KING EDWARD THE FOURTH.

EDWARD, Prince of Wales, afterwards, King Edward V.: and RICHARD, Duke of York, sons to the King. GEORGE, Duke of Clarence; brother to the King. RICHARD, Duke of Gloucester, afterwards KING RICHARD III.; brother to the King.

A young Son of Clar nce.

HENRY, Earl of Richmond, afterwards King Henry VII.
CARDINAL BOURCHIER, Archbishop of Canterbury.
THOMAS ROTHERHAM, Archbishop of York.
JOHN MORTON, Bishop of Ely.

The Dukes of BUCKINGHAM and NORFOLK.

The EARL OF SURREY, 8on to the Duke of Norfolk. EARL RIVERS, brother to Elizabeth, Queen to EdwardIV. MARQUIS OF DORSET, and LORD GREY, sons to Elizabeth, Queen to Edward IV.

The EARL OF OXFORD, and LORD HASTINGS.

LORD STANLEY.

LORD LOVEL, Sir THOMAS VAUGHAN, Sir RICHARD RATCLIFF, Sir WILLIAM CATESBY, Sir JAMES TYRREL, Sir JAMES BLOUNT, and Sir WALTER HERBERT.

Sir ROBERT BRAKENBURY, Lieutenant of the Tower. CHRISTOPHER URSWICK, a priest.

Another Priest.

The LORD MAYOR of London.

The Sheriff of Wiltshire.

TRESSEL and BERKELEY, gentlemen attending on the Lady Anne.

ELIZABETH, Queen to King Edward IV.
MARGARET, widow of King Henry VI.

The DUCHESS OF YORK, mother to King Edward IV.
LADY ANNE, widow of Edward, Prince of Wales, son to
King Henry VI.; afterwards married to Richard.
A young Daughter of Clarence (Margaret Plantagenet.)

Ghosts of those murdered by Richard.

Lords, and other Attendants; a Pursuirant, a Scrivener, Citizens, Murderers, Messengers, Soldiers,

&c.

SCENE, ENGLAND.

KING RICHARD THE THIRD.

ACT I.

SCENE I.-London. A Street.

N

Enter GLOSTER.

Gloster.

OW is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of
York;

And all the clouds that lour'd upon
our house

In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
Now are our brows

wreaths;

bound with victorious

Our bruised arms hung up for nonuments;
Our stern alarums changed to merry meetings;
Our dreadful marches to delightful measures.
Grim-visaged war hath smoothed his wrinkled

front;

And now, instead of mounting barbed steeds,
To fright the souls of fearful adversaries,
He capers nimbly in a lady's chamber,
To the lascivious pleasing of a lute.

But I, that am not shaped for sportive tricks,
Nor made to court an amorous looking-glass;—
I, that am rudely stamp'd, and want love's
majesty

To strut before a wanton ambling nymph ;-
I, that am curtail'd of this fair proportion,
Cheated of feature by dissembling nature,
Deform'd, unfinish'd, sent before my time
Into this breathing world, scarce half made up,
And that so lamely and unfashionable
That dogs bark at me as I halt by them;
Why I, in this weak piping time of peace,
Have no delight to pass away the time,
Uuless to spy my shadow in the sun,
And descant on mine own deformity.
And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover
To entertain these fair well-spoken days,
I am determined to prove a villain,
And hate the idle pleasures of these days.
Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous,
By drunken prophecies, libels, and dreams,
To set my brother Clarence and the king
In deadly hate the one against the other:
And, if king Edward be as true and just
As I am subtle, false, and treacherous,
This day should Clarence closely be mew'd up,
About a prophecy, which says that G

Of Edward's heirs the murderer shall be.
Dive, thoughts, down to my soul! here Clarence

comes.

Enter CLARENCE, guarded, and BRAKENBURY.

Brother, good day: what means

this armed

Clar.

His majesty,

Tendering my person's safety, hath appointed
This conduct to convey me to the Tower.

Glo. Upon what cause?

Clar.

Because my name is George.

Glo. Alack, my lord, that fault is none of

yours;

He should, for that, commit your godfathers:
O, belike, his majesty hath some intent

That you should be new christen'd in the Tower. But what's the matter, Clarence? may I know? Clar. Yea, Richard, when I know; for I protest

As yet I do not: but, as I can learn,

He hearkens after prophecies and dreams;
And from the cross-row plucks the letter G,
And says, a wizard told him, that by G
His issue disinherited should be;

And, for my name of George begins with G,
It follows in his thought that I am he;

These, as I learn, and such-like toys as these,
Have moved his highness to commit me now.

Glo. Why, this it is when men are ruled by

women:

'Tis not the king who sends you to the Tower; My lady Grey his wife, Clarence, 'tis she

That tempers him to this extremity.

Was it not she and, that good man of worship,
Antony Woodville, her brother there,

That made him send Lord Hastings to the Tower;
From whence this present day he is deliver'd?
We are not safe, Clarence, we are not safe.

Clar. By heaven, I think there is no man

secure

But the queen's kindred, and night-walking heralds

That trudge betwixt the king and mistress Shore.

Heard you not what an humble suppliant
Lord Hastings was to her for his delivery?

Glo. Humbly complaining to her deity
Got my lord chamberlain his liberty.
I'll tell you what,—I think it is our way,
If we will keep in favour with the king,
To be her men and wear her livery:

The jealous o'erworn widow, and herself,
Since that our brother dubb'd them gentlewomen,
Are mighty gossips in our monarchy.

Brak. I beseech your graces both to pardon

me;

His majesty hath straitly given in charge

That no man shall have private conference,
Of what degree soever, with his brother.

Glo. Even so; an please your worship, Brakenbury,

You may partake of anything we say :
We speak no treason, man :—we say, the king
Is wise and virtuous; and his noble queen
Well struck in years, fair, and not jealous :—
We say, that Shore's wife hath a pretty foot,
A cherry lip, a bonny eye, a passing pleasing
tongue;

And that the queen's kindred are made gentlefolks;

How say you, sir? can you deny all this?

Brak. With this, my lord, myself have nought to do.

Glo. Naught to do with mistress Shore? I tell thee, fellow,

He that doth naught with her, excepting one,
Were best to do it secretly, alone.

Brak. What one, my lord?

Glo. Her husband, knave:—wouldst thou betray me?