North. Thou art deceiv'd, 'tis not thy fouthern Power Of Effex, Norfolk, Suffolk, nor of Kent, Which makes thee thus prefumptuous and proud, Can fet the Duke up in defpight of me.

Clif. King Henry, be thy Title right or wrong, Lord Clifford vows to fight in thy defence; May that ground gape, and fwallow me alive, Where I fhall kneel to him, that flew my father! K. Henry. Oh Clifford, how thy words revive my heart!

York. Henry of Lancaster, refign thy Crown:
What mutter you, or what confpire you, Lords?
War. Do right unto this princely Duke of York,
Or I will fill this House with armed men ;

And, o'er the Chair of State, where now he fits,
Write up his title with ufurping blood.

[He ftamps with his foot, and the foldiers fhew themselves. K. Henry. My Lord of Warwick, hear me but one word.

Let me but reign in Quiet while I live.

York. Confirm the Crown to me and to mine heirs, And thou fhalt reign in quiet while thou liv❜ft. K. Henry. I am content. Richard Plantagenet, Enjoy the Kingdom after my decease.

Clif. What wrong

is this unto the Prince your fon?

War. What good is this to England and himself?
Weft. Bafe, fearful and defpairing Henry!
Clif. How haft thou injur'd both thyfelf and us!
Weft. I cannot stay to hear thefe articles.

North. Nor I.

Clif. Come Coufin, let us tell the Queen thefe news. Weft. Farewel, faint-hearted and degen'rate King, In whose cold blood no fpark of honour 'bides. North. Be thou a prey unto the House of York; And die in bands for this unmanly deed!-

Clif. In dreadful war may'ft thou be overcome, Or live in peace abandon'd and defpis'd!

[Exeunt Nor. Clif. Weftm. SCENE

SCENE III.

War. Turn this way, Henry, and regard them not. Exe. They feek revenge, and therefore will not yield. K. Henry. Ah, Exeter!

War. Why should you figh, my Lord?

K. Henry. Not for myself, Lord Warwick, but my fon,

Whom I unnaturally fhall difinherit.

But be it as it may, I here entail

The Crown to thee, and to thine heirs for ever s
Conditionally, that here thou take an oath
To cease this Civil War; and, whilst I live,
To honour me as thy King and Sovereign,
Neither by treason nor hoftility

To feek to put me down, and reign thyself.

York. This oath I willingly take, and will perform. War. Long live King Henry! Plantagenet, embrace him.

K. Henry. And long live thou, and these thy forward fons!

· York. Now York and Lancaster are reconcil'd. Exe. Accurft be he, that feeks to make them foes! [Sonet. Here they come down. York. Farewel, my gracious Lord, I'll to my Caftle. War. And I'll keep London with my foldiers. Norf. And I to Norfolk with my followers. Mont. And I unto the fea, from whence I came. [Exeunt York, Warwick, Norfolk and Montague. K. Henry. And I with grief and sorrow to the Court. Enter the Queen and the Prince of Wales. Exe. Here comes the Queen, whose looks bewray

her anger.

I'll fteal away.
K. Henry. So, Exeter, will I

They feek revenge.] They go away not because they doubt the juftice of this determination, but becaufe they have been con

[Going

quered, and feek to be revenged. They are not influenced by pri ciple, but paffion.

Queen

Queen. Nay, go not from me; I will follow theeK. Henry. Be patient, gentle Queen, and I will stay. Queen. Who can be patient in fuch extremes? Ah, wretched man! would I had dy'd a maid, And never feen thee, never borne thee fon, Seeing thou haft prov'd fo unnatural a father. Hath he deferv'd to lofe his birth-right thus? Hadft thou but lov'd him half so well as I, Or felt that pain which I did for him once, Or nourifht him, as I did with my blood; Thou wouldst have left thy dearest heart-blood there, Rather than made that favage Duke thine hair, And difinherited thine only fon.

Prince. Father, you cannot difinherit me:

If you be King, why should not I fucceed?

K. Henry. Pardon me, Margret; pardon me, sweet fon;

The Earl of Warwick and the Duke enforc'd me. Queen. Enforc'd thee? art thou King, and wilt be forc'd?

I fhame to hear thee speak. Ah, tim'rous wretch
Thou haft undone thyfelf, thy fon, and me;
And given unto the Houfe of York fuch head
As thou shalt reign but by their sufferance.
To entail him and's heirs unto the Crown,
* What is it but to make thy Sepulchre,
And creep into it far before thy time?
Warwick is Chancellor, and the Lord of Calais;
Stern Faulconbridge commands the narrow Seas;
The Duke is made Protector of the Realm;
And yet fhalt thou be fafe?-fuch fafety finds
The trembling lamb, invironed with wolves.
Had I been there, which am a filly woman,
The foldiers fhould have tofs'd me on their pikes,
Before I would have granted to that A&t.

What is it but to make thy Sepulchre.] The Queen's reproach is founded on a pofition

long received among politicians, that the lofs of a King's power is foon followed by lots of life.

But

But thou preferr'ft thy life before thine honour:
And, feeing thou doft, I here divorce myself
Both from thy table, Henry, and thy bed;
Until that Act of Parliament be repealed,
Whereby my fon is difinherited.

The northern Lords, that have forfworn thy Colours,
Will follow mine, if once they fee them spread;
And spread they fhall be, to thy foul difgrace,
And utter ruin of the Houfe of York.

Thus I do leave thee; come, Son, let's away;
Our army's ready; come, we'll after them.

K. Henry. Stay, gentle Margaret, and hear me speak. Queen. Thou haft spoke too much already; get thee gone.

K. Henry. Gentle fon Edward, thou wilt stay with me?

Queen. Ay, to be murder'd by his enemies.

Prince. When I return with victory from the field,
I'll fee your Grace; till then I'll follow her.
Queen. Come, fon, away; we may not linger thus.
[Exeunt Queen and Prince.
K. Henry. Poor Queen, how love to me and to her fon
Hath made her break out into terms of rage!
Reveng'd may fhe be on that hateful Duke,
Whofe haughty fpirit, winged with defire,
Will coaft my crown; and, like an empty eagle,
Tire on the flesh of me and of my fon!

-The lofs of thofe three Lords torments my heart;
I'll write unto them, and intreat them fair;
-Come, Coufin, you fhall be the meffenger.
Exe. And, as I hope, fhall reconcile them all.
[Exeunt.

Whofe haughty Spirit, winged

with defire, Will cost my crown; and, like

an empty eagle, Tire on the flejb---] Read COAST, i. e. hover over it.

WARBURTON.

To tire is to faften, to fix the talons, from the French tier.

Thofe three lords] That is, of Northumberland, Westmoreland, and Clifford, who had left him in difgutt.

SCENE

SCENE IV.

Changes to Sandal-Castle, near Wakefield, in Yorkshire.

Rich.

Enter Richard, Edward, and Montague.

ROTHER, though I be youngeft, give me leave.

Edw. No, I can better play the orator.

Mont. But I have reasons strong and forcible.

Enter the Duke of York.

York. Why how now fons and brother, at a ftrife? What is your quarrel? how began it first?

Edw. No quarrel, but a fweet contention."

York. About what?

Rich. About that which concerns your Grace and us; The Crown of England, father; which is yours. York. Mine, boy? not 'till King Henry be dead. Rich. Your Right depends not on his life or death. Edw. Now you are heir, therefore enjoy it now: By giving th' Houfe of Lancaster leave to breathe, It will out-run you, father, in the end.

York. I took an oath that he fhould quietly reign. Edw. But for a Kingdom any oath may be broken: I'd break a thoufand oaths to reign one year.

Rich. No, God forbid, your Grace fhould be forfworn.

York. I fhall be if I claim by open war.

Rich. I'll prove the contrary, if you'll hear me fpeak. York. Thou can'ft not, fon; it is impoflible.

• No quarril, but a fight Con

tention.] Thus the Players, firft, in their edition; who did not understand, I prefume, the force of the epithet in the old Quarto, which I have reftor'd; VOL. V.

fweet Contention, i. e. the Argument of their Difpute was upon a grateful Topick; the Queflion of their Father's immediate Right to the Crown.

K

THEOBALD.

Rich.