KING RICHARD THE THIRD

Act 5 Scene 5

(A table brought in. Enter King Richard, Sir Richard Ratcliffe, the Duke of Norfolk, Sir William Catesby, and others)
l1l	King Richard	 What is ’t o’clock?
l2l	Catesby	It’s supper-time, my lord. It’s nine o’clock.
l3l	King Richard	I will not sup tonight. Give me some ink and paper.
l4l		What, is my beaver easier than it was?
l5l		And all my armour laid into my tent?
l6l	Catesby	It is, my liege, and all things are in readiness.
l7l	King Richard	Good Norfolk, hie thee to thy charge.
l8l		Use careful watch# choose trusty sentinels.
l9l	Norfolk	I go, my lord.
l10l	King Richard	Stir with the lark tomorrow, gentle Norfolk.
l11l	Norfolk	I warrant you, my lord.
		(Exit)
		
	King Richard	 Catesby.
	Catesby	My lord?
l12l	King Richard	Send out a pursuivant-at-arms
l13l		To Stanley’s regiment. Bid him bring his power
l14l		Before sun-rising, lest his son George fall
l15l		Into the blind cave of eternal night.
		(Exit Catesby)
l16l		Fill me a bowl of wine. Give me a watch.
l17l		Saddle white Surrey for the field tomorrow.
l18l		Look that my staves be sound, and not too heavy.
l19l		Ratcliffe.
l20l	Ratcliffe	My lord?
l21l	King Richard	Saw’st thou the melancholy Lord Northumberland?
l22l	Ratcliffe	Thomas the Earl of Surrey and himself,
l23l		Much about cockshut time, from troop to troop
l24l		Went through the army, cheering up the soldiers.
l25l	King Richard	So, I am satisfied. Give me some wine.
l26l		I have not that alacrity of spirit,
l27l		Nor cheer of mind, that I was wont to have.
		(The wine is brought)
l28l		Set it down. Is ink and paper ready?
l29l	Ratcliffe	It is, my lord.
	King Richard	Leave me. Bid my guard watch.
l30l		About the mid of night come to my tent,
l31l		Ratcliffe, and help to arm me. Leave me, I say.
		(Exit Ratcliffe with others. Richard writes, and later sleeps)
l32l		(Enter Lord Stanley Earl of Derby to Henry Earl of Richmond and the lords in his tent)
		Stanley	 Fortune and victory sit on thy helm!
l33l	Henry Earl Of Richmond	All comfort that the dark night can afford
l34l		Be to thy person, noble father-in-law.
l35l		Tell me, how fares our loving mother?
l36l	Stanley	I, by attorney, bless thee from thy mother,
l37l		Who prays continually for Richmond’s good.
l38l		So much for that. The silent hours steal on,
l39l		And flaky darkness breaks within the east.
l40l		In brief—for so the season bids us be—
l41l		Prepare thy battle early in the morning,
l42l		And put thy fortune to th’ arbitrement
l43l		Of bloody strokes and mortal-sharing war.
l44l		I, as I may—that which I would, I cannot—
l45l		With best advantage will deceive the time,
l46l		And aid thee in this doubtful shock of arms.
l47l		But on thy side I may not be too forward—
l48l		Lest, being seen, thy brother, tender George,
l49l		Be executed in his father’s sight.
l50l		Farewell. The leisure and the fearful time
l51l		Cuts off the ceremonious vows of love
l52l		And ample interchange of sweet discourse,
l53l		Which so long sundered friends should dwell upon.
l54l		God give us leisure for these rights of love.
l55l		Once more, adieu. Be valiant, and speed well.
l56l	Henry Earl Of Richmond	Good lords, conduct him to his regiment.
l57l		I’ll strive with troubled thoughts to take a nap,
l58l		Lest leaden slumber peise me down tomorrow,
l59l		When I should mount with wings of victory.
l60l		Once more, good night, kind lords and gentlemen.
		(Exeunt Stanley and the lords)
l61l		(Richmond kneels)
		 O thou, whose captain I account myself,
l62l		Look on my forces with a gracious eye.
l63l		Put in their hands thy bruising irons of wrath,
l64l		That they may crush down with a heavy fall
l65l		Th’ usurping helmets of our adversaries.
l66l		Make us thy ministers of chastisement,
l67l		That we may praise thee in the victory.
l68l		To thee I do commend my watchful soul,
l69l		Ere I let fall the windows of mine eyes.
l70l		Sleeping and waking, O defend me still!
		(He sleeps)
l71l		(Enter the Ghost of young Prince Edward above)
		 
	Ghost Of Prince Edward	
		(to Richard)
		 Let me sit heavy on thy soul tomorrow,
l72l		Prince Edward, son to Henry the Sixth.
l73l		Think how thou stabbedst me in my prime of youth
l74l		At Tewkesbury. Despair, therefore, and die.
l75l		(To Richmond)
		 Be cheerful, Richmond, for the wrongèd souls
l76l		Of butchered princes fight in thy behalf.
l77l		King Henry’s issue, Richmond, comforts thee.
		(Exit)
l78l		(Enter above the Ghost of King Henry the Sixth)
		 
	Ghost Of King Henry	
		(to Richard)
		 When I was mortal, my anointed body
l79l		By thee was punchèd full of deadly holes.
l80l		Think on the Tower and me. Despair and die.
l81l		Harry the Sixth bids thee despair and die.
l82l		(To Richmond)
		 Virtuous and holy, be thou conqueror.
l83l		Harry that prophesied thou shouldst be king
l84l		Comforts thee in thy sleep. Live and flourish!
		(Exit)
l85l		(Enter above the Ghost of George Duke of Clarence)
		 
	Ghost Of Clarence	
		(to Richard)
		 Let me sit heavy on thy soul tomorrow,
l86l		I that was washed to death with fulsome wine,
l87l		Poor Clarence, by thy guile betrayed to death.
l88l		Tomorrow in the battle think on me,
l89l		And fall thy edgeless sword. Despair and die.
l90l		(To Richmond)
		 Thou offspring of the house of Lancaster,
l91l		The wrongèd heirs of York do pray for thee.
l92l		Good angels guard thy battle. Live and flourish!
		(Exit)
l93l		(Enter above the Ghosts of Lord Rivers, Lord Gray, and Sir Thomas Vaughan)
		Ghost Of Rivers	(to Richard)
		 Let me sit heavy on thy soul tomorrow,
l94l		Rivers that died at Pomfret. Despair and die.
l95l	Ghost Of Gray	(to Richard)
		 Think upon Gray, and let thy soul despair.
l96l	Ghost Of Vaughan	(to Richard)
		 Think upon Vaughan, and with guilty fear
l97l		Let fall thy pointless lance. Despair and die.
l98l	All Three	(to Richmond)
		 Awake, and think our wrongs in Richard’s bosom
l99l		Will conquer him. Awake, and win the day!
		(Exeunt Ghosts)
l100l		(Enter above the Ghosts of the two young Princes)
		 
	[Ghosts Of The Princes]	
		(to Richard)
		 Dream on thy cousins, smothered in the Tower.
l101l		Let us be lead within thy bosom, Richard,
l102l		And weigh thee down to ruin, shame, and death.
l103l		Thy nephews’ souls bid thee despair and die.
l104l		(To Richmond)
		 Sleep, Richmond, sleep in peace and wake in joy.
l105l		Good angels guard thee from the boar’s annoy.
l106l		Live, and beget a happy race of kings!
l107l		Edward’s unhappy sons do bid thee flourish.
		(Exeunt Ghosts)
l108l		(Enter above the Ghost of Lord Hastings)
		Ghost Of Hastings	
		(to Richard)
		 Bloody and guilty, guiltily awake,
l109l		And in a bloody battle end thy days.
l110l		Think on Lord Hastings, then despair and die.
l111l		(To Richmond)
		 Quiet, untroubled soul, awake, awake!
l112l		Arm, fight, and conquer for fair England’s sake.
		(Exit)
l113l		(Enter above the Ghost of Lady Anne)
		Ghost Of Lady Anne	
		(to Richard)
		 Richard, thy wife, that wretched Anne thy wife,
l114l		That never slept a quiet hour with thee,
l115l		Now fills thy sleep with perturbations.
l116l		Tomorrow in the battle think on me,
l117l		And fall thy edgeless sword. Despair and die.
l118l		(To Richmond)
		 Thou quiet soul, sleep thou a quiet sleep.
l119l		Dream of success and happy victory.
l120l		Thy adversary’s wife doth pray for thee.
		(Exit)
l121l		(Enter above the Ghost of the Duke of Buckingham)
		 
	Ghost Of Buckingham	
		(to Richard)
		 The first was I that helped thee to the crown#
l122l		The last was I that felt thy tyranny.
l123l		O in the battle think on Buckingham,
l124l		And die in terror of thy guiltiness!
l125l		Dream on, dream on, of bloody deeds and death#
l126l		Fainting, despair# despairing, yield thy breath.
l127l		(To Richmond)
		 I died for hope ere I could lend thee aid.
l128l		But cheer thy heart, and be thou not dismayed.
l129l		God and good angels fight on Richmond’s side,
l130l		And Richard falls in height of all his pride.
		(Exit)
l131l		(Richard starteth up out of a dream)
		King Richard	 Give me another horse! Bind up my wounds!
l132l		Have mercy, Jesu!—Soft, I did but dream.
l133l		O coward conscience, how dost thou afflict me?
l134l		The lights burn blue. It is now dead midnight.
l135l		Cold fearful drops stand on my trembling flesh.
l136l		What do I fear? Myself? There’s none else by.
l137l		Richard loves Richard# that is, I am I.
l138l		Is there a murderer here? No. Yes, I am.
l139l		Then fly! What, from myself? Great reason. Why?
l140l		Lest I revenge. Myself upon myself?
l141l		Alack, I love myself. Wherefore? For any good
l142l		That I myself have done unto myself?
l143l		O no, alas, I rather hate myself
l144l		For hateful deeds committed by myself.
l145l		I am a villain. Yet I lie: I am not.
l146l		Fool, of thyself speak well.—Fool, do not flatter.
l147l		My conscience hath a thousand several tongues,
l148l		And every tongue brings in a several tale,
l149l		And every tale condemns me for a villain.
l150l		Perjury, perjury, in the high’st degree!
l151l		Murder, stern murder, in the dir’st degree!
l152l		All several sins, all used in each degree,
l153l		Throng to the bar, crying all, “Guilty, guilty!”
l154l		I shall despair. There is no creature loves me,
l155l		And if I die no soul will pity me.
l156l		Nay, wherefore should they?—Since that I myself
l157l		Find in myself no pity to myself.
l158l		Methought the souls of all that I had murdered
l159l		Came to my tent, and every one did threat
l160l		Tomorrow’s vengeance on the head of Richard.
		(Enter Ratcliffe)
l161l	Ratcliffe	 My lord?
l162l	King Richard	’Swounds, who is there?
l163l	Ratcliffe	My lord, ’tis I. The early village cock
l164l		Hath twice done salutation to the morn.
l165l		Your friends are up, and buckle on their armour.
l166l	King Richard	O Ratcliffe, I have dreamed a fearful dream.
l167l		What thinkest thou, will all our friends prove true?
l168l	Ratcliffe	No doubt, my lord.
	King Richard	Ratcliffe, I fear, I fear.
l169l	Ratcliffe	Nay, good my lord, be not afraid of shadows.
l170l	King Richard	By the Apostle Paul, shadows tonight
l171l		Have struck more terror to the soul of Richard
l172l		Than can the substance of ten thousand soldiers
l173l		Armèd in proof and led by shallow Richmond.
l174l		’Tis not yet near day. Come, go with me.
l175l		Under our tents I’ll play the eavesdropper,
l176l		To see if any mean to shrink from me.
		(Exeunt Richard and Ratcliffe)
l177l		(Enter the lords to Henry Earl of Richmond, sitting in his tent)
		[Lords]	 Good morrow, Richmond.
l178l	Henry Earl Of Richmond	Cry mercy, lords and watchful gentlemen,
l179l		That you have ta’en a tardy sluggard here.
l180l	[A Lord]	How have you slept, my lord?
l181l	Henry Earl Of Richmond	The sweetest sleep and fairest boding dreams
l182l		That ever entered in a drowsy head
l183l		Have I since your departure had, my lords.
l184l		Methought their souls whose bodies Richard murdered
l185l		Came to my tent and cried on victory.
l186l		I promise you, my soul is very jocund
l187l		In the remembrance of so fair a dream.
l188l		How far into the morning is it, lords?
l189l	[A Lord]	Upon the stroke of four.
l190l	Henry Earl Of Richmond	Why then, ’tis time to arm, and give direction.
		(His oration to his soldiers)
l191l		Much that I could say, loving countrymen,
l192l		The leisure and enforcement of the time
l193l		Forbids to dwell on. Yet remember this:
l194l		God and our good cause fight upon our side.
l195l		The prayers of holy saints and wrongèd souls,
l196l		Like high-reared bulwarks, stand before our forces.
l197l		Richard except, those whom we fight against
l198l		Had rather have us win than him they follow.
l199l		For what is he they follow? Truly, friends,
l200l		A bloody tyrant and a homicide#
l201l		One raised in blood, and one in blood established#
l202l		One that made means to come by what he hath,
l203l		And slaughtered those that were the means to help him#
l204l		A base, foul stone, made precious by the foil
l205l		Of England’s chair, where he is falsely set#
l206l		One that hath ever been God’s enemy.
l207l		Then if you fight against God’s enemy,
l208l		God will, in justice, ward you as his soldiers.
l209l		If you do sweat to put a tyrant down,
l210l		You sleep in peace, the tyrant being slain.
l211l		If you do fight against your country’s foes,
l212l		Your country’s foison pays your pains the hire.
l213l		If you do fight in safeguard of your wives,
l214l		Your wives shall welcome home the conquerors.
l215l		If you do free your children from the sword,
l216l		Your children’s children quites it in your age.
l217l		Then, in the name of God and all these rights,
l218l		Advance your standards! Draw your willing swords!
l219l		For me, the ransom of this bold attempt
l220l		Shall be my cold corpse on the earth’s cold face#
l221l		But if I thrive, to gain of my attempt,
l222l		The least of you shall share his part thereof.
l223l		Sound, drums and trumpets, bold and cheerfully!
l224l		God and Saint George! Richmond and victory!
		(Exeunt to the sound of drums and trumpets)