H 
 
Class 
 
 Book _ * . - r- ■ - 
 
2 2>#l 
 
1 lie Knialitiiuj of Prince Henry ■ o flfo n mo nth 
 t\ Richard 2* MJs. Earl. 1310. 
 
AN 
 
 ESSAY 
 
 ON THE 
 
 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 WHEN PRINCE OF WALES, 
 
 BY 
 
 ALEXANDER LUDERS, Esq. 
 
 Contram 
 
 PRINTED FOR T. CADELL AND W. DAVIES, 
 IN THE STRAND. 
 
 1813. 
 
S„ . Jf<*j>r*£lt 
 
 G. Sidney, Printer, 
 NorthumDerland-street, Strand 
 
ON THE 
 
 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH, 
 
 WHEN 
 
 PRINCE OF WALES. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 I shall endeavour to regain the truth 
 of history for the character of this great 
 Prince in his youth, because it has been 
 hidden in obscurity, or represented in 
 fable. Not having been able to find 
 sufficient authority for the wanton and 
 dissolute character assigned to him in 
 the plays of Shakespear, and that older 
 play which he seems to have followed, 
 I suspect that they are almost as fabu- 
 lous as Ovid's Metamorphoses. What is 
 to be found in real and authentick history 
 
2 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 is so inconsistent with those scenes, that 
 I believe, if one of that generation could 
 revive, and behold the person repre- 
 sented on our stage for young Henry of 
 Monmouth, he would be as much puz- 
 zled to know him there, as to trace 
 Daphne in the laurel. Yet the earliest 
 chroniclers of those times agree in their 
 story of the young man's excesses j 
 although they relate no particular facts, 
 as some of their followers do. 
 
 Theatrical and poetical perversions of 
 history are, indeed, very common, and 
 being generally innocent are forgiven or 
 unnoticed. Either the audience and 
 readers are not knowing enough to dis- 
 cover them, or their effect is not lasting; 
 and they are seldom carried so far as to 
 give a wrong turn to our judgment of 
 well-known events or characters. But 
 in the present instance, the fame and 
 genius of the poet, and the popularity 
 of bis scenes, have perverted our na- 
 tional history in an important article : 
 
INTRODUCTION. 3 
 
 So deeply, that I fear it will be thought 
 a vain attempt to shew his error and 
 remove its impressions, I want to dis- 
 pell a mist that his delicate hand has 
 made us wish to keep before our eyes ; 
 and must raise a contention between two 
 great favourites of the nation, the Prince 
 and Shakespear. It shall be my study 
 to carry it on without offending their 
 admirers ; to distinguish the prince of 
 history from the prince of poetry, and 
 the natural character from the work of 
 art. And so to clean away the tarnish 
 from one of the brightest ornaments of 
 the English throne, that our hero's glory 
 may become more splendid, without 
 lessening the poet's fame. 
 
 His character of FalstafF has been 
 received, without any doubt, for a work 
 of invention : but that of the dissolute 
 young prince as his companion, has 
 generally passed for true; not only with 
 those who hear or read the plays, but 
 with those also whose duty it is to iu- 
 b 2 
 
4 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 quire into the truth of what they relate, 
 our historians. It is for them my cor- 
 rection is intended. But I would leave 
 the theatre in full possession of its de- 
 light, and be ready to join its votaries 
 there in exclaiming Errare malim. 
 
 SECTION I. 
 
 Of the Prince's earliest and Military 
 History. 
 
 Being unable to find authorities for the 
 dramatick character, I shall present the 
 reader with such as may make him ac- 
 quainted with the real one. The old 
 chroniclers in English, as Fabian, Hall, 
 Grafton, Holinshed, Stow, and Speed, 
 take their tale one from another, of the 
 young man's sudden change of cha- 
 racter, upon his accession to the throne ; 
 when, in the words of Shakespear, 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 5 
 
 " Consideration, like an Angel, came 
 And whipt th' offending Adam out of him." 
 
 Every one of them seems to believe 
 implicitly in this original sin of the 
 hero; and therefore takes no pains to 
 inquire into the fact, or to account for 
 it, or to refer to his authority. And the 
 moderns all have been equally careless. 
 Goodwin who wrote a long history of 
 Henry the fifth's reign, confined himself 
 strictly to that period, and was afraid to 
 go beyond it ; except to shew r his expec- 
 tation of producing no good by the in- 
 quiry. 
 
 I shall lead the reader up to the source 
 from whence they must have derived 
 their opinions; beginning with the 
 writer who lived nearest to the time in 
 question. Premising that the only book 
 I know, in which any one has ventured 
 to declare his doubt of this uniform 
 consent, or to intimate a contrary opi- 
 nion, is the Parliamentary History of 
 
6 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 England. The author of that part of 
 it which treats of this period, in two 
 places expresses a suspicion of the truth 
 of the prevailing notion. * He considers 
 the censures of the old chroniclers and 
 their copiers, to be very inconsistent 
 with the character which the Prince had 
 obtained from the parliaments of his 
 father's reign, for his valour and pru- 
 dence : And that if he had been guilty 
 of the levities he is accused of, he would 
 not have been made President of the 
 Council. 
 
 The first of the chroniclers, Thomas 
 Elmham prior of Lenton, may be 
 called a contemporary of Henry the 
 fourth rather than of his son ; but he 
 outlived both, and wrote the life of 
 Henry the fifth at great length, in a 
 verbose and flourishing style of Latin, 
 and with abundance of praise. It was 
 published by Hearne. His sixth chapter 
 
 * Vol.ii. Pp. 112, 126. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 7 
 
 has the following title, " *Of the Princes 
 natural temper and disposition, and beha- 
 viour in his youth." Here, after relating 
 an extraordinary instance of his activity 
 and swiftness of foot, (it is the outrun- 
 ning a deer,) he describes him thus, 
 " — much given to lasciviousness, and 
 very fond of musical instruments. Pass- 
 ing the bounds of modesty, and burning 
 with the fire of youth, he was eager in 
 the pursuit of Venus as of Mars. When 
 not engaged in military exercises, he also 
 indulged in other excesses which unre- 
 strained youth is apt to fall into. If 
 these things here introduced among 
 others, should be thought worthy of 
 perusal and of a place in history, it 
 depends on the judgment of discreet 
 readers to give them place or not. If 
 not, such cloudy passages may well be 
 buried in obscurity and silence. But the 
 author's reason for alluding to them, is 
 
 * Page 11. 
 
8 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 in order to afford matter of rejoicing to 
 those who shall read what is to come, by 
 presenting the sudden change of night 
 into day, of a cloud into clear sky, of 
 an eclipse into perfect splendour, of dark- 
 ness into light. Lo, the time is at hand, 
 when, upon the vanishing of a cloud, the 
 solar rays will dart forth/' — &c. Such 
 is the author's style. His next chapter 
 contains a tale of Henry the fourth's cal- 
 ling his son to his bed-side, when at the 
 point of death, in order to kiss and bless 
 him as Isaac did Jacob, and of the 
 Prince's retiring to penitent reflections 
 like the prodigal son ; and then " the 
 left hand becomes the right by a happy 
 miracle," which concludes the chapter. 
 
 He writes without noticing dates or 
 once mentioning the Prince's age. Im- 
 putes the victory at Shrewsbury to his 
 valour ; which, if true, is the most ex- 
 traordinary event of his life : For he 
 was at that time not quite sixteen years 
 old. Relates his appointment to the 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES, 9 
 
 chief place in council, as having been 
 made in consequence of the aid he sent 
 to the Duke of Burgundy. That he 
 studied to comply in all things with his 
 father; and, though a strong party at 
 court had endeavoured to slander him to 
 the king, and detract from his merit, 
 yet that the king died blessing him. 
 The passage is too curious to be passed 
 lightly over. Young Henry is made to 
 retire to confession, after receiving the be- 
 nediction, where " all alone, he revolves 
 and brings back in bitterness of spirit, 
 with sharp reflections and a contrite 
 heart, the past years of his youth ;" con- 
 cluding with a fine speech of intended 
 reformation, (zvhichnone but theMuse could 
 hear,) and " shedding a river of tears that 
 flowed through the whole day." At 
 night, and while the stream still flowed, 
 he finds out a holy man to give him ab- 
 solution, from whence he returns " de- 
 cently adorned with a robe of Virtues."* 
 * Edit. Hearne, p. 42. 
 
JO CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Then comes on (after many wise say- 
 ings and doings of his) the feast of the 
 coronation, in which the young man 
 will not partake; for he resolutely be- 
 takes himself to fasting for three days 
 and nights, that he may have time for 
 reflecting coolly upon his exalted station. 
 All which the author would have his 
 readers believe upon the faith of very 
 credible testimony, which had induced 
 him to write it. Then, in the next chap- 
 ter, (Sth) the nobility who before w 7 ere 
 afraid of his accession, appear to have 
 undergone the same sort of conversion 
 as he, and by the same sudden impulse ; 
 for they immediately make him an offer 
 to swear allegiance, by a precipitate and 
 unusual mark of regard and unprece- 
 dented ceremony, and are delighted to 
 think of him for their king. .Not a word 
 here of his old companions, or of their 
 dismissal. 
 
 It is not easy to get through such a 
 book with seriousness, or to select what 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 11 
 
 should pass for truth, and what for fable* 
 Yet it must be supposed that our author 
 wrote according to the current opinions 
 of his time; and his rank and character 
 enabled him to converse with persons 
 capable of giving him proper informa- 
 tion. An expression in his preface shews, 
 that the did not write of the Prince's 
 extravagancies without reflection ; for he 
 introduces a parenthesis to inform us 
 " that they did not even for a moment let 
 down the magnanimity of his character." 
 He writes as if they had happened be- 
 fore he came to manhood ; inconsistent 
 as that is with the opinion he inculcates 
 of their continuing to the death-bed 
 scene, and its wonderful operation upon 
 them.* 
 
 The next writer is an Italian, who has 
 generally been called by us Titus Livius. # 
 
 * I should from his own expressions have inferred 
 this to have been his Italian christian name. The 
 title prefixed to his book is Titus Livius a Frulovisiis, 
 Ferrariensis ; and some have made it to be Forojuiien- 
 
12 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 He too wrote the life of Henry the fifth, 
 which he addressed to Henry the sixth ; 
 having composed it by command of the 
 Duke of Gloucester, under whose pro- 
 tection he lived. This has been likewise 
 published by Hearne. It is evidently 
 formed out of Elmham's, or else both 
 writers used some other work in common 
 thathasnotbeenpreserved. Hecompresses 
 his original's long descriptions and phrases 
 into a better style, omitting some pas- 
 sages and adding others ; and on the 
 whole has made a better book and more 
 credible history. It contains many mis- 
 takes, however, and internal evidence of 
 his being a foreigner, as he has described 
 himself. 
 
 After a prefatory address to Henry the 
 sixth, then in his youth, with which the 
 book begins, the narrative proceeds as 
 follows, as I translate it : 
 
 " The Welsh entertained hopes, de- 
 
 sis, bat without reason. Dr. Henry, I know not 
 why, thought it an assumed name. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. IS 
 
 rived as they said from one of their old 
 prophecies, that a prince would be born 
 in their country who should govern the 
 whole realm of England; which has 
 been fulfilled by the birth of Henry the 
 fifth in that land. During the life of 
 his father, then Duke of Hereford, he 
 was brought up in the king's palace, 
 and honourably and suitably maintained 
 by king Richard, whose favour he en- 
 joyed together with that of all the cour- 
 tiers. The king frequently spoke of 
 him in publick in his court to this effect ; 
 namely, That he had always heard it 
 reported from his ancestors, that there 
 would be one of the name of Henry born 
 among his kindred, who w r ould be cele- 
 brated all over the world for his praise- 
 worthy and glorious deeds ; which per- 
 son he verily believed this prince to be. 
 For this cause, upon the breaking out of 
 the rebellion of the Irish, he accompa- 
 nied the King in that expedition, that 
 
14 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 he might acquire the knowledge and ex- 
 ercise of arms. 
 
 When the Duke his father first re- 
 turned from banishment, he was raised 
 to the throne after the death of Richard, 
 as the law ordained. Afterwards, when 
 he marched into Scotland to war, 
 he gave the command of the largest 
 division of his army to this Henry his 
 son, whose qualities then began to ap- 
 pear. After this there happened a great 
 insurrection in England itself towards 
 the north; and he accompanied his fa* 
 ther there to suppress the rebellion. A 
 large body of the rebels assembled in 
 arms at Shrewsbury ; against whom the 
 father and son fought a long, hard, and 
 bloody battle, in which the valour of 
 this Henry the Prince was highly distin- 
 guished. Here, while exerting himself 
 strenuously and with too little caution 
 in the fight, he was wounded in the 
 face with an arrow, and it was thought 
 that his life was in danger. But when 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES, 15 
 
 they would have led him off the field, 
 he said " With what spirit will the rest 
 fight, if they see me their prince, and 
 son of the king, retiring in fear? Lead 
 me wounded as I am into the foremost 
 rank, that I may encourage our fellow 
 soldiers not by words but deeds, as be- 
 comes a prince." And forthwith he made 
 a bolder attack than before upon the 
 enemy.* 
 
 The battle lasted long, and the loss was 
 great on both sides ; but when Henry 
 Percy was slain, who w r as at the head 
 of the conspiracy, it ended with a com- 
 pleat victory on the King's side. Many 
 Welshmen, indeed the greater part of 
 the men of that country, entered into 
 the rebellion ; and while it lasted, the 
 King laid waste their lands with fire and 
 sw r ord. The King's son Prince Henry, 
 being appointed to command in this 
 war, destroyed the enemy and rebels, 
 
 * In this passage either the book or the copy is 
 imperfect, and could not be exactly translated. 
 
16 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 partly in battles, and partly by military 
 execution. Others were driven into strong 
 holds ; one of which, a castle of very 
 great strength at Aberystwith, contained 
 a large number of them. Thither the 
 aforesaid Prince marched with a great 
 store of engines and instruments for a 
 siege, and after great labour and expence, 
 and suffering much from the severity of 
 the season and poverty of the country, 
 obtained possession of the castle. And 
 together with that the rest of Wales was 
 restored to the dominion of his father ; 
 except one Owen the chief of the Welsh, 
 who from fear and consciousness of his 
 offences, after lurking about in caves 
 and desert places by himself, at length 
 ended his days there. The son of this 
 Owen afterwards became a menial ser- 
 vant to King Henry. And thus much 
 may suffice for the wars of Wales, 
 whereof very certain information has 
 not been obtained. 
 
 In the mean time John Duke of Bur- 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 17 
 
 gundy had suffered so much by a war 
 with the Duke of Orleans, that he was 
 obliged to seek aid in England from this 
 Prince Henry ; who, with his father's 
 permission, sent some of his troops into 
 France to assist the Duke of Burgundy, 
 through whom he obtained the victory* 
 For which cause the Prince was che- 
 rished and gratefully received by his 
 father and the King's council ; although 
 there were some who detracted from his 
 fame on this occasion. 
 
 This Prince was in stature beyond the 
 middle size, of a handsome face, long 
 neck, slender person, and neat limbs* 
 yet of wonderful strength and swiftness 
 in running ; insomuch that without dogs 
 or bow, with two attendants only, he 
 could catch that swiftest of beasts the 
 deer. He took delight in musick, but 
 in feats of the chace or military exer- 
 cises was moderate, as well as in other 
 amusements of that kind during the 
 King his father's time. 
 c 
 
18 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 And now the end of his father's life 
 approached, and he received from him, 
 after service to God in due form before 
 the altar, and with prayers, the blessing 
 of a father. While he was dying, 
 Prince Henry as one about to succeed 
 to the throne, calling for a priest of good 
 name, made confession of his past offen- 
 ces, and thoroughly amended his life 
 and conversation; so that after his fa- 
 ther's death there was no passage of 
 wantonness ever escaped him. 
 
 To this great Prince the nobles upon 
 his becoming King made an offer of 
 swearing fealty, in their publick as- 
 sembly of the realm which they call 
 parliament, after the third day and be- 
 fore he was crowned and had taken the 
 oath to govern well, of which there had 
 been no example before to any Prince 
 of England. After giving them due 
 thanks, he exhorted them to regard the 
 honour and welfare of the state j and 
 if any man were offended in him, he 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 19 
 
 would remit all things to all, beseech- 
 ing God " if he should be pleased to 
 grant his grace to promote the honour 
 and safety of the kingdom, that then 
 lie would grant him to be crowned ; but 
 if not, that he might rather be buried." 
 
 After this the author proceeds to re- 
 late the coronation, and goes on with 
 the events of the reign. 
 
 These two writers professed to write 
 the King's life, and therefore would 
 deserve more consideration than others, 
 even if thev had not lived in the times 
 they treat of. But this latter circum- 
 stance is perhaps the weightiest as to 
 the merit of their works. T. Livius, 
 the humble servant of the Duke of 
 Gloucester his hero's brother, may per- 
 haps be pardoned for passing over what 
 he thought blamable in his youthful 
 years; yet it is plain that he had heard 
 of such passages, and believed them 
 true. But from Elmham we ought to 
 C 2 
 
20 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH. 
 
 have had particulars, if they were in- 
 deed such as he leads us to suppose. 
 
 A little attention to dates, and to the 
 events of the Prince's youth, as they 
 are to be found in the records of the 
 time, has led me to think lightly of the 
 imputation cast upon him, and that it is 
 as much overcharged, as the account of 
 his reformation is manifestly fabulous. 
 Before I quit these authors, it is proper 
 to notice that Archbishop Parker* has 
 passed a censure upon T e Livius for 
 making but a lame history, and for not 
 acknowledging Elmham for his original, 
 in which censure Hearnef does not agree ; 
 and that Holinshed supposed Elmham 
 to have copied Livius, (into a certain 
 poetical kind of writing,) in which he is 
 certainly mistaken. 
 
 There are three other writers of the 
 English history who were likewise con- 
 temporary with these reigns, namely, 
 
 * In Preface to Walsingham. 
 f Preface to Tit. Liv. and Preface to Elm, p. 12. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 21 
 
 Otterburn, Hardyng, and Walsingham. 
 The work of the former is a meagre 
 account of events, and ends abruptly 
 with the year 1421. Yet not deserving 
 the contemptuous phrase set upon him 
 by Bishop Nicolson, who does not ap- 
 pear to have seen the book.* In the 
 transactions of Henry the fourth's reign, 
 it contains very little of the Prince of 
 Wales, either publick or private ; from 
 whence one might suspect the author 
 not to have been a contemporary, if the 
 proofs of it collected by Hearne and 
 inserted in the edition of his Chronicle, 
 had not been strong, f The Welsh war 
 itself is only noticed by him in the 
 short passages following, viz. 
 
 The King is more than once related 
 to have marched thither, and not to have 
 met with success. Of the battle of 
 Shrewsbury^ it is only said, that the 
 King committed part of the army to the 
 
 * Edit. Hearne Pref. 92. f lb. 29. 89, 90, Ql. 
 t lb. p. 242. 
 
22 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Prince of Wales that day ; but not a 
 word of his bravery or conduct, or youth. 
 Owen Glendower's son is said to have 
 been taken prisoner in the battle of 
 Huske,* 15th March, 1405, between the 
 Welsh and the English of the Princes 
 household, where there were about 1500 
 killed and made prisoners ; as if Henry 
 himself had had nothing to do there. 
 Yet it is probably the same battle as 
 makes the subject of the Prince's letter 
 hereafter quoted, of Wth March. The 
 taking of Aberystwithf in 1407, is re- 
 lated in the words used by Walsingham, 
 which I shall state in another page, pro- 
 bably copied from this author. 
 
 The story of the Prince's visit to his 
 father in the year before his death is 
 well told and short, and I shall have 
 occasion to recur to it in the last section 
 of this Essay. He relates the King's 
 death in a natural and ordinary way, 
 
 * lb. p. 251. t lb. 261. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 23 
 
 and without any calling for his son, or 
 other circumstances of fancy. But after 
 that comes the coronation of Henry the 
 fifth, with its attendant the terrible and 
 ominous snow-storm, and the new man 
 regenerated — thus — " Qui ver-o mox ut 
 initiatus estregni infulis, repente mutatus 
 est in virum alterum; honestati modestias 
 et gravitati studens, nullum virtutis 
 genus pertransiens quod non cuperet in 
 se transferri. Cujus mores et gestus omni 
 conditioni servire videbantur ad appre- 
 hendendas virtutes ; sicque felices repu- 
 tabantur quibus imitari dabatur vestigia 
 regis* * 
 
 This passage is copied and enlarged by 
 Walsingham, upon which I too shall 
 have to enlarge in treating of the lat» 
 ter. 
 
 Hardy ng's Chronicle of England was 
 the work of one who was a soldier as 
 well as poet, and who served under our 
 
 * lb. page 273. 
 
24 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Henry in the war of France. In the 
 argument of his 203d chapter, he men- 
 tions his own appointment to be constable 
 of Warkvvorth Castle upon the Earl of 
 Northumberland's attainder; and in that 
 of chap. 212, he relates his going to the 
 siege of Harflete with the new King. It 
 is composed in English rhyme, of which 
 I shall have occasion to quote only two 
 stanzas ; for there are no more that affect 
 my inquiry. 
 
 One, which I shall consider in another 
 place, relates to the young Prince's con- 
 duct to the Duke of Burgundy, and his 
 being supplanted in his father's favour 
 by his next brother. The other is the 
 following, taken from his 2 11th chapter; 
 the argument of which contains this 
 passage " And in the hour that he was 
 crowned and anointed, he was changed 
 from all vices unto virtuous life." — This 
 is the stanza, in modern spelling — 
 
 f* The hour he was crowned and anoint 
 He changed was of all his old condition. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 25 
 
 Full virtuous he was from point to point $ 
 Grounded all new in good opinion, 
 Forpassingly without comparison. 
 Then set upon all right and conscience, 
 A new man made by all good regimence." 
 
 Walsingham wrote in the reigns of 
 Henry the fifth and sixth. His works 
 having deservedly gained reputation, I 
 shall be more particular in selecting 
 from them, than from Otterburn or 
 Hardyng. He brings the history of 
 England down to his own time ; and there 
 is no difference between his Ypodigma 
 Neustrias and theHistoria Brevis, in what 
 relates to my subject. In what follows 
 I have extracted from the latter all those 
 passages in which he names Henry the 
 fifth; whose character, as Prince of 
 Wales, he describes as if he derived his 
 information from Elmham. 
 
 In his history of Henry the fourth's 
 reign he mentions the young Prince only 
 four times, which are on the following 
 
26 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 occasions. First when created Prince of 
 Wales,* and only 12 years old But 
 he says nothing of his age or character. 
 Secondly in the account of the battle 
 of Shrewsbury in 1403, where Percy 
 was defeated and killed. Here f the 
 Prince of Wales is related to have made 
 his first essay in arms, and to have been 
 wounded in the face by an arrow. This 
 passage deserves to be particularly noted, 
 because the event is related as briefly as 
 in this page, and shews that the his- 
 torian had no particular inclination to 
 praise him. For the occasion would 
 have allowed him to do so with truth, 
 and agreeably to every reader's feelings. 
 The prince was then only in his 16th 
 year. Though Sand ford's account J would 
 make him almost a year younger, yet 
 the date given to his birth by Williams 
 in the history of Monmouthshire, which 
 
 * Edit. 1574, p. 401. t P. 411. 
 t Geneal Hist. 277. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 2*J 
 
 makes it of 9th Aug. 1387,* was the 
 result of much inquiry, and seems cor- 
 rect. His father would hardly have 
 placed him in battle, and in such a battle 
 in his 15th year. The black Prince him- 
 self so celebrated for his youthful prowess 
 was in his 17th at the field of Cressy 5 | 
 when he first appeared in arms. 
 
 The third instance is of the year 
 1407, in the 20th of the Prince's age, 
 when he had a command in Wales, 
 as the King's lieutenant there against 
 Glendower. All that is related is in these 
 words/}; " In this summer the Lord 
 Henry Prince of Wales besieged and 
 took the castle of Aberystwith ; but soon 
 afterwards Owen Glendower contrived 
 by fraud to retake it, and strengthened 
 the place with a new garrison." 
 
 The fourth and longest passage is of 
 
 * The battle was on 21st July, 1403. 
 
 t So Sandford ; eighteenth Walsingham. 
 
 } Wals.419. 
 
28 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 the year 1410, upon the execution of 
 a poor Lollard for Heresy, who was burnt 
 in Smithfield.* The Prince is related to 
 have been present, and to have taken 
 pains with the man before he was finally 
 shut upf for the fire, in order to con- 
 vince him of his error and procure his 
 recantation, but in vain. Afterwards 
 during the progress of the flames, he was 
 moved by the sufferer's cries to order the 
 fire to be taken avvav, and to address 
 the half-dead patient very earnestly to 
 abjure his errors, and ask pardon ; which 
 the Prince promised to obtain, with a 
 provision for life if he would recant. This 
 being obstinately rejected, the Prince 
 ordered him to be shut up again in the 
 fire, and he was consumed. 
 
 This was in the last year but one of 
 
 * P. 421. 
 f I do not remember to have seen, except in this 
 example, a description of the method of executing 
 this cruel punishment, as it was here practised. The 
 sufferer was shut up in a cask. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES, 29 
 
 Henry the fourth. We may fairly draw 
 from it two inferences of considerable 
 effect upon the Prince's character. One, 
 that at this period he was sincere and 
 zealous upon those points of religion 
 which were then brought into publick dis- 
 cussion ; the other, that he was not with- 
 out authority or influence at court. 
 
 All that Walsingham relates which 
 can be construed into an unfavourable 
 opinion of his personal character, is in 
 the following passage, of the beginning 
 of his reign. " On which day (april 
 9th, his coronation,) was a heavy fall of 
 snow, so severe as to astonish every 
 body; some men's minds connecting the 
 storm with the new king's reign, as if 
 it stamped a mark of coldness and se- 
 verity upon his life and government. 
 But others judged more mildly of the 
 king, and interpreted this unseasonable 
 weather to be a happy omen ; as if he 
 would cause the snow and frost of vices 
 to fall away in his reign, and the serene 
 
30 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 fruit of virtues to spring up. That it might 
 be truly said by his subjects, " Lo, the 
 winter is past, the rain is over and gone.''* 
 Who indeed as soon as he was invested 
 with the ensigns of royalty f was sud- 
 denly changed into a new man ; behaving 
 with propriety, modesty, and gravity, 
 and shewing a desire to practise every 
 kind of virtue. Whose manners and 
 conduct were exemplary to all ranks 
 both of Clergy and Laity." 
 
 Taking the obvious bearing of this 
 description, we might from hence impute 
 to the King a character hitherto quite 
 contrary to propriety, modesty, gravity, 
 and every virtue. Upon what evidence 
 did these historians write this ? Elmham 
 had not said so, and had palliated what 
 he wrote to his disadvantage. And they 
 themselves had related nothing before 
 to justify the charge. Yet the- circum- 
 stances must have been notorious if true* 
 
 * From Solomon's song, chap. ii. 11. 
 f This is the passage taken from Otterburn. See p, 23. 
 
WHEN PR1NCK OF WALES. 31 
 
 and ought to have been noticed by a 
 faithful relator of events. It is plain 
 that Walsingham in this place, in copy- 
 ing from Otterburn, has only studied to 
 amplify the words without inquiring 
 into the facts ; and his censure is too 
 extensive and severe to be intitled to 
 respect. We have seen nothing yet to 
 rely upon, but the general words of 
 Elmham, and must learn from other 
 sources what this change of behaviour 
 was, since these authors do not furnish 
 the necessary information, or shew what 
 it was before the change. Walsingham 
 makes no reference to this part of the 
 King's life, when in summing up his 
 character at the end of his reign, he 
 bestows the highest praises upon him. 
 
 These are the onty historians I know, 
 who may be called contemporaries of 
 these reigns; and from them all subse- 
 quent writers may be supposed to have 
 gained their information. I shall shew 
 that they were ignorant of some of the 
 
32 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 most material transactions of the life of 
 Henry before his accession to the throne, 
 and therefore were incompetent judges 
 of his character: For I see no reason to 
 blame them for wilful concealment. 
 They are well enough disposed to applaud 
 him in what they relate of his reign, 
 and to excuse what they refer to of his 
 early life. 
 
 Elmham's book seems to have been 
 the foundation on which Walsingham 
 rested, as well as T. Livius ; and these 
 gave out the word, which was impli- 
 citly taken by all that came after. There- 
 fore Elmham must be diligently exa- 
 mined ; for Otterburn and Hardyng are 
 not distinguished enough to merit a 
 separate consideration. 
 
 In the first transaction related by 
 him of the Prince of Wales, his in- 
 attention to dates and times would 
 lead the reader to imagine, as proba- 
 bly the writer himself thought, that 
 Henry was advancing to manhood at the 
 time of King Richard's expedition to 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 33 
 
 Ireland. His words are* " Virentibus 
 adhuc annis teneris jloridce juventutis :" 
 and "Cum etiamRexidemRicardus contra 
 rebel les Yberniae in ipsas partes manu 
 pugnatorum fortissimatransfretaret, prae- 
 fatum Henricum secum in sua comitiva, 
 ipsum prout decuit tractando deduxit; 
 ei plerunque signa dilectionis internee 
 prsetendens : Jam primo didicit nondum 
 pubertate insignita juventus, inunda- 
 tiones fluminum et marinos ten tare 
 tumultus." Which T. Livius improves 
 thus, — " in expeditione cum Rege profec- 
 tus est ut rem militarem et disceret et 
 primum exerceret." As if he had ac- 
 companied the King of his own accord, 
 to be instructed in the art of w r ar. 
 
 But it appears that he was then-f only 
 in the twelfth year of his age : And the 
 King's motive for taking him to Ireland, 
 was, that he might thus retain a pledge for 
 his father's good behaviour. For the Duke 
 
 * Cap. ii, f In May, 1399. 
 
34 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 was then meditating in exile how to 
 make good his return to England. Our 
 Prince was a boy of fine parts and for* 
 ward for his years, and a favourite with 
 the King; who took the first oppor- 
 tunity that occurred of doing him honour 
 even then, by knighting him under the 
 royal standard upon first taking the field 
 in Ireland : On which occasion he made 
 several other knights, for the greater 
 splendour of the ceremony. * The Prince 
 ever retained a grateful sense of Richard's 
 kindness to him ; which serves to ex- 
 plain a transaction very particularly 
 related by the contemporary and earliest 
 writers of his reign. One of his first acts 
 after being crowned, was to pay due 
 funeral honours to the remains of that 
 
 * This was in June following. I cite from the 
 curious French Manuscript No. 1319, of the Har- 
 leian collection -, a part of which is translated, and 
 published in Harris's Hibernica, as the work of Sir G. 
 Carew Lord Totnes. That extract makes part of a 
 collection in Cott. MSS. Titus B. 11. p. 17 5. which 
 probably had belonged to the Carew family. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 35 
 
 King, who had been buried without 
 them ; and to shew as much respect to 
 his memory, as his peculiar situation and 
 the duty to his own father would permit. 
 This remarkable event of Henry's life, 
 the being knighted so young and in the 
 field, is not noticed by the contemporary 
 chroniclers, and was perhaps unknown 
 to them. Yet it was a high distinction 
 to one not of royal birth ; for which I 
 must refer to M. de la Curne's Memoirs 
 of ancient Chivalry.* 
 
 The next mark of inattention to his 
 subject which I charge upon the author, 
 is his manner of writing of the battle 
 of Shrewsbury, although he ascribes the 
 successs of the day to our young hero. 
 This, in my opinion, proves that he did 
 not know his age. He could not have 
 omitted to mention, as an addition to 
 his praise, that he was then not sixteen 
 years old, if he had known the fact : 
 
 * See particularly the last note to the first part. 
 D 2 
 
36 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 And not to know it, is blamable igno- 
 rance in a writer of his life. He writes too 
 that the Prince had a command of part 
 of the army sent against Scotland in the 
 precedingyear, when he was still younger; 
 yet without noticing his age. The King 
 commanded that army in person, and 
 did nothing worthy of note ; but 
 in the parliament which met in October 
 following, the Speaker's address* com- 
 pliments the King for what he did in 
 Scotland. If the Prince of Wales had 
 any command given him then, it must 
 have been only nominal. But the same 
 address thanks the Prince together with 
 the King, for his prowess then lately dis- 
 played in his campaigns against the 
 Welsh, where, according to Dr. Henry, f 
 he commanded a division of the army. 
 
 We learn from instruments in Rymer's 
 Foedera, that in the year of the battle of 
 Shrewsbury, young as he then was, the 
 
 * 3. Pari. Ro. 486. 
 f 9. Henry 8vo. p. 15, cites Otterburn. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES, 37 
 
 King placed such confidence in him, as to 
 make him his Lieutenant in Wales, for 
 the prosecution of the war there against 
 Glendower.* It may be presumed that he 
 sent wise and able assistants to accom- 
 pany him. But the events shew that 
 he wanted them not. In executing 
 this commission, he appears to have been 
 active and diligent, and to have given 
 proof of great abilities attended with 
 successs, of which there are records re- 
 maining.f The reader of this part of 
 his life in Elmham, will have only a 
 faint and very imperfect idea of his me- 
 rit, and will be led by the style to suppose 
 that he was in the full vigour of man- 
 hood at this time. Eager as he describes 
 
 * 8. Rym. Feed. 305. 
 f Int. al. 8. Rym. 4ig. There is an article of the 
 proceedings in parliament of October, 1404, which 
 shews his attention to Ways and Means. He applies 
 to parliament for a speedy assignment of money for 
 his troops which had been promised, and of which 
 he had received only one half. 3. Pari, Ro. p. 54p, 
 
38 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 him in the pursuit of Venus as of Mars, the 
 letter I am about to produce will prove, 
 that he had likewise the endowments 
 utriusque Minervce, in this period of 
 his youth. In the second year of his 
 command in the Welsh war, he had the 
 good fortune to gain a great victory 
 against superior numbers; and the mo- 
 dest and interesting letter which he wrote 
 to the King his father with the news, 
 is characteristick of him who afterwards 
 fought at Agincourt. It is extraordinary 
 that it should fall to me at this day to 
 be the publisher of such a letter. I say 
 publisher, because being unnoticed by 
 our historians, the publication of it in 
 Rymer's Foedera, in the original French* 
 (some readers may stare at this) has kept 
 it for the gratification of antiquarians 
 only. I give the letter here translated, 
 without farther preamble. 
 
 * 8. Rym. F. 390, from MSS. Cott. Cleop. F. 3. 
 fo, 59. In 4. D. 1404-5. 6th Hen. 4, 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 39 
 
 " Most dread Sovereign Lord and 
 Father, 
 
 " In the most humble manner that I 
 may in my heart devise, I recommend 
 myself to your royal majesty, humbly 
 praying your gracious blessing. Most 
 dread Sovereign Lord and Father, I sin- 
 cerely beseech God graciously to shew 
 his providence towards you in all places ; 
 praise be to him in all his works ! For 
 on Wednesday the 11th of this instant 
 month of March, your rebels of the 
 parts of Glamorgan, Morgannock, Usk, 
 Netherwent, and Overwent, drew to- 
 gether to the number of 8000 men by 
 their own account; and went in the 
 morning of the same day, and burnt 
 part of your town of Grosmont within 
 your Lordship of Monmouth and Jeu- 
 noia. 
 * only my well beloved cousin the Lord 
 
 * There is something defective here. The French 
 words of the manuscript are, as in the print, tantost 
 hors, which I can make nothing of. 
 
40 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Talbot, and the little troop of my house- 
 hold; and there joined them your brave and 
 faithful knights William Newport and 
 John Greindre,* who made but a very 
 small power altogether. But true it is 
 that the victory is not in the multitude of 
 people, (and thus was it well seen there) 
 but in the might of the Lord. 
 
 " And there by the aid of the blessed 
 Trinity your men wan the field, and 
 overcame all the said rebels ; of whom 
 they slew in the field, by fair reckoning 
 upon our return from the pursuit, some 
 say eight hundred, and some 1000, being- 
 questioned upon pain of death. Never- 
 theless, be it one or the other in this ac- 
 count, I will not dispute. 
 
 €i And to give you full information of 
 the whole affair, I send you a person 
 worthy of credit therein, one of my 
 faithful servants the bearer hereof, who 
 
 * His services in this war were thought worthy to 
 be mentioned with others, in the Commons address 
 to the King. 3. Pari. Ro. p. 577. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 41 
 
 was in the battle and very satisfactorily 
 performed his duty, as he has ever done. 
 
 11 Now such amends hath God ordained 
 you for the burning of four houses in your 
 town aforesaid. And no prisoners were 
 taken except one who was a great chief- 
 tain among them, whom I would have 
 sent to you, but that he is not yet able 
 to bear the journey. 
 
 " And with respect to the course I pro 
 pose to hold hereupon, please your high- 
 ness to give entire credence to the bearer 
 hereof, in what he w 7 ill himself inform 
 your highness on my part. And pray God 
 ever keep you in joy and honour, and 
 grant that I may shortly have to comfort 
 you with more good news. 
 
 " Written at Hereford, the said Wed- 
 nesday at night, 
 
 " Your most humble and obedient Son, 
 
 " HENRY." 
 
 At the date of this letter the Prince 
 was not eighteen years old. Yet it is 
 
42 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 evident that the conduct of the war, 
 and of the government of the country 
 then in rebellion, was left entirely to 
 him. His expressions shew that he felt 
 the importance of his situation, and his 
 proceedings are such as a man of ex- 
 perience would have directed. We see 
 no vanity or exultation, though the oc- 
 casion would have rendered it excusable 
 in a high spirited youth of his years 
 and quality. 
 
 The day named in the above letter for 
 the engagement, (l lth March) is the 
 same as Carte mentions for a victory 
 gained by the Prince over Griffith, eldest 
 son of Ozven Glendower. If the chief- 
 tain described by the Prince had been 
 that person, his quality is not likely to 
 have been omitted in the account of 
 him ; and we may therefore suppose the 
 author quoted by Carte* to have been 
 
 * Ellis's Account of Owen Glendower. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 43 
 
 mistaken, either as to the person or the 
 time. 
 
 The same book from which Rymer 
 copied the above letter,* contains another, 
 written by the Prince in June of the 
 preceding year, when he was at Worces- 
 ter in his progress toward Wales to 
 take the command o£ the army ; in 
 which, with a master's hand he gives 
 orders for the disposition of troops and 
 other circumstances, in the full exercise 
 of authority ; and that before he was 
 seventeen. This being an official letter 
 may possibly not have proceeded imme- 
 diately from himself, and on that ac- 
 count I do not think it worth while to 
 insert it. 
 
 Upon the meeting of parliament in 
 March following, the Commons addressed 
 the King to let the Prince remain con- 
 stantly in Wales, while the war conti- 
 nued there :f and at the same time 
 prayed his majesty " to direct his honour- 
 
 * Fo. 47, f 3. Pari. Ro. 569, 3 April, 1406. 
 
44 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 able letter under the privy seal, to thank 
 the Prince for his good and continual 
 labour and diligence which he had con- 
 tinually sustained in his honourable per- 
 son, for the subduing of the country, 
 and the chastisement and punishment 
 of the rebels, and the resistance of their 
 evil and malicious purposes." 
 
 It is plain that T. Livius speaks with 
 truth in observing that men were but 
 imperfectly informed of the war in 
 Wales. # For we have before us two con- 
 temporary writers of the life of him 
 who had the conduct of it, the hero 
 of their story ; a young prince of ele- 
 vated genius and great abilities, which 
 were first called into action and distin- 
 guished in this war ; a war that conti- 
 nued for many years under his govern- 
 ment, who yet barely bestow a few lines 
 upon the subject. May we not suspect 
 that writers ignorant of such material 
 parts of his life, might know as little 
 of the other transactions, from whence 
 
 * See p. 16, before. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 45 
 
 they have drawn one part of his charac- 
 ter? And we may the more readily par- 
 don the general chroniclers of those 
 times for the same kind of inattention. 
 
 The Welsh rebellion began in the first 
 year of the king's reign, and was not 
 suppressed till the tenth. Many instru- 
 ments of this period in Rymer's Foedera 
 shew that from the year 1403, when 
 the Prince became the King's Lieute- 
 nant of Wales, until the rebel chief 
 Glendower was subdued and fled, the 
 King committed to his son his authority 
 and confidence for the discharge of his 
 trust. And the records of parliament 
 shew that it was with the wishes and 
 approbation of that assembly. It was 
 a high trust and arduous employment. 
 For the King was beset with difficulties 
 as soon as he w T as seated on the throne, 
 and his whole reign was a course of 
 constant toil and exertion. Owen Glen- 
 dower assumed the title of Prince of 
 Wales, and at one time held in his hands 
 
46 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 a power equal to that of its ancient 
 Princes. In this character he made a 
 treaty offensive and defensive* with 
 France, the chief object of which was 
 to invade England through Wales* Ac- 
 cordingly, at different times there were 
 bodies of -' "French troops sent to his as- 
 sistance. This therefore was an important 
 part of the King's administration ; who 
 designed and was proceeding more than 
 once to conduct the war there in person^ 
 but was prevented by other troubles. 
 
 The Prince of Wales seems to have 
 continued for some years in that 
 country, intent upon his commission, 
 according to the desire of the House 
 of Commons above-mentioned ; during 
 which time his rebel rival kept him in 
 active employment, and afforded him 
 
 * 8. Rym, 356, 365, 7, 406, 7> 412. He dates 
 his acts and instruments very royally, In the fourth, 
 & 'c. year of his Principality, 
 
 f Instruments of the years 1405 and 1406 in 
 8. Rym. 407, 412, 419, SRe w that he then made pre* 
 parations for it 
 
WHEN QUINCE OF WALES. 4? 
 
 the means of accomplishing himself in 
 that fatal art, which afterwards proved 
 so destructive to his subjects and his 
 enemies. But of all this we should know 
 very little without looking for the proofs 
 in Rymer's Foedera and the records of 
 parliament. 
 
 In this manner the Welsh rebellion 
 was in a great measure subdued ; and 
 Glendower himself, after the defeat 
 and death of his ally Northumberland, 
 was no longer formidable. This happened 
 in the spring of the year 1408.* The 
 Prince of Wales's name does not occur 
 afterwards in the publick instruments re- 
 lating to this country ; and probably he 
 left his command there in consequence 
 of its more settled state. It had now 
 been about five years subject to his go- 
 vernment. 
 
 Another cause may have helped to 
 call him away, and perhaps to assist his 
 
 * Walsingham in that year. 
 
48 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 father in the negotiations with France. 
 The misfortunes and factions of that 
 country tempted the king to retaliate 
 upon it for the aid furnished from thence 
 to his enemies here ; and he now pre- 
 pared to take advantage of their divi- 
 sions, as they had done against him. 
 About this time Prince Henry was made 
 Warden of the Cinque Ports, and soon 
 after Captain of Calais, upon the death 
 of the Earl of Somerset.* This was 
 a greater appointment and more important 
 trust than that of Lieutenant of Wales; 
 and the then uncertain state of peace or 
 war with France doubled its importance. 
 I have not been able to find evidence 
 of his being at any time upon ill terms 
 with his father on account of a vicious 
 and dissipated course of life, a circum- 
 stance related in all the modern histo- 
 ries. All through the Welsh transactions 
 the contrary appears; and the above 
 
 * S. Rym. 616, 629, in March, 1410. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES* 49 
 
 appointments prove that at this period 
 the King continued to employ his son 
 in his most arduous business. The Cap- 
 tainship of Calais might be called the 
 best thing in the King's gift, if emo- 
 lument and power were in view. It was 
 this station that enabled the Earl of War- 
 wick in the next generation, to turn 
 the fate of the kingdom and to make 
 and unmake Kings. 
 
 Among the transactions of the year 
 1411 there is an appointment of the 
 Earl of Arundel as embassador to treat 
 with the Duke of Burgundy, for a mar- 
 riage of one of his daughters with the 
 Prince of Wales, to which the Prince 
 is a party. It is not probable that either 
 side was sincere in this proposal, from 
 whichsoever it came. The real business 
 that arose from this intercourse seems 
 to have been a supply of troops under 
 the Earl's command, who went to the 
 Duke's assistance, and enabled him to 
 
50 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 defeat his enemy the Duke of Orleans.* 
 It would not have been mentioned here 
 but on account of the persons who held 
 the chief command in the expedition, 
 who had been of the Prince's army in 
 Wales; as the Earl of Arundel, Sir John 
 Oldcastle, and Hugh Mortimer his 
 chamberlain : from whence I infer that 
 the measure had his hearty concurrence. 
 But Elmham and T. Livius relate that 
 application was made directly to the 
 Prince of Wales by the Duke of Bur- 
 gundy for this aid, (an extraordinary 
 course of proceeding) and that the King 
 appointed his son to be President of his 
 Council, because he was much pleased 
 with him for sending it. There is no 
 authority now to be found for either 
 story. The Prince was at the head of 
 the council long before. 
 
 Walsingham mentions the expedition 
 to France, as a transaction in the usual 
 course. The instrument of X^ord Arun- 
 
 * Velly Hist, de France and Walsing. in this year. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 51 
 
 del's commission is dated the first of 
 September 1411,* by which he and 
 others are empowered to treat of the 
 marriage. The Prince about the same 
 time went to his government of Calais, 
 perhaps to superintend the expedition 
 then preparing, f and select the troops for 
 that service. He may have had corres- 
 pondence there with the Duke of Bur- 
 gundy, and that may have given rise 
 to the passage in Elmham. In this year 
 I find a confidential messenger was sent 
 to him by the Pope, but for what pur- 
 pose does not appear. It was not to be 
 committed to writing. J 
 
 In the following year the King em- 
 barked in a new scheme of politicks for 
 France, which led him to quit his con- 
 nection with the Duke of Burgundy, 
 and to support that Duke's enemies of 
 the Orleans party. Eor this end a treaty 
 
 * 8 Rym. F. 698, 9. f lb. 705. 
 
 * lb. 726. 
 
 E 2 
 
52 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 was concluded* between him and the 
 Orleans chiefs, in whose support the 
 Duke of Clarence was sent to France 
 with a considerable army. One of the 
 instruments of this treaty contains an 
 engagement on the part of the Prince 
 of Wales and his brothers, to maintain 
 its articles against the Duke of Bur- 
 gundyand all his family.f In the month 
 of March of the next year Henry the 
 Fourth died. 
 
 There are some other instruments in 
 Rymer concerning the Prince, which 
 prove the unceasing good correspondence 
 between him and his father, for which 
 purpose I select them, as follows: 
 
 Vol. 8. 401. June 1405, a grant to him 
 for life of the castle and lordship of 
 Framlingham, late belonging to the at- 
 tainted Earl Marshall. 
 
 lb. 591. July 1409, a grant of Cran- 
 burn and two other manors, &c. to hold 
 
 * 8Rym. F.?38, f lb. 743, 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 53 
 
 in ward during the minority of Edmund 
 Earl of March. 
 
 lb. 608. Nov. 1409, a grant of 500 
 marks a year to him for maintenance of 
 the said Earl and his brother. This was 
 a trust of the highest confidence ; for 
 the young Earl, as heir in blood to the 
 deposed King, was the constant object 
 of Henry's fears. 
 
 lb. 628. March 1410, a grant of a 
 house for his residence in London. 
 
 lb. 639. June following another grant 
 of 500 marks as before. 
 
 lb. 705. October 141 1, a release of 
 duties on wine for the supply of his 
 household. 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 Of the Princes conduct in State Affairs. 
 
 I have reserved for a separate chapter 
 the evidences of the Prince's conduct in 
 
54 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 state affairs, not only because the subject 
 is distinct in itself, but because the proof 
 is altogether drawn from a single source, 
 the proceedings in the House of Lords, 
 as preserved in the parliament rolls. 
 
 The reader has perhaps seen what he 
 did not expect, of our hero's regular mi- 
 litary employment from his earliest youth, 
 and of his diligence as well as abilities in 
 that character. I am about to detail 
 matters less known, which prove that he 
 attended as diligently to business of 
 state, and was qualifying himself for a 
 statesman, by engaging in the transac- 
 tions of parliament at an early period 
 of life, and sooner than is commonly 
 thought prudent for young men to be so 
 employed. 
 
 It is related that he was placed for 
 education at Queen's College Oxford, 
 under the care of his uncle Beaufort, 
 who was afterwards Cardinal.* When, is 
 
 * Rous Hist. Regum: Angl. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 55 
 
 not told. It must have been in his 
 boyish clays, and he could not have staid 
 there long ; yet probably long enough 
 for one of his fine parts to acquire the 
 best of such learning as was then taught, 
 But exercise and experience were his 
 chief teachers. The character which 
 Cicero in his Orator makes L. Crassus 
 take to himself, may be given to our 
 Prince. " Qui ante ad agendum quam 
 ad cognoscendum venimus, quos ■ 
 res ipsa ante confecit quam possemus ali- 
 quid de rebus tantis suspicari." 
 
 The first proceeding of his in Parlia^ 
 ment which I find recorded is of Decem- 
 ber 1406, and makes its appearance upon 
 a great and remarkable day ; when the 
 settlement of the crown was fixed in the 
 King and his issue ; and signed and sealed 
 by all the Lords, and by the Speaker for 
 the Commons.* Next follows a petition 
 by the Prince of IVales and the Lords 
 
 * 3Parl.Ro.5S3. Dec. 22. 
 
56 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 spiritual and temporal against the Lollards 
 and their abettors, speakers and inventors 
 of news and falsehood and prophecies, 
 against the Catholick faith and the pos- 
 sessions of holy church and the Prelates ; 
 which is immediately agreed to, for the 
 security of the publick peace and holy 
 church. When it is considered that the 
 King had been suspected formerly by 
 the clergy, of lending a favourable ear to 
 those Lollards, or to their designs against 
 the temporal ties of the prelates, this act 
 of the Prince of Wales deserves particu- 
 lar remark. The King himself may be 
 thought to have suggested it to his son, 
 for a proof which he and his family were 
 willing to give of their attachment to 
 the ecclesiastical constitution, and to re- 
 lieve the clergy from their fears of 
 change. 
 
 The following article shews that the 
 Prince in this year assisted in transacting 
 the chief business of state and parlia* 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 57 
 
 ment, as one of the great Council;* 
 wherein certain ordinances are established 
 for regulating the proceedings of this 
 council. The 13th requires all the mem- 
 bers to be present, except where quick 
 dispatch is necessary. In which case, 
 those who are absent shall be consulted. 
 Except that if the Prince or other Lord 
 should be upon service out of the realm, 
 or in Wales, f the rest shall not be obliged 
 to wait for their answer, 
 
 The following article represents the 
 Prince upon a great occasion, in an inte- 
 resting address to the King in full Par- 
 liament. We cannot judge as we ought 
 of its importance, for want of knowing 
 the particular circumstances. For it 
 seems to relate to divisions at court and 
 in parliament, which cannot now be 
 thoroughly explained. On the 2d Dec. 
 
 * 3 Pari. Ro. Pp. 585, 587. 
 
 f The printed roll has the word Guerre here for 
 Gales, but I find upon examination of the record that 
 the mistake is in the original. 
 
5 a CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 1407* being the last day of Parliament, 
 after great heat and debate, " the Speaker, 
 in the name of the Commons, prayed the 
 King to be graciously pleased to reward 
 the Prince for his great labour diligence 
 and troubles, many and frequent, in re- 
 sisting the great rebellion of the Welsh. 
 Whereof his Majesty most especially re- 
 turned thanks to the Commons, for their 
 hearty good will in this behalf. And 
 thereupon the said Lord the Prince, most 
 humbly kneeling, declared to our said 
 Lord the King and to all the estates of 
 parliament, in respect of the Duke of 
 York, how that he had understood that 
 divers obloquies and detractions had been 
 put forth by certain evil disposed per- 
 sons, to the slander and derogation of 
 the honourable estate and name of the 
 said Duke. Wherein the Lord the 
 Prince made declaration for the same 
 Duke, that if it had not been for his 
 
 * 3 Par.Rol. p. 611, translated. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 59 
 
 skill and good advice, himself the said 
 Prince and those who were with him, 
 would have been in very great perils and 
 desolation. And he farther added in 
 behalf of the said Duke, that if he had 
 been one of the poorest gentlemen of 
 the realm, wishing to earn a good name 
 and honour by service, the said Duke did 
 so in his own person labour and use his 
 endeavours to give comfort and courage 
 to all others who were of the said com- 
 pany : And that in all his actions, he 
 is a true and valiant knight. 
 
 And the said Speaker in the name of 
 the Commons farther prayed, That all 
 those who were with the said Lord the 
 Prince in Wales, and continued and 
 staid with him until his departure thence, 
 might be rewarded and promoted accord- 
 ing to their good desert. And that the 
 rest who fled and Went oif from the said 
 Prince's company, without asking or 
 obtaining leave in that behalf, might be 
 
60 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 punished and chastised for example to 
 others in time to come." 
 
 The circumstances abovementioned 
 respecting the Duke of York may be 
 relieved from a part of their obscurity, by 
 recurring to former transactions in which 
 he was concerned. He had lately served 
 in the campaign in Wales in the Prince's 
 company, who esteemed him for his 
 military qualities; but had incurred the 
 King's displeasure two years before, upon 
 some attempts then forming in favour of 
 the young Earl of March ; had been 
 arrested and imprisoned on this account, 
 but after some months discharged,* and 
 was received again into favour.f The 
 only merit of his character was in mili- 
 tary service, which the Prince's address 
 had been able to employ for the Duke's 
 own benefit as well as the King's. For 
 he had been, when Earl of Rutland, a 
 
 * 8 Rym. F. 387, 8. 
 
 t lb. 457. He is re-appointed Constable of the 
 Tower. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES, 61 
 
 courtier to Richard the Second and his 
 favourite companion, and was suspected 
 of having betrayed him. He engaged 
 in the first plot to set up the Earl of 
 March against Henry the Fourth, but 
 saved himself by revealing it to the 
 King; and for this and from regard to 
 his father Edmund Duke of York, ob- 
 tained a pardon. Such a man could 
 never be clear of suspicions in the King's 
 mind, ever sore on the subject of Morti- 
 mer, when any danger was apprehended 
 from that quarter. Whether this were 
 the case on the present occasion or not, 
 it furnished the Prince of Wales, how in 
 the 21st year of his age, with an oppor- 
 tunity of shewing friendship for his 
 kinsman and fellow-soldier, with the 
 warmth of youthful affection, though 
 perhaps not agreeably to his father's 
 wishes. He continued the same kind- 
 ness to him after his accession to the 
 throne ; and in the second year of his 
 reign made a declaration in parliament in 
 
62 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 his favour, in order to reverse the attain- 
 der passed upon him in the beginning of 
 his father's reign. * Thus did he change 
 enemies into friends ; and in this instance 
 converted a treacherous courtier into an 
 able warrior and useful servant of his 
 country. For this Duke, who had once 
 deserved to die upon a scaffold, was 
 enabled by the Prince to enjoy his friend- 
 ship, to live many years in honour, and 
 lose his life nobly upon the field of Agin- 
 court. 
 
 In the next parliament, which met in 
 January 1409-10, there are likewise 
 particular instances on record of the 
 Prince's participation in the proceedings. 
 One is a petition of the Commons, which 
 recites that a statute of that year (Stat, 
 ii. Hen. 4. ch. 9.) a very material one in 
 the administration of justice, to prevent 
 malicious prosecutions and secret indict- 
 ments, was made by the King's grace 
 
 * 4 Pari. Ro. \J . 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 63 
 
 " par la bone mediation de lour redout6 
 Seigneur le Prince."* 
 
 The others contain entries of the respite 
 of two ordinances " by the Lord the 
 Prince and the Council."! This article 
 has given occasion to such an ill-founded 
 censure of the Prince by high authority, 
 and to so great a mistake in parliamen- 
 tary history, as to require an explanation 
 at some length, upon which I must 
 therefore enter. But I shall first mention 
 the remaining passages of the Parliament 
 Rolls intended for this place. 
 
 On the 2d May 1410, J his name ap~ 
 pears as chief of the great council, and 
 as such he addresses the house upon the 
 means of discharging the necessary pub- 
 lick expenses. He states on their part, 
 that if there should not be found sufficient 
 for the purpose, they beg to decline the 
 office assigned to them, as soon as the 
 Parliament shall end. 
 
 * 3 Pari Ro. p. 627. f lb. pp. 626, 643. 
 t lb. p. 632. 
 
64 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 On the last clay of this parliament* 
 the Speaker, in the name of the Com- 
 mons, prays the King to favour them 
 with the names of the Lords of the Coun- 
 cil, and that they may be sworn again. 
 " Whereupon the Lord the Prince prayed 
 the King, as well on his own behalf as 
 for the rest of the counsellors, &c." that 
 two new Lords may be appointed in the 
 room of two who were absent in the 
 north. Afterwards the Speaker repeats 
 the recommendation of the Commons of 
 the Prince's distinguished merits, and 
 intreats the King's gracious favour to- 
 wards him and the Princes his brothers ; 
 which the King accepts in good part. 
 
 In the next Parliament, on the last day 
 of November, 141 l,f the Speaker having 
 prayed the King to thank the Prince and 
 Lords of the Council in the last Parlia- 
 ment "for their great labour and dili- 
 gence, which the Commons believed to 
 
 * 3 Pari. Ro. p. 634. t lb. p. 649, 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES, (i5 
 
 be a faithful discharge of their promise 
 then made. Thereupon the Lord Prince, 
 and the other Lords aforesaid kneeling, 
 our said Lord the Prince declared in 
 their names, how that they had used 
 their labour pains and diligence, accord- 
 ing to their promise, and the best of 
 their skill and knowledge, in the office 
 given to them in parliament. Which 
 the King duly accepted, and did most 
 graciously give them thanks. And he 
 added, that he well knew that if they 
 had possessed better means than they 
 had, according to what had been spoken 
 by the Prince,* at the time of his ap- 
 pointing them of his Council in the said 
 parliament, they would have endeavoured 
 to do more good than was done in divers 
 places, for the defence honour benefit and 
 profit of himself and all his realm. And 
 our Lord the King said farther, that he 
 was well content with their good and 
 
 * This alludes to the proceedings of May 2, 141Q, 
 in p, 63\ 
 
66 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 faithful diligence counsel and service, 
 whilst they were of his Council as afore- 
 said." 
 
 An address is made by the Speaker on 
 the last day of this parliament,* in 
 favour of the Prince and his brothers, and 
 of the Queen likewise ; after a petition 
 made by Lords and Commons, as if to 
 appease the King for some displeasure he 
 had conceived against certain great men. 
 
 The words of the original passage 
 above mentioned in page 63, are written 
 on the roll in the margin of the ordinance 
 thus, " Respectuatur per dominum prin- 
 cipem et consilium" These words are 
 taken up by Sir Edward Cokef in com- 
 menting upon this ordinance, who make^ 
 them the ground of accusing the Prince 
 of a strange presumption. Although, if 
 there were any thing wrong in the pro- 
 ceeding, the blame must fall upon the 
 Council as well as the Prince. The Chief 
 
 * 3 Pari. Ro. p. 658. A.D. 1411, 19th December. 
 f 3 Coke Inst. 225. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 6/ 
 
 Justice in this place takes praise to him- 
 self for being the first to print for a 
 statute, that had lived long in obscurity <> 
 one of the two acts alluded to, which 
 inflicted punishment upon certain great 
 officers who should receive fee or present 
 for doing their duty. His words are, 
 " the cause thereof (of its not being 
 printed) was for that in the margetit of 
 the parliament roll of this act it is writ- 
 ten, Respectuatur per dominum principem 
 et concilium. A strange presumption, 
 without warrant of the Kins: his father 
 and of the parliament, to cause such a 
 respectuatur to be made to an act of 
 parliament. The like he did to another 
 act in the same parliament, N°. 63, con- 
 cerning attornies, the like whereof was 
 never done in any former or latter 
 parliaments. This was that Prince Henry 
 who keeping ill company, and led by ill 
 
 counsel, ■ — &c. &c. « ." And he 
 
 cites his authors, for the story of the 
 
 insulting Chief Justice Gascoigne, which 
 
 F 2 
 
68 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 I shall reserve for another place : Con- 
 fining myself here to what relates to the 
 entries in the Parliament roil. 
 
 Whether those in question were pre- 
 sumptuous and illegal or not, and whether 
 the instrument itself were a statute or 
 not, is of no consequence to my present 
 point. I produce them to shew that the 
 Prince attended, and with effect, to the 
 business of parliament in which he dis- 
 charged a high and important office. If 
 Sir E. Coke had seen as much of the pro- 
 ceedings in parliament of those times, as 
 we of this day have been furnished with 
 by the printing of the rolls, he would 
 probably have entertained a different opi- 
 nion upon this and some other points of 
 parliamentary law, from those which 
 now appear in his writings. In this in- 
 stance it will be easy to shew that the 
 usage and law of parliament in Henry 
 the Fourth's time, authorised the prac- 
 tice he complains of. 
 
 The acts and proceedings of the two 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. €9 
 
 houses out of which the statutes were 
 framed, were not then drawn into the 
 form of statutes till the close of the 
 session; and the care and superinten- 
 dance of this belonged to the King's 
 Great Council assisted by the Judges. I 
 need only refer again to that entry of 
 May 2, before quoted in p. 63, to shew 
 the authority of the Council in such 
 matters. It begins thus. " The Commons 
 came before the King and Lords in Par- 
 liament, and there prayed to be informed 
 of the names of the Lords who shall be 
 of his continual Council, to execute the 
 good appointments and ordinances made in 
 this present parliament" 
 
 The Council, therefore (not the Prince) 
 acted agreeably to the power vested in 
 them, in preventing this ordinance from 
 obtaining its final establishment as a 
 statute, if they found cause for so doing. 
 That the parliament of this time did put 
 such construction upon their own pro- 
 ceedings, is evident from what passed in 
 
70 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 the next parliament, on the subject of 
 that other ordinance of this year which 
 the Prince and Council had respited in 
 the same manner. J will only refer to 
 the passages in the printed rolls, for 
 those readers whose studies may lead 
 them to consider the point more mi- 
 nutely ; beipg sensible that I have already 
 said more than was necessary here.* The 
 passage taken from the roll of the 13th 
 year of Henry the Fourth, before given 
 in part in p. 65, shews the high sense 
 conceived of the merits of this Council, 
 both by the King and the Commons, for 
 the faithful discharge of their duty ; and 
 leaves no room for supposing that they 
 acted wrong upon this occasion. 
 
 The effect of this act of parliament 
 which Sir E. Coke printed for the first 
 
 * See the roll of 13 Hen. IV. p. 666, n. 4Q, com- 
 pared with n. 63, of p. 642, in 11 Hen. IV. and chap. 
 10, of Lord Chief Justice Hale's tract on the Lord's 
 Jurisdiction. Also Elsynge's Expeditionis Billarum An* 
 fiquitas, pp. 60, 1, 5, 6. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. *J\ 
 
 time, was directly brought into question 
 upon the trial of the Earl of Macclesfield.* 
 The managers of his impeachment relied 
 upon it as a statute, and the Earl con- 
 tended that it had not the authority of 
 one. 
 
 Bishop Nicolson in his Historical Li- 
 brary has been unluckily misled by the 
 above reflection of Sir E. Coke, to make 
 the same charge against the Prince of 
 Wales. But by connecting it with his 
 current theatrical character, he gives a 
 very idle and absurd turn to the transac- 
 tion; describing the above act of the 
 
 Council, as a marginal note one of 
 
 the many frolicks of the Prince.^ Under 
 the same impression he might have 
 added, with as much justice, that his 
 letter to the King was written in a like 
 frolicksome mood. 
 
 I would now ask the reader of this 
 
 * State Trials edit. 1777. PP- 735, 759. 
 t Engl, Hist. Lib. part 3, ch. 2. 
 
72 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 section, if he can believe that a writer 
 of Henry the Fifth's life, could have 
 omitted to mention those material parts 
 of it which are contained in the records 
 here cited, if he had known their con- 
 tents, or those passages of his life ? Much 
 less a contemporary author, and still less 
 a writer disposed to praise him, and to 
 extenuate what he had found to his dis- 
 advantage ? I must follow this question 
 with another. Is the historian, whom 
 we must suppose so ill-informed, or igno- 
 rant of a main part of his subject, inti- 
 tled to much regard? 
 
 I know not where to introduce so pro- 
 perly as in this place, a part of his cha- 
 racter certainly deserving notice, although 
 neglected by the historians. Princes and 
 potentates have been in all ages addressed 
 and flattered by poets. Their praise does 
 not always prove that the patron is in- 
 titled to it: Yet it is in general an atten- 
 dant upon distinguished merit; and in 
 the present case may be brought to prove 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 73 
 
 more than in others, because poets are 
 not apt to choose out for their heroes 
 persons whose conduct has given offence. 
 The chief poets of that day, Occleve (or 
 Hoccleve) and Lidgate, addressed some 
 of their works to our prince, as a patron 
 of literature and composed them by his 
 desire. One of these by the former is a 
 long composition upon princely govern- 
 ment, translated from Egidius de Regi- 
 mine Principum, addressed to him while 
 Prince of Wales, which he tells him was 
 the work of his great love.* 
 
 Lidgate was patronized by him both 
 before and after his accession, and w r rote 
 his Siege of Troy and other poems by his 
 desire.f Walsingham likewise dedicated 
 his Hypodigma Neustrise to Henry the 
 Fifth.J 
 
 There is reason to believe that all the 
 
 * MSS. Had. 4826, N c . 6. 
 t See Preface to his Life of the Virgin, printed by 
 Caxton, and 1 Ellis Specim. Early Engl. Poets, 281. 
 % 10 Henry. Hist. Engl 8vo. p. 131. 
 
74 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 sons of Henry the Fourth, through his 
 care, had attained to higher literary 
 accomplishments than the other young 
 nobility of their age. The King ex- 
 tended the same care to his royal captive 
 of Scotland, and thus made amends to 
 him and his subjects for an act of great 
 injustice in his person. Henry the Fifth 
 was fond of books, as is proved by a 
 curious article in Rymer, # of two peti- 
 tions to the Council after his death, for 
 the return of valuable books of history, 
 borrowed by him of the Countess of 
 Westmoreland and of the Priory of 
 Christchurch Canterbury, and not re- 
 turned ; though one of them had been 
 directed to be delivered to its owner by 
 the King's last will. Twine relates that 
 he had prepared a scheme of new modi- 
 fying the University of Oxford, and of 
 erecting a new College there with large 
 endowments.! We are indebted to the 
 
 * 10 Vol. p . 3 17. . . t Antiq. Acad. Oxon. Apol. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 75 
 
 Duke of Bedford, for the first great col- 
 lection of books that has been known in 
 England, which had formed the French 
 King's Library and was purchased by 
 the Duke. Both Oxford and Cambridge 
 have proofs of the Duke of Gloucester's 
 liberality to their institutions. 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 Of the common stories of the Princes 
 Excesses and Misconduct. 
 
 I shall take separately such of the tales 
 as have been current, of our Prince's 
 vicious and dissipated course of life, and 
 examine them as well as my materials 
 will enable me. 
 
 1. The Prince of Wales rescues a prisoner under 
 trial, and insults the Chief Justice in Court. 
 
 Out of respect to my lord Chief Justice 
 
76 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Coke, I begin with that tale which we 
 have lately left him prepared to introduce, 
 of Henry's violence and rudeness in the 
 court of King's Bench, against his prede- 
 cessor Chief, whose affront he seems to 
 feel in his own person. He continues 
 the passage quoted in page 67 thus. 
 "This was that Prince Henry, who keep- 
 ing ill company and led by ill counsel, 
 about this time assaulted (some say) and 
 struck Gascoigne Chief Justice, sitting 
 in the King s Bench. For that the Prince 
 endeavouring with strong hand to rescue 
 a prisoner, one of his unthrifty minions, 
 indicted and arraigned at the King's 
 Bench bar for felony, was prevented of 
 his purpose by the persuasion and com- 
 mandment of the Chief Justice. For 
 which the Chief Justice committed the 
 Prince to the King's Bench ; whereof 
 some of his followers instantly com- 
 plained to the King his father : Who 
 informing himself of the true state of 
 the case, gave God infinite thanks that 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 77 
 
 he had given him such a judge as feared 
 not to minister justice, and such a son 
 as could suffer semblably and obey jus- 
 tice. And this is that Prince who aban- 
 doning his former company and counsel, 
 and following the advice of grave 
 wise and expert men whom he made 
 choice of to be of his council, became 
 a victorious and virtuous king, and pros- 
 perous in all that he took in hand at home 
 and abroad." 
 
 For this anecdote he refers to Sir Tho- 
 mas Elyot's Governor and Holinshed's 
 Chronicle. Without our going farther 
 than his quotation, it may be observed 
 that the King himself is represented 
 to have entertained a different opinion 
 from Sir Edward Coke upon the adven- 
 ture ; for he upon the instant thanks 
 God for giving him such a son. And 
 there is neither ill company, nor ill coun- 
 sel, nor unthrifty minions charged upon 
 the young man by Sir T. Elyot, w^ith 
 whose whole chapter I am going to pre- 
 
78 CHARACtER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 sent the reader. For I cannot trace the 
 story higher than this book; which is 
 a collection of moral discourses upon 
 education intitled The Governor, dedi- 
 cated to Henry the eighth, in whose 
 reign the author was distinguished as a 
 scholar and courtier.* The tale is intro- 
 duced there for a different purpose from 
 that of Sir E. Coke, and in order to 
 give praise to all the persons named in 
 it, as follows, 
 
 * B.2. Chap. 6. It was first printed in 1534, accor- 
 ding to Oldys. Thisextract is also given in Reed's edition 
 of Shakespear, vol. 12. p. 224, but introduced with a 
 mistake from Sir J. Hawkins respecting the Chief Jus- 
 tice's early history. Fuller in his Worthies v. 1 . p. 505. 
 edit. 1811, Art. Gascoigne, refersto Elyot as the original 
 for the anecdote $ and Oldy's in his Brit. Lib. Art. 
 43, supposes it such. Fuller adds, " from whom 
 our modern historians have transcribed it." It is 
 to be regretted that they have not adhered to the 
 Governor but have gone to the Comedian whom Fuller 
 alludes to, for its enlargement. He says " Hence 
 our Comedian (fancy will quickly blow up a drop in 
 history into a bubble in poetry) hath founded a long 
 scene on the same subject." Oldys adds in a note, 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. *]d 
 
 2. " A good Judge, a good Prince, a good 
 King. 
 
 The most renoumed Prince, king Henry 
 the fift, late king of Englande, duringe 
 the lyfe of his father was noted to be 
 fierce and of wanton courage. It hap- 
 pened that one of his servants whom 
 he favoured well, was for felony by him 
 committed arreyned at the kings bench : 
 whereof the Prince being advertised, 
 and incensed by light persons about him, 
 in furious rage came hastely to the barre, 
 where his servaunt stood as a prisoner, 
 and commaunded him to be ungived and 
 sette at libertie. Whereat all men were 
 abashed, reserved the chiefe Justice, 
 who humbly exhorted the Prince to be 
 contented that his servant might be or- 
 dered, according to the auncient lawes 
 of this Realme : or if he would have 
 
 that the event was commemorated by a medal which 
 he had seen, representing the Judge on the bench > 
 with a person beside him, and three as auditors to 
 whom he is reading. 
 
80 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 r 
 
 him saved from the rigour of the lawes, 
 that he should obtayne, if he might, 
 of the king his father his gracious pardon, 
 whereby no Law or Justice should be 
 derogate, 
 
 With which aunswere the Prince no- 
 thing appeased, but rather more inflamed, 
 endeavoured himselfe to take away his 
 servaunt. The Judge considering the 
 perilous example and inconvenience that 
 might thereby ensue, with a valyant 
 spirite and courage commaunded the 
 Prince uppon his alleagaunce to leave the 
 prisoner and depart his way ; at which 
 commaundemet the Prince beinge set 
 all in a furye, all chaufed, and in a terrible 
 maner, came up to the place of judgement, 
 men thinking that he would have slain the 
 Judge, or have done to him some do- 
 mage : But the Judge sitting still without 
 moving, declaring the majestie of the 
 Kings place of judgement, and with an 
 assured and bold countenaunce, had to 
 the Prince these words following : 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 81 
 
 Sir remember your selfe. I keepe heere 
 the place of the king your sovereigne 
 lord and father, to whome ye owe dou- 
 ble obedience : wherefore eftsoones in 
 his name, I charge you to desist of 
 your wilfulnesse and unlawful! enterprise, 
 and from hencefoorth give good exam- 
 ple to those which hereafter shall be 
 your proper subjects. And now, for 
 your contempte and disobedience, goe 
 you to the prison of the Kinges bench, 
 where unto I commit you, and remaine 
 ye there prisoner untill the pleasure of the 
 Kinge your father be further knowen. 
 With which words being abashed, and 
 also wondering at the marvailous gra- 
 vitie of that worshipful Justice, the 
 noble Prince laying his weapon aparte, 
 doing reverence departed and went 
 to the Kinges bench as he was com* 
 maunded. Whereat his servaunts dis- 
 dayned, came and shewed to the King 
 al the fahole affayre, whereat he a whiles 
 studying, after as a man all ravished with 
 o 
 
82 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 gladnesse, holding his eyes and handes 
 up towards heaven, abrayded with a 
 loud voyce : O mercifull God, how 
 much am I bound to your infinite good- 
 ness, specially for that you have given 
 me a judge, who feareth not to minister 
 Justice, and also a son who can suffer 
 semblably and obey Justice." 
 
 There is no date given to this tale, 
 either in its original state or in its subse- 
 quent changes. Yet Sir E. Coke chooses 
 to fix it about this time, i. e. the time of 
 the strange presumption which he cen- 
 sures. With respect to his ill company 
 and striking the Judge, and the rest, they 
 are indeed to be found in Holinshed. 
 But whether he or another were the first 
 relator of that gross and mean personal 
 iiisult, it ought to gain no credit with 
 those who take the account from Sir T. 
 Elyot. I suspect that it came from the 
 stage and play books into the history 
 books ; as I caft find none of them in 
 which this choice morsel is preserved. 
 
WHEN PklNCE OF WALES. 83 
 
 more ancient than the coarse old play 
 of Henry the Fifth, which I am about 
 to exhibit to the reader, for this and 
 other good things of the same kind. 
 
 This adventure afforded a droll panto* 
 mimical scene for vulgar entertainment 
 in that play. The actor of the clown's 
 part there being a great favourite of 
 the audience, and the piece a popular 
 one ; as Malone has shewn, though 
 Steevens had imagined the contrary.* 
 It has the following title, ** The famous 
 Victories of Henry the Fifth, containing 
 the honourable battle of Agin- court, 
 as it was acted by the Kinges Majesties 
 servants." I use the collection of Six 
 Old Plays on which Shakespeare founded his 
 8$c. by NichoJls 1779- We are not 
 told when it was first printed. The King's 
 Majesty in the title page of the edition 
 followed there, proves that to be of James 
 the first's time. Mr. Malone s industry 
 
 * Reed's Shakesp. V. 3. p. 363, and V. 12, p. 262, 
 G 2 
 
84 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 has found in the books of the Stationers' 
 Company, an order for printing it in 
 1594;* which is earlier than the printing 
 of Shakespear's Henry IV* and V* 
 But it was a play acted and well known 
 before 1588; for Tarlton the favourite 
 actor mentioned above, is related to have 
 been Clown and Chief Justice in it, and 
 he died in that year.f Therefore though 
 Holinshed's Chronicle was printed in 
 1573, the probability is in favour of the 
 priority of the play. The internal evi- 
 dence of its language and manners con- 
 firms it strongly, though the spelling and 
 many phrases have been modernized. 
 But such stuff as this piece consists of 
 could not have been composed for the 
 stage, even by the Clown himself, after 
 Shakespear's had got abroad. 
 
 * Reed's Shakesp. v. 2. pp. 122, 226, 2<J1. 
 t lb. v. 1 2. p. 262 and note to the title of Henry V. 
 There appears to have been another play of Henry V, 
 acted in 15Q7, that is lost tons. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 85 
 
 There is no Dramatis Persons, and 
 no division of acts or scenes. It thus 
 begins, after the title before mentioned. 
 
 H Enter the young Prince, Ned and 
 Tom. 
 
 Henry the Fifth. 
 Come away Ned and Tom. 
 
 Both. 
 Here my Lord. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Come away my lads. Tell me Sirs 
 how much gold have you got, 
 Ned. 
 Faith my Lord, I have got five hun- 
 dred pound, 
 
 Henry 5. 
 
 But tell me Tom, how much has't 
 thou got? 
 
 Tom. 
 Faith my Lord, some foure hundred 
 pound. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 
 Foure hundred pounds; bravely spoken 
 
86 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Lads. But tell me Sirs, thinke you not 
 that it was a villainous part of me to rob 
 my father s recey vers ? 
 Ned. 
 Why no my Lord, it was but a tricke 
 Of youth," 
 
 While they are in this discourse — " En- 
 ters Jockey" — and he, the reader will 
 discover, is no less a personage than Sir 
 John Oldcastle, the original, very remote, 
 of Falstaff ; who tells the Prince, that 
 there is hue and cry after his man who 
 robbed a poor carrier last night. The 
 Prince speaks of the man as a base- 
 minded rascal, to rob a poor carrier ; but 
 however he'll save his life. Then they 
 discourse about their recent adventure 
 of robbing the Receivers; from whom 
 the Prince got a hard drubbing, who are 
 close upon them in pursuit, and come 
 upon the stage, after the marginal di- 
 rection of Enters two Receyvers. The 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 87 
 
 Prince accosts them, and they tell him 
 of their loss, begging his intercession, 
 on account of their being now unable 
 to pay in their receits at the Exchequer. 
 Then 
 
 u Exit Pur sevant" — of whom nothing 
 else appears. 
 
 Here is enough to shew the ground 
 work of the Carriers and Robbery scenes 
 of Shakespear, by whom the two ad- 
 ventures of this play are mixed into one. 
 The conversation ends with their de- 
 parture for the old tavern in Eastcheap. 
 Then the Watch come on, to whom 
 Enters the Theefe 
 
 Who inquires the way to Eastcheap, 
 and whom Dericke, the person robbed, 
 accosts by the name of Gadshill, and he 
 is arrested. Then a boy enters to tell 
 the news of a riot and affray, by the 
 young Prince and three or four more of 
 his companions in their cups, which oc- 
 casioned the Mayor and Sheriff to be sent 
 for, by whom the Prince was carried to 
 
88 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 the Counter. So now we have got him 
 safe in prison ; out of which however he 
 soon returns, without warrant from the 
 scene. 
 
 The Thief on hearing that he must go 
 to prison, begs, to be sent to that where 
 his Master is. The Mayor and Sheriff 
 are sent for to Court, where the King 
 commends them for what they have done. 
 Then 
 
 " Enter Lord Chiefe Justice, Clarke 
 of the Office, Jayler, John Cobler, 
 Dericke and the Theefe." 
 
 After forming a criminal Court, and 
 proceeding to try the thief, (which is 
 worth noting on account of the day 
 named in their indictment,* when both 
 
 * 20 May in the fourteenth year of the King, who 
 died 20 March preceding. The Chief Justice died 
 17th Dec. 1412, according to Mr. Malone's note, 
 which refers to his tombstone for this date. I have 
 looked into the Year books, and find his name occurs 
 there in the pi eceding month of November, but not 
 afterwards. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 89 
 
 King and Chief Justice happened to be 
 dead) the Prince, whom we lately left 
 lodged in the Counter, re-appears thus. 
 — " Enter the young Prince with Ned 
 and Tom. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Come away my lads. Gogs wounds 
 ye villaine, what make you here ? I 
 must goe aboute my businesse myselfe, 
 and you must stand loytering here. 
 Theefe. 
 Why my Lord they have bound mee, 
 and will not let me go. 
 Henry 5. 
 Have they bound they villain, why, 
 how now my lord. 
 
 Judge. 
 I am glad to see your grace in good 
 health. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Why my lord this is my man. Tis 
 marvell you knew him not, long be- 
 fore this. I tell you he is a man of his 
 hands. 
 
do character op henry the fifth 
 
 Theefe. 
 I> gogs wounds, that I am, try me 
 who dare. 
 
 Judge. 
 
 Your grace shall finde small credite 
 
 by acknowledging him to be your man. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 
 Why my lord, what hath he done ? 
 
 Judge. 
 And it please your majesty, he hath 
 robbed a poore Carrier." 
 
 After some skirmishing conversation 
 between the Judge and the Prince, very 
 suitable to the rest of the piece, it pro- 
 ceeds, 
 
 " Henry 5. 
 But will you not let him goe ? 
 
 Judge. 
 I am sorry that his case is so ill. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Tush, case me no casings, shall I have 
 my man ? 
 
 Judge. 
 I cannot, nor I may not, my lord. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 91 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Nay, and I shall not, say, and then 
 I am answered. 
 
 Judge. 
 No. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Then I will have him. 
 
 He giveth him a box on the eare. 
 Ned. 
 Gogs wounds my lord, shal I cut off 
 his head ? 
 
 Henry 5. 
 No, I charge you draw not your swords. 
 But get you hence, provide a noyse of 
 musitians. Away, be gone. 
 
 Exeunt the Theefe. 
 Judge. 
 Well my lord, I am content to take 
 it at your hands. 
 
 Henry 5. 
 Nay, and you be not, you shall have 
 more. 
 
 Judge. 
 Why I pray you my lord, who am I ? 
 
92 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Henry 5. 
 
 You, who knowes not you. Why 
 man you are Lord Chiefe Justice of Eng- 
 land. 
 
 Judge. 
 
 Your grace hath said truth, there- 
 fore in striking me in this place you 
 greatly abuse me, and not me only but 
 also your father; whose lively person here 
 in this place I do represent. And there- 
 fore to teach you what prerogatives* 
 meane, I commit you to the Fleet, until 
 wee have spoken with your father. 
 
 Henry 5* 
 Why then belike you meane to send 
 mee to the Fleete. 
 
 * I suspect a popular allusion here (and it must have 
 been a bold one then) to Queen Elizabeth's scolding 
 her parliament for meddling with her prerogative, 
 and sending some members to prison on that score, 
 about the time when I suppose this scene in vogue, and 
 when clowns said more than is set down for them. It is 
 fully repeated in the second acting by the clown. 
 See Hume's Hist, in 1579, 1586. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 93 
 
 Judge. 
 
 I, indeed, and therefore carry him 
 away. 
 
 Exeunt Henry V. with the Officers. 
 Judge. 
 
 Jayler carry the prisoner to Newgate 
 againe until the next sises. 
 Jayler. 
 
 At your commandment my lord it 
 shall be done." 
 
 Here the author seems to have forgot- 
 ten that his prisoner had set himself free 
 before, by the Prince's authority, accord- 
 ing to the direction of Exeunt theTheefe. 
 Thisisfollowed by the entrance of Dericke 
 and one of the watchmen, who act the 
 box on the ear overagain, to the great 
 delight of the audience. 
 
 And here I quit the theatre : For my 
 subject does not permit me in FalstafFs 
 phrase, to play out the Play, or to produce 
 more than this specimen of The famous 
 Victories of Henry the Fifth. 
 
 The serious part of the charge, (which 
 
94 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 is lost in that of the blow) the violent 
 attempt to rescue a prisoner under trial., 
 cannot be defended; and I must submit 
 to the judgment or mercy of that age. 
 As for us, we only know the story now 
 in its original state, by the merit of the 
 Prince's submission and repentance; 
 therefore as the King forgave him for 
 the rashness, and thanked God for its 
 effects, we may ratify the pardon. It 
 is to be regretted for the honour of our 
 ancestors, that more outrageous viola- 
 tions of the course of Justice than a res- 
 cue such as this by the young Prince, 
 may be found in the transactions of his 
 contemporaries. What will the reader 
 think of a Judge of the King's Bench 
 of that generation conducting a body 
 of 500 armed men,* to maintain his 
 quarrel and overawe a noble Lord 
 of great power, who was accompanied 
 
 * Among whom are Knightes and Esquiers and 
 Yomen that had ledynge of men on his partie. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 95 
 
 by our very Chief Justice Gascoigne, 
 his colleague and immediate superior, 
 at an arbitration judicially appointed? 
 And it happened, in the words of Sir 
 E. Coke, about this time ; for it was in 
 the year before that of the King's death. 
 The case is preserved at length in the 
 Parliament Roll (V. 3. 649, 650) and well 
 worth reading.* The Judge though he 
 submitted and asked pardon in plain 
 English, had not as much merit as the 
 young Prince ; for he did so by award 
 of judgment. The conclusion of the 
 quarrel was also in good English, award- 
 ed likewise: viz. an excellent dinner 
 of two fat oxen, twelve fat sheep, and 
 two tons of Gascoigne wine. 
 
 * I request the reader of my tract on High Treason 
 to consider this case, if the subject should induce 
 him to turn to it in pp. 6q, 70 $ for which a note 
 of reference was intended to this passage of the Par- 
 liament Rolls, but accidentally left out of the addi- 
 tional notes to that Essay. 
 
96 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 Stow in his chronicle has nothing of the 
 Chief Justice but what he is content to 
 take from the Governor, in the chapter here 
 quoted, which he copies ; and with the 
 same view as its author, for the example's 
 sake and to the honour of all concerned. 
 He introduces it in his opening of the 
 reign of Henry the fifth. 
 
 II. The Prince of Wales turned out of the Council* 
 
 Now having once got this rude box 
 on the ear upon Chronicle record, we 
 find its consequences extended to a 
 greater event. For it is related that the 
 King was so displeased with his son for 
 this cause, that he turned him out of his 
 f>lace in council, and appointed his bro- 
 ther Clarence in his room. For the truth of 
 this, let the proceedings in parliament* 
 as I have produced them, speak. Yet 
 so write Hall, Holinshed, Speed &c. 
 It matters not who was the first or who 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 97 
 
 the last to relate any thing so false. 
 I have shewn hefore* that even the con- 
 temporaries Elmham and T. Livius were 
 as much mistaken, in what they believed 
 of the time and cause of his being first 
 appointed to that station. Hardyng 
 another contemporary seems to have been 
 as ignorant as they, in the following pas- 
 sage of his Chronicle* which would in- 
 duce a reader to suppose that the King 
 shewed this displeasure towards Prince 
 Henry, for having sent aid to the Duke 
 of Burgundy. This is quite contrary 
 to them, and is not directly asserted* 
 The stanza runs thus in his 209th chapter. 
 
 * The King discharged the Prince from his counsaile 
 
 And set my lord Sir Thomas in his stede 
 
 Chiefe of Counsaile, for the King's more avayle. 
 
 For which the Prince of wrath and wilful hede 
 
 Again him made debate and froward hede. 
 
 With whom the King took part, and held the felde 
 
 To tyme the Prince unto the King him yelde " 
 
 The argument of this chapter is " How 
 
 * Pa. 50. 
 H 
 
98 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 the Prince Henry of Wales sent power 
 to the Duke of Burgundy to help him; 
 thetwoUmfrevilles, Sir John Gray, with 
 other &c." He tells of their success in 
 France, and coming home rewarded, 
 and Gilbert Umfreville made Earl of 
 Kyme in France: and how the Duke 
 thanked the Prince for sending them. 
 After which immediately follows the 
 stanza above quoted. It is impossible 
 to reconcile the two stories, and I at- 
 tempt no more than to shew that neither 
 is warranted by the records of parlia- 
 ment. 
 
 II L The Prince guilty of a Riot in the Streets, and 
 of robbing on the Highway. 
 
 There are two passages in the scenes 
 of our old comedy, which when com- 
 pared with Stow's Chronicle, authorise 
 lis to believe that two of the adventures 
 brought upon the stage to the Prince's 
 dishonour, have had more foundation 
 in fact than that of striking the judge. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 99 
 
 If the chronicles borrowed this from the 
 play, the play has perhaps taken the 
 
 debt again with compound interest from 
 the chronicles, and with greater extra- 
 vagance. The scene transcribed in pp. 
 86, 87, makes the Prince talk of robbing 
 the Receivers going to the Exchequer : 
 And a boy there tells of a riot by the 
 Prince and his companions, which was 
 quieted by the coming of the Mayor 
 and Sheriff. What if this riot should 
 prove a true breach of the peace, the 
 scene really in East Cheap, and the 
 King's sons the offenders, yet Henry of 
 Monmouth not among them ? What 
 if it should turn out to be true, that 
 this Prince royal did really commit a 
 robbery of Receivers on their way to 
 London with money ? 
 
 Stow in his narrative of the year 1411 
 has this paragraph. " Upon the even of 
 St. John Baptist, Thomas and John the 
 King's sons being in Eastcheap at 
 London, at supper after midnight, a 
 h 2 
 
100 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 great debate happened between their men 
 and men of the Court, lasting an hour, 
 till the Mayor and Sheriffs with other 
 citizens ceased the same." 
 
 Here would be fine matter of revenge 
 afforded to the spirit of Falstaff, against 
 his sober-blooded boy Lord John of Lan- 
 caster !* But the players having once got 
 possession of the Prince of Wales for a 
 subject, all facts must be moulded to 
 fit his person. The pranks of the Lords 
 Thomas and John were thought too 
 good for younger brothers, and to suit 
 better with the established theatrical 
 reputation of young Hopeful the heir 
 apparent. I believe the above to be a 
 probable account of the introduction 
 of the riot adventure, by a pardonable 
 though wilfull error of the Playbook. 
 The author found the tale of a riot royal 
 extant in choice English, with the name 
 of some grave chronicler in folio to walr- 
 
 * See 2d part Hen. 4, act 4, sc. 7. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 101 
 
 rant it, and was indifferent to the names 
 of the parties adores fabulcz* 
 
 For The Receivers, there is the follow- 
 ing passage in Stow's beginning of the 
 reign, in describing the new King's cha- 
 racter. u He lived somewhat insolently, 
 insomuch that whilst his father lived, 
 being accompanied with some of his 
 young lords and gentlemen, he would wait 
 in disguised array for his awn Receivers, 
 and distress them of their money. And 
 sometimes at such enterprises both he 
 and his company were sorely beaten. 
 And when his Receivers made to him 
 their complaints how they were robbed 
 
 * There is a ballad of Henry the fourth's time 
 printed among Chaucer's works (edit. 1721. pa. 546.) 
 addressed to the four young Princes, to dissuade them 
 from spending time in youthedfolily - } from whence 
 it may be inferred that all the brothers had the cha- 
 racter of being well inclined to gaiety. It is noticed 
 by Malone, as quoted in 12 Reed p. 127. The four 
 Princes were as near together in age as might be. 
 According to W. of Worcester (2. Hearn Lib. Nig, 
 p. 443) their births were in 1387, 8, 9, 90. 
 
102 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 in coming unto him, he would give 
 them discharge of so much money as 
 they had lost. And besides that, they 
 should not depart from him without great 
 rewards for their trouble and vexation; 
 especially they should be rewarded, that 
 best had resisted him and his company, 
 and of whom he had received the great- 
 est and most strokes. And for example 
 Sir T. Eyot writeth thus—" &c. copying 
 the chapter inserted at p. 79. 
 
 Here we have a natural and credible 
 account of a youthful frolick ; boyish 
 would perhaps be a better word, and 
 more agreeable to the truth : Though the 
 words of Stow, whilst his father lived, 
 are too loose to usher in such a fact. Not 
 indeed creditable to a young Prince at 
 any time, but certainly consistent ac- 
 cording to the state of times and man- 
 ners with great and good qualities, with- 
 out leaving any stain of disgrace, either 
 for keeping low company or adopting 
 their profligacy. The young lords his 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 103 
 
 companions who helped him to run down 
 a Buck, according to Elmham, would 
 not be backward in assisting him to run 
 down one of his Bailiffs. But see how 
 a good story may be improved ! More 
 especially when dressed up for the theatre, 
 according to the fashion of the times. 
 
 IF. The Prince's Debaucheries and vicious 
 Companions. 
 
 How is this charge made out ? 
 Oh — there is Falstaff, all in all. 
 
 Then you must keep to your Prince 
 at the Playhouse, for there is no such 
 companion out of it ; and we have no 
 such Prince royal in the race of Planta- 
 genet. The only companions of young 
 Henry of Monmouth who are known, 
 were Chiefs in war and Statesmen in place ; 
 as good as Mr. Pope's best companions 
 who were out of those employments. 
 
 Why surely the whole current of his- 
 tory is so — 
 
104 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 " Ay there's the rub." Let us go 
 up this stream, and examine it till 
 we arrive at its spring in Lenton 
 Priory. 
 
 Few of the writers have gone there. 
 Each of them has studied how to vary 
 the phrases of his predecessor, upon a 
 matter which he supposed established. 
 Not one has taken Elmham's grain of a 
 text, and tried to beat it out for leaf-gold 
 to adorn his page; but as a drug for 
 historical experiments in the art of co- 
 louring; and to try how many times 
 it might be multiplied or varied. 
 
 I should like to present the reader 
 with a kind of polyglott page in co- 
 lumns, consisting of those passages of 
 the historians which describe the begin- 
 ning of Henry the fifth's reign, to shew 
 how little attention any one of them has 
 paid to facts and authority, and how in- 
 consistent they are with each other and 
 themselves. But they are too many and 
 long and exuberant. Dr. Henry whom 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 105 
 
 I respect the most, is almost as faulty as 
 Hume in this article. Rapin equally so, 
 and Carte not much better. They con- 
 tent themselves with citing authors 
 whom, if they did read, they misrepre- 
 sent, and manifestly describe the cha- 
 racter of the young King during his 
 father's life, from that prevailing notion 
 which we all acquire at school. 
 
 Dr. Henry puts in the margin of his 
 first page, as an established article for 
 history, His youthful Frolicks. Having 
 in the preceding section mentioned his 
 frolicksome and disorderly conduct, as 
 the cause of much vexation to his father. 
 But I, standing here for the truth of his- 
 tory cannot accept so mild a phrase, 
 if the author believes and would have 
 us believe the books he quotes. It is 
 vice and profligacy or nothing at all. 
 The only youthful frolick related of him 
 with an appearance of truth, is that by 
 Stow beforementioned, of his robbing 
 the receivers of his own rents for the 
 
106 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH. 
 
 sake of laughing at their distress. But 
 I find no mention of this frolick in mo- 
 dern times. Yet it is probably true, 
 and merits no harder name than youth- 
 ful frolick; understood, as it must be 
 of his boyish days. In a single page 
 of Dr. Henry we have 
 
 Suspicions of the people concerning his 
 character — Object of the peoples love and 
 the father's jealousy in early life — Out 
 of military employment for four or five 
 years before his accession, and excluded 
 from the Cabinet — Direct violations of 
 law — for which he was twice imprisoned, 
 once by the Chief Justice and once by the 
 Mayor of Coventry — Licentious compa- 
 nions of his former riots. The reader of 
 the foregoing pages is qualified to put 
 a fair estimate on these accusations, and 
 may dismiss them all except the charge 
 I have now in hand. The author has 
 been a little more cautious than Hume 
 in the above description, and is there- 
 fore less liable to censure. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 107 
 
 Hume has taken every thing on this 
 subject that could be found without 
 going far, and in his usual way has made 
 an agreeable piece of writing for the 
 reader's entertainment ; but as void of 
 foundation and free from inquiry, as the 
 scenes of our poet. David Hume the Philo- 
 sopher has shewn himself here as poetical 
 as the Prior of Lenton. All the charges 
 quoted from Dr. Henry are given by him, 
 and more : For he introduces the Chief 
 Justice who was then dead, trembling to 
 approach the royal presence, Sec. &c. Im- 
 proves the robbery scene of the stage 
 into a practice of attacking passengers on 
 the streets and highways. Yet his love 
 of royal blood and good manners will 
 not permit him to relate the blow given 
 to the judge, though he seems to believe 
 it. 
 
 Thomas Carte the Englishman, the so- 
 lid and inquisitive Carte has been idle 
 here. In his opening of this reign he 
 writes thus of Henry V. " He had shew- 
 
308 CHARACTER OK HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 ed his valour and martial genius in the 
 battle of Shrewsbury and the war against 
 the Welsh ; and was so fond of exerting 
 them that if serious occasions did not 
 offer, he would exercise them in frolicks. 
 The fire of youth and the dissolute com- 
 panions that fell in his way led him into 
 many extravagances ; for one of which 
 at Cheylesmore (a house belonging to the 
 Duchy of Cornwall within the liberty of 
 Coventry) he had been the last year taken 
 into custody by John Hornesby the Mayor 
 of that city.* And Sir W. Gascoigne 
 
 * I believe this is the first introduction of the story 
 from Coventry, owing perhaps to Carte's coming from 
 this county. I am inclined to send it to Coventry 
 again, though Dr. Henry repeats it on Carte's autho- 
 rity. This authority is from Append, ad Fordun. Scot, 
 Chron. p. 1444. in Hearne's edition, from an old 
 chronicle of the Mayors of Coventry. But the page 
 referred to does not yield as much as it stands for in 
 Carte. It is said of John Hornesby as Mayor in 
 1412. " He arrested the Prince in priory of Coven- 
 try ." Cheylesmore and the Duchy of Cornwall do not 
 appear there, and are perhaps to be imputed to Carte's 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 109 
 
 Chief Justice of the King's Bench is 
 said to have ordered him to prison upon 
 another occasion. The representation of 
 his behaviour in submitting humbly to 
 that order doth him honour ; and shews 
 evidently that how wild a rake soever 
 he was, he did not want a large fund 
 of good sense, and could come to him- 
 self on a moment's reflection. His sallies 
 did not hinder him from being univer- 
 sally beloved, the natural if not neces- 
 
 local knowledge. The next article to this, which 
 contains the Mayor of the succeeding year, has sub- 
 joined. " In his year King Henry V. began to reign." 
 If the event had been as remarkable as Carte supposes, 
 it would probably have drawn something more from 
 the Chronicler's pen, being so near to the Prince's 
 becoming really a new man and King. What the 
 arrest was, and what Prince was arrested, are not 
 to be discovered. If it had been as good as the other 
 good things told of Henry of Monmouth upon as 
 good authority, we may be sure that it would have 
 found its way to the theatre and play books. More 
 especially when we consider that Shakespear cama 
 from the neighbourhood of this transaction. 
 
1 10 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 sary effect of agreeable qualities ; and 
 his court was always crouded by the 
 nobility, whilst his father's was in a 
 manner empty." On his accession " he 
 became in a manner a new man, pious 
 devout sober continent considerate equi- 
 table wise; in his actions noble, in bu- 
 siness assiduous, in all his behaviour ma- 
 jestick ; and bidding adieu at once to his 
 follies, discharged his former companions 
 from daring to appear in his presence 
 till they had reformed their manners." 
 
 Rapin overcharges the character still 
 more. His court was the receptacle of 
 libertines debauchees parasites buffoons and 
 the like (I quote the English translation.) 
 Daily excesses and extravagant pranks. — 
 His father had always kept him at a dis- 
 tance from affairs. Jealous of his victories, 
 he removed him from all warlike as he had 
 done from all civil offices. " Et alia enor- 
 mia," a lawyer would exclaim who had 
 been conversant in our latin pleadings. 
 
 Speed's history written in the reign of 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. Ill 
 
 James the first, was not out of fashion 
 when Rapin wrote ; from whom as an 
 established author, Trussel copied this part 
 of his subject. Speed therefore may be 
 classed here as next before Rapin ; but I 
 do not find him quoted by that author in 
 this part. His beginning of this reign 
 has the merit of containing; less than some 
 of his predecessors, of the youthful ex- 
 travagances and bad companions : Except 
 in one glaring and faulty example, which 
 is that of assaulting the Judge. He quotes 
 Elyots Governor, of which he only 
 copies a part, and that incorrectly ; to 
 which he adds, that the Prince gave the 
 Judge a bloxo on the face, as if this were a 
 part of the original author. Yet though 
 perhaps he had Holinshed fresh before 
 him, he avoids some of his inconsisten- 
 cies relating to our Prince. Iris pleasant 
 to observe the delicate course he takes to 
 introduce the current tales of youthful 
 excesses, 8p. After describing him as 
 like Titus, the lovely darling and delightful 
 
112 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 joy of mankind, he continues " But as 
 Titus is taxed by his story writers, in 
 youth to have been riotous profuse 
 wasteful and wanton — so if we will be- 
 lieve what others have writ* Henry was 
 wild when he was a Prince, 8$c" He 
 cites Stow Grafton and Walsingham ; 
 but would have done better to have fol- 
 lowed Stow only, who immediately pre- 
 ceded him, and who by writing after 
 Holinshed had the means of examin- 
 ing and weighing his work, and shews 
 often that he did so. 
 
 Stow rejects a great deal of what Hoi- 
 linshed wrote of Henry of Monmouth's 
 youthful days; for the only example 
 given by him of what he calls living 
 somewhat insolently, besides the chapter 
 from Sir T. Elyot, is the prank of rob- 
 bing his own bailiffs. He mentions in- 
 deed the sudden change upon his accession, 
 (the chief point of the chronicler's creed 
 
 * Here in the margin he cites T. Livius. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 113 
 
 here) without having related any thing 
 before, from which there could have 
 been a change made. 
 
 Holinshed was his contemporary, but 
 first in order. As I know little of this long 
 established author but what belongs to my 
 present subject, I can only judge of him 
 by that. There I find great negligence 
 and inconsistency. He gives a particu- 
 lar description, which I shall have occa* 
 sion to recur to, of the Prince's going to 
 Court with a great train of noblemen and 
 other his friends that wished him well, to 
 clear himself to the King of suspicions 
 entertained by him to his prejudice. De- 
 scribes the interview of the father and 
 son, and the hearty reconciliation which 
 it produced between them, and concludes 
 it with these words " So by his great 
 wisdom was the wrongful suspicion re- 
 moved." A little after he adds, that it 
 might have had a contrary effect ; for 
 some — €( privily charged him with riot 
 and other uncivil demeanors unseemly 
 i 
 
1 14 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE TlVTti 
 
 for a prince. Indeed he was youthfully 
 given, grown to audacity, and had cho- 
 sen him companions agreeable to his age, 
 with whom he spent the time in such 
 recreations exercises and delights as he 
 fancied. But yet (it should seem by 
 the report of some writers) that his be- 
 haviour was not offensive, or at least 
 tending to the damage of any body. 
 Sith he had a care to avoid doing of wrong, 
 and to tender his affections within the tract 
 of virtue. Whereby he opened unto 
 himself a ready passage of good liking 
 among the prudent sort, and was beloved 
 of such as could discern his disposition; 
 which was in no degree so excessive as 
 that he deserved in such vehement man- 
 ner to be suspected. In whose dispraise 
 I find little, but to his praise very- much. 
 Parcels whereof I will deliver by the 
 way, as a metyard w r hereby the residue 
 may be measured." He then quotes latin 
 verses of a panegyrick made upon him 
 m his youth by Christopher OclamL 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 115 
 
 After this, who would expect to find the 
 following passages* in the introduction 
 of the new reign of Henry the fifth ? 
 " Such great hope and good expectation 
 was had of this man's fortunate success 
 to follow* that within three days after 
 his father's decease, divers noblemen and 
 honourable personages did to him ho- 
 mage, &c." Then, after relating the coro- 
 nation on the very stormy day, on which 
 divers interpretations were made,f as in 
 Walsingham, he proceeds. 
 
 "But this King even at first appoint- 
 ing with himself to shew that in his 
 person princely honours should change 
 publick manners, lie determined to 
 put on him the shape of a new man. 
 For whereas aforetime he had made him- 
 self a companion unto misruly mates of 
 
 * New 4to. edit. Vol. 3. p. 61. 
 
 f It is remarkable that this ill omen so frequently 
 repeated, is not noticed by the first writer Elmham p 
 though it is by Otterburn. 
 
 12 
 
116 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 dissolute order and life, he now banished 
 
 them all from his presence, &c. &c. 
 
 calling to mind how once he had offended 
 his father by striking the Chief Justice 
 had been expelled the Privy Coun- 
 cil banished the Court and his 
 
 brother Clarence preferred in his stead. — " 
 For -all which he can cite no better 
 authority than Latin verses from OclandV 
 Anglorum Pr&lia> nothing to the pur- 
 pose. What is this but the composition 
 of a school-boy at his task, copying from 
 one author and then another, to eke out 
 his page? What he has of honours and 
 manners appears to be taken from Hall, 
 who takes from Polydore Vergil ; with 
 which he mixes paragraphs from his Eng- 
 lish predecessors ; But the whole toge- 
 ther is unworthy of the name of history. 
 Hall, who is copied by Grafton, takes 
 the words of Fabian concerning Henry 
 of Monmouth, together with a partial 
 translation of Polydore Vergil. For 
 Hall's prefixed list of authors has not 
 
WHEN PIIINCE OF WALES, 117 
 
 the names of Walsingham, T. Livius and 
 Elmham. He dwells upon the extraor- 
 dinary and sudden change from vice to 
 virtue, upon the Prince's becoming King, 
 and the dismissal modo et forma of his 
 loose companions ; and introduces in paren- 
 thesis the striking the Chief Justice on 
 the fact) and being therefore banished 
 from Court and Council. 
 
 Yet he had related nothing in the 
 course of Henry the fourth's reign, to 
 inform us of his disposition or behaviour. 
 At the same time he shews that what he 
 writes deserves no regard; for he de- 
 scribes the unusual pressing forward of 
 the nobility to pay him homage before 
 the coronation, because ? they conceived 
 a good expectation both of his virtuous 
 beginnings, and also of his fortunate suc- 
 cess in all things which should be attempted 
 or begun during the time of his pros- 
 perous reign and fortunate empire." If 
 what he writes on the other side were 
 
118 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 true, they must have conceived a very 
 bad expectation. of him. 
 
 Polydore probably wrote after Fabian. 
 He came to this country to write our his- 
 tory at the request of Henry the seventh, 
 in whose reign what we now have 
 from him of former reigns was com- 
 posed. In writing of our prince, he 
 seems to pay little regard to what he may 
 have found to his prejudice ; for he com- 
 mences the account of his reign withpane- 
 gyrick, as of one of whom the best hopes 
 had been conceived from his early youth. 
 He writes of his parting with his young 
 companions, not for the purpose of 
 blaming him for former misbehaviour, 
 like his copiers ; but because the Prince 
 felt that the high elevation of royalty, and 
 change of place, required a change of man- 
 ners. He therefore took grave and wise 
 counsellors in the room of those who 
 had been the companions of his youth 
 and wantonness. This I take to be the 
 just and fair meaning of his expressions. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 110 
 
 At the same time I would not rely upon 
 his authority, if it stood alone ; and 
 would rather quote him for what he does 
 not, than what he does sav. I derive 
 from him a negative service of this kind 
 to my argument here, for the above is 
 the substance of all that he writes upon 
 the early character of Henry the fifth.* 
 
 Fabian's opening of Henry the fifth's 
 reign has the following passage. " This 
 man before the death of his father applied 
 himself unto all vice and insolencj^ and 
 
 * The following is from the Basle edition of P. Ver- 
 gil 1557, P« 439. /' — adeb Henricus ab ineunte aetate 
 spem omnibus optima indolis fecit.- Hie vir hie 
 fuit qui a primo docuit honores, ut est in proverbio* 
 debeant mutare mores : Quippe qui statim ut est rex 
 factus, statuens alio atque babebat vitse instituto sibi 
 utendum, omnes suos cequales quibuscum pueritiam, 
 quae lasciviae et insolentiae ut plurimum est plena, 
 egerat, ab se relegavit, illisq. regiam interdixit -, ac 
 loco illorum fortissimos gravissimos quosq. viros in 
 familiaritatem recepit 3 in quibus judicarat et in ca- 
 piendo consilio prudentiam summam inesse.et in dando 
 iidem, ut eorum consilio raonitis prudentii juvaretur," 
 
120 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 drew unto himself rioters and wild dis- 
 posed persons : But after he was admitted 
 to the rule of the land, anon and suddenly 
 he became a new man, and turned all that 
 rage and wildness to soberness and wise 
 sadness, and the vice into constant vir- 
 tue." His conclusion of the last reign 
 affords a good specimen of his qualifica- 
 tion for writing it. He names among the 
 King's children, as fifth son/ Henry the 
 rich Cardinal, and two other sons by 
 Katherine Swinford ; which mistake he 
 had made before, and refers to it again. 
 
 Caxton who wrote under Edward the 
 fourth, and may have taken Walsingham 
 or Elmham for his guide, has a chapter 
 at the end of his reign of Henry the 
 fifth, after relating his death and fune- 
 ral, under this title. " Of the laud of 
 King Henry the Fifth, and what he or- 
 dained for King Richard." He then pro- 
 ceeds, " Here is to be noted that the 
 King Henry 5, was a noble Prince after 
 he was King and crowned ; howbeit be- 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 121 
 
 fore in his youth he had been wild reck- 
 less and spared nothing of his lusts nor 
 desires, but accomplished them after his 
 liking. But as soon as he was crowned 
 anointed and sacred, anon suddenly he was 
 changed into a nexo man, and all his in- 
 tent to live virtuously in maintaining of 
 holy church, destroying of hereticks, 
 keeping justice, and defending of his 
 realm and subjects."* We may consider 
 this as very moderate, if we reflect on 
 what Caxton has said in describing his 
 additions to the Polychronicon. He begs 
 every reader's indulgent correction, " for 
 if I coulde have founde moo stories I 
 
 woulde have sette in it moo " which 
 
 was the current practice of the Chroni- 
 clers. More stories made the excellence 
 of one above another. 
 
 John Rous (or Ross) who was next 
 
 * I quote in modern spelling, from a MS. in Bibl. 
 Cott. Claud. A. 8, which seems the same in general 
 as the edition printed by himself 1482, and another by 
 W. deWordeof 1520. 
 
122 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 before Caxton and his contemporary, was 
 a partizan of York. But his short account 
 of Henry the fifth contains nothing but 
 encomium. He wrote in Latin.* This 
 brings us up to Walsingham and Otter- 
 burn, and the birth of the New Man\ 
 upon Henry the fourth's death. For 
 Elmham had exceeded them in the mar- 
 vellous, and had gone up to the very seat 
 of the Muses ; having made night change 
 into day, and darkness into light. And 
 here perhaps the reader will be well 
 pleased to take leave of our CtjtOtttCietS. 
 It is obvious that the love of the mar- 
 vellous in the passages quoted has pos- 
 sessed them all. Having once caught 
 hold of the new birth of the penitent it 
 was too good to be given up, and de- 
 scended from one to another, as it were by 
 unction. But Holinshed, writing while 
 a popular comedy on the subject was in 
 
 * Hist. Regum Angliae edit Hearne in Hen* 5. 
 f Page 30, 110, 115, before. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 123 
 
 vogue, gave a general currency to the 
 fable past all cure. Thus are Chronicles 
 compiled ; and length of time, which 
 helps to confound them all, serves also 
 to make them venerable. I wish there 
 were an ivy in historical learning, to 
 grow upon the rude monuments of its 
 infancy, and hide their awkward projec- 
 tions under a simple evergreen. If any 
 one of these makers of characters had 
 gone to the true sources of information, 
 the res gestce of their subject, it is impos- 
 sible that such trash could have been 
 preserved in their compilations. We 
 should not have been " mocked and de- 
 luded all this while (to use a sentence of 
 Milton's*) with ragged notions and bab- 
 blements." But if, according to Hardyng, 
 he was 
 
 A new man made by all good regimence 9 
 the true receipt for this composition must 
 be followed. The first essential of such 
 
 * Tractate of Education. 
 
124 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 regeneration, according to good regirnence, 
 is the recovery from sin and wickedness. 
 But how can this be without such pre- 
 vious sin ? The sin therefore must be 
 established and fixed by the same chro- 
 nicling prescription ; and thus the rege- 
 neration, by rule of reverse, becomes evi- 
 dence of the fact from which it ought 
 itself to spring. 
 
 If the young prince was given to dis- 
 sipation and lasciviousness, when not en- 
 gaged in arms, as we are told he was by 
 the only writer who can require our 
 belief, we must give it in his measure. 
 Elmham is he. In him it is free from all 
 degrading circumstances. There is nei- 
 ther low company, nor profligate compa- 
 nions mentioned by him, nor by T. Li- 
 vius his copier, nor by Hardyng Otter- 
 burn and Walsingham who succeeded 
 them, nor by Rous the Yorkist who came 
 next, nor by Caxton or Polydore. Fa- 
 bian the Alderman of London, and chro- 
 nicler of its Mayors and Sheriffs, seems 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 125 
 
 to have been the leader in this line of 
 accusation. But as he knew nothing at 
 all of the Prince's good deeds, and no- 
 thing of his life before his accession but 
 the tale of his bad company, he merits 
 little regard. He gives no voucher for 
 his charge of all vice and insokncy, and 
 we know that his betters had not gone 
 so far. 
 
 Being then dissipated as a youth, 
 Henry must have had companions of his 
 pleasures. It does not follow that they 
 were abandoned or vicious or low. The 
 associates of one of his warlike disposition 
 were probably military men, whose habits 
 frequently lead them to dissipation. If 
 at this age the feathers of his crest played 
 wantonly over his brow, we are not ob- 
 liged to add ungracefully. And he must 
 have been dextrous too in finding play 
 time, in that hardy and busy course of 
 martial life in which he was employed. 
 The only passages to be found on this 
 subject in any of the authors quoted, that 
 
126 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 merit attention, describe his companions 
 as young lords and gentlemen. Stow makes 
 use of that description in the only frolick 
 he relates. And though he preserves the 
 story of dismissing his former compa- 
 nions, he calls them by that phrase, as 
 the followers of his young acts ; and adds 
 that he was willing to keep about him 
 still, in his state of royalty, such as would 
 change their manners. We have no 
 authority for believing that there was any 
 thing base or degrading in his associates. 
 They who attribute such courses to Henry 
 of Monmouth, wrote after the theatres 
 had exhibited his character in a dress of 
 their own, at a time when indecency and 
 grossness of manners prevailed in all 
 stage exhibitions. Falstaff and Poms 
 and Peto are his companions there. 
 
 But the only vicious character* we 
 read of, and actually know to have been 
 his companion, was the Duke of York j* 
 
 * Bef. pa. 58, Speech to the Parliament. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 1^7 
 
 who indeed had once degraded himself 
 even to infamy. But the effects of 
 this connection were extraordinary, and 
 to the honour of the parties so con- 
 cerned. The youth was not tainted, 
 and the elder was reformed. Our Prince 
 restored him to honour in every sense 
 of the word, and to the useful service 
 of his country. 
 
 Take the reflection made upon his 
 vices by our first author his contempo- 
 rary.* " They did not even for a moment, 
 letdown the magnanimity of his charac- 
 ter." The author of one of the finest 
 pieces of writing in our language, j* who 
 has made it convey to Princes some 
 useful lessons on their failings, has illus- 
 trated this sentiment in the happiest 
 manner, and by examples of the highest 
 note. He distinguishes justly between 
 the vices or failings that degrade a Prince, 
 and those which by not shewing them- 
 
 * Bef. pa. 11. 
 t Lord Bolinbroke. Idea of a Patriot King. 
 
124 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 selves in any scandalous appearances, are 
 lost in the lustre of bright and shining 
 qualities. Our Henry seems to have 
 been a fit example for his text, while 
 on the stage of life and before he 
 filled the stage of fancy, as good as those 
 he produces to inforce his moral, of 
 Csesar and Scipio and Henry the fourth 
 of France. After observing that Princea 
 are exposed to more and stronger temp- 
 tations than other men, he adds. u The 
 elevation in which they are placed, as it 
 gives them great advantages, gives them 
 great disadvantages too that often coun- 
 tervail the former. Thus for instance, a 
 little merit in a Prince is seen and felt by 
 numbers : It is multiplied as it were, and 
 in proportion to this effect his reputation 
 is raised by it. But then a little failing 
 is seen and felt by numbers too : It is 
 multiplied in the same manner, and his 
 reputation sinks in the same proportion/' 
 I have named the Duke of York as his 
 only companion, whose name has been 
 handed down to us authentically. If we 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 129 
 
 could rely upon Hall,* we might add to 
 him Sir John Oldcastle, Lord Cobham; 
 and I have found instruments in Rymer 
 that induce me to do so. Hall relates 
 the beginning of the persecution of the 
 Wickliffites, whose chief that nobleman 
 was, in the first year of his reign. He 
 calls him a valiant captain and hardy 
 gentleman, accused to the Archbishop ; 
 who knowing him to be highly in the Kings 
 favor, informed the King of it. The 
 King wished to save him, and in private 
 discourse endeavoured to reclaim the 
 strayed sheep, for which Oldcastle was 
 very grateful ; but his zeal and firmness 
 rendered the King's endeavours vain. 
 Henry finding him determined, judged 
 it necessary to yield to the Arch- 
 bishop's request, and he was left to the 
 rigour of the ecclesiastical law. He 
 appears to have been one of the distin- 
 guished warriors of Henry the fourth's 
 
 * Pa, 48. new edit. 4to. 
 K 
 
130 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 reign, and served in the Welsh war 
 under the Prince of Wales from the 
 beginning.* I conceive therefore that 
 here the intimacy was formed, with him 
 as well as the Duke of York. When 
 afterwards the King sent an aid to the 
 Duke of Burgundy in 1411, as before 
 related,! he was one of the principal 
 commanders of the expedition. Perhaps 
 the circumstance of the troops being led 
 by officers in the Prince's favour, or of 
 his recommendation, occasioned Elmham 
 and others to write that he had been ap- 
 plied to for them. 
 
 Oldcastle's history is well known, and 
 the criticks on Shakespear have taken 
 pains to discover every part of it,J in 
 order to account for his being brought 
 on the stage in the Prince's company, as 
 
 * 8Rym. F. 331. and 498. 
 
 t Pa. 50. 
 
 % See Malone's note to the epilogue of 2d pt. Hen. 
 
 4. and the 2d scene of 3d act ; #nd Steevens's to the 
 
 title-page of Hen. 5. with Malone's observations 
 
 on the first part. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 131 
 
 he is in the old play of Henry the fifth. 
 The above passages may serve to be ad- 
 ded to their notes. There were probably 
 some stories of his wit or waggery to- 
 wards the Prince preserved in tradition, 
 which the players caught up. But his 
 real character becoming better known 
 by the popular history of the reforma- 
 tion, in which his suffering for the doc- 
 trines of Wickliffe made a conspicuous 
 figure, it acquired the ascendancy over 
 the false one brought on the stage ; the 
 reverse of which has happened to that 
 of our Prince. Steevens has produced the 
 prologue to a play called Sir John Oldcas- 
 tle, published in 1600 under Shakespear's 
 name (now rejected from his works) which 
 proves that the writer was anxious to 
 clear himself from the suspicion of ex* 
 posing the real Oldcastle to laughter, 
 and that the audience of that time 
 would have been displeased w r ith such 
 freedom. He therefore represents him as 
 
 "A valiant martyr and a virtuous Peer." 
 
 & 2 
 
132 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 If Henry the fourth was suspected of 
 having imbibed from his father that 
 heresy not to be absolved, of wishing 
 to lessen the overgrown possessions of 
 the clergy, Oldcastle openly declared 
 that desire, and endeavoured to carry 
 it into effect; and at the same time em- 
 braced with zeal the religious tenets of 
 Wickliffe. But the King took care af- 
 terwards to accommodate his principles 
 to the church, for which her members 
 repaid him amply both in money and 
 good will. I suspect that some youth- 
 ful levity of expression leaning that, way 
 may have escaped Prince Henry, which 
 was hastily caught up and remembered 
 against him ; and his intimacy with the 
 Lollard knight would help to fix the 
 imputation of his favouring the sect. 
 If this conjecture,* for it is no more, 
 
 * It is worth noticing in this place that Wiekliffe 
 had belonged at first to Queen's College Oxford, where 
 we are told some of his followers resided, In his 
 
WHKN PRINCE OF WALES. 133 
 
 should be true, we might conclude that 
 he took pains to make the declaration 
 of his abhorrence of that sect as publick 
 as possible, in order to remove any such 
 opinion. I cannot think that mere irre- 
 gularity of life in a young prince, would 
 have appeared to the corrupt monks of 
 that age, so heinous as to require all 
 the severe mortification ascribed by them 
 to his marvellous repentance. 
 
 V. The Prince offended his father and em- 
 bittered his last days. 
 
 I believe that he might to a certaiu 
 degree; not by his vices, but by great 
 and shining qualities, and the popularity 
 attending upon them. It is difficult to 
 account for the proceedings in parliament 
 recited in pp. 58, 65, 6, unless we suppose 
 the King jealous of the fame and influence 
 of his son. On the other hand, if that 
 
 day, Oxford was distinguished for favouring his doc- 
 trines. He died in 1384. 
 
134 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 were the case, the Speaker's conduct may 
 at once be explained. The commons 
 take their favourite's part, and urge their 
 sovereign to do him the honour which 
 they believe unjustly witheld, by the 
 King's fears of him and them. We 
 should have lost some admirable scenes* 
 if Shakespear had thought so. Yet we 
 may still have the enjoyment of them 
 without being obliged to call for proofs. 
 
 Young Henry's interposition (as in pa. 
 58,) in the Duke of York's favour, 
 against whom the King seems to have 
 been incensed, must have been disagree- 
 able^ his father; but no man will be 
 inclined to blame the Prince for this or 
 accuse him of undutiful behaviour. On 
 the contrary, he seems to deserve praise 
 for generosity and gratitude towards a 
 Prince of his blood and fellow soldier 
 who had been unduly slighted. 
 
 It was the rare fortune of Henry the 
 
 * Second part H. 4. act 4. sc. 10, 11. 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 135 
 
 fourth to have four sons who were all 
 youths of fine parts and great abilities. 
 He made use of them accordingly in 
 the service of the state, and they ap- 
 pear to have assisted their father in such 
 employment in an early stage of life. But if 
 this condition of a family is to be envied, 
 it is likewise subject to danger and in- 
 convenience, especially in that of a so- 
 vereign, by producing rivalship and 
 hatred, and their evil consequences 
 among courtiers and dependents. The 
 domestick lot of Edward the third, 
 both good and evil in this respect, de 
 scended upon his grandson of Lancaster, 
 and forms a remarkable occurrence in the 
 history of man ; by presenting two such 
 fine generations from the same stock so 
 near together. So much for the honour 
 of Plantagenet. Yet John of Gaunt 
 was suspected of designs against the 
 succession of his nephew, son of his 
 renowned elder brother ; and Thomas 
 of Clarence was said to have caused or 
 
136 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 fomented his father's suspicions of Henry 
 of Monmouth. The good sense and 
 open heart of the latter dissipated their 
 effects for the time ; but if the King- 
 had lived much longer, they might have 
 produced more evil than happened in the 
 grandfather's days. 
 
 Young Henry's temper led him to 
 take the following course to cure his 
 father's jealousy and defeat the faction 
 that promoted it. When he found their 
 measures against him strengthened by 
 the King's favour, he suddenly drew 
 together all his friends and dependents 
 from different parts, of whom he formed 
 a large train richly dressed, and with 
 them proceeded as in parade to the 
 Court which was then kept at Westmin- 
 ster, to demand a public audience of the 
 King, that he might in the most public 
 manner justify himself and confound 
 his enemies. It had the usual effect 
 of bold and direct measures that are 
 founded in justice. The Prince openly 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 137 
 
 called upon his father to clear him from 
 the accusations of his enemies, the Court 
 slanderers were abashed, and the King- 
 was obliged to see his son's character 
 with his 'own eyes, and acquit him. This 
 transaction happened in the summer next 
 before the King's death ; and is described 
 at length by Holinshed, with many formal 
 and some fabulous particulars,* according 
 to the times, with orations from the 
 father and son.f But he concludes with 
 the sensible reflection upon the Prince's 
 conduct before cited.J 
 
 What Otterburn has written upon this 
 adventure is fit to be introduced here, 
 for it seems to lead to a very probable 
 cause of the disagreement between the 
 father and son. According to him the 
 King had been persuaded by the Prince's 
 
 * And inconsistencies, I might have added. For he 
 begins with the tales that caused the King not to favour 
 Henry as in times past. 
 
 t New 4to. edit. V. 3, p. 53. 
 
 X Pa, 113. See the Note at the end. 
 
138 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 enemies to confer upon Clarence the 
 conduct of a new expedition to France, 
 in favour of the Duke of Orleans, 
 while the troops before sent to the Duke 
 of Burgundy against him were still in 
 France upon that service. If, as some 
 write, this measure had been advised and 
 planned by Prince Henry, it was natural 
 that the sudden change to a contrary 
 course, and against his advice ; or with a 
 view to thwart him, and strengthen the 
 party of his younger brother and rival, 
 should have offended and irritated him. 
 
 The reader would startle if I should 
 add a chapter here under the following 
 head, viz. The Prkice of 'Wales his fathers 
 favourite son. I shall therefore only 
 hint, that I could maintain this argument 
 by a strong piece of evidence of the 
 highest authority ; stronger than any that 
 has been brought to prove the contrary. 
 The Will of Henry the fourth* dated 21 
 Jan. 1408, (1409 N. S.) after the debates 
 
 * Nichols Collect, of Roy. Wills, p. 204, 5 a 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 139 
 
 in parliament before mentioned in p. 58, 
 and after the Prince had left his command 
 in Wales, and may be supposed to have 
 resided more in London and to have 
 been guilty of irregularities, if ever he 
 was, this Will names him in an affectionate 
 manner, and him only of all the children. 
 The King particularly recommends to his 
 care to provide for three of his servants 
 who had deserved well ; and then makes 
 him his executor in the following words 
 (in modern spelling.) " And for to exe- 
 cute this testament well and truly, for 
 great trust that I have on my son the 
 Prince, I ordain and make him my exe- 
 cutor of my testament foresaid, calling to 
 him such as he thinketh in his discretion 
 that can and will labour to the soonest 
 speed of my Will comprehended in this 
 my testament. And to fulfil truly all 
 things foresaid I charge my foresaid son 
 upon my blessing." 
 
 It does not affect the present point to 
 add, that the King appears to have made 
 
140 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 another Will afterwards, wherein heap- 
 points some of his privy council for his 
 executors; for he names the Prince and 
 Archbishop of Canterbury to be their 
 Supervisors, according to the custom of 
 that period. The copy of this Will, if it 
 exists now, has not been published. My 
 account of it is taken from the Parliament 
 Rolls, vol. 4 5 p. 5, n°. 13. 
 
 I have a few grains of blame, but 
 mixed with praise, to bestow upon Shake- 
 spear before I conclude. I cannot forgive 
 him for the quibbling lie, which he makes 
 the young Prince tell the Sheriff, in order 
 to stay the pursuit of justice for the rob- 
 bery. And whenever I have seen it on 
 the stage, I have observed the same feel- 
 ing in the audience. This perhaps is his 
 own, and if so may be imputed to the 
 manners of his early life. Yet it is as 
 inconsistent with the becoming grace and 
 dignity and propriety which he generally 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 141 
 
 gives to his high characters, as with the 
 real character of the Prince. This and 
 the Princess Katherine's french are fit 
 only for the groundlings of his wooden O. 
 He could not but believe, as the best 
 of his contemporaries did, in Holinshed's 
 account of the transactions which are 
 made the subject of his plays. Malone 
 has shewn that he always follows that 
 author in the historical dramas. * We 
 should therefore admire the dexterity 
 with which he takes every occasion to 
 set off the young Prince's character to 
 the best advantage, and to cover his 
 faults. In the first mention of him by 
 his father,! " Can no man tell of my un- 
 thrifty son?" (for Shakespear supposes 
 him a man grown at this time) where he 
 is made to complain of his loose compa- 
 nions^ who beat the watch, and rob passen- 
 gers, the King concludes thus — 
 
 u As dissolute as desperate \ yet thro' both 
 
 * See 12. Reed, p. 293 in Henry 5. 
 t Rich. 2, act 5, sc. 6. 
 
142 CHARACTER OP HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 I see some sparks of hope, which elder days 
 May happily bring forth "* 
 
 In the introductory scene to the rob- 
 bery, he makes the Prince reflect upon 
 the disgrace he is going to incur in such 
 company, 
 
 ° I know you all, and will awhile uphold 
 The unyoked humour of your idleness. 
 Yet herein will I imitate the Sun, — 
 
 So when this loose behaviour I throw off, 
 And pay the debt I never promised — " 
 
 So in Vernon's report of his interview 
 with the King and Prince, f he is made 
 to say of the latter's sending Hotspur a 
 challenge, 
 
 " He made a blushing cital of himself, 
 
 And chid his truant youth with such a grace.—" 
 
 * Which words Dr. Johnson, on Shakespear's au- 
 thority, seems to have received for good history $ and 
 therefore calls a very proper introduction to the future 
 character of Henry theffth. 
 
 f 1st Hen. 4, act 5, sc. 4, 
 
WHEN PRINCE OF WALES. 143 
 
 Again, to relieve him from an illnatured 
 insinuation of bis brother Clarence's to 
 the King, who is incensed by it, War- 
 wick makes the speech beginning thus, 
 
 t( My gracious lord, you look beyond him quite. 
 The Prince but studies his companions, 
 Like a strange tongue, &c. "* 
 
 and assures the King that it will end to 
 his honour. 
 
 These passages shew that Shakespear 
 seemed to struggle against believing the 
 current stories of misconduct as much as 
 he could, that he might not let the Prince 
 down to their level. 
 
 The Brotherhood of Shakespear's edi- 
 tors must not be passed by without cen- 
 sure, for putting forth such an abun- 
 dance of illustrations of their author's 
 plays, without ever noticing the injustice 
 done to the character of one of thegreat- 
 
 * 2d Hen. 4, act 4, sc. S, 
 
144 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH 
 
 est among the English princcs,in the Plays 
 before us. Especially when we consider 
 the extraordinary labour of their multitu- 
 dinous notes. This may be wondered at 
 in Steevens, who was a great reader of 
 English history and a diligent observer. 
 Although he gives many notes to correct 
 mistakes of dates and persons wrongly 
 introduced, he seems never to have ob- 
 served the capital error relating to Henry 
 the fifth. 
 
 He has one note only to this effect,* 
 where upon the authority of Sir J. Haw- 
 kins, the deviation from history respect- 
 ing Chief Justice Gascoigne's surviving 
 Henry the fourth is corrected ; but 
 though Sir Thos. Elyofs whole chapter 
 is there recited, it was left to Malone to 
 notice the mistake as to the Prince's 
 striking him, who notwithstanding thinks 
 it necessary to quote Speed upon the 
 fact. 
 
 * Johns, and Stcev. edit. v. 5, p. 588* 
 
WHEN PRINCE OP WALES. 145 
 
 Malone likewise has one note, to cor- 
 rect Shakespear's mistake of the Prince's 
 age in the Kings speech before quoted 
 in p. 141, when, he observes truly, he 
 could not be more than twelve years 
 old. 
 
 The following Summary of Dates of the 
 principal events and transactions in this 
 Essay may be found useful. 
 
 A.D. 1387. Henry V. born, 9th August. 
 
 1399. Knighted in the field by Richard II. 
 in Ireland, in his 1 2th year. 
 
 In the same year created Prinee of 
 
 Wales. 
 
 1402. Attended the army against Scotland. 
 
 1403. Made King's Lieutenant of Wales. 
 21st July, wounded in the battle of 
 
 Shrewsbury. 
 
 1408. Left Wales, where he had con- 
 
 ducted the war and government 
 for five years. 
 
 1409, President of the Council, and en* 
 
 L 
 
146 CHARACTER OF HENRY THE FIFTH, &C. 
 
 gaged in the chief business of 
 State and Parliament. 
 1410-11, Warden of the Cinque Ports, Cap- 
 tain of Calais, and repeatedly 
 thanked by the Common's for his 
 services. 
 1413, Succeeds to the Crown. 
 
( 147 ) 
 
 Note for page 137. 
 
 There is a circumstance so particularly related 
 in the chronicles upon this occasion, as to re- 
 quire a little antiquarian illustration, which I 
 shall offer here. Young Henry's dress is thus 
 described by Holinshed. u He was apparelled 
 in a gown of blue satin full of oikt holes ; at 
 every hole the needle hanging by a silk thread 
 by which it was sewed. About his arm he wore 
 a hound's collar set full of SS. of gold, and the 
 tirets likewise of the same metal." 
 
 Holinshed offers no remark upon this dress, 
 which by describing so minutely he must have 
 thought extraordinary. Stow quotes Otterburn 
 for the story, and thinks it necessary to name his 
 author, as one who had been informed of it, by 
 the Earl of Ormond, an eye-witness of the same. 
 Whatever the cause may have been, we must 
 perhaps remain ignorant of it, unless what follows 
 should serve for an explanation. In the Gentle- 
 
148 NOTE, 
 
 man's Magazine of March 1756, there is a well 
 written letter from Oxford, attempting to do this 
 from the customs of Queen's College, in which 
 the Prince had been a student ; and to shew that 
 he may have designed to please his father by ap- 
 pearing in a dress that would remind him of that 
 College, and of the time he passed there. 
 
 I have mentioned the subject to some of my 
 acquaintance who belonged to this College ; and 
 have been honoured with a letter from the Pro- 
 vost containing the following information. "On 
 New Year's day the Bursar presents to every 
 one who dines in the hall a silk-threaded needle, 
 and says to him, Take this and be thrifty. But 
 no such ceremony is prescribed in the statutes, 
 and neither the date nor the occasion of intro- 
 ducing this custom is known. The general opi- 
 nion is that it originally bore an allusion to the 
 founder's name, Eglesfeld from aiguille and Jil. 
 And the story told by Holinshed has been con- 
 sidered as an argument in support of the tradi- 
 tion, that Henry the fifth had a part of his edu- 
 cation in this house. 
 
 There is no reason to impeach the testimony 
 of Rous as to this fact ; in addition to which, 
 there is the constant tradition, that Henry lived 
 in the chamber over the great gate of the Col- 
 
NOTE. 149 
 
 lege, which had been before occupied by the 
 Black Prince, and which was taken down about 
 sixty years ago. In this chamber was a portrait 
 in glass., apparently very ancient, of Henry the 
 fifth, together with that of Cardinal Beaufort. 
 
 In another part of the College there is an in- 
 scription on glass, relating that Henry the fifth 
 had studied there/' 
 
 From the summary of dates* of the principal 
 events of his life, it may be seen that there was 
 time for his residing at Oxford from 1399 to 
 1402, not filled up in the account, from the 12th 
 to the 14th year of his age. At this period Henry 
 Beaufort Bishop of Lincolnf was Chancellor of 
 Oxford, not having succeeded to Winchester till 
 1404, upon the death of W. of Wickham. I 
 cannot learn that there is any tradition at Oxford 
 of a peculiar dress like that above described, 
 either in Queen's College or any other ; but it 
 seems reasonable to assign it to the ceremony 
 practised there, and to the motive supposed by 
 the writer in the Magazine. 
 
 An inaccurate phrase in Stow's Chronicle 
 
 * See p. 145. 
 
 f See iu Twyne's Antiq. Acad. Oxen. Apol. the citation 
 from Rons, 
 
150 NOTE. 
 
 (copied, perhaps, from one much older) has led 
 to a mistake in some accounts of Oxford ; in 
 which the young Prince is said to have belonged 
 to New College, because Stow writes that he 
 studied at the new College. But many Colleges 
 have been called new, with respect to the rest, 
 for some time after their first erection, and this 
 was the case of Queen's, 
 
 G. SIDNEY, Printer, 
 Northumberland-street, Strand. 
 
 1.5 J 
 

 
 S558