King John & Henry VIII Read online

  And they are all about his majesty.

  BASTARD Withhold thine indignation, mighty heaven,

  And tempt us not to bear above our power42.

  I’ll tell thee, Hubert, half my power43 this night,

  Passing these flats44, are taken by the tide:

  These Lincoln Washes45 have devourèd them:

  Myself, well mounted, hardly46 have escaped.

  Away before47: conduct me to the king:

  I doubt he will be dead or ere48 I come.

  Exeunt

  Act 5 Scene 7

  running scene 14

  Enter Prince Henry, Salisbury and Bigot

  PRINCE HENRY It is too late: the life of all his blood

  Is touched corruptibly, and his pure2 brain,

  Which some suppose the soul’s frail dwelling-house,

  Doth by the idle4 comments that it makes

  Foretell the ending of mortality.

  Enter Pembroke

  PEMBROKE His highness yet doth speak, and holds belief

  That, being brought into the open air,

  It would allay the burning quality

  Of that fell9 poison which assaileth him.

  PRINCE HENRY Let him be brought into the orchard10 here.

  [Exit Bigot]

  Doth he still rage11?

  PEMBROKE He is more patient

  Than when you left him; even now he sung.

  PRINCE HENRY O vanity14 of sickness! Fierce extremes

  In their continuance will not feel themselves15.

  Death, having preyed upon the outward parts,

  Leaves them invisible17, and his siege is now

  Against the mind, the which he pricks and wounds

  With many legions19 of strange fantasies,

  Which, in their throng and press to that last hold20,

  Confound21 themselves. ’Tis strange that death should sing.

  I am the cygnet to this pale faint swan22,

  Who chants a doleful hymn to his own death,

  And from the organ-pipe of frailty sings

  His soul and body to their lasting rest.

  SALISBURY Be of good comfort, Prince, for you are born

  To set a form upon that indigest27

  Which he hath left so shapeless and so rude28.

  King John [is] brought in

  KING JOHN Ay, marry, now my soul hath elbow-room29:

  It would not out at windows nor at doors:

  There is so hot a summer in my bosom

  That all my bowels crumble up to dust:

  I am a scribbled form33, drawn with a pen

  Upon a parchment, and against this fire

  Do I shrink up.

  PRINCE HENRY How fares your majesty?

  KING JOHN Poisoned, ill fare: dead, forsook37, cast off:

  And none of you will bid the winter come

  To thrust his icy fingers in my maw39,

  Nor let my kingdom’s rivers take their course

  Through my burned bosom, nor entreat the north41

  To make his bleak winds kiss my parchèd lips

  And comfort me with cold. I do not ask you much,

  I beg cold comfort: and you are so strait44

  And so ingrateful45, you deny me that.

  PRINCE HENRY O that there were some virtue46 in my tears,

  That might relieve you!

  KING JOHN The salt in them is hot.

  Within me is a hell, and there the poison

  Is, as a fiend, confined to tyrannize

  On unreprievable condemnèd blood.

  Enter [the] Bastard

  BASTARD O, I am scalded with my violent motion52

  And spleen53 of speed to see your majesty!

  KING JOHN O cousin, thou art come to set54 mine eye:

  The tackle55 of my heart is cracked and burnt,

  And all the shrouds56 wherewith my life should sail

  Are turnèd to one thread, one little hair:

  My heart hath one poor string to stay58 it by,

  Which holds but till thy news be utterèd:

  And then all this thou see’st is but a clod60

  And module of confounded61 royalty.

  BASTARD The dauphin is preparing hitherward62,

  Where heaven he63 knows how we shall answer him:

  For in a night the best part of my power,

  As I upon advantage did remove65,

  Were in the Washes all unwarily

  Devourèd by the unexpected flood67.

  King John dies

  SALISBURY You breathe these dead68 news in as dead an ear.—

  To King John

  My liege, my lord!— But now a king, now thus69.

  PRINCE HENRY Even so70 must I run on, and even so stop.

  What surety of the world, what hope, what stay71,

  When this was now a king, and now is clay?

  To King John

  BASTARD Art thou gone so? I do but stay behind

  To do the office for thee of revenge,

  And then my soul shall wait on75 thee to heaven,

  As it on earth hath been thy servant still76.—

  To the Lords

  Now, now, you stars that move in your right spheres77,

  Where be your powers? Show now your mended faiths,

  And instantly return with me again,

  To push destruction and perpetual shame

  Out of the weak door of our fainting land:

  Straight82 let us seek, or straight we shall be sought:

  The dauphin rages at our very heels.

  SALISBURY It seems you know not, then, so much as we:

  The Cardinal Pandulph is within at rest,

  Who half an hour since came from the dauphin,

  And brings from him such offers of our peace

  As we with honour and respect88 may take,

  With purpose presently89 to leave this war.

  BASTARD He will the rather90 do it when he sees

  Ourselves well sinewèd91 to our defence.

  SALISBURY Nay, ’tis in a manner done already,

  For many carriages93 he hath dispatched

  To the seaside, and put his cause and quarrel

  To the disposing95 of the cardinal,

  With whom yourself, myself and other lords,

  If you think meet, this afternoon will post97

  To consummate98 this business happily.

  BASTARD Let it be so.— And you, my noble prince,

  With other princes100 that may best be spared,

  Shall wait upon101 your father’s funeral.

  PRINCE HENRY At Worcester must his body be interred;

  For so he willed it.

  BASTARD Thither shall it then,

  And happily105 may your sweet self put on

  The lineal state106 and glory of the land,

  To whom with all submission, on my knee

  I do bequeath108 my faithful services

  He kneels

  And true subjection everlastingly.

  SALISBURY And the like tender110 of our love we make,

  The Lords kneel

  To rest without a spot111 for ever more.

  PRINCE HENRY I have a kind soul that would give thanks

  He weeps

  And knows not how to do it but with tears.

  Rising

  BASTARD O, let us pay the time but needful woe114,

  Since it hath been beforehand115 with our griefs.

  This England never did, nor never shall,

  Lie at the proud foot of a conqueror,

  But118 when it first did help to wound itself.

  Now these her princes are come home again,

  Come the three corners120 of the world in arms,

  And we shall shock them. Nought shall make us rue121,

  If England to itself do rest122 but true.

  Exeunt

  TEXTUAL NOTES

  F = First Folio text of 1623, the only authority for the play

  F2 = a correction
introduced in the Second Folio text of 1632

  Ed = a correction introduced by a later editor

  SD = stage direction

  SH = speech heading (i.e. speaker’s name)

  List of parts = Ed

  1.1.SD the = F. Ed = them, but F can be supported if “Chatillon” is regarded as a title rather than a name 49 expeditious = F. F2 = expeditions 148 It = F. F2 = I. F is taken to refer to the Bastard’s face from the previous line 189 too = F2. F = two 209 smack = Ed. F = smoake 217 SD Enter … Gurney = Ed. SD five lines down in F 239 Could = F. Ed = Could he/a. Although inserting “he” clarifies the sense, the suggestion is not supported metrically 259 That = F. Ed = Thou

  Act 2 Scene 1 = Ed. F = Scæna Secunda 1 SH KING PHILIP = Ed. F = Lewis 18 SH LEWIS = F. Some eds reassign to King Philip 63 Ate = Ed. F = Ace 113 breast = F2. F = beast 146 shoes = F. Ed = shows 151 SH KING PHILIP = Ed. F continues Austria’s speech, with line beginning “King Lewis” 221 Confronts your = Ed. F = Comfort yours 265 roundure = Ed. F = rounder 332 SH CITIZEN = Ed. F = Hubert. This SH recurs for rest of the scene; editors dispute whether or not the Hubert who is a character from Act 3 scene 2 onward is intended 342 run = F2 (runne). F = rome 359 dead = F. Ed = dread 375 SH CITIZEN = Ed. F = Fra 378 Kings = F. Ed = Kinged 432 niece = Ed. F = neere 442 of = F. Ed = O 496 Anjou = Ed. F = Angiers

  Act 2 [Scene 2] = Ed. F = Actus Secundus

  3.1.75 test = Ed. F = tast. Ed = task 124 that = F. Ed = it 190 casèd = F. Ed = crazèd, chafed 213 truth = F. Ed = troth

  3.2.4 SD Enter … Hubert = Ed. Placed one line earlier in F 64 broad-eyed = Ed. F = brooded

  3.3.45 not holy = Ed. F = holy 65 friends = Ed. F = fiends 112 word’s = F. Ed = world’s 151 evilly = F. Ed = vilely

  4.1.68 this = F. Ed = his

  4.2.again = F3. F = against 42 than = Ed. F = then. Ed = when 223 account spelled accompt in F

  4.3.161 cincture = Ed. F = center

  Act 5 = Ed. F = Actus Quartus

  5.1.55 glisten = Ed. F = glister

  5.2.36 grapple = Ed. F = cripple. Ed = gripple 134 unheard = F. Ed = unhaired 136 these = Ed. F = this

  5.4.18 more = Ed. F = moe

  5.5.7 tott’ring = F. Ed = tatt’ring, secondary sense, i.e. torn

  5.6.15 endless = F. Ed = eyeless

  5.7.18 mind = Ed. F = winde 22 cygnet = Ed. F = Symet 44 strait spelled straight in F

  SCENE-BY-SCENE ANALYSIS

  ACT 1 SCENE 1

  Lines 1–49: The Chatillon of France claims the English throne and lands on behalf of Arthur, King John’s nephew, threatening war with France if John refuses. King John, however, is defiant and says that he will be in France with his army before him if Chatillon doesn’t hurry. Once Chatillon has left, Queen Elinor reflects that she foresaw that “ambitious Constance” wouldn’t stop until she’d provoked French support for Arthur and that the situation could have been prevented if they’d handled her with more tact; it will now involve two kingdoms and a war to sort things out. John protests his “strong possession” and “right” to the crown but his mother points out that his “strong possession” is greater than his “right” in this matter, but she will only admit this privately to him. A Sheriff arrives with news of “the strangest controversy” from the country. John gives permission for the plaintiffs to approach. Returning briefly to the subject of the forthcoming war with France he says he’ll make “Our abbeys and our priories” pay for it.

  Lines 50–163: Two brothers arrive, Robert Falconbridge, son and heir to the late Robert Falconbridge, and his older brother, Philip. Robert claims that his father made him his heir on his deathbed, although he’s the younger brother, because he believed that his older brother was illegitimate, conceived while he was in Germany on business for King Richard. Elinor and John both think that Philip must be Richard’s son (“He hath a trick of Coeur-de-lion’s face”) but John points out that in law, since his mother was married, he is the legal heir to the Falconbridge lands. Elinor asks him if he would rather be son and heir of Falconbridge or acknowledged as King Richard’s bastard son with no land. He answers that if he and his brother’s places were changed, he’d give away all his land rather than have his brother’s face and figure. Elinor likes his bluntness and offers him the chance to leave the Falconbridge estate to his brother, be acknowledged as Richard’s bastard son, and follow her to war. He decides at once to follow her “unto the death.” John then knights him—he is to be known henceforth as Sir Richard Plantagenet.

  Lines 164–278: The brothers say farewell and John and Elinor leave to prepare for war with France. Alone on stage, Richard reflects on his new fortune and status, satirizing the pretensions of the newly risen in the way they treat social inferiors and give themselves airs. He argues that it’s the way society works and “fits the mounting spirit like myself” but concludes that he must learn to recognize, although he will not practice, flattery: the “Sweet, sweet, sweet poison for the age’s tooth.” His mother arrives with a servant, seeking his brother. He dismisses the servant and then confronts his mother, demanding to know his real father’s identity. She is shocked at first at the slur on her reputation but finally confesses that “King Richard Coeur-de-lion was thy father,” claiming that she was seduced and unable to resist, and asking his pardon. The Bastard is delighted, however, and says he couldn’t “wish a better father” and that she should have no regrets since he has none, and takes her to meet his “kin,” who will agree it would have been a sin to refuse King Richard’s sexual advances and not have borne him.

  ACT 2 SCENE 1

  Lines 1–83: The French are outside the town of Angiers. King Philip introduces Arthur to the Duke of Austria, who killed his uncle, King Richard, but to make amends has allied himself to the French in support of Arthur’s claim to the English crown against John. Arthur welcomes him and Constance offers “his mother’s thanks, a widow’s thanks” until with his help she is able to offer him a worthy reward. King Philip says they should mount an attack on the town, which refuses to recognize Arthur’s claim. Constance advises waiting until Chatillon returns from England to hear John’s response. Chatillon appears almost immediately and tells them not to concern themselves with fighting a small town but to expect a greater enemy since John has come with his mother, his niece, bastard nephew and the English army. Philip is surprised but Austria says they must rise to the occasion and prepare to “welcome” them.

  Lines 84–150: The English arrive and John greets the French king, saying they can have peace if Philip recognizes his claim to the English throne. Philip says they can have peace if John acknowledges Arthur’s claim to it. He asks him to look at Arthur’s face, which is like his father Geoffrey’s and, since he was John’s older brother, this means that he, not John, is the rightful king of England. John asks by whose authority he undertakes this and Philip replies, by God’s (the “supernal judge”) who has made him Arthur’s guardian. John responds that he usurps his authority but Philip replies that preventing usurping is a good enough excuse. Elinor demands to know who he is accusing of usurping and Constance replies Elinor’s usurping son, John. Elinor accuses Constance of wanting to make her bastard king so that she can rule. Constance replies that she was never unfaithful to Geoffrey and that her son’s less likely to be a bastard than Elinor’s. The two women continue to insult each other. Austria calls for peace. The Bastard (Richard) demands to know who speaks and threatens to take the lion-skin, which belonged to King Richard Coeur-de-lion, from his back.

  Lines 151–205: Lewis demands that the “women and fools” keep quiet. He claims “England and Ireland, Anjou, Touraine, Maine” for Arthur and asks John to resign his claim and lay down his arms. John refuses but adds that if Arthur yields to him, he’ll give him more than France can win by fighting. Elinor tells Arthur to come to her. Constance mocks her offer saying, in exchange for the kingdom, his “grandam” will give Arthur “a plum, a cherry and a fig.” Arthur tells his mother to be quiet: he wishes he were dead, he’s not worth al
l this “coil” (fuss). Elinor blames Constance for making Arthur weep and Constance blames Elinor and they resume their slanging match. King John and then King Philip call for peace. Philip suggests that they should ask the men of Angiers which of the two claimants they support—“Whose title they admit, Arthur’s or John’s.” A trumpet is sounded.

  Lines 206–306: A Citizen enters upon the walls and demands to know who has summoned them. The two kings each state their case and demand that the men of Angiers should judge between the rival claimants. John says that the French were about to lay siege to the town to destroy it until the English arrived but are now prepared to talk. Philip advances the legitimacy of Arthur’s claim to the English crown and says that if the men of Angiers will recognize this, they will leave them in peace. The Citizen claims that the people of Angiers are loyal to the English king. They ask him to say who that is but he is unable to. They must decide between themselves who the rightful king is and Angiers will then be loyal to him. The kings decide they’ll have to fight and set their armies in the field. The two armies start fighting.

  Lines 307–423: They cease and the French Herald demands that Angiers open the gates to receive Arthur. On the other side the English Herald claims victory for John. The Citizen claims that they have been watching all this while and judge the armies equally matched, that neither has achieved victory; they are not prepared to recognize either—“We hold our town for neither, yet for both.” The two kings meet, both still determined to fight on. The Bastard is keen to return to battle till one side has vanquished the other. The kings again appeal to the citizens of Angiers to recognize their right and are again refused. The Bastard then suggests that the two armies join together and turn their power against Angiers for defying them both.