The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)
Page 158
and never seen you, never had a son with you,
now that you have shown yourself to be such an unnatural father!
Did he deserve to lose his inheritance like this?
If you loved him half as much as I do,
or suffered the way I did giving birth to him,
or fed him with your own blood as I did,
you would have given up your own life
rather than have made that savage Duke your heir
and disinherited your only son.
PRINCE.
Father, you cannot disinherit me.
If you be king, why should not I succeed?
Father, you cannot disinherit me.
If you are king, why shouldn't I inherit?
KING HENRY.
Pardon me, Margaret;--pardon me, sweet son;
The Earl of Warwick and the duke enforc'd me.
Forgive me, Margaret; forgive me, sweet son;
the Earl of Warwick and the Duke forced me.
QUEEN MARGARET.
Enforc'd thee! art thou king, and wilt be
forc'd?
I shame to hear thee speak. Ah, timorous wretch!
Thou hast undone thyself, thy son, and me,
And given unto the house of York such head
As thou shalt reign but by their sufferance.
To entail him and his 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 Falconbridge commands the narrow seas;
The duke is made protector of the realm;
And yet shalt thou be safe? such safety finds
The trembling lamb environed with wolves.
Had I been there, which am a silly woman,
The soldiers should have toss'd me on their pikes
Before I would have granted to that act.
But thou prefer'st thy life before thine honour;
And seeing thou dost, I here divorce myself,
Both from thy table, Henry, and thy bed,
Until that act of parliament be repeal'd
Whereby my son is disinherited.
The northern lords that have forsworn thy colours
Will follow mine if once they see them spread;
And spread they shall be to thy foul disgrace
And utter ruin of the house of York.
Thus do I leave thee.--Come, son, let's away:
Our army is ready; come, we'll after them.
Forced you! You are the king, and you can be forced?
It makes me ashamed to hear you speak. You cowardly wretch!
You have betrayed yourself, your son and me,
and given the house of York such an advantage
that you will only reign with their permission.
To give the crown to him and his heirs
is like digging your own grave
and creeping into it long before your natural time.
Warwick is Chancellor and the Lord of Calais;
Stern Falconbridge is commanding the Navy;
the Duke has been made protector of the realm;
and you think you will be safe? This is the safety that
the trembling lamb has when he surrounded by wolves.
If I'd been there, just a weak woman,
the soldiers would have had to spit me on their pikes
before I agreed to this business.
But you chose life before your honour;
and as you do, I hereby remove myself,
Henry, from your company and your bed,
until you repeal the act of Parliament
which has disinherited my son.
The northern lords who have abandoned your banners
will follow mine if they see me marching forward;
they shall be raised up and horribly disgrace you,
and bring utter ruin to the house of York.
So I'm leaving you. Come, son, let's go:
our army is ready; come, we'll follow them.
KING HENRY.
Stay, gentle Margaret, and hear me speak.
Wait, sweet Margaret, hear what I have to say.
QUEEN MARGARET.
Thou hast spoke too much already; get thee gone.
You've said enough already; get lost.
KING HENRY.
Gentle son Edward, thou wilt stay with me?
Sweet son Edward, will you stay with me?
QUEEN MARGARET.
Ay, to be murther'd by his enemies.
Yes, to be murdered by his enemies.
PRINCE.
When I return with victory from the field
I'll see your grace; till then I'll follow her.
I'll see your grace when I come back victorious
from the battlefield; until then I shall follow her.
QUEEN MARGARET.
Come, son, away! we may not linger thus.
Come, son, away! We mustn't waste time like this.
[Exeunt Queen Margaret and the Prince.]
KING HENRY.
Poor queen! how love to me and to her son
Hath made her break out into terms of rage!
Reveng'd may she be on that hateful duke
Whose haughty spirit, winged with desire,
Will cost my crown, and like an empty eagle
Tire on the flesh of me and of my son.
The loss of those three lords torments my heart;
I'll write unto them, and entreat them fair.--
Come, cousin, you shall be the messenger.
Poor queen! How her love for me and her son
has made her erupt with anger!
She may get revenge on that horrible Duke
whose arrogance, coupled to his greed,
will cost me my crown, and will tear at
the flesh of me and my son like a hungry eagle.
I am tortured by the loss of those three lords;
I shall write to them, and sweetly beg them.
Come, cousin, you shall be my messenger.
EXETER.
And I, I hope, shall reconcile them all.
And, I hope, I shall bring them all back to you.
[Exeunt.]
[Enter EDWARD, RICHARD, and MONTAGUE.]
RICHARD.
Brother, though I be youngest, give me leave.
Brother, although I'm youngest, let me do it.
EDWARD.
No; I can better play the orator.
No; I am a better speaker.
MONTAGUE.
But I have reasons strong and forcible.
But I have good strong reasons.
[Enter YORK.]
YORK.
Why, how now, sons and brother! at a strife?
What is your quarrel? how began it first?
What's this, sons and brother! An argument?
What are you quarrelling about? How did it begin?
EDWARD.
No quarrel, but a slight contention.
There is no quarrel, just a small disagreement.
YORK.
About what?
About what?
RICHARD.
About that which concerns your grace and us--
The crown of England, father, which is yours.
About the thing which concerns your grace and us–
the crown of England, father, which belongs to you.
YORK.
Mine, boy? not till King Henry be dead.
To me, boy? Not until King Henry is dead.
RICHARD.
Your right depends not on his life or death.
Your rights don't depend on whether he is living or dead.
EDWARD.
Now you are heir, therefore enjoy it now;
By giving the house of Lancaster leave to breathe,
It will outrun you, father, in the end.
You are heir now, and so enjoy it now;
if you gi
ve the house of Lancaster the opportunity to flourish,
they will beat you in the end, father.
YORK.
I took an oath that he should quietly reign.
I swore that he would reign in peace.
EDWARD.
But for a kingdom any oath may be broken;
I would break a thousand oaths to reign one year.
But any oath can be broken for the sake of the kingdom;
I would break a thousand oaths to rule for one year.
RICHARD.
No; God forbid your grace should be forsworn.
No; heaven forbid that your Grace should break an oath.
YORK.
I shall be, if I claim by open war.
I will have done so, if I claim the throne through warfare.
RICHARD.
I'll prove the contrary if you'll hear me speak.
I will prove differently to you, if you will listen.
YORK.
Thou canst not, son; it is impossible.
You can't, son; it's impossible.
RICHARD.
An oath is of no moment, being not took
Before a true and lawful magistrate
That hath authority over him that swears.
Henry had none, but did usurp the place;
Then, seeing 't was he that made you to depose,
Your oath, my lord, is vain and frivolous.
Therefore, to arms! And, father, do but think
How sweet a thing it is to wear a crown,
Within whose circuit is Elysium
And all that poets feign of bliss and joy.
Why do we linger thus? I cannot rest
Until the white rose that I wear be dyed
Even in the lukewarm blood of Henry's heart.
An oath has no standing, if it's not taken
in front of a proper and legal magistrate
who has authority over the person taking it.
Henry has no authority, as he stole the crown;
so, seeing as it was him who made you swear,
your oath, my lord, is empty and trivial.
So, to arms! And, father, just think
how sweet it will be to wear a crown,
which is like living in heaven, giving
everything the poets talk of about happiness.
Why are we wasting time? I can't rest
until the white rose that I wear is dyed
with the lukewarm blood of Henry's heart.
YORK.
Richard, enough; I will be king, or die.--
Brother, thou shalt to London presently,
And whet on Warwick to this enterprise.--
Thou, Richard, shalt to the Duke of Norfolk,
And tell him privily of our intent.--
You, Edward, shall unto my Lord Cobham,
With whom the Kentishmen will willingly rise.
In them I trust; for they are soldiers,
Witty, courteous, liberal, full of spirit.--
While you are thus employ'd, what resteth more
But that I seek occasion how to rise,
And yet the king not privy to my drift,
Nor any of the house of Lancaster?
[Enter a Messenger.]
But stay.--What news? Why com'st thou in such post?
Richard, that's enough; I will be king, or die–
Brother, you shall go to London at once,
and encourage Warwick in this business–
you, Richard, shall go to the Duke of Norfolk,
and secretly tell him what we mean to do–
you, Edward, shall go to Lord Cobham,
for whom the men of Kent will willingly rebel.
I trust them; they are good soldiers,
witty, polite, generous, high-spirited–
while you are all doing this, what should I do
but find a way that I can triumph,
without letting the King or any of the
house of Lancaster see what I'm planning?
But wait–what news have you? Why are you in such a hurry?
MESSENGER.
The queen, with all the northern earls and lords,
Intend here to besiege you in your castle.
She is hard by with twenty thousand men,
And therefore fortify your hold, my lord.
The Queen, with all the northern earls and lords,
is planning to lay siege to you here in your castle.
She is close by with twenty thousand men,
and so strengthen your defences, my lord.
YORK.
Ay, with my sword. What! think'st thou that we fear
them?--
Edward and Richard, you shall stay with me;
My brother Montague shall post to London.
Let noble Warwick, Cobham, and the rest,
Whom we have left protectors of the king,
With powerful policy strengthen themselves,
And trust not simple Henry nor his oaths.
I shall, with my sword. What! Do you think that we're afraid of them?
Edward and Richard, you shall stay with me;
my brother Montague shall hurry to London.
Let noble Warwick, Cobham and the rest,
whom we have left to protect the King,
adjust their plans to defend themselves,
and to not trust simple Henry or his promises.
MONTAGUE.
Brother, I go; I'll win them, fear it not:
And thus most humbly I do take my leave.
Brother, I'm going now; I shall win them over, never fear:
and so most humbly I take leave of you.
[Exit.]
[Enter SIR JOHN and SIR HUGH MORTIMER.]
YORK.
Sir John and Sir Hugh Mortimer, mine uncles,
You are come to Sandal in a happy hour;
The army of the queen mean to besiege us.
Sir John and Sir Hugh Mortimer, my uncles,
you have come to Sandal at a good time;
the army of the Queen intends to put us under siege.
SIR JOHN.
She shall not need; we'll meet her in the field.
She won't need to; we'll meet her on the battlefield.
YORK.
What, with five thousand men?
What, with five thousand men?
RICHARD.
Ay, with five hundred, father, for a need.
A woman-general! what should we fear?
Yes, with five hundred, father, if necessary.
A woman as general! What do we have to fear?
[A march afar off.]
EDWARD.
I hear their drums; let's set our men in order,
And issue forth and bid them battle straight.
I can hear their drums; let's organise our men,
and go straight out and challenge them to battle.
YORK.
Five men to twenty!--though the odds be great,
I doubt not, uncle, of our victory.
Many a battle have I won in France
Whenas the enemy hath been ten to one;
Why should I not now have the like success?
Five men against twenty! Although the odds are great,
I have no doubt, uncle, that we shall win.
I have won many battles in France
when we have been outnumbered ten to one;
why shouldn't I be just as successful now?
[Alarum. Exeunt.]
[Alarums. Enter RUTLAND and his TUTOR]
RUTLAND.
Ah! whither shall I fly to scape their hands?
Ah, tutor! look where bloody Clifford comes.
Ah! Where shall I run to escape them?
Ah, tutor! Look, bloodthirsty Clifford is coming.
[Enter CLIFFORD and Soldiers.]
CLIFFORD.
Chaplain, away! thy priesthood saves thy life.
As for the brat of this accursed duke
Whose father slew my father, he shall die.
Chaplain, go away! Your priesthood protects you.
As for the brat of this damned duke,
whose father killed my father, he shall die.
TUTOR.
And I, my lord, will bear him company.
Then I, my lord, will die with him.
CLIFFORD.
Soldiers, away with him!
Soldiers, take him away!
TUTOR.
Ah, Clifford, murder not this innocent child,
Lest thou be hated both of God and man.
Ah, Clifford, do not murder this innocent child,
unless you want to be hated by both God and man.
[Exit, forced off by Soldiers.]
CLIFFORD.
How now! is he dead already? Or is it fear
That makes him close his eyes?--I'll open them.
What's this! Is he already dead? Or is it fear
that makes him close his eyes? I shall open them.
RUTLAND.
So looks the pent-up lion o'er the wretch
That trembles under his devouring paws;
And so he walks, insulting o'er his prey,
And so he comes to rend his limbs asunder.--
Ah, gentle Clifford, kill me with thy sword,
And not with such a cruel threat'ning look.
Sweet Clifford, hear me speak before I die:
I am too mean a subject for thy wrath;
Be thou reveng'd on men, and let me live.