The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, William Shakespeare [book recommendations based on other books txt] 📗

is now dead midnight.

Cold fearful drops stand on my trembling flesh.

What do I fear? Myself? There’s none else by.

Richard loves Richard; that is, I am I.

Is there a murderer here? No-yes, I am.

Then fly. What, from myself? Great reason why-Lest I revenge. What, myself upon myself!

Alack, I love myself. Wherefore? For any good That I myself have done unto myself?

O, no! Alas, I rather hate myself

For hateful deeds committed by myself!

I am a villain; yet I lie, I am not.

Fool, of thyself speak well. Fool, do not flatter.

My conscience hath a thousand several tongues, And every tongue brings in a several tale, And every tale condemns me for a villain.

Perjury, perjury, in the high’st degree; Murder, stern murder, in the dir’st degree; All several sins, all us’d in each degree, Throng to the bar, crying all ‘Guilty! guilty!’

I shall despair. There is no creature loves me; And if I die no soul will pity me:

And wherefore should they, since that I myself Find in myself no pity to myself?

Methought the souls of all that I had murder’d Came to my tent, and every one did threat Tomorrow’s vengeance on the head of Richard.

 

Enter RATCLIFF

 

RATCLIFF. My lord!

KING RICHARD. Zounds, who is there?

RATCLIFF. Ratcliff, my lord; ‘tis I. The early village-cock Hath twice done salutation to the morn; Your friends are up and buckle on their armour.

KING RICHARD. O Ratcliff, I have dream’d a fearful dream!

What think’st thou-will our friends prove all true?

RATCLIFF. No doubt, my lord.

KING RICHARD. O Ratcliff, I fear, I fear.

RATCLIFF. Nay, good my lord, be not afraid of shadows.

KING RICHARD By the apostle Paul, shadows tonight Have stuck more terror to the soul of Richard Than can the substance of ten thousand soldiers Armed in proof and led by shallow Richmond.

‘Tis not yet near day. Come, go with me; Under our tents I’ll play the eaves-dropper, To see if any mean to shrink from me. Exeunt Enter the LORDS to RICHMOND sitting in his tent LORDS. Good morrow, Richmond!

RICHMOND. Cry mercy, lords and watchful gentlemen, That you have ta’en a tardy sluggard here.

LORDS. How have you slept, my lord?

RICHMOND. The sweetest sleep and fairest-boding dreams That ever ent’red in a drowsy head

Have I since your departure had, my lords.

Methought their souls whose bodies Richard murder’d Came to my tent and cried on victory.

I promise you my soul is very jocund

In the remembrance of so fair a dream.

How far into the morning is it, lords?

LORDS. Upon the stroke of four.

RICHMOND. Why, then ‘tis time to arm and give direction.

 

His ORATION to his SOLDIERS

 

More than I have said, loving countrymen, The leisure and enforcement of the time Forbids to dwell upon; yet remember this: God and our good cause fight upon our side; The prayers of holy saints and wronged souls, Like high-rear’d bulwarks, stand before our faces; Richard except, those whom we fight against Had rather have us win than him they follow.

For what is he they follow? Truly, gentlemen, A bloody tyrant and a homicide;

One rais’d in blood, and one in blood establish’d; One that made means to come by what he hath, And slaughtered those that were the means to help him; A base foul stone, made precious by the foil Of England’s chair, where he is falsely set; One that hath ever been God’s enemy.

Then if you fight against God’s enemy, God will in justice ward you as his soldiers; If you do sweat to put a tyrant down, You sleep in peace, the tyrant being slain; If you do fight against your country’s foes, Your country’s foes shall pay your pains the hire; If you do fight in safeguard of your wives, Your wives shall welcome home the conquerors; If you do free your children from the sword, Your children’s children quits it in your age.

Then, in the name of God and all these rights, Advance your standards, draw your willing swords.

For me, the ransom of my bold attempt Shall be this cold corpse on the earth’s cold face; But if I thrive, the gain of my attempt The least of you shall share his part thereof.

Sound drums and trumpets boldly and cheerfully; God and Saint George! Richmond and victory! Exeunt Re-enter KING RICHARD, RATCLIFF, attendants, and forces

 

KING RICHARD. What said Northumberland as touching Richmond?

RATCLIFF. That he was never trained up in arms.

KING RICHARD. He said the truth; and what said Surrey then?

RATCLIFF. He smil’d, and said ‘The better for our purpose.’

KING He was in the right; and so indeed it is.

[Clock strikes]

Tell the clock there. Give me a calendar.

Who saw the sun to-day?

RATCLIFF. Not I, my lord.

KING RICHARD. Then he disdains to shine; for by the book He should have brav’d the east an hour ago.

A black day will it be to somebody.

Ratcliff!

RATCLIFF. My lord?

KING RICHARD. The sun will not be seen to-day; The sky doth frown and lour upon our army.

I would these dewy tears were from the ground.

Not shine to-day! Why, what is that to me More than to Richmond? For the selfsame heaven That frowns on me looks sadly upon him.

 

Enter NORFOLK

 

NORFOLK. Arm, arm, my lord; the foe vaunts in the field.

KING RICHARD. Come, bustle, bustle; caparison my horse; Call up Lord Stanley, bid him bring his power.

I will lead forth my soldiers to the plain, And thus my battle shall be ordered:

My foreward shall be drawn out all in length, Consisting equally of horse and foot; Our archers shall be placed in the midst.

John Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Earl of Surrey, Shall have the leading of this foot and horse.

They thus directed, we will follow

In the main battle, whose puissance on either side Shall be well winged with our chiefest horse.

This, and Saint George to boot! What think’st thou, Norfolk?

NORFOLK. A good direction, warlike sovereign.

This found I on my tent this morning.

[He sheweth him a paper]

KING RICHARD. [Reads]

‘Jockey of Norfolk, be not so bold,

For Dickon thy master is bought and sold.’

A thing devised by the enemy.

Go, gentlemen, every man unto his charge.

Let not our babbling dreams affright our souls; Conscience is but a word that cowards use, Devis’d at first to keep the strong in awe.

Our strong arms be our conscience, swords our law.

March on, join bravely, let us to it pell-mell; If not to heaven, then hand in hand to hell.

 

His ORATION to his ARMY

 

What shall I say more than I have inferr’d?

Remember whom you are to cope withal—

A sort of vagabonds, rascals, and runaways, A scum of Britaines, and base lackey peasants, Whom their o’er-cloyed country vomits forth To desperate adventures and assur’d destruction.

You sleeping safe, they bring to you unrest; You having lands, and bless’d with beauteous wives, They would restrain the one, distain the other.

And who doth lead them but a paltry fellow, Long kept in Britaine at our mother’s cost?

A milksop, one that never in his life Felt so much cold as over shoes in snow?

Let’s whip these stragglers o’er the seas again; Lash hence these overweening rags of France, These famish’d beggars, weary of their lives; Who, but for dreaming on this fond exploit, For want of means, poor rats, had hang’d themselves.

If we be conquered, let men conquer us, And not these bastard Britaines, whom our fathers Have in their own land beaten, bobb’d, and thump’d, And, in record, left them the heirs of shame.

Shall these enjoy our lands? lie with our wives, Ravish our daughters? [Drum afar off] Hark! I hear their drum.

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 staves!

 

Enter a MESSENGER

 

What says Lord Stanley? Will he bring his power?

MESSENGER. My lord, he doth deny to come.

KING RICHARD. Off with his son George’s head!

NORFOLK. My lord, the enemy is pass’d the marsh.

After the battle let George Stanley die.

KING RICHARD. A thousand hearts are great within my bosom.

Advance our standards, set upon our foes; Our ancient word of courage, fair Saint George, Inspire us with the spleen of fiery dragons!

Upon them! Victory sits on our helms. Exeunt

SCENE 4.

 

Another part of the field

 

Alarum; excursions. Enter NORFOLK and forces; to him CATESBY

 

CATESBY. Rescue, my Lord of Norfolk, rescue, rescue!

The King enacts more wonders than a man, Daring an opposite to every danger.

His horse is slain, and all on foot he fights, Seeking for Richmond in the throat of death.

Rescue, fair lord, or else the day is lost.

 

Alarums. Enter KING RICHARD

 

KING RICHARD. A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!

CATESBY. Withdraw, my lord! I’ll help you to a horse.

KING RICHARD. Slave, I have set my life upon a cast And I Will stand the hazard of the die.

I think there be six Richmonds in the field; Five have I slain to-day instead of him.

A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse! Exeunt

SCENE 5.

 

Another part of the field

 

Alarum. Enter RICHARD and RICHMOND; they fight; RICHARD is slain.

Retreat and flourish. Enter RICHMOND, DERBY bearing the crown, with other LORDS

 

RICHMOND. God and your arms be prais’d, victorious friends; The day is ours, the bloody dog is dead.

DERBY. Courageous Richmond, well hast thou acquit thee!

Lo, here, this long-usurped royalty

From the dead temples of this bloody wretch Have I pluck’d off, to grace thy brows withal.

Wear it, enjoy it, and make much of it.

RICHMOND. Great God of heaven, say Amen to all!

But, teLL me is young George Stanley living.

DERBY. He is, my lord, and safe in Leicester town, Whither, if it please you, we may now withdraw us.

RICHMOND. What men of name are slain on either side?

DERBY. John Duke of Norfolk, Walter Lord Ferrers, Sir Robert Brakenbury, and Sir William Brandon.

RICHMOND. Inter their bodies as becomes their births.

Proclaim a pardon to the soldiers fled That in submission will return to us.

And then, as we have ta’en the sacrament, We will unite the white rose and the red.

Smile heaven upon this fair conjunction, That long have frown’d upon their emnity!

What traitor hears me, and says not Amen?

England hath long been mad, and scarr’d herself; The brother blindly shed the brother’s blood, The father rashly slaughter’d his own son, The son, compell’d, been butcher to the sire; All this divided York and Lancaster,

Divided in their dire division,

O, now let Richmond and Elizabeth,

The true succeeders of each royal house, By God’s fair ordinance conjoin together!

And let their heirs, God, if thy will be so, Enrich the time to come with smooth-fac’d peace, With smiling plenty, and fair prosperous days!

Abate the edge of traitors, gracious Lord, That would reduce these bloody days again And make poor England weep in streams of blood!

Let them not live to taste this land’s increase That would with treason wound this fair land’s peace!

Now civil wounds are stopp’d, peace lives again-That she may long live here, God say Amen! Exeunt THE END

 

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