King Henry VI, Part 1 | Page 6

poor men do know;
These
women are shrewd tempters with their tongues.
REIGNIER. My lord,
where are you? What devise you on?
Shall we give o'er Orleans, or
no?
PUCELLE. Why, no, I say; distrustful recreants!
Fight till the
last gasp; I will be your guard.
CHARLES. What she says I'll confirm;
we'll fight it out.
PUCELLE. Assign'd am I to be the English scourge.

This night the siege assuredly I'll raise.
Expect Saint Martin's
summer, halcyon days,
Since I have entered into these wars.
Glory
is like a circle in the water,
Which never ceaseth to enlarge itself

Till by broad spreading it disperse to nought.
With Henry's death the
English circle ends;
Dispersed are the glories it included.
Now am I
like that proud insulting ship
Which Caesar and his fortune bare at
once.

CHARLES. Was Mahomet inspired with a dove?
Thou with
an eagle art inspired then.
Helen, the mother of great Constantine,

Nor yet Saint Philip's daughters were like thee.
Bright star of Venus,

fall'n down on the earth,
How may I reverently worship thee enough?

ALENCON. Leave off delays, and let us raise the siege.

REIGNIER. Woman, do what thou canst to save our honours;
Drive
them from Orleans, and be immortaliz'd.
CHARLES. Presently we'll
try. Come, let's away about it.
No prophet will I trust if she prove
false. Exeunt
SCENE 3.
London. Before the Tower gates
Enter the DUKE OF GLOUCESTER, with his serving-men
in blue coats
GLOUCESTER. I am come to survey the Tower this day;
Since
Henry's death, I fear, there is conveyance.
Where be these warders
that they wait not here?
Open the gates; 'tis Gloucester that calls.

FIRST WARDER. [Within] Who's there that knocks so
imperiously?

FIRST SERVING-MAN. It is the noble Duke of Gloucester.

SECOND WARDER. [Within] Whoe'er he be, you may not be
let in.

FIRST SERVING-MAN. Villains, answer you so the Lord

Protector?
FIRST WARDER. [Within] The Lord protect him! so we

answer him.
We do no otherwise than we are will'd.

GLOUCESTER. Who willed you, or whose will stands but
mine?

There's none Protector of the realm but I.
Break up the gates, I'll be
your warrantize.
Shall I be flouted thus by dunghill grooms?
[GLOUCESTER'S men rush at the Tower
gates, and
WOODVILLE the Lieutenant
speaks within]
WOODVILLE. [Within] What noise is this? What traitors
have we
here?
GLOUCESTER. Lieutenant, is it you whose voice I hear?

Open the gates; here's Gloucester that would enter.
WOODVILLE.
[Within] Have patience, noble Duke, I may
not open;
The Cardinal

of Winchester forbids.
From him I have express commandment

That thou nor none of thine shall be let in.
GLOUCESTER.
Faint-hearted Woodville, prizest him fore me? Arrogant Winchester,
that haughty prelate
Whom Henry, our late sovereign, ne'er could
brook!
Thou art no friend to God or to the King.
Open the gates, or
I'll shut thee out shortly.
SERVING-MEN. Open the gates unto the
Lord Protector,
Or we'll burst them open, if that you come not
quickly.
Enter to the PROTECTOR at the Tower gates WINCHESTER
and his men in tawny coats
WINCHESTER. How now, ambitious Humphry! What means
this?

GLOUCESTER. Peel'd priest, dost thou command me to be
shut
out?
WINCHESTER. I do, thou most usurping proditor,
And not
Protector of the King or realm.
GLOUCESTER. Stand back, thou
manifest conspirator,
Thou that contrived'st to murder our dead lord;

Thou that giv'st whores indulgences to sin.
I'll canvass thee in thy
broad cardinal's hat,
If thou proceed in this thy insolence.

WINCHESTER. Nay, stand thou back; I will not budge a foot. This be
Damascus; be thou cursed Cain,
To slay thy brother Abel, if thou wilt.

GLOUCESTER. I will not slay thee, but I'll drive thee back. Thy
scarlet robes as a child's bearing-cloth
I'll use to carry thee out of this
place.
WINCHESTER. Do what thou dar'st; I beard thee to thy face.
GLOUCESTER. What! am I dar'd and bearded to my face?
Draw,
men, for all this privileged place
Blue-coats to tawny-coats. Priest,
beware your beard;
I mean to tug it, and to cuff you soundly;
Under
my feet I stamp thy cardinal's hat;
In spite of Pope or dignities of
church,
Here by the cheeks I'll drag thee up and down.

WINCHESTER. Gloucester, thou wilt answer this before the
Pope.

GLOUCESTER. Winchester goose! I cry 'A rope, a rope!'
Now beat
them hence; why do you let them stay?
Thee I'll chase hence, thou
wolf in sheep's array.
Out, tawny-coats! Out, scarlet hypocrite!

Here GLOUCESTER'S men beat out the CARDINAL'S
men; and
enter in the hurly burly the MAYOR OF
LONDON and his OFFICERS
MAYOR. Fie, lords! that you, being supreme magistrates,
Thus
contumeliously should break the peace!
GLOUCESTER. Peace,
Mayor! thou know'st little of my wrongs: Here's Beaufort, that regards
nor God nor King,
Hath here distrain'd the Tower to his use.

WINCHESTER. Here's Gloucester, a foe to citizens;
One that still
motions war and never peace,
O'ercharging your free purses with
large fines;
That seeks to overthrow religion,
Because he is
Protector of the realm,
And would have armour here out of the Tower,

To crown