The Third part of King Henry
the Sixth
By
William Shakespeare
CONTENTS:
SCENE
I. London. The Parliament-house.
SCENE
III. Field of battle betwixt Sandal Castle and Wakefield.
SCENE
IV. Another part of the field.
SCENE
I. A plain near Mortimer's Cross in Herefordshire.
SCENE
III. A field of battle between Towton and Saxton, in Yorkshire.
SCENE
IV. Another part of the field.
SCENE
V. Another part of the field.
SCENE
VI. Another part of the field.
SCENE
I. A forest in the north of England.
SCENE
III. France. KING LEWIS XI's palace.
SCENE
II. A plain in Warwickshire.
SCENE
III. Edward's camp, near Warwick.
SCENE
V. A park near Middleham Castle In Yorkshire.
SCENE
VIII. London. The palace.
SCENE
II. A field of battle near Barnet.
SCENE
III. Another part of the field.
SCENE
IV. Plains near Tewksbury.
SCENE
V. Another part of the field.
SCENE
VII. London. The palace.
Alarum.
Enter
I wonder how the king escaped our hands.
While we pursued the horsemen of the north,
He slily stole away and left his men:
Whereat the great Lord of Northumberland,
Whose warlike ears could never brook retreat,
Cheer'd up the drooping army; and himself,
Lord Clifford and Lord Stafford, all abreast,
Charged our main battle's front, and breaking in
Were by the swords of common soldiers slain.
EDWARD
Lord Stafford's father, Duke of Buckingham,
Is either slain or wounded dangerously;
I cleft his beaver with a downright blow:
That this is true, father, behold his blood.
MONTAGUE
And, brother, here's the Earl of Wiltshire's blood,
Whom I encounter'd as the battles join'd.
RICHARD
Speak thou for me and tell them what I did.
Throwing down
Richard hath best deserved of all my sons.
But is your grace dead, my Lord of Somerset?
Such hope have all the line of John of Gaunt!
RICHARD
Thus do I hope to shake King Henry's head.
And so do I. Victorious Prince of York,
Before I see thee seated in that throne
Which now the
house of
I vow by heaven these eyes shall never close.
This is the palace of the fearful king,
And this the regal seat: possess it,
For this is thine and not King Henry's heirs'
Assist me, then, sweet Warwick, and I will;
For hither we have broken in by force.
We'll all assist you; he that flies shall die.
Thanks, gentle
And, soldiers, stay and lodge by me this night.
They go up
And when the king comes, offer no violence,
Unless he seek to thrust you out perforce.
The queen this day here holds her parliament,
But little thinks we shall be of her council:
By words or blows here let us win our right.
RICHARD
Arm'd as we are, let's stay within this house.
The bloody parliament shall this be call'd,
Unless Plantagenet, Duke of York, be king,
And bashful Henry deposed, whose cowardice
Hath made us by-words to our enemies.
Then leave me not, my lords; be resolute;
I mean to take possession of my right.
Neither the king, nor he that loves him best,
The proudest he
that holds up
Dares stir a wing,
if
I'll plant Plantagenet, root him up who dares:
Resolve thee, Richard; claim the English crown.
Flourish. Enter
KING HENRY VI, CLIFFORD, NORTHUMBERLAND, WESTMORELAND,
KING HENRY VI
My lords, look where the sturdy rebel sits,
Even in the chair of state: belike he means,
Back'd by the power of Warwick, that false peer,
To aspire unto the crown and reign as king.
Earl of Northumberland, he slew thy father.
And thine, Lord Clifford; and you both have vow'd revenge
On him, his sons, his favourites and his friends.
NORTHUMBERLAND
If I be not, heavens be revenged on me!
CLIFFORD
The hope thereof makes Clifford mourn in steel.
WESTMORELAND
What, shall we suffer this? let's pluck him down:
My heart for anger burns; I cannot brook it.
KING HENRY VI
Be patient, gentle Earl of Westmoreland.
CLIFFORD
Patience is for poltroons, such as he:
He durst not sit there, had your father lived.
My gracious lord, here in the parliament
Let us assail the
family of
NORTHUMBERLAND
Well hast thou spoken, cousin: be it so.
KING HENRY VI
Ah, know you not the city favours them,
And they have troops of soldiers at their beck?
But when the duke is slain, they'll quickly fly.
KING HENRY VI
Far be the thought of this from Henry's heart,
To make a shambles of the parliament-house!
Cousin of
Shall be the war that Henry means to use.
Thou factious Duke of York, descend my throne,
and kneel for grace and mercy at my feet;
I am thy sovereign.
I am thine.
For shame, come down: he made thee Duke of York.
'Twas my inheritance, as the earldom was.
Thy father was a traitor to the crown.
In following this usurping Henry.
CLIFFORD
Whom should he follow but his natural king?
True, Clifford;
and that's Richard Duke of
KING HENRY VI
And shall I stand, and thou sit in my throne?
It must and shall be so: content thyself.
Be Duke of Lancaster; let him be king.
WESTMORELAND
He is both king and Duke of Lancaster;
And that the Lord of Westmoreland shall maintain.
And
That we are those which chased you from the field
And slew your fathers, and with colours spread
March'd through the city to the palace gates.
NORTHUMBERLAND
Yes, Warwick, I remember it to my grief;
And, by his soul, thou and thy house shall rue it.
WESTMORELAND
Plantagenet, of thee and these thy sons,
Thy kinsman and thy friends, I'll have more lives
Than drops of blood were in my father's veins.
CLIFFORD
Urge it no more; lest that, instead of words,
I send thee, Warwick, such a messenger
As shall revenge his death before I stir.
Poor Clifford! how I scorn his worthless threats!
Will you we show our title to the crown?
If not, our swords shall plead it in the field.
KING HENRY VI
What title hast thou, traitor, to the crown?
Thy father was, as thou art, Duke of York;
Thy grandfather, Roger Mortimer, Earl of March:
I am the son of Henry the Fifth,
Who made the Dauphin and the French to stoop
And seized upon their towns and provinces.
Talk
not of
KING HENRY VI
The lord protector lost it, and not I:
When I was crown'd I was but nine months old.
RICHARD
You are old enough now, and yet, methinks, you lose.
Father, tear the crown from the usurper's head.
EDWARD
Sweet father, do so; set it on your head.
MONTAGUE
Good brother, as thou lovest and honourest arms,
Let's fight it out and not stand cavilling thus.
RICHARD
Sound drums and trumpets, and the king will fly.
Sons, peace!
KING HENRY VI
Peace, thou! and give King Henry leave to spea