Classic Poem

E dward the fourth thus hauing caught the Crown ,
The weake Lancastrians drave to the wall
And spared none , till all were overthrowne
That might lie in his waie , to make him fall:
His Brother Clarence (o Crime Capitall!)
He did rebaptize in a Butt of Wine ,
Being ielous of him (how soere Loiall )
A Turkish providence most indivine ;
Yet Crownes wil rest on such , ere thei'le decline

Besides, a sliding and new-fangled Nation
Full of Rebellion and Disloyaltie ,
May cause a Prince for his securer station
To stand vpon the like extremitie
Where Vertue hath no place of certenty
What Prince (if provident) wil stick to straine
Both Law and Conscience in secresy
To cutt one Member off, that letts his raigne ,
Which the state's Body doth in health maintaine?

The more perfection and Heroick worth
Such Heires , great Cousines , or great Subiects haue,
The more the Multitude wil sett them foorth
And more and more their rule they seeke and craue;
Then must we lose a part the whole to saue:
These haue Achitophells to egge them on
And make them much more restlesse then a wave ,
Vntil their Soveraignes they sett vpon
To make them yeeld vp their Dominion

Manie a busie- Head by Words and Deeds
Put in their Heads how they may compasse Crownes ,
That Crownes at last may compasse so their Heads
And sitt victoriously on steedfast Thrones .
All these like humming Bees ensue those Drones;
To gather Hony if they chance to rest,
And store themselues with sweete provisions ,
Whilst the Crown -greedy Cousine in vnrest
Lives but for them with feares and cares opprest.

Now though King Edward (like a wary Prince )
To remoue Obstacles bent all his might ;
Yet could no skill or humane providence
Protect his Sonnes from their Protector's spight:
Who as he'seru'd King Henry, seru'd them right.
The blood of Innocents on Innocents
With heavy vengeance mixte, amaine doth light:
Thus, Innocents are plagu'd for the Nocents
Such are the High'st's inscrutable Iudgments .

And as He murdred Henrie for his Crowne ,
So for their Crowne were his Sonnes murdered;
By hardest Harts in softest Bedd of Downe
They were (deere Harts ) at once quite smothered,
Which some ignoble Nobles furthered:
And, rather then they should not die by force,
Or want a Want-grace to performe the Deede ,
Their Vncle and Protector must perforce
Their Crowne from Head , and Head from Life divorce

Now vp is Richard , ( Monster , not a Man )
Vpon the Royal Throne that reeling stood;
Now Rule doth end, when he to rule began,
Who being perfect ill , destroi'd the Good ,
And like an Horseleech liv'd by sucking blood .
Now as desire of Rule more bloody was
In Yorke then Lancaster , so did the flud
Of Divine Vengeance more in Yorke surpasse:
For to maine Seas of blood, Blood-Brookes repasse.

Bloud -sucking Richard (swolne with sucking Bloud )
When Horsleech -like he had his bloody pray ,
Away fals hee in bloud bemir'd with Mud ,
Making his Nephewes vsher him the way
For from his crowne the crowne was cut away.
Henrie the seventh's keene-edg'd victorious Sword
Slipt twixt both Crwnes vnto his Crowne's decay
And got the Crowne that was much more assur'd
Which hee to his, and his to theirs affoord.

God amongst Men , no King but demi- God
Henrie the seventh the Scepter takes in hand ,
Who with it (as with Moises' powrefull Rod )
Turn'd streames of civill bloud that soakt this land
To silver streames , that ran on Golden sand:
He turned Swords to Mattockes, Speares to Spades ,
And bound vp all vnbound, in peace's Band,
Who draue the erst long idle to their Trades ,
And chang'd iniurious Swords , to Iustice -Blades

No more Plantagenet , but Thewdor now
Sits in the Kingdome's late vnstable Seate
Plow-men praise God , and God doth speed the Plow ,
For such a King that makes their Crops compleate,
And multiplies their heardes of sheepe and Neite
Vpon Ambition's Necke hee sets his foote
Keeping her vnder; And amongst the Wheate
He puls vp Darnell dulie by the roote,
And nought neglects that may his Kingdome boote.

This Salomon lookt into High and Low ,
And knew all from the Cedar to the shrub ;
He bare the sworde that gaue a bitter blow
Aswell to Cedars , as the lowest stub
That in the course of Iustice prou'd a Rub :
Wisdome and Prowesse did exalt his Throne ,
Iustice and Mercie propt it, which did curb
Those that would sbake it, so that he alone
Did rule the Roast that all did liue vpon.

He, (vertuous King ) still fear'd the King of Kings
With louing feare , that made him Lion-bold .
He ordred things as pleas'd the Thing of Things
Like David , that of him his Crowne did hold,
That on his Throne his Ofspring doth vphold:
Laden with happinesse , and blessed daies ,
His Realme repleat with blessings manifold;
This prosp'rous Prince (to his immortall praise )
Left Life, Realme, Children , all at happy staies

Then no lesse fear'd, then famous Henry ,
(That had a sacred Caesar in his pay)
With some-what more then mortall Maiestie ,
Sits on the Throne (that hands divine did stay)
As Heire apparant , and the state doth sway:
He weilds the sword with his victorious hands
That the whole Continent doth sore affray,
Wherewith he makes to crouch the Neighbor lands
Which in a manner lie at his commands .

Hee was as circumspect , as provident ,
And by his Father's observation
Did right well know, what kinde of government
Was fitt'st for this vnkinde revolting Nation
Well knew hee how to part a Combination
That stood not with the state , or his availe ,
And if he were severe for reformation ,
T'was Emperik -like, that knew what it did aile
So, kill the cause lest all the Whole should faile

His forraine Warres , and famous Victories
More glorious were then for our Contrie good :
For, such Wars haue these inconveniences ,
They make vs spend our Treasures with our bloud ,
Where both are cast away in likelyhood,
When wars abroad drinke vp our wealth at home ,
The fire must out, when spent is all the wood ,
And if nought from without come in the wombe
The Body needes must die by Nature's dombe.

The wealth hee prest from Monastries supprest
With the Revennues which to them pertain'd,
The Crowne possest , but hee it dispossest
With open Hand ; which, had they still remain'd,
I'had bin aloft; for lesse hath Crownes sustain'd
Lone, Reliefe, Subsedie , and such as these
Might (for the subiect's ease) haue bin refrain'd:
The crowne's Revennues such might well release,
And haue maintain'd the state in warre and peace .

If these had still bin adiuncts of the crowne ,
And all that hold them hold as of the same ,
Our Kings might warre with Tenants of their owne ,
Who would unprest haue yet bin prest for shame
To follow their Liege-land-lords by that name.
The Crowne then, like a Condite neuer dry,
Stil might haue stream'd (to th' owner's endles fame)
Rivers of Riches vnto Low and hy
That well deserv'd of King or Contery

Those harts , whose life their Liege should thus maintain
(No lesse then bodies to their souls are bound)
Should haue bin tied vnto their Soveraigne
To goe with him at ev'ry needfull Sound ,
And in their service bin most faithful found
But that, that shalbe, shalbe . That high hand
That all disposeth, thus did it confound
For purposes which hardly can be scand,
But for the Crowne ill, how ere for the Land

Hee, Caesar -like in 's fortunes confident,
Ere first he crost the Seas to warre with France ,
The Marquesse of Exceter made Regent
And Heire apparant ; but no ill by chance
Ensu'd till he did him quite disadvance:
Hee had forgot the direfull Tragedie
Of the sixth Henry , and like heires apparance
But more advis'd, he held it policie
To spare that heire till more necessitie

When he had cleer'd the coast , and clensd the waie ,
Of all that lay in either to molest,
And having put the state in perfect staie ,
He with his Fathers laid him downe to rest,
And left a Sonne in whom the Land was blest:
Who being yong , could not yet stirre the sterne ,
But rul'd by those his sire esteemed best;
And while the vertuous King to rule did learne,
His Realme (misrul'd) in up-rore did discerne

Heere raign'd Ambition , like Obedience clad,
There rul'd Sedition , in Concorde's coate;
And here and there Rebellion rag'd as mad,
And ev'ry where the Common-wealth did floate
Like to an halfe-suncke tempest-beaten Boate
Each for him selfe , no one for King or State ,
Vpon the Wedge of Gold the best did doate,
All stood as falling still in each estate ,
Knights giving Earles, Earles giving Dukes the Mate

Many a Demas then forsooke poore Paule ,
In Summe, the Summe of all was out of square ,
And yet (strange Paradox ) at square was all ,
None Compasse kept, yet compassing they are,
And Circumvention held discretion's care:
Thus whilst the Sov'raign's in minoritie ,
Each would be sov'raigne that about him were;
The smal in grace strave for maiority ,
And Youth with Age for Seniority .

Disorder thus dividing the whole State ,
And subdividing those divisions ,
The Lord of Love , to show his vrged Hate ,
Tooke the wrong'd Kinge from his Dominions ,
And left the Land fir'd with seditions;
By Angells hands this Kinge Angelicall,
(As one of high Iehovah's Minions )
Was borne from this Nation vnnaturall,
That yengeance on it, so, might freely fall.

No sooner had the Heavens seis'd his Soule ,
But a left hand began to seize the Crowne ;
Which seisure a right hand did soone controule,
And Wrong that would aspire, Right straight putts downe;
Which fatally in fine was overthrone:
Yet was that Wrong made Right by their consents
That were to see that each one had his owne;
But Heau'n disposeth Earth and her intents,
And Earth gainst Heav'n oppos'd, too late repents

Who trusts in Men in whom was never trust
(Except they were at warre with Wealth and State ,
Few Statesmen such) shal see how much distrust
Doth Men advantage, and prolongs their date ,
Treason's in Trust; Repentance comes to late:
When Powr's deriv'd from those that are but weake
( Weake ev'ry way) it stands in desprate state
Frailty sticks not fidelity to breake
When it doth favoure , and advantage seeke.

In case of Crownes (when it our Crownes may cost,
If we misse holding when at them we catch)
It's deadly dangerous at al to trust,
Much more to trust all that advantage watch
By thy losse , from losse themselves to dispatch:
Religion cannot dwell in double harts
Such Harts haue All that with al states doe match:
Then where Religion slideth, promise starts,
And feare of perill , worldly frendshippe parts.

Queene Mary (for, she was that which shee was ,
Namely our Queene , and neere to our late Queene )
Her faults in silence we will overpasse;
Let them be buried with her, sith I weene
Sh'hath bin well taxt whose memorie is greene:
Shee now is Crown'd and Crown'd to others cost;
With Spaine shee matches being overseene,
Her Kinge forsakes her, Calis quite is lost
All goes awry, which makes her yeeld the Ghost

Now sacred Cynthia girt with silver Orbe
From out Cimerian Clouds of Prisonment ,
(Faire Queene of Chastity ) appear'd to curbe
Contention which oreranne this Continent :
And ioyn'd the same with peacefull governemnt ,
Which we doe yet enjoy , and long may wee
The cause of it possesse in all Content ;
Amen say I, and all that peacefull bee
In him that saith Amen when all agree

Pray for thy King (ble'st Ile) lest that a Change
A five-fold change , to Desolation tend;
Or thou made subiect to a Subiect strange,
Which may thy publike-weale in peeces rend,
And make it private onely to the fiend
God's Mill grindes slowly, but small meale it makes.
Then praise him for thy peace and lesse offend ,
Be not as one that stil occasion takes
To sin the more, the more he peace pertakes.

Farre be it from Religion , to pretend
Obedience whil'st it aymes at Princes' spoile;
It's not Religion Soveraignty to end,
That Servitude thereby may keepe a coile ,
And for her freedome covett Freedom's foile,
If King's Commands do crosse the Divine will ,
In their discharge Religion must recoile,
But not confound the Charger , for it's ill;
And ill can never good Commands fulfill.