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REV. SAMUEL AYSCOUGH,

AND ASSISTANT LIBRARIAN OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM,

F. S. A.

EMBELLISHED WITH

A STRIKING LIKENESS OF SHAKSPEARE,
FROM THE ORIGINAL FOLIO EDITION.

VOL. II.

IMMORTAL SHAKSPEARE ROSE;

" EACH CHANGE OF MANY-COLOURED LIFE HE DREW,
" EXHAUSTED WORLDS, AND THEN, IMAGIN'D NEW."

LONDON

PRINTED FOR JOHN STOCKDALE, PICCADILLY.

M. DCC.xc.

!

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NEW YORK

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Lords, Captains, Soldiers, Messengers, and feveral Attendants both on the English and French.
The SCENE is partly in England, and partly in France.

SCENE

Westminster-Abbey.

ACT

I.

Dead March. Enter the Funeral of King Henry the Fifth, attended on by the Duke of Bedford, Regent of France; the Duke of Glofter, Protector; the Duke of Exeter, and the Earl of Warwick; the Bishop of Winchester, and the Duke of Somerfet, &cc.

Bed.

I.

Brandish your crystal tresses in the sky;
And with them scourge the bad revolting stars,
That have confented unto Henry's death!.
Henry the fifth, too famous to live long!
5 England ne'er loft a king of fo much worth.

Glo. England ne'er had a king, until his time.
Virtue he had, deferving to command:
His brandish'd sword did blind men with his beams;
His arms spread wider than a dragon's wings;

H
UNG be the heavens with black, 10 His sparkling eyes, replete with wrathful fire,
yield day to night!
Comets, importing change of times and states,

More dazzled and drove back his enemies,
Than mid-day fun, fierce bent against their faces.

Mr. Theobald observes, that " the historical transactions contained in this play, take in the compass of above thirty years. I must observe, however, that our author, in the three parts of Henry VI. has not been very precife to the date and disposition of his facts; but shuffled them, backwards and forwards, out of time. For instance; the lord Talbot is kill'd at the end of the fourth act of this play, who in reality did not fall till the 13th of July 1453; and The Second Part of Henry VI. opens with the marriage of the king, which was folemniz'd eight years before Talbot's death, in the year 1445. Again, in the fecond part, dame Eleanor Cobham is introduced to insult queen Margaret; though her penance and banishment for forcery happened three years before that princess came over to England. I could point out many other tranfgreffions against history, as far as the order of time is concerned. Indeed, though there are several mafter-ftrokes in these three plays, which incontestably betray the workmanship of Shakspeare; yet I am almost doubtful, whether they were entirely of his writing. And unless they were wrote by him very early, I should rather imagine them to have been brought to him as a director of the stage; and fo have received some finishing beauties at his hand. An accurate observer will easily fee, the diction of them is more obfolete, and the numbers more mean and profaical, than in the generality of his genuine compositions."

What

What should I say? his deeds exceed all speech: He ne'er lift up his hand, but conquered.

Exe. We mourn in black; Why mourn we not
in blood?

Henry is dead, and never shall revive:
Upon a wooden coffin we attend;
And death's dishonourable victory
We with our ftately prefence glorify,
Like captives bound to a triumphant car.
What? shall we curse the planets of mishap,
That plotted thus our glory's overthrow ?
Or shall we think the fubtle-witted French
Conjurers and forcerers, that, afraid of him,
By magic verses have contriv'd his end?

Among the foldiers this is muttered,-
That here you maintain several factions;
And, whilst a field should be dispatch'd and fought,
You are difputing of your generals.

5 One would have ling'ring wars, with little cost:
Another would fly swift, but wanteth wings;
A third man thinks, without expence at all,
By guileful fair words peace may be obtain'd.
Awake, awake, English nobility;

10 Let not floth dim your honours, new-begot:
Cropp'd are the flower-de-luces in your arms;
Of England's coat one half is cut away.

Win. He was a king bleft of the King of Kings. 15 Unto the French the dreadful judgment-day So dreadful will not be, as was his fight. The battles of the Lord of Hosts he fought: The church's prayers made him so profperous.

Glo. The church! where is it? Had not church-20

men pray'd,

His thread of life had not fo foon decay'd:
None do you like but an effeminate prince,
Whom, like a school-boy, you may over-awe.

Win. Glofter, whate'er we like, thou art pro-25 tector;

And lookest to command the prince, and realm.
Thy wife is proud; she holdeth thee in awe,
More than God, or religious church-men, may.

Glo. Name not religion, for thou lov'ft the flesh;
And ne'er throughout the year to church thou go'st,
Except it be to pray against thy foes.

Bed. Ceafe, cease these jars, and rest your minds
in peace!

Let's to the altar:-Heralds, wait on us:-
Instead of gold, we'll offer up our arms;
Since arms avail not, now that Henry's dead.-
Posterity, await for wretched years,
When at their mothers' moist eyes babes shall fuck;
Our ifle be made a nourish of falt tears,
And none but women left to wail the dead.-
Henry the fifth! thy ghost I invocate;
Profper this realm, keep it from civil broils!
Combat with adverse planets in the heavens !
A far more glorious star thy foul will make,
Than Julius Cæfar, or bright

Enter a Meffenger.

Meff. My honourable lords, health to you all! Sad tidings bring I to you out of France, Of lofs, of flaughter, and discomfiture: Guienne, Champaigne, Rheims, Orleans, Paris, Guifors, Poictiers, are all quite loft.

Bed. What say'st thou, man, before dead Henry's corse;

Exe. Were our tears wanting to this funeral, These tidings would call forth their flowing tides. Bed. Me they concern; regent I am of France :Give me my steeled coat, I'll fight for France.Away with these disgraceful wailing robes! Wounds I will lend the French, instead of eyes, To weep their intermiffive miseries.

Enter to them another Messenger.

2 Meff. Lords, view these letters, full of bad mischance,

France is revolted from the English quite;
Except fome petty towns of no import:
The Dauphin Charles is crowned king in Rheims;
The bastard of Orleans with him is join'd;
Reignier, duke of Anjou, doth take his part;
The duke of Alençon flieth to his fide.

[Exit.

Exe. The Dauphin crowned king! all fly to 300, whither shall we fly from this reproach? [him! Glo. We will not fly, but to our enemies' throats :Bedford, if thou be slack, I'll fight it out.

Bed. Glofter, why doubt'st thou of my for

wardness?

35 An army have I muster'd in my thoughts,
Wherewith already France is over-run.
Enter a third Messenger.

3 Mes: My gracious lords, to add to your la

ments,

40 Wherewith you now bedew king Henry's hearse,
I must inform you of a dismal fight,
Betwixt the stout lord Talbot and the French..
Win. What! wherein Talbot overcame? is't fo?
3 Mej. O, no; wherein lord Talbot was o'er-
thrown:

45

The circumstance I'll tell you more at large.
The tenth of August last, this dreadful lord,
Retiring from the siege of Orleans,
Having full scarce 3 fix thousand in his troop,
50 By three and twenty thousand of the French
Was round encompaffed and fet upon :
No leifure had he to enrank his men;
He wanted pikes to fet befere his archers;
Instead whereof, sharp stakes, pluck'd out of hedges,

55 They pitched in the ground confusedly,
To keep the horsemen off from breaking in.
More than three hours the fight continued;
Where valiant Talbot, above human thought,
Enacted wonders with his sword and lance.

Speak softly; or the loss of those great towns
Will make him burst his lead, and rise from death.
Glo. Is Paris loft? is Roan yielded up?
If Henry were recall'd to life again, [ghoft.
These news would cause him once more yield the
Exe. How were they loft? what treachery was 60 Hundreds he fent to hell, and none durst stand him;

us'd?

[money. Mef. No treachery; but want of men and

Here, there, and every where, enrag'd he flew :
The French exclaim'd, The devil was in arms;

1 Nourish here fignifies a murfe. 2 i. e. their miseries

which have had only a short intermiffion from

Henry the Fifth's death to my coming amongst them. 3 i. e. scarcely.

All

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