He throws down his gage

Engage it to the trial if thou dar’st.

FITZWALTER

How fondly dost thou spur a forward horse!

If I dare eat, or drink, or breathe, or live,

I dare meet Surrey in a wilderness

And spit upon him whilst I say he lies,

And lies, and lies. There is my bond of faith

To tie thee to my strong correction.

As I intend to thrive in this new world,

Aumerle is guilty of my true appeal.

Besides, I heard the banished Norfolk say

That thou, Aumerle, didst send two of thy men

To execute the noble Duke at Calais.

AUMERLE

Some honest Christian trust me with a gage.

He takes another’s gage and throws it down

That Norfolk lies, here do I throw down this,

If he may be repealed, to try his honour.

BOLINGBROKE

These differences shall all rest under gage

Till Norfolk be repealed. Repealed he shall be,

And, though mine enemy, restored again

To all his lands and signories. When he is returned,

Against Aumerle we will enforce his trial.

BISHOP OF CARLISLE

That honourable day shall never be seen.

Many a time hath banished Norfolk fought

For Jesu Christ in glorious Christian field,

Streaming the ensign of the Christian cross

Against black pagans, Turks, and Saracens;

And, toiled with works of war, retired himself

To Italy, and there at Venice gave

His body to that pleasant country’s earth,

And his pure soul unto his captain, Christ,

Under whose colours he had fought so long.

BOLINGBROKE

Why, Bishop of Carlisle, is Norfolk dead?

BISHOP OF CARLISLE

As surely as I live, my lord.

BOLINGBROKE

Sweet peace conduct his sweet soul to the bosom

Of good old Abraham! Lords appellants,

Your differences shall all rest under gage

Till we assign you to your days of trial.

Enter the Duke of York

YORK

Great Duke of Lancaster, I come to thee

From plume-plucked Richard, who with willing soul

Adopts thee heir, and his high sceptre yields

To the possession of thy royal hand.

Ascend his throne, descending now from him,

And long live Henry, of that name the fourth!

BOLINGBROKE

In God’s name I’ll ascend the regal throne.

BISHOP OF CARLISLE Marry, God forbid!

Worst in this royal presence may I speak,

Yet best beseeming me to speak the truth.

Would God that any in this noble presence

Were enough noble to be upright judge

Of noble Richard. Then true noblesse would

Learn him forbearance from so foul a wrong.

What subject can give sentence on his king?

And who sits here that is not Richard’s subject?

Thieves are not judged but they are by to hear,

Although apparent guilt be seen in them;

And shall the figure of God’s majesty,

His captain, steward, deputy elect,

Anointed, crowned, planted many years,

Be judged by subject and inferior breath,

And he himself not present? O, forfend it, God,

That in a Christian climate souls refined

Should show so heinous, black, obscene a deed!

I speak to subjects, and a subject speaks

Stirred up by God thus boldly for his king.

My lord of Hereford here, whom you call king,

Is a foul traitor to proud Hereford’s king;

And, if you crown him, let me prophesy

The blood of English shall manure the ground,

And future ages groan for this foul act.

Peace shall go sleep with Turks and infidels,

And in this seat of peace tumultuous wars

Shall kin with kin and kind with kind confound.

Disorder, horror, fear, and mutiny

Shall here inhabit, and this land be called

The field of Golgotha and dead men’s skulls.

O, if you rear this house against this house

It will the woefullest division prove

That ever fell upon this cursed earth!

Prevent, resist it; let it not be so,

Lest child, child’s children, cry against you woe.

NORTHUMBERLAND

Well have you argued, sir, and for your pains

Of capital treason we arrest you here.

My lord of Westminster, be it your charge

To keep him safely till his day of trial.

May it please you, lords, to grant the Commons’ suit?

BOLINGBROKE

Fetch hither Richard, that in common view

He may surrender. So we shall proceed

Without suspicion.

YORK

I will be his conduct.

Exit

BOLINGBROKE

Lords, you that here are under our arrest,

Procure your sureties for your days of answer.

Little are we beholden to your love,

And little looked for at your helping hands.

Enter Richard and the Duke of York, ⌈with attendants bearing the crown and sceptre⌉

RICHARD

Alack, why am I sent for to a king

Before I have shook off the regal thoughts

Wherewith I reigned? I hardly yet have learned

To insinuate, flatter, bow, and bend my knee.

Give sorrow leave awhile to tutor me

To this submission. Yet I well remember

The favours of these men. Were they not mine?