William Shakespeare

“ More than the infant that is born to-night:
I thank my God for my humility.
QUEEN ELIZABETH
A holy day shall this be kept hereafter:—
I would to God all strifes were well compounded.—
My sovereign lord, I do beseech your highness
To take our brother Clarence to your grace.
GLOSTER
Why, madam, have I off'red love for this,
To be so flouted in this royal presence?
Who knows not that the gentle duke is dead?
[They all start.] You do him injury to scorn his corse.
KING EDWARD
Who knows not he is dead! Who knows he is?
QUEEN ELIZABETH
All-seeing heaven, what a world is this! ”

“ QUEEN MARGARET
Which God revenge!
GLOSTER
To fight on Edward's party for the crown;
And for his meed, poor lord, he is mew'd up.
I would to God my heart were flint, like Edward's,
Or Edward's soft and pitiful, like mine:
I am too childish-foolish for this world.
QUEEN MARGARET
Hie thee to hell for shame and leave this world,
Thou cacodemon! there thy kingdom is.
RIVERS
My Lord of Gloster, in those busy days
Which here you urge to prove us enemies,
We follow'd then our lord, our sovereign king:
So should we you, if you should be our king. ”

“ HASTINGS
And so swear I.
[Embraces Dorset.] KING EDWARD
Now, princely Buckingham, seal thou this league
With thy embracements to my wife's allies,
And make me happy in your unity.
BUCKINGHAM
Whenever Buckingham doth turn his hate
Upon your grace [to the queen] , but with all duteous love
Doth cherish you and yours, God punish me
With hate in those where I expect most love!
When I have most need to employ a friend,
And most assurèd that he is a friend,
Deep, hollow, treacherous, and full of guile,
Be he unto me!—this do I beg of heaven
When I am cold in love to you or yours. ”

“ Death makes no conquest of this conqueror;
For now he lives in fame, though not in life.—
I'll tell you what, my cousin Buckingham,—
BUCKINGHAM
What, my gracious lord?
PRINCE
An if I live until I be a man,
I'll win our ancient right in France again,
Or die a soldier as I liv'd a king.
GLOSTER
[Aside] Short summers lightly have a forward spring.
BUCKINGHAM
Now, in good time, here comes the Duke of York.
[Enter YORK, HASTINGS, and the CARDINAL.] PRINCE
Richard of York! how fares our loving brother?
YORK
Well, my dread lord; so must I call you now. ”

“ The worm of conscience still be-gnaw thy soul!
Thy friends suspect for traitors while thou liv'st,
And take deep traitors for thy dearest friends!
No sleep close up that deadly eye of thine,
Unless it be while some tormenting dream
Affrights thee with a hell of ugly devils!
Thou elvish-mark'd, abortive, rooting hog!
Thou that wast seal'd in thy nativity
The slave of nature and the son of hell!
Thou slander of thy heavy mother's womb!
Thou loathèd issue of thy father's loins!
Thou rag of honour! thou detested—
GLOSTER
Margaret.
QUEEN MARGARET
Richard!
GLOSTER
Ha! ”

“ Wherein, my friends, have I offended you?
FIRST MURDERER
Offended us you have not, but the king.
CLARENCE
I shall be reconcil'd to him again.
SECOND MURDERER
Never, my lord; therefore prepare to die.
CLARENCE
Are you drawn forth among a world of men
To slay the innocent? What is my offence?
Where is the evidence that doth accuse me?
What lawful quest have given their verdict up
Unto the frowning judge? or who pronounc'd
The bitter sentence of poor Clarence' death?
Before I be convíct by course of law,
To threaten me with death is most unlawful. ”

“ Madam, good hope; his grace speaks cheerfully.
QUEEN ELIZABETH
God grant him health! Did you confer with him?
BUCKINGHAM
Ay, madam; he desires to make atonement
Between the Duke of Gloster and your brothers,
And between them and my lord chamberlain;
And sent to warn them to his royal presence.
QUEEN ELIZABETH
Would all were well!—but that will never be:
I fear our happiness is at the height.
[Enter GLOSTER, HASTINGS, and DORSET.] GLOSTER
They do me wrong, and I will not endure it:—
Who are they that complain unto the king
That I, forsooth, am stern and love them not? ”

“ And there the little souls of Edward's children
Whisper the spirits of thine enemies,
And promise them success and victory.
Bloody thou art; bloody will be thy end:
Shame serves thy life and doth thy death attend.
[Exit.] QUEEN ELIZABETH
Though far more cause, yet much less spirit to curse
Abides in me; I say amen to her.
[Going.] KING RICHARD
Stay, madam, I must talk a word with you.
QUEEN ELIZABETH
I have no more sons of the royal blood
For thee to slaughter: for my daughters, Richard,—
They shall be praying nuns, not weeping queens;
And therefore level not to hit their lives. ”

“ Did York's dread curse prevail so much with heaven
That Henry's death, my lovely Edward's death,
Their kingdom's loss, my woeful banishment,
Should all but answer for that peevish brat?
Can curses pierce the clouds and enter heaven?—
Why, then, give way, dull clouds, to my quick curses!—
Though not by war, by surfeit die your king,
As ours by murder, to make him a king!
Edward thy son, that now is Prince of Wales,
For Edward our son, that was Prince of Wales,
Die in his youth by like untimely violence! ”

“ GHOST
[To KING RICHARD.] Let me sit heavy in thy soul to-morrow!
I that was wash'd to death with fulsome wine,
Poor Clarence, by thy guile betray'd to death!
To-morrow in the battle think on me,
And fall thy edgeless sword: despair, and die!—
[To RICHMOND.] Thou offspring of the house of Lancaster,
The wrongèd heirs of York do pray for thee:
Good angels guard thy battle! live, and flourish!
[The Ghosts of RIVERS, GREY, and VAUGHAN rise.] GHOST OF RIVERS
[To KING RICHARD.] Let me sit heavy in thy soul to-morrow,
Rivers that died at Pomfret! despair and die! ”

“ Where is my lord the Duke of Gloster?
I have sent for these strawberries.
HASTINGS
His grace looks cheerfully and smooth this morning;
There's some conceit or other likes him well
When that he bids good morrow with such spirit.
I think there's ne'er a man in Christendom
Can lesser hide his love or hate than he;
For by his face straight shall you know his heart.
STANLEY
What of his heart perceive you in his face
By any livelihood he showed to-day?
HASTINGS
Marry, that with no man here he is offended ”

“ That no man shall have private conference,
Of what degree soever, with your brother.
GLOSTER
Even so; an't please your worship, Brakenbury,
You may partake of any thing we say:
We speak no treason, man;—we say the king
Is wise and virtuous; and his noble queen
Well struck in years, fair, and not jealous;—
We say that Shore's wife hath a pretty foot,
A cherry lip, a bonny eye, a passing pleasing tongue;
And that the queen's kindred are made gentlefolks:
How say you, sir? can you deny all this?
BRAKENBURY
With this, my lord, myself have naught to do. ”

“ Hath not yet div'd into the world's deceit:
Nor more can you distinguish of a man
Than of his outward show; which, God He knows,
Seldom or never jumpeth with the heart.
Those uncles which you want were dangerous;
Your grace attended to their sugar'd words
But look'd not on the poison of their hearts:
God keep you from them and from such false friends!
PRINCE
God keep me from false friends! but they were none.
GLOSTER
My lord, the mayor of London comes to greet you.
[Enter the LORD MAYOR and his train.] MAYOR
God bless your grace with health and happy days! ”

“ DORSET
Dispute not with her,—she is lunatic.
QUEEN MARGARET
Peace, master marquis, you are malapert:
Your fire-new stamp of honour is scarce current:
O, that your young nobility could judge
What 'twere to lose it, and be miserable!
They that stand high have many blasts to shake them;
And if they fall they dash themselves to pieces.
GLOSTER
Good counsel, marry:—learn it, learn it, marquis.
DORSET
It touches you, my lord, as much as me.
GLOSTER
Ay, and much more: but I was born so high,
Our aery buildeth in the cedar's top,
And dallies with the wind, and scorns the sun. ”

“ KING EDWARD
Is Clarence dead? the order was revers'd.
GLOSTER
But he, poor man, by your first order died,
And that a wingèd Mercury did bear;
Some tardy cripple bore the countermand
That came too lag to see him burièd.
God grant that some, less noble and less loyal,
Nearer in bloody thoughts, an not in blood,
Deserve not worse than wretched Clarence did,
And yet go current from suspicion!
[Enter Stanley.] STANLEY
A boon, my sovereign, for my service done!
KING EDWARD
I pr'ythee, peace: my soul is full of sorrow.
STANLEY
I Will not rise unless your highness hear me. ”

“ Where's thy conscience now?
SECOND MURDERER
O, in the Duke of Gloster's purse.
FIRST MURDERER
So, when he opens his purse to give us our reward, thy conscience flies out.
SECOND MURDERER
'Tis no matter; let it go; there's few or none will entertain it.
FIRST MURDERER
What if it come to thee again?
SECOND MURDERER
I'll not meddle with it,—it makes a man coward; a man cannot steal, but it accuseth him; a man cannot swear, but it checks him; a man cannot lie with his neighbour's wife, but it detects him: 'tis a blushing shame-faced spirit that mutinies in a man's bosom ”

“ Of the young prince your son: send straight for him;
Let him be crown'd; in him your comfort lives.
Drown desperate sorrow in dead Edward's grave,
And plant your joys in living Edward's throne.
[Enter GLOSTER, BUCKINGHAM, STANLEY, HASTINGS, RATCLIFF and others.] GLOSTER
Sister, have comfort: all of us have cause
To wail the dimming of our shining star;
But none can help our harms by wailing them.—
Madam, my mother, I do cry you mercy;
I did not see your grace:—humbly on my knee
I crave your blessing. ”

“ GLOSTER
'Tis done by me, and ends in—Margaret.
QUEEN ELIZABETH
Thus have you breath'd your curse against yourself.
QUEEN MARGARET
Poor painted queen, vain flourish of my fortune!
Why strew'st thou sugar on that bottled spider,
Whose deadly web ensnareth thee about?
Fool, fool! thou whett'st a knife to kill thyself.
The day will come that thou shalt wish for me
To help thee curse this poisonous bunch-back'd toad.
HASTINGS
False-boding woman, end thy frantic curse,
Lest to thy harm thou move our patience.
QUEEN MARGARET
Foul shame upon you! you have all mov'd mine. ”

“ Every man's conscience is a thousand swords,
To fight against that bloody homicide.
HERBERT
I doubt not but his friends will turn to us.
BLUNT
He hath no friends but what are friends for fear,
Which in his dearest need will fly from him.
RICHMOND
All for our vantage. Then in God's name, march:
True hope is swift, and flies with swallow's wings;
Kings it makes gods, and meaner creatures kings.
[Exeunt.]
SCENE III. Bosworth Field
[Enter KING RICHARD and Forces; the DUKE OF NORFOLK, the EARL of SURREY, and others.] ”

“ there's none else by:
Richard loves Richard; that is, I am I.
Is there a murderer here? No;—yes, I am:
Then fly. What, from myself? Great reason why,—
Lest I revenge. What,—myself upon myself!
Alack, I love myself. Wherefore? for any good
That I myself have done unto myself?
O, no! alas, I rather hate myself
For hateful deeds committed by myself!
I am a villain: yet I lie, I am not.
Fool, of thyself speak well:—fool, do not flatter.
My conscience hath a thousand several tongues,
And every tongue brings in a several tale,
And every tale condemns me for a villain.
Perjury, perjury, in the high'st degree; ”

“ O God! which this blood mad'st, revenge his death;
O earth! which this blood drink'st, revenge his death;
Either heaven with lightning strike the murtherer dead, 64
Or earth, gape open wide, and eat him quick,
As thou dost swallow up this good king's blood,
Which his hell-govern'd arm hath butchered!
Rich. Lady, you know no rules of charity, 68
Which renders good for bad, blessings for curses.
Anne. Villain, thou know'st nor law of God nor man:
No beast so fierce but knows some touch of pity.
Rich. But I know none, and therefore am no beast. ”

“ SCENE I. London. A Room in the palace
[Enter KING EDWARD, led in sick, QUEEN ELIZABETH, DORSET, RIVERS, HASTINGS, BUCKINGHAM, GREY, and others.] KING EDWARD
Why, so. Now have I done a good day's work:—
You peers, continue this united league:
I every day expect an embassage
From my Redeemer, to redeem me hence;
And more at peace my soul shall part to heaven,
Since I have made my friends at peace on earth.
Rivers and Hastings, take each other's hand;
Dissemble not your hatred, swear your love. ”

“ 'Tis death to me to be at enmity;
I hate it, and desire all good men's love.—
First, madam, I entreat true peace of you,
Which I will purchase with my duteous service;—
Of you, my noble cousin Buckingham,
If ever any grudge were lodg'd between us;—
Of you, and you, Lord Rivers, and of Dorset,
That all without desert have frown'd on me; ”