Catharine, Daughter to the King of France.
Alice, a Lady attending on the Princess Catharine.
Quickly, Piftol's Wife, an Hoftefs.
Lords, Meffengers, French and English Soldiers,
with other Attendants.
The Scene, at the beginning of the Play, lies in
England; but afterwards, wholly in France.
PROLOGUE.
For a Mufe of fire, that would afcend
The brightest heaven of invention !
A kingdom for a ftage, Princes to act,
And Monarchs to behold the fwelling Scene!
Then fhould the warlike Harry, like himself,
Affume the port of Mars; and, at his heels,
(Leafht in, like bounds,) should famine, fword and fire
Crouch for employment. Pardon, gentles all,
The flat unraifed fpirit, that hath dar'd,
On this unworthy fcaffold, to bring forth
So great an object. Can this Cock-pit bold
The vafty field of France? or may we cram,
Within this wooden O, the very caskes
That did affright the air, at Agincourt?
O, pardon; fince a crooked figure may
Atteft in little place a million;
And let us, cyphers to this great accompt,
On your imaginary forces work.
Suppofe, within the girdle of thefe walls
Are now confin'd two mighty monarchies ;
Whofe high-up-reared, and abutting, fronts
The perillous narrow ocean parts afunder.
Piece out our imperfections with your thoughts:
Into a thousand parts divide one man,
And make imaginary puissance:
Think, when we talk of horses, that you fee them
Printing their proud hoofs ith receiving earth.
For 'tis your thoughts that now muft deck our Kings,
Carry them here, and there; jumping o'er times ;
Turning th' accomplishment of many years
Into an hour-glass: for the which supply,
Admit me Chorus to this hiftory;
Who, prologue-like, your humble patience pray,
Gently to hear, kindly to judge, our Play.
The LIFE of
King HENRY V. (1)
SCENE, An Antechamber in the English Court, at Kenilworth.
Enter the Arch-bishop of Canterbury, and Bishop of Ely.
Arch-Bishop of CANTERBURY.
Y lord, I'll tell you; that felf bill is urg'd,
Which, in th' eleventh year o' th' laft
King's reign,
Was like, and had, indeed, against us paft,
But that the fcambling and unquiet time
Did push it out of further question.
Ely. But how, my lord, fhall we refift it now?
(1) The Life of K. Henry.] The Tranfactions compriz'd in this Hiftorical Play, commence about the latter end of the firft, and terminate in the 8th Year of this King's reign; when he married Catharine Princess of France, and closed up the Differences betwixt England and that Crown.
Cant. It must be thought on if it pass against us,
We lose the better half of our poffeffion:
For all the temporal lands, which men devout
By teflament have given to the Church,
Would they ftrip from us; being valu'd thus,
As much as would maintain, to the King's honour,
Full fifteen Earls and fifteen hundred Knights,
Six thousand and two hundred good Efquires :
And to relief of lazars, and weak age
Of indigent faint fouls, paft corporal toil,
A hundred alms-houses, right well fupply'd;
And to the coffers of the King, befide,
A thousand pounds by th' year. Thus runs the bill.
Ely. This would drink deep.
Cant. 'Twould drink the cup
Ely. But what prevention ?
Cant. The King is full of grace and fair regard.
Ely. And a true lover of the holy-Church.
Cant. The courfes of his youth promis'd it not;
The breath no fooner left his father's body,
But that his wildness, mortify'd in him,
Seem'd to die too; yea, at that very moment,
Confideration, like an angel, came,
And whipt th' offending Adam out of him;
Leaving his Body as a Paradife,
T'invelope and contain celeftial fpirits.
Never was fuch a fudden fcholar made:
Never came reformation in a flood
With fuch a heady current, fcow'ring faults:
Nor ever Hydra-headed wilfulness
So foon did lofe his feat, and all at once,
Ely. We're bleffed in the change.
Cant. Hear him but reason in divinity,
And, all-admiring, with an inward wish
"You would defire, the King were made a Prelate.
Hear him debate of common wealth affairs,
You'd fay, it hath been all in all his study.
Lift his difcourfe of war, and you fhall hear
A fearful battle render'd you in mufick.
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