THE tragic story of the murder of Richard's nephews thus presented itself to Shakspere :

"And forasmuch as his mind gave him that, his nephews living, men would not reckon that he could have right to the realm, he thought therefore without delay to rid them, as though the killing of his kinsmen might end his cause and make him kindly king. Whereupon he sent John Green, whom he specially trusted, unto Sir Robert Brakenbury, constable of the Tower, with a letter and credence also,

that the same Sir Robert in any wise should put the two children to death. This John Green did his errand to Brakenbury, kneeling before Our Lady in the Tower; who plainly answered that he would never put them to death to die therefore. With the which answer Green returned, recounting the same to King Richard at Warwick, yet on his journey; wherewith he took such displeasure and thought, that the same night he said to a secret page of his, Ah, whom shall a man trust? they that I have

brought up myself, they that I weened would have most surely served me, even those fail me, and at my commandment will do nothing for me. Sir, quoth the page, there lieth one in the pallet chamber without, that I dare well say, to do your grace pleasure, the thing were right hard that he would refuse: meaning by this James Tyrrel."

"James Tyrrel devised that they should be murthered in their beds, and no blood shed; to the execution whereof he appointed Miles Forest, one of the four that before kept them, a fellow flesh bred in murther beforetime; and to him he joined one John Dighton, his own horsekeeper, a big, broad, square, and strong knave. Then, all the other being removed from them, this Miles Forest and John Dighton about midnight, the sely children lying in their beds, came into the chamber, and suddenly lapped them up amongst the clothes, and so bewrapped them and entangled them, keeping down by force the feather-bed and pillows hard unto their mouths, that within awhile they smothered and stifled them; and their breaths failing, they gave up to God their innocent souls into the joys of heaven, leaving to the tormentors their bodies dead in the bed; which after the wretches perceived, first by the struggling with the pangs of death, and after long lying still, to be thoroughly dead, they laid the bodies out upon the bed, and fetched James Tyrrel to see them; which when he saw them perfectly dead, he caused the murtherers to bury them at the stair foot, meetly deep in the ground, under a great heap of stones.

"Then rode James Tyrrel in great haste to King Richard, and showed him all the manner of the murther; who gave him great thanks, and, as men say, there made him knight."

It forms no part of our duty to enter into the inquiry whether the narrative of More is supported by other authorities; nor, further, whether the bones which were found in the reign of Charles II. were those of the unfortunate princes. Tradition represents the event to have taken place in what is still called "The Bloody Tower." Upon these old legends little historical reliance can be placed; but they still belong to the province of poetry.

The remarkable scene (Scene Iv.) between Richard and the widow of Edward IV. has its foundation in the following narrative of Hall:

"There came into his ungracious mind a thing not only detestable to be spoken of in the remembrance of man, but much more cruel and abominable to be put in execution: for when he resolved in his wavering mind how great a fountain of mischief toward him should spring if the Earl of Richmond should be advanced to the marriage of his niece, (which thing he heard say by the rumour of the people that no small number of wise and witty personages enterprised to compass and bring to conclusion,) he clearly determined to reconcile to his favour his brother's wife, Queen Elizabeth, either by fair words or liberal promises, firmly believing, her favour once obtained, that she would not stick to commit and lovingly credit to him the rule and governance both of her and her daughters; and so by that means the Earl of Richmond of the affinity of his niece should be utterly defrauded and beguiled. And if no ingenious remedy could be otherwise invented to save the innumerable mischiefs which were even at hand and like to fall, if it should happen Queen Anne his wife to depart out of this present world, then he himself would rather take to wife his cousin and niece the Lady Elizabeth, than

for lack of that affinity the whole realm should run to ruin, as who said, that if he once fell from his estate and dignity the ruin of the realm must needs shortly ensue and follow. Wherefore he sent to the queen, being in sanctuary, divers and often messages, which first should excuse and purge him of all things before against her attempted or procured, and after should so largely promise promotions innumerable and benefits, not only to her, but also to her son Lord Thomas Marquis Dorset, that they should bring her, if it were possible, into some wanhope, or, as some men say, into a fool's paradise. The messengers, being men both of wit and gravity, so persuaded the queen with great and pregnant reasons, then with fair and large promises, that she began somewhat to relent and to give to them no deaf ear, insomuch that she faithfully promised to submit and yield herself fully and frankly to the king's will and pleasure."

The suspicions of Richard increased as his dangers thickened around him. Hall says:

"Amongst the noblemen whom he most mistrusted, these were the principal:-Thomas Lord Stanley, Sir William Stanley his brother, Gilbert Talbot, and vi hundred other, of whose purposes although King Richard were ignorant, yet he gave neither confidence nor credence to any one of them, and least of all to the Lord Stanley, because he was joined in matrimonywiththe Lady Margaret,mother to the Earl of Richmond, as afterward apparently ye may perceive. For when the said Lord Stanley would have departed into his country to visit his family, and to recreate and refresh his spirits (as he openly said), but the truth was to the intent to be in a perfect readiness to receive the Earl of Richmond at his first arrival in England, the king in no wise would suffer him to depart before that he had left as an hostage in the court George Stanley, Lord Strange, his firstbegotten son and heir."

This appears the foundation of the spirited scene between Stanley and Richard.

SCENE I-Salisbury. An open Place.

Buck. Why, then All-Souls' day is my body's doomsday.

This is the day which, in king Edward's time,
I wish'd might fall on me, when I was found
False to his children, and his wife's allies:
This is the day wherein I wish'd to fall
By the false faith of him whom most I trusted :
This, this All-Souls' day to my fearful soul.
Is the determin'd respite of my wrongs.
That high All-seer which I dallied with,
Hath turn'd my feigned prayer on my head,
And given in earnest what I begg'd in jest.
Thus doth he force the swords of wicked men
To turn their own points on their masters'
bosoms:

Thus Margaret's curse falls heavy on my

neck,

305

SCENE IL-Plain near Tamworth.

Enter, with drum and colours, RICHMOND, OX-
FORD, Sir JAMES BLUNT, Sir WALTER HER-
BERT, and others, with Forces, marching.
Richm. Fellows in arms, and my most loving
friends,

Bruis'd underneath the yoke of tyranny,
Thus far into the bowels of the land

Have we march'd on without impediment ;
And here receive we from our father Stanley
Lines of fair comfort and encouragement.
The wretched, bloody, and usurping boar,
That spoil'd your summer fields and fruitful
vines,

Swills your warm blood like wash, and makes his trough

In your
embowell'd bosoms, this foul swine
Lies now even in the centre of this isle,
Near to the town of Leicester, as we learn:
From Tamworth thither is but one day's march.
In God's name, cheerly on, courageous friends,
To the harvest of perpetual peace

reap

By this one bloody trial of sharp war.

Oxf. Every man's conscience is a thousand men,b

To fight against this bloody homicide.

Herb. 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.

Richm. 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, EARL OF SURREY, and others.

K. Rich. Here pitch our tent, even here in Bosworth field.

My lord of Surrey, why look you so sad?

Lead me, officers, in the folio; the quartos, sirs, convey me. b Men, in the folio; the quartos, swords.

Sur. My heart is ten times lighter than my looks.

K. Rich. My lord of Norfolk!
Nor.

Here, most gracious liege. K. Rich. Norfolk, we must have knocks: Ha! must we not ?

Nor. We must both give and take, my loving

lord.

standard

And, by the bright track of his fiery car,
Gives token of a goodly day to-morrow.
Sir William Brandon, you shall bear my
Give me some ink and paper in my tent;-
I'll draw the form and model of our battle,
Limit each leader to his several charge,
And part in just proportion our small power.
My lord of Oxford, you, sir William Brandon,
And you, sir Walter Herbert, stay with me:
The earl of Pembroke keeps his regiment;
Good captain Blunt, bear my good night to him,
And by the second hour in the morning
Desire the earl to see me in my tent:
Yet one thing more, good captain, do for me;
Where is lord Stanley quarter'd, do you know?

Lack, in the folio; the quartos, want.

b Keeps his regiment. The word regiment is several times used in this scene, in the sense of a body of men, under the command (regiment) of a particular captain. For example, "His regiment lies half a mile at least South from the mighty power of the king."

And,

"Good lords, conduct him to his regiment." Regiment is here used in the secondary meaning of the word We have the primary meaning in Antony and Cleopatra:"And gives his potent regiment to a trull."