Enter YORK,attended
YORK.Great Duke of Lancaster,I come to the From plume-pluck'd 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,fourth of that name!BOLINGBROKE.In God's name,I'll ascend the regal throne.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 judg'd 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 judg'd by subject and inferior breath,And he himself not present?
O,forfend it,God,That in a Christian climate souls refin'd Should show so heinous,black,obscene a deed!I speak to subjects,and a subject speaks,Stirr'd 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 call'd The field of Golgotha and dead men's skulls.O,if you raise this house against this house,It will the woefullest division prove That ever fell upon this cursed earth.Prevent it,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 beholding to your love,And little look'd for at your helping hands.
Re-enter YORK,with KING RICHARD,and OFFICERS bearing the regalia
KING RICHARD.Alack,why am I sent for to a king,Before I have shook off the regal thoughts Wherewith I reign'd?I hardly yet have learn'd 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?Did they not sometime cry 'All hail!'to me?So Judas did to Christ;but he,in twelve,Found truth in all but one;I,in twelve thousand,none.God save the King!Will no man say amen?Am I both priest and clerk?Well then,amen.God save the King!although I be not he;And yet,amen,if heaven do think him me.To do what service am I sent for hither?YORK.To do that office of thine own good will Which tired majesty did make thee offer-The resignation of thy state and crown To Henry Bolingbroke.KING RICHARD.Give me the crown.Here,cousin,seize the crown.Here,cousin,On this side my hand,and on that side thine.Now is this golden crown like a deep well That owes two buckets,filling one another;The emptier ever dancing in the air,The other down,unseen,and full of water.That bucket down and fun of tears am I,Drinking my griefs,whilst you mount up on high.BOLINGBROKE.I thought you had been willing to resign.KING RICHARD.My crown I am;but still my griefs are mine.You may my glories and my state depose,But not my griefs;still am I king of those.BOLINGBROKE.Part of your cares you give me with your crown.KING RICHARD.Your cares set up do not pluck my cares down.My care is loss of care,by old care done;Your care is gain of care,by new care won.The cares I give I have,though given away;They tend the crown,yet still with me they stay.BOLINGBROKE.Are you contented to resign the crown?