Earl of Richmond, a Youth, afterwards King HENRY VII.

RICHARD, Duke of York.

EDWARD, Eldest Son to the Duke of York, afterwards King EDWARD IV.
GEORGE, Duke of Clarence, fecond Son to the Duke of York.

RICHARD, Duke of Gloucester, third Son to the Duke of York, afterwards King

RICHARD III.

EDMUND, Earl of Rutland, youngest Son to the Duke of York.

Duke of Norfolk,

Marquifs of Montague,

Earl of Warwick,

Earl of Salisbury,

Earl of Pembroke,

Lord Haftings,

Lord Stafford,

Sir JOHN MORTIMER,

Sir HUGH MORTIMER, Uncles to the Duke of York.

Sir WILLIAM STANLEY.

Lord RIVERS, Brother to the Lady GRAY.

Sir JOHN MONTGOMERY.

Lieutenant of the Tower.

Mayor of Coventry.

Mayor and Aldermen of York.

SOMERVILLE.

HUMPHRY and SINKLO, two Huntsmen.

LEWIS, King of France.

BOURBON, Admiral of France.

Queen MARGARET.

BONA, Sifter to the French King.

Lady GRAY, Widow of Sir RICHARD GRAY, afterwards Queen to EDWARD IV.

Soldiers and other Attendants on King HENRY, and King EDWARD.

In Part of the Third Act the SCENE is lay'd in France, during all the rest of the Play in England.

THE

Alarum. Enter Duke of York, Edward, Richard, Norfolk, Montague, Warwick, and Soldiers.

I

WARWICK.

Wonder how the king escap'd our hands.

York. While we purfu'd the horsemen of the north, He flily ftole away and left his men :

Whereat the great lord of Northumberland,

Whose warlike ears could never brook retreat,

Cheer'd up the drooping army; and himself,
Lord Clifford, and lord Stafford, all abreast,
Charg'd our main battle's front; and, breaking in,
Were by the fwords of common foldiers flain.

Edw. Lord Stafford's father, duke of Buckingham,

Is either flain or wounded dangerous.

I cleft his beaver with a downright blow:

That this is true, father, behold his blood.

Mont. And, brother, here's the earl of Wiltshire's blood,

Whom I encounter'd as the battles join'd.

a

Rich. Speak thou for me, and tell them what I did.

[Showing Somerfet's head.

• First printed under the title of The true Tragedy of Richard Duke of York, and the grad King Henry the Sixth; or the fe.ond part of the Contention of York and Lancaster. 1600.

Bb 2

Rich.

York. Richard hath best deserv'd of all my fons. Norf. Is his grace dead, my lord of Somerfet? Such hope have all the line of John of Gaunt !

Rich. Thus do I hope to shake king Henry's head. War. And fo do I. Victorious prince of York, Before I fee thee feated in the throne,

Which now the houfe of Lancaster ufurps;

I vow by heav'n, these eyes fhall never close.
This is the palace of the fearful king,
And this the regal feat; poffefs it, York,
For this is thine, and not king Henry's heir's.

York. Affift me then, fweet Warwick, and I will;

For hither we have broken in by force.

Norf. We'll all affift you; he that flies fhall die. York. Thanks, gentle Norfolk. Stay by me, my lords; And, foldiers, stay, and lodge by me this night. [they go up. War. And when the king comes, offer him no violence, Unless he seek to thrust you out by force.

York. The queen this day here holds her parliament ; But little thinks, we fhall be of her council:

By words, or blows, here let us win our right.

Rich. Arm'd as we are, let's stay within this house.
War. The bloody parliament shall this be call'd,
Unless Plantagenet duke of York be king,

And bashful Harry depos'd, whofe cowardise
Hath made us by-words to our enemies.

York. Then leave me not, my lords, be refolute;

I mean to take poffeffion of my right.

War. Neither the king, nor he that loves him best, The proudest he that holds up Lancaster,

Dares ftir a wing, if Warwick fhake his bells.

a

I'll plant Plantagenet, root him up who dare:

Refolve thee, Richard; claim the English crown.

2

[Henry the fecond was the firft of the line of Plantagenet fo called from his father Geoffry Plantagenet, who was duke of Anjou, and married Maud, fole daughter of Maud the empress, fole daughter of Henry the firft; he was furnamed Plantagenet from planta genista a sprig of heath or broom, which he was accustomed to wear on the creft of his helmet.]

SCENE

SCENE II.

Enter King Henry, Clifford, Northumberland, Westmorland, Exeter, and others.

K. Henry. My lords, look, where the sturdy rebel fits,

Even in the chair of ftate! belike, he means

(Back'd by the power of Warwick, that false peer,)
T'aspire unto the crown, and reign as king. –
Earl of Northumberland, he flew thy father,
And thine, lord Clifford; and you vow'd revenge
On him, his fons, his fav'rites, and his friends.

North. If I be not, heav'ns be reveng❜d on me!
Clif. The hope thereof makes Clifford mourn in fteel.
Weft. What, fhall we fuffer this? let's pluck him down:
My heart for anger burns, I cannot brook it.

K. Henry. Be patient, gentle earl of Westmorland.

Clif. Patience is for poltroons, and fuch is he:

He durft not fit there had your father liv'd.

My gracious lord, here in the parliament

Let us affail the family of York.

North. Well haft thou spoken, coufin; be it fo.
K. Henry. Ah, know you not, the city favours them,
And they have troops of foldiers at their beck?

Exe. But when the duke is flain, they'll quickly fly.

K. Henry. Far be the thought of this from Henry's heart, To make a fhambles of the parliament-house!

Coufin of Exeter, frowns, words, and threats,

Shall be the war that Henry means to use.

Thou factious duke of York, descend my throne, [to the Duke. And kneel for grace and mercy at my feet :

I am thy fovereign.

York. Henry, I am thine.

Exe. For fhame, come down: he made thee duke of York.

York. 'Twas my inheritance, as the earldom was.

Exe. Thy father was a traitor to the crown.

War.

War. Exeter, thou art a traitor to the crown,

In following this ufurping Henry.

Clif. Whom fhould he follow but his natural king?
War. True, Clifford; and that's Richard duke of York.
K. Henry. And fhall I ftand, and thou fit in my throne?
York. It must and fhall be fo, content thyself.

War. Be duke of Lancaster, let him be king.
Weft. He is both king and duke of Lancaster ;
And that the lord of Westmorland fhall maintain.

War. And Warwick fhall difprove it. You forget,
That we are those which chas'd you from the field,
And flew your fathers, and with colours fpread
March'd through the city to the palace gates.

North. Yes, Warwick, I remember it to my grief:
And, by his foul, thou and thy house shall rue it.
Weft. Plantagenet, of thee and these thy sons
Thy kinsmen and thy friends, I'll have more lives
Than drops of blood were in my father's veins.

Clif. Urge it no more; left that, inftead of words,
I fend thee, Warwick, fuch a meffenger,

As fhall revenge his death before I ftir.

War. Poor Clifford ! how I fcorn his worthlefs threats!
York. Will you, we fhow our title to the crown?

If not, our fwords fhall plead it in the field.

K. Henry. What title haft thou, traitor, to the crown? Thy father was, as thou art, duke of York;

Thy grandfather Roger Mortimer, earl of March:

I am the son of Henry the fifth,

Who made the dauphin and the French to stoop,
And feiz'd upon their towns and provinces.

War. Talk not of France fith thou haft loft it all.
K. Henry. The lord protector lost it, and not I;
When I was crown'd I was but nine months old.
Rich. You're old enough now, yet, methinks, you lofe:
Tear the crown, father, from the ufurper's head.
Edw. Sweet father, do fo; fet it on your head.

Mont.