1596
KING RICHARD THE SECOND
by William Shakespeare
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
KING RICHARD THE SECOND
JOHN OF GAUNT, Duke of Lancaster - uncle to the King
EDMUND LANGLEY, Duke of York - uncle to the King
HENRY, surnamed BOLINGBROKE, Duke of Hereford, son of
John of Gaunt, afterwards King Henry IV
DUKE OF AUMERLE, son of the Duke of York
THOMAS MOWBRAY, Duke of Norfolk
DUKE OF SURREY
EARL OF SALISBURY
EARL BERKELEY
BUSHY - favourites of King Richard
BAGOT - " " " "
GREEN - " " " "
EARL OF NORTHUMBERLAND
HENRY PERCY, surnamed HOTSPUR, his son
LORD Ross LORD WILLOUGHBY
LORD FITZWATER BISHOP OF CARLISLE
ABBOT OF WESTMINSTER LORD MARSHAL
SIR STEPHEN SCROOP SIR PIERCE OF EXTON
CAPTAIN of a band of Welshmen TWO GARDENERS
QUEEN to King Richard
DUCHESS OF YORK
DUCHESS OF GLOUCESTER, widow of Thomas of Woodstock,
Duke of Gloucester
LADY attending on the Queen
Lords, Heralds, Officers, Soldiers, Keeper, Messenger,
Groom, and other Attendants
SCENE:
England and Wales
ACT I. SCENE I.
London. The palace
Enter RICHARD, JOHN OF GAUNT, with other NOBLES
and attendants
KING RICHARD. Old John of Gaunt, time-honoured Lancaster,
Hast thou, according to thy oath and band,
Brought
hither Henry Hereford, thy bold son,
Here to make good the boist'rous late
appeal,
Which then our
leisure would not let us hear,
Against the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Mowbray?
GAUNT. I have, my liege.
KING RICHARD. Tell me,
moreover, hast thou sounded him
If he
appeal the Duke on ancient
malice,
Or worthily, as a good subject should,
On some known ground of
treachery in him?
GAUNT. As near as I could sift him on that argument,
On some
apparent danger seen in him
Aim'd at your Highness-no inveterate
malice.
KING RICHARD. Then call them to our presence: face to face
And frowning brow to brow, ourselves will hear
The
accuser and the
accused
freely speak.
High-stomach'd are they both and full of ire,
In rage, deaf as the sea, hasty as fire.
Enter BOLINGBROKE and MOWBRAY
BOLINGBROKE. Many years of happy days befall
My
gracioussovereign, my most
loving liege!
MOWBRAY. Each day still better other's happiness
Until the heavens, envying earth's good hap,
Add an
immortal title to your crown!
KING RICHARD. We thank you both; yet one but flatters us,
As well appeareth by the cause you come;
Namely, to
appeal each other of high
treason.
Cousin of Hereford, what dost thou object
Against the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Mowbray?
BOLINGBROKE. First-heaven be the record to my speech!
In the
devotion of a subject's love,
Tend'ring the precious safety of my prince,
And free from other misbegotten hate,
Come I appellant to this
princely presence.
Now, Thomas Mowbray, do I turn to thee,
And mark my greeting well; for what I speak
My body shall make good upon this earth,
Or my
divine soul answer it in heaven-
Thou art a
traitor and a miscreant,
Too good to be so, and too bad to live,
Since the more fair and
crystal is the sky,
The uglier seem the clouds that in it fly.
Once more, the more to
aggravate the note,
With a foul
traitor's name stuff I thy
throat;
And wish-so please my
sovereign-ere I move,
What my tongue speaks, my right drawn sword may prove.
MOWBRAY. Let not my cold words here
accuse my zeal.
'Tis not the trial of a woman's war,
The bitter clamour of two eager tongues,
Can arbitrate this cause betwixt us twain;
The blood is hot that must be cool'd for this.
Yet can I not of such tame
patience boast
As to be hush'd and
nought at an to say.
First, the fair
reverence of your Highness curbs me
From giving reins and spurs to my free speech;
Which else would post until it had return'd
These terms of
treason doubled down his
throat.
Setting aside his high blood's royalty,
And let him be no kinsman to my liege,
I do defy him, and I spit at him,
Call him a
slanderous
coward and a villain;
Which to
maintain, I would allow him odds
And meet him, were I tied to run afoot
Even to the
frozen ridges of the Alps,
Or any other ground inhabitable
Where ever Englishman durst set his foot.
Meantime let this defend my loyalty-
By all my hopes, most falsely doth he lie
BOLINGBROKE. Pale trembling
coward, there I throw my gage,
Disclaiming here the
kindred of the King;
And lay aside my high blood's royalty,
Which fear, not
reverence, makes thee to except.
If
guilty dread have left thee so much strength
As to take up mine honour's pawn, then stoop.
By that and all the rites of
knighthood else
Will I make good against thee, arm to arm,
What I have spoke or thou canst worst devise.
MOWBRAY. I take it up; and by that sword I swear
Which
gently laid my
knighthood on my shoulder
I'll answer thee in any fair degree
Or
chivalrous design of
knightly trial;
And when I mount, alive may I not light
If I be
traitor or unjustly fight!
KING RICHARD. What doth our cousin lay to Mowbray's charge?
It must be great that can
inherit us
So much as of a thought of ill in him.
BOLINGBROKE. Look what I speak, my life shall prove it true-
That Mowbray hath receiv'd eight thousand nobles
In name of lendings for your Highness' soldiers,
The which he hath detain'd for lewd employments
Like a false
traitor and
injurious villain.
Besides, I say and will in battle prove-
Or here, or
elsewhere to the furthest verge
That ever was survey'd by English eye-
That all the
treasons for these eighteen years
Complotted and contrived in this land
Fetch from false Mowbray their first head and spring.
Further I say, and further will
maintainUpon his bad life to make all this good,
That he did plot the Duke of Gloucester's death,
Suggest his soon-believing adversaries,
And
consequently, like a
traitorcoward,
Sluic'd out his
innocent soul through streams of blood;
Which blood, like sacrificing Abel's, cries,
Even from the tongueless caverns of the earth,
To me for justice and rough chastisement;
And, by the
glorious worth of my descent,
This arm shall do it, or this life be spent.
KING RICHARD. How high a pitch his
resolution soars!
Thomas of Norfolk, what say'st thou to this?
MOWBRAY. O, let my
sovereign turn away his face
And bid his ears a little while be deaf,
Till I have told this
slander of his blood
How God and good men hate so foul a liar.
KING RICHARD. Mowbray,
impartial are our eyes and cars.
Were he my brother, nay, my kingdom's heir,
As he is but my father's brother's son,
Now by my sceptre's awe I make a vow,
Such neighbour nearness to our
sacred blood
Should nothing
privilege him nor partialize
The unstooping
firmness of my
upright soul.
He is our subject, Mowbray; so art thou:
Free speech and
fearless I to thee allow.
MOWBRAY. Then, Bolingbroke, as low as to thy heart,
Through the false passage of thy
throat, thou liest.
Three parts of that
receipt I had for Calais
Disburs'd I duly to his Highness' soldiers;
The other part reserv'd I by consent,
For that my
sovereign liege was in my debt
Upon
remainder of a dear account
Since last I went to France to fetch his queen:
Now
swallow down that lie. For Gloucester's death-
I slew him not, but to my own disgrace
Neglected my sworn duty in that case.
For you, my noble Lord of Lancaster,
The
honourable father to my foe,
Once did I lay an
ambush for your life,
A
trespass that doth vex my grieved soul;
But ere I last receiv'd the sacrament
I did
confess it, and exactly begg'd
Your Grace's
pardon; and I hope I had it.
This is my fault. As for the rest
appeal'd,
It issues from the rancour of a villain,
A recreant and most
degeneratetraitor;
Which in myself I
boldly will defend,
And interchangeably hurl down my gage
Upon this overweening
traitor's foot
To prove myself a loyal gentleman
Even in the best blood chamber'd in his bosom.
In haste
whereof, most
heartily I pray
Your Highness to
assign our trial day.
KING RICHARD. Wrath-kindled gentlemen, be rul'd by me;
Let's purge this choler without letting blood-
This we
prescribe, though no physician;
Deep
malice makes too deep incision.
Forget,
forgive; conclude and be agreed:
Our doctors say this is no month to bleed.
Good uncle, let this end where it begun;
We'll calm the Duke of Norfolk, you your son.
GAUNT. To be a make-peace shall become my age.
Throw down, my son, the Duke of Norfolk's gage.
KING RICHARD. And, Norfolk, throw down his.
GAUNT. When, Harry, when?