over 255
Because his purpose is not executed.
No ; let him die, in that he is a fox,
By nature proved an enemy to the flock.
Before his chaps be stained with crimson blood.
As Humphrey, proved by reasons, to my liege, 260
And do not stand on quillets how to slay him :
Be it by gins, by snares, by subtilty.
Sleeping or waking, 'tis no matter how.
So he be dead ; for that is good deceit
Which mates him first that first intends deceit. 265
Queen. Thrice-noble Suffolk, 'tis resolutely spoke.
Suf. Not resolute, except so much were done ;
For things are often spoke and seldom meant :
But that my heart accordeth with my tongue,
Seeing the deed is meritorious, 270
And to preserve my sovereign from his foe,
Say but the word and I will be his priest.
Car. But I would have him dead, my Lord of Suffolk,
252-265. Suf. Madam, His true . . . intends deceit] 116-125. Suffolke. And so
thinke I Madame, for as you know, If our King Henry had shooke hands with
death, Duke Humphrey then would looke to be our King: And it may be by
pollicie he workes. To bring to passe the thing which now we doubt. The Foxe
(see above, 1. 55) . . . Lambc, But if we take him ere he do the deed. We should
7iot question if that he should Hue. No. Let him die, in that he is a Foxe,
Least that in lining he offend us more. 266-272. Queen. Thrice-Jioble . . . his
priest] omitted Q. 273-277. Car. But I . . . my liege] 130. Car. Agreed, for
hee's already kept within my house.
255. posted over] hurried over, gone has " If holy David so shook hands
through with haste and negligence, with sin " in David and Bethsabe
From the sense of post-haste. Com- (470, a).
pare 3 Henry VI. iv. viii. 40; and 266. Thrice-noble] a very favourite
"over-posting" in ^ if ^nrv/F. I. ii. 171. construction with Shakespeare. But
"In post" for " in haste " was a common his predecessor Peele abounds in such
expression. Greene has " in posting adjectives. See Introduction to Part I.
pace " twice in Alphonsus. All seem to take their rise from Spenser's
261. quillets] subtleties. See note at " thrice-happy," which was also used by
Part I. n. iv. 17. Several times in Kyd later, but not extended by him.
Shakespeare, as in Love's Labour's Compare here Marlowe's Tamburlaine,
Lost, IV. iii. 285 (note, Arden edition). Part I. i. ii. : " Thrice-noble Tambur-
265. mates] confounds, subdues. See laine" (Dyce, p. 12, b).
Macbeth, v.i. 86, and Venus and Adonis, 272. I will be his priest] An expres-
909. Spenser and Peele usually wrote sion of Kyd's : " Who first laies hand
" amate." Golding has : " The surges on me. He be his Priest " {Spanish
mounting up aloft did seeme too mate Tragedie, in. iii. 38 (ed. Boas)). It is
the skye " (xi. 573). in the watchman's scene, which gave
265. Shakespeare quotes the lines Shakespeare several hints, in Part III.
containing "shook hands with death" iv. iii. Similarly Peele has " For want
{Contention) in Part III. i. ix. 102, when of a priest the priest's part I will play "
Margaret is murdering York. Peele {Sir Clyomon (518, b)).
sc. i] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 93
Ere you can take due orders for a priest :
Say you consent and censure well the deed, 275
And I '11 provide his executioner ;
I tender so the safety of my liege.
Suf. Here is my hand, the deed is worthy doing.
Queen. And so say I.
York. And I : and now we three have spoke it, 280
It skills not greatly who impugns our doom.
Enter a Post.
Post. Great lords, from Ireland am I come amain,
To signify that rebels there are up,
And put the Englishmen unto the sword.
Send succours, lords, and stop the rage betime, 285
Before the wound do grow incurable ;
For, being green, there is great hope of help.
Car. A breach that craves a quick expedient stop !
What counsel give you in this weighty cause ?
York. That Somerset be sent as regent thither. 290
278. Suf. Here is . . . doing] 129. Suffol. Let that be my Lord Cardinals
charge &= mine. 279. Queett. And . . . I] omitted Q. 280, 281. York. And
I . . , doom] 128. Yorke. Then do it sodainly my Lords. 282-287. Enter . . .
Great lords . . . of help] 131-135. Enter a Messenger. Queen. How now sirrha,
what newes ? Messen. Madame I bring you new es from Ireland, The wilde Onele,
my Lords, is up in Artnes, With troupes of Irish kernes that tincontruld, Doth
plant themselues within the English pale. 288,289. Car. A breach . . . cause]
136. Queene. What redresse shal ive haue for this my Lords? 290-292. York.
That . . . France] 137-141. Yorke. Twere very good thai my Lord of Somerset
277. I tender so the safety] am so wild O'Neil with swarms of Irish kerns
solicitous and careful of. See Part I. Lives uncontroll'd within the English
IV. vii. 10 (note). Compare Locrine, i. pale " (197, a). Dyce first collected
i. : " And if thou tend'rcst these my these parallels. See above, i. iii. 49
latest words . . . Cherish and love thy and 79, and i. iv. 15, 16.
new-betrothed wife." 282. come amain] This and " march
281. It skills not greatly] it matters amain" occur often in Part III.; and
not g'reatly. "It skills not much" see below, v. i. 114, and Tifws /I w^roni-
occurs in Taming of the Shrew and in cus, iv. iv. 65, and Love's Labour's
Twelfth Night. An old phrase. The Lost, v. ii. 549. Frequent in Peele,
root meaning is discern, separate, differ Polyhymnia, etc.
(Skeat). Compare Peele, Sir Clyomon 282, 283. Irelatid . . . rebels there
(493, b) : " Whither I go jf s^i/Zi woi" ; are up] See note below, 11. 309, 310.
and yack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. See Grafton, Continuation of Hardyng,
400) : " What countryman art thou ? p. 574 : " When the kyng was shewed
Wat Tyler. It skills not much ; I am of this by his auditours that they were
an Englishman." " Nay, sky I not a up, ... he thoughte fyrste to scoure
whit" occurs in Part II. of Whet- his realme of suche rebelles."
stone's Promos and Cassandra, iv. ii. 283. sigfiify] announce, inform. So
(1578). in Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part II. iii.
282. Irelatid] The two lines in the ii. : " To signify she was a princess
Contention about the O'Neill are to be born."
noted. They occur (very nearly) in 288. breach . . . stop] See below, v.
Marlowe's Edward the Second : " The ii. 282, 283.
94 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
'Tis meet that lucky ruler be employed ;
Witness the fortune he hath had in France.
Som. If York, with all his far-fet policy,
Had been the regent there instead of me.
He never would have stayed in France so long. 295
York. No, not to lose it all, as thou hast done.
I rather would have lost my life betimes
Than bring a burden of dishonour home,
By staying there so long till all were lost.
Show me one scar charactered on thy skin : 300
Men's flesh preserved so whole do seldom win.
Queen. Nay then, this spark will prove a raging fire
If wind and fuel be brought to feed it with.
No more, good York ; sweet Somerset, be still :
Thy fortune, York, hadst thou been regent there, 305
Might happily have proved far worse than his.
York. What! worse than nought? nay, then a shame take all.
Som. And in the number thee, that wishest shame.
Car. My Lord of York, try what your fortune is.
That fortunate Champion were sent ouer, And burnes and spoiles the Country as
they goe (this line properly follows English pale (135) and so in Qq 2, 3), To
keepe in awe the stnbborne Irishmen, He did so much good when he ivas in France.
293-295. If York . . . so long] 142, 143. Had Yorke bene there with all his
far fetcht Pollices, he might haue lost as much as I. 296-301. No, not to . . .
seldom win] 144, 145. /, for Yorke would haue lost his life before, That France
should haue retiolted from Englands rule. 302-304. Queen. Nay then . . . be
still] omitted Q. 305, 306. (Queen) Thy fortune . . . worse than his] 146.
Somer. I so thou mighfst, and yet haue governed worse than I. 307. York.
What . . . nought? nay, then . . . ] 147. Yorke. What . . . )iought, then . . .
308. And . . . shame] 148. Shame on thy selfe, that wislieth shame. 309-314.
Car. My Lord . . . Irishmen?] 149-152. Queene. Somerset forbeare, good Yorke
be patient (see 304) And do thou take in hand to crosse the seas. With troupes of
Armed men to quell the pride Of those ambitious Irish that rebell.
292. fortune he hath had in France] fighting in the field ; Charactering
The line here in the Contention, " He honor in his batt'red shield . . .
did so much good when he was in gathering to him a number number-
France," has been used (nearly) by lesse " (an opening speech by Peele).
the king to Somerset when making Compare, too, Soliman and Perseda, i.
him regent [Contention, i. iv, 160) : iv. 5-7 : —
" We make your grace Regent over " We may see
the French . . . And so do good unto What warlike wrinkles time has
the Realme of France." So that charactered
York's words are a bitter gibe. See With ages print upon thy warlike
I. iii. 205, and 210, 211 (note). Shake- face."
speare omits the expression " do good" 302, 303. fire . . . fuel] See 3 Henry
or " do much good " in both cases, VI. v. iv. 70 ; and quotation from
though often using it elsewhere. Spanish Tragedy, in. x. 74 (Boas).
■zgj,. far-fet] far-fetched. See " deep- 309,310. My Lord of York . . . Ire-
fet," II. iv. 33. land] See i. i. 192, 193, which implies
300. charactered] written, inscribed, that York had already been employed
Compare Selimus (Grosart's Greene, in Ireland. But both passages refer
xiv. 197) : " Was at the last slaine confusingly to the same rebellion. See
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
95
The uncivil kerns of Ireland are in arms 310
And temper clay with blood of Englishmen :
To Ireland will you lead a band of men,
Collected choicely, from each county some,
And try your hap against the Irishmen ?
York. I will, my lord, so please his majesty. 3 1 5
Suf. Why, our authority is his consent,
And what we do establish he confirms :
Then, noble York, take thou this task in hand.
York. I am content : provide me soldiers, lords,
Whiles I take order for mine own affairs. 320
Suf. A charge. Lord York, that I will see performed.
But now return we to the false Duke Humphrey.
315-326. York. I will . . . that event] i^yidi. Yorke. Well Madame sith your
grace is so content, Let me hauc some bands of chosen soldiers, And Yorke shall
trie his fortune against those kernes. Queene. Yorke thou shall. My Lord of
Buckingham, Let it be your charge to muster vp such souldiers As shall suffise
him in these necdfull luarres. Buck. Madame I will and leavie such a band As
soone shall ouercome those Irish Rebels, But Yorke, where shall those soldiers stale
for thee ?
extract from Grafton at i. i. 192 (the
XXVII. year, 1448). The O'Neilles (see
Contention) were in ceaseless commo-
tion at this period. In the year 1450
{Annals of the Four Masters) we are told
" great depredations were committed by
the son of MacGeoghegan on the
English . . . during that commotion
... he spoiled an immense deal during
that war. The English of Meath, and
the Duke of York, with the king's
standard, marched to Mullingar." And
the O'Neill was up all the time. See
Marlowe quotation above, 1. 2S2.
310. kerns of Ireland] See Richard II.
II. i. 156 for the character they bore in
England. " And as to their footemen
they haue one sort which be harnessed in
mayle and bassenettes, hauing euery one
of them his weapon called a spare . . .
and they were named gallowglasses [Irish
galloglach, a servant, a heavy-armed
soldier, ^«o/Za servant, ^/acajm I wrestle,
struggle] and for the most part their boys
beare for them three darts a piece. . . .
The other sorte called kerne are nakid,
but onely their shertes and small coates ;
and many tymes when they come to the
bycker, but bare nakid . . . and these
haue dartes and short bowes " (Anthony
Saint Leger, 6th April, 1543, Letter to
Henry VIII., State Papers). See Ulster
Journal, vi. 198, igg. See notes to
Macbeth, Steevens' Shakespeare.
311. temper clay with blood] Compare
King Lear, i. iv. 326, and Titus An-
dronicus, v. ii. 200. Moistened, as of
mortar. Peele uses the word : " The
mortar of these walls, temper'd in peace "
[Descensus Astrcece, 1591).
312. band of men] "troops of armed
men" in Contention (1. 151) occurs in
1 Henry VI. 11. ii. 24. " Troops of . . ."
occurs three times in 70 lines here in Q.
318. take thou this task] In a note on
" attask'd " [King Lear, i. iv. 366), under
"Task," Schmidt says "Compare the
modern to take to task." But it isn't
modern. Peele uses it in Polyhymnia : —
" The last, not least, of these brave
brethren . . .
Bowes takes to task with strong and
mighty arm "
(572, a).
319. provide me soldiers] "muster up
such soldiers " in Contention here (1. 157)
occurs in Part III. iv. viii. 11, and iv. viii.
18 ; and in Richard III. iv. iv. 489, and
Richard II. 11. ii. 118. The "up" is
characteristic of Shakespeare. See note
at "mailed up," 11. iv. 31.
320. take order for] arrange. See
I Henry VI. iii. ii. 126 (note). Peele
has this phrase several times : " Accord-
ing to the order ta'cn herein, what do
you say?" [Sir Clyomon (523, b), circa
1584).
322. return we] A favourite transposi-
tion with Shakespeare — already noted
upon.
96
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Car. No more of him ; for I will deal with him
That henceforth he shall trouble us no more.
And so break off; the day is almost spent. 325
Lord Suffolk, you and I must talk of that event.
York. My Lord of Suffolk, within fourteen days
At Bristol I expect my soldiers ;
For there I '11 ship them all for Ireland.
Sicf. I '11 see it truly done, my Lord of York. 330
[Exeunt all but York.
York. Now, York, or never, steel thy fearful thoughts,
And change misdoubt to resolution :
Be that thou hopest to be, or what thou art
Resign to death ; it is not worth the enjoying.
Let pale-faced fear keep with the mean-born man, 335
And find no harbour in a royal heart.
Faster than spring-time showers comes thought on thought,
327-329. York. My Lord of Suffolk . . . Ireland] 162. Yorkc. At Bristow, I
wil expect them ten dales hence. 330. Suf. I II . . . York] 163-168. Buc.
Then thither shall they come, and so farewell. Exet Buckingham. Yorke.
Adieu tny Lord of Buckingham. Queene. Suffolke remember what you haue to
do. And you Lord Cardinall concerning Duke Humphrey, Ttvere good that you
did see to it in time. Come let us go, that it may be performde. Exet omnis, Manit
Yorke. 331-340. York. Now, York . . . mine enemies] 169-171. York. Now
York bethink thy selfe and rowse thee vp. Take time whilst it is offered thee so
faire. Least when thou wouldst, thou canst it not attaine.
325. break off] enough talk. Often
in Shakespeare: Love's Labour's Lost,
V. ii. 262, etc. Compare Kyd's Spanish
Tragedy, iv. iv. 74, 75 : —
" Heere breake we off our sundrie
languages
And thus conclude I in our vulgar
tung."
325. day . . . spent] Compare Faerie
Queene, 11. ii. 46: —
"Night was far spent; and now in
Ocean deep,
Orion flying fast."
331. Nozv . . . or never] Peele has
this expression twice: "What let me
brave it now or never, Ned ! " (Edward /.,
Dyce, 379, b) ; and :—
" Now, now or never, bravely execute
Your resolution sound and honour-
able "
[Battle of Alcazar, iv. ii. (436, a)). " Be-
hold, thrice-noble lord," and " you thrice-
valiant lords" occur in the same speech
as the last quotation. See above, line
266. See 3 Henry VL iv. iii. 24, and note,
for references to Kyd's Spanish Tragedy.
331. steel thy . . . thoughts] See
note at 3 Henry VI. 11. ii. 41.
331. come let's goe] in Q. See above,
end of II. ii.
332. misdoubt] See 2 Henry IV. iv,
i. 206. The noun is not elsewhere in
Shakespeare ; the verb several times.
335. pale-faced] Occurs again Venus
and Adonis, 569 ; Richard II. (twice) ;
and in I Henry IV. Compounds with
" faced " were especially affected by
Shakespeare. He has a remarkable
collection of them, about thirty in
number. Venus and Adonis has the
earliest example in New Eng. Diet. See
"bold-faced," Part I. iv. %'i. 12. "Red-
faced" in North's Plutarch seems
earlier. Sylvester (1591) has " wrinkle-
faced" and "lean-faced." See iii. ii.
315 below.
335. mean-born] See again Richard
III. IV. ii. 54. Of humble origin.
" Base-born " occurs in the same sense
twice in this play and once in Part III.
See I. I. iii. 86, and iv. viii. 49. Earlier
in Peele. See note at " true-born," Part
I. II. iv. 27.
337. spring-time showers] See Taming
of the Shrew, 11. i. 248, and Hetiry VI.
Part III. II. iii. 47.
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
97
And not a thought but thinks on dignity.
My brain, more busy than the labouring spider,
Weaves tedious snares to trap mine enemies. 340
Well, nobles, well ; 'tis politicly done,
To send me packing with an host of men :
I fear me you but warm the starved snake.
Who, cherished in your breasts, will sting your hearts,
'Twas men I lacked, and you will give them me : 345
I take it kindly ; yet be well assured
You put sharp weapons in a madman's hands.
Whiles I in Ireland nourish a mighty band,
1 will stir up in England some black storm
Shall blow ten thousand souls to heaven or hell ; 350
And this fell tempest shall not cease to rage
Until the golden circuit on my head,
Like to the glorious sun's transparent beams.
Do calm the fury of this mad-bred flaw.
And, for a minister of my intent, 355
I have seduced a headstrong Kentishman,
John Cade of Ashford,
341-345. Well nobles . . . give them me'] 172. Twas men I lacki, and now they
giue them me. 346, 347. I take it . . . hands] omitted Q. 348. Whiles
. . . band] 173. And now whilst I am busie in Ireland. 349-355- I ^iH stir
. . . my intent] omitted Q. 356, 357. / have . . . Ashford] 174, 175. / have
. . . Ashford.
343) 344- snake . . .in . . . breasts] Com-
pare Chzncex,MarchaHnts Tale: "Lyk to
the naddre in bosom sly untrewe." And
see Skeat's excellent note. From a fable
in Gesta Romanorum, and in Phcedrtis.
347. put . . . weapons in a madman's
hands] Proverbial. " It is ill putting a
naked sword in a madman's hand "
(Heywood's Proverbs (edited Sharman,
p. 149), 1546). " The madman is un-
mete a naked sword to gide " (Tot-
tel's Miscellany (Arber's reprint, p. 269),
I557)' Common later, and in Camden's
and Ray's collections.
350. ten thousand sonls] Used where
we say " thousands of." Often by Shake-
speare. See in this Act, at ii. 218 and
354 ; and often elsewhere. And in
Peele, David and Bethsabe (485, a) :
" Whose heart . . . bursts with burden
of ten thousand griefs." See " twenty
thousand kisses," in. ii. 142. Peele
has it again : " Welcome eke ten
thousand times " {Sir Clyomon (532, a)).
Compare Spenser's Faerie Queene, 11.
iv. 28 :—
" Me liefer were ten thousand deathes
priefe,
Then wounde of gealous worme."
Common in Biblical language.
352. circuit] crown, diadem. See
note at 3 Henry VI. i. ii. 30. " Golden
round " occurs in Macbeth ; " golden
rigol " in 5 Henry IV.
354. fiaiv] squall, gust. " Oft times
to Weast, ofttimes to East, did drive
him many 2. flaw " (Golding's Ovid, iv.
769).
354. mad-bred] Perhaps the earliest
combination with "bred," and over-
looked in New Eng. Diet. " Home-
bred" occurs in Part III. iv. i. 38.
356. Kentishman] John Ball says of
Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 400) :
" Marry sir, he is a Kentishman " (one
word).
357-375. yohu Cade . . . house and
claim of York] " For although Richard
Duke of Yorke was in person (as the
king's Deputie) in the realm of Ireland
. . . yet his breath puffed ... in many
partes of this realme . . . the friendes,
kinsmen and allies of the Duke . . .
putting into mens heades secretly his
right to the Crowne . . . it was thought
necessary to cause some great commo-
98
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
To make commotion, as full well he can,
Under the title of John Mortimer.
In Ireland have I seen this stubborn Cade 360
Oppose himself against a troop of kerns.
And fought so long, till that his thighs with darts
Were almost like a sharp-quilled porpentine :
And, in the end being rescued, I have seen
Him caper upright like a wild Morisco, 365
358. To . . . can] 177. To raise commotion, and by that meanes. 359. Under
. . . Mortimer] 176. Vnder . . . Mortimer: Sir jfohn Mortimer Q 2: Mortimer,
{For he is like him euery kinde of way), Q 3. 360-371. In Ireland . , .
substitute] omitted Q.
cion, and ye risyng of the people to be
made agaynst the king . . . And be-
cause the Kentishemen be impacient in
wronges . . . this matter was put foorth
in Kent. ... A certaine yong man of a
goodly stature, and pregnant wit, was
entysed to take upon him the name of
lohn Mortimer, although his name were
lohn Cade, and not for a small pollicie,
thinkyng that by that surname, the Ijne
and lynage of the . . . Erie of Marche
. . . should be to him both adherent and
favourable " (p. 640) (1450). See iv. ii.
4, 119 (notes).
358. make commotion] Compare
Peele's jfack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley,
V. 390): —
" a crew of rebels are in field,
And they have made commotions
late in Kent."
363. porpentine] The old spelling,
occurring again in Troilus and Cressida,
Hamlet, and as an inn-name in The
Comedy of Errors. Greene spells it "por-
cupine" and "porcuntine,"earlier. Roger
Ascham says : " Claudiane the poete
sayth, that nature gave example of
shotyng first by the Porpentine, which
doth shote his prickes" (Toxophilus (re-
print, p. 31, Arber), 1545). Marlowe
has " hair . . . like the quills of
porcupines," in Tamburlaine, Part II. i.
iii. The old belief alluded to by
Ascham, that the porcupine shot his
quills, is not far astray. When the
animal flicks out his tail, the quills
penetrate an assailant deeply and re-
main there. "Jack London" tells of
" White Fang," the wolf, how he
" had once sniffed too near. . . . One
quill he had carried away in his muzzle,
where it had remained for weeks, a
rankling flame " (p. 62). And on
page 66, a lynx sprang savagely at a
wounded porcupine which flicked out
its tail again. " Then she fell to
backing away and sneezing, the nose
bristling with quills like a monstrous
pin-cushion. She brushed her nose
with her paws, trying to dislodge the
fiery darts ... all the time leaping
about, ahead, sidewise in a frenzy
of pain and fright . . . she suddenly
leaped without warning, straight up into
the air." In this remarkable passage
Shakespeare seems to have anticipated
Holland and "Jack London."
365. caper] The earliest illustration
of this verb in New Eng. Diet, is from
Love's Labour's Lost, v. ii. 113. At
the same reference as that for " por-
cupine " above (in Marlowe) occurs " to
dance and caper in the air " ; probably
earlier. And in Peele's jfack Straw
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, v, 383) : " Tis . . .
credit to caper under the gallows all
save the head." Compare Richard III.
I. i. 12 with the Marlowe lines in full.
365. a wild Morisco] Moorish, or
morris-dancer. The word occurs earlier
in Greene's Mamillia (Grosart, ii. 220) :
" Needlesse noughts, as crisps, and
scarphes, worne Alia Morisco." And
in Will Barret, 1584 (Hakluyt, ii. 406,
407, ed. 1811) : "The said mamedine
is of silver, having the Moresco stampe
on both sides." But Holland's Plinie
affords the proper parallel : " The
Curets taught to daunce in armour,
and Pyrrhus the Morisk, in order of
battell " (bk. vii. ch. Ivi. p. 189 (1601)).
And bk. vii. ch. iii. : " A common thing
it was among them to fling weapons
and darts in the aire ... to flourish
also beforehand, yea, and to encounter
and meet together in fight like sword-
fencers, and to make good sport in
a kinde of Moriske daunce." The
morrice has not been traced earlier
than Henry's VII.'s time.
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 99
Shaking the bloody darts as he his bells.
Full often, like a shag-haired crafty kern,
Hath he conversed with the enemy,
And undiscovered come to me again,
And given me notice of their villanies. 370
This devil here shall be my substitute ;
For that John Mortimer, which now is dead.
In face, in gait, in speech, he doth resemble :
By this I shall perceive the commons' mind,
How they affect the house and claim of York. 375
Say he be taken, racked, and tortured,
I know no pain they can inflict upon him
Will make him say I moved him to those arms.
Say that he thrive, as 'tis great like he will,
Why, then from Ireland come I with my strength, 380
And reap the harvest which that rascal sowed ;
For Humphrey being dead, as he shall be,
And Heniy put apart, the next for me. [Exit.
372, 373- Foy that John . . . resemble] See line 176, Q 3, at 359 above.
374. 375- By this . . . York] 178, 179. I shall perceiue how the common people,
Do affect the claime and hojise of Ynrke. 376-378. Say he be , . . those
arms] 183, 184. Now if he should be taken and condemd, Heele nere confesse that
I did set him on. 379-381. Say that he . . . rascal sow' d] 180-182. Then if
he haue successe in his affaires, From Ireland then comes Yovke againe. To . . .
coystrill sowed. 382, 383. For Humphrey . . . for me. Exit.] 185-192. And
therefore ere I go He send him word. To put in practise and to gather head, That
-i^tei. Shaking ... bells]ThemoTncQ- Dodsley, v. 340). It is a frequent
bells were fixed to the dancer's legs, thought.
Compare Return from Parnassus (Haz- 381. rascal] "coystrill" in the Con-
litt's Dodsley, ix. 164): — tention, a word that Shakespeare uses
" like a morrice-dance only in Twelfth Night, i. iii. 43. Ap-
Hath put a bell or two about his parently he disliked it, for he would have
legs." none of it in King John, though it oc-
See, too, The Witch of Edmonton, in. curs in The Troublesome Raigne : " Coy-
iv. strill, loathsome dunghill swad " (1591).
367. shag-haired] See note to Mac- From " kestrel," a mousing unsporting
beth, Steevens' Shakespeare, vii. 521. hawk. Compare Faerie Queene, 11. iii.
Occurs in the old King Leir : "A 4 : —
shag-haired murdering wretch " ; and " Ne thought of honour euer did
in Golding's Ovid (bk. xiii. 1. 1084) of assay
a goat. This passage reads like a His baser brest, but in his kestrell
later interpolation. kynd
379- great like] very likely. Com- A pleasing vaine of glory he did
pare " had like to," Mtich Ado About fynd."
Nothing, V. i. 115 ; As You Like It, Shakespeare forbore from abusing this
V. iv. 48 ; Winter's Tale, iv. iv, 750. pleasing and useful bird. It occurs in
Compare "'tis like," below, iii. ii. 184; Soliman and Perseda, 11. ii. 57 : " But
and elsewhere. hopes the coystrell to escape me so ? "
381. reap . . . sozved] reaping where 382. to gather head] In the Conten-
another sowed, or another's harvest, tion here, occurs later in the play, iv.
from Luke xix. 22. Sometimes " thrust v. 10, See note.
in sickle" (Revelation xiv. 15), as in 382, 383. For Humphrey being dead
Kyd's Soliman and Perseda (Hazlitt's . . . next for me] See above, 1. 245.
100 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
SCENE II. — Bury St. Edmunds. A Room of State.
Enter certain Murderers, hastily.
First Mur. Run to my Lord of Suffolk ; let him know
We have dispatched the duke, as he commanded.
Second Mur. O, that it were to do ! What have we done ?
Didst ever hear a man so penitent ?
First Mur. Here comes my lord. 5
Enter Suffolk.
Suf. Now, sirs, have you dispatched this thing ?
First Mur. Ay, my good lord, he's dead.
Suf. Why, that 's well said. Go, get you to my house ;
I will reward you for this venturous deed.
The king and all the peers are here at hand. lo
Have you laid fair the bed ? Is all things well,
According as I gave directions ?
50 soone as I am gone he may begin To rise in Armes with troupes of country
swaines, To helpe him to performe this enterprise. And then Duke Humphrey, he
well made away. None then can stop the light to Englands Crowne, But Yorke
can tame and headlong pull them downe. Exet Yorke.
Scene ii.
Enter • . . ] Then the Curtaines being drawne, Duke Humphrey is discouered
hi his bed and two men lying on his brest and smothering him in his bed. And
then enter the Duke of Suffolk to them. 1-5. First Mur. Run . . . my lord]
omitted Q. 6. Enter Suffolk. Suf. Now . . . thing ?]i. Suffolk. Ho7v now,
sirs, what haue you dispatcht him? 7. First Mur. Ay . . . dead] 2. One.
I my lord, hees dead I iv arrant you. 8-12. Why . . . directions?] 3-5. Then
see the cloathes laid smooth about him still, That when the King comes, he may
perceive, No other, but that he dide of his owne accord.
^. O . . . do !] Compare the Spirit's ment : other write that he was stiffled
ejaculation, i. iv. 28 : " That I had said or smoldered betweene two feather beds,
and done ! " After whose death, none of his seruantes
5. of his own accord] In the Conten- (although they were arraigned and at-
tion ; spontaneously, with no outside tainted) were put to death : for the Duke
agency. An odd use. It occurs of a of Suffolke shewed openly their pardon,
door : " Which to them opened of his but this doyng appeased not the grudge
owne accord " in Faerie Queene, 11. vii. of the people " (p. 629, 1446). And at
31. p. 633 : "That William de la Poole late
7. he's dead] Grafton has : " The created Duke of Suffolke, and diuers
Duke the night after his imprisonment, other, were the occasion of the sayd
was found dead in his bed, being the Duke of Gloucester, which was the
xxiiij. day of Februarij, and his bodye very father of the countrie, and the
shewed to the Lordes and Commons, shielde and defence of the poore Com-
as though he had died of a palsey or monaltie." The savage atrocity referred
impostume : but all indifferent persons to by Grafton said to be perpetrated
well knewe, that he dyed of no naturall upon Gloucester described more fully
death, but of some violent force : some as the means by which King Edward I.
iudged him to be strangled : some a ffirme was done to death at Corfe Castle
that a bote spit was put in at his funda- (Grafton, 1326-1327, p. 328).
sc II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 101
First Mur. 'Tis, my good lord.
Suf. Away ! be gone. {^Exeunt Murderers.
Sound trumpets. Enter the KING, the QuEEN, Cardinal
Beaufort, Somerset, with Attendants.
King. Go, call our uncle to our presence straight ; 1 5
Say we intend to try his grace to-day,
If he be guilty, as 'tis published.
Stcf. I '11 call him presently, my noble lord. [^Exit.
King. Lords, take your places ; and, I pray you all,
Proceed no straiter 'gainst our uncle Gloucester 20
Than from true evidence, of good esteem.
He be approved in practice culpable.
Queen. God forbid any malice should prevail
That faultless may condemn a nobleman !
Pray God he may acquit him of suspicion ! 25
King. I thank thee, Nell ; these words content me much.
13. Tis . . . lord] 6. 2 [Mtird.]. All things is hansome now my lord. 14.
Away I . . . gone] 7, 8. Then draw the Curtaines againe and get you gone. And
you shall haue your Jirme reward anon. Exet mnrtherers. 15. Sound Trumpets
. . . ] 9. Then enter ike King and Queene, the Duke of Buckingham, a?id the
Duke of Somerset, and tlie Cardinall. 15-17. Go . . . published] 9, 10. My
Lord of Suffolke go call our vnkle Gloster, Tell him this day we will that he
do chare himself e. 18. I'll . . . lord] 11. I will, my Lord. 19-22. Lords
. . . culpable] 12-15. -^"^ good my Lords proceed no further against our vnkle
Gloster, Then by just proofs you can affirmc, For as the sucking childe or home-
lesse lambe, So is he innocent of treason to our state. 23-26. God forbid . . .
}nuch] omitted Q.
14. be gone] The words, " You shall abominable falseness and hypocrisy are
have your firm reward" of the Conten- powerful delineations in the following
tion have no parallel in the play before speeches, hardly found in the Conten-
us. " Firm reward " for fixed or deter- tion.
mined reward is not Shakespearian ; but 25. acquit him] The Contention Vine,
compare " firm proposed natures " (of innocent as " sucking child or harmless
articles) in Henry V. v. ii. 362. Dis- lamb," has already been used by the
tinctly stated. See again below, when king of Gloucester (Scene i. 71), in the
Iden presents Cade's head to the king final play.
(v. 1). 26. Nell] A mistake for " Meg" per-
17. published] asserted, stated. haps. Capell altered the text to " Meg."
20. straiter] rigorously. Theobald read " Well." The reading
22. approved^ proved. So Peele in his "Nell" is confirmed by the occurrence of
Pageant, Lovely London (Dyce, 538, b), " Elianor " at 11. 79, 100 and 120, instead
1585: — of "Margaret." Shakespeare was think-
" Whose excellent and princely ingof the Duchessof Gloucester. Similar
majesty mistakes occur in Henry V. v. i. 75,
Approves itself to be most for- and elsewhere. See Cambridge Shake-
tunate." speare. In the Contentioti the queen is
And see Othello, 11. iii. 211. rarely given her Christian name, but
23-25. God forbid . . . suspicion] there is a great deal of "Nell" (Duchess)
This speech, which has no parallel in up to Act iii. Peele's abundant use of
the Confe?ition, is well calculated to "Nell" for Edward the First's queen
place the queen more unfavourably may be recalled. Possibly this mistake
before us, according to design. Her was Peele's.
102 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
Re-enter SUFFOLK.
How now! why look'st thou pale? why tremblest thou?
Where is our uncle ? what 's the matter, Suffolk ?
Suf. Dead in his bed, my lord ; Gloucester is dead.
Queen. Marry, God forfend ! 30
Car. God's secret judgment : I did dream to-night
The duke was dumb and could not speak a word.
[ The King swoons.
Queen. How fares my lord ? Help, lords ! the king is dead.
Som. Rear up his body ; wring him by the nose.
Queen. Run, go, help, help! O, Henry, ope thine eyes! 35
Suf. He doth revive again : madam, be patient.
King. O heavenly God !
Queen. How fares my gracious lord ?
Suf. Comfort, my sovereign ! gracious Henry, comfort !
King. What, doth my Lord of Suffolk comfort me ?
Came he right now to sing a raven's note, 40
Whose dismal tune bereft my vital powers,
27, 28. Re-enter Suffolk. How now . . . Suffolk ?] i6. Enter Suffolke. How
now Suffolke, where' s our V7ikle? 29. My lord; Gloucester'] 17. My lord
Gloster . . . The king falles in a somid. 30-32. Marry ... a word] omitted
Q. 33. How . . . dead] 18. Ay-me, the king is dead; help, help, my lords.
35-^7. Run, go . . . gracious lord i'] omitted Q. 3S. sovereign] ig. Lord. 39.
comfort me] 20. bid me comfort. 40. right now] 21. even now. 41. Whose
. . . powers] omitted Q.
34. Rear up his body] Compare such perfection between vhe Contention
y^rowiwo (Hazlitt's Dodsley, iv. 375) : — and Part III. in many places. Every
" Lay hands on him ; some rear up line in the Contention is used up and
The bleeding body to the light." improved, every thought given scope,
This was only to identify the murdered and nine lines grow to seventeen from
man in Kyd's (?) play. Sometimes bend his earlier to his later passage,
the body, or bow the body. Webster 40. right now] "even now" in the
has it several times. Contention. Exactly at this time or
34. wring him by the nose] to arouse juncture. This expression is not found
circulation, and bring back to life, as in again in Shakespeare, but if it was
Venus and Adonis, 475. Greene has going out of fashion here, it has survived
" wring by " : " Did not Cresida wring in a lively manner in America. Com-
Troylus by the hand, when her heart pare Golding's Ovid : " That stoode
was in the tents of the Greecians " right now uppon this shore " (viii. 1066).
{Alcida, Grosart, ix. 97); and "want And Peele(aloverof GoIding)has it also,
could not wring him by the finger " 40. raveji's note] An often alluded
(Mourning Garment, ix. 180). " Sound " to superstition at this date, and through-
in the Contention here for " swoon " is out Shakespeare. Outside Shakespeare
also the word in the Folios, the common Marlowe's jfew of Malta, and Peele's
old spelling. These lines are not in the David and Bethsabe contain good
Contention. In these two long scenes passages. Dyce quotes from Sylvester's
the process is one of development and Du Bartas (1591) in a note to Peele's
addition. See note at 1. 39. lines (469-470). See note at Part III.
39'55- This speech gives an interest- v. xii. 45-47 ; and at Othello, iv. i. 21
ing study of the process carried out to (Arden edition).
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 103
And thinks he that the chirping of a wren,
By crying comfort from a hollow breast,
Can chase away the first-conceived sound ?
Hide not thy poison with such sugared words ; 45
Lay not thy hands on me ; forbear, I say :
Their touch affrights me as a serpent's sting.
Thou baleful messenger, out of my sight !
Upon thy eye-balls murderous tyranny
Sits in grim majesty to fright the world. 50
Look not upon me, for thine eyes are wounding :
Yet do not go away ; come, basilisk,
And kill the innocent gazer with thy sight ;
For in the shade of death I shall find joy.
In life but double death, now Gloucester's dead. 55
Queen. Why do you rate my Lord of Suffolk thus ?
Although the duke was enemy to him.
Yet he, most Christian-like, laments his death :
And for myself, foe as he was to me.
Might liquid tears or heart-offending groans 60
42, 43. And . . . hreast\ 22, 23. And . . . through a hollow voice. 44. Can
. . . sound?] 24. Can satisfie my grief es, or ease my heart. 45-47- Hide . . .
sting] omitted Q. 48-50. Thou . . . world] 25, 26. Thou . . . For etien in
thine eye-bals murther sits. 51. Look. . . . wounding] omitted Q. 52, 53.
Yet . . . sight] 27, 28. Yet . . . {away omitted) . . . silly gazer . . . lookes.
54, 55. For . . . dead] omitted Q. 56. Qtieen. Why . . . thus] 29. Queen.
Why . . . thus. ^y-ji. Althojigh . . . infamy] ^0-^2. As if that he had causde
42. chirping of a wren] Shakespeare moost stigryd eloquence " of Henry the
loved the "wren with little quill." VII. (1811, p. 678) (1576).
No better a musician than the wren. 49. eye-balls] Perhaps the Contention
43. hollow breast] insincere, false, is the earliest example of this as one
deceitful. See " hollow friend " below, word. It occurs also in Venus and
1, 66; and compare "hollow heart," Adonis ^.wd. in L?<c?'£Cf, whose language
Part I. III. i. 136. The subtle alteration has much in common with Henry VI.
in this line, of " hollow voice " to See iii. ii. 169.
" hollow breast," is to be noticed. 52, basilisk] A very old belief, oc-
44. first-conceived] Compare " new- curring in Sir John Maundevile, circa
conceived," Measure for Measure, 11. ii. 1400, and earlier. See 1. 324 below,
96. Marlowe used it in Tamburlaine, and Part III. iii. ii. 187.
Part I. III. ii. 12: "As it hath changed 53. gazer] Again with "basilisk" in
ray first-conceived disdain." 3 Henry VI. The word is in Faerie
45. sugared words] See Part I. iii. Queene, 11. iii. 22 : "gazer's sense."
iii. 18 (note). " Sugared speache " 60. liquid tears] Conveys the sense
occurs in Hall's Chronicle in this reign of quantities, floods of tears. Compare
(XXXV Yere). Hawes gets very near Peele, David and Bethsabe (Dyce,
it in Pastime of Pleasure\xeTpr{nt, Percy 475, a) : —
Soc, p. 159), 1509 : " These men, with " O would our eyes were conduits to
sugred mouthes so eloquente." Peele has our hearts,
" With sugred words how hath she fed And that our hearts were seas of
my senses night and day " (Sir Clyomon, liquid blood."
Dyce, 516, b), which is probably as And Marlowe, Tamburlaitie, Part II.
early as anything of Greene's. Marlowe v. iii. (73, b) : "our hearts all drown'd
has "sugred words" near the end of in tears of blood."
Tamburlaine, Part II. Fabyan speaks 60. heart-offending] Compare "eye-
of the " moost excellent wysdome and offending," Twelfth Night, i. i. 30. As
104
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Or blood-consuming sighs recall his life,
I would be blind with weeping, sick with groans,
Look pale as primrose with blood-drinking sighs.
And all to have the noble duke alive.
What know I how the world may deem of me ? 65
For it is known we were but hollow friends :
It may be judged I made the duke away :
So shall my name with slander's tongue be wounded,
And princes' courts be filled with my reproach.
This get I by his death : ay me, unhappy ! 70
To be a queen, and crowned with infamy !
King. Ah ! woe is me for Gloucester, wretched man.
Queen. Be woe for me, more wretched than he is.
What, dost thou turn away and hide thy face ?
I am no loathsome leper ; look on me. 75
What! art thou, like the adder, waxen deaf?
Duke Humphreys death ? The Duke and I too, you know were enemies. And you
had best say that I did murther him. yz-for . . . man] ^s-for wretched Glosters
death. 73. is] 34. was. 74, 75. What, dost . . . me] 35,36, What dost . . .
leoper . . . me. 76-81. What I art thou . . , alehouse sign] omitted Q,
'sap-
1. 312.
{199,
sighs consume blood so groans hurt the
heart. Compare Merchant of Venice,
I. i. 82 : " Let ... my heart cool with
mortifying groan."
61. blood-consuming] Compare
consuming," Comedy of Errors, v.
Compare Marlowe's Edward II.
b):-
" the miserable queen
Whose pining heart her inward
sighs have blasted."
63. pale as primrose] Compare
Golding's Ovid, xiii. 929 (Polyphemus'
courtship) : " More whyght thou art
then Primrose leaf" (meaning the leaf
of the flower).
63. blood-drinking] preying on the
blood. We have had the word already
in sense of "blood-thirsty" (i Henry VI.
II. iv. 108). In Titus Andronictis (11.
iii. 224) it means soaked with blood.
Craig writes here : " It was believed that
sighing was injurious to the heart-
blood." Compare Hamlet, iv. vii. 123,
124; and Midsummer Nighfs Dream,
III. ii. 97. In Part III. iv. iv. 22,
"blood-sucking sighs" has the same
sense. See " blood-sucker," below, 1. 226.
See note in Part III. The idea is
developed in Warwick's speech below,
11. 160-167. Warwick is all Shake-
speare's be it remembered. This idea
is still found in Northern folk-lore.
66. hollow friends] See Part III.
i. 139.
IV.
67. / made the duke away] The
Contention words, "you had best say
that," etc., are often found in Shake-
speare— " you had best," or " you were
best," and are still used provincially.
68. slande/s tongue] More often
" slanderous tongue," as in Measure
for Measure, Much Ado About Nothing,
and Richard III.
76. like the adder] See Psalm Iviii.
4; and Sonnet 112, and Troilus and
Cressida, 11. ii. 172. A common belief
or reference. It is in Greene, Farewell
to Follie (Grosart, ix. 273) : " like the
deafe Addar that heareth not the
sorcerers charme." And again at p.
310; and elsewhere in Greene. But it
is not generally known how the adder
does it. Peter de la Primaudaye (trans,
by T. Bowes, 1586) tells us in bk. i.
chap. vi. {French Academic): "do as
the serpent doth that stoppeth her eares
with her taile to the ende she may
not heare the charmes and sorceries of
the inchanter." Steevens quotes from
Gower's Confessio Atnantis, i. fol. x. : —
" He leyeth downe his one eare all
plat
Unto the grounde and halt it fast :
And eke that other eare als faste
He stoppeth with his taille."
Primaudaye left a vagueness about that
other ear.
76. waxen deaf] Compare Greene's
Georgc-a-Greene (Grosart, xiv. 125) :
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
105
Be poisonous too and kill thy forlorn queen.
Is all thy comfort shut in Gloucester's tomb ?
Why, then, Dame Eleanor was ne'er thy joy :
Erect his statue and worship it, 80
And make my image but an alehouse sign.
Was I for this nigh wrecked upon the sea,
And twice by awkward wind from England's bank
Drove back again unto my native clime ?
What boded this, but well forewarning wind 85
Did seem to say " Seek not a scorpion's nest.
Nor set no footing on this unkind shore " ?
What did I then, but cursed the gentle gusts
And he that loosed them forth their brazen caves ;
And bid them blow towards England's blessed shore, 90
Or turn our stern upon a dreadful rock.
Yet yEolus would not be a murderer,
But left that hateful office unto thee :
The pretty vaulting sea refused to drown me,
82-84. Was I . . . cZi»ze.^]37, 38. Was I . . . wrackt . . . thrise . . . winds
driiien back from Englands bounds. 85, 85. What . . . nest] 39, 40. What
might it bode, but that well foretelling Winds, said, seeke not a scorpions neast.
.87-121. Nor set no . . . live so long] omitted Q.
" Why, men of Wakefield, are you
waxen madde." But Peele has " waxen
dim" (of eyes) earlier, in The Arraign-
ment of Paris (369, a), and in The Tale
of Troy (556, a).
80. statue] To be pronounced (as it
often was) statue, or statua. Most
editors spell it "statua," and there is
authority for the word at this date.
But none in the Folio. See Kyd's
Cornelia, iv. ii. 190 : —
" And his statues new set
With many a fresh-flowrd Coronet."
And in Marlowe (end of Act ii.), Tam-
burlaine, Part II. : " And here will I set
up her statue."
81. alehouse sign] See again below,
V. ii. 67, and Titus Andronicus, iv. ii.
98.
83. awAwarrf] adverse, contrary. Mal-
one quotes Marlowe's Edward II. : —
"With awkward wind, and with
sore tempests driven
To fall on shore "
(iv. vi.). Here it belongs to the earlier
Contention, and the expression suggests
Marlowe's hand therein at this point.
83. England's bank] England's shore.
New Eng. Diet, has several earlier
examples, this being the latest of ' ' bank "
meaning the sea-shore. " England's
bounds " in Contention. " The banks
of England" occurs in 1 Henry IV.
" Bounds of France " occurs 1 Henry
VI. I. ii. 24. " And of that parte that
is nygh to the Scotish bancke he layed
watches that none shoulde goo oute "
(Grafton's Continuation of Hardyng,
P- 437, 1543)-
85. well forewarning] predicting
truthfully. "Well foretelling" of the
Contention would have done nicely !
Here, as in the last example, and in
many other cases, the changes seem to
have been made quite arbitrarily in
pursuance of a pre-arrangement. Why
change "thrice" to "twice" at line
83 ? Simply for rewriting's sake.
89. brazen] extremely strong, im-
pregnable. Compare "brazen gates"
(5 Henry VI, 11. iii. 40) and " brazen
wall " {ibid. 11. iv. 4). See quotation
from Peele's Edward I. (Dyce, 378, a) at
I. iv. 45 in Part I. Golding places the
winds of jEoIus in " pryson cloce." See
Virgil's jEneid, i. 52-54, for the cave.
"Brazen walls" is in Jeremiah i. 18,
XV. 20 (Wyclif).
90. Engla7id's blessed shore] For
" blessed," see Richard II. 11. i. 50 ; ap-
plied to England. And see quotation at
" chalky cliffs " (1. loi) for "England's
shore."
94. pretty vaulting sea] agreeable
106
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Knowing that thou would'st have me drowned on shore 95
With tears as salt as sea through thy unkindness :
The splitting rocks cowered in the sinking sands,
And would not dash me with their ragged sides,
Because thy flinty heart, more hard than they,
Might in thy palace perish Eleanor, 100
As far as I could ken thy chalky cliffs.
When from the shore the tempest beat us back,
I stood upon the hatches in the storm,
And when the dusky sky began to rob
My earnest gaping sight of thy land's view, 105
I took a costly jewel from my neck,
A heart it was, bound in with diamonds.
And threw it towards thy land : the sea received it,
And so I wished thy body might my heart :
And even with this I lost fair England's view, 1 10
And bid mine eyes be packing with my heart.
And called them blind and dusky spectacles
bounding sea. Rather a nerveless ex-
pression, made worse by Dyce's hyphen.
Dyce revelled in hyphens. " Pretty "
applies to the sea, not to its jumping
habit !
97. splitting rocks] rocks formed for
the purpose of splitting (ships). At
line 411 below, the "splitted bark" is
the comment often applied to a ship by
Shakespeare, as in Tempest, Twelfth
Night, 3 Henry VI. v. iv. 10, Pericles
and Comedy of Errors.
g8. ragged] Applied to a rock again
in Two Gentlemen of Verona, i. ii. 121,
and in 3 Henry VI. v. iv. 27. Com-
pare Golding's Ovid, vi. 92, 93 : —
" Neptune 's standing striking with
his long threetyned blade
Upon the ragged Rocke."
It is in Spenser, Faerie Queene, i. xi. 21.
99. flinty heart] See Part III. 11. i.
202. Compare Greene, A Looking
Glasse for London (Grosart, xiv. 14) :
" whose flintie hearts have felt no sweet
remorse." But it occurs earlier in
Latimer.
100. perish] destroy.
loi. ken] to discern at sea. An old
nautical use. "Within a ken" occurs
twice in Shakespeare (Cymbeline and
2 Henry /K.), and "within akenning,"
formerly used the same way, is still
heard. Compare Golding's Ovid, vii.
627, 628 : —
" the Cretish fleete he kend
Which thitherward with puffed
sayles and wind at will did tend."
loi. chalky cliffs] See Comedy of
Errors, in. ii. 129. This is in Peele.
Compare A Farewell (549, a), 1589 : —
" Bid England's shore (see 1. 90 above)
and Albions chalky cliffs
Farewell : bid stately Troynovant.
adieu."
And in The Old Wives Tale (447, a) :—
" Upon these chalky cliffs of Albion
We are arrived now."
Shakespeare is indebted to Peele here;
but Peele never wrote this speech.
103. / stood upon the hatches] Com-
pare Golding's Ovid, bk. xi. 537, 538
(one of the loveliest passages in a
lovable book) : —
" Shee lifting up her watrye eye, be-
hind her husband stand
Uppon the hatches, making signes
by beckening with his hand"
(Alcyone seeing King Ceyx's departure).
And see xi. 614 : " Uppon the hatches
like a fo victoriously it gat " (the
tenth wave). " Dusky night " occurs
XV. line 35.
104. dnsky]^ee Part I. 11. ii. 27; and
last note.
107. heart . . . bound in with
diamonds] See note at " A lady wall'd
about with diamonds," Love's Labour 's
Lost, V. ii. 3, Arden edition.
111. be packing] get away (with the
heart ornament).
112. spectacles] The eyes are com-
pared to blurred or broken spectacles.
Schmidt's " organs of vision " is surely
misleading.
sc. II ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 107
For losing ken of Albion's wished coast.
How often have I tempted Suffolk's tongue,
The agent of thy foul inconstancy, 1 1 5
To sit and witch me, as Ascanius did
When he to madding Dido would unfold
His father's acts, commenced in burning Troy !
Am I not witched like her? or thou not false like him ?
Ay me ! I can no more. Die, Eleanor ! 120
For Henry weeps that thou dost live so long.
Noise within. Enter WARWICK, SALISBURY, and many
Commons.
War. It is reported, mighty sovereign,
That good Duke Humphrey traitorously is murdered
By Suffolk and the Cardinal Beaufort's means.
The commons, like an angry hive of bees 125
That want their leader, scatter up and down,
And care not who they sting in his revenge.
Myself have calmed their spleenful mutiny,
Until they hear the order of his death.
King. That he is dead, good Warwick, 'tis too true; 130
But how he died God knows, not Henry.
122-129. Noise within . . . War. It is reported . . . death] 41-44. Enter the
Earles of Warwicke and Salisbury. War. My Lord, the Commons . . . bees (line
125) Run vp and downe, caring not whom they sting, For good Duke Humphreys
death, whom they report To be murthered by Suffolke and the Cardinall here.
130, 131. King. That . . . not Henry] 46, 47. King. That . . . not Henry.
113. losing ken] See note, 1. no, above. (447, b, and again 457, b). And " these
113. iuished]\ongeA for. See Part I. madding Greeks" occurs in his Tale of
III. iii. 28; Comedy of Errors, i. i. 91. Troy (555, a), 1589.
Compare Peele : — 120. I can no more] Occurs again line
" And welcome wished England, on 365 below ; and often elsewhere in
whose ground Shakespeare, as Hamlet, v. ii. 331 ;
These feet so often have desir'd to Antony and Cleopatra, iv. xv. 59, etc.
tread" My strength fails m.; (Schmidt).
{Edward I., Dyce, 378, a). And see 125. commons . . . hive of bees] Corn-
note at Part I. iii. iii. 28. pare (Peele's) jfack Straw : —
116. witch me] bewitch me. This " It was a world to see what troops
is Theobald's accepted correction. The of men
Folios read " watch." Like bees that swarm about the
117. madding] A favourite word with honeyhive,
Peele, Kyd, etc. :— 'Gan strew the gravel ground and
" What grief, what pinching pain, sandy plain "
like young men's love, (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 395). For " sandy
That makes me madding run thus plains," see above, i. iv. 39 (note).
to and fro ? " 128. spleenful] See Titus Andronicus,
{Edward I., Dyce, 391, b). And The 11. iii. 191. "Hot, eager" (Schmidt).
Old Wives Tale : — Shakespeare is particularly fond of
"See where Venelia, my betrothed drawing illustrations and expressions
love from the spleen. He has also
Runs, madding, all enraged, about " spleeny " and " splenetive."
the woods " 129. order] manner.
108
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Enter his chamber, view his breathless corpse,
And comment then upon his sudden death.
War. That I shall do, my liege. Stay, Salisbury,
With the rude multitude till I return. 135
[Exeunt Warzvick and Salisbury.
King. O ! thou that judgest all things, stay my thoughts.
My thoughts that labour to persuade my soul
Some violent hands were laid on Humphrey's life.
If my suspect be false, forgive me, God,
For judgment only doth belong to thee. 140
Fain would I go to chafe his paly lips
With twenty thousand kisses, and to drain
Upon his face an ocean of salt tears,
To tell my love unto his dumb deaf trunk,
And with my fingers feel his hand unfeeling : 145
But all in vain are these mean obsequies.
And to survey his dead and earthy image
What were it but to make my sorrow greater ?
132, 133. Enter . . . death'] 47. War. Enter his prude chamber my Lord and
view the bodie. 134, 135. War. That I shall . . . return'] 48, 49 {War.) Good
father staie you with the rude multitude, till I returne. Salb. I will sonne. Exet
Salisbury. 136-148. King, O thou . . . greater] omitted Q.
132. hreathless]\\ie\e.5S,. Seel Henry
IV. V. iii. 16; Richard II. v. vi. 31, and
King John, iv. iii. 66. The passage in
King jfohn is the earliest in New Eng.
Diet. But it is a Peele and Greene
word : —
" till my gasping ghost
Do part asunder from my hreath-
lesse corpes "
(Greene, Alphonsus of Arragon, Grosart,
xiii. 364). Peele has it in Edward I. :
"Breathless he lies and headless too,
my lord" (409, b) ; and: —
" see in royal pomp
These breathless bodies be en-
tombed straight
With 'tired colours cover'd all with
black"
(414, b), likely to be Peele's, since he
coined many such words. See quota-
tion at " bloodless," line 162 below.
133. comment] The verb is only in
Shakespeare's earl}' work: Tzvo Gentle-
men of Verona, 11. i. 42, Venus and
Adonis, 714, and Sonnets 15 and 8g.
To make remarks, or pass opinions on ;
to reason about. First used by Shake-
speare in this manner.
139. suspect] suspicion. Several
times in these early plays, and in the
poems. See note at " suspense," iii. i.
140.
141. chafe his lips] warm them. The
same expression is in Venus and Adonis,
477, the same stanzas as "wring his
nose," above, line 34: —
" He bends her fingers, holds her
pulses hard,
He chafes her lips."
See Faerie Qucene, i. vii. 21 : —
" To rubbe her temples and to chaufe
her chin . . .
So hardly he the flitted life does
win."
"To rub the temples" occurs in Othello.
141. paly] See again Henry V. iv.
(Chorus, 8), and Romeo and jfulict, iv. i.
100.
142. twenty thousand] See above, in.
i. 350 (note), " ten thousand souls."
Meaning " a great many " ; this is only a
little less common than "ten thousand"
in Shakespeare. See below, iii. ii. 206,
and Coriolanus, in. iii. 70, etc. Com-
pare Daniel vii. 10: " thousand thousands
ministered unto him, and ten thousand
times ten thousand stood before him."
143. ocean of salt tears] "an ocean
of his tears" occurs in Two Gejitlemen
of Verona, n. vii. 69. " Seas of tears "
is found in 3 Henry VI. 11. v. 106. " To
drowne thee with an ocean of my teares "
is in Kyd's Spanish Tragedy, 11. v. 23
(Boas).
sc II ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 109
Re-enter WARWICK and others, bearing GLOUCESTER'S body
on a bed.
War. Come hither, gracious sovereign, view this body.
King. That is to see how deep my grave is made ; 150
For with his soul fled all my worldly solace,
For seeing him I see my life in death.
War. As surely as my soul intends to live
With that dread King that took our state upon him
To free us from his Father's wrathful curse, 155
I do believe that violent hands were laid
Upon the life of this thrice-famed duke.
Siif. A dreadful oath, sworn with a solemn tongue !
What instance gives Lord Warwick for his vow ?
War. See how the blood is settled in his face. 160
Oft have I seen a timely-parted ghost,
Of ashy semblance, meagre, pale, and bloodless,
Being all descended to the labouring heart ;
149. Re-enter Warwick . . . War. Come . . . hody\ 49. Warwicke drawes the
curtaines and shoives Duke Humphrey in his bed (for line 149, see 131 above).
150-152. King. That is . . . in death] 50, 51. King. Ah vnkle Gloster, heauen
receiue thy soule. Farewell poore Henries ioy, now thou art gone. 153, 154.
War. As surely , . . upon him] 52. War. Now by his soule that tooke our shape
vpon him. 155-157. To free . . . duke] 53-55. To free . . . dreadfull curse,
I am rcsohied . . . thrise famous Duke. 158, 159. A dreadfull . . . his vow ?]
56, 57. A dreadfull . . . these words? 160. See how . . . face] 60, 61. But
loe . , . face, More better coloured then when he liu'd. 161, 162. Oft . . .
bloodless] 58, 59. Oft . . . (meagre omitted) . . . bloodless. 163-171. Being
all . . . strtiggling] omitted Q.
157. thrice-famed] "thrice famous" 161. timely-parted ghost] a dead
in Contention. "Thrice-famed" occurs in person departed in a timely or natural
Troilus and Cressida, 11. iii. 254, again, manner. Compare " untimely," 5 Henry
See note at "thrice-noble," iii. i. 266. VI. iii. iii. 187. And for "ghost"
And see Introduction. " Thrice valiant" meaning a dead body, see Hamlet, i. iv.
has occurred above in Q i, i. 85. " Part " (verb) meaning " die "
159. instance] proof; as often in occurs several times (Macbeth, 1 Henry
Shakespeare. See Troilus and Cressida, VI., etc.).
V. ii. 153, 155. 161, 162. ghost . . . bloodless] In
160. blood is settled] The symptoms Golding's Ovid, x. 43 : " the bloodlesse
are carefully elaborated from the Conten- ghostes shed teares." And in Peele's
tion. " Settled " means stagnated ; see Arraignment of Paris (VxoXogne): —
further in 2 Henry IV. iv. iii. H2 ; and " bloodless ghosts in pains of
in Romeo and Juliet, iv. v. 26. For endless date
" more better " here in Contention, see Fill ruthless ears with never-ceas-
many illustrations in Schmidt at " more " ing cries."
(739, a). "More better" occurs in See Malone and Steevens here for other
The Tempest and Midsummer Night's examples of " ghost " meaning corpse.
Dream. 162. ashy semblance] Compare Gold-
161. Oft have I seen . . .] See "Oft ing's Ovid, iv. 324: "a pale ashcolourd
have I heard . . ." below, iv. iv. i. herbe cleane voyde of bloud." Malone
And in 3 Henry VI. 11. i. 149. Compare quotes from Spenser's Ruins of Rome :
Kyd's Cornelia, v. i. 4 : " Oft have I " Ye pallid spirits and ye ashy ghosts."
scene the ends of mightier men," etc. 162, 163. bloodless, Being all
GoJding has " So have I seen . . ." descended] because the blood is all
several times, to introduce a simile. descended. See above, line 63.
110
THE SECOND PART OF
[act in.
Who, in the conflict that it holds with death,
Attracts the same for aidance 'gainst the enemy ; 165
Which with the heart there cools, and ne'er returneth
To blush and beautify the cheek again.
But see, his face is black and full of blood,
His eye-balls further out than when he lived.
Staring full ghastly like a strangled man ; 170
His hair upreared, his nostrils stretched with struggling ;
His hands abroad displayed, as one that grasped
And tugged for life, and was by strength subdued.
Look, on the sheets his hair, you see, is sticking ;
His well-proportioned beard made rough and rugged, 175
Like to the summer's corn by tempest lodged.
172,173. His hands . . . sjibdiied] 6^, 6^. His fingers spred abroad as one that
graspt for life, Yet was by strength surprisde. 174. Look, . . . sticking]
omitted Q. 175. His . . . rugged] 62. His . . . sterne. 176. Like . . .
lodged] omitted Q.
165. aidance] assistance. Another
Venus and Adonis word (line 330), oc-
curring nowhere else in Shakespeare.
It is not known elsewhere until a later
date.
169. eye-balls] See note at line 49
above. Compare Cyril Tourneur, Athe-
ists Tragedy, 11. iv. (Pearson, i. 54) : —
" Dead be your tongues ! Drop out
■ Mine eyeballs, and let envious
Fortune play
At tennis with 'em."
171. upreared] raised. See Sonnet
49, and 2 Henry IV. 11. iv. 214. This
inharmonious form of compound was not
a favourite with Shakespeare. Spenser
has several of them, including the present
one : —
" So beene they both at one, and
doen upreare
Their bevers bright each other for
to greet "
(Faerie Queene, 11. i. 29), and several
times elsewhere.
172. abroad] Malone quotes Peacham,
Complete Gentleman, 1627 : " hold up his
hand, stretch his fingers abroad," where
we say " widely." Compare Kyd's
Cornelia, iii. i. 102 : —
" I mou'd mine head and flonge
abroade mine armes
To entertaine him "
(Boas).
172. displayed] spread about, stretched
out. The earliest signification of the
word : —
" And the old woman carefully dis-
played
The clothes about her round "
(Faerie Queene, in. ii. 47).
175. well-proportioned] well-shaped.
Very much importance was attached to
the wear of the beard at this time.
See notes to Merry Wives of Windsor,
I. iv. 20, and Midsummer Night's Dream,
I. ii. 92 seq., etc. This compound
adjective occurs again in Venus and
Adonis, 290. Nothing could be more
probably disclosed than that Shake-
speare wrote this scene at the same
time as he wrote Verms and Adonis (eye-
balls, aidance, chafe lips, wring nose,
comment). " Well-proportioned " is in
Soliman and Pcrseda, in. i.
175. rough and rugged] Note that
" rough and stern " of Contention here
is transferred to " Suffolk's imperial
tongue is rough and stern," below (iv.
i. 125) ; an emendation that points to
one workman, and he a very careful
one. Compare "stern" below, in line
213.
176. corn . . . lodged] See Richard
II. III. iii. 162, and Macbeth, iv. i. 55.
In provincial use. See Holland's Plinie,
xviii. chap. xvii. p. 574, 1601 : " the
come standeth not upright, but is lodged
and lieth along." "Along'" here (at
length) parallels " abroad " above.
This, of Holland, is the only literary use
I know of, of the date. An expressly
Shakespearian application.
sc II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 111
It cannot be but he was murdered here ;
The least of all these signs were probable.
Suf. Why, Warwick, who should do the duke to death ?
Myself and Beaufort had him in protection ; i8o
And we, I hope, sir, are no murderers.
War. But both of you were vowed Duke Humphrey's foes,
And you, forsooth, had the good duke to keep :
'Tis like you would not feast him like a friend,
And 'tis well seen he found an enemy. 185
Queen. Then you, belike, suspect these noblemen
As guilty of Duke Humphrey's timeless death.
War. Who finds the heifer dead, and bleeding fresh,
And sees fast by a butcher with an axe.
But will suspect 'twas he that made the slaughter ? 190
Who finds the partridge in the puttock's nest,
But may imagine how the bird was dead,
Although the kite soar with unbloodied beak ?
Even so suspicious is this tragedy.
Queen. Are you the butcher, Suffolk? where 's your knife? 195
Is Beaufort termed a kite ? where are his talons ?
Suf. I wear no knife to slaughter sleeping men ;
177, 178. It cannot be . . . probable] Q^d), 65. the least of these are probable,
It cannot chuse btit he was niurthered. 179-181. Stif. Why, Warwick . . .
murderers'] 66, 67. Queene. Suffolke and the Cardinall had him in charge, And
they I trust sir, are no murtherers. 182-185. War. But both . . . enemy] 68,
69. War. I, but twas well knowne they were not his friends, And . . . some
enemies. 186,187. Queen. Then you . . . timeless death] jo. Card. But haue
you no greater proofes than these? 188-194. War. Who finds the . . . fast by
. . . may imagine . . . was dead . . . unbloodied . . . tragedy] 71-77. War.
Who sees a . . . hard by . . . will imagine . . . came there . . . vnbloodie
. . . Tragidie. 195. Queen, butcher, Suffolk . . . knife?] 78. Queene. kyte
Bewford . . . talents ? 196. Is . . . talons] 79. Is Suffolke the butcher,
Where's his knife? 197-202. / wear no . . . ease . . . dar'st . . . faulty
. . . death] 80-85. / weare no . . . case . . . dare . . . guiltie . . . death.
Exet Cardinall.
177. It cannot be] Midsummer Night's by Shakespeare in his metaphors instead
Dream, in. li. 56, repeats this line: of dragons and tigers. Spenser identifies
" It cannot be but thou hast murdered the puttock with the kite in the Faerie
him." Queene, v. v. 15, a part of that poem that
178. The least of all these] Compare may have been written later than the
Locrine (by Peele and Greene ?) : " God Contention. " Puttok bryd. Milvus "
knows it were the least of all my (Prompt. Parv. [circa 1440)). Compare
thought " {i. i.). Nashe, Christes Teares : " The Henne
184. 'Tis like] see "'tis great like," clocketh her Chickins . . . The Henne
at the end of last scene. shieldeth them and fighteth for them
187. titneless] untimely. See Part I. against the Puttocke" ^Grosart, iv. 62),
V, iv. 5 (note). " Timeless death " is an 1593. On these poetical images see
expression of Marlowe's (end of Tarn- above, iii. i. 212.
burlaijie, Part II.) 193. unbloodied] A more vivid word
191. puttock] kite. One of the many than the previous "unbloody." See note
homely provincial terms made use of at " rough and rugged," line 175 above.
112
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
But here 's a vengeful sword, rusted with ease,
That shall be scoured in his rancorous heart
That slanders me with murder's crimson badge. 200
Say, if thou dar'st, proud Lord of Warwickshire,
That I am faulty in Duke Humphrey's death.
[^Exeunt Cardinal and others.
War. What dares not Warwick, if false Suffolk dare him ?
Queen. He dares not calm his contumelious spirit.
Nor cease to be an arrogant controller, 205
Though Suffolk dare him twenty thousand times.
War. Madam, be still, with reverence may I say ;
For every word you speak in his behalf
Is slander to your royal dignity.
Suf. Blunt-witted lord, ignoble in demeanour! 210
If ever lady wronged her lord so much.
Thy mother took into her blameful bed
Some stern untutored churl, and noble stock
Was graft with crab-tree slip ; whose fruit thou art,
203. What . . . him ?\ 86. What . . . him ? 204-206. He dares . . .
thousand titties] 87-89, He dares tiot . . . hundredth times. 207-209. Madam
, . . say ; For . . . behalf . . . digttify] go-92. Madame . . . say it, That . . .
defence . . . Maiestie. 210-215. Blunt-witted . . . demeanour . . . itito her
. . . noble race]g^-g8. Blunt-witted . . . thy words . . . vnto her . . . noble race.
ig8. vengeful] Occurs again Sonnet
99, and Titus Androtiicus, v. ii. 51.
198. rusted with ease] "case" of
Contention is corrected in its later
editions. Compare Love's Labour's
Lost, I. ii. 187 : " Adieu valor, rust
rapier " ; and Coriolanus, iv. v. 234 :
" Peace is nothing but to rust iron."
igg. scoured] See " scouring armour,"
above, i. iii. 195. Note the absolute
identity of these two speeches, so
thoroughly Shakespearian as they are
undoubtedly, with the Contention
version.
199. rancorous] See in. i. 24 ; Part I.
IV. i. 185 ; and Cotnedy of Errors, i. i. 6.
Not in his later work.
202. faulty] guilty. See Henry
VIII. V. iii. 75.
204. contumelious] See Part I. i. iii.
58, and I. iv. 39 ; and Timon of Athens,
V. i. 177. Not in any of the later work.
205. controller] censorious critic, de-
tractor. New Eng. Diet, quotes from
Drant's Horace, 1566. Shakespeare has
it again only in Titus Attdronicus, 11. iii.
60. Side by side with Venus and Adonis,
that play affords various parallels for
Henry VI. words, hardly found else-
where in Shakespeare, not common
anj'where. In the case of the play
we cannot disassociate ourselves from
Peele. See " black as jet," above, 11.
i. 112; and " vengeful,'' 1. 198. And
" gloomy," Part I. v. iv. 89.
206. twenty thousatid times] See note
at " twenty thousand kisses," 1. 142,
above.
210. Blunt-witted] Compare " quick-
witted " [Tattling of the Shrew, v. ii. 38),
" beef-witted," " fat-witted," etc. There
are ten of them altogether in Shake-
speare. Nashe has " tame-witted "
(Grosart, iii. 72).
213. stern] rough, rugged. See note
at these words, 1. 175 above. Used here
in a general sense.
213. untutored] See again 5 Henry
VI. v. V, 32. Occurs also in Lncrece,
Ded. 3 (of verses), and in Sonnet 138.
Ignorant, boorish, unmannered.
214. crab-tree slip] See note at "slips
of such a stock," 11. ii. 58 above. " SHp "
in this sense is used several times by
Shakespeare, as a sliver or cutting.
" Scion," perhaps a correct word, is used
also in Winter's Tale, Henry V. and
Othello, I. iii. 337 (see note, Arden
edition, p. 54). For the crab-tree graft,
see Coriolanus, 11. i. 206. Compare
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 113
And never of the Nevils' noble race. 2 1 5
War. But that the guih of murder bucklers thee,
And I should rob the deathsman of his fee,
Quitting thee thereby of ten thousand shames,
And that my sovereign's presence makes me mild,
I would, false murderous coward, on thy knee 220
Make thee beg pardon for thy passed speech.
And say it was thy mother that thou meant'st ;
That thou thyself wast born in bastardy :
And after all this fearful homage done,
Give thee thy hire and send thy soul to hell, 225
Pernicious blood-sucker of sleeping men !
Su/. Thou shalt be waking while I shed thy blood,
If from this presence thou dar'st go with me.
War. Away even now, or I will drag thee hence :
Unworthy though thou art, I '11 cope with thee, 230
And do some service to Duke Humphrey's ghost
[Exeunt Suffolk and Warwick.
King. What stronger breastplate than a heart untainted !
Thrice is he armed that hath his quarrel just,
216-226. But that . . . deathsman . . . mild . . . knee . . . beg pardon . . .
mean'st . . . wast . . . sleeping men] 99-109. But that . . . deathsman . . .
mute . . . knees . . . craue pardon . . . meants . . . was . . . sleeping men.
227, 22S. Thou shalt . . . while . . . dar'st . . . me] no, in. Thou shouldst
. . . whilst . . . dare . . . with me. 229. War. Away . . . hence]ii2. War.
Away . . . hence. (Warwicke puis him out.) 230, 231. Unworthy . . .
ghost] omitted Q. 232-235. King. What stronger . . . corrupted. A noise
. . , ] omitted Q.
Grafton's Continuation of Hardyng, p. 226. blood-sucker] "a bloodthirsty or
506 : " bastarde slyppes shall never take bloodguilty person ; one who draws or
depe rootes." [See Apocrypha, Wisdom sheds the blood of another " {New Eng.
iv. 3.] Diet.). This instance is not quoted, but
216. bucklers] shields. " 'Tis not the there are earlier ones in that great work ;
king can buckler Gaveston " (Marlowe, *' The seventh blood-sucker after Nero "
Edward II. (191, b)). (i577, tr- Bullinger's Decades (1592), p.
217. deathsman] executioner. See 315). But there may be some other
3 Henry VI. v. v. 67, and King Lear, allusion. See note at " blood-drinking,"
IV. vi. 263. A favourite word with 1. 63 above.
Greene. New Eng. Diet, quotes from 232. breastplate] From the figura-
Menaphon (vi, 143), 1589. See also live use in the Bible, " breastplate of
Tullie's Love (Grosart, vii. 145) ; righteousness," " breastplate of faith."
Metamorphosis (ix. no, 112); Groats- This speech with the ancient and ortho-
worth of Wit (xii. 145). In the latter dox maxims is not in the Contention.
passage it occurs figuratively, immedi- It is part of the developed holiness of
ately after the " upstart crow " passage. Henry's character, already noticed.
This is one of the " feathers." 233. quarrel just] For the converse
218. ten thousand] See note at "ten sentiment, see Much Ado About No-
thousand," iii. i. 350. thijig, v. i. 120. Malone quotes " Mar-
221. passed] uttered. low &'& Lusfs Dominion" : —
222. meant'st] See Introduction. " Come, Moor ; I'm arm'd with more
Compare " suckedst " (J Henry VI. v. than complete steel,
iv. 28), and " dippedst " (5 Henry VI. The justice oi my quarrel."
I. iv, 157). This vile and unnatural play, without a
8
114 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
And he but naked, though locked up in steel,
Whose conscience witli injustice is corrupted. 235
[A noise within.
Queen. What noise is this ?
Re-enter SUFFOLK and WARWICK, with their weapons drawn.
King. Why, how now, lords ! your wrathful weapons drawn
Here in our presence ! dare you be so bold ?
Why, what tumultuous clamour have we here ?
Suf. The traitorous Warwick, with the men of Bury, 240
Set all upon me, mighty sovereign.
Sal. [to the Commons entering]. Sirs, stand apart ; the king shall
know your mind.
Dread lord, the commons send you word by me,
Unless false Suffolk straight be done to death,
Or banished fair England's territories, 245
They will by violence tear him from your palace
And torture him with grievous lingering death.
They say, by him the good Duke Humphrey died ;
They say, in him they fear your highness' death ;
And mere instinct of love and loyalty, 250
Free from a stubborn opposite intent.
As being thought to contradict your liking,
236. Queen. What . . . this ?] omitted Q. 237. Re-enter Suffolk . . .King.
Why . . . Lords !] 113. Exet Warwicke and Snffolke, and then all the Commons
within, cries, doivne with Snffolke, doivne with Suffolke. And then enter againe,
the Duke of Suffolke and Warwicke, with their weapons drawne. King. Why
how now Lords? 240, 241. Suf. The traitorous . . . sovereign'] 114, 115. The
Traitorous . . . soueraigne. The Commons againe cries, downe with Suffolke,
downe with Suffolke. And then enter from them the Earle of Salbury. 242.
Sal. Sirs . . . mind] omitted Q. 243-249. Dread lord . . . send . . . Utiless
. . . straight . . . They . . . palace And . . . death (line omitted). They say
. . . died ; They say . . . death] 116-121. My Lord . . . sends . . . The unlesse
. . . here . . . That they will erre from your high^iesse person. They say . . . died,
They say by him they feare the riiine of the realtne. 250-269. And mere . . .
bereft of life] 122, 123. Atid therefore if you loue your subiects weale, They wish
you to banish him from foorth the land.
redeeming quality, was printed with Mar- seched the King, that such persons as
lowe's name in 1657. It is difficult to assented to the relese of Angeow and
imagine how Malone endorsed such a deliueraunce of Maine might be ex-
slander. It is in Hazlitt's Dodsley, vol. tremely punished, and tormented . . .
xiv. they accused, as principall, the Duke of
244. done to death] See Much Ado Suffolke" (Grafton, p. 639). See note
About Nothing, v. iii. 3, and elsewhere, at iv. i. 86.
See Peele's Battle of Alcazar (at the 252. contradict] oppose, thwart,
end) : " do7ie to death with many a Compare Locrine, i. i. : —
mortal wound." " far be it from any maiden's
245-247. banished . . . and torture thoughts
Am]" The Commons of the lower house. To contradict her aged father's
not forgetting their olde grudge, be- will."
sc. II] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 115
Makes them thus forward in his banishment.
They say, in care of your most royal person,
That if your highness should intend to sleep, 255
And charge that no man should disturb your rest
In pain of your dislike or pain of death,
Yet, notwithstanding such a strait edict,
Were there a serpent seen, with forked tongue,
That slily glided towards your majesty, 260
It were but necessary you were waked,
Lest, being suffered in that harmful slumber.
The mortal worm might make the sleep eternal :
And therefore do they cry, though you forbid.
That they will guard you, whe'r you will or no, 265
From such fell serpents as false Suffolk is ;
With whose envenomed and fatal sting.
Your loving uncle, twenty times his worth.
They say, is shamefully bereft of life.
Commons. [ Wi't/im.] An answer from the king, my Lord of
Salisbury ! 270
Su/. 'Tis like the commons, rude unpolished hinds,
Could send such message to their sovereign ;
But you, my lord, were glad to be employed,
To show how quaint an orator you are :
But all the honour Salisbury hath won 275
Is that he was the lord ambassador,
Sent from a sort of tinkers to the king.
270. Commons. An answer . . . Salisbury 1] omitted Q. 271-277. S»f. 'Tis
like . . . Could . . . To shozv . . . are . . . won . . . ambassador . . . king}
124-130. Suf, Indeed tis like . . . Would . . , To trie . . . were . . . got . , .
Embassador . . . King.
259. serpent] The snake in the grass 269. bereft of life] See Part III. 11.
is an abundantly common simile and has v. 93, and Titus Andronicus, 11. iii. 282 ;
occurred already ; and in the Chronicles both in different construction from
often. But it is very uncouthly dragged the phrase as here. Compare Locrine,
in here in the very heat of an uproar, i. i. : —
Written for stuffing ? It is not in the " by the weapons of unpartial
Contention. death
263. mortal] deadly, fatal. Is clove asunder and bereft of life."
263. worm] snake. Golding has Where the use of " impartial " is as
" uncouth worm " with " flecked spots " often in Peele. Compare Kyd, Soliman
of a lizard (Ovid, v. 570-574). Often a)id Perseda, v. v. 5, where Death says :
in Shakespeare. " But I bereft them both of love and
265. wi^l or no] See Part I. iv. vii. life."
25, and Richard III. iii. i. 23; and in 270. Commons [Within] Note the
Twelfth Night, etc. And in (Peele's) profuse stage-directions here, in the
Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 390) : Contention.
" be they men of any worth or no ? " 274. quaint] clever, skilful. See
See next scene, 1. 10, where the ex- Part I. iv, i. 102.
pression here occurs again, in both 277. sort of tinkers] See 11. i. 166
texts. (note) ; and Richard JI. iv. i. 247.
116 THE SECOND PART OF [act n,
Commons. [ Within?^ An answer from the king, or we will all
break in !
King. Go, Salisbury, and tell them all from me,
I thank them for their tender loving care ; 280
And had I not been cited so by them,
Yet did I purpose as they do entreat ;
For sure, my thoughts do hourly prophesy
Mischance unto my state by Suffolk's means :
And therefore, by His majesty I swear, 285
Whose far unworthy deputy I am,
He shall not breathe infection in this air
But three days longer, on the pain of death.
\Exit Salisbury.
Queen. O Henry ! let me plead for gentle Suffolk.
King. Ungentle queen, to call him gentle Suffolk ! 290
No more, I say ; if thou dost plead for him
Thou wilt but add increase unto my wrath.
Had I but said, I would have kept my word,
But when I swear, it is irrevocable.
If after three days' space thou here be'st found 295
On any ground that I am ruler of.
The world shall not be ransom for thy life.
Come, Warwick, come, good Warwick, go with me ;
I have great matters to impart to thee.
\Exeunt all but Queen and Stiffolk.
278. Commons. An answer . . . break hi] (130, 131. Stage-direction) The
Commons cries, an answere from the King, my Lord of Salsbury. 279-288.
King. Good . . . death] 131-136. King. Good Salsbury go backe againe to them.
Tell them we thartke them all for their toning care, And had I not bene cited thus
by their tneancs, My selfe had done it. Therefore here I sweare, If Suffolke be
found to breathe in any place, Where I hauc rule, but three daies more, he dies.
Exet Salisbury. 289. Queen. O Henry . . . Suffolk] 137. Queen. Oh Henry,
retcerse the doome of gentle Suffolkes banishment. 290-292. King. Ungentle
. . . Suffolk I No . . . ivrath] 138, 139. King. Vtigentle . . . Suffolke, Speake
not for him, for in England he shall not rest. 293, 294. Had I . . . But
when I . . , irrevocable] 140. If I say, I may relent, but if I . . . erreuocable.
295-297. // after . . . thy life] 135-136. (See King's last speech). 298, 299.
Come, Warwick . . . go . . . I have . . . thee]i^i, 142. Come good Warwicke
and go thou in . , . For I have . , . thee.
281. cited] urged, incited. See in 3 Henry VI. 11. v. 90 (Quarto read-
3 Henry VI. 11. i. 34, and Two Gentlemen ing).
of Verona, 11. iv. 85. 295. three days' space] Compare
286. deputy] See Richard II. i. ii. "three years' space" (Love's Labour's
38, III. ii. 57, and iv. i. 126. Lost, i. i. 52 and 151). Peele has it
287. breathe infection in] breathe in- earlier in Sir Clyomon (Dyce, 524, a) :
fection into, contaminate. For Suffolk's " To see if that in three hours' space
banishment and subsequent fate, see no champion will come in." Probably
below, IV. i. 86 (note). much older. See Peele again, Speeches
294. irrevocable] Note the much at Theobald's (577, a), 1591 : —
solemner oath, though also called " I am a hermit that this ten years'
" irrevocable," here, than in the Conten- space
Hon. The misprint " erreuocable " here Have led a solitary and retired
recalls the " ironious " for " erroneous " life."
sc. II] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 117
Queen. Mischance and sorrow go along with you ! 300
Heart's discontent and sour affliction
Be playfellows to keep you company !
There 's two of you ; the devil make a third !
And threefold vengeance tend upon your steps !
Suf. Cease, gentle queen, these execrations, 305
And let thy Suffolk take his heavy leave.
Queen. Fie, coward woman and soft-hearted wretch !
Hast thou not spirit to curse thine enemy ?
Suf. A plague upon them ! wherefore should I curse them ?
Would curses kill, as doth the mandrake's groan, 310
I would invent as bitter-searching terms,
As curst, as harsh and horrible to hear,
Delivered strongly through my fixed teeth,
With full as many signs of deadly hate.
As lean-faced Envy in her loathsome cave. 315
My tongue should stumble in mine earnest words ;
Mine eyes should sparkle like the beaten flint ;
My hair be fixed on end, as one distract ;
300-302. Queen. Mischance . . . company I] 143. Queen. Hell fire and ven-
geance go along with you. 303. a third] 144. the third. 304-306. And
therefore . . , Suf. Cease . . . leave] omitted Q. 307, 308. Queen. Fie . . .
enemy ?] 145. (to last speech). Fie womanish man, canst thou not curse thine
enemies? 309-328. Suf. A plague . . . would . . . doth . . . groan . . . as
bitter searching, As curst . . . to hear (line omitted) Delivered . . . full as . . .
lean fac'd . . . distract ; Ay . . . even now . . . that they taste . . . Their
chief est . . . basilisks (line omitted) Their softest . . . as the serpents . . . con-
cert . . . hell] 146-163. Suffolkc. A plague . . , could . . . do . . . groans . . .
as many bitter . . . Deliucred . . . twise as . . . leaue fast . . . distraught
300. Mischance and sorrow] It was sins, as in Marlowe's Faustus, and in
a pity to alter the forcible words of Spenser's Faerie Queene, i. iv. And in
the queen {Contention) to this tame Whitney's Emblems (1586) " lean " is,
line. as elsewhere, one of her descriptive
309. wherefore should I curse] Peele terms. But the cave points to Gold-
gives us a specimen cursing speech, ing's Ovid, ii. 950-980 : —
"where I may curse my fill," in the "She goes me straight to Envies
Battle of Alcazar, but there is only a house, a foule and irksome
general parallel. He deals more in cave
astrology (Act v.). But see Act i.. Replete with blacke and lothly
quoted below, 1. 323. Spenser's filth . . .
DapJinaida atTords a parallel, but There saw she Envie . . .
devoid of gall. See Selimus (Grosart, Hir bodie leane as any Rake."
xiv. 261) and Locrine, iii. vi. See also Mucedonus ; Nichols' Pro-
310. mandrake's groan] See Romeo gresses of Queen Elizabeth, iii. 405 ;
and jfuliet, iv. iii. 47 (Arden edition, Hazlitt's Dodsley, ix. 41 ; and Pro-
Dowden's note) ; and see Othello, iii. logue to Jonson's Poetaster. See note
iii. 331 (Arden edition, note) ; and at " pale-faced," above, iii. i. 335.
commentators' notes (Johnson, Reed, 316. tongue should sttimble] Compare
Steevens) in Steevens' Shakespeare. Love's Labour's Lost, 11. i. 239.
See Nares. 318. distract] mad, distraught, dis-
313. fixed teeth] clenched teeth. traded. Compare Spanish Tragedy,
315. lean-fcued Envy] Envy is often in. xii. 89 : "Distract, and in a manner
depicted as one of the seven deadly lunatick." Often later in Shakespeare.
118 THE SECOND PART OF [act m
Ay, every joint should seem to curse and ban :
And even now my burdened heart would break 320
Should I not curse them. Poison be their drink !
Gall, worse than gall, the daintiest that they taste !
Their sweetest shade a grove of cypress trees !
Their chief est prospect murdering basilisks !
Their softest touch as smart as lizards' stings ! 325
Their music frightful as the serpent's hiss.
And boding screech-owls make the concert full !
All the foul terrors in dark-seated hell —
Queen. Enough, sweet Suffolk; thou tormentest thyself;
And these dread curses, like the sun 'gainst glass, 330
Or like an overcharged gun, recoil
And turn the force of them upon thyself.
Suf. You bade me ban, and will you bid me leave ?
Now, by the ground that I am banished from,
Well could I curse away a winter's night, 335
Though standing naked on a mountain top,
Where biting cold would never let grass grow,
And think it but a minute spent in sport.
Queen. O ! let me entreat thee, cease. Give me thy hand,
That I may dew it with my mournful tears ; 340
And . . . now me-thinks . . . thing they taste . . . Their softest . , . like the
serpents . . . consort . . . hell. 329. Queen. Enough . . . thyself] 164. Queen.
Inough . . . torments thy sclfe. 330-332. And these . . . upon thysclj] omitted Q.
333-338. Suf. You bade . . . leave? . . . the ground . . . though standing
. . . sport] 165-170. Suf. You bad . . . sease ? . . . this ground . . . And stand-
ing . . . sport. 339. Queen. 01... cease] 171. Queen. No more. 339(J)-
342. Give me . . . momiments] omitted Q.
323. grove of cypress trees] Compare And wound the earth with anguish
Peele, Battle of Alcazar, Act i. Sc. of their stings ! "
ii. : — {Alcazar, 11. iii., Dyce, 428, a). The
"roll on, my chariot wheels, noun "hiss" is not elsewhere in Shake-
Restless till I be safely set in shade speare. The structure of these lines
Of some unhaunted place, some recalls Spenser {Colin Cloufs Come
blasted grove Home Again, e.g.). Compare also
Of deadly yew or dismal cypress Spenser's Faerie Queene earlier, i. ii. 9 :
tree, " For her he hated as the hissing snake."
Far from the light or comfort of 327. screech-owls] See i. iv. 18, 19,
the sun, above, and note. And 3 Henry VI.
There to curse heaven " v. vi. 45.
(Dyce, 425, a, b). Peele would have 330. these dread curses] Margaret's
had the night-raven and owl here curse at the beginning of Richard III.
inevitably. becomes proverbial and prophetic in
324. basilisks] See in. ii. 52. that play.
325. lizards' stings] Occurs again in 331. gun, recoil] An earlier instance
3 Henry VI. 11. ii. 138. Lizards have is in New Eng. Diet. : " See howe
not stings. yonder gonne reculeth or ever she
^zt. serpent's hiss] Compare Peele lowse" (Palgrave, 1530) ; the next being
again : — over a century later.
" Adders and serpettts hiss at my 333. leave] cease, leave off.
disgrace, 340. dew it with . . . tears] Com-
sc. II] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 119
Nor let the rain of heaven wet this place,
To wash away my woeful monuments.
0 ! could this kiss be printed in thy hand,
That thou might'st think upon these by the seal,
Through whom a thousand sighs are breathed for thee. 345
So, get thee gone, that I may know my grief ;
'Tis but surmised whiles thou art standing by,
As one that surfeits thinking on a want.
1 will repeal thee, or, be well assured,
Adventure to be banished myself; 350
And banished I am, if but from thee.
Go ; speak not to me ; even now be gone.
O ! go not yet. Even thus two friends condemned
Embrace and kiss and take ten thousand leaves.
Loather a hundred times to part than die. 355
Yet now farewell ; and farewell life with thee.
Suf. Thus is poor Suffolk ten times banished,
Once by the king, and three times thrice by thee.
343-347. O could this . . . standing by] 176-179. Oh let this . . . when thou
seest it, thou maist thinke on me. Away, I say, that . . . feele my griefe For it
is nothing whilst thou standest here. 348. As one . . . want] omitted Q.
349. 350. / will . . . Adventure . . . myself] 174, 175. And long thou shall not
state, but He haue thee repelde, Or venture . . . myself. 351-356. And banished
. . . life with thee] omitted Q. 357, 35S. Stif. Thus . . . and three . . , thee]
180, 181. Suf. Thus . . . but three . . . thee.
pare "bedew King Henry's hearse," Richard III. i. iii. 116: " I dare adven-
1 Henry VI. i. i. 104. The expression ttire to be sent to the Tower." And
here was affected by Kyd : — Peele's Jack Straw: " I have adventured
" There laid him downe, and dewd To show your majesty my mind herein "
him with my teares, (Hazhtt's Dodsley, v. 392).
And sighed and sorrowed " 354. ten thousand] See above, 1. 218.
(Spanish Tragedy, i. iv. 36). And Compare Tamburlaine, Part I. i. i. :
Cornelia, iii. i. 12 : " dewes hym with " Theridamas, farewell te7i thousand
her teares " ; and again, v. i. 420 : " dewe times."
your selves with springtides of your 357. ten times] See below, iv. vii. 26.
teares." Not in Q. And in Marlowe, Feele often has this " ten times treble
Tamburlaine, Part II. iv. ii. : — thanks" {David and Bethsabe (479, b)) :
" this earth, dew'd with thy " t en-time s-trehle happy men " (Fare-
brinish tears, well to the Generals (550, b)).
Affordes no herbs whose taste may 358. three times thrice] Occurs several
poison thee." times, as in Lovers Laborer's Lost, v.
Marlowe is probably earliest, but there ii. 486, 491 ; Merchant of Venice, i. iii.
is little or no parallelism between those 161. It is here, however, a poetical
two famous plays. expression first, arithmetical afterwards.
343, 344. kiss . . . seal] A frequent No doubt founded on the lucky number
expression in Shakespeare ; see " seals nine, and taken from the classics,
of love," Measure for Measure, iv. i. 6, especially Golding's Ovid; followed so
and note, Arden edition, p. 92. See often by Peele, Marlowe and Shake-
Midsummer Night's Dream, iii. ii. speare : "people which by dyving i/zrjce
144; Taming of the Shrew, iii. ii. three tymes in Triton lake Become all
125; Romeo and jfuliet, v. iii. 114, fethred" (bk. xv. 11. 393, 394); and
etc. " the space of thryce three nyghts they
350. Adventure to be] Compare counted it a sin " (x. 497) ; " thryce
120 THE SECOND PART OF [act m.
'Tis not the land I care for, wert thou thence ;
A wilderness is populous enough, 360
So Suffolk had thy heavenly company :
For where thou art, there is the world itself,
With every several pleasure in the world,
And where thou art not, desolation.
I can no more : live thou to joy thy life ; 365
Myself no joy in nought but that thou livest.
Enter Vaux.
Queen. Whither goes Vaux so fast ? what news, I prithee ?
Vaux. To signify unto his majesty
That Cardinal Beaufort is at point of death ;
For suddenly a grievous sickness took him, 370
That makes him gasp and stare and catch the air,
Blaspheming God, and cursing men on earth.
Sometime he talks as if Duke Humphrey's ghost
Were by his side ; sometime he calls the king,
And whispers to his pillow, as to him, 375
The secrets of his overcharged soul :
And I am sent to tell his majesty
That even now he cries aloud for him.
Queen. Go, tell this heavy message to the king. {Exit Vaux.
359-366. Tis not the . . . thou livest^ omitted Q. 367. Queen. Whither
. . .prithee?'] 182. Enter Vaivse. Quecne. How now, whither goes Vawse so
fast? 368, 369. Vaux. To signify . . . death] 183, 184. Vawse. To signifie
. . . death. 370-372. For suddenly . . . on earth] omitted Q. 373-376.
Sometime he . . . soul] 185-188. Sometimes he raues and cries as he were madde,
Sometimes he cals upon Duke Humphries Ghost, And whispers to his pillow as to
him. And sometime he calks to speake vnto the King. 377, 378. And . . . cries
. . . him] 189, 190. And I am going to certific vnto his grace . . . cald aloude
for him. 379. Queen. Go . . . king] 191. Queen. Go then good Vawse and
certijie the King. Exet Vawse.
nyne tymes with witching mouth " And thrise three times did fast from
(xiv. 65). Golding has also " twyce five any bitt "
dayes and twyce five nyghts togither " (i. iii. 13, 14); and Shepheard's Calen-
(xi. 107) ; " Twice six wee were the dar (Sept.) : " Thryse three Moones
sonnes of Nele . . . Twice six of us " bene fully spent." And Faerie Qxieene,
(xii. 613, 614) ; " Full twyce five yeares " 11. i. 53: "Cynthia . . . thryse three
(xii. 643). Peele affords " Well near tymes had fild her crooked homes."
twice-twenty squires " (PoZj^jwnra (569, 365. / can no more] See note, 1. 120
b)). But for arithmetical poetry Shake- above.
speare bears the prize. Parallel with 371. gasp and stare] Compare Gold-
these "twice twenty" and "twice ten" ing's Ovid, vii. 1113-1115 : —
thousands, noted above. Spenser must " as long as that she coud
also be recalled : — See ought, she stared in my face,
" Nine hundred Pater nosters every and gasping still on me,
day, Even in my mouth she breathed
And thrise nine hundred Aves she forth hir wretched ghost "
was wont to say . . . (Procris). For the source of this ac-
Thrise every week in ashes shee did count of the cardinal's death-bed, see
sitt . . . next scene.
sc. II] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 121
Ay me ! what is this world ! what news are these ! 380
But wherefore grieve I at an hour's poor loss,
Omitting Suffolk's exile, my soul's treasure ?
Why only, Suffolk, mourn I not for thee,
And with the southern clouds contend in tears,
Theirs for the earth's increase, mine for my sorrows? 385
Now get thee hence : the king, thou know'st, is coming ;
If thou be found by me thou art but dead.
Suf. If I depart from thee I cannot live ;
And in thy sight to die, what were it else
But like a pleasant slumber in thy lap ? 39O
Here could I breathe my soul into the air.
As mild and gentle as the cradle babe
Dying with mother's dug between its lips ;
Where, from thy sight, I should be raging mad,
And cry out for thee to close up mine eyes, 395
To have thee with thy lips to stop my mouth :
So should'st thou either turn my flying soul,
380-387. Ay mel . . . but dead] 192-196. Oh what is worldly pompe, all
men must die. And woe am I for Bewfords heaide ende But why mourne I for
him, whilst thou art here? Sweete Suffolke hie thee hence to France, For if the
King do come, thou sure must die. 388, 389. If I depart . . . to die] 197. And
^f I go I cannot line : but here to die. 389-391. What were it . . . could I
. . . air] 19S-200. What were it . . . could I, could I . . . aire. 392. As mild
. . . cradle babe] 201. As milde . . . new borne babe. 393. Dying . . . its]
202. That dies . . . his. 394, 395. Where . . . And cry out . . . close up] 203,
204. Where . . . And call . . . close. 396,397. To have thee . . . flying soul]
205. Or with thy lips to stop my dying soule.
380. what is this world!] what a "All is but lost, that living we
world is this ! bestow,
384. with the southern clouds contend If not well ended at our dying
in tears] A good example of the ex- day,"
travagant overstretching of a figure of 391. Here could I breathe my soul]
speech, common in Shakespeare's early See quotation at " gasp," 1. 371.
plays, from the effect of preceding and 392. cradle babe] "Cradle" used ad-
contemporary writers who held the jectively. Compare Golding's Ovid, ix.
stage and public taste. Nevertheless 79, 80 : —
this parting scene is full of beauty. " It is my cradle ga.me
Compare Golding's Ovid : " Southerne To vanquish Snakes, O Acheloy."
winde . . . with watry wings," and 394. raging mad] In Vertus and
"The clowdysowth" (pp. 27 and 234, Adonis, 1151. See "raging wood,"
Moring) ; and Spenser's "watry South- also Part I. iv. vii. 35. I was in hopes
winde " [Faerie Queenc, in. iv. 13). "raging mad" had escaped the hyphen
385. earth's increase] See Tempest, iv. everywhere, but I see Schmidt has
i. no; and "land's mcvez.s<t," Richard nailed it. " Raging wood" never had a
///. V. v. 38. Both frequent in the Bible chance. It is time to lay an embargo
(increase of the earth . . . of the land), on these hyphens. Compare (Peele's)
387. thou art but dead] Compare Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 398) :
Genesis xx. 3 : " Behold thou art but " If clemency may win their raging
a dead man for the woman which thou minds."
hast taken, for she is a man's wife." 395. close up mine eyes] See below,
And Faerie Queene, i. x. 41 : — iii. iii. 32.
122
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III.
Or I should breathe it so into thy body,
And then it lived in sweet Elysium.
To die by thee were but to die in jest ; 400
From thee to die were torture more than death.
0 ! let me stay, befall what may befall.
Queen. Away ! though parting be a fretful corrosive.
It is applied to a deathful wound.
To France, sweet Suffolk : let me hear from thee ; 405
For wheresoe'er thou art in this world's globe,
1 '11 have an Iris that shall find thee out.
Suf. I go.
Queen. And take my heart with thee.
Suf. A jewel, locked into the woefull'st cask
That ever did contain a thing of worth. 410
Even as a splitted bark so sunder we :
This way fall I to death.
Queen. This way for me.
\_Exeunt severally.
398-402. Ov I should . . . Elysium. To die by thee . . . torture . . . befall]
206-210. That I might . . . Elyziam, By thee to die, . . . torment . . . befall.
403, 404. Queen. Away I . . . wound] omitted Q. 211-213. Queen. Oh
mightest thou staie with safetie of thy life, Then shouldest thou staie,
but heavens deny it, And therefore go, but hope ere long to be repelde.
405-407. To France . . . globe . . . Iris . . . out] 171-173. Sweete Suffolke
hie thee hence to France, Or Hue where thou wilt within this worldes
globe . . . Irish . . . out. 408. Suf. I go . . . thee] 214, 215. Suff. I
go . . . thee. She kisseth him. 409-412. A jewel . . . did contain . . . Even
. . . for me.] 216-221. A jewell . . . yet containde . . . Thus . . . me. Exet
Suffolke (at 220). Exet Queene (at 221, two half-lines).
402. befall what may befall] Again
in Love's Labour 's Lost, v. ii. 880, and
in Titus Andronicus, v. i. 57.
403. fretful] This is given as earliest
in New Eng. Diet. It occurs in
Kyd's Cornelia (twice). And in Ardeji
of Feversham.
403. corrosive] Variously spelt cor-
sey, corsie, corsive, corrosive. Not
unfrequent a little earlier than Shake-
speare's time. See note at 1 Henry VI.
III. iii. 3 ; the only other example in
his plays. Golding uses the word
similarly twice at least : " It was a
corsie to hir heart hir hateful teares
to keepe " (ii. 997 and loio) ; and: —
" did shrowde in secret hart
An inward corsie comfortlesse "
(v. 531, 532). And in Hall's Chronicle
(XXXVIII Yere) of this reign : " Which
was a great displeasure to ye Kyng,
& a more corasey (" corrasey " in Graf-
ton) to the quene" (1548). These
are earlier, and better examples than
New Eng. Diet.
404. deathful] See Spanish Tragedy,
II. V. 22 : " amidst these darke and
deathfull shades " (Hieronimo's fa-
mous speech, " What outcries pluck
me ").
407. Iris] Juno's messenger and the
goddess of the rainbow. Edward II.
sends his messenger " As fast as Iris "
for his sweetheart Gaveston in Mar-
lowe's play (192, b). See All 'sW ell that
End's Well, i. iii. 158, and Lucrece,
1586.
409. cask] casket. A mintage of
Shakespeare's own.
411. splitted] See note at "splitting
rock," III. ii. 97.
sc. Ill ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 123
SCENE III. —A bedchamber.
Enter the KING, SALISBURY, WARWICK, to the Cardinalin bed.
King. How fares my lord ? speak, Beaufort, to thy sovereign.
Car. If thou be'st death, I '11 give thee England's treasure,
Enough to purchase such another island,
So thou wilt let me live, and feel no pain.
King. Ah, what a sign it is of evil life 5
Where death's approach is seen so terrible !
War. Beaufort, it is thy sovereign speaks to thee.
Car. Bring me unto my trial when you will.
Died he not in his bed ? where should he die ?
Can I make men live whe'r they will or no? 10
O, torture me no more ! I will confess.
Alive again ? then show me where he is :
I '11 give a thousand pound to look upon him.
He hath no eyes, the dust hath blinded them.
Comb down his hair ; look ! look ! it stands upright, 1 5
Enter the King . . .] Enter King and Salsbury, and then the Curtains be
drawne, and the Cardinall is discoiiered in his bed, rauing and staring as if he
were mad de. i. King. Hoiv fares . . . sovereign'] omitted Q. 2-4. If thou
. . . no pain] 1-2. Oh death, if thou will let me line but one whole yeare, lie
giue thee as much gold as will purchase such another Hand. 5, 6. King. Ah
what . . . terrible !] 3, 4. King. Oh, see my Lord of Salsbury, how he is troubled,
Lord Cardinall, remember Christ must saue thy soule. 7. War. Beaufort . . .
thee] omitted Q. 8. Car. Bring . . . will] omitted Q. 9, 10. Died . . .
bed? where . . . die? Can . . . no?] 5-7. Car. Why died . . . bed? What
would you haue me do then? Can . . . no? 11-13. O, torture . . . upon him]
omitted Q. i4-i7' He hath no eyes . . . some drink] 9-1 1. Oh see where Duke
Humphreys ghoast doth stand, And stares me in the face. Looke, looke, coame
downe his haire. So now hees gone againe ; Oh, oh, oh.
2. // thou be'st death] Grafton (and so I am deceyued: praiyng you all to
Hall) give the following account (The pray for me" (Grafton, 631). "The
XXVJ Yere) : " Doctor John Baker his fond and folishe talke of the bishop
priuie counsaylor and his Chapelyne, of Winchester." The chronicler gives
wrote, that he liyng on his death bed, here also a terrible character of this
sayd these wordes. Why should I die, ungodly and covetous prelate. The
hauyng so much ryches; if the whole expression "triple crowne" in this pas-
realme would saue my lyfe, I am able sage (Hall, 1548) has occurred already
either by poUicie to get it, or by riches in the play (i. iii. 62). See note there,
to bie it. Fye, will not death be hyred, 10. will or no ?] See last scene, 1.
nor will money doe nothyng? When 265. Malone parallels these lines
my Nephewe of Bedforde died I thought with King jfohti, iv. ii. 91, 92.
myselfe halfe up the wheele, but when 13. I'll give a thousand pound] I '11
I sawe mine other nephew of Gloucester give anything. See Merry Wives of
disceased, then I thought myselfe able Windsor, iii. iii. 131 ; and 1 Henry IV.
to be equall with kings, & so thought 11. iv. 162. And Peele, Sir Clyomon
to encrease my treasure, in hope to (503, b) : " Nay, I '11 not come in his
haue worne a triple Crowne. But I sight, if you would give me a thousand
see nowe the worlde fayleth me, and pounds."
124
THE SECOND PART OF
[act III
Like lime-twigs set to catch my winged soul.
Give me some drink ; and bid the apothecary-
Bring the strong poison that I bought of him.
King. O thou eternal Mover of the heavens !
Look with a gentle eye upon this wretch ; 20
O ! beat away the busy meddling fiend
That lays strong siege unto this wretch's soul,
And from his bosom purge this black despair.
War. See how the pangs of death do make him grin !
Sal. Disturb him not ; let him pass peaceably. 25
King. Peace to his soul ! if God's good pleasure be.
Lord cardinal, if thou think'st on heaven's bliss,
Hold up thy hand, make signal of thy hope.
He dies, and makes no sign. O God, forgive him !
War. So bad a death argues a monstrous life. 30
i7(§), 18. and hid . . . of him] 8. Sirra, go fetch me the strong poison which
the Pothicary sent me. 19-23. King. O thou . . . despair] omitted Q. 24.
War. See . . . do make him grin I] 12. Sal. See . . . doth gripe his heart.
25. Sal. Disturb . . . peaceably] omitted Q. 26-29. Kirig, Peace . . . for-
give him] 13-16. King. Lord Cardinall, if thou diest assured of heauenly blisse,
Hold up thy hand and make some signe to vs. The Cardinal dies. Oh see he
dies, and makes no signe at all, O God forgiuc his soule. 30. War. So . . .
16. lime -twigs] Not elsewhere in
Shakespeare, who always uses the
verb " to lime," " lime a bush," etc.
The phrase " set lime-twigs " has oc-
curred already in the Contention (i. iii.
87), where it is replaced by " limed a
bush." See also 11. iv. 54. See Geld-
ing's Ovid, XV. 528 : " Away with guyle-
full feates : for fowles no lymetwiggs
see ye set."
ig. O thou eternal Mover of the
heavens] Compare Selimus, 1. 1440
(Temple edition) :—
" But oh, thou Supreme Architect of
all,
First mover of those tenfold crystal
orbs."
See a similar " Primus Motor" address
in The Jew of Malta, Act i. (Dyce, 150,
a). And Sylvester's Du Bartas (Seventh
Day), 1591 : " God (the first Mover) in
his holy waies " (p. 149, ed. 1621). And
Tamburlaine, Part I. iv. ii. (Dyce, 26, b).
22. lays strong siege] Compare Spen-
ser, Faerie Queenc, 11. xi. 5 : " That
wicked band of villeins . . . lay strong
siege about it (castle) far and wyde."
See the allegorical sense in a passage
quoted at " respite," 1 Henry VI. iv. i.
170 (from Faerie Queene).
24. pangs of death] So in Grafton's
Continuation of Hardyng, p. 520
(1543) : " strugglyng with the panges
of deathe."
24. make him grin I] "gripe his
heart" of the Contention. Compare
3 Henry VI. i. iv. 171 : " To see how
inly sorrow gripes his soul." Compare
Peele, David and Bethsabe {475, a) : —
" traitors to his breast
Winding about his heart with
mortal gripes."
Milton remembered this : " Death
Grinned horrible a ghastly smile "
{Paradise Lost, ii. 845). See King
John, III. iv. 34.
25. pass] die. See King Lear, iv.
vi. 47, and v. iii. 313. Craig quotes
from Soliman and Perseda (Hazlitt's
Dodsley, v. 371) : " Trouble me not,
but let me pass in peace " (Arden edi-
tion of King Lear, p. 193). The ex-
pression is not in the Contention, and
the frequent parallelism of words and
expressions in this play and King Lear
has already been noticed. " Pass " in
this sense is an early use (Chaucer,
Squyere's Talc) revived. Frequent in
early Bibles.
28. signal] Compare Part I. 11. iv.
121, 123: "In signal of my love to
thee . . . Will I upon thy party wear
this rose." Token.
30. argues . . . life] Compare Part
sc.
III.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
125
King. Forbear to judge, for we are sinners all.
Close up his eyes, and draw the curtain close ;
And let us all to meditation.
{Exeunt.
life] 17, 18. Salb. So bad an ende did nevey none behold, But as his death, so was
his life in all. 31-33. King. Forbear . . . meditation] 19-21. King. Forbeare
to itidge, good Salsbtiry forbeare, For God will iudge vs all Go take him hence, and
see his funerals be performde. Exet omnes.
I. V. iv. 15 (death of Joan). Peele
has a similar use : —
"this princely mind in thee
Argues the height and honour of
thy birth ! "
(Battle of Alcazar, in. iv. (434, a));
and earlier (426, b), 11. ii. : —
" These welcomes, worthy governor
of Lisbon,
Argue an honourable mind in
thee."
31. Forbear to judge] Compare "for-
bear to murder me," below, iv. vii. 76 ;
and '• forbear to fawn," 3 Henry VI. iv.
i. 75. Also in Richard III. iv. iv. 118 :
" forbear to sleep." Abstain from judg-
ing ; but the construction with the in-
finitive is not found in Shakespeare's
better work. An archaism. Peele has
it in David and Bethsabe (472, b) :
" Why then do we forbear to give
assault," etc. etc. The last line in Q
is paralleled by the last line in Peele's
Battle of Alcazar (440, b) : "So to
perform the prince's funerals."
32. Close up his eyes] See again
Love's Labour 's Lost, v. ii. 825 ; and
above, iii. ii. 395. In these passages
the reference is to the actual closing
of the eyelids after death ; but " to
close one's eyes" meant to give death
to. Without " up," see AlVs Well
that Ends Well, v. iii. 118. In King
John (v. vii. 51) it is "set mine eye."
Compare Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part
I. V. i. :—
"my heart with comfort dies.
Since thy desired hand shall close
mine eyes."
And Edward II. v. : " Come Death and
with thy fingers close my eyes" (213,
b). See too Tancred and Gismrinda
(Hazlitt's Dodsley, vii. 91) : " I kiss thy
paled cheeks and close thine eyes " ; and
the Spanish Tragedy (Hazlitt's Dodsley,
V. 59). Usually, and used still, as a
mark of extreme affection, as in Spenser,
Daphnaida, 1. 511: "And when life
parts, vouchsafe to close mine eye."
33. meditation] religious contempla-
tion ; prayer. An early use ; see New
Eng. Diet. " Of God and goodnes
was his meditation " {Faerie Queene, i.
X. 46). And Gabriel Harvey, Pierces
Supererogation (Grosart, ii. 184), 1589 :
" Whiles their mindes are abstracted
from worldly thoughts, to a high medi-
tation." And in the Bible.
126
THE SECOND PART OF
[act IV.
ACT IV
SCENE I. — The coast of Kent.
Alarum. Fight at sea. Ordnance goes off. Enter a Captain,
a Master, a Mastef^s-Mate, WALTER Whitmore, and
others ; with them, SUFFOLK and others, prisoners.
Cap. The gaudy, blabbing, and remorseful day-
Is crept into the bosom of the sea,
And now loud-howling wolves arouse the jades
Alarum . . . ] Alarmes within, and the chambers be discharged, like as it were
a fight at sea. And then enter the Captaine of the ship and the Maister, and the
Maisters Mate, <&> the Duke of Stiffolke disguised, and others with him, and
Water Whickmore. Q. 1-14. Cap. The gaudy . . . thy share^ 1-6. Cap.
Bring forward these prisoners that scorn'd to yeeld, Vnlade their goods with speed
and sincke their ship Here Maister, this prisoner I giiie to you This other, the
Maisters Mate shall haue, And Water Whickmore, thoti shall haue this man, And
let them paie their ransomes ere they passe.
1-7. The gaudy . . . air] These
obviously additional lines, inartistically
joined to the scene by the word " there-
fore " (1. 8) bear impress of Shakespeare's
earliest Marlovian style, or rather
Peeleian, but vastly more powerful
and more musical. Peele has : " The
gaudy Morn out of her golden sleep
Awak'd " (Honour of the Garter (589, b)).
Marlowe has " remorseful blood " in
Tamburlaine, Part IL iv. i. (63, a).
1. blabbing] telling the secrets of
night. Compare " Revealing day" in
Lucrece, 1086. "Remorseful" means full
of sorrow and pity for the guilt of night
which it reveals.
2. crept into the bosom] Transferred
here from the human sense. Compare
1 Henry IV. i. iii. 266; and Greene's
James the Fourth (Grosart, xiii. 221),
1591 :—
" Had I the mind as many Courtiers
have.
To creepe into your bosome for your
coyne."
But it is much older : " She speaks as
she would creep into your bosom " (Hey-
wood's Proverbs (edited by Sharman, p.
40), 1546). It is Shakespeare's method
often to use proverbs out of their wonted
sense.
3. jades] Abusive language to horses.
Compare the " pampered jarffs of Asia "
in 2 Henry IV. 11. iv. 178, wherein at a
later date Shakespeare ridicules Mar-
lowe's Tamburlaine style. But it is
not generally known that Marlowe
took the expression, though not the
application, from Golding's Ovid
(1567) ■■-
" What ? is it I that did behold the
pampred Jades of Thrace
With Maungers full of flesh of
men "
(ix. 238, 239). Golding being a favourite
of Shakespeare's, the sneer at Marlowe
is mitigated. For the horses of the
night, see again in Marlowe, Edward
the Second (Dyce, 208, b) : —
" Gallop apace, bright Phcebus,
through the sky ;
And, dusky Night, in rusty iron
car . . .
shorten the time "
— a passage recalled by Shakespeare in
Romeo and Juliet, iii. ii. The idea is
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 127
That drag the tragic melancholy night ;
Who with their drowsy, slow, and flagging wings 5
Clip dead men's graves, and from their misty jaws
Breathe foul contagious darkness in the air.
Therefore bring forth the soldiers of our prize,
For whilst our pinnace anchors in the Downs
Here shall they make their ransom on the sand, lO
Or with their blood stain this discoloured shore.
Master, this prisoner freely give I thee ;
And thou that art his mate make boot of this ;
The other, Walter Whitmore, is thy share.
First Gent. What is my ransom, master? let me know. 15
Mast. A thousand crowns, or else lay down your head.
Mate. And so much shall you give, or off goes yours.
Cap. What ! think you much to pay two thousand crowns,
And bear the name and port of gentlemen ?
Cut both the villains' throats ! for die you shall : 20
The lives of those which we have lost in fight
Be counterpoised with such a petty sum !
15. First Gent. What . . . know] 2^. 2 Priso. But what shall our ransome be ?
i6. Mast. A thousatid . . . head] 24. Mai. A hundreth pounds a piece, either
pay that or die. 17. Mate. And . . . yours] omitted Q. 18-22. Cap. What
. . . sum I] omitted Q.
from Ovid's Amor. i. xiii. 40 : " Lente " This climate o'er-lowering with
currite, noctis equi," quoted in Doctor black congealed clouds
Faustus by Marlowe (Dyce, loi, a). That take their swelling from the
In later plays (Cymbeline, Midsummer marish soil,
Night's Dream) Shakespeare uses Fraught with infectious fogs and
dragons, not horses, as the coursers misty damps."
of the Night. See "flagging wings," A little farther on (393, b) Peele has:
note. " Nor influence of contagious air should
5. flagging] hanging, drooping, touch."
Jonson uses it so in Chloridia : "Their 11. rfJsco/o?^r^(^] Used again of stained
hair flagging as if they were wet " with blood several times [Henry V.,
(Seventh entry). The word is common King John and Romeo and Juliet).
provincially, but not again in Shake- 13. make boot] Shakespeare has this
speare. Spenser has "flaggy wings" phrase again in / Henry IV. 11. i. 91
of the Dragon in Faerie Queene, i. xi. 10. (with a pun) ; in Henry V. i. ii. 194 ;
6. Clip] "cleape" in Folio. Em- and in Antony and Cleopatra, iv. i. g.
brace, fondle. Compare Golding's I have no earlier example.
Ovid : " Venus . . . deeping Jove did 19. bear the name and port] Peele
thus with him persuade " (xiv. 666, has this phrase in Sir Clyonion :
667). The image is a beautiful one. " Bearing the name and port of knight,
6. dead men's] A favourite expres- enchantments for to use " (Dyce, 501,
sion, with various substantives, oc- b). Elsewhere he has : " Her port
curring about twenty times in a dozen and grace " (Arraignment of Paris,
plays. 352, b). " Port " was generally used so :
6. misty] Only in Shakespeare's " eche of them kept a great estate and
earliest work; he seems to have /or^' (Grafton, i. 339). Peele could not
dropped it. It is in Lncrece, Venus have written this opening, but his writ-
and Adonis, Titus Andronicus, and ings are remembered. The sinking of
Romeo and Juliet. Peele uses it the captured ship is omitted from the
earlier in Edward I. (390, b) : — Contention, as needless.
128 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
First Gent. I '11 give it, sir ; and therefore spare my life.
Second Gent. And so will I, and write home for it straight
Whit. I lost mine eye in laying the prize aboard, 25
And therefore to revenge it shalt thou die ; \To Suffolk,
And so should these if I might have my will.
Cap. Be not so rash : take ransom ; let him live.
Suf. Look on my George ; I am a gentleman.
Rate me at what thou wilt, thou shalt be paid. 30
Whit. And so am 1 ; my name is Walter Whitmore.
How now ! why start'st thou ? what, doth death affright ?
Suf. Thy name affrights me, in whose sound is death.
A cunning man did calculate my birth.
And told me that by water I should die: 35
23. First Gent. IHl . . . life] 25. 2. Priso. Then saue our Hues, it shall be paid.
24. Second Gent. And so . . . straight] omitted Q. 25-27. Whit. I lost . . .
my will] 20-22. Water. I lost mine eye in boarding of the ship, And therefore ere
I merchantlike sell blood for gold, Then cast me headlong downe into the sea.
28. Cap. Be not . . . live] omitted Q. 29, 30. Suf. Look on . . . be paid] 18,
19. Suf. I am a Gentleman looke on my Ring, Ransome me at what thou wilt, it
shalbe paid. 31. Whit, my name is Walter Whitmore] see line 5 Q. 32.
How now . . . affright?] 7-9. Suffolke. Water I He starteth. Water. How now,
what doest feare me ? Thou shalt haue better cause anon. 33. Suf. Thy . . .
me] 10. It is thy . . . me. 33. in . . . death] 10. not thy selfe. 34, 35. A
. . . my birth And told . . . die] 11, 12. I do remember well, a cunning Wyssard
told . . . die.
25. laying the prize aboard] Coming Scot calls this breed of astrologers. Very
to close quarters, or tackling with her. common in Jonson.
Craig refers to Smith's Accidence 34. calculate] The earliest example in
(Arber's Captain Smith, p. 797) for the New Eng. Diet, of this use, as in casting
expression. Ben Jonson uses it trans- or calculating a horoscope. Dr. Dee
ferredly several times : " Now were a fine seems to have used the word first in any
time for thee, Winwife, to lay aboard sense. Jonson puts it " cast nativities"
Xhy \\'\Ao\v" {Bartholomew Fair, 111. I.); {Devil is an Ass, iv. i.). But compare
and again in New Inn, 11. ii. To Greene's Mamillia (Grosart, ii. 35) :
board. " Whether it be that Mercuric is Lord
29. George] a jewelled figure of St. of their birth, or some other peeuish
George, one of the insignia of the planet predominant in the calculation
Order. See again Richard III. iv. iv. of their nativitie, I know not." Hawes
366-369; and foresaw " calculate " : —
" Edward . . . the Third . . . began, " on his boke he began to calke
. . . How the Sonne entred was in
The Order of Saint George . . . GemjTie "
The Order of the Garter so y-clept" {Pastitne of Pleasure (p. 77, Percy
{Peele, Hotwjir of the Garter (Dyce, 5S6, reprint), 1509).
a)). Amongst Queen Elizabeth's New 35. by water I should die] See above,
Years Gifts in Nichols' Progresses (1575- i. iv. 68-70 and 33. Readers of Dumas
1576) is a " coUer of the Order of St. will remember the terrible tale of The
George with a 0^0;-^^ hanging at it." Regent's Daughter in which Pontealec
34. cjinning man] a wise man or is foretold by a witch that he shall die
wizard. Grafton has " a Saxon, feyning by the sea. Therefore he does not fear
himselfe a Briteyne, and a cunning man execution. But the executioner's name
in Physick" (i. 82). Here he is a proves to be "La mer," and he is be-
" figure-caster or cozening witch " as headed.
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 129
Yet let not this make thee be bloody-minded ;
Thy name is Gualtier, being rightly sounded.
W/ii^. Gualtier or Walter, which it is, I care not.
Never yet did base dishonour blur our name
But with our sword we wiped away the blot : 40
Therefore, when merchant-like I sell revenge,
Broke be my sword, my arms torn and defaced,
And I proclaimed a coward through the world !
Suf. Stay, Whitmore ; for thy prisoner is a prince,
The Duke of Suffolk, William de la Pole. 45
WAit. The Duke of Suffolk muffled up in rags !
Suf. Ay, but these rags are no part of the duke :
[Jove sometime went disguised, and why not I ?]
Cap. But Jove was never slain, as thou shalt be.
Suf. Obscure and lowly swain, King Henry's blood, 50
The honourable blood of Lancaster,
Must not be shed by such a jaded groom.
Hast thou not kissed thy hand and held my stirrup ?
Bare-headed plodded by my foot-cloth mule,
36, 37. Yet . . . this . . . name . . . sounded] 13-15. Yet . . . that . . . {he
omitted) name being rightly sounded. Is Gualter, not Water. 38. Gualtier
. . . care not] 16, 17. Water. Gualter or Water, als one to me, I am the man
must bring thee to thy death. 39, 40. Never . . . blot] omitted Q. 41-
43. Therefore . . . world!] see 21, 22 Q. above. 44, 45. Suf. Stay, Whit-
more for thy . . . Pole] 26-29. Water. Come sirrha, thy life shall be the ransome
I will have. Stiff. Staie villaine, thy . . . Poull. 46. Whit, muffled up] 30.
Cap. folded up. 47, 48. Suf. Ay . . . not I ?] 31, 32. Suf. I sir . . . not I ?
(48. Pope's accepted necessary insertion from Q.) 49. Cap. But] 33. Cap. I
but. 50-52. Suf. Obscure . . . swain. King . . . Lancaster, Must . . . jaded
groom] 34-36. Suf. Base ladie groom. King . . . Lancaster, ca^mot . . . lowly
swaine. 53-55. Hast thou . . . Bare-headed . . . shook my head] 57-59. Hast
not thou . . . And barehead . . . smilde on thee?
36. ft/ooiiy-wMjrffif] See again Part III. herds weed" (Tamburlaine, Part I. i.
II. vi. 33; but not later. This word is ii. (12, a)).
in Contention; as is also "merchant- 51. The honourable blood of Lan-
like " (1. 41), not in Shakespeare again, caster] Suffolk had none of this blood in
Peele has " merchant-wise " in Sir his veins, according to Blakeway. But
Clyomon. " Bloody-minded cruell men " Hall says that Suffolk assumed a good
occurs in Kyd's Cornelia, iv. ii. 203 ancestry. " A natural ebullition of his
(Boas). vanity'' (Halliwell).
42. my arms torn and defaced] Com- 52. jarf^-^f] basely-bred, ignoble. Com-
pare Richard II. in. i. 24, and see Tp3iTe Henry VIII. in. n.2So, and Antony
Malone's notes to the passage. Com- and Cleopatra, in. i. 34. Altered from
pare Faerie Queette, 11. xii. 80. And the odd ''jady " of Contention.
compare jfack Straw {382) :— 54. foot-cloth] long ornamental hous-
" We will have all the rich men ings or hangings for horses used by
displaced noblemen, judges and others, especially
And all the bravery of them de- in state processions. As an attribute of
faced." grandeur and dignity, the term was
48. yove . . . /] Pope inserted this common. See below, iv. vii. 51, and
hne from the Quarto Contention, to Richard III. in. iv. 86. See note to
complete the sense. Marlowe has the latter play, and also Nares for a good
"jfove sometime masked in a shep- note. And Harington's Mei. 0/ /Ija;^ ;
9
130 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
And thought thee happy when I shook my head ? 55
How often hast thou waited at my cup,
Fed from my trencher, kneeled down at the board,
When I have feasted with Queen Margaret ?
Remember it and let it make thee crest-fall'n ;
Ay, and allay this thy abortive pride. 60
How in our voiding lobby hast thou stood
And duly waited for my coming forth ?
This hand of mine hath writ in thy behalf,
And therefore shall it charm thy riotous tongue.
Whit. Speak, captain, shall I stab the forlorn swain ? 65
Cap. First let my words stab him, as he hath me.
Suf. Base slave, thy words are blunt, and so art thou.
Cap. Convey him hence, and on our long-boat's side
Strike off his head.
Suf. Thou dar'st not for thy own.
Cap. [Yes, Pole.
Suf. Pole !]
Cap. Pool ! Sir Pool ! lord ! 70
56. How often . . . cup~\ 5. Suffolke. Has not thou waited at my Trencher.
57, 58. Fed from . . . When I . . . Margaret] 56. When we . . . Margaret.
59-62. Remember . . . forth .■'] omitted Q. 63, 64. This . . . tongue] 60, 61.
This hand hath writ in thy defence, Then shall I charme thee, hold thy lavish
tongue. 65-67. Whit. Speak ... 50 art thou] omitted Q. 68-70. Cap.
Convey . . . Suf. Pole I] 39-43. Cap. Go Water take him hence (half-line) And on
. . . Chop off . . . Suffolke Poull. 70-73. Cap. Pool ! . . . yawning mouth]
Cap. I Poull, puddle, kennell, sinke and durt, He stop that yawning mouth of thine.
An Apology (reprint, p. 16), 1596 : " I " Those carelesse limbes of thyne " (ix.
would they could ride on afootcloth and 287) ; and " The mothers heart of
had a house and a tax of their own." hirs " (vi. 794). Peele has this form
59. crest-fall'n] Occurs again in often, but I think it is a characteristic
Richard II. and in Merry Wives of with Shakespeare.
Windsor, iv. v. 103. See note to the 64. charm thy . . . tongue] Occurs
latter passage, Arden edition, p. 193. several times in Shakespeare. See Part
The term was applied to a hawk. " A III. v. v. 31 ; and Othello, v. ii. 183,
meagre crestfaln hawk" is in Howell's and note, Arden edition. For "lavish
Vocabulary, Sect. iv. (1659). tongue " here, in Q, see Part I. 11.
60. abortive] fruitless, unsuccessful, v. 47. It is from Golding's Ovid.
A peculiar use, instanced later in New " Charm thy tongue " is not in Q.
£h^. Df'c^, but earliest here. 70. Yes, Pole . . . Pole I] Inserted
61. voiding lobby] ante-room, wait- from Q by Capell. For the Pool quibble,
ing-room. " Voiding-knife" occurs in compare "suffocate," above, i. i. 121,
Brewer's Lingua. For the verb in and note. Quite Shakespearian. In
this sense, see Golding's Ovid, vii. Peek's yack Straw (Hazlitt's Dods-
336-339 : " When all were voyded, shee ley, v. 412) similar quibbling on a
With scattred heare about hir eares . . . similar occasion occurs: —
about the burning Altars goes." " Why, Morton, are you so lusty,
63. of mine] Very frequent in Shake- with a pox?
speare. See Schmidt for a collection, I pulled you out of Rochester
and his correct remark on a prepos- Castle by the poll !
terous reading in Merry Wives of Morton. And in recompense I will
Windsor, i. iii. no (see Arden edition, help to set your head on z pole.
note). " Of thine " occurs often also in Wat Tyler. Pray you, let's be
Shakespeare. Compare Golding's Oz;jti; polVd first."
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
131
Ay, kennel, puddle, sink ; whose filth and dirt
Troubles the silver spring where England drinks.
Now will I dam up this thy yawning mouth
For swallowing the treasure of the realm : 74
Thy lips, that kissed the queen, shall sweep the ground ;
And thou that smiled'st at good Duke Humphrey's death,
Against the senseless winds shalt grin in vain,
Who in contempt shall hiss at thee again :
And wedded be thou to the hags of hell,
For daring to afify a mighty lord 80
Unto the daughter of a worthless king,
Having neither subject, wealth, nor diadem.
By devilish policy art thou grown great.
And, like ambitious Sylla, overgorged
With gobbets of thy mother's bleeding heart. 85
By thee Anjou and Maine were sold to France,
74. Foy . . . realm] omitted Q. 75, 76. Thy lips, that kiss'd . . . Hum-
phrey's death] 46-48. Those lips of thine that so oft have kist . . . death. 77.
Against . . . in vain] 49. Shalt line no longer to infect the earth. 78-106.
Who in contempt . . . base men proud] omitted Q.
74. For swallowing] for fear of its
swallowing. A frequent use, not
always obvious. See again Sonnet
52, 1. 4 ; and Two Gentlemen of Verona,
I. ii. 136. And Peele, Edward I.
(410, a) : " Hold up your torches for
dropping." A provincialism, still cur-
rent.
77. senseless winds] Compare Peele,
David and Bethsabe (465, a) : " And
makes their weapons wound the
senseless winds." Insensible.
79. hags of hell] the Furies. Com-
pare Peele, Battle of Alcazar (436, b) : —
" You bastards of the Night and
Erebus,
Fiends, Furies, hags."
And Locriue, iii. ii. : —
" the triple Cerberus
And all the army of his hateful
hags."
All this ranting is reminiscent of Peele,
yet not Peele's. None of these charges
occur here in the Contention, against
Suffolk ; but we have had them all.
And see below.
80. aj9^] betroth. See Taming of the
Shrew, iv. iv. 49. New Eng. Diet, has
an earlier example of this use from
Lambarde's Perambulation of Kent,
1576. Drayton uses the verb in the
Legend of Pierce Gaveston, recalling it
from here.
84. overgorged] Not in Shakespeare
again. Golding's Ovid furnishes the
earliest use I know : —
" Latona, feede, yea feede thy selfe,
I say, upon my woe,
And overgorge thy stomacke "
(vi. 352, 353)-
85. gobbets] Similarly Progne and
her sister deal with Itys's limbs : —
" In gobbits they them rent : whereof
were some in Pipkins boyled . . .
To this same banket Progne bade
. . . hir husband . . .
King Terens . . .
Swallowed downe the selfe same
flesh that of his bowels bred "
(Golding, Ovid, vi. 815). The word
occurs again in the xivth book of
Golding's translation ; and in the
Faerie Quecne, i. i. 20 : " great lumps
of flesh and gobbets raw." See below,
V. ii. 58.
86. Anjou and Maine] See i. i. 214.
" the people of the realme . . . began
first to make exclamacion aga5'nst the
Duke of Suffolke, affirmyng him to be
the onely cause of the deliueryof ^Mt'ow
and Main, the chiefe procurer of the
death of the good Duke of Glocester,
the very occasion of the losse of Nor-
mandie, the most swallower up & con-
sumer of the kings treasure. . . . By
reason of this exclamacion, the queene
132
THE SECOND PART OF
[act IV.
The false revolting Normans thorough thee
Disdain to call us lord, and Picardy
Hath slain their governors, surprised our forts,
And sent the ragged soldiers wounded home. 90
The princely Warwick, and the Nevils all,
Whose dreadful swords were never drawn in vain,
As hating thee, are rising up in arms :
And now the house of York, thrust from the crown
By shameful murder of a guiltless king, 95
And lofty proud encroaching tyranny,
Burns with revenging fire ; whose hopeful colours
Advance our half-faced sun, striving to shine,
Under the which is writ Invitis nubibus.
The commons here in Kent are up in arms ; 100
somewhat fearyng the destruction of
the Duke, but more the confusion of
herselfe, caused the Parliament, before
begon at the black Friers in London,
to be adiourned to Leycester " (Grafton,
i. 637, 638). Articles against him were
here proposed and denied. " The
queene, . . . fearyng that some com-
mocion and trouble might rise, if he
were let goe unpunished, caused him
to be committed to the Towre . . . after
that a moneth was expired, she im-
agening the people to be pacified with
this open emprisonment, caused him
both to be delyuered and also to be
restored to the Kinges favour and grace.
. . . But thys doing Incensed the furye
of the mutable commons, muche more
then before. . . . The commons of the
lower house . . . accused as principall
(Anjou and Maine loss) the Duke of
Suffolke, with lohn Bishop of Salis-
bury, and Sir James Fynes, Lord Say,
and others. . . . King Henrye ... to
begin a short pacification . . . se-
questred the Lord Say, beyng treasurer
of England, and other the Dukes ad-
herentes . . . and . . , put in exile the
Duke of Suffolke, for the terme of
fyve yeres . . . meaning ... to re-
uocate hym to his olde estate. But
fortune would not that he should so
escape, for when he was shipped in
Suffolke, entending to be transported
into Fraunce, he was encountered with
a shippe of warre, appertayning to the
Duke of Excester, the Constable of the
Towre of London. [The] capitaine of
the same barke with small fight,
entered into the Dukes shippe, and
perceiuing his person present, brought
him to Douer Rode, & there on the
one syde of a cocke bote, caused his
heade to be striken off, & left his body
with the heade upon the sandes of
Douer, which corps was there founde
by a Chaplayne of his, & conueied
to Wingfelde coUedge in Suffolke,
and there buryed" (Grafton, 639, 640)
(1450).
94. thrust from the crown] An ex-
pression of Peele's in David and
Bcthsabe (467, b) : "I'll thrust the
flattering tyran from his throne." See
note at 3 Henry VI. iii. iii. 190, where
"thrust from" in Q is altered to "put
from."
96. encroaching] Not again in Shake-
speare in any use, and the earliest ex-
ample (? 1593) of the participial adjective
in New Eng. Diet. But it is earlier in
Greene, and similarly placed : " such a
proud busie couetous and incroching
humor " (Quip for an Upstart Courtier,
Grosart, xi. 251). And in G. Harvey,
Pierces Supererogation (Grosart, ii. 52) :
" an infectious bane or an incroching
pocke."
98. half-faced sun] Compare Dray-
ton's enumeration of county devices
at the battle of Agincourt (stanza 68) :
" Suffolk, a sun half-risen from the
brake ; Norfolk, a triton on a dolphin's
back." Malone refers to Camden :
" Edward the third bare for his deuice
the rayes of the sunne dispersing them-
selues out of a cloud, and in other
places a golden trunke of a tree " {Re-
maines concerning Britaine, p. 183, ed.
1623). (Malone never gives full refer-
ences.) Is it not a notable discrepancy
that the captain who speaks here is
Exeter or one of his party, on King
Henry's side ?
sc I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 133
And to conclude, reproach and beggary
Is crept into the palace of our king,
And all by thee. Away ! convey him hence.
Suf. O ! that I were a god, to shoot forth thunder
Upon these paltry, servile, abject drudges. 105
Small things make base men proud : this villain here,
Being captain of a pinnace, threatens more
Than Bargulus the strong Illyrian pirate.
Drones suck not eagles' blood but rob bee-hives.
It is impossible that I should die 1 10
By such a lowly vassal as thyself.
Thy words move rage and not remorse in me :
I go of message from the queen to France ;
I charge thee waft me safely cross the Channel.
Cap. Walter! 115
Whit. Come, Suffolk, I must waft thee to thy death.
Suf. Gelidus timor occupat artus : it is thee I fear.
106-112. this villain . . . remorse in me] 50-53. This villain being bui Captain
of a Pinnais, Threatens more plagjies then mightie Abradas, The great Masa-
donian Pyrate, Thy words addes fury and not remorse in me. 113, 114. I go
. . . from . . . safely . . . Channel'] 37, 38. / am sent Ambassador for . . .
waffe me crosse the channell safe. 115, 116. Cap. Walter! . . . death^^Q-
(half-line) Cap. He waffe thee to thy death. 117. Gelidus . . . fear] omitted Q.
loi. And to conclude] See again 3 tators. This is probably Shakespeare's
Henry VI. 11. v. 47. And in Macbeth, source for the quotation, and no doubt
Much Ado About Nothing, Taming of this was one of the sorest feathers he
the Shrew SLXxdl Henry IV. Thoroughly plucked from Greene. For the occur-
Shakespearian. Used by Kyd also. rence of the passage in Greene is not
105. servile] See note at iv. vii. 14. enough to prove that he wrote this part
A favourite term of Peele's (and Spen- of the Contention, which has no other
ser's). Compare jfack Straw (Hazlitt's resemblance to his style. The very
Dodsley, v. 406) ; " What' tis, a. servile next line, which is not in the Contcn-
slave to brave a king ! " Common in tion, comes much nearer Greene ! I
Kyd. fully expected to find " Abradas " in
108. Bargulus] From Tully's Offices, Primaudaye, towards whom Greene
II. xi. Steevens quotes Dr. Farmer, who acted the " strong pirate," but he is
observes that " Sliakespeare might have still at large. See note at " pirates,"
met with this pirate in two translations, below, iv. ix. 34.
Robert Whytinton, 1533, calls him 109. Drones . . . rob bee-hives] This
Bargulus, a pirate upon the see of bit of folklore occurs twice in Pericles,
Illiry " ; and N. Grimoald : " Bar- and is much older, but I have not noted
gulus, the Illyrian robber." Warburton it in Greene. It is in (T. Bowes) transla-
was the first to point out his where- tion of Primaudaye, but varied : " prac-
abouts. " Bargulus " replaces " the titioners who devoure the substance of
mightie Abradas" of the CoK^t'w^Jo?!, who poore men, as Drones eate up the hony
was first located by Steevens. He be- of Bees " (ch. 62, French Academic) ;
longs to Greene : " Abradas the great and in George Gascoigne (Arber, p. 20),
Macedonian Pirat thought euery one 1577 : " As the Drone the hony hive
had a letter of mart that bare sayles in dooth rob." And in the same form as
ye Ocean " (Penelopes Web, Grosart, v. the last quotation in N. Breton, Pas-
197). These identical words occur again qtiil's Procession, 1600.
in Greene's Afe«a//zow (vi. 77, 78), 1587, 117. Gelidus . . . artus] Steevens
which has not, I think, been noticed ; quotes from Virgil, bk. xi. : " cur ante
certainly not by the early commen- tubam tremor occupat artus ? " which
134 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Whit. Thou shalt have cause to fear before I leave thee.
What ! are ye daunted now ? now will ye stoop ?
First Gent. My gracious lord, entreat him, speak him fair. 120
Suf. Suffolk's imperial tongue is stern and rough,
Used to command, untaught to plead for favour.
Far be it we should honour such as these
With humble suit : no, rather let my head
Stoop to the block than these knees bow to any 125
Save to the God of heaven, and to my king;
And sooner dance upon a bloody pole
Than stand uncovered to the vulgar groom.
True nobility is exempt from fear :
More can I bear than you dare execute. 130
Cap. Hale him away, and let him talk no more.
Suf. Come, soldiers, show what cruelty ye can,
That this my death may never be forgot.
Great men oft die by vile bezonians.
A Roman sworder and banditto slave 135
118-120. Thou shalt . . . him fair'] 62, 63. Cap. Away with him, Water, I
say, and off with his hed. 1 Priso. Good my Lord, intreat him mildly or your
life. 121-130. Suffolk . . . execute] 64-68. First let this necke stoupe to the
axes edge. Before this knee do bow to a7iy, Sane to the God of heauen and to my
king: Siiffolkes imperiall toong cannot plead e To such a ladie groonie. 131,
Cap. Hale him . . . work] 69, 70. Water. Come, come, why do we let him speake.
I long to haue his head for ramisome of mine eye. 132-134. Stif. Came soldiers
. . . bezonians] omitted Q. 135-138. Roman, savage islanders Pompey the
great] 71-73. (these words) omitted Q.
seems to be the nearest known to the pattern of a Senecan line in Kyd's
Suffolk's quotation. But see Mneid, Cornelia (11. i. 297) (Boas) : " true
vii. 446 : " Subitus tremor occupat noblesse never doth the thing it should
artus" (Schmidt). The first Folio has not." Compare Richard II. iv. i. iig,
" Pine " before " gelidus." Malone reads and Titus Andronicus, i. i. 119 and i. i.
" pene." Some unintelligible misprint. 271.
iig. daunted] Only in this Part and 131. Hale] haul. Fishermen in
Part I. The verb is in Taming of the Lough Swilly speak of " haling the
Shreit) and Titus Andronicus, Often in nets" (pronounced "hail").
Spenser and Peele. 134. bezonians] See again in 2 Henry
121. Suffolk's imperial tongue] Per- IV. v. iii. 119. Base fellows, beggars,
haps vain-gloriousness is excusable at Properly besogno, beggar (Italian), and
such a crisis. Shakespeare would not so used by Jonson, Massinger, and Beau-
have used it later. It is very much in mont and Fletcher. Compare Gabriel
Greene's method, who gives "lordly "and Harvey, Fourc Letters (Grosart, i. 208),
" princely " to speakers of themselves. 1592: "the other sorry Magnifico as
127. dance upon a . . . pole] Compare very Bisotiian, as he for hys life." Nashe
Lyly's Pappe with an Hatchet (Preface) : uses the word in Pierce Pcnilesse (Gros-
" Martin beware your gilles, for He art, ii. 86), earlier than Harvey. In
make you daunce at the poles end" Garrard's .i4r^ 0/ H^rtrr^ (1591) the word
(1588-89). occurs in a different sense. " Bisonians
127. pole] More punning? pole, poll, andfresh water soldiers" (S/an/orrf DJc-
and de la Pole. There is plenty about tionary.)
head on a pole in Scene iii. Peele drags 135. A Roman sworder and banditto
some of this very inaptly into Jack slave] " i.e., Nerennius a centurion, and
Straw. See note, line 70. Popilius Laenas, tribune of the soldiers"
129. True nobility . . .] This is after (Steevens). See Plutarch's Lives
SC. I.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
135
Murdered sweet TuUy ; Brutus' bastard hand
Stabbed Julius Caesar; savage islanders
Pompey the Great ; and Suffolk dies by pirates.
\Exeunt Whitmore and others with Suffolk.
Cap. And as for these whose ransom we have set,
It is our pleasure one of them depart : 140
Therefore come you with us and let him go.
\Exeunt all but the First Gentleman.
Re-enter Whitmore, zvith Suffolk's body.
Whit. There let his head and lifeless body lie,
Until the queen his mistress bury it, [Exit.
138. and . . . pirates'] 74. And . . . Pyrates on the seas. Exet Suffolke and
Water. 139-141- Cap. And as . . . let him go] 75-78. Cap. Off with his head
and send it to the Qiieene, And ransotnelesse this prisoner shall go free. To see it
safe deliuered vnto her. Come lets goe. Exet Omnes. 142-147. There . . .
held him dear] omitted Q.
(Cicero). " Sworder" occurs again in
Antony and Cleopatra. " Banditto," in
Contention, is the earliest use known
of this word in English. Nashe has
it several times in The Unfortunate
Traveller (1594), spelt as in F and Q,
bandetto or bandeto (Grosart's Nashe,
118, 125, 176).
135-138. Roman sworder . . . Briitiis
. . . Pompey] These uncouth thoughts
like Bargulus and Sully above, are best
paralleled by the similarly abrupt intro-
ductions in 1 Henry VI. i. ii. (Goliases,
Rowlands, Deborah, Mahomet, Saint
Philip, etc.). We may set them down
as youthful ebullitions of an overflowing
imagination. But they were the vogue.
Nashe is full of such embellishments.
136. Brutus'' bastard hand] Steevens
says " Brutus was the son of Servilia,
a Roman lady, who had been concubine
to Julius Caesar." This does not make
the words in the text true, which they
are not, unless we use " bastard " as
meaning merely "base."
137, 138. savage islanders stabbed
Pompey] Steevens points out this
classical error (not in Contention).
Malone says : " Pompey being killed by
Achillas and Septimius at the moment
that the Egyptian fishing-boat in which
they were reached the coast, and his
head being thrown into the sea [in
North's Plutarch], his mistake does not
appear more extraordinary than," etc.
See Kyd's Cornelia, m. iii. 7-13 (Boas
ed.) :—
" One selfe-same shyp containd us,
when I saw
The murdring Egiptians bereaue
his lyfe . . .
on the strond upon the Riuer
side . . .
1 woave a coffyn."
141. let him go] The captain's last
words in Q, " Come lets goe," are possibly
of interest. This closing tag, to clear
the stage, occurs before (in Q) four
times : p. 34, " come let us go that it
may be performde. Exet omnes " ; 29,
" But come let us go. . . . Exet omnes " ;
p. 25, " the greatest man in England,
but the king. Come lets goe. Exet
omnes." With a word of address, as
"Madam," "Sirs," between "come"
and " let us " it occurs continually, but in
these examples it seems peculiar and I
have not noticed it elsewhere. It should
be looked for at the end of a scene, and
may prove useful for identification.
Probably the expression may be re-
garded as a player's contraction, a
hybrid stage-direction, a form to be
used, ceteris paribus, with the words
needful inserted. Thus, " come, soldiers,
let us go. Exit " (Lodge, Wounds of
Civil War, Hazlitt's Dodsley, vol. vii.
p. 125). See note already at end of 11. ii.
I find "come lets goe" twice in True
Tragedy, at 3 Henry VI. i. ii. (end).
" Come let's go " often is formed into
a whole line with a clause interjected,
as " Come stand not to expostulate lets
go." See note. Part IIL 11. iii. 135.
Marlowe has " Come let j(s go and ban-
quet in our tents" (Tamburlatne, Part
n. I. i. (end of)), which is near.
136 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
First Gent. O barbarous and bloody spectacle !
His body will I bear unto the king : 145
If he revenge it not, yet will his friends ;
So will the queen, that living held him dear.
{Exit with the body.
SCENE \\.—Blackheath.
Enter GEORGE Bevis and John Holland.
Geo. Come, and get thee a sword, though made of a lath :
they have been up these two days.
John. They have the more need to sleep now then.
Geo. I tell thee, Jack Cade the clothier means to dress the
commonwealth, and turn it, and set a new nap upon 5
it.
John. So he had need, for 'tis threadbare. Well, I say it
was never merry world in England since gentlemen
came up.
Geo. O miserable age ! Virtue is not regarded in handi- 10
craftsmen.
Enter George Bevis . . .] Enter two of the Rebels with long stanes. i, 2.
Geo. Come . , . they . . . rfoys] 1-3. Geo. Come away Nick, ajid ptit along staff e
in thy pike, and proiiide thy selfe, for I Can tell thee, they . . . this two daies.
3. John. They . . then] 4, 5. Niche. Then they had more need to go to bed now,
But sirrha George whats the matter ? 4-6. / tell thee . . . and . . . ^ipon it]
6, 7. Wliy sirrha, lack Cade the Diar of Ashford here, He meanes to turne this
land, and . . . on it. 7-g. So . . . came up] 8, 9. / marry he had need so,
for tis growne threedbare, Twas never merry zvorld with us, since these geritle men
came up. 10, 11. Geo. O miserable . . . handicraftsmen] omitted Q.
I. sword . . . of lath] See note at ment belongs to the earlier rebellion in
" latten bilbo" {Merry Wives of Wind- Richard Il.'s time. See note, line 68,
sor, I. i. 165, Arden edition, p. 18) for below. And in Jack Straw (Hazlitt's
references. Dodsley, v. 382) : —
4. jfack Cade] See note at "John " But mem/>' with the world it went.
Cade of Ashford," above, in. i. 361-375. When men ate berries of the haw-
Rolfe quotes from the Issue Roll 29 thorn-tree."
Henry VL the certificate of 1,000 marks 9. came up] came into fashion. No
paid to Iden, wherein is: "John Cade, example in Shakespeare. Jonson has it
an Irishman, calling himself lohn Mor- in Every Man out of his Humour in
teymer." Brisk's famous duel : " I had on a gold
5-7. set a new nap . . . threadbare] cable hatband then new come up, which
Compare Lyly's Endymion, v. ii. : " in I wore about a murrey French hat."
your love you have worne the nappe of And Grafton, Continuation of Hardyng,
your wit quite off and made it thread- 1543 (437) : " so that in hys tyme thys
bare" (Fairholt, p. 71, 1591). For kinde of coyne f a«z£ t</>."
" sirrha" here, in Contention, see below, 9. up] up in arms. See 1 Henry IV.
line 96, note. iii. ii. 120; 2 Henry IV. 1. i. 189;
j-g. it was never merry ... since gentle- Richard III. iv. iv. 530, and several
men came up] See Measure for Measttre, times agam in this play. An expres-
III. ii. 6, and note in Arden edition, pp. sion of Peele's (?) in jack Straw, of the
76, 77. The saying is also found in earlier rebellion : " The Commons now
Twelfth Night, and seems to have been are iip in Kent" (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v.
first levelled at Cardinals. The senti- 385). See Introduction.
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
137
John. The nobility think scorn to go in leather
aprons.
Geo. Nay, more ; the king's council are no good work-
men. 1 5
John. True ; and yet it is said, labour in thy vocation :
which is as much to say as, let the magistrates be
labouring men ; and therefore should we be magis-
trates,
Geo. Thou hast hit it; for there's no better sign of a 20
brave mind than a hard hand.
Johi. I see them! I see them! There's Best's son, the
tanner of Wingham, —
Geo. He shall have the skins of our enemies to make dog's-
leather of. 25
John. And Dick the butcher, —
Geo. Then is sin struck down like an ox, and iniquity's
throat cut like a calf.
John. And Smith the weaver, —
Geo. Argo, their thread of life is spun. 30
John. Come, come ; let 's fall in with them.
12, 13. jfohn. The nobility . . . aprons] lo, ii. Geo. I warrant thee, Thou
skalt neicer see a Lord weare a leather aperne now a-daies. 14-21. Geo. Nay, more
. . . hard hand] omitted Q. 22-31. John. I see them . . . with them] 12-19.
Nick. But sirrha, who comes more beside lack Cade ? Geo. Why theres Dicke the
Butcher and Robin the Saddler, and Will that came a wooing to our Nan last
Sunday, and Harry and Tom, and Gregory that should haue your Parnill, and a
great sort more is come from Rochester and from Maydstone, and Canterbury and
all the Townes here about, and we must all be Lords or squires assoone as lack
Cade is King. Nicke. Harke, harke, I here the Drum, they be comming.
12. think scorn] See Love's Labour 's
Lost, I. ii, 60, and note, Arden edition,
p. 21.
12, 13. leather aprons] The wear of
many sorts of mechanics and workmen,
waiters, barbers and others. See 2
Henry IV. 11, ii. 189, and jfulius Casar,
I, i, 7. Compare Thomas Brewer's
(prose) Merry Devil of Edmonton (re-
print, 1631, p. 13), 1608 : " A hard
handed laborer, a poore leathern apron-
wearer."
16. labour in thy vocation] See 1
Henry IV. i. ii, 117. And in Nashe,
An Almond for a Parrot, 1589 : " What
would he doe . , . if he had two good
legges that will thus bestirre himself in
his vocation with one,"
17. as much to say as] Usually "as
much as to say," which occurs in Comedy
of Errors, Much Ado About Nothing,
Twelfth Night and several other plays,
meaning " in other words."
18. labouring men] Compare Peele,
Old Wives Tale (453, b) ; " Go get you
in, you labouring slaves."
24, 25. dog's-leather] for gloves. Com-
pare Ben Jonson, Gipsies Metamorposed:
"And I (lost) my knife and sheath, and
my fine dog's leather gloves." One of
Meercraft's projects in The Devil is an
Ass, is of dressing dog's skins for which
the king's glover offered him nine
thousand pounds. See Introduction to
Love's Labour's Lost, Arden edition,
p. xxxii,
30. Argo] corrupt for ergo. Nares
gives a quotation from the play. Sir
Thomas Moore {circa 1565) (ed, Shaks,
Soc, Dyce). Compare "argal," Hamlet,
V. i. 13. Craig refers to Middleton,
The PhceniX; iv. iii.
30, thread of life is spun] Compare
1 Henry VI. i. i, 34 (see note), and
Pericles, i, ii. 108, Two expressions
are comprised here : " O wife, I have
spun a fair thread" (Locrine, 11. ii.).
The latter is very common and older.
138 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Drum. Enter Cade, Dick Butcher, Smith the Weaver^ and a
Sawyer, with infinite numbers.
Cade. We John Cade, so termed of our supposed
father, —
Dick. [Aside.] Or rather, of stealing a cade of her-
rings. 35
Cade. For our enemies shall fall before us, inspired with
the spirit of putting down kings and princes, — Com-
mand silence.
Dick. Silence!
Cade. My father was a Mortimer, — 40
Dick. [Aside to line 62,] He was an honest man, and a good
bricklayer.
Cade. My mother a Plantagenet, —
Dick. I knew her well ; she was a midwife.
Cade. My wife descended of the Lacies, — 45
Dick. She was, indeed, a pedlar's daughter, and sold
many laces.
Smith. But now of late, not able to travel with her furred
pack, she washes bucks here at home.
Cade. Therefore am I of an honourable house. 50
Dick. Ay, by my faith, the field is honourable, and there
Drum. Enter Cade . . .] Enter lacke Cade, Dicke Btitcher, Rohin, Will, Tern,
Harry and the rest, with long staues. 32, 33. Cade. We . . . father'] 22. Cade.
I John Cade so named for my valiancie. 34, 35. Dick. Or . . . herrings'] 23.
Dicke. Or rather for stealing of . . , sprats. 36, 37. For . . . princes] omitted
Q. 37. Command] 20. Proclahne. 39. Dick. Silence I] 21. All. Silence.
40-42, 43 and 45. My mother . . . Lacies] 26. My mother came of the Erases
{Lacies Q 3). 44. I knew her] omitted Q. 46, 47. She . . . laces] 27. She
. . . lases {indeed after daughter, spoken by Will). 48, 49. Smith. But . . .
home] 28, 29. Robi)i. And now being not able to occupie her furd packe. She washeth
buckes up and doitne the countrie. 50. am I] 30. / am. 51. Dick. Ay . . .
honourable] 31. Harry. I for the . . . honourable. 51-53' cind there was he
. . . never a house . . . cage] 31, 32. for he was . . . no house . . . cage.
34, 35. cade of herrings] Compare (Johnson). Another name-pun like Pool,
Nashe, Lenten Stuffe (v. 301) : " The re- Suffocate, Main and Lacie.
bel Jack Cade was the first that deuised 46, 47. sold . . . laces] Compare the
to put redde herrings in cades, and from pedlar's song in Winter's Tale, iv. iv.
hym they haue their name." Nashe 322.
is not to be taken seriously. See 48. furred] made of fur. Nashe has
Arnold's Chronicle {circa 1519) (p. 263, "furred night-cap" similarly (Grosart,
edited 1811): " xx. cades rede hering i. 181). Made of skin with the hair
is a last, v. c. in a cade, vi. score iiij. outward, as was formerly common. See
heringis for the c." The term (a small Boswell's note in Malone's Shakespeare,
barrel) was used of sprats also. At xviii. 296 (Halliwell).
the same reference is: "The drifte 49. bucks] linen for washing. On
sprottis is the best ; x. cades maketh this word see Merry Wives of Windsor,
a last, xij. c. in every cade.'" iii. iii. 2, note, Arden edition, p. 126.
■^b. fall before us] "He alludes to ^i. field] Referring to heraldic field,
his name Cade from cado (Lat.), to fall " field of war.
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 139
was he born, under a hedge ; for his father had never
a house but the cage.
Cade. Valiant I am.
Smith. A' must needs, for beggary is vaHant. 55
Cade. I am able to endure much.
Dick. No question of that, for I have seen him whipped
three market-days together.
Cade. I fear neither sword nor fire.
Smith. He need not fear the sword, for his coat is of 60
proof.
Dick. But methinks he should stand in fear of fire, being
burnt i' the hand for stealing of sheep.
Cade. Be brave then ; for your captain is brave, and vows
reformation. There shall be in England seven half- 65
penny loaves sold for a penny ; the three-hooped pot
54' 55' Valiant . . . is valiant] omitted Q. 56. I . . . much] 34. I . . .
much. 57, 58. No . . . that, for . . . three . . . together] 34, 35. George.
That's true, I know he can endjire anything. For . . . two . . . togither (printed
as verse, also 28, 29 above), 59-6i. I fear . . . Smith. He . . . proof] 36, 37.
I fear . . . IVilL He . . . proof. 62, 63. Stand in fear of . . . burnt i' . . .
sheep] 38, 39. feare the . . . so often burnt in . . . sheep. 64, 65. 5« . . .
then; for . . . reformation] 40, 41. Therefore be brave, for . . . reformation.
65, 66. There . . . England seven . . . penny] 41, 42. You shall haue seuen . . .
(omit sold) penny. 66. the three] and the three.
53. cage] prison, quad, jug, lock-up. Com^diXe Two Angry Women of Abing-
" We yet talk of jail-bird " (Malone). rfoH (Hazlitt's Dodsley, vii. 383) : —
Compare ^^ cage of rushes," As You "Nor that same hiss that by a fire
Like It, III. ii. 389. doth stand
55' beggary is valiant] Perhaps a And hisseth T or F upon the hand."
reference to the old proverb (from Beaumont and Fletcher's Night-
Juvenal) " Cantabit vacuus coram Walker, iii. 6 (Dyce, xi. 175) : " Was
latrone viator"; translated by Peele, never thieves and robberies; Here is no
" A man purse-pennilesse may sing sindge in her hands, warrant her " ;
before a thief . . . which makes me and Henry Hutton, Folies Anatomy : —
so pertly pass through these thickets " " Once burnt i' the hand he will
(Edward I. (401, a)). The term " valiant example give
beggar" (sturdy beggar) is of later date. To such base turncoats as by
The word "valiant" itself though so turncoats live."
common in Shakespeare was a hardly See Flaistrir, Cotgrave. " Buzzed in
familiar loan from the French. See the fist," at a later date.
Lyly's Campaspe, v. ii. (Fairholt, p. 66. three-hooped pot] Nashe, after
141) ; but it is in the chronicler Hall, telling the well-known yarn (from
Is this akin to the mysterious Nashe- Grafton) of King Edgar's setting pins
Kyd " bloud is a begger " in the Epistle in the cups and making it a penalty to
to il/ewa//«ow? (Grosart's Greene, vi. 15). drink beyond chem, says: "And, if
60, 61. coat . . . of proof] tested, re- Stories were well searcht, I beleeue
liable. Peele has the expression in Da^^jf/ hoopes in quart pots were inuented to
and Bethsabe: "He puts on armour oihis that ende, that euery man should take
honour's/rao/" (Dyce, 465, a). "Targe his hoope and no more" (Pierce Peni-
of proof" is in Soliman and Perseda. lesse (Grosart, ii. 80), 1592). This was
" Armour of proof " is in Tambiirlaine, written later than the Contention. Cade
Part n. I. iii. means that for a quart he will get over
63. burnt V the hand for stealing] three quarts, just as for the penny loaf
branded with the letter T for thief, he will get more than three loaves. He
140 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv
shall have ten hoops ; and I will make it felony to
drink small beer. All the realm shall be in common,
and in Cheapside shall my palfrey go to grass. And
when I am king, as king I will be, — • 70
All. God save your majesty !
Cade. I thank you, good people: there shall be no
money; all shall eat and drink on my score; and I
will apparel them all in one livery, that they may
agree like brothers, and worship me their lord. 75
Dick. The first thing we do, let 's kill all the lawyers.
Cade. Nay, that I mean to do. Is not this a lamentable
thing, that of the skin of an innocent lamb should .
be made parchment ? that parchment, being scribbled
o'er, should undo a man ? Some say the bee stings ; 80
but I say, 'tis the bee's wax, for I did but seal once to
a thing, and I was never mine own man since. How
now ! who 's there ?
67. hoops ; and . . . it felony] 42, 43. hoopes, and it shall be felony, 67-69.
to . . . beer. All the . . . go to grass] 43. to . . . beer {All the . . . go to grass
omitted Q). 69, 70. And when I am . . . be] 43. And if I be . , . be. 71,
72. God. . , people] 44, 45. God . . . people. 72, 73. there . . . nioiiey ; all
shall . . . on . . . score] 45, 46. you shall all . . . of . . . score. 73, 74. and
. . . livery] 46. and go all in my liuerie. 74-83. that they may . . . who's
there?] 46-54. And iveele haue no writing, but the score & the Tally, and there
shal be no laives but such as comes from my mouth. Dicke. We shall have sore
lawes then, for he was thrust itito the motith the other day. George. I and
stinking law too, for his breath stinks so, that one cannot abide it (for 47-52 here,
see below, Sc. vii. 6-11 ; and for 77-82, see vii. 8, 9).
is quite logical in his ideas. Compare common, and that there be no Villeynes
Dekker's Guls Horn-Booke : " How to nor gentlemen, but that we be all as
take . . . the Englishman's healthes, his one, and that the Lordes be no greater
hoopes, cans, halfecans . . . qualities of than we be" (Grafton, 417, 418). This
the truest tospots " (Grosart, ii. 206); " lewde company lay on Blackheth" like-
and The Wonderfull Yeare : " Most wise. See note at " poor at gate," x.
valiant robpots . . . strooke downe only 23. And Jack Straw (382): —
with two hoopes (quantity up to second " it were better to have this
hoop)." Hunter's " hoop " is also men- community,
tioned. Than to have this difference in
68. small beer] See again 2 Henry degrees."
IV. II. ii. 8, 13 ; and Othello, 11. i. 161. 76. kill all the lawyers] See vii. i,
Compare Nashe again : " Wherein . . . note.
was but one single kilderkin of small 81. seal] sign or agree to a mortgage
beere, that wold make a man, with a or bond of some ruinous nature. Com-
carrouse of a spooneful, runne through pare Ben Jonson, Every Man in His
an Alphabet of faces. Nor vsd they any Humour, 11. iii. : "Bait 'em with the
glasses or cups (as other men) but onely young chambermaid to seal " ; and
little farthing ounce boxes" {Pierce Peni- Alchemist, 11. i. : " the young heir that
lesse, p. 25). must Seal at all hours in his shirt." See
68. All . . . shall be in common] " burn all the records " (vii. 16).
From John Wall's rebellion, 1380- 82. never mine own man since] An
1381 : " A good people, matters go not old phrase meaning " never master of
wel to passe in England in these dayes, myself since. " Nares gives a quotation
nor shall not do vntill euerything be (" Terence MS."), " He is his owne
sc. u.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
141
Enter some, bringing forward the Clerk of Chatham.
Smith. The clerk of Chatham : he can write and read and
cast accompt, 85
Cade. O monstrous !
Smith. We took him setting of boys' copies.
Cade. Here 's a villain !
Smith. Has a book in his pocket with red letters
in 't. 90
Cade. Nay, then he is a conjurer.
Dick. Nay, he can make obligations, and write court-
hand.
Cade. I am sorry for 't : the man is a proper man, of
mine honour; unless I find him guilty, he shall not 95
die. Come hither, sirrah, I must examine thee.
What is thy name ?
Clerk. Emmanuel.
Enter Will with the Clarke of Chatham. Will. Oh Captaine a pryze. Cade.
Whose that Will ? 84, 85. Smith. The Clerk . . . accompt] 55, 56. Will. The
Clarke . . . account. 87 and 89, 90. We took . . . Has a book . . . letters in't]
56, 57. (continued to Dick's speech, 55) / tooke . . . and hee has . . . letters
(in't omitted). 86 and 88. O . . . villain] omitted Q. 91-98. Cade. Nay,
then . . . Clerk. Emmanuel] 58-60, Cade. Sonnes, hee's a conjurer bring him
hither. Now sir, whafs your name ? Clarke. Emmanuel sir, and it shall please you.
man ; lie liveth as he list ; he is under
no man's controlment," which exactly
defines it. Compare Golding's Ovid : —
" Achimenides, his owne man
freely now,
And not forgrowen as one forlorne "
(xiv. 195, ig6). See too Ben Jonson's
Alchemist, iv. iii., when Face has lost
his wits or is beside himself : " I ne'er
must hope to be mine own man again."
87, boys' copies] Compare Love's
Labour 's Lost, v. ii. 42 : " Fair as a
text B in a copy-book." One of the
standard words to practise letters on
was till a recent date, Emmanuel. I
incline to think that it is the reference
at 1. 98, in spite of the " fourteen private
(undated) epistles."
92, 93. court-hand] " Used in the
law-courts from the i6th century till
George II., when it was abolished by
statute " (Craig). Compare Brome,
Northern Lasse, in. ii. (Pearson, vol.
iii. p. 59) : " Alas, Sir, that a fair hand
should make such blots ! vv'hat hand
is it ? Secretarie, Roman, Court, or
Text ? I have not seen the like : 'tis
all dominical letters, red ink." Dapper,
the lawyer's clerk in }onson's Alchemist,
says (i. i.) : " By this hand of flesh,
Would it might never write good court-
hand more, If I discover."
96. sirrah] Generally used by a
superior to an inferior. In Shake-
speare's later work, a master says it
to his page, as in Merry Wives of
Windsor. There is an opposition to
this tendency in the Contention, where
in the beginning of Scene ii, " sirrha "
occurs three times in half a dozen
lines, amongst equals. Of course this
repetition had to be corrected, so all
three were omitted, and this is the first
appearance of the word. Yet the be-
ginning of that scene is Shakespeare's
own work.
98. Emmanuel] Formerly prefixed
to letters, deeds, etc., to convey the
impression of piety. Staunton says :
" We can refer to one MS. alone in
the British Museum (Add. MSS.
19,400), which contains no less than
fourteen private epistles headed Emane-
well or Jesus Immanuel." It was used
also on royal seals. Steevens quotes
from The Famous Victories of Henry
V. : " Under our broad seal Emanuel."
See above, however (for a doubt), at
" copies," 1. 87. The evidence is in-
sufficient.
142 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Dick. They use to write it on the top of letters. 'Twill go
hard with you. lOO
Cade. Let me alone. Dost thou use to write thy name,
or hast thou a mark to thyself, like an honest plain-
dealing man ?
Clerk. Sir, I thank God I have been so well brought up
that I can write my name. 105
All. He hath confessed : away with him ! he 's a villain
and a traitor.
Cade. Away with him ! I say : hang him with his pen and
ink-horn about his neck, {^Exeunt one with the Clerk.
Enter MICHAEL.
Mich. Where 's our general ? i lO
Cade. Here I am, thou particular fellow.
Mich. Fly, fly, fly ! Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother
are hard by, with the king's forces.
Cade. Stand, villain, stand, or I '11 fell thee down. He
shall be encountered with a man as good as himself: 115
he is but a knight, is a' ?
Mich. No.
Cade. To equal him, I will make myself a knight presently.
{^Kneels^ Rise up Sir John Mortimer. Now have at
him! 120
gg, 100. They use to . . . 'Twill . . . you] 6i, 62. It will go . . . you, I
can tell you, For they use to . . . that oth top of letters. 101-103. Let me . . .
man] 63-65. Atid what do you vse to write your name ? Or do you as auncicnt
forefathers have done, Vse the score and the Tally? (written as verse, also 58,
5g, and 61, 62). 104, 105. Clerk. Sir, I thank . . . my name] 56, 67. Clarke.
Nay, true sir, I praise . . . mine owne name. 106, 107. All. He hath , . .
traitor] omitted Q. 108, log. Away . . . neck] 6S,6g. Oh hes confest, gohang
him with his penny-inckhornc about his necke (Q 3 reads pen and inkhorne).
Exet one with the Clarke. Enter Tom. 110-113. Mich. Whereas . . . king's
forces] 70, 71. Tom. Captainc, Newes, newes, sir Humphrey Stafford and his
brother are camming with the king's power, and mean to kil vs all. 114-116.
Stand . . . knight is a' ?] 72. Let them come, hees but a knight is he? 117.
Mich. No] 73. Tom. No, no, hees but a knight. 118, iig. To ... a knight
presently] 74. Why then to . . . knight. iig, 120. [Kneels] Rise up . . . at
102, 103. plain-dealing] See note in ink-horn at his back for he would be
Love's Labour's Lost, iw'ni.-i&J (hxAen known to be bookish" (reprint, 29).
edition). 118. make myself a knight] Similarly
108, 109. pen and ink-horn] In 1381 in yack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v.
the rebels, " if they found any to haue 383) Wat Tyler says; " We'll be lords,
pen and inke they pulled off his hoode, my masters, everyone."
and all with one voice of crying, 119. jfohn Mortimer] Hall gives
'Hale him out, and cut off his head'" Cade's rebellion at considerable length,
(Stow : quoted by Boswell Stone). And followed by Grafton. The dialogues are
see below, iv. vii. 33-37. Compare however original in matter and manner,
Laneham's Letter, 1575 : " a pen and and entirely Shakespeare's, both in this
SC. II.]
KING HENRY THE SIXTH
143
Enter Sir Humphrey Stafford, and his brother, with
drum and soldiers.
Staf. Rebellious hinds, the filth and scum of Kent,
Marked for the gallows, lay your weapons down ;
Home to your cottages, forsake this groom :
The king is merciful, if you revolt.
Bro. But angry, wrathful, and inclined to blood, 125
If you go forward : therefore yield, or die.
Cade. As for these silken-coated slaves, I pass not :
It is to you, good people, that I speak,
hint] 75-80. Kneele downe lohn Mortemer, Rise vp sir lohn Mortemcr. Is there
any more of them that be Knights? Tom. I his brother. He knights Dickc
Batcher. Cade. Then kneele doune Dicke Butcher, Rise vp sir Dicke Butcher.
Noiv sound vp the Drumme. Enter . . . souldiers (as above, and Ff). 121-124.
Staf. Rebellious . . . r^wo/i] 83-85. Stafford. Why, country-men, what meane you
thus in troupes. To follow this rebellious Traitor Cade? Why his father was but
a Brick-laier. 125, 126. Bro. But . . . die] omitted Q. 127, 128. Cade. As
. . . pass not : It is . . . speak] 81, 82. Cade. As . . . passe not a pinne, Tis
. . . speake.
play and in the original Contention.
Of that there can be no doubt, and
it affords food for reflection. The
previous scene is also Shakespeare's.
Grafton says here : " This Capteine
[Jack Cade who named himselfe lohn
Mortimer] not only suborned by teachers,
but also enforced by priuie Schole-
maisters assembled together a great
company of tall personages ; assuryng
them that their attempt was both honour-
able to God and the king and also profit-
able to the common wealth, promisyng
them, that if either by force or poUicy
they might once take the king, the
Queene, and other their Counsaylors
. . . they would honourably entreat the
king, and so sharply handle his Coun-
saylors, that neither fiftenes should
hereafter be demaunded, nor once any
imposicions or tax should be spoken of.
These perswasions, with many other
fayre promises ... so animated the
Kentishe people, that they . . . came
to the plain of Blackheath ... he
[Jack Cade] . . . sent to him [the King]
an humble supplication with louyng
wordes, but with malicious entent . . .
This prowde Bill was both of the King
and his Counsayle disdeinefully taken
... it was concluded that such prowde
rebelles should rather be suppressed . . .
Whereupon the king assembled a great
army; & marched toward them which
had been on black Heath by the space
of vij. dayes . . . lack Cade . . . brake
up his campe and retyred backeward
to the towne of Sevenock . . . The
Queene, which bare the rule . . . sent
syr Humprey Stafforde knight, and
Wylliam his brother with many other
Gentlemen, to follow the chace of the
Kentishmen ... at the first skyrmishe
both the Staffordes were slaine, and all
their companie shamefully discomfited "
(640, 641). See Grafton, 418-426, for
John Wall, Wat Tyler and Jack Straw.
And see note at " inns of court," scene
vii. 1. I.
121. sctim of Kent] Marlowe has
" cruel pirates of Argier . . . the scum
of Africa " {Tambnrlaine, Part I. iii. iii.
(22, a)). See Richard III. v. iii. 317.
122. Marked for the gallows] Com-
pare The Tempest, i. i. 31 : " He hath
no drowning mark upon him : his com-
plexion is perfect galloivs." For this
view of the rebels, see Introduction, and
compare Iden's last speech in this Act.
124. revolt^ return. The last sense
in Cotgrave of " revolter " : " also, to re-
turn, or make a new turn." Compare
Golding's Ovid, x. 68: "And then
revolted too the place in which he had
her found." Turn over a new leaf.
127. //ass wo^] I care not. Compare
Greene's Alphonsus (Grosart, xiii. 342) :
" Who ere it be, I do not passe a pinne."
Commoner with prepositions " of" or
"for." New Eng. Diet, has references
to Udall's Erasmus, and others, earlier.
The Contention reading here is "passe
not a pinne." In Tambnrlaine, Part I.
I. i.
144 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
O'er whom in time to come I hope to reign ;
For I am rightful heir unto the crown. 130
Staf. Villain ! thy father was a plasterer ;
And thou thyself a shearman, art thou not?
Cade. And Adam was a gardener.
Bro. And what of that ?
Cade. Marry, this: Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March, 135
Married the Duke of Clarence' daughter, did he not ?
Staf. Ay, sir.
Cade. By her he had two children at one birth.
Bro. That's false.
Cade. Ay, there 's the question ; but I say, 'tis true. 140
The elder of them, being put to nurse,
Was by a beggar-woman stol'n away ;
And, ignorant of his birth and parentage,
Became a bricklayer when he came to age :
His son am I ; deny it if you can. 145
Dick. Nay, 'tis too true ; therefore he shall be king.
Smith. Sir, he made a chimney in my father's house, and
the bricks are alive at this day to testify it ; therefore
deny it not.
129, 130. O'cY whom . . . crown\ omitted Q. 131, 132. Staf. Villain !
. . . not?] omitted (see 85 above) Q. 133, 134. And . . . that?] 86. Cade.
Well, and Adam was a gardner, what then? (no speech credited to Brother).
iSSi 136. Cade. Marry, this . . . he not ?] go, 91. For looke you, Roger Mortemer
the Earle of March, Maried the Duke of Clarence daughter. 137, 138.
Staf. Ay, sir. Cade. By . . . birth] 92, 93. Stafford. Well that's trite: But
what then? Cade. And by ... a birth. 139-145. Bro. That's false.
Cade. Ay, there's . . . deny . . . can] g^-gg. Stafford. That's false. Cade. I,
but I say, tis true. All. Why then tis true. Cade. And one of them was stolne
away by a beggar woman. And that was my father, and I am his sonne. Deny it
and you can. 146-149. Dick. Nay . . . King omitt. Sir . . . not] 100-102.
Dicke. Nay looke you, I know twas true, For his father built a chimney in my
fathers house, and . . , to testife,
132. shearman] one who sheared the though you know not me ; are you
woollen cloth in manufacturing it. not the man, sir, deny it if you can,
" The Shermen " were one of the sir, that came from a strange place."
trades who acted in the Chester Plays Perhaps from a song.
(p. 7) ; but they are not included in 148. bricks alive . , . to testify it]
Stowe's list of guilds. " Scharman, or An ancient bit of humour to seal up
scherman, Tonsor, attonsor, tonsarius " a figment with. " If you don't believe
(Prompt. Parvulorum, Way). my word, the bricks," etc. Compare
133. Adam] " Why should we be Golding's Ovid, viii. 902-905 : —
thus kept in servitude and bondage ? " The Phrygians in that park
We be all come from one father and Doo at this present day still shew
one mother, Adam and Eve" (Grafton, the trees that shaped were
p. 418 {1380-1381)). See note, iv. ii. Of theyr twoo bodies, growing yit
119. And yack Strarv {Ha.z]itt's Dods- togither joyntly there,
ley, v. 381) : " When Adam delved and These things did auncient men re-
Eve span," etc. port of credit uerie good.
145. deny it if you can] A stereo- For why there was no cause why
typed expression. Compare Peele's Old they should lye."
Wives Tale (455, b) : "I know you,
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 145
Staf. And will you credit this base drudge's words, 1 50
That speaks he knows not what ?
All. Ay, marry, will we ; therefore get ye gone.
Bro. Jack Cade, the Duke of York hath taught you this.
Cade. [Aside.] He lies, for I invented it myself Go to,
sirrah; tell the king from me, that for his father's 155
sake, Henry the Fifth, in whose time boys went to
span-counter for French crowns, I am content he
shall reign ; but I '11 be protector over him.
Dick. And furthermore, we'll have the Lord Say's head
for selling the dukedom of Maine. 160
Cade. And good reason ; for thereby is England mained
and fain to go with a staff, but that my puissance
holds it up. Fellow kings, I tell you that that Lord
Say hath gelded the commonwealth and made it an
eunuch; and more than that, he can speak French ; 165
and therefore he is a traitor,
Sla/. O gross and miserable ignorance !
150-152. Staf. And . . . All. Ay, marry . . , gone] omitted Q. 153, 154.
Bro. Jack . . . Cade. He . . . myself] 88, 89. Stafford. I, the Duke . . . You
that. Cade. The Duke of York, nay, I learnt it myselfe. 154-158. Goto . ...
over him] 103-106. Cade. But doest thou heare Stafford, tell the King, that for
his fathers sake, in whose time boyes plaide at spatme-cotmter with Frenche
Crownes, I am content that hee shall be King as long as he lives Marry alwaies
provided. He be Protector ouer him. 159-166. Dick. And . . . Maine. Cade.
And good . . . traitor] 108-114. Cade. And tell him, weele haue the Lord Sayes
head, and the Duke of Somersets, for deliuering up the Dukedomcs of Anioy and
Mayne, and selling the Townes in France, by which meanes England hath bene
maimde euer since, and gone as it were with a crouch, but that my pidssance
held it vp And besides they can speake French and therefore they are traitors.
Stafford. As how I prethie ? 167. Staf. O . . . ignorance!] 107. Stafford. O
monstroxis simplicitie.
151. speaks he knows tiot what] Com- {The Fleise, Act iv. by E. Sharpham).
pare Chapman (?), Two Wise Men, 11. See Nares and Strutt's Sports and Pas-
i. {Minor Poems, p. 390), 1619 : " You times. In Kirkman's English Rogue,
talk you know not what." And Peele, iv. 121 (1680), it is called " span-
Edward I. (Dyce, 413, a) :— farthing."
" Bereav'd her sense and memory at 159. Lord Say's head] See extract
once, from Grafton at "Anjou and Maine,"
So that she spoke she ktiew nor iv. i. 86.
how nor what." 160, 161. Maine . . . mained] See i.
See below in Q: "You did take in i. 211 for more quibbling on "Maine."
hand you know not ivhat " (in Scene ix.) Malone quotes from Daniel's Civil
153. York hath taught you] See note Wars, 1595 : " Anjou and Maine, the
at Scene x. 1. i. maim that foul appears." " Main " was
157. span-counter] A game similar to an accepted early form or spelling of
pitch and toss, as played nowadays. " maim."
Very often mentioned and popular with 163. Fellow kings] In Marlowe's
pages and such-like. Dekker and Web- Tamburlaine, Part II. i. iii. : " Loving
ster mention it in Northward Ho (Pear- friends and fellow -kitigs."
son, iii. 10), with a quibble on the counter 164. gelded the commotiwealth] Corn-
prison: '' lie go to spa7tcounter with a.ny pare Love's Labour's Lost, u. i. 149,
page in Europe for his best garters " and see note, Arden edition.
10
146 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Cade. Nay, answer if you can : the Frenchmen are our
enemies ; go to then, I ask but this : can he that
speaks with the tongue of an enemy be a good coun- 1 70
seller, or no ?
All. No, no ; and therefore we '11 have his head.
Bro. Well, seeing gentle words will not prevail.
Assail them with the army of the king.
Staf. Herald, away; and throughout every town 175
Proclaim them traitors that are up with Cade ;
That those which fly before the battle ends
May, even in their wives' and children's sight.
Be hanged up for example at their doors.
And you that be the king's friends, follow me. 180
\Exeunt the two Staffords and Forces.
Cade. And you that love the commons, follow me.
Now show yourselves men ; 'tis for liberty.
We will not leave one lord, one gentleman :
Spare none but such as go in clouted shoon,
168-171. Cade. Nay . . . or no P'l 115-118. Cade. Why the French men are
our enemies he they not ? And then can hee that speakes with the tongue of an
enemy be a good subject? Anstsjer me to that. 172-174. All. No . . . head.
Bro. Well . . , king] 1 19-124. Stafford. Well sirrha, wilt thou yeeld thy selfe
vnto the Kings mercy, and he will pardon thee and these their outrages and
rebellious deeds ? Cade. Nay, bid the King come to me and he will, and then He
pardon him, or otherwayes He hatie his Crowne tell him, ere it be long. 175-180.
Staf. Herald . . . follow me] 125-127. Stafford. Go Herald, proclaime in all the
Kings Townes, That those that will forsake the Retell Cade, Shall haue free
pardon from his Maiesiie. Exet Stafford and his men. 181-189. Cade. And
you . . .forward!] 128. Cade. Come sirs. Saint George for us and Kent. Exet
omnes.
169. I ask but this] "Answeremeto Richard III. in. iv. 81: "The rest
that," the reading in Q, is paralleled by that love me, rise and follow me."
"Answer me to what I ask you," Mac- And Peele, Battle of Alcazar, iv. ii.
beth, IV. i. 60; and see 1 Henry IV. n. (435, b) : "And they that love my
iii. 88. It may be regarded as a special honour follow me." And see the fol-
idiom ; but " me " is perhaps merely lowing line in confirmation of the
superfluous. formula. And Marlowe, Tamburlaine,
174. Assail . . . with] Compare Cyw- Part II. i. iii. : " If thou wilt love the
beline, 11. iii. 44. And Peele, Edward wars and follow me."
I.: "My dreadful soul, assaiVd with 182. 'tis for liberty] This was the cry,
doleful speech " (Dyce, 413, b). See or part of it, in the villeins' rebellion
note at " overborne," Part I. 11. v. 10. (1381) ; " Now we be gotten together,
179. hanged up] So in Spanish we will have wealth and liberty. [Cry
Tragedy, 11. v. 10 : "A man hang'd all : Wealth and liberty.] King. . . .
up and all the murderers gone." And as I am your true-succeeding prince
in Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part II. v. ... You shall have liberty and pardon
i. (68, b) : " Take them and hang them all " (Jack Straw (v. 399)).
both up presently." 184, clouted shoon] came to be a
i8o. And you . . . friends, follow me] name for boors or country bumpkins.
This line is a sort of standing dish " Where is more craft than in the
where there is trouble. Compare 3 clouted shoen " {Mirror for Magistrates,
Henry VI. iv. i. 123: "You that love 1563 [New Eng. Diet.)). And Greene's
me and Warwick, follow me " ; and Quippe for an Upstart Courtier
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 147
For they are thrifty honest men, and such 185
As would, but that they dare not, take our parts.
Dick. They are all in order, and march toward us.
Cade. But then are we in order when we are most out of
order. Come : march ! forward ! \Exeunt.
SCENE \\\.— Another Part of Blackheath.
Alarums to the fight, wherein both the Staffords are slain.
Enter Cade and the rest.
Cade. Where 's Dick, the butcher of Ashford ?
Dick. Here, sir.
Cade. They fell before thee like sheep and oxen, and
thou behaved'st thyself as if thou hadst been in thine
own slaughter-house : therefore thus will I reward 5
thee, the Lent shall be as long again as it is ; and
thou shalt have a license to kill for a hundred lacking
one.
Dick. I desire no more.
Cade. And, to speak truth, thou deservest no less. This 10
monument of the victory will I bear ; and the bodies
Alarums to the battaile, and Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother is slaine.
Then enter lacke Cade againe and the rest. i, 2. Cade. Where's Dick . . .
sir] omitted Q. 3-8. Cade. They . . . lacking one] 1-4. Sir Dicke Butcher,
thou hast fought to day most valiantly, And knockt them down as if thoti hadst
bin in thy slaughter house. And thus I will reward thee. The Lent shall be
as long againe as it was. Thou shalt haue licence to kil for foure score &• one
a week. g-ij. Dick. I desire . . . Cade. Fear . . . i/jee] omitted Q.
(Grosart, xi. 214, 237) ; " I might bidden to kill meat during Lent (in
perceine certaine clownes in clow ted Elizabeth's reign), excepting by special
shoone gather it, & eate of it"; license for a certain number each week
" An Vpstart, quasi start vp from for those who could not do without
clow ted shoone.'^ An old expression to animal food (Malone).
a rustic. Noe's wife, in her wrangling, 7, 8. a htmdred lacking one] Compare
says : " Yei Noe, go cloute thi shone, Peele, Old Wives Tale (451, b) : " Look
the better wille thai last" (Towneley you, sir ; he gave fourscore and nineteen
Mysteries, p. 29, circa 1400). Northern, mourning gowns to the parish, when
And Locrine, u. ii. : "will you any old he died, and because he would not
shoes or buskins, or will you have your make them up a full hundred, they
shoes clouted ? I will do them as well would not bury him; was not this good
as any cobbler in Caithness." Schmidt dealing ? "
has some obstinate view here. 10, 11. This monument of the victory]
Steevens quotes here from Holinshed :
SCENE III. "Jack Cade, upon his victory against
I. the Staffords are slain] Steevens the Staffords, apparelled himself in Sir
says " Sir Humphrey Stafford who was Humphrey's brigandine, set full of gilt
killed at Sevenoke in Cade's rebellion, nails, and so in some glory returned
is buried at Broomsgrove in Stafford- again toward London." Grafton says :
shire (Vaillant)." " When . . . the covetous Cade, had thus
5. slaughter-house] See above, iii. i. obtained victorie, and slayne the two
212 (note). valyant Staffordes, he apparelled himselfe
7. license to kill] Butchers were for- in their rich armure, and so with pompe
148 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
shall be dragged at my horse heels till I do come to
London, where we will have the mayor's sword borne
before us.
Dick. If we mean to thrive and do good, break open the 1 5
gaols and let out the prisoners.
Cade. Fear not that, I warrant thee. Come ; let 's march
towards London. [Exeunt.
SCENE IV. — London. The palace.
Enter the King with a supplication, and the Queen with
Suffolk's head, the Duke of Buckingham, and the
Lord Say.
Queen. Oft have I heard that grief softens the mind,
And makes it fearful and degenerate ;
Think therefore on revenge, and cease to weep.
But who can cease to weep and look on this ?
Here may his head lie on my throbbing breast ; 5
But where 's the body that I should embrace ?
17, 18. Come . . . London] 5, 6. Drumme strike vp, for now weele march to
London, for to morrow I meane to sit in the Kings seate at Westminster (speech
1-4 continued). Exet omnes.
Scene iv.
Enter the King reading of a Letter, and the Qneene, zvith the Duke of Suffolk es
head, and he Lord Say, with others. i-ii. Queen. Oft . , . the sword]
omitted Q.
and glorie returned againe towarde 15, 16. open the gaols and let out the
London " (641). The brigandine has prisoners'] See extract from Fabyan at
been so firmly accepted (from Holin- vii. i. (" inns of court"). And in yac^
shed) that it has found its way into the Strazv (by Peele) (Hazlitt's Dodsley,
Cambridge edition as an instruction, v. 396) : " They have spoiled all South-
and into Schmidt as an explanation, work, let out all the prisoners, broke up
I propose to banish it for a much the Marshalsea and the King's Bench,
happier word, "sallet." " Brigandine" and made great havoc in the borough."
is not in the play anywhere. Fabyan's 17. Fear not that] don't be alarmed,
account is : " And as soon (as) lak Cade that will be done. " Never fear that"
had thus ouer comyn the Staffordes, he in Julius Ccesar. More often simply
anone apparaylled h^ with the Knyghtes " Fear not."
apparayll, and dyd on hym his brygan- 17. / warrant thee] I '11 guarantee it,
ders set with gylt nayle, and his salet In common use in Ireland,
and gylt sporys' (181 1 edition, p. 623),
15 16. Clear proof that Shakespeare Scene iv.
referred to Fabyan, since (in Scene x.) i. Queen. Oft have I heard] The
Cade retains his sallet and addresses Queen's mourning is barely touched
it as having saved his life many a time, upon in Q, A single line (see below.
No doubt by this, when a fugitive, the 21) suffices for her. Shakespeare pays
more costly articles were discarded, special attention always to this bold
A helmet is more in keeping with a bad queen. Note later the number of de-
monument than a brigandine. And capitated heads that appear in this Act.
Cade found the " sallet was born to 5. throbbing breast] with grief. Com-
do him good," with unmistakable stress, pare Faerie Queene, 11. iv. 17: "With
15. thrive and do good] See note at hart then throbbing and with watry
III. i. 292, on the expression in Q. eyes."
sc. IV.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 149
Buck. What answer makes your grace to the rebels' sup-
plication ?
King. I '11 send some holy bishop to entreat ;
For God forbid so many simple souls lO
Should perish by the sword ! And I myself,
Rather than bloody war shall cut them short,
Will parley with Jack Cade their general.
But stay, I '11 read it over once again.
Queen. Ah ! laarbarous villains, hath this lovely face 1 5
Ruled like a wandering planet over me,
And could it not enforce them to relent,
That were unworthy to behold the same ?
King. Lord Say, Jack Cade hath sworn to have thy head.
Say. Ay, but I hope your highness shall have his. 20
King. How now, madam !
Still lamenting and mourning for Suffolk's death ?
I fear me, love, if that I had been dead.
Thou wouldest not have mourned so much for me.
Queen. No, my love; I should not mourn, but die for thee. 2$
11-14. King. . . . And I myself . . . their . . . But the . . . it over once] 1-5,
King. Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother is slaine, And the Rebels march
amaine to London, Go back to them and tell them thus from me, He come and
parley with their . . . yet . . . the Letter ouer againe. Reade (before Yet staie).
15-18. Queen. Ah I barbarous . . . the same?] omitted Q. 19. sworn] 6.
solemnely vowde. 20. Say. Ay, . . . his] 7. Say. I . . . his. 21-24. How
now . . . me, love, if that I . . . for me] 8-10. Hozv now . . . my love, if I . . .
for me (as prose), 25. No . . . for thee] 11. No . . . for thee.
7, 8. rebels' supplication] For this I would find time to parley with
" humble supplication," see extract at some of them."
"John Mortimer," iv. ii. 119. The expression occurs again in King
11. perish by the sword] See Job John znd Love's Labour's Lost. Also
xxxiii. 18, xxxvi. 12. The King's pious in the Contention. New Eng. Diet, is
speech with his " holy bishop " are all too late with the term (1600).
additional to Q. But in Shakespeare's 15. this lovely face] this episode re-
Bible these texts read "pass by the calls that of another Queen Margaret
sword." See, however, Matthew xxvi. (of Navarre) told by Dumas with respect
52, ^^ perish ivith the sword." And Mar- to her lover, La Mole, whose head she
lowe's Tamburlaine, Part I. iv. ii. : "Not obtained from the executioner.
one should scape, but perish by our i5. wandering planet] In Holland's
swords." Plinie, xviii. ch. 25 (p. 5S5), "Wan-
12. cut them short] See note at in. dering stars or Planets" are treated
i. 81 above: " Cutting short that fraud- of.
ful man." Compare 2 Kings x. 32. 21. How now, madam] When the king
11-13. I myself . . . will parley with] reproved Margaret for boxing the
In Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. Duchess Gloster's ear (i. iii.) he begins
391), by Peele, the King (Richard II.) his speech in Q (wholly omitted in the
says: "Tell them . . . Ourselves will finished play): " Beleeue me my love
meet with them," after Sir John Morton thou wert much to blame." He is stiffer
has advised : — now. Certainly the position is tightly
"Thus would I deal with these re- strained here,
bellious men ;
150 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Enter a Messenger.
King. How now ! what news? why com'st thou in such haste?
Mess. The rebels are in Southwark ; fly, my lord !
Jack Cade proclaims himself Lord Mortimer,
Descended from the Duke of Clarence' house,
And calls your grace usurper openly, 30
And vows to crown himself in Westminster.
His army is a ragged multitude
Of hinds and peasants, rude and merciless :
Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother's death
Hath given them heart and courage to proceed, 35
All scholars, lawyers, courtiers, gentlemen,
They call false caterpillars, and intend their death.
King. O graceless men ! they know not what they do.
Buck. My gracious lord, retire to Killingworth,
Until a power be raised to put them down. 40
Queen. Ah, were the Duke of Suffolk now alive.
These Kentish rebels would be soon appeased !
26. King. How now . . . /las^^r.''] omitted Q. 27-37. Mess. The rebels . . .
their death] 12-17. Messen. Oh fiie my Lord, the Rebels are entered Southwarke,
and haue almost wonne the Bridge, calling your grace an usurper, And that
monstrous Rebell Cade hath sworne To Crowne himselfe King in Westminster,
Therefore flie my Lord, and poste to Killingworth. 38. King. Ok . . . they do]
omitted Q. 39. Buck. My . . . Killingworth] Compare lost line, Messenger,
above. 41, 42. Queen. Ah, were . . . appeased I] omitted Q (but see below,
Sc, ix. 11. 6-8).
27. The rebels are in Southwark] 38. O graceless men I . . . do] Here,
" The king . . . doubting as much his as at 11. 8-10 in this scene, the religious
familier seruants, as his vTiknowen side of Henry is again brought promin-
subiectes (which spared not to speake ently forward, as throughout the play,
that the Capitaines cause was profitable Neither passages are in Q. " Graceless"
for the common wealth) departed in all is met with again in Part I. v. iv. 14 ;
haste to the Castell of Kylingworth in in King jfohn, and in Lucrece. Peele
Warwikeshire, leaving onely behinde uses it: "graceless wretches murder'd
him the Lorde Scales to keepe the Towre him by night " {Honour of the Garter
of London. The Capitaine, being (Dyce 587, b), 1593). The Chronicler
aduertised of the Kings absence, came calls them an "ungracious company."
first into Southwarke, and there lodged See note at v. 7 below. Let us hope
at the whyte Hart, prohibyting to all this scene was Peele's in conception,
men murder, rape, or robbery : by which It is only 25 lines in the original, where
coulour he allured to him the harts of " march amaine to London " is like
the common people" (Grafton, 641, Peele. See Luke xxiii. 34: "Father,
642). But he broke these fair pretences, forgive them; for they know not what
which was his ruin. they do."
37. caterpillars] " affirming his com- 39. retire to Killingworth] See at line
myng, not to be against [the King], but 26 above.
against . . . oppressors of the poore i^i. were . . . Suffolk fiow alive]This
Commonaltie, flatterers . . . suckers of remark occurs later in Q ; see Sc. ix.
his pursse and robbers of his subiectes " below. There is a deal of puzzling
(641). This old term (caterpillars of transposition in the later play, in these
the state) was very common, with its scenes.
opportunity for quibbling — pillars of the 41,42. This remark of the Queen's
state, and pillers (robbers). has fallen from its place in the Conten-
sc. IV.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 151
King. Lord Say, the traitors hate thee,
Therefore away with us to Killingworth.
Say. So might your grace's person be in danger. 45
The sight of me is odious in their eyes ;
And therefore in this city will I stay,
And live alone as secret as I may.
Enter another Messenger.
Second Mess. Jack Cade hath gotten London bridge ;
The citizens fly and forsake their houses ; 50
The rascal people, thirsting after prey,
Join with the traitor ; and they jointly swear
To spoil the city and your royal court.
Buck. Then linger not, my lord ; away ! take horse.
King. Come, Margaret : God, our hope, will succour us. 55
Queen. My hope is gone, now Suffolk is deceased.
King. Farewell, my lord : trust not the Kentish rebels.
Buck. Trust nobody, for fear you be betrayed.
Say. The trust I have is in mine innocence,
And therefore am I bold and resolute. 60
[Exeunt.
43, 44. Lord Say . . . Killingworth'] 18-22. Go bid Buckingham and Clifford,
gather An Army up, and meete with the Rebels. Come Madame, let us haste to
Killingworth. Come on Lord Say, go thou along with us. For feare the Rebell
Cade do finde thee out. 45-5S. Say. So might . . . Buck. Trust nobody . . .]
omitted Q. 59, 60. Say. The trust . . . resolute. Exeunt} 23-26. Say. My
innocence my Lord shall pleade for me. And therefore with your highnesse leave.
He staie behind. King. Euen as thou wilt my Lord Say, Come Madame, let vs
go. Exet omnes.
tion (which should be here) to the their armes, amased and appalled, lept
beginning of Scene ix. See note there into the river : other . . . were in
at 1. I. their houses suffocat (here was the
43. Lord Say, the traitors hate thee] great Suffolk pun) and smoldered . . .
Lord Say was included in the accusa- in conclusion, the rebels gate the
tion of the Commons against the Duke drawe bridge and drowned many, and
of Suffolk, for the loss of Anjou and slue lohn Sutton Alderman . . . with
Maine. See note, iv. i. 86. many other, beside Mathew Gough. . . .
49. London bridge] " The multitude This hard and sore conflict endured on
of the rebels draue the Citezens from the Bridge till ix. of the clocke in the
the stoulpes at the bridge foote, to the mornyng, in doubtfull chaunce . . .
drawe bridge, and beganne to set fyre sometyme the Londoners were bet back
in diuers houses. Alas what sorrowe it to the stulpes at Saint Magnus corner,
was to beholde that miserable chaunce ; and sodainly agayne the rebels were
for some desyring to eschewe the fyre, repulsed and driuen backe to the stulpes
lept on his enimies weapon and so in Southwarke " (642, 643). " Saint
died; fearefuU women with children in Magnus' corner" appears below, viii. i,
152 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
SCENE V. — London. The Tower.
Enter Lord SCALES upon the Tower, walking. Then enter two
or three Citizens below.
Scales. How now ! is Jack Cade slain ?
First Cit. No, my lord, nor likely to be slain; for they
have won the bridge, killing all those that with-
stand them. The lord mayor craves aid of your
honour from the Tower, to defend the city from the 5
rebels.
Scales. Such aid as I can spare you shall command ;
But I am troubled here with them myself;
The rebels have essayed to win the Tower.
But get you to Smithfield and gather head, lO
And thither I will send you Matthew Goffe ;
Fight for your king, your country, and your lives ;
And so farewell, for I must hence again.
\^Exeimt.
Enter the Lord Skayles upon the Tower ivalles walking. Enter three or foure
Citizens below. i-6. Scales. How . . . First Citizen. No . . . craves . . .
rebels] 1-6. Lord Scales. How . . . i. Citizen. No . . . craueth . . . Rebels (as
verse). 7-13. Scales. Such aid . . . essay'd . . . he}ice again] 7-13. Lord
Scales. Such aide . . . attempted . . • hence againe. Exet omnes.
I. How now I] Very common in don, with Mathew Gough, the often
Shakespeare's plays from first to last, named Capitaine in Normandie . . .
It is perhaps more abundant even in they purposed to make them priuie . . .
the Contention than in the revision, of their entent. The Lord Scales pro-
Greene uses it in Alphonsus, etc., but mised them his ayde, with shooting of
I doubt if any writer has it so pat as ordinaunce, and Mathew Gough was by
Shakespeare. However, Kyd couldn't him appointed, to assist the Mayre and
get on without it either. Used where the Londoners" (p. 642). Scene v.
we say " How," " Well " or " what should precede the latter part of
news," interrogatively. It is fortunately Scene iv., historically soalso should
not easy to remember always that many Cade's speech in Scene iv., which is
such expressions which have a pleasant obviously misplaced,
archaic ring, and are further consecrated 10. gather head] This expression has
by their use in favoured authors and occurred earlier in the Contention, at
writings, were mere common-places in the end of in. i. 382, 383. So Peele
speech. in the Battle of Alcazar, iii. i (Dyce,
7. Such aid as I can spare you shall 432, a) : —
command] " The wise Maior and sage " The Spaniard ready to embark
Magistrates . . . determined with force himself,
to repell and expulse this mischieuous Here gathers to a head" ;
heade, with his vngracious company, i.e. collects together a force. Used in
And because the Lorde Scales was a different sense in The Tempest. See
ordeyned Keeper of the Toure of Lon- Part I. i. iv. 100, and note.
sc. VI.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH ] 53
SCENE VI, — London. Cannon Street.
Enter Jack Cade and the rest, and strikes his staff on
London-stone.
Cade. Now is Mortimer lord of this city. And here, sitting
upon London-stone, I charge and command that, of
tiie city's cost, the pissing-conduit run nothing but
claret wine this first year of our reign. And now
henceforward it shall be treason for any that calls me 5
other than Lord Mortimer.
Enter a Soldier, running.
Sold. Jack Cade ! Jack Cade !
Cade. Knock him down there. \T hey kill him.
Smith. If this fellow be wise, he '11 never call you Jack
Cade more : I think he hath a very fair warning. 10
Dick. My lord, there 's an army gathered together in Smith-
field.
Cade. Come then, let's go fight with them. But first, go
I. here\ now, Q. 2, 3. / charge . . . cost\ 2, 3. We command, That the
first yeare of our raigne. 4. claret wine . . . reign] 4. red wine. 4, 6.
And . . . other than Lord Mortimer] 5-7. Attd . . . any otherwise then Lord
Mortemer (Cade's speech printed as if verse). Enter a souldicr. 7, 8. Sold,
yack . . . there] 8, 9. Sould. lacke . . . Cade. Sounes, knock hiw downe.
They kill him. g, 10. Smith. If this . . . warning] omitted Q. 11-15. Dick.
My lord, there's . . . in Smithfield . . . go and set . . . on fire . . . away]
10-15. Dicke. My Lord, theirs . . . into Smythfield . . . go on and set . . .
afire . . . away. Exet omnes. Alarmcs, and then Matthew Goffe is slaine,
and all the rest with him. Then enter lacke Cade again, and his company.
I, 2. Mortimer lord of this city ... 4. claret wine] Already mentioned
London-stone] Grafton places this event in the Contention. See note at
before the London bridge fight, at the " charneco," 11. iii. 63 : "I pledged
time Cade was at the White Hart him in a cup of neate claret-wine."
in Southwark : " But after that, he Occurs in a tract {1588), reprinted as
entered into London, and cut the Kyd's by Boas (p. 247).
ropes of the draw bridge, striking his 8. Knock him down] The Contention
sworde on London stone, saiyng : now is printers have at last arrived at a reason-
Mortimer Lorde of this Citie " (p. 642). able printing of " zounds." It is
■i. pissing-conduit] "The little Con- "sounes" here. Earlier as "sonnes"
duite called the pissing Conduife, by it caused confusion,
the Stokes Market" (Stow's Survey of 9, 10. he'll never call you Jack Cade
London). It is mentioned by Nashe, T/ze more] An insult to the Knight. Per-
Unfortjtnate Traveller (Grosart, v. 20), haps suggested by : " He also put to
written in 1593. This last reference is execucion in Southwarke diuers persons
referred to by Ritson (Steevens' Shake- . . . of his old acquaintaunce, least they
speare) in an unintelligible manner, should blase and declare his base birth,
Steevens has a further note, illustrating and lowsy lynage, disparagyng him from
the expression from French historical his vsurped surname of Mortimer"
records, date 1453. It occurs very (Grafton, p. 642).
often in the Contention.
154
THE SECOND PART OF
[act IV.
and set London bridge on fire, and, if you can, burn
down the Tower too. Come, let's away. 15
[Exeunt.
SCENE VII. — London. Smithfield.
Alarums. Matthew Goffe is slain and all the rest. Then
enter Jack Cade with his company.
Cade. So, sirs. Now go some and pull down the Savoy ;
others to the inns of court : down with them all.
Dick. I have a suit unto your lordship.
Cade. Be it a lordship, thou shalt have it for that
word. 5
Dick. Only that the laws of England may come out of
your mouth.
John. [Aside.] Mass, 'twill be sore law then ; for he was
thrust in the mouth with a spear, and 'tis not whole
yet. 10
I, 2. Cade. So, . . . them all] i, 2. Cade. So, . . . them all, 3-5. / have
... a lordship, thou . . . word] 3-5. / haue ... a Lordship Dicke, and thou
. . . word. 6-12. Only that . . . cheese] omitted here, but see above, Scene
ii. 74-83 collation.
14. set London bridge on fire] See
note at iv. 48 for the Chronicle version ;
and below (iv. vii. 124) for the Contention
passage.
Scene yii.
Matthew Goffe is slain] See note
at iv. 48.
I, 2. Savoy . . . inns of court] Fwm
Fabyan's account of the 1381 rebellion.
Holinshed does not mention the " Inns
of Court." See Introduction upon
yack Straw. Fabyan says (430,
edited 1811) : "They . . . came vnto
ye duke of Lancasters place standyng
without ye Temple Barre, callyd Sauoy,
& spoyled that was therin & after set
it upon fyre & brent it. . . . Than
they entryd the cytie & serchied the
Temple and other inns of Court, &
spoyled theyr places & brent theyr
bokys of lawe, & slewe as many men
of lawe & questmongers as they myght
fynde ; & that done they went to Seynt
Martyns ye Graunde, & toke with them
all seyntwary men, & the prysons of
Newgate, Ludgate, & of bothe Counters,
& distroyed theyr registers & bokis,
& in lyke maner they dyd with the
prysoners of the Marshalse & Kynges
Benche in Southwerke " (Fol. C. xlviii.).
Fabyan names the leaders as follows :
" In this mayers yere and ende of the
thyrde yere of Kyng Richard ... ye
comons arose sodeynly and ordeynyd
to them rulers and capytaynys, &
specially in Kent and Essex, the whiche
namyd theyr leders lacke Strawe, Wyl
Wawe, Watte Tyler, lacke Shepeherde,
Tomme Myller, and Hobbe Carter."
The Contention gives a Will and a Tom.
Compare here (Peele's jfack Straw,
Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 393, 394) : " Re-
enter Tom Miller, with Jack Straw,
Wat Tyler, Hob Carter . . .
Hob. And we '11 not leave a man of law
Not a paper worth a haw.
And make him worse than a daw
That shall stand against Jack
Straw."
6, 7. that the laws of England may
come out of your mouth] Boswell Stone
quotes Holinshed (iii. 432) : " putting
his [Watt Tyler] hand to his lips, that
within foure dales all the lawes of
England shotild come foorth of his
mouth."
9-11. thrust in the mouth with a
spear . . . stinking law] These lines,
John's and Smith's asides, have been
transposed hither from Cade's first ap-
pearance, Scene ii. in the Contention,
sc. VII ] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
155
Smith. [Aside.] Nay, John, it will be stinking law ; for
his breath stinks with eating toasted cheese.
Cade. I have thought upon it ; it shall be so. Away ! burn
all the records of the realm : my mouth shall be the
parliament of England. 1 5
/o/in. [Aside.] Then we are like to have biting statutes,
unless his teeth be pulled out.
Cade. And henceforward all things shall be in com-
mon.
Enter a Messenger.
Mess. My lord, a prize, a prize ! here 's the Lord Say, 20
which sold the towns in France ; he that made us
13-15. Cade, I have . . . England] 6-8. Dicke. That we may go burne all the
Records, And that all writing may be put dowjie, And nothing tisde but the score
and the Tally. i6, 17. John. Then . . . out] omitted Q. 18, ig. (Cade.
And . . . common] 8-16. Cade. Dicke it shall be so, and . . . common Cade's
speech here in Q continues. Scene ii. 76-82 above, reading) Why ist not a
miserable thing . . . parchment be made, &■ then with a litle blotting ouer with
inke, a man should vndo himself e. Some saies tis . . . their waxe,for I am sure
I neuer scald to anything but once, and . . . since (see below, vii. 125, for close
of Contention dialogue here). Enter George. 20, 21. Mess. My lord . . .
France] 22, 23. George. My Lord . . . France. 21-23. he that . . . subsidy]
omitted Q.
They should have remained there.
Cade, now victorious, is too great a
personage for such slights, and they
belong to that dialogue. From 7 to
12 have rambled here by some error.
14. records of the realm] See note at
1. I of this scene. " Parchment" in ii.
79 has the same reference. Compare
(Peele's) Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dods-
ley, V. 398) : " Making foul slaughter
of your noblemen. Burning up books
and matters of records, Defacing
houses." And at page 401 : " Enter
Tom Miller to burn papers ... I
have made a bonfire here. Of a great
many of bonds and indentures. And
obligations ; faith I have been
amongst The ends of the court, and
among the records ... in the Guild-
Hall."
16,17. biting statutes . . . teeth] See
note at " forfeits in a barber's shop "
(Measure for Measure, v. i, 323, Arden
edition). Since I wrote that note I
have met the following passage in
Plaine Percevall (reprint 1842, p. 19) :
" Speake a blooddy word in a Barbors
shop, you make a forfet ; and good
reason too, Caphim sirra, if he pay it
not." This tends to invalidate my note.
18, 19. all things shall be in common]
See note at " all the realm shall be in
common," above, ii. 68. From the earlier
rebellion account in Grafton.
20. here '5 the Lord Say] This event
took place before London Bridge battle,
while Cade was at the White Hart in
Southwark, according to Hall and Graf-
ton : " And upon the third day of lulij,
he caused syr James Fynes Lorde Say,
and Threasorer of England, to be
brought to the Gylde hall of London,
and there to be arrayned : which being
before the king's Justices put to aun-
swere, desyred to be tryed by his peeres,
for the lenger delay of his lyfe. The
Capitaine perceiuing his dilatorie pie,
by force tooke him from the officers,
and brought him to the standard in
Chepe, and there caused his head to be
striken off, and pitched it on a high
pole, which was openly borne before
him through the streete. And this
cruell tyraunt not content with the
murder of the Lorde Say, went to Myle
ende, and there apprehended syr lames
Cromer, then Shriefe of Kent, and
Sonne in lawe to the sayde Lorde Say,
and caused him there likewise to be
hedded, and his head to be fixed on a
Pole, and with these two heades, thys
blooddy Butcher entred into the Citie
agayne, and in dispite caused them in
euery strete, to kisse together " (p. 642).
156
THE SECOND PART OF
[act IV.
pay one-and-twenty fifteens, and one shilling to the
pound, the last subsidy.
Enter GEORGE Bevis, with the Lord Say.
Cade. Well, he shall be beheaded for it ten times. Ah,
thou say, thou serge, nay, thou buckram lord ! now-
art thou within point-blank of our jurisdiction regal.
What canst thou answer to my majesty for giving
up of Normandy unto Mounsieur Basimecu, the
Dauphin of France ? Be it known unto thee by these
presence, even the presence of Lord Mortimer, that I
25
30
24. Well . . . times] omitted Q. 24, 25. Ah, . . . lord] 24. Cade, Come hither
thou Say, thou George, thou buckrum lord. 25, 26. Now . . . regal] omitted
Q. 27-29. What . . . France .^] 25-27. What answere canst thou make vnto
my mightinesse, for deliuering vp the townes in France to Mounsier bus mine
cue, the Dolphin of France ? 29-32. Beit . . , thou art] omitted Q.
22. fifteens] See note at " John
Mortimer," iv. ii. 119. But the refer-
ence is to fifteen taken up for the trans-
porting of Queen Margaret to England.
See I. i. 134.
23. subsidy] special assessment.
25. say] More name - quibbling.
Walter, Cade, Maine, Pole, Suffolk,
Lacy. A strong and common stuff,
fit to supply an abusive epithet. The
punishment for a woman of the lowest
order is thus given in Whetstone's
Promos and Cassandra, Part II. iv. ii.
(1578) :-
" Into a carte they did the queane
convay
Apparelled in colours verie gaye
Both hoode and gowne of greene
and yellow saye."
Whatever it was, it was durable, cheap,
and probably nasty. Some kind of
coarse silk cloth. Holland speaks of
" that fine say whereof silke cloth is
made " (Plinie, xi. 23). The resolve to
connect say with soie (saye) has led to
error. Prompt. Parvulorum has " Saye,
cloth, Sagum." Even in Cotgrave the
two are not connected where reference
should first have been made ; he has
" seyette, serge or sey." Palsgrave
(1530) has a similar gloss. See also
Howell's Vocabulary, Section xxv. :
" Silk serge ; Saia di Seta ; Serge de
soie." And " Serge ; saia rascia " ;
" Mixt serge ; saia mischio," etc. etc.
25. serge] Another cheap, common
stuff, fit to slight a nobleman with.
Ben Jonson was continually reproached
for his shabby clothes, made of per-
petuana. When Hedon, in Cynthia's
Revels, in. ii., is blackguarding Crites
(Jonson), he says : " By this heaven,
I wonder at nothing more than our
gentlemen ushers that will suffer a
piece of serge or perpetuana to come
into this presence : methinks they
should, out of their experience, better
distinguish the silken disposition of
courtiers, than to let such terrible
coarse rags mix with us, able to fret
any smooth or gentle society to the
threads with their rubbing devices."
A pity Ben didn't mention " say" here.
There isn't a note on this passage in
the commentators that did not either
enlarge an earlier muddle or create a
new one. Halliwell says there was a
quibble between George and serge !
Halliwell's sense of humour is suspect-
ful.
25. buckram] " coarse linen stiffened
with glue ' ^Schmidt). It was used (as
now) for making bags (Grosart's Greene,
X. 77 ; Grosart's Nashe, ii. 17) and cur-
tains (Greene, x. 272) ; and giants for
the stage (Nashe, ii. 131).
26. point-blank] range, reach. Used
in. the literal (gunnery) sense in Merry
Wives of Windsor, iii. ii. 34, and see
note, Arden edition, p. 121.
29, 30. by these presence] Corrected
to " presents " in F. 4. Compare As
You Like It, I. ii. 132. Legal (per has
literas presentes), and commonly used
in mandates. See Love's Labour 's Lost,
IV. iii. 186 (Arden edition, note, p. 97).
In Jonson's Cynthia's Revels, v. : " Be it
known to all that profess courtship by
sc. VII.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 157
am the besom that must sweep the court clean of such
filth as thou art. Thou hast most traitorously cor-
rupted the youth of the realm in erecting a grammar-
school ; and whereas, before, our forefathers had no
other books but the score and the tally, thou hast 35
caused printing to be used ; and contrary to the king
his crown, and dignity, thou hast built a paper-mill.
It will be proved to thy face that thou hast men about
32-34. Thou hast . . . school] 28, 29. Atid more then so, thou hast most traitor-
ously erected a grammer schoole, to infect the youth of the realme. 34-36. and
whereas . . . used] omitted Q (but see 1. 7 above, and iv. ii. 47, also Contention
for score and tally). 36, 37. and contrary to . . . built a . . . mill] 29, 30.
and against . . . built vp a . . . mill. 38-41. It will be . . . talk of . . .
can . . . hear] 30-33. nay it wil be said to thy . . . face, that thou kepst men in
thy house that daily reades of bookes with red letters, and talkes of ... is able
to endure it.
these presetits." And Greene's Looking
Glasse for London : " Then, friends,
know ye by these preseitts, I will eate up
all my meate" (Grosart, xiv. log). See
too Marlowe's Doctor Fanstus, the
agreement between Mephistopheles and
the Doctor. And the old play of Timon,
IV. ii.
31. the besom that must sweep] " I
will also make it a possession for the
bittern . . . and I will sweep it with the
besom of destruction " (Isaiah xiv. 23).
Not again in Shakespeare.
33i 34' grammar-school] Holinshed
says that in 1381 the rebels obliged
" teachers of children in grammar
schooles to sweare neuer to instruct
any in their art . . . it was dangerous
among them to be knowne for one that
was lerned ; and more dangerous, if
any men were found with a penner and
inkhorne at his side ; for such seldome
or neuer escaped from them with life "
(Boswell Stone). See above, iv. ii. 109.
" Pen and inkhorn " occurs again, Much
Ado About Nothing, in. v. 63. " Gram-
mar-school " not elsewhere.
34) 35' ''" other books] See note at
" records," above, 1. 14.
35. score and tally] Cade uses these
words three times in the text of the
Contention, where jumbling seems to
have taken place largely in this Act.
Not in Shakespeare again. Skeat re-
fers to this passage in his edition of
Piers the Plowman, ii. 56. A tally was
a rod of hazel, with notches to mark
accounts of monies lent, etc. The
other of the pair was in the customer's
hands. The combination of terms in
the text has not been noted else-
where. In Arden of Feversham, v. i.,
Black Will meets a brewer's cart :
" I made no more ado, but went to
the clerk and cut all the notches of
his tallies, and beat them about his
head."
37. paper-mill] In 1588, that inex-
haustible writer, Thomas Churchyard,
published " A Sparke of Friendship and
Wavme Good-will . . . with a descrip-
tion and commendation of a Paper-Mill,
now and of late set up (neere the Town
of Darthford) by an High Germayn,
called M. Spilman, Jeweller to the
Qu. most excellent Majestie." The
Paper-Mill is described in a poem as
an entirely new thing : —
" Though some do say, in France,
and other place,
Are Paper-Mills, as fayre and
straunge as this ;
What 's that to us ? this gives our
Country grace.
And to aU Kent a double honour
is."
Spill-man is " Help-man," because
" Six hundred men are set at worke by
him That else might starve." No
wonder a Kentish socialist was incensed.
Capital was in sight. The tract will be
found at the end of the second volume
of Nichols' Progresses of Queen Eliza-
beth. The words about printing may
have been suggested: —
" Now stripling yong but late cam„e
out of shell.
To schoole good boyes . . .
Now Printer's presse . . .
Besturre the stampe."
And the anachronism was overlooked.
See " base-born," note, i. iii. 84.
158 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
thee that usually talk of a noun, and a verb, and such
abominable words as no Christian ear can endure to 40
hear. Thou hast appointed justices of peace, to call
poor men before them about matters they were not
able to answer. Moreover, thou hast put them in
prison ; and because they could not read, thou hast
hanged them ; when indeed only for that cause they 45
have been most worthy to live. Thou dost ride in a
foot-cloth, dost thou not ?
Saj^. What of that?
Cade. Marry, thou oughtest not to let thy horse wear a
cloak, when honester men than thou go in their hose 50
and doublets.
Dick. And work in their shirt too ; as myself, for example,
that am a butcher.
Say. You men of Kent, —
Dick. What say you of Kent ! 55
Saj/. Nothing but this : 'tis " bona terra, mala gens."
Cade. Away with him ! away with him ! he speaks
Latin.
Say. Hear me but speak, and bear me where you will.
Kent, in the Commentaries Csesar writ, 60
Is termed the civil'st place of all this isle :
41-44. Thou hast . . . prison'] 34, 35. And besides all that, thou hast appointed
certaine Justices of peace in euery . . . to hang honest men that stcale for their
living. 44, 45. and . . . hanged them] 35, 36. and . . . hung them vp. 45-
47. when indeed . , . that , . . have been . . . dost ride in . . . not ?] 36-38,
Onely for which . . . were . . , ridest on . . . not ? 48. What] 39, Yes,
what. 49-51. Marry, thou . . . honester men than thoxi go . . . their . . .
doublets] 40-42. Marry, I say thou . . . an honester man than thy selfe, goes
. . . his . . . doublet. 52,53. Dick. And . . . butc her] omitted Q. 54-58.
Say. You men . . . Latin] 43-49. Say. You men of Kent. All. Kent, what of
Kent? Say. Nothing but bona terra. Cade. Bonum terrmn, sounds what ^s that?
Dicke. He speakes French. Will. No tis Dutch. Nicke. No tis outtalian, I
know it well inough. 59. Say. Hear . . . speak . . . will] 52, The^i noble
Country-men, heare . . . spcake. 60, 61. Kent . . . writ, Is term'd the . . .
isle] 50, 51, Say. Kent . . . wrote Termde it the . . . land.
47, foot-cloth] See note above, iv. i. . , , Of all the inhabitants of this
54, isle the civilest are the Kentishfolke "
50,51, hose and doublets] In his later (Steevens). And Lyly, as Malone
plays " doublet and hose " means a points out, quotes these words exactly
male with Shakespeare {Much Ado in Euphues (Arber, p. 247), 1580.
About Nothing, As You Like It, etc). Golding's translation appeared in 1565.
54. men of Kent] Grosse says this In Euphues the reading is " Kentish-
title belongs "to those east of the folke." See 3 Henry VI. i. ii. 41-43,
Medway, the rest are called Kentish- where this passage is partly repeated.
men." Modern. That the Kentishmen were full of spirit
60, 6r. Kent . . . civil'st place] Gold- in those times appeared often in the
ing translates the passage (Caesar's Com- Chronicles. Whenever there were
mentaries, bk. v.) : " Ex his omnibus tempestuous broils in London, they
sunt humanissimi qui Cantium incolunt came up to look for sport — or spoil.
sc. vii] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
159
Sweet is the country, because full of riches ;
The people liberal, valiant, active, wealthy ;
Which makes me hope you are not void of pity.
I sold not Maine, I lost not Normandy ;
Yet, to recover them, would lose my life.
Justice with favour have I always done ;
Prayers and tears have moved me, gifts could never.
When have I aught exacted at your hands,
But to maintain the king, the realm, and you ?
Large gifts have I bestowed on learned clerks,
Because my book preferred me to the king,
And seeing ignorance is the curse of God,
Knowledge the wing wherewith we fly to heaven,
Unless you be possessed with devilish spirits,
You cannot but forbear to murder me :
This tongue hath parleyed unto foreign kings
For your behoof, —
Cade. Tut, when struck'st thou one blow in the field ?
Say. Great men have reaching hands : oft have I struck
Those that I never saw, and struck them dead.
65
70
75
62-64. Sweet . . . pifyl omitted Q.
mandie. 66-89. Yet, to recover them
64. void of pity] "devoid of pity" is
in Titus Andronicus, Shakespeare's (?)
only use of " devoid." Spenser has
"devoid of" (Faerie Queene, in. iv. 35),
and in other places. ' ' Void of " was
much commoner (Golding, Peele,
Spenser, etc.).
69, 70. exacted at your hands But to
maintain the king] In Arnold's Chronicle
(reprint 18 11, p. 179) there is " A Proui-
sion by Acte of Parlement to brynge
Kynge Henry the VI. out of the dett,
ccc. Ixxxij. M.li." It was a general re-
sumption of grants made since the
beginning of his reign, with special
exceptions in favour of the queen's
dower, or freehold, the Colleges of
Cambridge and Eton, and the Churches.
Also the mayors and city burgesses and
the Admiral of England were exempt,
It was " to begynne and take effecte
the fyrst daye of your parlement holden
at Westmynster the XXVIIJ. yere of
your regne." It announced that "the
comons be so improvyshed by taking of
vitayle for your houshold and other
thinges in your sayd reame and nought
payde for, and the quynzysne (fifteens)
by your saide comons afore this tyme
so often graunted . . . and by the
graunte of subsidye upon the wulles
80
Nor-
65. / . . . Normandy] 53. / .
. . help of hatchet] omitted Q.
(wools) and other grauntes . . . the
comons be full nye dystroyed." The
resumption was to take the place of
fifteens and various other subsidies.
" Prouided also that thys acte be not
p'iudicial to your Chauncelor and
Tresorer of England [Lord Say],
priuie sel justice, barons, etc. . . . nor
to ani other of your officers in the
Curtis of recorde . . . sergeaunts of
lawe, etc." This was the year of the
rebellion, and affords a good insight to
the people's state of mind, and plenty
of grounds for hostility against Lord
Say and his quinziemes. He was lord-
treasurer in 1449, sequestered in 1450
for Anjou and Maine, and handed over
to Cade on the 4th July, 1450. The
gifts on learned clerks is illustrated by
the reserves in favour of Cambridge and
Eton. " Maintaining the king " is " re-
lieving your high estate."
72. my book] book-knowledge, learn-
ing. Compare Lovers Labour 's Lost,
IV. ii. 113: "makes his book thine
eyes." Study.
76. forbear to mnrder] See note at
" Forbear to judge," in. iii. 31.
80. Great men have reaching hands]
Compare Selimus (by Greene, Peele
and Marlowe (Grosart's Greene, xiv.
160 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Geo. O monstrous coward ! what, to come behind folks !
Say. These cheeks are pale for watching for your good.
Cade. Give him a box o' the ear, and that will make 'em
red again. 85
Say. Long sitting, to determine poor men's causes,
Hath made me full of sickness and diseases.
Cade. Ye shall have a hempen caudle then, and the help
of hatchet,
Dick. Why dost thou quiver, man ? 90
Say. The palsy, and not fear, provokes me.
Cade. Nay, he nods at us ; as who should say, I '11 be
even with you : 1 '11 see if his head will stand steadier
on a pole or no. Take him away and behead
him. 95
Say. Tell me wherein have I offended most ?
Have I affected wealth or honour ? speak.
Are my chests filled up with extorted gold ?
Is my apparel sumptuous to behold?
Whom have I injured, that ye seek my death ? 100
These hands are free from guiltless blood-shedding,
90. Dich. Why . . . man ?\ 54. Cade. But wherefore doest thou shake thy head
so? 91. The . . . provokes me] 55. It is the . . . that makes me. 92-111.
Nay, he nods . . . two poles hither] 56-61. Cade. Nay thou nodst thy head, as who
say, thou wilt be euen ivith me, if thou getst away, but He make thee sure inough,
now I haue thee. Go take him to the standerd in Cheapside and chop of his head,
and then go to milende greenc, to Sir lames Cromer his sonne in law, and cut off
his head too, and bring them to me upon two poles presently. Away with him.
Exet one or two, with the Lord Say.
277): " Know'st thou not, Solyma, pen caudle" and "help of hatchet"
kings haue long hands ? " A transla- speech below, are omitted in the Con-
tion of an old saying in R. Edward's tention.
Damon and Piihias (ante 1566) (Haz- 88, 89. caudle . . . hatchet] Com-
litt's Dodsley, iv. 35) ; " leave off this pare the title of Lyly's tract above, 1.
talk of King Dionysius. Carisophus. 84. Steevens read " pap of a hatchet "
Why, sir ? he cannot hear us. Damon. (1793). He is to be hanged first and
What then ? An nescis longas regi- beheaded, for the pole, afterwards,
bus esse manus ? It is no safe talking Hanged and headed. " Caudle " is
o"-
of them that strikes afar off." Say's "candle" in Ff. For "hempen," with
lines are a paraphrase of Damon's, reference to hanging, New Eng. Diet.
"Great lords have long arms, but gives "hempyn lane" (Hoccleve, 1420).
they do not reach to heaven," is Ger- Lodge has " hempen windows " {A
man, and " kings have long arms," is Figge for Momus, 1595) ; Marlowe
Italian. has " hempen tippit " in Jew of Malta.
84. box 0' the ear] From the title "Caudle" must be a right emendation
of Lyly's " Pappe with an Hatchet, here, though not so, I believe, in
Alias, A figge for my God sonne. Or, Lovers Labour ^s Lost, iv. iii. 174;
Cracke me this nut. Or, A Countrie see note, Arden edition. " Hempen
cuffe, that is, a sound boxe of the wisp " occurs in this tract;"- and Nashe
eare," etc. The earliest example of has half a dozen uses of the word.
" box of the ear " in New Eng. Diet. 101. guiltless blood-shedding] shed-
This passage as well as the " hem- ding of guiltless blood.
sc. vii] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 161
This breast from harbouring foul deceitful thoughts.
O ! let me live.
Cade. [Asz'de.] I feel remorse in myself with his words ;
but r 11 bridle it : he shall die, an it be but for plead- 105
ing so well for his life. Away with him ! he has a
familiar under his tongue ; he speaks not o' God's
name. Go, take him away, I say, and strike off his
head presently ; and then break into his son-in-law's
house, Sir James Cromer, and strike off his head, and 1 10
bring them both upon two poles hither.
A//. It shall be done.
Say. Ah ! countrymen, if when you make your prayers,
God should be so obdurate as yourselves,
How would it fare with your departed souls ? 115
And therefore yet relent and save my life.
Cade. Away with him ! and do as I command ye.
[Exeunt some with Lord SAY.
The proudest peer in the realm shall not wear a head
on his shoulders, unless he pay me tribute : there shall
not a maid be married, but she shall pay to me her 120
maidenhead, ere they have it. Men shall hold of me
in capite ; and we charge and command that their wives
be as free as heart can wish or tongue can tell.
118-123. The proudest . . . wear . . . unless he . . . there . . . but she . . .
Men . . . and . . . that their . . . wish or . . . tell] 62-67. There shall not a
noble man weare . . . But he shall . . . for it. Nor there . . . but he shal fee
to me for her Maydenhead or else, He haue it my self e, Marry I will that married
102. harbouring foul deceitful affirmed that she was under age. He
thoughts'] See above, in. i. 54 and 3 says to the Collector : —
Henry VI. iii. ii. 164. Used in this "Thou hast thy task-money for all
bad sense again in King Lear, 11. ii. that be here,
108. The use in Spenser is not so : My daughter is not fourteen years
" The noble hart that harbours vertuous old, therefore she goes clear."
thought" {Faerie Queen, \. v. i). See Introduction on yack Straw.
105. bridle] restrain; see above, i. i. 120, \21.maid be married . . . maiden-
198, and Part III. iv. iv. ig. Also in head] Halliwell has a note in the Con-
Comedy of Errors, but not elsewhere in tention here on "The disgusting custom
Shakespeare. Greene uses it several of Mercheta Mulierum, with an extract
times. See note above. One of many from Skene." See Cowell's Law Dic-
expressions, cast off perhaps after tionary. Often referred to. See Beau-
Greene's attack. It is not in Kyd. mont and Fletcher's Custom of the
107. familiar] See note at Part I. in. County, which is founded upon it. Also
ii. 122. Massinger's Guardian, i. v. (of tenants'
11^. obdurate] See note, 3 Henry VI. daughters); and the question is dis-
I. iv. 142. Marlowe's pronunciation, cussed in Gesta Grayorum, Part II.
as in Tambtirlaine, Pa.rt I. v. i. : "your (Nichols' Progresses of Queen Elizabeth,
obdurate breasts." iii. 329). See also Blount's Glosso-
119-121. tribute . . . maidenhead] graphia, in v. Marcheta.
jfack Straw (by Peele) opens with 122. in capite] in chief; by direct
Jack's slaying of a " Collector of Tasks" grant from the Crown. Law term,
(taxes, as in Grafton) for searching of 123, as free . . . tell] Halliwell says
his daughter in his presence. He had {Contention, Shakespeare Library) :
II
162 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Dick, My lord, when shall we go to Cheapside and take
up commodities upon our bills ? 125
Cade. Marry, presently.
All. O! brave.
Re-enter one with the heads.
Cade. But is not this braver ? Let them kiss one another,
for they loved well when they were alive. Now part
them again, lest they consult about the giving up 130
men, . . . And that their . . . thinke,oy . . . tell (SiS verse). 124-127. DJcA. My
lord . . . brave] (see above, 1. 20) 17-21. Nicke. But zvhcn shall we take vp those
commodities Which yon told vs of. Cade. Marry he that will lustily stand to it,
Shall go with me, and take vp these commodities following : Item, a gowne, a
kirtle, a petticoatc, and a smocke. 123-128. (Two short scenes in Contcntioti ioWow
toong can tell, wholly omitted in revision) 68-84. Enter Robin. Robin. O Captaine,
London bridge is afire. Cade. Riinne to Billingsgate, and fetch pitch and flaxe
and sqnench it. Enter Dicke and a Sargiant. Sargiant. Justice, iustice, I pray
you Sir, let me hauc iustice of this fellow here. Cade. Why what has he done?
Sarg. Alasse sir he has ranisht my wife. Dicke. Why my Lord he would haue
rested me. And I went and entred my Action in his wines paper house. Cade.
Dicke follow thy sute in her commoti place, You horson villaine you are a Sargiant
voule. Take any man by the throate for tweliie pence, And rest a man when hees at
dinner, And haue him to prison ere the meate be out of his mouth. Go Dicke take
him hence and cut out his toong for cogging. Hough him for running, and to con-
clude, Brane him with his owne mace. Exet with the Sargiant. Enter two with
the Lord Sayes head, and Sir lames Cramers, upon two poles. 128-135. But is
. . . kiss. Away /] 85-86. So, come carry them before me, and at euery lanes ends,
let them kisse togither.
" There are several ancient grants from speare's. Note "and to conclude";
our early kings to their subjects, written " rest" for " arrest," [Comedy of Errors,
in rude verse, and empowering them to four times) ; " take by throat" [As You
enjoy their lands as ' free as heart can Like It, but usual) ; " brain him with "
wish or tongue can tell.' Nearly the [1 Henry IV. 11. iii. 24); "have one (to
precise words occur in the Year Book a place)" often occurs; and "follow a
of Henry VII." Halliwell's statement suit" (Merchant of Venice and Comedy
is difficult to know what to do with, of Errors). "Hough" is not in Shake-
But the expression occurs in Nashe, speare but it is Biblical (Joshua xi. 6).
Have with you, etc. (Grosart, iii. 47), And to conclude, the omitted parts are
1596 : " so rascally printed and ill inter- by Shakespeare. In the second omitted
preted as heart can thinke, or tongue scene Cade turns the tables of immor-
can tell." I would rather have my ality on the ruling classes. See note
little modest Nashe note. Compare above, 11. 121, 122 ; and below, viii. 29.
too Kyd's Spanish Tragedie, i. i. : — For " hough," see note at " burly-boned"
" I saw more sights than thousand x. 57. "Cog" is frequent in Shake-
tongues can tell, speare. And for " Brain him with his
Or pennes can write, or mortall own mace," compare " Brain him with
harts can think." his lady's fan," in I Henry IV. 11. iii. 24.
See Faerie Queene, i. xi. 40 and 11. 124, 125. take up commodities] This
i. II. speech may have been also curtailed (like
123. tongue can tell] After those words that in last note) in order to omit gross-
occur (in Contention) two short scenes ness from Contention. For " commodi-
wholly omitted in the revision. The ties" in this sense (goods), see Measure
first merely states that London bridge for Measure, iv. iii. v. (and note, Arden
has been fired, as Cade ordered in scene edition). And for the quibbling on
vi. (and see note, iv. 48). The second is " bills " (which is not in Contention), see
indecent, but the language is Shake- Muck Ado About Nothing, in. iii. 190.
sc. viii] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
163
of some more towns in France. Soldiers, defer
the spoil of the city until night ; for with these
borne before us, instead of maces, will we ride through
the streets ; and at every corner have them kiss.
Away! [Exeunt. 135
SCENE Ylll.—Soutkwark.
Alarum and retreat. Enter Cade and all his rabblement.
Cade. Up Fish Street! down Saint Magnus' Corner!
kill and knock down ! throw them into Thames !
[Sound a parley.'] What noise is this I hear ? Dare
any be so bold to sound retreat or parley, when I
command them kill ? 5
Alarum . . . Enter Cade . . . Cade. Up Fish Street . . . kill I] omitted Q.
Etiter Buckingham . . . ] Enter the Duke of Buckingham and Lord Clifford the
Earle of Comberland. 6-18. Buck. Ay, here . . . Clif. What say . . .
Scene viii. This scene lias been en-
tirely rewritten by Shakespeare. The
original one in the Contention bears
stronger evidence of Peele's work than
we have had for some little time ; cer-
tainly since Cade's appearance. To
begin with, Cade's speech (gg-104) is
not that of Shakespeare's Cade. It
is Peele's " servile yokes." Compare
" overwearied with the yoke
And servile bondage of these Eng-
lishmen "
(Edward the First, Dyce, 405, b).
" Servile" is a favourite with Peele (fol-
lowing Spenser). " Pull them down,"
often in Peele ; " pull down lions and
untamed beasts," same play (428, a).
And " warlike friends," twice in twenty
lines, is like Peele; " warlike " is con-
stantly in his plays. " Muster your
selves," " mustering of his men,"
Battle of Alcazar, iv. i. " If honour
be the marke whereat thou aim'st " is
a line of Peele's, Battle of Alcazar, 11.
iv. (430, b).
" our forefathers wonne,
And winne again that thing "
— that is quite in Peele's catchword
style of repetition.
" We come to fight, and fighting vow
to die,
Or else to win the thing for which
we came,"
will suffice, from his Battle of Alcazar,
IV. ii. (435, b), but there are plenty
more. Cade's word " valiancy " also
is Peele's Cade, not Shakespeare's ;
" forc'd for want of valiancy my
freedom to provoke" (Sir Clyomon
(501 b)). For "pull them down," see
I. i. 257 ; and Selimus (Grosart's Greene,
xiv. 228) : " I my selte will pull them
downe " ; and p. 221 : " Strong enemies
to pull me downe againe."
rabblement] Occurs in Julius Casar,
I. ii. 245. In Faerie Queene, i. vi. 8,
and elsewhere.
1. Saint Magnus' Corner] See note
at " London Bridge," above, iv. 48.
A church at the bottom of Fish Street
hill, London Bridge. Arnold gives a
list of " Th' Articles founde by the
Inquisitours at the Visitacion last done
in Churche of Saint Magnus." It is
singularly shocking 1 " Item, that
diuers of the prestis and clarkes, in
tyme of dyuyne seruise, be at tauerns
and alehowsis, at fyshing, and other
trifils, wherby dyuyne seruyce is let."
And no accounts kept. This recalls
a passage quoted from Peele's Jack
Strain (381) in the parallels above.
2. Thames'] Without article, in the
old style, occurs again in Merry Wives
of Windsor, iii. v. 129; and Henry V.
IV. i. 120.
3. sound retreat] Occurs again in 1
Henry IV. v. iv. 163 ; and Henry V.
III. ii. 94. See too 1 Henry VI. 11. ii.
3 ; and note at 3 Henry VI. i. i. 5.
164 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Enter Buckingham <3:«(^ Clifford, attended.
Buck. Ay, here they be that dare and will disturb thee.
Know, Cade, we come ambassadors from the king
Unto the commons whom thou hast misled ;
And here pronounce free pardon to them all
That will forsake thee and go home in peace. lO
Clif. What say ye, countrymen ? will ye relent
And yield to mercy, whilst 'tis offered you,
Or let a rabble lead you to your deaths ?
Who loves the king, and will embrace his pardon,
Fling up his cap, and say " God save his majesty ! " 15
Who hateth him, and honours not his father,
Henry the Fifth, that made all France to quake,
Shake he his weapon at us, and pass by.
All. God save the king ! God save the king !
Cade. What! Buckingham and Clifford, are ye so brave? 20
And you, base peasants, do ye believe him ? will you
needs be hanged with your pardons about your necks ?
Hath my sword therefore broke through London
gates, that you should leave me at the White Hart in
Southwark? I thought ye would never have given 25
out these arms till you had recovered your ancient
freedom ; but you are all recreants and dastards, and
delight to live in slavery to the nobility. Let them
pais hy'\ 87-97. Why country-men and warlike fiiends of Kent, What meanes this
mutinous rebellions, That you in troopes do muster thus your selues, Vnder the
conduct of this Traitor Cade? To rise against your soueraigne Lord and King,
Who mildly hath his pardon sent to you, If you forsake this monstrous Rcbell here?
If honour be the marke zvhereat you aime. Then haste to France that our forefathers
wonne, Aytd winne againc that thing which now is lost, And leaue to secke your
Countries overthrow. 19. All. God . . . king 1^ 98. All. A Clifford, a Clifford.
They forsake Cade. 20-32. Cade. What . . . upon you all] 99-104. Cade.
Why how tww, rvill you forsake your generall. And ancient freedome which you
haue possest ? To bend your necks vnder their servile yokes, Who if you stir, will
straightwaies hang you vp, But follow me, and you shall pull them downe, And
make them yeeld their linings to your hands.
15. Fling up his cap} Compare 25, 26. given out] surrendered. No
" throws up his cap for joy," Part III. other example of this use is in Shake-
II. i. 196 ; " hurl'd their caps up," speare.
Richard III. iii. vii. 35 ; " cast their 26, 27. ancient freedom] From the Con-
caps up," Antony and Cleopatra, iv. tention (1. 100). Cade's speech here is
xii. 12 ; " threw caps up," Coriolanus, in accordance with the villeins' demands
IV. vi. 135. And Peele, Honour of the in 1381. Cade said nothing of this sort.
Garter, 1593 : " As little boys with " And the King entered in among them,
flinging tip their caps Congratulate and spake unto them gently ... I am
great kings and warriors " (at the end), your King, what lack ye ? What doe
18. Shake he his weapon] This com- ye say? Then such as heard him sayd,
mon structure in Shakespeare has been that ye will make us free for euer, our
noticed already. elues, our heyres, and oure landes, and
20. are ye so brave ?] Are ye so that we be called no more bondmen "
audacious, so overbearing. See Corio- (Grafton, p. 423).
lanus, IV. V. 19.
sc. vm] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 165
break your backs with burdens, take your houses over
your heads, ravish your wives and daughters before 30
your faces : for me, I will make shift for one, and so,
God's curse light upon you all !
All. We '11 follow Cade, we '11 follow Cade!
Clif. Is Cade the son of Henry the Fifth,
That thus you do exclaim you '11 go with him ? 35
Will he conduct you through the heart of France,
And make the meanest of you earls and dukes ?
Alas ! he hath no home, no place to fly to ;
Nor knows he how to live but by the spoil,
Unless by robbing of your friends and us. 40
Were 't not a shame, that whilst you live at jar,
The fearful French, whom you late vanquished,
Should make a start o'er seas and vanquish you ?
Methinks already in this civil broil
I see them lording it in London streets, 45
Crying " Villiago ! " unto all they meet.
Better ten thousand base-born Cades miscarry
Than you should stoop unto a Frenchman's mercy.
To France, to France ! and get what you have lost ;
33. All. We'll . . . Cade I] 105. All. A Cade, a Cade. They runne to Cade
againe. 34-52. Clif. Is Cade . . . victory^ io5-iii. Cliff. Bratie warlike
friends heare me but speak a word, Refuse not good whilst it is offered you, The
King is mercifull, thett yeeld to him, And I my selfe will go along with you, To
Winsore Castle whereas the King abides, And on mine honour you shall haue no hurt.
30. ravish your wives] A back re- 46. Villiago I] Florio has " Villacco
ference to the omitted scene between (Vigliacco), a rascall, a base varlet, a
Dicke, Sergeant, and Cade. For the knauish scoundrel, a scurvy fellow."
" daughter " reference, see Jack Straw, Capell altered it to Florio's word,
at the commencement. In the omitted Theobald " corrected it," Malone says,
scene the tables are turned. to " Villageois I " A passage in The
34-52. Clifford says here in the Famous Victories makes Florio's word
Contention, that the King is at certain: "Derick. O good Mounser.
" Winsore Castle " ; whereas in Scene Frenchman. Come, come, you villeaco "
iv. he departed for Killingworth. This (Hazlitt, Shakespeare Library, Part
is corrected in revision. This part II. vol. i. p. 368). Ben Jonson has the
of the Contention is by Peele, which word in Every Man Out of His Humour,
explains the confusion. v. iii. Shakespeare may have seen it in
41. live at jar] quarrelling. See The Three Lords and Three Ladies of
above, i. i. 253. London, 1587-1583 (Pride is a Lord
43. start] sudden outburst. of Spain) : " S. Pride. Fuoro Viliagos !
45. lording it] Not due to Greene fuoro Lutheranos Ingleses ! fuoro, sa,
(as has been stated), but from Spenser's sa, sa! Pomp. Their shields are ours;
Shepheards Calender (July), 1579: they fled away with shame" (Hazlitt's
" They reigne and rulen over all And Dodsley, vi. 474). Apparently Spanish
lord it as thy list." See Greene's for villains. For " sa, sa, sa," see King
Frier Bacon (Grosart, xiii. 34) ; Nashe, Lear, iv. vi. 207.
Foure Letters Confuted (Grosart, ii. 47. base-born] See note at i. iii. 84
280) ; and The Unfortunate Traveller above. Shakespeare may have taken
(v. 120). Greene has "prince it "also this word from Churchyard's "Paper-
in Frier Baco7t. Mill " poem referred to above, vii. 37.
166 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Spare England, for it is your native coast. 50
Henry hath money, you are strong and manly ;
God on our side, doubt not of victory.
All. A Clifford! a Clifford! we'll follow the king and
Clifford.
Cade. Was ever feather so lightly blown to and fro as 55
this multitude ? The name of Henry the Fifth hales
them to an hundred mischiefs, and makes them leave
me desolate. I see them lay their heads together to
surprise me. My sword make way for me, for here is
no staying. In despite of the devils and hell, have 60
through the very midst of you ! and heavens and
honour be witness, that no want of resolution in me,
but only my followers' base and ignominious treasons,
makes me betake me to my heels. \^Exit.
Buck. What, is he fled ? go some, and follow him; 65
And he that brings his head unto the king
Shall have a thousand crowns for his reward.
\Exeunt some of them.
Follow me, soldiers : we '11 devise a mean
To reconcile you all unto the king.
\Exeunt.
53, 54. All. A Clifford . . . and Clifford] 112. All. A Clifford, a Clifford,
God sane the Ki7ig. 55-64. Cade. Was ever . . . to my heels] 113-117. Cade.
How like a feather is this rascall company Blowne enery way, But that they
may see there want no valiancy in me, My staffe shall make way through the
midst of you. And so a poxe take you all (as if verse). He runs through them
with his staffe, and Jiies away, 65-69. Buck. What, is he . . . the king]
118-121. Buc. Go some and make after him, and proclaime, That those that can
bring the head of Cade, Shall haue a thousand Crownes for his labour, Come
march away (verse). Exet omnes.
55. Was ever feather . . .] This text occurs in Stubb's Anatomie of
thought is developed in 3 Hejiry VI. Abuses, 1583 (quoted in New Eng.
III. i. 84-89. Diet.). For Cade's flight and the
55. to and fro] Only in King Lear sequel, see beginning of Scene x.
outside Parts I. and II. See Part I. (extract). Peele has " I '11 take me to
II. i. 6g. my legs" {Sir Clyomon (531, b)).
58. desolate] all alone by myself. 67. thousaiui crowns] Note the repe-
58. lay their heads together] See tition in the Contention, a few lines
note above, at in. i. 165. below, corrected in revision.
63. ignominious] See note, in. i. 179. 68. a mean] See Part I. iii. ii. 10;
Not in Q. and Two Gentlemen of Verona, iii. i.
64. betake me to my heels] " betake 38. See quotation from Jack Straw,
him to his legs " occurs in Romeo and " a mean to shed a world of blood," at
Juliet, I. iv. 34. The expression in the i. i. 22 above.
sc. IX] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 167
SCENE IX. — Kenilworth Castle.
Sound trumpets. Enter King, Queen, and SOMERSET, on the
terrace.
King. Was ever king that joyed an earthly throne,
And could command no more content than I ?
No sooner was I crept out of my cradle
But I was made a king at nine months old :
Was never subject longed to be a king 5
As I do long and wish to be a subject.
Enter BUCKINGHAM and CLIFFORD.
Buck. Health and glad tidings to your majesty !
King. Why, Buckingham, is the traitor Cade surprised?
Or is he but retired to make him strong ?
Enter below, multitudes, with halters about their necks.
Clif. He 's fled, my lord, and all his powers do yield ; lO
And humbly thus, with halters on their necks,
Expect your highness' doom, of life or death.
King. Then, heaven, set ope thy everlasting gates.
Enter King Henry and the Queene, and Somerset. 1-7. King. Was ever
. . . subject. Buck. Health . . . majesty /] omitted Q (but compare g-i6 below
after rebels' entry). 8,9. King. Why, Buckingham . . . strong?'] 1-8. King.
Lord Somerset, what newes here you of the Retell Cade? Som. This, my
gratious Lord, that the Lord Say is don to death, And the Citie is almost sackt.
King. Gods will be done, for as he hath decreede, so must it be : And be it as he
please, to stop the pride of those rebellious men. Queene. Had the noble Duke
of Suffolkc bene aliue. The Rcbell Cade had bene supprest ere this, And all the
rest that do take part with him (see for Queen's speech above, iv. 40, 41).
Enter below . . . ] Enter the Duke of B^ickingham atid Clifford, with the Rebels,
with halters aboiit their necks. 10-12. Cliff. He 's Jied . . . death] 9-16.
Cliff. Long Hue King Henry, England's lawfull king. Loe here my Lord, those
Rebels are subdude, And offer their Hues before your highnesse feete. King. But
tell me Clifford, is there Captaine here. Clif. No, my gratious Lord, he is fled
away, but proclamations are sent forth, that he that can but bring his head, shall
haue a thousand crownes. But may it please your Maiestie, to pardon these their
faxilts, that by that traitors meanes were thus misled. 13-21. King. Then,
heaven . . . countries] 17-21. King, Stand vp you simple men, and giue God
Enter . . . Queen] Queen Mar- speare's time. Compare Spenser,
garet does not speak In this scene, Faerie Queene, ii. 10, 53 : —
but perhaps she is introduced because " and him succeeded Marius,
she does in the Contention (6-8). Her Who joyd his dayes in great tran-
remark has been already used in iv. iv. quillity."
40,41 above, where the rebellion is at Peele uses it in the more active sense : —
its height. At this stage (in the Con- " thy looks shalt be reliev'd,
tentioyi) it is altogether misplaced. But And thou shalt joy her as thy soul
the last words of the king (" Come, desires "
wife ") show she is here. {David and Bethsabe (466, a)),
1-5. Was ever . . . Was never] A 13. ope] Shakespeare had a great
favourite method with Spenser. See affection for this old word, both verb
Introduction, Part I. and adjective. He has it about forty
I. joyed] enjoyed. An archaic or times. Spenser has it once (at least)
rather poetic expression in Shake- later in Faerie Queene : —
168
THE SECOND PART OF
[act IV.
To entertain my vows of thanks and praise !
Soldiers, this day have you redeemed your lives, 15
And showed how well you love your prince and country:
Continue still in this so good a mind,
And Henry, though he be infortunate,
Assure yourselves, will never be unkind :
And so, with thanks and pardon to you all, 20
I do dismiss you to your several countries.
All. God save the king! God save the king!
Enter a Messenger.
Mess. Please it your grace to be advertised
praise. For you did take in hand you know not what, And go in peace obedient
to your King, And line as subiects, and you shall not want. Whilst Henry Hues,
and weares the English Crowne. 22. All. God . . . king I] 22-26. All. God . .
king. King. Come let us hast to London now with speed. That solemne prosessions
may be sung, In laud and honour of the God of heauen. And triumphs of this
happie victorie. Exetomnes. 23-49. Messenger. Please it . . . wretched reign"]
omitted Q.
" did softly smite the raile
Which straight flew ope "
(iv. iii. 46). And Peele has the verb
once : —
" Ope, earth, and take thy miserable
son
Into the bowels of thy cursed
womb "
{David and Bethsabe (480, b)). But it
is nowhere in such demand as in Shake-
speare, and I suppose this is an argu-
ment in favour of placing this wretched
speech to his discredit, especially with
the piety evinced by the king. Kyd
uses the verb " to ope" three times in
Cornelia, and he has "break ope" for
" break open, " there, and in Spanish
Tragedy. Both were archaic and also
Biblical. In the old Te Deum of Stein-
hold and Hopkins (1570 ?) occurs :
" Thou heavens kingdom didst set
ope."
14. To entertain my vows] to receive
them favourably, to give them a home.
Compare Peele, Speeches at Theobalds
" Then, having many days with
sacred rites
Prepared myself to entertain good
thoughts"
(577i b). A common use. In the
speech in the Contention, the king begins
with " God's will be done " when he
hears of Say's murder. At iii. i. 33
(hi. i. 86 above) in the Contention he
says the same when Somerset announ-
ces the loss of those towns in France.
Hence the omission here. Somerset
is an unlucky envoy.
16. You know ?iot what] In Q. See
above, ii. 151.
16. take in hand] In this speech in
the Contention. Occurs in Lucrece,
1235. And in Faerie Queene, i. ii.
36:—
" Whose forged beauty he did take
in hand
All other Dames to have exceeded
far."
Make it one's business.
18. infortunate] Only here and in
King John, 11. i. 178. And twice in
Othello doubtfully. A favourite word
with Greene (from Euphues), who
never, I think, uses " unfortunate."
Compare the modern and inharmoni-
ous "infrequent." There is no rule.
20. pardon to you all] See note at
Scene x. i.
22. prosessions] in the king's speech
here (Contention) illustrates, or is
illustrated by, " Shall in procession
sing her endless praise," Part I. i.
vi. 20. Litanies. See Puttenham
(Arber, p. 61) : " Our generall pro-
cessions or Letanies, with bankets."
23. advertised] informed. See 3
Henry VI. 11. i. 116; iv. v. 9; and v.
iii. 18. And elsewhere in Shakespeare,
who seems to have had a free hand to
this scene's end.
sc. IX.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
169
And ask him what 's the reason of these arms.
The Duke of York is newlj come from Ireland,
And with a puissant and a mighty power 25
Of gallowglasses and stout kerns
Is marching hitherward in proud array ;
And still proclaimeth, as he comes along,
His arms are only to remove from thee
The Duke of Somerset, whom he terms a traitor. 30
King. Thus stands my state, 'twixt Cade and York distressed ;
Like to a ship that, having 'scaped a tempest.
Is straightway calmed, and boarded with a pirate.
But now is Cade driven back, his men dispersed.
And now is York in arms to second him. 35
I pray thee, Buckingham, go and meet him,
24. York . . . from Ireland] See
note. III. i. 309, 310.
26. gallowglasses and stout kerns]
See note, in. i. 310.
28-30. still proclaimeth . . . to re-
move . . . Somerset] York's return
from Ireland was in September, 1450,
He says below (v. i. 61, 62) he came
to heave out Somerset and fight Cade.
The latter part was rendered unneces-
sary by Cade's discomfiture before his
arrival. But the purpose about Somer-
set was not declared until the XXX.
year — nearly two years later. More-
over, York declared himself against
Somerset, at the head of an army in
London, a second time, Somerset
having been again released ; and it is
this latter event that fits in with the
thread of the story in the play, though
entirely out of place with regard to
Cade. Grafton says (Hall, p. 231) :
" amongest all imaginations, one
seemed most necessarye for his pur-
pose, which yet againe was . . .
against the Duke of Somerset, who
only ruled the king , . . the Duke . . .
chieflye entertayned two Richardes,
and both Neuelles, the one of Salis-
burye, the other of Werwike beyng
Erles, the first the father, the second
the son . . . Salisburie was second
Sonne to Raufe Neuell, Erie of West-
merland, whose daughter the Duke of
Yorke had maried . . . Richarde the
eldest Sonne espoused Anne, the sister
and heire of the entire blood to Lorde
Henry Beauchampe . . . after Duke of
Warwike ... in whose right and tytle
he was created and named Erie of War-
wike, and not by hys awne progeny
or parentage . . . When the Duke of
Yorke had fastened his Chaine betweene
these two strong pillers, he ... so pol-
litiquely handled his businesse, that the
Duke of Somerset was arrested in the
Quenes great Chamber, and sent to the
Towre of London ... it was put in
suspence ... by the Queenes procure-
ment ... set at liberty ; by which
doyng grew great envy . . . The Duke
of Yorke . . . determined to reuenge
their quarrell, and obteyne their purpose
by open warre and Marciall adventure
. . . gathered a great power, and . . .
marched toward London " (Grafton,
652, 653). It was by the above marriage
that Warwick obtained the right to
the badge of the bear and ragged
staff.
32. Like to a ship] A remembering
of Spenser. See Faerie Qiieene, i. vi.
I ; V. ii. 50 ; vi. iv. i ; vi. xii. i. Spenser's
ships usually escape without ever a
pirate. An old simile. " Like as a
gaily" in Golding's Ovid; Spenser's
introduction is " As when " or " Like
as " generally. For a highly elaborated
parallel, see the queen's speech before
Tewksbury (Part III. v. iv.) at her final
wreck.
33. calmed] becalmed, as in Othello,
I. i. 30. "With" means "by," as it
often does in Shakespeare.
33. pirate] A similar intervention by
pirates is used illustratively in Richard
III. I. iii. 158. Shakespeare often uses
pirates as an adjunct in his poetry,
specifying their names even as above
at IV. i. 108 ; and Measure for Measure,
IV. iii. 75 ; and Atitofiy and Cleopatra,
I. iv. 48 ; and Pericles, iv. i. 97.
170 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
Tell him I '11 send Duke Edmund to the Tower ;
And, Somerset, we will commit thee thither,
Until his army be dismissed from him. 40
Som. My lord,
I 'II yield myself to prison willingly,
Or unto death, to do my country good.
King. In any case, be not too rough in terms,
For he is fierce and cannot brook hard language. 45
Buck. I will, my lord ; and doubt not so to deal
As all things shall redound unto your good.
King. Come, wife, let 's in, and learn to govern better ;
For yet may England curse my wretched reign.
\Exeunt.
SCENE X. — Kent. Ideris Garden.
Enter Cade.
Cade. Fie on ambition ! fie on myself, that have a sword,
and yet am ready to famish ! These five days have
Enter Cade] Enter lacke Cade at one doore, and at the other, maister
Alexander Eydcn and his men, and lack Cade lies downe picking of hearbes
and eating them. 1-15. Cade. Fie on ambition . . . feed oti] omitted Q.
44. terms] words, language. this pardon (ye more then of the greate
47. redound] result, conduce. Not lubile of Rome) . . . the whole multi-
in Shakespeare elsewhere. tude, without bydding farewell to their
48. Come, wife] The King is very Capitaine, retired the same night. . . .
lenient and forgiving after Scene iv.. But lohn Cade desperate of succours,
where he last spoke to her as (which by the friends of the Duke of
" Madame," and " Margaret," with Yorke were to him promised) . . . mis-
Suffolk's head on her lap. But earlier trusting the sequele of the matter,
(in the Contention) she was " my love " departed secretly in habite disguysed,
(where she boxed Duchess Gloucester's into Sussex ; but all his Metamorphosis
ears). or transfiguration little preuayled, for
Cf-p^p Y after a proclamation made, that who-
soeuer could apprehend the sayde lack
Enter Cade] The Contention stage- Cade, should haue for his paine a
direction is much more realistic. Graf- thousand Markes, many sought for hym,
ton says (after London bridge and but fewe espied hym, till one Alexander
Saint Magnus corner) : " both parties Iden Esquire of Kent, founde him in a
beyng faynt, werie and fatigate, agreed garden, and there in his defence man-
to desist from fight . . . the lustie fully slue the caytife Cade, and brought
Kentish Capitayne . . . brake up the his dead bodie to London, whose head
gaytes. . . . The Archebishop of was set on London bridge. Thys is
Cauntorbury, beyng then Chauncellor of the ende of all rebelles . . . where men
England . . . called to him [to Tower] stryve agaynst the streame, their bote
the Byshop of Wynchester. . . . These neuer commeth to his pretensed porte"
two prelates . . . passed the ryuer of (Grafton, p. 643). Ritson quotes W.
Thames from the Towre into South- Wyrcester, p. 472: "This Iden was,
warke bringing with them vnder the in fact, the new Sheriff of Kent, who
kings great scale a generall pardon had followed Cade from Rochester."
. . . openly proclamed and published. I do not find this verified by Stone.
Lorde, how glad the people were of Holinshed is not followed here.
sc x] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 171
I hid me in these woods and durst not peep out, for
all the country is laid for me ; but now am I so
hungry, that if I might have a lease of my life for a 5
thousand years I could stay no longer. Wherefore,
on a brick wall have I climbed into this garden, to see
if I can eat grass, or pick a sallet another while, which
is not amiss to cool a man's stomach this hot weather.
And I think this word sallet was born to do me good : lO
for many a time, but for a sallet, my brain-pan had
been cleft with a brown bill ; and many a time, when
I have been dry and bravely marching, it hath served
me instead of a quart-pot to drink in; and now the
word sallet must serve me to feed on. 15
Enter Iden.
Iden. Lord ! who would live turmoiled in the court,
And may enjoy such quiet walks as these ?
This small inheritance my father left me
Contenteth me, and worth a monarchy.
16-23. T^den. Lord t who . . . my gate] 1-5. Eyden. Good Lord, how pleasant
is this country life, This title land my father left me here. With my contented
minde serties me as well. As all the pleasures in the Court can yeeld, Nor would
I change this pleasttrc for the Court.
4. all the country is laid for me] rutter's helmet. Craig gives an early
warrants and watches issued and sent example of the pun from Thersites
out. Compare Jasper Mayne, The (Hazlitt's Dodsley, i. 399). Not in
City Match : " The country has been the Contention. The word occurs in
laid and warrants granted to apprehend North's Plutarch. Brutus has a drink
him"; and Tomkins' Albumazar, v. ix. from a sallet (Steevens). But Shake-
(Dodsley, xi. 417) : " Lose not your speare took the word, and the incident
patience too. Leave this lamenting of Cade's wearing one, from Fabyan
And lay the town; you may recover (1516). See note at Scene iii. 1. 11,
it" ; and Soliman and Perseda, 11. i. : — above.
" that he may not scape, 12. brown bill] Again only in Kitig
Weele lay the ports and havens Lear, iv. vi. 92. The arm (preserved in
round about." "bill-hook") carried by watchmen and
The full expression, " laid watches constables among others. Compare
that," occurs at the beginning of Much Ado About Nothing, ni. iii. 44.
Grafton's Continuation of Hardyng, And Pappe with an Hatchet, 1588,
1543. And later (p. 530): "in everie 1589: "We challenge him at all
coaste and corner of the realme laied weapons, from the taylors bodkin to
wondrefull wayte and watche to take the watchman's browjie bil " (reprint,
... the said duke." p. 68). And in Golding's Ovid, v. 97 :
8. pick a sallet] " like an unthanke- " in his hand did holde A brode
full Hackney-man, she meant to tourne browne Byll."
him into the bare leas, and set him 16. turmoiled] worried. Compare
as a tyrde iade to picke a sallet " Golding's Ovid, vii. 152, 153 : " their
(Greene, Never Too Late (Grosart, viii. boyling brests Turmoyling with the
102), 1590). And Nashe, Pierce Pent- firie flames enclosed in their chests."
lesse (Grosart, ii. 71) : " Good thriftie 19. Contenteth . . . monarchy] See
men, they drawe out a dinner with note at " My crown is called content"
saWe^s, Hke a Swart-rutter's sute." Here 3 Henry VI. in. i. 64.
is, I suppose, the quibble on the swart-
172 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
I seek not to wax great by others' waning, 20
Or gather wealth I care not with what envy :
Sufficeth that I have maintains my state,
And sends the poor well pleased from my gate.
Cade. Here 's the lord of the soil come to seize me for a
stray, for entering his fee-simple without leave. Ah, 25
villain, thou wilt betray me, and get a thousand crowns
of the king by carrying my head to him ; but I '11
make thee eat iron like an ostrich, and swallow my
sword like a great pin, ere thou and I part.
Iden. Why, rude companion, whatsoe'er thou be, 30
I know thee not ; why then should I betray thee ?
Is 't not enough to break into my garden,
And like a thief to come to rob my grounds.
Climbing my walls in spite of me the owner,
But thou wilt brave me with these saucy terms? 35
Cade. Brave thee ! ay, by the best blood that ever was
broached, and beard thee too. Look on me well :
I have eat no meat these five days ; yet, come thou
24-29. Cade. Here 's . . , soil come . . . Ah, villain . . . me and crowns . . .
I 'II make . . . pin . . . part] 6-9. Cade. Sounes, heres . . . soyle, Stafid villaine
. . . me to the King, and . . . crownes for my head, but ere thou goest He make
. . . pintle. 30-35. Why rude . . . saucy terms'\ 10-13. Why sawcy companion,
why should I betray thee ? 1st not inough that thou hast broke my hedges, And
enterd into my ground without the leaue of me the oivner. But thou wilt braue
me too. 36-41. Brave thee t . . . too. Look on . . . yet, come . . . as dead
. . . more] 14-17. Braue thee and beard thee too, by the best blood of the Realme,
looke on . . . yet and I do not leaue thee and thy fue men as dead . . . more
(read this five dayes).
20. wax . . . waning] Compare in Lyly's Pappe with an Hatchet
Sylvester, Du Bartas (Fourth Day), (Saintsbury's reprint, 1892, p. 54), 1588-
(p. 88, edited 1621): "Thus dost thou 15S9 : "His conscience hath a colde
wex ajid wane" (to the Moon), 1591. stomacke. Cold? Thou art deceived,
Iden"s speech here is not much altered 'twil digest a cathedral church as easilie
from Peele's (as I think) in the Conteti- as an Estriche a two-penie naile." And
tion. Peele is constantly dwelling on in Gabriel Harvey, Pierces Supereroga-
sweet content and solace. So also was tion (Grosart, ii. 236) : " The Oestridge
poor Greene. The Folio here reads can deuoure the rust of Iron." Later,
" warning." Rowe corrected. in Marston, Satire i. ; and Ben Jonson,
23. well pleased] Occurs before, i. i. Every Man in His Humour, iii. i.
218, but not again in Shakespeare, 30. companion] common fellow, in a
Frequent in the Bible, as is the senti- bad sense, often in Shakespeare. So
ment in the line. Compare Jack in Kyd's Spanish Tragedy, in. ii. 115 :
Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 381) : — " better its that base companions dye."
" England is grown to such a pass " Panion," in this sense, is older ; a
of late, contraction.
That rich men triumph to see the 35. saucy] See note in Part I. iii. i.
poor beg at their gate." 45, and in. iv. 33. A favourite word.
24. lord of the soil] Not elsewhere 37. broached] shed (of blood). See
in Shakespeare. Part I. iii. iv. 40 ; and Part HI. 11. iii. 16.
25. stray] vagrant, vagabond, " mas- 37. beard] defy to face. Compare
terless man." Part I. i. iii. 44, 45 ; and 1 Henry IV.
28. eat iron like an ostrich] Earlier iv. i. 12.
sc. x] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 173
and thy five men, and if I do not leave you all as
dead as a door-nail, I pray God I may never eat grass 40
more.
Iden. Nay, it shall ne'er be said, while England stands,
That Alexander Iden, an esquire of Kent,
Took odds to combat a poor famished man.
Oppose thy steadfast-gazing eyes to mine, 45
See if thou canst outface me with thy looks :
Set limb to limb, and thou art far the lesser ;
Thy hand is but a finger to my fist ;
Thy leg a stick compared with this truncheon ;
My foot shall fight with all the strength thou hast ; 50
And if mine arm be heaved in the air
Thy grave is digged already in the earth.
As for words, whose greatness answers words.
Let this my sword report what speech forbears.
Cade. By my valour, the most complete champion that 55
ever I heard ! Steel, if thou turn the edge, or cut not
out the burly-boned clown in chines of beef ere thou
42-44. Nay . . . stands, thai . . . combat . . . man] 18-20. Nay, it neuer
shall he saide whilst the world doth stand, that . . . combat with afamisht man.
45-54. Oppose thy . . . forbears] 2o(^)-22. looke on me, my limmes are equall vnto
thine, and euery way as big, then hand to hand, He combat thee. Sirrha fetch me
weapons and stand you all aside (prose, verse Q 3). 55-59' By my . . . hob-
40. as dead as a door-nail] Compare 53>54' words . . . sword] See Merry
2 Henry IV.w.m. 127: " Is the old king Wives of Windsor, in. i. 44, for these
dead? ... As nail in door." An ancient words in opposition; and note, Arden
saying revived. See Skeat's editions of edition, p. 113. And in Tamburlaine,
Piers the Plowman and William of Part I. i. i. : " Thy words are swords."
Palerne {circa 1350), where it is some- And add to the references, Gosson,
times " door-tree." In Nashe's S^rawg-^ School of Ah^tse (Arber, pp. 49, 52).
News (Grosart, ii. 180), 1593, etc. etc. Spenser illustrates here : " He never
From the continual hammering upon it, meant with zvords, but swords, to plead
in shutting and in knocking (?). his right " (Faerie Qneene, i. iv. 42).
44. odds] advantage. 57. burly-boned] Nashe uses this
45. steadfast-gazing] Compa.^e" still- word figuratively in Almond for a
gazing," Lucrece, 84. Parrot, 1589. It is a term affected
46. outface] Often in Shakespeare, by Nashe : " The Danes, who stand
from Love's Labour 's Lost, v. ii. 626, so much upon their unweldy burli-
onwards. boand souldiery, that they account of
50. hand to hand] See note at 5 no man that hath not a battle Axe at
Henry VI. 11. i. 73. It is in Kyd's his girdle to hough dogs with " {Pierce
Spanish Tragedy, but earlier examples Penilesse (Grosart, ii. 39), 1592). See
could be quoted. Here it is omitted. " hough " above in the Contention, vii.
51. arm . . . heaved] See note above, i. 124 (note). Neither of these terms are
ii. 13, Generally used in this connec- in Shakespeare elsewhere. See " big-
tion with "up," as in Faerie Queene, i. vii. boned " at v. iii. i-io in Part III.
14 : " His heavie hand he heaved up 57. chines of beef] Compare Peele,
on hye." Peele has " Heave tip your Old Wives Tale (450, a) : " Enter a
swords" in Battle of Alcazar, iollowing Friar with a chine of beef and a pot of
Spenser. The sentiment here is tersely wine " ; and again (in the text) : " A
put by Sidney, Arcadia, bk. ii. : " His chine of English beef, meat for a king "
arm seemed still a postillion of death." {ibid.). And Nashe, Foure Letters
174 THE SECOND PART OF [act iv.
sleep in thy sheath, I beseech God on my knees thou
mayest be turned to hobnails.
[Here they fight. Cade falls.
O, I am slain ! Famine and no other hath slain me : 60
let ten thousand devils come against me, and give me
but the ten meals I have lost, and I 'd defy them all.
Wither, garden ; and be henceforth a burying-place
to all that do dwell in this house, because the uncon-
quered soul of Cade is fled. 65
Iden. Is 't Cade that I have slain, that monstrous traitor ?
Sword, I will hallow thee for this thy deed,
And hang thee o'er my tomb when I am dead :
Ne'er shall this blood be wiped from thy point,
But thou shalt wear it as a herald's coat, 70
To emblaze the honour that thy master got.
naiWl 23-26. Now sword, if thou doest not hew this burlybond churle into chines
of beefe I beseech God thou maist fall into some smiths hand, and be turnd
to hobnailes. Eyden. Come on thy way. {They fight &> Cade fals dozvne.)
60-65. O, I am slain! . . . Cade is fied] 27-31. Oh villaine, thou hast slain
the fioure of Kent for chiualrie, but it is famine &• not thee that has done it;
for come ten thousand diuels, and giue me but the ten meales that I wanted this
fine daies, and He fight with you all, and so a poxe rot thee, for lacke Cade must
die. He dies. 66-71. Is't Cade . . . master got] 32-36. lack Cade, &• tvas it
that monstrous Retell which I haue slaine. Oh sword He honour thee for this,
and in my chamber shalt thou hang as a monument to after age, for this great
sendee thou hast done to me. He drag him hence, and with my sword cut off his
head, and beare it (prose, verse Q 3) Exet.
Confuted (Grosart, ii. 194) : " Lies as laine, Part II. iv. iii. : " this unconquer^d
big as one of the Guardes chynes of arm of mine." And see a repeated hne
beefe^^ (i593)- in Tamburlainc, Part II. v. iii.: "And
59. hobnails] Another word of shdM I die d^nd. \his unconquered ? "
Nashe's : " Soales, as full of the hob- 67. Sword, I will hallow thee] Com-
nayles of repression [? reprehension] as pare Merry Wives of Windsor, iv. ii.
they could strike" (Foure Letters Con- 216; and note, Arden edition, p. 177.
futed (To the Gentlemen Readers), ii. Compare Notes Upon Russia, trans.
187). Nashe has the word several times from Baron Herberstein by R. H. Major
later. Shakespeare uses it later in 1 (Hakluyt Society, 1852, ii. 25), circa
Henry IV. See Introduction to Lowe's 1530: "The merchants of that place
Labour 's Lost. The above group of [Novorogod] earnestly begged me, after
Nashe words all belong to the Con- I had travelled thither from Augsburg in
tention. one and the same carriage, to leave them
60. I am slain] Note the poetic flight the vehicle in which I had accomplished
in Cade's prose speech here. It is so great a journey that they might place
transported bodily into Part III. 11. i. 70, it in their church." Of weapons, the
71 ; and "hand to hand" (1. 50, above custom is of classical antiquity: —
in Contention) goes with it. Neither " I late ago in Junos Church at
are in True Tragedy. These interlace- Argos did behold
ments, so often occurring, make one And knew the target which I
feel there is a Primus Motor all through. [Numa] in mv left hand there
The phrase is in Grafton, and earlier did hold"
in Hawes, etc. (Golding's Ovid, xv. 181, 182). The
64. unconquered] Again in Part I. iv. sentiment here is much exalted from
ii. 32 ; and Lucrece, 408. Not in Con- that in the Contention,
tention. Compare Marlowe, Tambur- 71. ^;w6/a«£] describe or depict heraldi-
sc. X.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 175
Cade. Iden, farewell ; and be proud of thy victory. Tell
Kent from me, she hath lost her best man, and exhort
all the world to be cowards ; for I, that never feared
any, am vanquished by famine, not by valour. \_Dies
Iden. How much thou wrong'st me, heaven be my judge.
Die, damned wretch, the curse of her that bare thee !
And as I thrust thy body in with my sword,
So wish I I might thrust thy soul to hell.
Hence will I drag thee headlong by the heels
Unto a dunghill which shall be thy grave,
And there cut off thy most ungracious head ;
Which I will bear in triumph to the king,
Leaving thy trunk for crows to feed upon.
75
80
{Exit.
76-84. Iden. How much . . . feed tipon] omitted Q.
cally. Greene uses the word often.
New Eng. Diet, quotes him from Or-
lando Furioso in a slightly differing
sense. But compare Penelopes Web
(Grosart, v. 142), 1587 : " tyme the
Heralt that best emblazeth affections."
79. sonl to hell] This abominable
speech has no parallel in Q. One might
import Marlowe here, sooner than leave
it to Shakespeare. When the Mayor
stabs Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley,
V. 406, 407), he uses similar language,
calling him a "dunghill bastard born."
Outside these plays, and Titus An-
dronicus in several places, compare
Twelfth Night, iii. iv. 237; King
jfohn, I. i. 272, etc., and : —
" Drag this accursed villain through
the streets
To strike a terror to the rebels
hearts."
See IV. ii. 122, 123, and note.
80. headlong] head foremost (but
horizontally). Compare Kyd's Cornelia :
" Headlong to runne and reck no after
harmes." Elsewhere in Shakespeare's
plays it has the sense of down, or down
from.
84. trunk] See next note.
84. crows to feed upon] Compare
Peele, Edward I. (406, a) : " thou mayst
Hang in the air for fowls to feed upon."
And Old Wives Tale (452, b) :—
" Away with him into the open fields,
To be a ravening prey to crows and
kites."
I believe that Peele wrote Scene x.
in Contention; and tliat Shakespeare
altered it with his (Peele's) help and
some of his additions. It is noticeable,
and evidence of a set purpose, that
Cade's prose is made tamer, as a foil to
Iden's verse which is constant here (but
not in Contention) and greatly dignified.
But compare also Marlowe, Tambur-
laine, Part II. n. iii.: —
" We will both watch and ward shall
keep his trunk
Amidst these plains for fowls to
prey upon."
176 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
ACT V
SCENE I. — Fields between Dartford and Blackheath.
Enter YORK and his army of Irish, with drum and colours.
York. From Ireland thus comes York to claim his right,
And pluck the crown from feeble Henry's head :
Ring, bells, aloud ; burn, bonfires, clear and bright,
To entertain great England's lawful king.
Ah ! sancta majestas, who would not buy thee dear? 5
Let them obey that know not how to rule ;
This hand was made to handle nought but gold :
I cannot give due action to my words.
Except a sword or sceptre balance it.
A sceptre shall it have, have I a soul, lO
On which I '11 toss the flower-de-luce of France.
Enter Buckingham.
Whom have we here ? Buckingham, to disturb me ?
The king hath sent him, sure : I must dissemble.
Buck. York, if thou meanest well, I greet thee well.
Enter . . .] Enter the Duke of Yorke with drtim and soiildiers. i, 2. Yorke.
From . . . head] 1. Yorke. In Amies from Ireland comes Yorke amain. 3-5.
Ring . . . bright To . . . lawful . . . dear] 2-4. Ring belles aloud, bonfires
perfume the ayre, To . . . royall . . . dear ? 6-1 1. Let them obey ... France]
omitted Q. 12, 13. Enter Buckingham. IVhom have . . . dissemble] 5.
Enter the Duke of Buckingham. But soft, who comes here, Buckingham, what
newes with him? 14. Buck. Yorke, . . . meanest . . . well] 6, Buc. Yorke,
. . . meane . . . so.
I. From Ireland thus comes York] See 11. toss . . . flower-de-luce] hea.T
note at iv. ix. 28. triumphantly. Compare 1 Henry IV.
3. hells . . . bonfires] See Part I. i. iv. ii. 71, and 3 Henry VI. i. i. 244.
vi. 10, II, note. For " flower-de-luce," see Part 1. 1. i. 80,
5. sancta majestas]Q,2L^e\\ conjectured and i. ii. 99. So in Edward the Third,
" santa maesta," as being nearer Q. i. 70 :" Dare he already crop theT^ower-
Pope read "majesty" (alone) for har- de-luce?"; and again : —
mony's sake. These first five lines " a lion, roused in the west
are practically adopted from CoK/mrJo», Shall carry hence the flow er-de-
where Peele's hand in the scene is luce of France "
evident, to the entrance of the Queen, (in. ii. 42, 43).
Peele's favourite "amain" is omitted.
sc. I] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 177
York. Humphrey of Buckingham, I accept thy greeting, 1 5
Art thou a messenger, or come of pleasure ?
Buck. A messenger from Henry, our dread liege,
To know the reason of these arms in peace ;
Or why thou, being a subject as I am.
Against thy oath and true allegiance sworn, 20
Should'st raise so great a power without his leave,
Or dare to bring thy force so near the court.
York. [AsiWe.] Scarce can I speak, my choler is so great :
O, I could hew up rocks and fight with flint,
I am so angry at these abject terms ; 25
And now, like Ajax Telamonius,
On sheep or oxen could I spend my fury.
I am far better born than is the king,
More like a king, more kingly in my thoughts ;
But I must make fair weather yet awhile, 30
15, 16. York. Humphrey .../... pleasure] 7, 8. Humphrey . . . welcome
I sweare ; What comes thou in hue or as a Messenger? 17-19. A messenger
. . . To . . . why thou . . . am'] g-ii. / come as a Messenger from our dread
Lord and soueraign Henry. To , . . that thou . . . am. 20-22. Against
. , . court] Shouldst thus approach so neare with colours spred, Whereas the
person of the King doth keepe ? 23-37. Scarce can I speak . . . to the state]
14-23. A subiect as he is. O hozu I hate these spiteful abiect termes, But York
dissemble, till thou meete thy sonnes Who now in Armes expect their fathers sight.
22. n^ar //i<? co?<rf J The wretched line, all, having nobody else to kill, poor
" Whereas the person of the king doth man killed himself" (p. 2, Chiswick
keep," was naturally cut out. It would reprint). For another parallel passage
be almost worth while to count how to Harington's book, see again Love's
many whereases are expunged from the Labour's Lost, v. ii. 570. Both passages
Contention, in its old sense of where, so are noted upon in the Arden edition,
common in Spenser and Peele. With This event is not touched upon in Ovid's
the meaning "at which place" it is account in the Metamorphoses ; where
scarcely found in Shakespeare's genuine Ajax is credited with immediate self-
work, destruction. It is taken from the Ajax
26. like Ajax Telamonius] See Love's of Sophocles. A play named " Ajax
Labour's Lost, IV. iii. 7. Ajax, son of and Ulysses" was "showen on New
Telamon, destroyed a flock of sheep, in yeares daie at nighte by the Chyldren
a fit of blind fury, believing them to be of Wynsor " (1571-72) (Cunningham's
his enemies, after Ulysses was awarded Revels' Accounts, Shaks. Soc. p. 13).
Achilles' arms in preference to him- Kyd refers to some such performance
self. He then committed suicide. The probably in Spanish Tragedy, iv. iv. 80
only contemporary account I know is (Boas) : —
in Harington's Metamorphoses (1596): '< we doo as all Tragedians doo :
" First he killed all the horned beasts To die to-day for fashioning our
he met, which made Agamemnon and Scene . . .
Menelaus now more afraid than The death of Ajax or some Romaine
Ulysses ; whereupon he was banished peere . . ."
the towns presently, and then he went 30. make fair weather] go with the
to the woods and pastures, and imagin- times. See again Much Ado About
ing all the fat sheep he met to be of kin Nothing, i. iii. 25. And allusively
to the coward Ulysses, because they perhaps in Richard II. in. iii. 161
ran away from him, he massacred a and Henry VIII. i. iv. 22. Compare
whole flock of sheep not ewes. Last of Heywood's Proverbs, 1546 (Sharman's
12
178 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
Till Henry be more weak, and 1 more strong,
O Buckingham, I prithee, pardon me,
That I have given no answer all this while ;
My mind was troubled with deep melancholy.
The cause why I have brought this army hither 35
Is to remove proud Somerset from the king.
Seditious to his grace and to the state.
Buck. That is too much presumption on thy part :
But if thy arms be to no other end,
The king hath yielded unto thy demand : 40
The Duke of Somerset is in the Tower.
York. Upon thine honour, is he prisoner ?
Buck. Upon mine honour, he is prisoner.
York. Then, Buckingham, I do dismiss my powers.
Soldiers, I thank you all ; disperse yourselves : 45
Meet me to-morrow in Saint George's field.
And not farre hence I know they cannot be. Humphrey Dtike of Buckingham,
pardon me, That I answerdc not at first, my mind was troubled, I came to renioue
that monstrous Rcbell Cade, And heaue protid Somerset from out the Court, That
basely yielded vp the Townes in France. 38-41. That is . . . Tower] 24-27.
Why that was presumption on thy hehalfe. But if it be no otherwise btit so,
The king doth pardon thee, and grantst to thy request. And Somerset is sent unto
the Tower. 42. Upon , . . he prisoner] 28. Vpon . . . it so ? 43. Upon
. . , prisoner] 29. Yorke, he is upon mine honozir. 44-47- Then, Buckingham
. . , Meet . . . field . . . wish] 30-32. Theji before thy face, I here dismisse my
edition, p. 114) : " They can currifavell " When I was young like him,
and make fayre wether." And North's I had my words and foynes and
Plutarch, Themistocles (Tudor Trans. quarter blows
i. 318): "So make fayre weather Andlinew my wa.y into St. George's
again with the governour." And in fields,
Lodge, Euphues Golden Legacy (Haz- Twice in a morning, Tuttle, Fins-
litt's Shakespeare Library, p. 96), bury,
1590. I knew them all "
36. Sowfrs^^] " that basely yielded up [Wise Woman of Hogsdon, Pearson,
the towns in France" is omitted as a vol. i. p. 330). In Nichols' Progresses
charge against Somerset here, seeing of Queen Elizabeth, (i. 296) in 1572 :
that Say has been twice charged with " On the five and twentieth and six
this in Scene vii. above (lines 23, 141). and twentieth of March, 1572, by the
In I. i. 135 it is a charge against commandement of the Queen's Maiestie
Gloucester. " A staff is quickly found," hir Councell, the Citizens of London
etc. assembling at their several Halles ; the
46. Saint George's field] Mentioned Maisters collected and chose out the
again in 2 Henry IV. iii. ii. 207. "An most likelie and active persons ofeverie
open space of great extent, on the their Companies, to the number of three
Surrey side of the Thames, lying be- thousand. . . . To these were appointed
tween Southwark and Lambeth, and so diverse valiant Captains, who, to traine
called from the adjoining church of St. them up in warlike feats mustered them
George the Martyr in Southwark " thrise every weeke, sometimes in the
(Cunningham and Wheatley's London Artillerie Yard, teaching the gunmen
Past and Present) ; where plenty of to handle their peaces, sometimes at
information is given, but a few additional the Mile's end, and in Saint George's
references may be cited. It was one of Field, teaching them to skirmish." A
the chief drill-grounds for the trained proper trysting place for York to meet
bands. Heywood says : — his soldiery.
sc. I.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 179
You shall have pay, and every thing you wish.
And let my sovereign, virtuous Henry,
Command my eldest son, nay, all my sons,
As pledges of my fealty and love ; 50
I '11 send them all as willing as I live :
Lands, goods, horse, armour, any thing I have,
Is his to use, so Somerset may die.
Buck. York, I commend this kind submission :
We twain will go into his highness' tent. 55
Enter KiNG and Attendants.
King. Buckingham, doth York intend no harm to us,
That thus he marcheth with thee arm in arm ?
York. In all submission and humility
York doth present himself unto your highness.
King. Then what intend these forces thou dost bring ? 60
Yoj^k. To heave the traitor Somerset from hence,
And fight against that monstrous rebel, Cade,
Who since I heard to be discomfited.
Enter Iden, with Cade's head.
Men. If one so rude and of so mean condition
May pass into the presence of a king, 65
Lo ! I present your grace a traitor's head,
The head of Cade, whom I in combat slew.
King. The head of Cade ! Great God, how just art Thou !
troopes, Sirs, meete . . .fields, And there yon shall receiiie your pate of me.
Exet sotildiers. 48-53. And let . . . may die] omitted Q. 54, 55. York . . .
tent] 33, 34. Come Yorke, thou shalt go speake vnto the king, But see, his grace
is comming to meete with vs. Enter King Henry. 56, 57. Buckingham . . .
arm in arm?] 35,36. How now Buckingham, is Yorke friends with vs, That thus
thou bringst him hand in hand with thee? 58-63. York. In all submission
. . . discomfited] 37-43. Buc. He is my Lord, and hath dischargde his troopes
Which came with liim, but as your grace did say. To heaue the Duke of Somerset
from hence (line 61 below) And to subdue the Rebels that were vp. King. Then
welcome cousin Yorke, giue me thy hand. And tliankes for thy great sendee done
to vs, Against those traitorous Irish that rebeld. Enter maister Eyden with
lacke Cades head. 64-67. If one so . . . slew] 44-47. Long hue Henry in
triumphant peace, Lo here my Lord vpon my bended knees, I here present the
traitorous head of Cade That hand to ha^id in single fight I slue. 68-71. King.
The head . . . slew him ?] 44-57. King. First thanks to heauen, &■ next to thee
my friend. That hast subdude that wicked traitor thus. O let me see that
head that in his life, Did worke me and my land such cruell spight, A visage
57. arm in arm] Only again in Part I. that heaves me hence" (Battle of Alcazar,
II. ii. 29. The Contention's "hand in end of Act i. (425, b)). The expression
hand" is much commoner in Shake- "heave Somerset" occurs immediately
speare, but less suitable here. The above, in Contention, slightly varied,
expression "arm in arm" is as old as The repetition is obliterated here;
Chaucer's Troilus. "remove" replaces "heave" at line
61. heave . . . Somerset from hence] 36. See note at i. i. 167, where
See note iv. ix. 30 above. Compare Peele's (?) repetitions in Contention are
Peele : " There to curse heaven and he similarly handled.
180
THE SECOND PART OF
[act v.
O, let me view his visage, being dead,
That Hving wrought me such exceeding trouble. 70
Tell me, my friend, art thou the man that slew him ?
Ide7i. I was, an 't like your majesty.
King. How art thou called, and what is thy degree ?
Iden. Alexander Iden, that 's my name ;
A poor esquire of Kent, that loves his king. 75
Buck. So please it you, my lord, 'twere not amiss
He were created knight for his good service.
King. Iden, kneel down. \^He kneels.'] Rise up a knight.
We give thee for reward a thousand marks ;
And will that thou henceforth attend on us. 80
Iden. May Iden live to merit such a bounty,
And never live but true unto his liege.
sterne, cole blacke his curled locks, Deep trenched furrowes in his frowning brow,
Presageth warlike humors in his life. Here take it hence and thou for thy
reward. Shall be immediately created Knight. Kneele downe my friend, and tell
me whats thy name ? 72-78. Iden. I was . . . king . . . kneel down] omitted
Q (see last line). 78-82. Rise up . . . liege] 58-67. Eyden. Alexander Eyden
if it please your Grace, A poore Esquire of Kent (see 74, 75). King. Then rise up
Sir Alexander Eyden knight, And for thy maintenance, I freely giue A thousand
marks a yeare to maintaitie thee, Beside the firme rewarde that was proclaimde,
69. visage] The description of the
" visage " in Contention recalls Marlowe,
as well as Peele. Marlowe has in
Tamburlaine, Part II. i. iii. : —
" And in the furrows of his frowning
brows
Harbours revenge "
(Dyce, 47, a). And in Edward the
Second (Dyce, 184, b) : —
" The sword shall plane the furrows
of thy brows.
And hew these knees."
It is not an expression of Shakespeare's.
Coal-black is often in Peele, See note
at II. i. 112 above. And in Part III. v.
i. 54, " coal-black hair " occurs. Greene
has "deeper furrowes in his browe,"
and " furrows of revenge Within the
browes " (Looking Glasse for London,
Grosart, xiv. 46, 57). But he is using
Marlowe, and so, I think, is Peele in
the Contention here. Compare Lamen-
tations iv. 8 : " Their visage is blacker
than a coal." " Furrows of her clouding
brow " is in Soliman and Perseda, i. ii.
78. kneel down . . . rise up] Simi-
larly Peele (?) has the knighting scene
of William Walworth for killing Jack
Straw. The parallel is exact: —
" Kneel down, William Walworth,
and receive.
By mine own hand the Order of
Knighthood :
Stand up. Sir William, first knight
of thy degree.
But henceforth all which shall suc-
ceed thy place.
Shall have like honour for thy
noble deed.
Besides, that time shall ne'er abridge
thy fame
The City arms shall bear for
memory
The bloody dagger the more for
Walworth's honour.
Call for your herald and receive
your due "
(fack Straw, Hazlitt's Dodsley, v. 413).
Peele dearly loved heraldry and the
" Honour of Knighthood."
79. marks] A mark is a great improve-
ment on a crown, 13s. 4d. against 5s.
But in Contention the king is more
liberal. He gives Iden an annuity of a
thousand marks, besides the promised
reward, and no doubt that line " Beside
the firme reward that was proclaimed"
should be inserted here. " Firm reward,"
in Contention, means fixed, decided upon.
Spenser uses it as a verb : " Upon his
card and compas firmes his eye " (Faerie
Queene, 11. vii. i). The expression has
occurred before at the murder of
Gloucester (m. ii.).
sc. I.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 181
King. See, Buckingham, Somerset comes with the queen :
Go, bid her hide him quickly from the duke.
Enter Queen and Somerset.
Queen. For thousand Yorks he shall not hide his head, 85
But boldly stand and front him to his face.
York. How now ! is Somerset at liberty ?
Then, York, unloose thy long-imprisoned thoughts
And let thy tongue be equal with thy heart.
Shall I endure the sight of Somerset ? 90
False king ! why hast thou broken faith with me,
Knowing how hardly I can brook abuse?
King did I call thee ? no, thou art not king ;
Not fit to govern and rule multitudes,
Which dar'st not, no, nor canst not rule a traitor. 95
That head of thine doth not become a crown ;
Thy hand is made to grasp a palmer's staff.
And not to grace an awful princely sceptre.
That gold must round engirt these brows of mine,
Whose smile and frown, like to Achilles' spear, loO
Fov those that could performe this worthie act, And thou shalt waight upon the
person of the king. Eyden. I humbly thank your grace, and I no longer Hue,
Then I prone iust and loyall to my king. Exet. Enter the Queene with the Duke
of Somerset. 83,84. See, . . . duke] 68, 6g. O Buckingham see where Somerset
comes. Bid kirn go hide himself e till Yorke be gone. 85, 86. For . . . face]
70, 71. He shall not hide himselfe for feare of Yorke, But beard and braue him
proudly to his face. 87-105. How now! . . . ruler] 72-81. Whose that, proud
Somerset at libertie } Base fearefull Henry that thou dishonor'st me. By heaven,
thou shalt not gouerne oner me : I cannot brooke that Traitors presence here. Nor
will I subiect be to sitch a King That knowes not how to gouerne nor to rule,
Resigne thy Croivne proud Lancaster to me. That thou vsurped hast so long by
force, For now is Yorke resolu'd to claime his owne. And rise aloft into faire
Englands Throane.
87. Somerset at libertie] The only Engirt the temples of his hateful
words in common with York's parallel head "
speech in the Contention, which is very (Edward the First, Dyce, 213, a),
poor stuff. Shakespeare rewrote it to 100. Achilles^ spear] Malone quotes
some purpose. from Greene's Orlatido Furioso [ante
97. palmer's staffs Pilgrim's ebon 1592) : —
staves are mentioned in The Seven " Where I tooke hurt, there have I
Champions. This line and the fol- heal'd myselfe,
lowing are paralleled in Richard II. As those that with Achilles' launce
HI. iii. 151 : " My sceptre for a palmer's were wounded,
walking staff." Peele, in the Old Fetcht help at selfesame poynted
Wives Tale, mentions " a palmer's speare "
staff of ivory, and a scallop-shell of (Grosart, xiii. 139). Perhaps one of
beaten gold " as a gift to a holy Greene's " feathers " here. I believe
father. this part since Queen Margaret's entry
99. engirt] See iii. i. 200, note above, to be Shakespeare's. Compare Ed-
Marlowe has : — zvard III. 11. i. 392, 393 : —
"Or, like the snaky wreath of Tisi- " The poets write that great Achilles'
phon, spear
Could heal the wound it made."
182 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
Is able with the change to kill and cure.
Here is a hand to hold a sceptre up,
And with the same to act controlling laws.
Give place : by heaven, thou shalt rule no more
O'er him whom heaven created for thy ruler. 105
Som. O monstrous traitor ! I arrest thee, York,
Of capital treason 'gainst the king and crown.
Obey, audacious traitor ; kneel for grace.
York. Would'st have me kneel ? first let me ask of these
If they can brook I bow a knee to man. 1 10
Sirrah, call in my sons to be my bail : \^Exit Attendant.
I know ere they will have me go to ward.
They '11 pawn their swords for my enfranchisement.
Queen. Call hither Clifford ; bid him come amain.
To say if that the bastard boys of York 115
Shall be the surety for their traitor father.
\Exit Buckingham.
York. O blood-bespotted Neapolitan,
Outcast of Naples, England's bloody scourge !
The sons of York, thy betters in their birth,
Shall be their father's bail ; and bane to those 120
That for my surety will refuse the boys !
Enter EDWARD and RICHARD.
See where they come : I '11 warrant they '11 make it good.
Enter CLIFFORD and his Son.
Queen. And here comes Clifford, to deny their bail.
Clif. Health and all happiness to my lord the king ! [Kneels.
York. I thank thee, Clifford : say, what news with thee? 125
Nay, do not fright us with an angry look :
We are thy sovereign, Clifford, kneel again ;
For thy mistaking so, we pardon thee.
106-108. O momtrous . . . grace'] 82-85. Proud Traitor, I arrest thee on high
treason. Against thy soueraigne Lord, yeeld thee false Yorke, For here I sw care,
thou shalt unto the Tower, For these proud words which thou has giuen the
king. iog-113. Wouldst . . . enfranchisement] 86-88. Thou art deceined, my
sonnes shal be my baile. And send thee there in dispight of him. Hoc, where
are you boyes ? 114-116. Call . . .father] 89. Call Clifford hither presently.
117-121. York. O blood-bespotted . . . boys t] omitted Q. Enter . . . ] Enter
the Duke of Yorkes sonnes, Edward the Earle of March and crook-backe Richard,
at the one doore, with Drumme and soldiers, and at the other doore, enter
Clifford and his sonne, with Drumme and souldiers, and Clifford kneeles to Hetiry,
and speakes. 122, 123. See where . . . their bail] omitted Q. 124. Clif
Health . . . king I] 90. Cliff. Long Hue my noble lord, and soueraigne King.
125-128. I thank . . . pardon thee] 91-93. We thanke thee Clifford. Nay do not
affright vs ivith thy lookes, If thou didst mistake, we pardon thee, kneelc agaitie.
sc. I.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 183
Clif. This is my king, York ; I do not mistake ;
But thou mistak'st me much to think I do. 130
To Bedlam with him ! is the man grown mad ?
King. Ay, Clifford ; a bedlam and ambitious humour
Makes him oppose himself against his king.
Clif. He is a traitor ; let him to the Tower,
And chop away that factious pate of his, 135
Queen. He is arrested, but will not obey :
His sons, he says, shall give their words for him.
York. Will you not, sons ?
Edw. Ay, noble father, if our words will serve.
Rich. And if words will not, then our weapons shall. 140
Clif. Why, what a brood of traitors have we here !
York. Look in a glass, and call thy image so ;
I am thy king, and thou a false-heart traitor.
Call hither to the stake my two brave bears,
That with the very shaking of their chains 145
They may astonish these fell-lurking curs :
Bid Salisbury and Warwick come to me.
Enter the Earls ^/WARWICK and SALISBURY.
Clif Are these thy bears ? we '11 bait thy bears to death,
And manacle the bear-ward in their chains,
129-131. This is . . . mad] 94, 95. Why, I did no way mistake, this is my king.
What is he mad? to Bedlam with him. 132, 133. Ay, Clifford . . . king]
96, 97. /, a bedlam frantike humor drines him thus To leany Armes against his
lawfull King. 134, 135. He . . . his] 98. Why doth not your grace send
him to the Tower? 136, 137. He . . . says . . . him] 99-100. He . . . saith,
shall be his baile. 138. Will . . . sons?] loi. How say you boyes, will you
not? 139. Edw. Ay . . , serve] 102. Edward. Yes . . . serve. 140. Rich.
And . . . shall] 103. Richard. And if our words will not, our swords shall.
141-143. Why what a brood . . . traitor] omitted Q. 144. Call . . . brave
bears] 104. York. Call . . . rough beares. 145-147. That with . . . to me]
omitted Q. Drums. Enter . . .] placed after 194, q.v. 148-150. Clif. Are
these . . . baiting-place] 108, 109. Cliff. Are these thy beares? weele bayte
them soone, Dispight of thee and all the friends thou hast.
132. bedlam] See in. i. 5 (note), astonied, astynishd) in the sense of
Ritson pointed out that there is no stun.
anachronism here from Stow, 1598, 146. fell-lurking] A daring com-
p. 127. The Hospital] of S. Mary of pound : fell-barking, fell-looking, fell-
Bethlehem was founded by Simon Fitz lurching have been conjectured. Capell
Mary, 1246. Edward the Third granted would read "fell-lurking," which I should
a protection, the 14th year of his reign, readily agree with except for Folios.
"It was an hospitall for distracted " Fell, lurking curs" (cruel, treacherous
people." curs) is more easy but perhaps mere
1^},. false-heart] "false-hearted" is modern. " Lurking " is used of treason
in Troilus and Cressida, v. i. 95. New in Henry V., and of adders and serpents
Eng. Diet, has no other instance of elsewhere,
"false-heart." 148. bait thy bears] See note at
146. astonish] terrify, frighten out of " bears' chains," 3 Henry VI. v. vii. 10,
one's wits. Compare Lucrece, 1730. ii,andquotation from the Fame Qt(^£«^.
Frequent in Spenser (astond, astound, 149. bear-ward] " beard " in the first
184 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
If thou dar'st bring them to the baiting-place. 1 50
Rich. 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, 155
If you oppose yourselves to match Lord Warwick.
Clif. Hence, heap of wrath, foul indigested lump,
As crooked in thy manners as thy shape !
York. Nay, we shall heat you thoroughly anon.
Clif. Take heed, lest by your heat you burn yourselves. 160
King. Why, Warwick, hath thy knee forgot to bow ?
Old Salisbury, shame to thy silver hair.
Thou mad misleader of thy brain-sick son !
What ! wilt thou on thy death-bed play the ruffian,
And seek for sorrow with thy spectacles? 165
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 ? 170
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,
151-191. Oft have I seen . . . sophister] omitted Q.
two Folios. Corrected by Pope. Craig " Me thinkes a troubled thought is
quotes from Gammer Gurtons Needle, thus exprest
I. ii. 6 : " Sche were better to bee a To be a chaos rude and indigesf."
bearsward and set to keepe bears " ; in The source is obvious.
answer to Schmidt who reads " bear- 162. silver hair] For variants, beauti-
herd" (which occurs in The Taming of fully expanded, see 2 Henry IV. iv. i.
the Shrew and 2 Henry IV.) here, and 43, and below, v. ii. 47. And Sonnet 12,
throughout Shakespeare. For an ac- " silver beards " occurs several times.
count of bear-baiting, see Laneham's 163. brain-sick] See above, iii. i. 51 ;
Letter (1575), describing the Queen's and Part I. iv. i. 3 (note).
entertainments at Kenilworth. 165. spectacles'] See above, iii. ii. 112.
151. Oft have I seen . . .] Richard It may be excusable to call attention
begins at once with his tropes and at this fine speech and well expressed
figures, afterwards (Part III.) abundant, imagery to the continual bettering
and gaining him the name of " currish of the Shakespearian parts. Henry's
^sop." character, as well as the Queen's, is
153. being suffered] being made Shakespeare's throughout. Part I. is
suffer, wounded. almost devoid of such poetry as this
157. foul indigested lump] Compare last act yields in Part II.
Ovid's "chaos, rudis indigestaque 170. honourable age] "honourable
molis " (Metamorphoses, i. 7). The eld " (Faerie Queene, i. viii. 47).
earliest example in New Eng. Diet. 173. For s/i awe/] be ashamed. Very
Compare Sonnet 114: "monsters and often in Shakespeare. Is it old ? Peele
things indigest." And see King John, has it in An Eclogue Gratulatory, 1589
V. vii. 26. In W. Browne's Britannias (Dyce, 562, b) : " For shame, I say, give
Pastorals (bk. i., song 2) : — virtue honours due ! "
sc. I.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 185
That bows unto the grave with mickle age.
Sal. My lord, I have considered with myself 175
The title of this most renowned duke ;
And in my conscience do repute his grace
The rightful heir to England's royal seat.
King. Hast thou not sworn allegiance unto me ?
Sal. I have. 180
King. Canst thou dispense with heaven for such an oath ?
Sal. 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 murderous deed, to rob a man, 185
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 ? 190
Queen. A subtle traitor needs no sophister.
King. Call Buckingham, and bid him arm himself.
York. Call Buckingham, and all the friends thou hast,
I am resolved for death or dignity.
Cllf. The first I warrant thee, if dreams prove true. 195
War. You were best to go to bed and dream again,
To keep thee from the tempest of the field.
Clif. I am resolved to bear a greater storm
192. King. Call . . . himself '\ 105. King. Call . . . himselfe. 193, 194. York.
Call . . . hast, . . . dignity] 106, 107. Call . . . hast, Both thou and they, shall curse
thisfatallhoure. Enter at one doore, the Earles of Salsbtiry and Warwicke, with
Drumme and souldiers. And at the other, the Duke of Buckingham, with Drumme
and soiildiers. 195. Clif. The first . . . true] omitted Q. 196, 197. You . . .
dream . . . thee . . . field] no, in. You had best go dreame . . . you . . .field.
198-201. Clif. I am . . . badge] 112-115. Cliff. I am . . . badge.
174. mickle age] Has occurred al- Mustapho. You reason Hali like a
ready, Part I. iv. vi. 35 (note). " Mickle " sophister ;
occurs several times in Gelding's Ovid As if 'twere lawfull for a subiect
and in the Faerie Queene. Greatly prince
affected by Greene. To rise in Armes against his
181. dispense with] make arrange- soueraigne,
ments with, come to terms with. See Because he will not let him haue
Measure for Measure, iii. i. 134, note his will."
in Arden edition. See also Mamillia (ii. 17) and Planeto-
187. reave]htrezve. ^ee.AlVsWell machia (v. 100). These interspersed
that Ends Well, v. iii. 86, and Venus sentences or maxims are frequent. See
and Adonis, j66. above, v. i. 5, and iv. i. 129, etc.;
igi. sophister] Not again in Shake- and below, v. ii. 28. Seneca's influ-
speare. Compare Selimus (Grosart's ence perhaps. Or rather a type-line,
Greene, xiv. 226) : — like " A crafty knave needs no
" Why should it be vnlawfull for the broker."
Sonne, 194. death or digiiity] Rowe's correc-
To leauie Armes gainst his in- tion; the Folios read "and."
lunous sire
?
186 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
Than any thou canst conjure up to-day ;
And that I 'II write upon thy burgonet, 200
Might I but know thee by thy household badge.
War. Now, by my father's badge, old Nevil's crest,
The rampant bear chained to the ragged staff,
This day I '11 wear aloft my burgonet.
As on a mountain top the cedar shows 205
That keeps his leaves in spite of any storm,
Even to affright thee with the view thereof.
Clif. And from thy burgonet I '11 rend thy bear,
And tread it under foot with all contempt,
Despite the bear- ward that protects the bear. 210
Y. Clif. And so to arms, victorious father.
To quell the rebels and their complices.
Rich. Fie ! charity for shame ! speak not in spite,
For you shall sup with Jesu Christ to-night.
202-207. War. Now by my father's badge . . . thee . . . thereof '\ 116-121.
War. Now by my father's age . . . the . . . thereof. 208-210. Clif. And . . .
I'll rend thy . . . it under foot . . . the bear] 122-124. Clif And . . . will I
rend the . . . him vnderfoote . . . him so. 211, 212. Y. Clif And so . . .
complices] 125, 126. Yoong Clif. And so renowned soueraigne to Armes, I quell
these Traitors and their compleases. 213, 214. Rich. Fie I . . . speak not
. _. . j^esus . . . night] Richard. Fie, . . . Speake it not . . . lesu . . .
night.
201. household badge] evnb\e.m oi the — helmet and visor attached. Again in
family. The Contention is made use of Antony and Cleopatra, i. v. 24. And in
here. The Folio reading is " housed Golding's Ovid : " Peleus bare his
badge " (F i) ; " houses " (Ff 2, 3, strokes uppon his burganet " (xii. 408).
4)- And compare Selimus (11. 1568-1569) : —
203. rampant bear . . . ragged staff] " But we shall soone with our fine-
See Whitney's Emblems, 1586 (ed. tempered swords
Greene, pp. 106, 107), for the device Engraue our prowesse on their
and a dedicatory poem " In praise of burganets."
the two noble earles, Warwicke and And see the same sentiment in 3
Leycester," whose cognizance this was Henry VI. 11. i. 163. See too Locrine,
in his time. See note at iv. ix. 28-30, 11. i. : —
for Warwick's right. A passage in R. " I '11 meet young Albanact in the
Harvey's Plaine Percevall is of interest open field
here, since it throws light on the re- And crack my lance upon his bur-
quirements of the staft": "It is good gonet
as a bearebayting for them which loue To try the valour of his boyish
neither, to see either touze other so strength."
bedlamlike. Never a beadle sturring ? 205. As on a mountain top the
nor bear-heard at hand to put his staff c cedar shows] Compare " Like to a
in the mouth of the beare, or pull off ship," above, iv. ix. 32. The cedar is
these dogs ? This will proue foule often brought in illustratively, but the
play." No wonder the staff was sturdy usual figure is to the eftect that low
and ragged from its uses. This gives shrubs may outlive high cedars. See
also another sense for the proverbial note at "Jove's tree" (oak). Part III.
" Shall I set in my staff ? " as peace- v. ii. 14.
maker. For the heraldic bears again, 210. bear-ward] The same as " bear-
see Part III. II. i. 15 ; v. vii. g, 10. herd." Shakespeare uses both forms.
204. burgonet] a close-fitting helmet See note above, 1. 203.
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
187
Y. Clif. Foul stigmatic, that 's more than thou canst tell. 215
Rich. If not in heaven, you '11 surely sup in hell.
[Exeunt severally.
SCENE II. — Saint Albans.
Alarums to the battle. Enter WARWICK.
War. Clifford of Cumberland, 'tis Warwick calls :
And 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! 5
Proud northern lord, Clifford of Cumberland,
Warwick is hoarse with calling thee to arms.
Enter YORK.
How now, my noble lord ! what ! all afoot ?
215, 216. F. Clif. Foul . . . that's . . . tell. Rich. If not . . . hell] i2g, 130.
Yoong Clif. Foule . . . thou canst not tell Rich. No,forifnot . . . hell. Exetomnes.
Scene ii.
1-7. Alarums . . . War. Clifford . . . dost . . . when . . . trumpet . . .
alarm . . . arms] g-19. Alarme again, and Enter the Earle of Warwicke alone.
War. Clifford . . . doest . . . whilst . . . trompets . . . Alarmcs . . . arms.
Clifford speakes within. Warwicke stand still, and view the way that Clifford
hewes with his murthering Curtelaxe, through the fainting troopes to finde thee
out (prose). Warwick stand still, and stir not till I come. Enter Yorke. 8.
How . . . afoot ?] 20, 21. How now my Lorde, what afoote ? Who kild your horse ?
215. stigmatic] branded deformity.
Greene, Harvey and Nashe all used the
adjective " stigmatical " in this sense.
Harvey has " stigmaticall, that is burnt
with an hot iron" (Grosart, iii. 41,
Trimming of Thomas Nashe). This is
in reply to a passage of Nashe's about
a "stigmaticall Master of Arts," in
Have with you, etc. (Grosart, iii. 21).
Greene speaks of "stigmaticall trulls"
in a passage referring (inaccurately) to
Marlowe's Tamburlaine in Menaphon
(vi. 84), 1589. Later the word was
very commonly used. " Stigmatic "
occurs again in 3 Henry VI. 11. ii. 136 ;
and Craig quoted from Robert, Earl of
Huntington, by Chettle and Munday
(1600) : " that prodigious bloody stig-
matic" (Hazlitt's Dodsley, viii. 309).
Drayton takes it from here into Eng-
land's Heroical Epistles (King John to
Matilda), 1597 : —
" As hospitals were for the sore and
sick,
These for the crook'd, the halt, the
stigmatick."
Scene it.
3. sounds alarum] Sounds the call to
arms. Occurs again 1 Henry VI. 1. ii.
18, and above, 11. iii. 95. More common
as a stage-direction.
4. dead men's cries] dead before their
cries travelled thus far. Shakespeare
has "dead man" (or men) very often.
But this line may be Peele's, and he
means ghosts, as he often has them.
4. cries . . . fill . . . air] Compare
Peele's Jack Straw (Hazlitt's Dodsley,
V. 395) :—
"troops of men . . .
That fill'd the air with cries and
fearful noise."
And Faerie Qucene : —
" a roaring hideous sound
That all the ayre with terror filled
wyde,"
and elsewhere. See, too, Marlowe,
Tamburlaine, Part II. iv. i. : " Fill all
the air with troublous bellowing."
4. empty air] Spenser has a dragon
" scourging the cmptie ayre with his
long trayne" (Faerie Qucene, i. viii. 17).
8. a/bo/] on foot. Not the commonest
188 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
York. The deadly-handed Clifford slew my steed ;
But match to match I have encountered him, lo
And made a prey for carrion kites and crows
Even of the bonny beast he loved so well.
Enter CLIFFORD.
War. 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. 1 5
War. Then, nobly, York ; 'tis for a crown thou fight'st.
As I intend, Clifford, to thrive to-day,
It grieves my soul to leave thee unassailed. \Exit.
Clif. What seest thou in me, York ? why dost thou pause?
York. With thy brave bearing should I be in love, 20
But that thou art so fast mine enemy.
Clif. Nor should thy prowess want praise and esteem.
But that 'tis shown ignobly and in treason.
York. So let it help me now against thy sword
As I in justice and true right express it. 25
Clif. My soul and body on the action both !
York. A dreadful lay ! Address thee instantly.
9-12. The . . . well] 22-26. The deadly hand of Clifford. Noble Lord. Fine
horse this day slaine vndcr me, And yet braue Warwicke I remaine aline, But
I did kill his horse he lov'd so well. The boniest gray that ere was bred in North.
Enter Clifford, and Warwicke offers to fight with him. 13. War. Of one
. . . come] omitted Q. 14, 15. York. Hold . . . seek . . . For I myself . . .
death] 26, 27, Hold . . . and seeke . . . Myselfe . . . death. 16-18. Then
. . . 'tis , . .fight'st. As I . . . thrive . . . unassaird]2g-T,i. Braue Lord, 'tis
. . . fights, Clifford farewell, as I . . . prosper well . . . unassaild. Exet
Warwicke. 19-28. Clif. What seest . . . ceuvres] 32-39. Yorke. Now Clifford,
since we are singled here alone. Be this the day of doome to one of vs. For now
my heart hath sworne immortall hate To thee and all the house of Lancaster,
sense of "in motion and action," in Henry VL 11. iv. 11, 12, with "seek
Shakespeare. thee " altered to "single," and "deer"
g. the way that Clifford hews] In altered to " wolf." They are addressed
Q. See note on this scene in Introduc- there " Nay, Warwick," instead of
tion. "Hold, Warwick."
g. deadly-handed] Compare " deadly- 14. chase] game. Compare Winter's
standing," Titus Andronicus, 11. iii. 32. Tale, iii. iii. 57. Craig quotes from
Altered from " the deadly hand," Q. Beaumont and Fletcher, The Sea
11. prey for carrion kites and crows] Voyage, 11. ii. : —
Peele has : — " Nor do I love hunting so,
" Away with him into the open fields But I had rather be the chase my-
To be a ravening /^^-j /or kites and self"
crows " (hunted by her lover). New Eng. Diet.
(Old Wives Tale {452, b)). See above, quotes from Turbervile's Venerie (1575) :
IV. X. 90. Peele has " preys of carrion " "And kill at force . . . hart, hind, and
in David and Bethsabe (482, a). even chase."
12. bonny beast] A pity to have dropt 20. bearing] behaviour. See Love's
the old northern line. Labour 's Lost, i. i. 272.
14, 15. Hold . . . death] These lines 27. lay] wager, stake. See Othello,
(from ContentioTi) are repeated in 5 11. iii. 330.
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 189
Clif. La fin couronne les ceuvres.
[ They fight ^ and Clifford falls and dies.
Yoj'k. Thus war hath given thee peace, for thou art still.
Peace with his soul, heaven, if it be thy will ! \Exit. 30
Enter Young CLIFFORD.
Y. Clif. 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 35
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,
Clifford. And here I stand, and pitch my foot to thine, Vowing neuer to stir, till
thou or I be slaine, For 7ieuer shall my heart be safe at rest, Till I haue spoyld
the hatefull house of Yorke. Alarmes and they fight, and Yorke kits Clifford.
29-30. York. Thus . . . will /] 40-42. Yorke. Now Lancaster sit sure, thy sinowes
shrinke, Come fearfulle Henry grouelling on thy face, Yeeld vp thy Crowne vnto
the Prince of Yorke. Exet Yorke. Alarmes, then enter yootig Clifford alone.
31-40. Y. Clif. Shame and . . . valour'] 43, 44. Yoong Clifford. Father of Comber-
land, Where may I seeke my aged father forth ?
28. La fin ... ceuvres^Vmi?, coronet son of slaughter, the sword, silence,
opus. — The end crowns the work. Com- earth, physic, noise. Lodge calls al-
pare Greene, George-a-Greene : " Nay, chemists " sons of subtlety " in A Fig
the end tries all, but so it will fall out" for Momus, 1595. Often paralleled in
(Dyce, 1874, p. 261, b). " Th' end shall Eastern imagery in the Bible,
crown all " (Chapman's Homer, Odyssey, 35, 36. Throw in . . . coals of venge-
bk. v., edited 1875, p. 340, a). The first ance] Compare Spenser, Faerie Queene,
Folio reads, " Corrone les eumenes," to i. vii. 27 : " And love fresh coles unto
which Steevens says : " The players her fire did lay." See a similar ex-
read : ' La fin corrone les eumenes.' " pression in 3 Henry VI. 11. i. 83, and
Why not printers? The death of Clifford Psalm 140, verse 10. In Selimus
is said to be " by the swords of common (Grosart, xiv. 201) occurs: " Nourish the
soldiers " in 3 Henry VI. i. i. 9. The coales of thine ambitious fire." A
historical record is that he fell at St. Biblical expression.
Albans. But the circumstance here, 35. part] party, side, as below again,
afterwards overlooked, is consistent 1. 87. Often in the historical plays,
with young Clifford's vengeance later, but not common at this time, though
32. /rawtfs] forms, makes. "Frame" early,
had a much more popular and extended 37. dedicate] Compare Measure for
use than now. Spenser and Peele use Measure, 11. ii. 154. And Peele, An-
the verb very widely. Compare Gold- glorum FericB (597, a), 1595 : —
ing's Ovid : " Love gave him power to " all their lives
frame His talke at will " (vi. 599, 600). Right humbly were and purely
And: dedicate"
" be content to frame (" to whose worthiness ").
Thy selfe too him that loveth thee " ^g. not essentially, but by circum-
(adapt, fit), (xiv. 879, 880). stance] not in his nature or essence, but
33. O war, thou son of hell] A favour- as a mere contingent. The same mean-
ite trope with Shakespeare. He has ing is found in 1 Henry IV. 11. iv. 540 :
son of darkness, fortune, chivalry. Ben " thou art essentially mad, without seem-
Jonson was very fond of it also, using ing so." And in Hamlet, in. iv. 187.
190 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
The name of valour. [Seez'ng- his dead father.
O ! let the vile world end, 40
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, 45
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 50
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. 55
40-61. O let the vile world . . . Clifford's house] 45-52. O J dismall sight,
see where he breathlesse lies. All smear d and weltred in his Inke-warme blood.
Ah, aged pillar of all Comberlands true house, Sweete father, to thy tnurthred
ghoast I sweare, Immortall hate vnto the house of Yorke, Nor neuer shall I
sleepe secure one night, Till I haue furiously reuengde thy death. And left not
one of them to breath on earth. He takes him vp on his backe.
41. premised] prearranged or pre- 48. chair-days] Compare " the droop-
ordained. He asks to have them now ; ing chair," Part I. iv. v. 4, 5.
he doesn't say they have come (sent 50, 51. /j^ar^ . . . stotiy]See2 Hemry
before their time), as the commentators IV. iv. v. 108 ; and 1 Henry IV. 11. ii.
have it, but that he wants them. The 28 ; " the stony heart," Ezekiel xi. 19.
word is used in a formal sense by Mar- 51, 5^. old men . . . babes] "this
lowe, Edward the Second (208, b), in a thred-bare name of good : Leave to old
letter: " My duty to your honom pre- men and babes that kind of follie"
mw^rf, etc., 1 have, according to instruc- (Selimus, 11. 178, 179, Grosart, xiv.
tions." Here it means understood and 202].
accepted. 52. virginal] Occurs again in Corio-
44. Particularities] trifles, details, lanus and Pericles. Shakespeare was
particulars. Occurs again in Henry V. indebted perhaps to Spenser for it : —
III. ii. 142. Sidney uses it similarly near " Where gentle court and gracious
the end of the second book of ^rca^^m. delight
Very frequent in Gabriel Harvey : Shee to them made with mild-
" A fewe such parficulariries and dis- nesse virginall "
tinctions compendiously and familiarly {Faerie Queene, 11. ix.20). Nares quoted
coursed over " {Letters (Grosart, i. 59), this. "Virginal" was in earlier use
1580). (Levins, 1570) of a musical instrument.
47. silver livery] See "silver hair" And Faerie Queene, 11. i. 10: "chastity
above, v. i. 162 (note). Compare Gas- and honour virginall."
coigne. The Complaint of Philomene 55. o?Za«(i7?a^] In the omitted scene
(Arber, p. 102), 1576 : — or lines about London bridge being afire
" The heavens had whirld aboute in the last Act (Scene vii.) the words
Twelve yeeres in order due, "fetch pitch and flaxe to squench it"
And twelve times euery flowre and may have dwelt in Shakespeare's mind.
plant Setting " fire and flax " together is in
Their liveries did renew." Greene, Nicholas Breton and Dekker.
" Livery " is frequently used figuratively Heywood has it " fire and tow " {Pro-
by Shakespeare. verbs, ed. Sharman, p. 127).
sc. II.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 191
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. 6o
Come, thou new ruin of old Clifford's house :
As did yEneas old Anchises bear,
So bear I thee upon my manly shoulders ;
But then ./Eneas bare a living load,
Nothing so heavy as these woes of mine. 65
[Exit, bearing off his father.
Enter Richard and Somerset to fight. Somerset is
killed.
Rich. So, lie thou there ;
For underneath an alehouse' paltry sign.
The Castle in Saint Alban's, Somerset
62-65. ^^ ^'^ • • • txoes of mine] 53-61. And thus as old Ankyses sonne did
beare His aged father on his manly baeke, And fought with him against the
bloodie Greeks, Eiien so will I. But stale, heres one of them, To zvhom my soull
hath sworne immortall hate. Enter Richard, and then Clifford laies downe his
father , fights with him, and Richard flies away againe. Out crooktbacke villaine,
get thee from my sight, But I will after thee, and once againe When I haue home
my fatlier to his Tent, He trie my fortune better with thee yet. Exet yoong
Clifford with his father. 66-71. Enter Richard . . . Richard. So, lie thou
there; . . . princes kill.] Alarnies to the battaile, and then enter the Duke of
58. gobbets] See iv. i. 85 (note). Jourdain's prediction at the end of Act
Nowhere else in Shakespeare. Mouth- i.: "Let him shun Castles." Forthepre-
fuls, lumps. For Clifford's oath of re- liminaries to this battle, see note at iv.
venge here (and in Q) see Part III. i. i. ix. 28-30. Continued from there (p.
9, 55 ; and i. iii. 5. 653) Grafton says : " The King . . .
59. Medea . . . Absyrtus] When assembled an host, intendyng to mete
Medea fled with Jason from Colchos, with the Duke in the North part, be-
she murdered her brother Absyrtus, and cause he had so many friendes about the
cut his body into several pieces, that Citie of London, and . . . accompanied
her father might for some time be pre- with the Dukes of Sommerset and Buck-
vented from pursuing her. See Ovid, ingham, the Erles of Stafford, Nor-
Trist.. lib. iii. ix. 25-28 (Malone). The thumberland, and Wiltshire, with the
Folios read Absirtis ; corrected by Theo- Lord Clifford, and diuers other Barons,
bald. Not in Q. A considerable number departed out of Westminster, the XX.
of these classical illustrations have oc- day of May toward the towne of Saint
curred, and more follow. But in this Albones : of whose doynges the Duke of
speech depicting the horrors of civil Yorke beyng advertysed by his espials,
war, the manner in which real human with all his power coasted the Countries,
tragedy is suggested as compared with and came to the same towne, the third
the lakes of blood and the unchained day next ensuyng . . . While King
furies of hell of contemporary poets, Henry more desyrous of peace than of
Shakespeare makes a noble departure. warre, was sendyng forth his Orators,
62. jEneas old Anchises bear] Re- at the one ende of the towne : the Erie
peated in jfulitis CcEsar, i. ii. 112. of Warwike with the Marchemen, en-
63. my manly shoulders] Hardly im- tered at the other ende of the towne
proved from " his manly back " {Co7i- and fiercely set on the kinges forwarde,
tention). and them shortly discomfited. Then
68. Castle at Saint Alban's] See came the Duke of Sommerset . . . with
192 THE SECOND PART OF [act v.
Hath made the wizard famous in his death.
Sword, hold thy temper ; heart, be wrathful still : 70
Priests pray for enemies, but princes kill. \^Exit.
Fight. Excursions. Enter KiNG, QUEEN, and others.
Queen. Away, my lord ! you are slow : for shame, away !
King. Can we outrun the heavens? good Margaret, stay.
Queen. What are you made of? you '11 nor fight nor fly ;
Now is it manhood, wisdom, and defence, 75
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, 80
We shall to London get, where you are loved,
And where this breach now in our fortunes made
May readily be stopped.
Somerset and Richard fighting, and Richard kils him vnder the signe of the
castle in Saint Albones. Rich. So Lie thou there, and breathe thy last. WhaVs
here, the signe of the Castle ? Then the prophesie is come to passe, For Somerset
was forewarned of Castles, The which he alwaies did obserue. And now
behold, vnder a paltry Ale-house signe. The Castle in saint Albones, Somerset
hath . . . by his death (1. 69 in text). 72. Fight. . . . Qiteen. Away, my
lord I . , . away l'\ 62-64. Alarmes againe, and then enter three or four e, bear-
ifig the Duke of Buckingham wounded to his Tent. Alarmes still, and then
enter the King ajid Queene. Queene. Away, ftiy Lord, ayid fiie to London
straight. Make hast, for vengeance comes along with them, come stand not to
expostulate, lets go. 73. Kitig, Can we . . . stay] 65-67. Come then faire
Queene to London let vs hast, And summon a Parliament with speede To
stop the fury of these dyre euents. Exet King and Queene. 74-83. Queene.
the kinges power, which fought a sore 72. come stand not to expostulate,
andcruell battaile . . . the kinges army lets goe] In Q. See 3 Henry VL 11.
was overthrowne . . . there dyed under v. 135, where this Hne is used,
the signe of the Castel, Edmond Duke 73. outrun] escape from; as in the
of Sommerset, who long before was expression " outrun the constable,"
warned to eschew all Castelles, and which occurs in Marlowe's jfew of
besyde him, lay Henry the Second Erie Malta at the beginning of Act v.
of Northumberlande, Humfrey Erie of {ante 1593). See 3 Henry VL i. ii.
Stafford sonne to the Duke of Bucking- 14.
ham, lohn Lord Clifford, and viij 74. nor fiy] The queen's words here
thousand men and more. Humpfrey in the Contention, " stand not to ex-
Duke of Buckingham . . . and lames postulate," occur in Part III. 11. v. 135
Butler Erie of Wilshire and Ormond (note). Peele uses the word,
seyng Fortunes lowryng chaunce, left 76. secure us] make ourselves safe,
the King post alone, and with a great See Cymbeline, iv. iv. 8,
number fled away. This was the ende 78, 79. bottom of all our fortunes]
of the first battaile at Saint Albones Compare 1 Henry IV. iv. i. 50. A
which was fought on the Thursday thoroughly Shakespearian passage, like
before the feast of Pentecost, beyng the rest of the speech. Note the
theXXIIJ.dayofMay. In thisXXXIIJ. rhythm and the running on in the
yere of the kinges reigne." lines.
71. Priests ... kill] See on this line, 82, 83. breach . . . stopped] See
in Introduction, at Peele. above, in. i. 288.
sc. Ill] KING HENRY THE SIXTH
19a
Re-enter Young CLIFFORD.
y. Clif. But that my heart 's on future mischief set,
I would speak blasphemy ere bid you fly ; 85
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. 9a
SCENE III . — Fields near Saint A Iban^s.
Alarum. Retreat. Enter YORK, Richard, Warwick,
and Soldiers, with drum and colours.
York. Of Salisbury, who can report of him ?
That winter lion, who in rage forgets
What are . . . stopfd] omitted Q. 83-90. Re-enter . . . Y. Clif. But that
. . . away /] omitted Q.
Scene in.
Alarum . . . 1-7. York. Of Salisbury . . . be lost] Alarmes, and then a
flourish, and enter the Duke of Yorke and Richard. 68-75. Yorkc. How
Clyomon), and " lukewarm spring dis-
tilling from his eyes" {Edward the
First (413, a)). " Furiously " is not in
Shakespeare ; it is in Peele's Battle of
Alcazar (426, a) : " he furiously implores
Sebastian's aid." The alteration in
structure here is remarkable. In the
Contention young Clifford makes a
final speech, fighting, with his father
sometimes up, and sometimes down,
and that is the last of him. It seems
much more seemly to let him depart
with his burthen and re-enter for his
final speech, which has no parallel in
the Contention. The transposition of
the prophecy, which is by no means
dignified enough to open a scene (as it
does in Q), is also striking. Peele put
those lines there ; they are curtailed
and postponed here.
87. parts] See above, line 35.
8g. give] display, from the heraldic
sense. Unless the passage means
" live to see our fortune give them
their day."
86. uncurable] See above, iii. i. 286.
Later, in Shakespeare, the word is "in-
curable." "In Shakespeare" is said
here on purpose, since it is easy to
see the revisionary hand in this scene.
Clifford (young) and the queen belong
to Shakespeare, with a few lines, very
few, of the old play left standing.
Young Clifford's first speech is a
notable instance. In the Contention
(which is mainly Peele's) Spenser is
recalled. Peele, after the appearance
of the Faerie Queene, became imbued
with it. We find " Grovelling on thy
face " ; see i. ii. g, and i. iv. 14 (notes) ;
and Faerie Queene, 11. i. 45, and iii. i,
38. " Thy sinewes shrink " (nowhere
in Shakespeare) ; Peele has " Alas, my
veins are numb'd, my sinews shrink "
[Old Wives Tale (457, a)) ; Spenser
has " shrunken synewes of her chosen
knight " (Faerie Queene, i. ix. 20).
" He breathless lies " ; Peele has
" Breathless he lies and headless too
my lord " [Edward the First (409, b)).
" Smear'd and weltred in his luke-
warme blood." " Smeared ... in
blood " only in 3 Henry VI. v. ii. 23 ;
in Golding and in Selimus (Greene's
part) it is " besmeared." " Wallow'd
in his owne yet lukewarme blood"
(Faerie Queene, i. ix. 36). " Weltered"
is not in Shakespeare, but "weltered in
his blood" is twice in Golding's Ovid
(Moring's reprint, pp. 65, 145), con-
stantly followed by Peele. He has
" weltering waves " (Prologue to Sir
13
Scene in.
I. Of Salisbury] As has been often
the case, the opening of the scene
is Shakespeare's. In the Contention
speech occurs the adjective " faint-
heart " (in Marlowe, Tamburlaine, Part
II.), and "buckle with" (fight with),
see Part I. i. ii. 97. " Buckle to fight"
occurs twice in the first book of Faerie
Queene, meaning made ready to fight ;
a different but interwoven sense.
194
THE SECOND PART OF
[act v.
Aged contusions and all brush of time,
And, like a gallant in the brow of youth,
Repairs him with occasion ? This happy day 5
Is not itself, nor have we won one foot,
If Salisbury be lost.
Rich. My noble father,
Three times to-day I holp him to his horse.
Three times bestrid him ; thrice I led him off.
Persuaded him from any further act : lO
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.
But, noble as he is, look where he comes.
now boyes, fortunate this fight hath bene, I hope to vs and ours, for Eng-
lands good, And our great honour, that so long we lost. While faint-heart
Henry did vsurpe our rights. But did you see old Salsbjiry, since we. With
bloodie minds did brickie with the foe, I would not for the losse of this
right hand. That ought but well betide that good old man. 7-T-4- Rich.
My noble . . . he comes] 76-81. Rich. My lord, I saw him in the thickest
throng. Charging his Lance with his old weary amies, And thrise I saw him
beaten from his horse, And thrise this hand did set him up againe. And still
3. contiisioyis] bruises. The earliest
example in New Eng. Diet, of the word
meaning " the act ot contusion."
3. brush of time] Compare Timon of
Athens, iv. iii. 264; and "brushes of
war," Troilus and Crcssida, v. iii. 34.
Bruises, rubs. Ben Jonson uses brush
= blow, New Inn, iii. ii.
4. brow of youth] Schmidt says
aspect, appearance, as in " brow of
justice" {I Henry IV. iv. iii. 83); and
" brows of grace " {Macbeth, iv. iii. 23).
Steevens takes " top of youth " to be
the sense, as in the brow of a hill.
Compare " brow of night " (King John,
V. i. 49). Several changes suggested.
7. Salisbury be lost] The speech by
York in Contention, that this one re-
places, is of interest. Who wrote it ?
It contains Greene's " buckle with," but
Shakespeare uses that several times in
these plays — not later. It contains the
adjective fai7it- heart found in Marlowe's
Tamburlaine, Part II. (1590), and often
in Locrine. But the line of " for the loss
of this right hand " is like Shakespeare ;
see 3 Henry VI, 11. vi. 80. There is none
of Marlowe's bounce. The expression
" good old man " delighted Shakespeare,
he uses it with gusto many a time. I
believe it is Shakespeare's ; and very
poetically rewritten by him. The scene
seems to me by Peele and Shakespeare
in Contention, or by Peele alone. And
rewritten by Shakespeare here, as is
usually the case in important positions,
such as the opening or closing of an
Act, or even a prominent scene.
8, 9. Three times . . . Three times
. . . thrice] Not much differing from
Contention's " And thrise . . . And
thrise." Compare Hemy V. iv. vi. 4.
Much in the descriptive style of the
Faerie Queene (i. vii. 24) : —
" Thrise did she sinke adowne in
deadly swownde,
And thrise he her revived with busie
paine."
In the same speech " charging his
lance" is not Shakespearian. Peele
has —
"as if some angry man of war
Had charged his lance "
{Anglorum Ferice (597, a)). And a few
lines below "bud" is used in a non-
Shakespearian sense. Compare " fresh
budd of vertue " in Faerie Queene, i. viii.
27 (to a person). " Bud" is drawn in with
canker, to a similar use in King John,
HI. iv. 82. For " thickest throng " see
Part III. II. i. 13 (note). " Remainder
of my weary life " is paralleled only in
Titus Andronicus, ill. i. 132.
9. bestrid him] strode over him to
defend him. See Comedy of Errors, v.
i. 192, and Coriolanus, 11. ii. 96. Earlier
in this sense in North's Plutarch {New
Eng. Diet.).
sc. HI.] KING HENRY THE SIXTH 195
Enter SALISBURY.
Sal. Now, by my sword, well hast thou fought to-day ; 1 5
By the 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 to-day
You have defended me from imminent death.
Well, lords, we have not got that which we have : 20
'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 : 25
Let us pursue him ere the writs go forth.
What says Lord Warwick ? shall we after them ?
War. After them ! nay, before them, if we can.
Now, by my faith, lords, 'twas a glorious day :
Saint Alban's battle, won by famous York, 30
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 !
\Exeunt.
he fought with courage gaitist his foes, The boldest sprited man that ere mine eyes
beheld. Enter Salsbury and Warwicke. 15-22. Sal. Now, by my . . . fiature]
82-88. Edward. See noble father, where they both do come, The only props vnto
the house of Yorke. Sals. Well hast thou fought this day, thou valiant Duke,
And thou braue bud of Yorkes encreasing house. The small remainder of my weary
life, I hold for thee, for with thy warlike arme. Three times this day thou hast
preseru'd my life. 23-27. York. I know . . . the . . . London . . . What
. . . them ?] 89-91. Yorke. What say you Lords, the . . . London ? There as I
here to hold a Parliament. What . . . them ? 28-33. War. After them I . . .
Alban's . . . eterniz'd . . . befall I] 92-97. War. After them . . . Albones . . .
eternest . . . befall. Exet omnes.
22. opposites . . . nature'] foes with cepting Shakespeare. It occurs very
such power of recovery. near the beginning of Sidney's Arcadia :
31. eierwJz^rf] Not elsewhere in Shake- "mankinde by all means seeking to
speare, but in Spenser, Greene, Peele, eternize himself so much the more as
Marlowe,Kyd,Nasheand Harvey earlier, he is near his end."
Spenser has " to be eternized " in Faerie 32, Sound drums and trumpets'] Several
Queene, i. x. 59. The earliest in New times again in Part III, and in Richard
Eng. Diet, is " Countess of Pembroke ///. Compare (Peele and Greene's)
(1580)." Perhaps introduced by Gabriel Locritie, i. i. : Sound drums and trum-
Harvey, and adopted by every one ex- pets : march to Troynovant."
ABERDEEN : THE UNIVERSITY PRESS
PR Shakespeare, V/illiejii
2815 The second part of King
A2H3 Henry the Sixth
cop. 3
PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE
CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY
4'
I- :
Live Music Archive
Librivox Free Audio
Metropolitan Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Internet Arcade
Console Living Room
Books to Borrow
Open Library
TV News
Understanding 9/11