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The trumpets sound. Enter the
KING,
PRINCE HENRY, Lord John of
LANCASTER, Earl of
WESTMORELAND, with
WORCESTER and
VERNON prisoners
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Trumpets sound. The KING, PRINCE HENRY, Lord John of LANCASTER, and WESTMORELAND enter, with WORCESTER and VERNON as prisoners.
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KING Thus ever did rebellion find rebuke.—
Ill-spirited Worcester, did not we send grace,
Pardon, and terms of love to all of you?
And wouldst thou turn our offers contrary,
5Misuse the tenor of thy kinsman’s trust?
Three knights upon our party slain today,
A noble earl, and many a creature else
Had been alive this hour,
If like a Christian thou hadst truly borne
10Betwixt our armies true intelligence.
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KING This is how rebellions always end—defeated. Evil-spirited Worcester! Didn’t I offer kindness, forgiveness and friendship to all of you? And you pretended that I did the opposite? Your relatives and friends trusted you, yet you lied to them? Three of our knights who were killed today, a noble earl, and many other men might have been alive right now if you had been a decent man and reported truthfully on the negotiations between our two armies.
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WORCESTER What I have done my safety urged me to.
And I embrace this fortune patiently,
Since not to be avoided it falls on me.
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WORCESTER I did what I had to do for the sake of my own well-being. I accept my fate patiently, since there’s no way I can avoid it.
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KING Bear Worcester to the death, and Vernon too.
15Other offenders we will pause upon.
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KING Put Worcester to death, and Vernon too: I’ll wait a while before I decide what to do about the others.
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Exeunt
WORCESTER and
VERNON under guard
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WORCESTER and VERNON are escorted away by guards.
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How goes the field?
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What’s happening on the battlefield?
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PRINCE HENRY The noble Scot, Lord Douglas, when he saw
The fortune of the day quite turned from him,
The noble Percy slain, and all his men
20Upon the foot of fear, fled with the rest,
And, falling from a hill, he was so bruised
That the pursuers took him. At my tent
The Douglas is, and I beseech your Grace
I may dispose of him.
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PRINCE HENRY When that brave Scotsman, Lord Douglas, saw that things were turning against him, that Percy had been killed, and that his men were fleeing in terror, he ran away too. He fell down a hill and was so badly injured that our men were able to capture him. He’s being held prisoner at my tent.
I ask your highness to let me decide what to do with him.
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