And vows to be reveng'd upon us both. Into the council-chamber he is gone, To crave the aid and succour of his peers. Ay me, see where he comes, and they with him! 20 Enter KING EDWARD THE THIRD, Lords, and Attendants. First Lord. Fear not, my lord; know that you are a king. K. Edw. Third. Y. Mor. Villain! Ho, now, my lord! K. Edw. Third. Think not that I am frighted with thy 25 words; My father's murder'd through thy treachery; And thou shalt die, and on his mournful hearse 30 Thy hateful and accursèd head shall lie, To witness to the world, that by thy means His kingly body was too soon interr'd. Q. Isab. Weep not, sweet son. K. Edw. Third. Forbid not me to weep; he was my father; And, had you lov'd him half so well as I, You could not bear his death thus patiently. But you, I fear, conspir'd with Mortimer. 35 First Lord. Why speak you not unto my lord the king? Y. Mor. Because I think scorn to be accus'd. Who is the man dare say I murder'd him? K. Edw. Third. Traitor, in me my loving father speaks, And plainly saith, 'twas thou that murder'dst him. 40 Y. Mor. But hath your grace no other proof than this? Q. Isab. Y. Mor. What murderer? bring forth the man I sent. K. Edw. Third. Ah, Mortimer, thou know'st that he is slain; And so shalt thou be too.-Why stays he here? 50 Bring him unto a hurdle, drag him forth; But bring his head back presently to me. K. Edw. Third. derer ! 55 Hence with the traitor, with the mur Y. Mor. Base Fortune, now I see that in thy wheel Х 60 K. Edw. Third. What, suffer you the traitor to delay? [Exit the younger MORTIMER with First Lord and some of the Attendants. Q. Isab. As thou receivedest thy life from me, 66 K. Edw. Third. This argues that you spilt my father's blood, Else would you not entreat for Mortimer. Q. Isab. I spill his blood? no. 70 K. Edw. Third. Ay, madam, you; for so the rumour runs. Q. Isab. That rumour is untrue; for loving thee Is this report rais'd on poor Isabel. K. Edw. Third. I do not think her so unnatural. And therefore we commit you to the Tower, 80 Q. Isab. Nay, to my death; for too long have I liv'd, Whenas my son thinks to abridge my days. K. Edw. Third. Away with her! her words enforce these tears, And I shall pity her, if she speak again. Q. Isab. Shall I not mourn for my beloved lord? 85 And with the rest accompany him to his grave? Sec. Lord. Thus, madam, 'tis the king's will you shall hence. Q. Isab. He hath forgotten me; stay, I am his mother. Sec. Lord. That boots not; therefore, gentle madam, go. Q. Isab. Then come, sweet death, and rid me of this grief! [Exit with Second Lord and some of the Attendants. Re-enter First Lord, with the head of the younger MORTIMER. My lord, here is the head of Mortimer. K. Edw. Third. Go fetch my father's hearse, where it First Lord. shall lie; And bring my funeral robes. [Exeunt Attendants. Accursed head, Could I have rul'd thee then as I do now, Re-enter Attendants, with the hearse and funeral robes. I offer up this wicked traitor's head; And let these tears, distilling from mine eyes, 95 [Exeunt. NOTES. DRAMATIS PERSONAE. 1. King Edward II was the son of King Edward I and Eleanor of Castile. He was born at Carnarvon in April 1284; succeeded his father in July 1307; was forced to resign his crown, and was deposed in January 1327. He was murdered at Berkeley Castle, in Gloucestershire, in September 1327. The poet has drawn the character of the King in accordance with the views of the historians of the time, and shows him thoughtless, unwise, vindictive, undignified. 2. Prince Edward, afterwards King Edward III, was the son of King Edward II and Isabella of France. He was born in November 1212, became King in January 1327, on the deposition of his father; having been made 'Custos' or 'Guardian' of the realm in October 1326. He died in 1377. Though in this play he is called 'Prince,' he was never created Prince of Wales' as his father had been, and as his son Edward was. 3. Edmund Earl of Kent was the son of King Edward I and his second wife, Margaret of France. Thus he was half-brother of King Edward II. He was born in 1301, and put to death by Mortimer in March 1330. He was too young to be of any importance in the early part of the reign, and the poet is not keeping strictly to history when he introduces him among the Barons in the 1st Act. 4. Piers Gaveston was the son of a Gascon knight, Sir Arnold Gaveston, who had 'served King Edward I in Gascony.' He was brought up as the foster brother and play-fellow of Edward II. Banished from the court and kingdom by Edward I in 1307, because of his bad influence over Prince Edward, he seems to have returned immediately after the King's death. He was made Earl of Cornwall in August 1307, and married Margaret de Clare, daughter of Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, and niece of the King. He was banished in May 1308; returned in July 1309, his brother-in law supporting him; was again banished in 1311; recalled in January 1312; taken by the Barons in May, at Scarborough, and beheaded without a trial on Blacklow Hill, in June 1312. 5. Archbishop of Canterbury, This was Robert Winchelsey, Archbishop from 1294 to 1313. He resisted the demands of King Edward I for a contribution from the clergy in 1296–7, and was always a stout supporter of the rights of the Church and the people. The King laid charges against him before Pope Clement V in 1306, and he was suspended and called to Rome. He was recalled to England on the death of Edward I, and returned in April 1308. He took the side of the Ordainers in 1311, upholding the rights of the country against the King, as before. He died in May 1313. 6. Bishop of Coventry. Walter Langton was at this time bishop of the combined sees of Lichfield, Chester, and Coventry, appointed in 1295. He was Treasurer in 1296 under King Edward I, and the parliament of Lincoln in 1301 made charges against him and petitioned for his removal. He was suspended, but acquitted by the Pope. As chief adviser of Edward I he was a rival of Archbishop Winchelsey. As soon as Edward II began his reign, Bishop Langton was imprisoned, but he was reconciled to the King in 1311, and became minister again, and Treasurer in March 1312. He was excommunicated in April 1312 by the Archbishop, for having taken office contrary to the OrdinHe was removed from office in March 1315. ances. 7. Bishop of Winchester. John Stratford became Bishop of Winchester in June 1323. He joined the Queen in her attempt to overthrow the Despensers, and was Treasurer from November 1326 till January 1327; Chancellor, 1330-1334, and 1335-1337, and again, April to June 1340. He was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1333 to 1348. He was one of what may be called the constitutional party; not really a supporter of the Queen and Mortimer, except so far as they were putting an end to the unconstitutional power of the Despensers. He stoutly opposed the unconstitutional acts of Edward III. 8. Warwick. Guy Earl of Warwick was the son of William Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, who had married Isabella, heiress of William Mauduit, Earl of Warwick. He was a vigorous opponent of Edward II. He did not consent to the recall of Gaveston in 1309, was one of the Ordainers in 1311, and had the chief hand in putting Gaveston to death. He was included in the general pardon in October 1313, and died in 1315. His son Thomas, who succeeded him, married Catherine, daughter of the younger Roger Mortimer, and was suspected of sympathizing with the party of Lancaster in 1322. 9. Lancaster. Thomas Earl of Lancaster was the son of Edmund, the second son of King Henry III and titular king of Sicily, by Blanche of Artois, queen dowager of Navarre. He was the most powerful subject |