Original Text |
Translated Text |
| Source: Folger Shakespeare Library |
|
Sound trumpets. Enter King Henry and State
(Queen Margaret, Gloucester, York, Salisbury, Suffolk,
and Others) with Guard, to banish the Duchess of
Gloucester, who is accompanied by Margery Jourdain,
Southwell, Hume, and Bolingbroke, all guarded. KING HENRY
Stand forth, Dame Eleanor Cobham, Gloucester’s
wife.
In sight of God and us, your guilt is great.
Receive the sentence of the law for sins
Such as by God’s book are adjudged to death. 5
To Jourdain, Southwell, Hume, and Bolingbroke.
You four, from hence to prison back again;
From thence unto the place of execution:
The witch in Smithfield shall be burnt to ashes,
And you three shall be strangled on the gallows.
To Duchess You, madam, for you are more nobly 10
born,
Despoilèd of your honor in your life,
Shall, after three days’ open penance done,
Live in your country here in banishment
With Sir John Stanley in the Isle of Man. 15 | At the court, Henry sentences the perps accused of witchcraft. The witch
gets burned, her colleagues will be strangled, and Eleanor gets a
lesser punishment because she's of a higher class. She gets three days
penance and then banishment to the Isle of Man—which is either as cool
as it sounds or not, depending on how you feel about sparsely populated
islands in the Irish Sea. |
DUCHESS
Welcome is banishment. Welcome were my death. GLOUCESTER
Eleanor, the law, thou seest, hath judged thee.
I cannot justify whom the law condemns. Duchess and the other prisoners exit under guard. Mine eyes are full of tears, my heart of grief.
Ah, Humphrey, this dishonor in thine age 20
Will bring thy head with sorrow to the ground.—
I beseech your Majesty give me leave to go;
Sorrow would solace, and mine age would ease. | Gloucester is overwhelmed with grief. He tells his wife he can't justify
her actions, because they're against the law, but he knows that if he
sticks around without her, he'll just be depressed. He asks Henry if he
can leave the court. |
KING HENRY
Stay, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester. Ere thou go,
Give up thy staff. Henry will to himself 25
Protector be; and God shall be my hope,
My stay, my guide, and lantern to my feet.
And go in peace, Humphrey, no less beloved
Than when thou wert Protector to thy king. QUEEN MARGARET
I see no reason why a king of years 30
Should be to be protected like a child.
God and King Henry govern England’s realm!—
Give up your staff, sir, and the King his realm. | Henry agrees on one condition: that Gloucester give up his staff (symbolizing his title of Protector). Henry is basically saying that he can protect himself from now on. Margaret wholeheartedly agrees with her husband—but with a little less tact. We don't need you anymore, she tells Gloucester. |
GLOUCESTER
My staff?—Here, noble Henry, is my staff. He puts down his staff before Henry. As willingly do I the same resign 35
As e’er thy father Henry made it mine;
And even as willingly at thy feet I leave it
As others would ambitiously receive it.
Farewell, good king. When I am dead and gone,
May honorable peace attend thy throne. 40 Gloucester exits.
Henry picks up the staff. QUEEN MARGARET
Why, now is Henry king and Margaret queen,
And Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, scarce himself,
That bears so shrewd a maim. Two pulls at once:
His lady banished and a limb lopped off.
This staff of honor raught, there let it stand 45
Where it best fits to be, in Henry’s hand. | Gloucester gladly gives up his staff and hopes Henry will have nothing but peace when he's gone. He seems to really want the best for Henry. Margaret happily declares that Henry should have the staff. He is king, after all. |
SUFFOLK
Thus droops this lofty pine and hangs his sprays;
Thus Eleanor’s pride dies in her youngest days. YORK
Lords, let him go.—Please it your Majesty,
This is the day appointed for the combat, 50
And ready are the appellant and defendant—
The armorer and his man—to enter the lists,
So please your Highness to behold the fight. QUEEN MARGARET
Ay, good my lord, for purposely therefor
Left I the court to see this quarrel tried. 55 KING HENRY
I’ God’s name, see the lists and all things fit.
Here let them end it, and God defend the right! YORK
I never saw a fellow worse bestead
Or more afraid to fight than is the appellant,
The servant of this armorer, my lords. 60 Enter at one door the Armorer Horner and his
Neighbors, drinking to him so much that he is drunk;
and he enters with a Drum before him and his staff with
a sandbag fastened to it; and at the other door his man
Peter, with a Drum and sandbag, and Prentices
drinking to him. | York remembers that today's the day when Peter and Horner are going head to head. Poor Peter, says York; he's so unprepared. |
FIRST NEIGHBOR Here, neighbor Horner, I drink to you
in a cup of sack; and fear not, neighbor, you shall
do well enough. SECOND NEIGHBOR And here, neighbor, here’s a cup of
charneco. 65 THIRD NEIGHBOR And here’s a pot of good double beer,
neighbor. Drink, and fear not your man. HORNER Let it come, i’ faith, and I’ll pledge you all.
And a fig for Peter! They drink. FIRST PRENTICE Here, Peter, I drink to thee, and be not 70
afraid. SECOND PRENTICE Be merry, Peter, and fear not thy
master. Fight for credit of the prentices. PETER I thank you all. Drink, and pray for me, I pray
you, for I think I have taken my last draft in this 75
world. Here, Robin, an if I die, I give thee my
apron.—And, Will, thou shalt have my hammer.—
And here, Tom, take all the money that I have. He
distributes his possessions. O Lord, bless me, I
pray God, for I am never able to deal with my 80
master. He hath learnt so much fence already. | Let's get ready to rumble. In one corner, we've got Horner, who's tanked
and still taking drinks from anyone who offers. In the other corner,
we've got Peter, refusing drinks from everyone... and asking for
prayers. |
SALISBURY Come, leave your drinking, and fall to
blows. Sirrah, what’s thy name? PETER Peter, forsooth. SALISBURY Peter? What more? 85 PETER Thump. SALISBURY Thump? Then see thou thump thy master
well. HORNER Masters, I am come hither, as it were, upon
my man’s instigation, to prove him a knave and 90
myself an honest man; and touching the Duke of
York, I will take my death I never meant him any
ill, nor the King, nor the Queen.—And therefore,
Peter, have at thee with a downright blow! YORK Dispatch. This knave’s tongue begins to double. 95
Sound, trumpets. Alarum to the combatants! Trumpet sounds. They fight, and Peter strikes him down. HORNER Hold, Peter, hold! I confess, I confess treason. He dies. | The men fight, and Peter strikes Horner. Well, Peter wins. |
YORK Take away his weapon.—Fellow, thank God and
the good wine in thy master’s way. PETER O God, have I overcome mine enemies in this 100
presence? O Peter, thou hast prevailed in right! KING HENRY
Go, take hence that traitor from our sight;
For by his death we do perceive his guilt.
And God in justice hath revealed to us
The truth and innocence of this poor fellow, 105
Which he had thought to have murdered
wrongfully.—
Come, fellow, follow us for thy reward. Sound a flourish. They exit, bearing Horner’s body. | Henry decides that Horner's death proves he was a traitor, so Peter will get a reward for killing a traitor. |