The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)

by William Shakespeare

  in the mouth of the ungracious is a blasphemy.

  Why have those exiled and banned legs

  dared to set foot on a grain of England's soil?

  More importantly, why? Why have they dared to march

  so many miles across her peaceful lands,

  frightening her pale faced villages with war

  and flourishing your hated weapons?

  Have you come because the God appointed king is not here?

  Why, foolish boy, the King has been left behind,

  his power lies within my loyal heart.

  If I still possessed my passionate youth,

  as I did when brave Gaunt, your father, and myself,

  rescued the Black Prince, that young earthly Mars,

  from out of the ranks of so many thousand Frenchmen,

  how quickly then this arm of mine,

  now handicapped with shaking, would punish you,

  and show you the error of your ways!

  BOLINGBROKE.

  My gracious uncle, let me know my fault;

  On what condition stands it and wherein?

  My gracious uncle, let me know what my fault is;

  how has it shown itself?

  YORK.

  Even in condition of the worst degree-

  In gross rebellion and detested treason.

  Thou art a banish'd man, and here art come

  Before the expiration of thy time,

  In braving arms against thy sovereign.

  By committing the worst thing that can be done–

  horrible rebellion and hated treason.

  You are an exile, and you have come here

  before your term was up,

  bearing arms against your king.

  BOLINGBROKE.

  As I was banish'd, I was banish'd Hereford;

  But as I come, I come for Lancaster.

  And, noble uncle, I beseech your Grace

  Look on my wrongs with an indifferent eye.

  You are my father, for methinks in you

  I see old Gaunt alive. O, then, my father,

  Will you permit that I shall stand condemn'd

  A wandering vagabond; my rights and royalties

  Pluck'd from my arms perforce, and given away

  To upstart unthrifts? Wherefore was I born?

  If that my cousin king be King in England,

  It must be granted I am Duke of Lancaster.

  You have a son, Aumerle, my noble cousin;

  Had you first died, and he been thus trod down,

  He should have found his uncle Gaunt a father

  To rouse his wrongs and chase them to the bay.

  I am denied to sue my livery here,

  And yet my letters patents give me leave.

  My father's goods are all distrain'd and sold;

  And these and all are all amiss employ'd.

  What would you have me do? I am a subject,

  And I challenge law-attorneys are denied me;

  And therefore personally I lay my claim

  To my inheritance of free descent.

  I was exiled as Hereford; I have returned as Lancaster.

  And, noble uncle, I beg your Grace

  to consider my complaints impartially.

  You are my father, for I think that I can see

  old Gaunt alive in you. Oh then my father,

  do you agree that I should be condemned to be

  a wandering vagabond, that my rights and property

  should be torn out of my arms by force, and given away

  to vulgar wastrels? Why was I born?

  If my cousin the king is king of England,

  it must be granted that I am the Duke of Lancaster.

  You have a son, Aumerle, my noble cousin;

  if you had died first, and he had been crushed like this,

  his uncle Gaunt would have been a father to him,

  discovering his wrongs and hunting them down.

  I have been forbidden the rights to my title,

  but my official documents prove I should have them.

  My father's property has all been confiscated and sold,

  and all the profits from that are being misused.

  What do you think I should do? I am a subject,

  and I am challenging the law; I am not allowed an attorney,

  and so I am putting my claim for my

  rightful inheritance in person.

  NORTHUMBERLAND.

  The noble Duke hath been too much abused.

  The noble duke has suffered too much injustice.

  ROSS.

  It stands your Grace upon to do him right.

  Your Grace is obliged to do right by him.

  WILLOUGHBY.

  Base men by his endowments are made great.

  Low men have been given his inheritance.

  YORK.

  My lords of England, let me tell you this:

  I have had feeling of my cousin's wrongs,

  And labour'd all I could to do him right;

  But in this kind to come, in braving arms,

  Be his own carver and cut out his way,

  To find out right with wrong-it may not be;

  And you that do abet him in this kind

  Cherish rebellion, and are rebels all.

  My Lords of England, let me tell you this:

  I have appreciated the wrongs my cousin has suffered,

  and done all I could to put them right;

  but to come like this, carrying weapons,

  to be his own carver and cut out his path,

  to set things right by doing wrong–that cannot be;

  and anybody who helps him with this

  loves rebellion, and is a rebel.

  NORTHUMBERLAND.

  The noble Duke hath sworn his coming is

  But for his own; and for the right of that

  We all have strongly sworn to give him aid;

  And let him never see joy that breaks that oath!

  The noble duke has sworn he’s only here

  to get what is his; and we have solemnly sworn

  to help him regain his rights;

  and may anyone who breaks that oath never be forgiven!

  YORK.

  Well, well, I see the issue of these arms.

  I cannot mend it, I must needs confess,

  Because my power is weak and all ill left;

  But if I could, by Him that gave me life,

  I would attach you all and make you stoop

  Unto the sovereign mercy of the King;

  But since I cannot, be it known unto you

  I do remain as neuter. So, fare you well;

  Unless you please to enter in the castle,

  And there repose you for this night.

  Well, well, I can see where this war will end.

  I cannot stop it, I must admit,

  because my forces are weak and inadequate;

  but if I could, I swear by God,

  I would arrest you all and make you bow

  to the royal mercy of the King;

  but since I cannot, I shall tell you

  that I will remain neutral. So, farewell;

  unless you wish to come into the castle,

  and stay there for tonight.

  BOLINGBROKE.

  An offer, uncle, that we will accept.

  But we must win your Grace to go with us

  To Bristow Castle, which they say is held

  By Bushy, Bagot, and their complices,

  The caterpillars of the commonwealth,

  Which I have sworn to weed and pluck away.

  We will accept that offer, uncle.

  But we must persuade your Grace to come with us

  to Bristow Castle, which they say is held

  by Bushy, Bagot and their accomplices,

  the parasites of this society,

  whom I have sworn to weed out and throw away.

  YORK.

  It may be I will go with you; but yet I'll pa
use,

  For I am loath to break our country's laws.

  Nor friends nor foes, to me welcome you are.

  Things past redress are now with me past care.

  I might possibly go with you; but I will think about it,

  because I'm very reluctant to break the laws of our country.

  You are neither friends nor foes, but you are welcome.

  I no longer care about things which I can't change.

  Exeunt

  A camp in Wales

  Enter EARL OF SALISBURY and a WELSH CAPTAIN

  CAPTAIN.

  My Lord of Salisbury, we have stay'd ten days

  And hardly kept our countrymen together,

  And yet we hear no tidings from the King;

  Therefore we will disperse ourselves. Farewell.

  My Lord of Salisbury, we have waited ten days,

  and valiantly kept our countrymen together,

  and yet we have heard no news from the King;

  therefore we shall leave. Farewell.

  SALISBURY.

  Stay yet another day, thou trusty Welshman;

  The King reposeth all his confidence in thee.

  Stay just another day, you trusty Welshman;

  the King puts all his trust in you.

  CAPTAIN.

  'Tis thought the King is dead; we will not stay.

  The bay trees in our country are all wither'd,

  And meteors fright the fixed stars of heaven;

  The pale-fac'd moon looks bloody on the earth,

  And lean-look'd prophets whisper fearful change;

  Rich men look sad, and ruffians dance and leap-

  The one in fear to lose what they enjoy,

  The other to enjoy by rage and war.

  These signs forerun the death or fall of kings.

  Farewell. Our countrymen are gone and fled,

  As well assur'd Richard their King is dead.

  It's thought the King is dead; we won't stay.

  The bay trees in our country are all shrivelled,

  and meteors terrify the fixed stars of heaven;

  the pale faced moon looks bloodily on the earth,

  and haggard looking prophets whisper of terrible changes;

  rich men look sad, and scoundrels dance and leap–

  one in fear of losing what they have,

  the other to have those things through riot and war.

  These signs are omens of the death of all of kings.

  Farewell. My countrymen have gone and fled,

  certain that Richard their king is dead.

  Exit

  SALISBURY.

  Ah, Richard, with the eyes of heavy mind,

  I see thy glory like a shooting star

  Fall to the base earth from the firmament!

  The sun sets weeping in the lowly west,

  Witnessing storms to come, woe, and unrest;

  Thy friends are fled, to wait upon thy foes;

  And crossly to thy good all fortune goes.

  Ah, Richard, with the eyes of sorrow,

  I can see your glory like a shooting star

  falling from the heavens onto the low earth!

  The sun is setting weeping in the West,

  showing the storms to come, sorrow and unrest;

  your friends have fled to serve your enemies;

  and everything is going against you.

  Exit

  BOLINGBROKE'S camp at Bristol

  Enter BOLINGBROKE, YORK, NORTHUMBERLAND, PERCY, ROSS, WILLOUGHBY,

  BUSHY and GREEN, prisoners

  BOLINGBROKE.

  Bring forth these men.

  Bushy and Green, I will not vex your souls-

  Since presently your souls must part your bodies-

  With too much urging your pernicious lives,

  For 'twere no charity; yet, to wash your blood

  From off my hands, here in the view of men

  I will unfold some causes of your deaths:

  You have misled a prince, a royal king,

  A happy gentleman in blood and lineaments,

  By you unhappied and disfigured clean;

  You have in manner with your sinful hours

  Made a divorce betwixt his queen and him;

  Broke the possession of a royal bed,

  And stain'd the beauty of a fair queen's cheeks

  With tears drawn from her eyes by your foul wrongs;

  Myself-a prince by fortune of my birth,

  Near to the King in blood, and near in love

  Till you did make him misinterpret me-

  Have stoop'd my neck under your injuries

  And sigh'd my English breath in foreign clouds,

  Eating the bitter bread of banishment,

  Whilst you have fed upon my signories,

  Dispark'd my parks and fell'd my forest woods,

  From my own windows torn my household coat,

  Raz'd out my imprese, leaving me no sign

  Save men's opinions and my living blood

  To show the world I am a gentleman.

  This and much more, much more than twice all this,

  Condemns you to the death. See them delivered over

  To execution and the hand of death.

  Bring out these men.

  Bushy and Greene, I will not torment your souls,

  since soon they will be leaving your bodies,

  by dwelling too much on your evil lives,

  that would be uncharitable; but, to wash your blood

  from my hands, I will reveal in public

  some of the reasons why you must die:

  you led a Prince, a Royal King, astray,

  the gentleman who was fortunate in his birth and body,

  you made him unhappy and soiled him;

  your sinful behaviour has created a sort

  of divorce between his queen and him,

  broken the covenant of the royal marriage,

  and stained the beauty of a fair queen's cheeks

  with tears, caused by your foul behaviour;

  I myself–a prince by birth,

  a close relation of the King, and loved by him,

  until you persuaded him to misunderstand me–

  have suffered from the wrongs you have done,

  and breathed my English breath in foreign climates,

  eating the bitter bread of exile,

  while you grew fat on my estates,

  vandalised my parks and cut down my forests,

  smashed my windows with my coat of arms on them,

  defaced my motto, leaving no sign,

  apart from men's opinions and my physical presence,

  to show the world that I am a gentleman.

  This and much more, much more than double this,

  condemns you to death. Take them away

  to be executed and given to death.

  BUSHY.

  More welcome is the stroke of death to me

  Than Bolingbroke to England. Lords, farewell.

  My execution is more welcome to me

  Than Bolingbroke is to England. Lords, farewell.

  GREEN.

  My comfort is that heaven will take our souls,

  And plague injustice with the pains of hell.

  I am comforted to think that heaven will take us in,

  and torment those who do this injustice with the pains of hell.

  BOLINGBROKE.

  My Lord Northumberland, see them dispatch'd.

  Exeunt NORTHUMBERLAND, and others, with the prisoners

  Uncle, you say the Queen is at your house;

  For God's sake, fairly let her be entreated.

  Tell her I send to her my kind commends;

  Take special care my greetings be delivered.

  My Lord Northumberland, see to their execution.

  Uncle, you say the Queen is at your house;

  for God's sake make sure she is fairly treated.

  Tell her I send her my kind greetings;

  ta
ke special care that this message is delivered.

  YORK.

  A gentleman of mine I have dispatch'd

  With letters of your love to her at large.

  I have sent a gentleman of mine

  with letters which fully explain your love for her.

  BOLINGBROKE.

  Thanks, gentle uncle. Come, lords, away,

  To fight with Glendower and his complices.

  Awhile to work, and after holiday.

  Thanks, kind uncle. Come, lords, let's go,

  to fight with Glendower and his accomplices.

  And we must work for a while, and then we shall rest.

  Exeunt

  The coast of Wales. A castle in view

  Drums. Flourish and colours. Enter the KING, the BISHOP OF

  CARLISLE,

  AUMERLE, and soldiers

  KING RICHARD.

  Barkloughly Castle call they this at hand?

  Do they call this place Barkloughly Castle?

  AUMERLE.

  Yea, my lord. How brooks your Grace the air

  After your late tossing on the breaking seas?

  Yes, my lord. How does your Grace like the air

  after your recent choppy journey on the sea?

  KING RICHARD.

  Needs must I like it well. I weep for joy

  To stand upon my kingdom once again.

  Dear earth, I do salute thee with my hand,

  Though rebels wound thee with their horses' hoofs.

  As a long-parted mother with her child

  Plays fondly with her tears and smiles in meeting,

  So weeping-smiling greet I thee, my earth,

  And do thee favours with my royal hands.

  Feed not thy sovereign's foe, my gentle earth,

  Nor with thy sweets comfort his ravenous sense;

  But let thy spiders, that suck up thy venom,

  And heavy-gaited toads, lie in their way,

  Doing annoyance to the treacherous feet

  Which with usurping steps do trample thee;

  Yield stinging nettles to mine enemies;

  And when they from thy bosom pluck a flower,