Ravish our daughters? — hark, I hear their drum.

[Drum afar off
Fight, gentlemen of England; fight, bold yeomen!
Draw, archers, draw your arrows to the head :
Spur your proud horses hard, and ride in blood:
Amaze the welkin with your broken ftaves!
Enter a Meffenger.

What fays Lord Stanley, will he bring his power?
Mef. My Lord, he doth deny to come.

K. Rich. Off inftantly with his fon George's head.
Nor. My Lord, the enemy is paft the marsh;
After the battel let George Stanley die.

K. Rich.

thoufand hearts are great within

Our ancient word of courage, fair Saint George,

Advance our standards, fet upon our foes;

Infpire us with the spleen of fiery dragons !

Upon them! Victory fits on our helms.

my

bofor.

[Exeunt

SCENE VII. Alarum. Excurfions. Enter Catesby.

Catef. Refcue, my Lord of Norfolk, rescue, rescue

The King enacts more wonders than a man,

Daring, an oppofite to every danger :
His horfe is flain, and all on foot he fights,
Seeking for Richmond in the throat of death.
Refcue, fair Lord, or else the day is loft.

Alarum. Enter King Richard.

K. Rich. A horfe! a horfe! my kingdom for a horse! Catef. Withdraw, my Lord, I'll help you to a horse. K. Rich. Slave, I have fet my life upon a caft, And I will ftand the hazard of the die :" I think there be fix Richmonds in the field, Five have I flain to-day instead of him.

A horfe! a horfe! my kingdom for a horse!

[Exeunt.

Alarums. Enter King Richard and Richmond; they fight, Richard is flain,

Retreat, and Flourish. Enter Richmond, Stanley bearing the Crown, with divers other Lords.

Richm, God and your arms be prais'd, victorious friends!

The day is ours, the bloody dog is dead.

Stan. Couragious Richmond, well haft thou acquit thee Lo, here thefe long ufurped royalties,

Z 3

From

From the dead temples of this bloody wretch
Have I pluckt off, to grace thy brows withal.
Wear it, enjoy it, and make use of it.

Richm. Great God of heaven, fay Amen to all!
But tell me firft, is young George Stanley living?
Stan. He is, my Lord, and fafe in Leicester town;
Whither, if you fo please, we may withdraw us.

Richm. What men of note are flain on either fide ?
Stan. John Duke of Norfolk, Walter the Lord Ferris,
Sir Robert Brakerbury, Sir William Brandon.

Richm. Interr their bodies as becomes their births. Proclaim a pardon to the foldiers fled,

That in fubmiffion will return to us.

And then, as we have ta'en the facrament,
We will unite the White Rofe and the Red.
Smile heav'n upon this fair conjunction,
That long hath frown'd upon their enmity!
What traitor hears me, and fays not Amen?
England hath long been mad, and fcarr'd her felf;
The brother blindly fhed the brother's blood,
The father rafhly flaughter'd his own fon,
The fons, compell'd, been butchers to the fire:
O now let Richmond and Elizabeth,
The true fucceeders of each royal house,
By God's fair ordinance conjoin together!
And let their heirs (God, if thy will be fo)
Enrich the time to come with fmooth-fac'd peace,
With fmiling plenty, and fair profp'rous days!
Abate the edge of traitors, gracious Lord,
That would reduce thefe bloody days again,
And make poor England weep in ftreams of blood!
Let them not live to tafte this land's encrease,

That would with treafon wound this fair land's peace!

Now civil wounds are stopp'd, peace lives agen:

That the may long live here, God fay, Amen! [Exeunt.

THE

LIFE

O F

HENRY VIII.

I

PROLOGU E.

Come no more to make you laugh; things now
That bear a weighty and a ferious brow,
Sad, bigb, and working, full of ftate and woe,
Such noble fcenes, as draw the eye to flow,
We fball prefent. Thofe that can pity, bere
May, if they think it well, let fall a tear;
The fubject will deferve it. Such as give
Their money out of hope they may believe,
May bere find truth too. Thofe that come to fee
Only a fhow or two, (and fo agree,

The play may pafs) if they be fill and willing,
I'll undertake may fee away their filling
Richly in two fhort bours. Only they
That come to bear a merry, bawdy play;
A noife of targets; or to fee a fellow
In a long motley coat, guarded with yellow;
Will be deceiv'd: for, gentle bearers, know
To rank our chofen truth with fuch a show
As fool and fight is, (befide forfeiting
Our own brains, and th' opinion that we bring
To make that only true we now intend)
Will leave us ne'er an understanding friend.
Therefore, for goodness' fake, as you are known
The first and bappiest bearers of the town,
Be fad, as we would make ye. Think before ye
very perfons of our noble ftory,

The

As they were living: think you fee them great,
And follow'd with the gen'ral throng, and fweat
Of thousand friends; Then, in a moment, fee
How foon this mightiness meets mifery!
And if you can be merry then, I'll fay
A man may weep upon his wedding day.

DRAMATIS