The Life of King Henry the Fifth

  WARWICK. How now! how now! what's the matter?  FLUELLEN. My Lord of Warwick, here is- praised be God for it! -a    most contagious treason come to light, look you, as you shall    desire in a summer's day. Here is his Majesty.

Enter the KING and EXETER

  KING HENRY. How now! what's the matter?  FLUELLEN. My liege, here is a villain and a traitor, that, look    your Grace, has struck the glove which your Majesty is takeout    of the helmet of Alencon.  WILLIAMS. My liege, this was my glove: here is the fellow ofit;    and he that I gave it to in change promis'd to wear it in his    cap; I promis'd to strike him if he did; I met this man withmy    glove in his cap, and I have been as good as my word.  FLUELLEN. Your Majesty hear now, saving your Majesty's manhood,    what an arrant, rascally, beggarly, lousy knave it is; I hope    your Majesty is pear me testimony and witness, and will    avouchment, that this is the glove of Alencon that yourMajesty    is give me; in your conscience, now.  KING HENRY. Give me thy glove, soldier; look, here is thefellow of      it.    'Twas I, indeed, thou promised'st to strike,    And thou hast given me most bitter terms.  FLUELLEN. An please your Majesty, let his neck answer for it,if    there is any martial law in the world.  KING HENRY. How canst thou make me satisfaction?  WILLIAMS. All offences, my lord, come from the heart; nevercame    any from mine that might offend your Majesty.  KING HENRY. It was ourself thou didst abuse.  WILLIAMS. Your Majesty came not like yourself: you appear'd tome    but as a common man; witness the night, your garments, your    lowliness; and what your Highness suffer'd under that shape I    beseech you take it for your own fault, and not mine; for hadyou    been as I took you for, I made no offence; therefore, Ibeseech    your Highness pardon me.  KING HENRY. Here, uncle Exeter, fill this glove with crowns,    And give it to this fellow. Keep it, fellow;    And wear it for an honour in thy cap    Till I do challenge it. Give him the crowns;    And, Captain, you must needs be friends with him.  FLUELLEN. By this day and this light, the fellow has mettleenough    in his belly: hold, there is twelve pence for you; and I prayyou    to serve God, and keep you out of prawls, and prabbles, and    quarrels, and dissensions, and, I warrant you, it is thebetter    for you.  WILLIAMS. I will none of your money.  FLUELLEN. It is with a good will; I can tell you it will serveyou    to mend your shoes. Come, wherefore should you be so pashful?    Your shoes is not so good. 'Tis a good silling, I warrantyou, or    I will change it.

Enter an ENGLISH HERALD

  KING HENRY. Now, herald, are the dead numb'red?  HERALD. Here is the number of the slaught'red French.                                                 [Gives a paper]  KING HENRY. What prisoners of good sort are taken, uncle?  EXETER. Charles Duke of Orleans, nephew to the King;    John Duke of Bourbon, and Lord Bouciqualt;    Of other lords and barons, knights and squires,    Full fifteen hundred, besides common men.  KING HENRY. This note doth tell me of ten thousand French    That in the field lie slain; of princes in this number,    And nobles bearing banners, there lie dead    One hundred twenty-six; added to these,    Of knights, esquires, and gallant gentlemen,    Eight thousand and four hundred; of the which    Five hundred were but yesterday dubb'd knights.    So that, in these ten thousand they have lost,    There are but sixteen hundred mercenaries;    The rest are princes, barons, lords, knights, squires,    And gentlemen of blood and quality.    The names of those their nobles that lie dead:    Charles Delabreth, High Constable of France;    Jaques of Chatillon, Admiral of France;    The master of the cross-bows, Lord Rambures;    Great Master of France, the brave Sir Guichard Dolphin;    John Duke of Alencon; Antony Duke of Brabant,    The brother to the Duke of Burgundy;    And Edward Duke of Bar. Of lusty earls,    Grandpre and Roussi, Fauconbridge and Foix,    Beaumont and Marle, Vaudemont and Lestrake.    Here was a royal fellowship of death!    Where is the number of our English dead?                                 [HERALD presents another paper]    Edward the Duke of York, the Earl of Suffolk,    Sir Richard Kikely, Davy Gam, Esquire;    None else of name; and of all other men    But five and twenty. O God, thy arm was here!    And not to us, but to thy arm alone,    Ascribe we all. When, without stratagem,    But in plain shock and even play of battle,    Was ever known so great and little los    On one part and on th' other? Take it, God,    For it is none but thine.  EXETER. 'Tis wonderful!  KING HENRY. Come, go we in procession to the village;    And be it death proclaimed through our host    To boast of this or take that praise from God    Which is his only.  FLUELLEN. Is it not lawful, an please your Majesty, to tell how    many is kill'd?  KING HENRY. Yes, Captain; but with this acknowledgment,    That God fought for us.  FLUELLEN. Yes, my conscience, he did us great good.  KING HENRY. Do we all holy rites:    Let there be sung 'Non nobis' and 'Te Deum';    The dead with charity enclos'd in clay-    And then to Calais; and to England then;    Where ne'er from France arriv'd more happy men. Exeunt

ACT V. PROLOGUE

Enter CHORUS

  CHORUS. Vouchsafe to those that have not read the story    That I may prompt them; and of such as have,    I humbly pray them to admit th' excuse    Of time, of numbers, and due course of things,    Which cannot in their huge and proper life    Be here presented. Now we bear the King    Toward Calais. Grant him there. There seen,    Heave him away upon your winged thoughts    Athwart the sea. Behold, the English beach    Pales in the flood with men, with wives, and boys,    Whose shouts and claps out-voice the deep-mouth'd sea,    Which, like a mighty whiffler, fore the King    Seems to prepare his way. So let him land,    And solemnly see him set on to London.    So swift a pace hath thought that even now    You may imagine him upon Blackheath;    Where that his lords desire him to have borne    His bruised helmet and his bended sword    Before him through the city. He forbids it,    Being free from vainness and self-glorious pride;    Giving full trophy, signal, and ostent,    Quite from himself to God. But now behold    In the quick forge and working-house of thought,    How London doth pour out her citizens!    The mayor and all his brethren in best sort-    Like to the senators of th' antique Rome,    With the plebeians swarming at their heels-    Go forth and fetch their conqu'ring Caesar in;    As, by a lower but loving likelihood,    Were now the General of our gracious Empress-    As in good time he may- from Ireland coming,    Bringing rebellion broached on his sword,    How many would the peaceful city quit    To welcome him! Much more, and much more cause,    Did they this Harry. Now in London place him-    As yet the lamentation of the French    Invites the King of England's stay at home;    The Emperor's coming in behalf of France    To order peace between them; and omit    All the occurrences, whatever chanc'd,    Till Harry's back-return again to France.    There must we bring him; and myself have play'd    The interim, by rememb'ring you 'tis past.    Then brook abridgment; and your eyes advance,    After your thoughts, straight back again to France. Exit

SCENE I. France. The English camp

Enter FLUELLEN and GOWER

  GOWER. Nay, that's right; but why wear you your leek to-day?Saint    Davy's day is past.  FLUELLEN. There is occasions and causes why and wherefore inall    things. I will tell you, ass my friend, Captain Gower: the    rascally, scald, beggarly, lousy, pragging knave, Pistol-which    you and yourself and all the world know to be no petter thana    fellow, look you now, of no merits- he is come to me, andprings    me pread and salt yesterday, look you, and bid me eat myleek; it    was in a place where I could not breed no contendon with him;but    I will be so bold as to wear it in my cap till I see him once    again, and then I will tell him a little piece of my desires.

Enter PISTOL

  GOWER. Why, here he comes, swelling like a turkey-cock.  FLUELLEN. 'Tis no matter for his swellings nor histurkey-cocks.    God pless you, Aunchient Pistol! you scurvy, lousy knave, God    pless you!  PISTOL. Ha! art thou bedlam? Dost thou thirst, base Troyan,    To have me fold up Parca's fatal web?    Hence! I am qualmish at the smell of leek.  FLUELLEN. I peseech you heartily, scurvy, lousy knave, at my    desires, and my requests, and my petitions, to eat, look you,    this leek; because, look you, you do not love it, nor your    affections, and your appetites, and your digestions, does not    agree with it, I would desire you to eat it.  PISTOL. Not for Cadwallader and all his goats.  FLUELLEN. There is one goat for you. [Strikes him] Will yoube so    good, scald knave, as eat it?  PISTOL. Base Troyan, thou shalt die.  FLUELLEN. You say very true, scald knave- when God's will is. I    will desire you to live in the meantime, and eat yourvictuals;    come, there is sauce for it. [Striking him again] Youcall'd me    yesterday mountain-squire; but I will make you to-day asquire of    low degree. I pray you fall to; if you can mock a leek, youcan    eat a leek.  GOWER. Enough, Captain, you have astonish'd him.  FLUELLEN. I say I will make him eat some part of my leek, or Iwill    peat his pate four days. Bite, I pray you, it is good foryour    green wound and your ploody coxcomb.  PISTOL. Must I bite?  FLUELLEN. Yes, certainly, and out of doubt, and out of question    too, and ambiguides.  PISTOL. By this leek, I will most horribly revenge- I eat andeat,    I swear-  FLUELLEN. Eat, I pray you; will you have some more sauce toyour    leek? There is not enough leek to swear by.  PISTOL. Quiet thy cudgel: thou dost see I eat.  FLUELLEN. Much good do you, scald knave, heartily. Nay, prayyou    throw none away; the skin is good for your broken coxcomb.When    you take occasions to see leeks hereafter, I pray you mock at    'em; that is all.  PISTOL. Good.  FLUELLEN. Ay, leeks is good. Hold you, there is a groat to heal    your pate.  PISTOL. Me a groat!  FLUELLEN. Yes, verily and in truth, you shall take it; or Ihave    another leek in my pocket which you shall eat.  PISTOL. I take thy groat in earnest of revenge.  FLUELLEN. If I owe you anything I will pay you in cudgels; you    shall be a woodmonger, and buy nothing of me but cudgels. Godbye    you, and keep you, and heal your pate. Exit  PISTOL. All hell shall stir for this.  GOWER. Go, go: you are a couterfeit cowardly knave. Will youmock    at an ancient tradition, begun upon an honourable respect,and    worn as a memorable trophy of predeceased valour, and darenot    avouch in your deeds any of your words? I have seen yougleeking    and galling at this gentleman twice or thrice. You thought,    because he could not speak English in the native garb, hecould    not therefore handle an English cudgel; you find itotherwise,    and henceforth let a Welsh correction teach you a goodEnglish    condition. Fare ye well. Exit  PISTOL. Doth Fortune play the huswife with me now?    News have I that my Nell is dead i' th' spital    Of malady of France;    And there my rendezvous is quite cut off.    Old I do wax; and from my weary limbs    Honour is cudgell'd. Well, bawd I'll turn,    And something lean to cutpurse of quick hand.    To England will I steal, and there I'll steal;    And patches will I get unto these cudgell'd scars,    And swear I got them in the Gallia wars. Exit

SCENE II. France. The FRENCH KING'S palace

Enter at one door, KING HENRY, EXETER, BEDFORD, GLOUCESTER, WARWICK, WESTMORELAND, and other LORDS; at another, the FRENCH KING, QUEEN ISABEL, the PRINCESS KATHERINE, ALICE, and other LADIES; the DUKE OF BURGUNDY, and his train

  KING HENRY. Peace to this meeting, wherefore we are met!    Unto our brother France, and to our sister,    Health and fair time of day; joy and good wishes    To our most fair and princely cousin Katherine.    And, as a branch and member of this royalty,    By whom this great assembly is contriv'd,    We do salute you, Duke of Burgundy.    And, princes French, and peers, health to you all!  FRENCH KING. Right joyous are we to behold your face,    Most worthy brother England; fairly met!    So are you, princes English, every one.  QUEEN ISABEL. So happy be the issue, brother England,    Of this good day and of this gracious meeting    As we are now glad to behold your eyes-    Your eyes, which hitherto have home in them,    Against the French that met them in their bent,    The fatal balls of murdering basilisks;    The venom of such looks, we fairly hope,    Have lost their quality; and that this day    Shall change all griefs and quarrels into love.  KING HENRY. To cry amen to that, thus we appear.  QUEEN ISABEL. You English princes an, I do salute you.  BURGUNDY. My duty to you both, on equal love,    Great Kings of France and England! That I have labour'd    With all my wits, my pains, and strong endeavours,    To bring your most imperial Majesties    Unto this bar and royal interview,    Your mightiness on both parts best can witness.    Since then my office hath so far prevail'd    That face to face and royal eye to eye    You have congreeted, let it not disgrace me    If I demand, before this royal view,    What rub or what impediment there is    Why that the naked, poor, and mangled Peace,    Dear nurse of arts, plenties, and joyful births,    Should not in this best garden of the world,    Our fertile France, put up her lovely visage?    Alas, she hath from France too long been chas'd!    And all her husbandry doth lie on heaps,    Corrupting in it own fertility.    Her vine, the merry cheerer of the heart,    Unpruned dies; her hedges even-pleach'd,    Like prisoners wildly overgrown with hair,    Put forth disorder'd twigs; her fallow leas    The darnel, hemlock, and rank fumitory,    Doth root upon, while that the coulter rusts    That should deracinate such savagery;    The even mead, that erst brought sweetly forth    The freckled cowslip, burnet, and green clover,    Wanting the scythe, all uncorrected, rank,    Conceives by idleness, and nothing teems    But hateful docks, rough thistles, kecksies, burs,    Losing both beauty and utility.    And as our vineyards, fallows, meads, and hedges,    Defective in their natures, grow to wildness;    Even so our houses and ourselves and children    Have lost, or do not learn for want of time,    The sciences that should become our country;    But grow, like savages- as soldiers will,    That nothing do but meditate on blood-    To swearing and stern looks, diffus'd attire,    And everything that seems unnatural.    Which to reduce into our former favout    You are assembled; and my speech entreats    That I may know the let why gentle Peace    Should not expel these inconveniences    And bless us with her former qualities.  KING HENRY. If, Duke of Burgundy, you would the peace    Whose want gives growth to th' imperfections    Which you have cited, you must buy that peace    With full accord to all our just demands;    Whose tenours and particular effects    You have, enschedul'd briefly, in your hands.  BURGUNDY. The King hath heard them; to the which as yet    There is no answer made.  KING HENRY. Well then, the peace,    Which you before so urg'd, lies in his answer.  FRENCH KING. I have but with a cursorary eye    O'erglanced the articles; pleaseth your Grace    To appoint some of your council presently    To sit with us once more, with better heed    To re-survey them, we will suddenly    Pass our accept and peremptory answer.  KING HENRY. Brother, we shall. Go, uncle Exeter,    And brother Clarence, and you, brother Gloucester,    Warwick, and Huntington, go with the King;    And take with you free power to ratify,    Augment, or alter, as your wisdoms best    Shall see advantageable for our dignity,    Any thing in or out of our demands;    And we'll consign thereto. Will you, fair sister,    Go with the princes or stay here with us?  QUEEN ISABEL. Our gracious brother, I will go with them;    Haply a woman's voice may do some good,    When articles too nicely urg'd be stood on.  KING HENRY. Yet leave our cousin Katherine here with us;    She is our capital demand, compris'd    Within the fore-rank of our articles.  QUEEN ISABEL. She hath good leave.Exeunt all but the KING, KATHERINE, and ALICE  KING HENRY. Fair Katherine, and most fair,    Will you vouchsafe to teach a soldier terms    Such as will enter at a lady's ear,    And plead his love-suit to her gentle heart?  KATHERINE. Your Majesty shall mock me; I cannot speak yourEngland.  KING HENRY. O fair Katherine, if you will love me soundly withyour    French heart, I will be glad to hear you confess it brokenlywith    your English tongue. Do you like me, Kate?  KATHERINE. Pardonnez-moi, I cannot tell vat is like me.  KING HENRY. An angel is like you, Kate, and you are like anangel.  KATHERINE. Que dit-il? que je suis semblable a les anges?  ALICE. Oui, vraiment, sauf votre grace, ainsi dit-il.  KING HENRY. I said so, dear Katherine, and I must not blush to

affirm it. KATHERINE. O bon Dieu! les langues des hommes sont pleines de tromperies. KING HENRY. What says she, fair one? that the tongues of men are full of deceits? ALICE. Oui, dat de tongues of de mans is be full of deceits- dat is de Princess. KING HENRY. The Princess is the better English-woman. I' faith, Kate, my wooing is fit for thy understanding: I am glad thou canst speak no better English; for if thou couldst, thou wouldst find me such a plain king that thou wouldst think I had sold my farm to buy my crown. I know no ways to mince it in love, but directly to say 'I love you.' Then, if you urge me farther than to say 'Do you in faith?' I wear out my suit. Give me your answer; i' faith, do; and so clap hands and a bargain. How say you, lady? KATHERINE. Sauf votre honneur, me understand well. KING HENRY. Marry, if you would put me to verses or to dance for your sake, Kate, why you undid me; for the one I have neither words nor measure, and for the other I have no strength in measure, yet a reasonable measure in strength. If I could win a lady at leap-frog, or by vaulting into my saddle with my armour on my back, under the correction of bragging be it spoken, I should quickly leap into wife. Or if I might buffet for my love, or bound my horse for her favours, I could lay on like a butcher, and sit like a jack-an-apes, never off. But, before God, Kate, I cannot look greenly, nor gasp out my cloquence, nor I have no cunning in protestation; only downright oaths, which I never use till urg'd, nor never break for urging. If thou canst love a fellow of this temper, Kate, whose face is not worth sunburning, that never looks in his glass for love of anything he sees there, let thine eye be thy cook. I speak to thee plain soldier. If thou canst love me for this, take me; if not, to say to thee that I shall die is true- but for thy love, by the Lord, no; yet I love thee too. And while thou liv'st, dear Kate, take a fellow of plain and uncoined constancy; for he perforce must do thee right, because he hath not the gift to woo in other places; for these fellows of infinite tongue, that can rhyme themselves into ladies' favours, they do always reason themselves out again. What! a speaker is but a prater: a rhyme is but a ballad. A good leg will fall; a straight back will stoop; a black beard will turn white; a curl'd pate will grow bald; a fair face will wither; a full eye will wax hollow. But a good heart, Kate, is the sun and the moon; or, rather, the sun, and not the moon- for it shines bright and never changes, but keeps his course truly. If thou would have such a one, take me; and take me, take a soldier; take a soldier, take a king. And what say'st thou, then, to my love? Speak, my fair, and fairly, I pray thee. KATHERINE. Is it possible dat I sould love de enemy of France? KING HENRY. No, it is not possible you should love the enemy of France, Kate, but in loving me you should love the friend of France; for I love France so well that I will not part with a village of it; I will have it all mine. And, Kate, when France is mine and I am yours, then yours is France and you are mine. KATHERINE. I cannot tell vat is dat. KING HENRY. No, Kate? I will tell thee in French, which I am sure will hang upon my tongue like a new-married wife about her husband's neck, hardly to be shook off. Je quand sur le possession de France, et quand vous avez le possession de moi- let me see, what then? Saint Denis be my speed! – donc votre est France et vous etes mienne. It is as easy for me, Kate, to conquer the kingdom as to speak so much more French: I shall never move thee in French, unless it be to laugh at me. KATHERINE. Sauf votre honneur, le Francais que vous parlez, il est meilleur que l'Anglais lequel je parle. KING HENRY. No, faith, is't not, Kate; but thy speaking of my tongue, and I thine, most truly falsely, must needs be granted to be much at one. But, Kate, dost thou understand thus much English- Canst thou love me? KATHERINE. I cannot tell. KING HENRY. Can any of your neighbours tell, Kate? I'll ask them. Come, I know thou lovest me; and at night, when you come into your closet, you'll question this gentlewoman about me; and I know, Kate, you will to her dispraise those parts in me that you love with your heart. But, good Kate, mock me mercifully; the rather, gentle Princess, because I love thee cruelly. If ever thou beest mine, Kate, as I have a saving faith within me tells me thou shalt, I get thee with scambling, and thou must therefore needs prove a good soldier-breeder. Shall not thou and I, between Saint Denis and Saint George, compound a boy, half French, half English, that shall go to Constantinople and take the Turk by the beard? Shall we not? What say'st thou, my fair flower-de-luce? KATHERINE. I do not know dat. KING HENRY. No: 'tis hereafter to know, but now to promise; do but now promise, Kate, you will endeavour for your French part of such a boy; and for my English moiety take the word of a king and a bachelor. How answer you, la plus belle Katherine du monde, mon tres cher et divin deesse? KATHERINE. Your Majestee ave fausse French enough to deceive de most sage damoiselle dat is en France. KING HENRY. Now, fie upon my false French! By mine honour, in true English, I love thee, Kate; by which honour I dare not swear thou lovest me; yet my blood begins to flatter me that thou dost, notwithstanding the poor and untempering effect of my visage. Now beshrew my father's ambition! He was thinking of civil wars when he got me; therefore was I created with a stubborn outside, with an aspect of iron, that when I come to woo ladies I fright them. But, in faith, Kate, the elder I wax, the better I shall appear: my comfort is, that old age, that in layer-up of beauty, can do no more spoil upon my face; thou hast me, if thou hast me, at the worst; and thou shalt wear me, if thou wear me, better and better. And therefore tell me, most fair Katherine, will you have me? Put off your maiden blushes; avouch the thoughts of your heart with the looks of an empress; take me by the hand and say 'Harry of England, I am thine.' Which word thou shalt no sooner bless mine ear withal but I will tell thee aloud 'England is thine, Ireland is thine, France is thine, and Henry Plantagenet is thine'; who, though I speak it before his face, if he be not fellow with the best king, thou shalt find the best king of good fellows. Come, your answer in broken music- for thy voice is music and thy English broken; therefore, Queen of all, Katherine, break thy mind to me in broken English, wilt thou have me? KATHERINE. Dat is as it shall please de roi mon pere. KING HENRY. Nay, it will please him well, Kate- it shall please him, Kate. KATHERINE. Den it sall also content me. KING HENRY. Upon that I kiss your hand, and I can you my queen. KATHERINE. Laissez, mon seigneur, laissez, laissez! Ma foi, je ne veux point que vous abaissiez votre grandeur en baisant la main d'une, notre seigneur, indigne serviteur; excusez-moi, je vous supplie, mon tres puissant seigneur. KING HENRY. Then I will kiss your lips, Kate. KATHERINE. Les dames et demoiselles pour etre baisees devant leur noces, il n'est pas la coutume de France. KING HENRY. Madame my interpreter, what says she? ALICE. Dat it is not be de fashion pour le ladies of France- I cannot tell vat is baiser en Anglish. KING HENRY. To kiss. ALICE. Your Majestee entendre bettre que moi. KING HENRY. It is not a fashion for the maids in France to kiss before they are married, would she say? ALICE. Oui, vraiment. KING HENRY. O Kate, nice customs curtsy to great kings. Dear Kate, you and I cannot be confin'd within the weak list of a country's fashion; we are the makers of manners, Kate; and the liberty that follows our places stops the mouth of all find-faults- as I will do yours for upholding the nice fashion of your country in denying me a kiss; therefore, patiently and yielding. [Kissing her] You have witchcraft in your lips, Kate: there is more eloquence in a sugar touch of them than in the tongues of the