A consent to worke wickednesse [between Richard, Buckingham, and Hastings. They agreed to remove the Queen's friends from the young King.] by long succession from his ancestrie, the other by his office and the kings fauour. These two, not bearing ech to other so much loue, as hatred both vnto the queenes part, in this point accorded togither with the duke of Glocester; that they would vtterlie remoue from the kings companie all his mothers freends, vnder the name of their enimies. Upon this concluded the duke of Glocester, vnderstanding that the lords, which at that time were about the king, intended to bring him vp to his coronation accompanied with such power of their freends, that it should be hard for him to bring his purpose to passe, without the gathering and great assemblie of people and in maner of open warre, whereof the end (he wist) was doubtfull; and in which, the king being on their side, his part should haue the face and name of a rebellion: he secretlie therfore by diuers means caused the queene1 to be persuaded and brought in the mind, that ought not to it neither were need, and also should be ieopardous, the king to come vp strong. [Richard persuaded the Queen that her son have a large escort.] For whereas now euerie lord loued other, and none other thing studied vpon, but about the coronation and honor of the king; if the lords of hir kindred should assemble in the kings name much people, they should giue the lords, betwixt whome and them had beene sometime debate, to feare and suspect, least they should gather this people, not for the kings safegard, (whome no man impugned,) but for their destruction; hauing more regard to their old variance, than their new attonement. For which cause they should assemble on the other partie much people againe for their defense, (whose power she wist well far stretched,) and thus should all the realme fall on a rore. And of all the hurt that thereof should insue, (which was likelie [p. 715] not to be little, and the most harme there like to fall where she least would,) all the world would put hir and hir kindered in the wight, and saie that they had vnwiselie and vntrulie also broken the amitie & peace, that the king hir husband so prudentlie made, betweene his kin and 1 In the play Queen Elizabeth is not asked to give her opinion about the number of her son's escort. Richard merely requests her and his mother to deliver their "censures" touching the persons who are to be sent post to Ludlow (II. ii. 141-144). hirs in his death bed, and which the other partie faithfullie obserued. The queene, being in this wise persuaded, such word sent vnto hir sonne, and vnto hir brother, being about the king, and ouer that the duke of Glocester himselfe and other lords, the chiefe of his bend, wrote vnto the king so reuerentlie, and to the queenes freends there so louinglie, that they, nothing earthlie mistrusting, brought the king vp in great hast, not in good speed, with a sober companie. Act II. sc. iii.-Three London Citizens meet and discuss the news of Edward's death, which is not yet generally known (ll. 7, 8). Before they go out, the Second Citizen remarks (ll. 38, 40): Truly, the hearts 1 of men are full of feare: [So the King Ludlow went from with a small company.] These lines contain reminiscences of a passage describing public feeling in June, 1483; 2 when [Hol. iii. 721/2/57. More, 43/19.] began there, here and there abouts, some maner of muttering among the people, as though all should not long be well, though they neither wist what they feared, nor wherefore were it, that, before such great things, mens hearts of a secret instinct of nature misgiue them; as the sea without wind swelleth of himselfe sometime before a tempest: 3 ... Act II. sc. iv.-Thomas Rotherham, Archbishop of York, imparts to At Stonistratford will they be to night : To morrow, or next day, they will be here. In a previous scene (II. ii. 146-154) Richard and Buckingham resolved to leave London, and meet the King on his way to the capital. My next excerpt concerns the two Dukes' arrival at Northampton. 3 as the sea... tempest] Hol. as the south wynde somtyme swelleth of hym selfe before a tempeste Halle (358). On receiving news of Edward's death, Richard left York for London, and met the Duke of Buckingham at Northampton. Thence the two Dukes went A A [Men warned instinct of by a secret great political changes.] [Richard and came to [Hol. iii. 715/1/15. More, 15/23.] Now was the king in his waie to London gone from Northampton, when these dukes of Buckingham Glocester and Buckingham came thither; where remained behind Northamp the lord Riuers the kings vncle, intending on the morrow to follow the king, and to be with him at Stonie Stratford, certeine miles ton after the King had left for Stony Stratford.] thence, earlie, yer he departed. loyal I have quoted above the reading of the Quartos (Q1). The Folio has (11. 1-3): Last night I heard they lay at Stony Stratford; To morrow, or next day, they will be heere. London is nearer Stony Stratford than Northampton,1 but the Folio reading may be, perhaps, defended,2 on the ground that Richard and Buckingham, after arresting Rivers, Grey, and Vaughan, brought the King back from Stony Stratford to Northampton. These arrests made, 8 [Hol. iii. 715/2/51. More, 18/26.] the duke of Glocester tooke [Richard's vpon himselfe the order and gouernance of the yoong king, whome demeanour.] with much honor and humble reuerence he conueied vpward towards the citie. But, anon, the tidings of this matter came hastilie to the queene a little before the midnight following, and that in the sorest wise: that the king hir son was taken, hir brother, hir sonne, & hir other freends arrested, and sent, no man wist whither, to be doone with God wot what. [The Queen had speedy news of her son's cap ture and her friends' arrest.] [Archbishop Rotherham had news of the King's return to Northampton.] Now came there one in likewise not long after midnight from the lord chamberleine [Hastings], to doctor Rotheram the archbishop of Yorke, then chancellor of England, to his place not farre from Westminster. And for that he shewed his seruants that he had tidings of so great importance, that his maister gaue [p. 716] him in charge, not to forbeare his rest, they letted not to wake him, nor he to admit this messenger in, to his bed side. Of whom he heard that these dukes were gone backe with the kings grace from Stonie Stratford vnto Northampton. "Notwithstanding, sir" (quoth he) "my lord sendeth your lordship word, that there is no to Stony Stratford, where they found the King.-Polyd. Verg., 539, 540. Richard was appointed Lieutenant-General against the Scots, June 12, 1482.— Rymer, xii. 157, 158. 1 The difference is fourteen miles.-Lewis. 2 This explanation is, however, inconsistent with the fact that Rotherham is made to speak unconcernedly of the King's return to Northampton. 3 Hol. iii, 715/1/48-2/30. More, 16/20-18/7. "feare: for he assureth you that all shall be well." "I assure "him" (quoth the archbishop) "be it as well as it will, it will "neuer be so well as we haue seene it." Thus, according to the historical narrative, Queen Elizabeth had learnt all before Rotherham received his information, yet in the play she accepts what he tells her as news. The young Duke of York is entertaining the Queen and Duchess with his waggish humour when a messenger1 announces (ll. 42-45) that, by "the mighty Dukes, Gloucester and Buckingham," Lord Riuers and Lord Grey are sent to Pomfret, Both Dukes took part in the arrests (Hol. iii. 715/1/61; 2/27. [Hol. iii. 715/2/46. More, 18/21.] sent the lord Riuers, and the lord Richard, with sir Thomas Vaughan, into the north countrie, into diuerse places to prison; and afterward all to Pomfret, where they were in conclusion beheaded. Hoping to save her younger son from destruction, the Queen says (1.66): . Come, come, my Boy; we will to Sanctuary. 68 72 The death of the lord other [at On hearing what had befallen her elder son, Queen Elizabeth, [Hol. iii. 715/2/60. More, 19/1.] in great fright & heauinesse, bewailing hir childes reigne, hir freends mischance, and hir owne infortune, damning the time that euer she dissuaded the gathering of power about the king, gat hir selfe in all the hast possible with hir yoonger sonne and hir daughters out of the palace of Westminster, (in which she then laie,) into the sanctuarie; lodging hir The queene selfe and hir companie there in the abbats place. After the departure of Hasting's messenger, Rotherham [Hol. iii. 716/1/11. More, 19/25.] caused in all the hast all his seruants to be called vp, and so, with his owne houshold about him, and euerie man weaponed, he tooke the great seale with him, and came yet before daie vnto the queene. About whom he found 1 In the Qq. Dorset is the bearer of these tidings. 2 43. With them] Q. and with them F. taketh sanctuarie. [The Archto West bishop went minster, and found men removing much heauinesse, rumble, hast, and businesse; cariage and conthe Queen's ueiance of hir stuffe into sanctuarie; chests, coffers, packs, fardels, goods from The palace to the sanctuary.] The desolate state of the queene. trussed all on mens backs; no man vnoccupied, some lading, some going, some discharging, some comming for more, some breaking downe the walles to bring in the next waie, and some yet drew to them that holpe to carrie a wrong waie: . . . The queene hir selfe sate alone alow on the rushes all desolate and dismaid, whome the archbishop comforted in best manner he could; shewing hir that he trusted the matter was nothing so sore as she tooke it for, and that he was put in good hope and out of feare by the message sent him from the lord chamberleine. "Ah, wo woorth him!" (quoth she) "for he is one of them that "laboreth to destroie me and my bloud." "Madame" (quoth he) "be yee of good cheere, for I assure you, if they crowne anie other 'king than your sonne, whome they now haue with them, we shall "on the morow crowne his brother, whome you haue here with "you. And here is the great seale, which in likewise as that noble and gave her "prince your husband deliuered it vnto me; so here I deliuer it [He comforted her, the Great Seal.] [The King asserted the innocence of "vnto you, to the vse and behoofe of your sonne:" and therewith he betooke hir the great seale, and departed home againe, yet in the dawning of the daie. Act III. sc. i.-After receiving the congratulations of Buckingham and Richard upon his entrance into London, the young King says (1. 6): I want more Vnkles 1 heere to welcome me. Richard answers: Those Vnkles which you want were dangerous; But look'd not on the poyson of their hearts: God keepe you from them, and from such false Friends! 12 Prin. God keepe me from false Friends! but they were none. 16 Richard and Buckingham arrested Rivers before they left Northampton. At Stony Stratford they overtook the King, and arrested in his presence Sir Richard Grey, whom they accused of plotting with Rivers and Dorset to obtain supreme control of the realm. [Hol. iii. 715/2/21. More, 17/31.] Vnto which words the king answered: What my brother marquesse hath doone I cannot 1 Sir Richard Grey was the King's half-brother. See the excerpt quoted to illustrate ll. 6; 12-16. Rivers, Grey, and Vaughan were arrested on April 30, 1483.-Cont. Croyl., 565. |