O, 'tis true; Cham. [Kisses her. Well said, my lord.So, now you are fairly seated:-Gentlemen, The penance lies on you, if these fair ladies For my little cure, This night he makes a supper, and a great one, deed, A hand as fruitful as the land that feeds us; Cham. mas, We shall be late else: which I would not be, I am your lordship's. Enter Lord Chamberlain, LORD SANDS, and SIR THOMAS LOVELL. The very thought of this fair company Cham. You are young, Sir Harry Guildford. Lov. O, that your lordship were but now confessor To one or two of these! Place you that side, I'll take the charge of this: By my faith, Sands. [Seats himself between ANNE BULLEN and 1 The speaker is now in the king's palace at Bride 3 i. e. if I may choose my game. 4 Chambers are short pieces of ordnance, standing almost erect upon their breechings, chiefly ised upon festive occasions, being so contrived as to carry great Sands. Let me alone. Hautboys, Enter CARDINAL WOLSEY, attended ; and takes his state. Wol. You are welcome, my fair guests; that noble lady, Or gentleman, that is not freely merry, My Lord Sands, The red wine first must rise In their fair cheeks, my lord; then we shall have Talk us to silence. them tongue; And, pray, receive them nobly, and conduct them To tell your grace ;-That, having heard by fame This night to meet here, they could do no less, Say, lord chamberlain, To drink to these fair ladies, and a measure ACT II. They have done my poor house grace; for which SCENE I. A Street. Enter two Gentlemen, I pay them A thousand thanks, and pray them take their plea sures. [Ladies chosen for the dance. The King chooses ANNE BULLEN. K. Hen. The fairest hand I ever touch'd! beauty, Till now I never knew thee. Wol. My lord,- Wol. O, meeting. 1 Gent. Whither away so fast? 0,-God save you! 1 Gent. I'll save you That labour, sir. All's now done, but the ceremony [Music. Dance. Of bringing back the prisoner. 2 Gent. 1 Gent. Yes, indeed, was I. 2 Gent. Your grace? Cham. I will, my lord. [Cham. goes to the company, and returns. Such a one, they all confess, Let me see, then.-- make You have found him, cardinal: You hold a fair assembly; you do well, lord: I am glad, The Viscount Rochford, one of her highness' wo There's fresher air, my lord, In the next chamber. I must not yet forsake you.-Let's be merry ;- 1 Gent. Yes, truly he is, and condemn'd upon it. So are a number more. That fed him with his prophecies? That was he, The same. All these accus'd him strongly; which he fain Would have flung from him, but, indeed, he could not: And so his peers, upon this evidence, 2 Gent. After all this, how did he bear himself? His knell rung out, his judgment,—he was stirr'd Sure, he does not, 1 Cavendish, from whom Stowe and Holinshed copied was made and prepared for him, and there new appaSir relled him with rich and princely garments. And in the their account, says that the cardinal pitched upon Edward Neville, a comely knight of a goodly personage, time of the king's absence the dishes of the banquet were that much more resembled the king's person in that cleane taken up, and the tables spread with new and mask than any other,' upon which the king plucked sweet perfumed cloths.-Then the king took his seat down his visor and Master Neville's also, and dashed under the cloth of estate, commanding no man to reout with such a pleasant cheer and countenance, that all move, but set still as they did before. Then in came a noble estates there assembled, seeing the king to be new banquet before the king's majesty, and to all the rest through the tables, wherein, I suppose, were served there amongst them, rejoiced very much.' two hundred dishes or above. Thus passed they forth the whole night with banquetting,' &c. 2 i. e. waggishly, mischievously. 3 A kiss was anciently the established fee of a lady's partner. The custom is still prevalent among country people in many parts of the kingdom. 4 According to Cavendish, the king, on discovering himself, being desired by Wolsey to take his place under the state or seat of honour, said that he would go first and shift his apparel, and so departed, and went straight into my lord's bedchamber, where a great fire 5 Thus in Antonio and Mellida: Fla. Faith, the song will seem to come off hardly. Catz. Troth, not a whit, if you seem to come oft quickly. Fla. Pert Catzo, knock it, then.' 6 Either produced no effect, or produced only ineffectual pity. No doubt, he will requite it. This is noted, And generally: whoever the king favours, The cardinal instantly will find employment, And far enough from court too. 2 Gent. All the commons Shall cry for blessings on him: May he live Lov. To the water side I must conduct your grace; Then give my charge up to Sir Nicholas Vaux, Who undertakes you to your end. l'aux. Prepare there, Hate him perniciously, and, o' my conscience, The mirror of all courtesy ;1 1 Gent. Stay there, sir, And see the noble ruin'd man you speak of. Enter BUCKINGHAM from his arraignment; Tipstaves before him, the axe with the edge towards him; halberts on each side: with him SIR THOMAS LOVELL, SIR NICHOLAS VAUX, SIR WILLIAM SANDS, and common People. 2 Gent, Let's stand close, and behold him. And, if I have a conscience, let it sink me, But those, that sought it, I could wish more chris Lov. I do beseech your grace, for charity, If ever any malice in your heart Were hid against me, now to forgive me frankly. Buck. Sir Thomas Lovell, I as free forgive you, As I would be forgiven: I forgive all; There cannot be those numberless offences 'Gainst me, I can't take peace with: no black Shall make my grave.-Commend me to his grace: And, if he speak of Buckingham, pray, tell him You met him half in heaven: my vows and prayers Yet are the king's; and, till my soul forsake me, envy 1 The report in the Old Year Book, referred to above, thus describes him.-Car il fut tres noble prince et prudent, et mirror de tout courtesie. 2 The old copy reads Sir Walter. The correction is justified by Holinshed. Sir William Sands was at this time (May, 1521) only a knight, not being created Lord Sands till April 27, 1527. Shakspeare probably did not know that he was the same person whom he has al ready introduced with that title. The error arose by placing the king's visit to Wolsey (at which time Sir William was Lord Sands) and Buckingham's condemnation in the same year; whereas the visit was made some years afterwards. 3 Evils are forcia. 4 Thus in Lord Sterline's Darius : Scarce was the lasting last divorcement made Betwixt the bodie and the soule.' 5 Johnson observes, with great truth, that these lines are remarkably tender and pathetic. 6 Shakspeare, by this expression, probably meant to make the duke say, No action expressive of malice shall Buck. Yet I am richer than my base accusers, for't. My noble father, Henry of Buckingham, And give your hearts to, when they once perceive But where they mean to sink ye. All good people, And when you would say something that is sad,10 That were the authors. 2 Gent. If the duke be guiltless, 'Tis full of woe. yet I can give you inkling Of an ensuing evil, if it fall, Greater than this. 1 Gent. Good angels keep it from us! Where may it be? You do not doubt my faith, sir? close my life. Eury is elsewhere used by Shakspeare for malice or hatred. Unless with Warburton we read 'mark my grave; a very plausible emendation of an error easily made; and which has indeed happened in an instance in King Henry V. Act ii. Sc. 2, where the old copy erroneously reads: To make the full fraught man and best endued With some supicion.' 7 The name of the duke of Buckingham most gener. ally known was Stafford; it is said that he affected the surname of Bohun, because he was lord high constable of England by inheritance of tenure from the Bohuns Shakspeare follows Holinshed. 8 I now seal my truth, my loyalty, with blood, which blood shall one day make them groan. 9 This expression occurs again in Othello :- 10 Thus also in King Richard II. : Tell thou the lamentable tale of me, 2 Gent. This secret is so weighty, 'twill require | And with what zeal! For, now he has crack'd the A strong faith' to conceal it. 1 Gent. I do not talk much. 2 Gent. Let me have it; I am confident: You shall, sir: Did you not of late days hear 1 Gent. I Gent. 2 Gent. I think, you have hit the mark: But is't 'Tis woful. [Exeunt. league Between us and the emperor, the queen's great nephew, He dives into the king's soul; and there scatters These news are every where; every tongue speaks And every true heart weeps for't: All, that dare The king's eyes, that so long have slept upon Suf. And free us from his slavery. Nor. We had need pray, Suf That she should feel the smart of this? The cardinal Will have his will, and she must fall. 1 Gent. We are too open here to argue this; Let's think in private more. For me, my lords, I love him not, nor fear him; there's my creed; SCENE II. An Antechamber in the Palace. En-As I am made without him, so I'll stand, ter the Lord Chamberlain, reading a Letter. Cham. My lord,-The horses your lordship sent for, with all the care I had, I saw well chosen, ridden, and furnished. They were young, and handsome; and of the best breed in the north. When they were ready to set out for London, a man of my lord cardinal's, by commission, and main pou er, took 'em from me; with this reason,-His master would be served before u su'ject, if not before the king: which stop-My lord, you'll bear us company? ped our mouths, sir. I fear, he will, indeed: Well, let him have them: Enter the Dukes of NORFOLK and SUFFOLK. Full of sad thoughts and troubles. I left him private, What is the cause? Cham. It seems, the marriage with his brother's wife Has erept too near his conscience. Suf. Has crept too near another lady. No, his conscience "Tis so; This is the cardinal's doing, the king-cardinal: Suf. Pray God, he do! he'll never know himself Nor. How holily he works in all his business! 1 Great fidelity. 2 Steevens erroneously explains this passage, saving to hold is to believe it held not here rather means it did not sustain itself, the rumour did not prove true. So in King Richard III. Actii. Sc. 2: 'Doth the news hold of good King Edward's death? 3 See The Winter's Tale, Act i. Sc. 2. note 8. 4 It was the main end or of ject of Wolsey to bring about a marriage between Henry and the French king's sister, the duchess of Alençon. for the state of the theatre in Shakspeare's time. When a person was to be discovered in a different apartment from that in which the rizinal speakers in the scene are exhibited, the artless mode of that time was, to place such person in the back part of the stage, behind the curtains which were occasionally suspended across it. These the person who was to be discovered (as Henry in the present case,) drew back just at the proper time. Norfolk has just said 'Let's in; and therefore should himself do some act in order to visit the king. This, indeed, in the simple state of the old stage, was The stage direction in the old copy is singular-not attended to; the knig very civilly discovering him. 'Exit Lord Chamberlain, and the king draws the cur- self. See Malone's account of the Old Theatres, in Mr. tain, and sits reading pensively. This was calculated Boswell's edition, vol. ii, 5 The meaning is, that the cardinal can, as he pleases, make high or low. I would not be so sick But this cannot continue, I'll venture one have at him.3 Cam. Was he not held a learned man? Cam. Believe me, there's an ill opinion spread Even of yourself, lord cardinal, Aside. I another. [Exeunt NORFOLK and SUFFOLK. Wol. Your grace has given a precedent of wisdom Above all princes, in committing freely I mean, the learned ones, in Christian kingdoms, Have their free voices; Rome, the nurse of judgment, Invited by your noble self, hath sent One general tongue unto us, this good man, And thank the holy conclave for their loves; Cam. Your grace must needs deserve all stran- You are so noble: To your highness' hand K. Hen. Two equal men. The queen shall be acquainted Forthwith, for what you come :-Where's Gardiner? Wol. I know, your majesty has always lov'd her So dear in heart, not to deny her that K. Hen. Ay, and the best, she shall have; and my favour To him that does best; God forbid else. Cardinal, Pr'ythee, call Gardiner to me, my new secretary; I find him a fit fellow. [Exit WOLSEY. 1 The meaning appears to be, Let care be taken that my promise be performed, that my professions of welcome be not found empty talk." 2 i. e. so sick as he is proud. 3 Steevens reads 'one heave at him;' but surely without necessity. To have at any thing or person meant to attack it, in ancient phraseology. Surrey afterwards says:- have at you, First that without the king,' &c. The phrase is derived (like many other old popular phrases) from gaming: to have at all,' was to throw for all that was staked on the board, adventuring on the cast an equal stake. 4 i. e. kept him out of the king's presence, employed in foreign embassies. 5 'Aboute this time the king received into favour Doctor Stephen Gardiner, whose service he used in matters of great secrecie and weight, admitting him in the room of Dr Pace, the which being continually abroad in am Wol. How! of me? Cam. They will not stick to say, you envied him; And, fearing he would rise, he was so virtuous, Kept him a foreign man still; which so griev'd him, That he ran mad, and died." Wol. Heaven's peace be with him! That's Christian care enough for living murmurers, There's places of rebuke. He was a fool; For he would needs be virtuous: That good fellow, If I command him, follows my appointment; I will have none so near else. Learn this, brother, We live not to be grip'd by meaner persons. K. Hen. Deliver this with modesty to the queen. [Exit GARDINER. The most convenient place that I can think of, For such receipt of learning, is Black-Friars; There ye shall meet about this weighty business :My Wolsey, see it furnish'd.-O, my lord, Would it not grieve an able man, to leave So sweet a bedfellow? But, conscience, conscience, O, 'tis a tender place, and I must leave her. [Exeunt. SCENE III. An Antechamber in the Queen's Apartments. Enter ANNE BULLEN, and an old Lady. Anne. Not for that neither;-Here's the pang that pinches : His highness having lived so long with her; and she Old L. Melt and lament for her. Anne. Hearts of most hard temper O, God's will! much better She ne'er had known pomp: though it be tempora Yet, if that quarrel, fortune, do divorce? It from the bearer, 'tis a sufferance, panging As soul and body's severing." bassades, and the same oftentymes not much necessarie by the Cardinalles appointment, at length he toke such greefe therwith, that he fell out of his right wittes.'Holinshed. 6 To send her away contemptuously; to pronounce against her a sentence of ejection. 7 I think with Steevens that we should read:'Yet if that quarrel, fortune to divorce It from the bearer,' &c. i. e. if any quarrel happen or chance to divorce it from the bearer. To fortune is a verb, used by Shakspeare in The Two Gentlemen of Verona :- I'll tell you as we pass along 8 Thus in Antony and Cleopatra : The soul and body rive not more at parting To pang is used as a verb active by Skelton, in his book of Philip Sparrow, 1568, sig. R v. : What heaviness did me pange.' |