K. John. THUS

HUS have I yielded up into your
hand

The circle of my glory.

Pand. Take again

[Giving up the crown.

From this my hand, as holding of the Pope,
Your fovereign greatness and authority.[the French;
K. John. Now keep your holy word: go meet
And from his holinefs ufe all your power
To stop their marches, 'fore we are inflam'd.
Our difcentented counties do revolt;
Our people quarrel with obedience;
Swearing allegiance, and the love of foul,
To stranger blood, to foreign royalty.
This inundation of miftemper'd humour
Refts by you only to be qualify'd.

Then pause not; for the prefent time's fo fick,
That prefent medicine must be ministred,
Or overthrow incurable enfues.

[up

V.

Faulc. So, on my foul, he did, for aught he knew.
But wherefore do you droop? why look you fad?
15 Be great in act, as you have been in thought;
Let not the world fee fear, and fad distrust,
Govern the motion of a kingly eye:

20

25

Be ftirring as the time; be fire with fire;
Threaten the threatner, and out-face the brow
Of bragging horror: fo fhall inferior eyes,
That borrow their behaviours from the great,
Grow great by your example, and put on

The dauntlefs fpirit of refolution.
Away; and glifter like the god of war,
When he intendeth to become the field:
Shew boldness, and aspiring confidence.

What, fhall they feek the lion in his den? [there?
And fright him there; and make him tremble
Oh, let it not be faid!-Forage 3, and run

30 To meet difpleasure farther from the doors;
And grapple with him, ere he come fo nigh. [me,

Pand. It was my breath that blew this tempeft 35
Upon your ftubborn usage of the pope :
But, fince you are a gentle convertite 2,

My tongue shall hush again this storm of war,
And make fair weather in your blustering land.
On this Afcenfion-day, remember well,
Upon your oath of fervice to the Pope,

Go I to make the French lay down their arms. [Exit.
K. Jobn. Is this Afcenfion-day? Did not the
Say, that, before Afcenfion-day at noon, [prophet
My crown I should give off? Even fo I have:
I did fuppofe, it should be on constraint;
But, heaven be thank'd, it is but voluntary.
Enter Faulconbridge.

K. John. The legate of the Pope hath been with
And I have made a happy peace with him;
And he hath promis'd to difmifs the powers
Led by the Dauphin.

Faulc. Oh inglorious league!
Shall we, upon the footing of our land,
Send fair-play orders, and make compromise,
Infinuation, parley, and bafe truce,

40 To arms invasive? Shall a beardless boy,
A cocker'd filken wanton brave our fields,
And fleth his fpirit in a warlike foil,
Mocking the air with colours idly spread,
And find no check? Let us, my liege, to arms:
Perchance, the cardinal cannot make your peace;
Or if he do, let it at least be faid,
They faw we had a purpose of defence.

45

[time.

K. John. Have thou the ordering of this prefent Faul. Away then, with good courage; yet I know, [out, 50 Our party may well meet a prouder foe. [Exeunt.

Faulc, All Kent hath yielded; nothing there holds
But Dover caftle: London hath receiv'd,
Like a kind host, the Dauphin and his powers:
Your nobles will not hear you, but are gone
To offer fervice to your enemy;
And wild amazement hurries up and down
The little number of your doubtful friends.

K. John. Would not my lords return to me again,
After they heard young Arthur was alive? [ftreets;
Faulc. They found him dead, and caft into the
An empty casket, where the jewel of life,
By fome damn'd hand, was robb'd and ta'en away.
K. John. That villain Hubert told me he did live.

1

Wrifted pomp means, greatness obtained by violence.

2 i. e. convert. 3 i. e. range abroad.

4 i. e. the original treaty between the Dauphin and the English lords.

Dd 4

May

May know wherefore we took the facrament,
And keep our faiths firm and inviolable.

Sal. Upon our fides it never fhall be broken.
And, noble Dauphin, albeit we swear
A voluntary zeal, and an unurg'd faith,
To your proceedings; yet, believe me, prince,
I am not glad that such a fore of time
Should feek a plaifter by contemn'd revolt,
And heal the inveterate canker of one wound,
By making many: Oh, it grieves my foul,
That I muft draw this metal from my fide
To be a widow-maker; oh, and there,
Where honourable rescue, and defence,
Cries out upon the name of Salisbury:
But fuch is the infection of the time,
That, for the health and phyfic of our right,
We cannot deal but with the very hand
Of stern injustice and confused wrong.-
And is't not pity, oh my grieved friends!
That we, the fons and children of this ifle,
Were born to see so fad an hour as this;
Wherein we step after a ftranger march
Upon her gentle bofom, and fill up

Her enemies' ranks, (I must withdraw and weep
Upon the spot of this enforced caufe)
To grace the gentry of a land remote,
And follow unacquainted colours here?

What, here?-O nation,that thou could't remove!
That Neptune's arms, who clippeth thee about,
Would bear thee from the knowledge of thyfelf,
And grapple thee unto a pagan shore ;
Where these two Chriftian armies might combine
The blood of malice in a vein of league,
And not to spend it fo unneighbourly!

To give us warrant from the hand of heaven;
And on our actions fet the name of right,
With holy breath.

Pand. Hail, noble prince of France!

5 The next is this,-king John hath reconcil'd
Himfelf to Rome; his fpirit is come in,
That fo ftood out against the holy church,
The great metropolis and fee of Rome :
Therefore thy threat'ning colours now wind up,
ro And tame the favage spirit of wild war;
That, like a lion fofter'd up at hand,

15

It may lie gently at the foot of peace,
And be no further harmful than in fhew. [back;
Lewis. Your grace shall pardon me, I will not
I am too high-born to be property'd,

To be a fecondary at controul,

Or useful ferving-man, and inftrument,

To any fovereign state throughout the world.
Your breath first kindled the dead coal of wars
20 Between this chaftis'd kingdom and myself,
And brought in matter that should feed this fire;
And now 'tis far too huge to be blown out
With that fame weak wind which enkindled it.
You taught me how to know the face of right,
25 Acquainted me with interest to this land,
Yea, thruft this enterprize into my heart;
And come ye now to tell me, John hath made
His peace with Rome? What is that peace to me?
30 After young Arthur, claim this land for mine;
I by the honour of my marriage-bed,
And, now it is half-conquer'd, must I back,
Because that John hath made his peace with Rome?
Am I Rome's flave? What penny hath Rome borne,
What men provided, what munition sent,

Lewis. A noble temper doft thou fhew in this; 35 To underprop this action? Is't not I,
And great affections, wrefiling in thy bosom,
Do make an earthquake of nobility.
Oh, what a nobie combat haft thou fought,
Between compulfion, and a brave respect1!
Let me wipe off this honourable dew,
That filverly doth progrefs on thy cheeks:
My heart hath melted at a lady's tears,
Being an ordinary inundation;

That undergo this charge? who else but I,
And fuch as to my claim are liable,
Sweat in this business, and maintain this war?
Have I not heard these iflanders fhout out,
40 Vive le roy! as I have bank'd their towns?
Have I not here the beft cards for the game,
To win this eafy match play'd for a crown?
And thall I now give o'er the yielded fet?
No, no, on my foul, it never shall be said.

45

By this effufion of fuch manly drops,
This fhower, blown up by tempeft of the foul,
Startles mine eyes, and makes me more amaz'd
Than had I feen the vaulty top of heaven
Figur'd quite o'er with burning meteors.
Lift up thy brow, renowned Salisbury,
And with a great heart heave away this ftorm:
Commend thefe waters to thofe baby eyes,
That never faw the giant world enrag'd;
Nor met with fortune other than at feafts,
Full warm of blood, of mirth, of getfiping.
Come, come; for thou shalt thruft thy hand as deep 55
Into the purse of rich prosperity,

As Lewis himfelf:-fo, nobles, thall you all,
That knit your finews to the ftrength of mine.
Enter Pandulph, attended.

And even there, methinks, an angel fpake:
Look, where the holy lcgate comes apace,

Pand. You look but on the outfide of this work.
Lewis. Outfide or infide, I will not return
Till my attempt fo much be glorify'd

As to my ample hope was promised
Before I drew this gallant head of war,
50 And cull'd these fiery fpirits from the world,
To out-look conquest, and to win renown
Even in the jaws of danger and of death.-

[Trumpet fourds.
What lufty trumpet thus doth summon us?
Enter Faulconbridge, attended.
Fauk. According to the fair-play of the world,
Let me have audience; I am fent to speak :-
My holy lord of Milan, from the king

come, to learn how you have dealt for him;
60 And, as you answer, I do know the scope
And warrant limited unto my tongue.

This compulfion was the neceffity of a reformation in the ftate; which, according to Salisbury's pinion (who, in his fpeech preceding, calls it an enforced cafe), could only be procured by foreign arms: and the brave reffel! was the love of his country,

Pand

Pand. The Dauphin is too wilful-oppofite,
And will not temporize with my entreaties;
He flatly fays, he'll not lay down his arms.

Faulc. By all the blood that ever fury breath'd,
The youth fays well :-Now hear our English king; 5
For thus his royalty doth speak in me.
He is prepar'd; and reafon too, he should:
This apifh and unmannerly approach,
This harness'd mafque, and unadvised revel,
This unhair'd fawcinefs, and boyish troops,
The king doth fmile at; and is well prepar'd
To whip this dwarfish war, these pigmy arms,
From out the circle of his territories.

That hand, which had the strength, even at your
door,

To cudgel you, and make you take the hatch;
To dive, like buckets, in concealed wells;
To crouch in litter of your stable planks;

To lie, like pawns, lock'd up in chefts and trunks;
To hug with fwine; to feek sweet safety out
In vaults and prifons; and to thrill, and shake,
Even at the crying of your nation's crow,
Thinking this voice an armed Englishman;-
Shall that victorious hand be feebled here,
That in your chambers gave you chastisement?
No: Know, the gallant monarch is in arms;
And, like an eagle o'er his aiery 3 towers,
To foufe annoyance that comes near his neft.-
And you degenerate, you ingrate revolts,
You bloody Neroes, ripping up the womb
Of your dear mother England, blush for shame :
For your own ladies, and pale-vifag'd maids,
Like Amazons, come tripping after drums;
Their thimbles into armed gantlets change,
Their neelds to lances, and their gentle hearts
To fierce and bloody inclination.

Lewis. There end thy brave, and turn thy face
in peace;

We grant, thou canst out-scold us: fare thee well;
We hold our time too precious to be spent

With fuch a brabler.

Pand. Give me leave to speak.

Faule. No, I will speak.

Lervis. We will attend to neither:
Strike up the drums; and let the tongue of war
Plead for our intereft, and our being here.
Faulc. Indeed, your drums, being beaten, will
cry out;

10

Lewis.Strike up our drums,to find this danger out. Faule. And thou shalt find it, Dauphin, do not doubt.

SCENE

A Field of Battle.

[Exeunt.

Alarums. Enter King John and Hubert.

K. John. How goes the day with us? oh, tell
me, Hubert.

Hub. Badly, I fear: How fares your majesty?
K.Jabn. This fever,that hath troubled me fo long,
Lies heavy on me; Oh, my heart is fick !
Enter a Mejenger.

Mf. My lord, your valiant kinfman, Faulcon-
bridge,

15 Defires your majefty to leave the field;
And fend him word by me, which way you go.
K. Jebn. Tell him, toward Swinstead, to the

20

abbey there.

Mef. Be of good comfort; for the great supply,
That was expected by the Dauphin here,

Are wreck'd three nights ago on Goodwin-fands.
This news was brought to Richard + but even now:
The French fight coldly, and retire themselves.

K. Jebn. Ah me! this tyrant fever burns me up,
25 And will not let me welcome this good news.
Set on toward Swinftead: to my litter straight;
Weakness poffeffeth me, and I am faint. [Exeunt.
SCENE IV.

30

35

140

Mel. Fly, noble English, you are bought and fold;
Unthread the rude eye of rebellion,

45 And welcome home again difcarded faith.
Seek out king John, and fall before his feet;
For, if the French be lords of this loud day,
He means to recompenfe the pains you take,
By cutting off your heads: Thus hath he fworn,
50 And I with him, and many more with me,
Upon the altar at Saint Edmund's-bury;
Even on that altar where we swore to you
Dear amity and everlasting love.

And fo fhall you, being beaten : Do but start
An echo with the clamour of thy drum,
And even at hand a drum is ready brac'd,
That shall reverberate all as loud as thine;
Sound but another, and another shall,
As loud as thine, rattle the welkin's ear,
And mock the deep-mouth'd thunder: for at hand 55
(Not trusting to this halting-legate here,
Whom he hath us'd rather for sport than need)
Is warlike John; and in his forehead fits
A bare-ribb'd death, whofe office is this day
To fealt upon whole thousands of the French.

Sal. May this be poffible! may this be true! Melun. Have I not hideous death within my Retaining but a quantity of life;

[view,

Which bleeds away, even as a form of wax
Refolveth from his figure 'gainst the fire 5 ?
What in the world should make me now deceive,
60 Since I must lose the ufe of all deceit ?

i.e. unbearded fawcinefs, alluding to the Dauphin's youth. 2 To take the batch, is to leap the

An aiery is the neft of an eagle.

batch.
images made by witches.

Meaning, Faulconbridge.

5 Alluding to the

Why

[Exeunt, leading off Melun. 35 To find you out.

1 Right fignifies immediate; this fenfe, however, is now obsolete.

Through my burn'd bofom; nor intreat the north 50 And happily may your sweet self put on

To make his bleak winds kifs my parched lips,
And comfort me with cold :--I do not ask you much,

I beg cold comfort; and you are so strait,

And so ingrateful, you deny me that.

Hen. Oh, that there were fome virtue in my tears, 55
That might relieve you!

K. John. The falt of them is hot.-
Within me is a hell; and there the poison
Is, as a fiend, confin'd to tyrannize
On unreprieveable condemned blood.