1199. Death of RICHARD I. The rightful heir to the throne was Arthur, son of Geoffrey, the fourth son of Henry II.; but through the influence of Queen Eleanor, Henry's widow, Richard was induced to name JOHN as his successor.

The Barons of Anjou, Maine, and Touraine support the claims of Arthur.
Philip II. of France embraces Arthur's cause.

Constance, in jealousy of Philip, secretly carries off Arthur from Paris, and places
him under the guardianship of John.

1200. Treaty between John and Philip.

John divorces Hadwisa, and marries Isabella of Angoulême.

1202. The Barons become discontented, and appeal to Philip, who interposes on their behalf.

1203. Arthur joins the Barons and Philip; marries Mary, daughter of Philip.

Arthur besieges Mirebeau, in which his grandmother Queen Eleanor is shut up.
John suddenly falls upon his camp, disperses it, and takes Arthur prisoner.
Arthur is shut up in the Castle of Falaise.

Arthur is removed to Rouen, and there put to death.

1207. Stephen Langton appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by the Pope. John refuses to recognize him.

1208. The Pope lays England under an Interdict.

1209. The Pope excommunicates John.

1212. The Pope deposes John, and offers his crown to Philip II., who prepares to invade England.

1213. John surrenders his kingdom to the Pope, and receives it back as his vassal. 1215. Magna Charta granted.

1216. The discontented Barons offer the crown to Louis, son of Philip II. of France, who had married John's niece. He lands in England. John loses his baggage, regalia, &c., in crossing from Lynn to Lincolnshire; falls sick, reaches Newark in Nottinghamshire, and there dies.

PART I.

Line 3. In my behaviour-As represented by me.

"Sound one into the drowsy ear of night;" but the vagueness of "sound on,” implying 16. Disallow.-Usually a transitive verb; the steady advance of time, is preferable here used intransitively. to the definiteness of "sound one. "" Moreover, the "midnight bell" may sound on," but it can hardly be said accurately to "sound one."

22. The farthest limit of my embassy;— i.e., the ultimatum of France.

25. I will be there, &c.-Note the accurate use of will and shall in this and the following line; as if he had said, "Before you can report my intention of coming, I am determined that the thunder of my cannon shall be heard."

40. Much more than your right.-Elinor was well aware of Arthur's preferable claim to the throne.

57. Creep time.-A concessive clause= though time creep ne'er so slow. Thou shalt have....it shall come.-Note again the force of shall to express the will or determination of the speaker.

65. Sound on into the drowsy race of night. So the folio; but the line is probably corrupt, unless "the drowsy race of night" refer to the proverbially wearisome progress of the night watches. It has been proposed to alter the line to

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78. Brooded watchful day. To brood, in its metaphorical sense, is to dwell upon anxiously. Brooded must therefore mean here anxious, vigilant, and intensifies the meaning of watchful.

83. Adjunct to my act-Connected with, consequent upon, my act.

112. Is not Angiers lost?-Shakespeare's account of the events of John's reign differs in several particulars from the usual historical narrative. Here, for example, the usual account makes John fall upon Arthur's army while he was besieging his grandmother in the Castle of Mirebeau in Poitou, disperse it, and take the prince prisoner.

114. Bloody England into England gone. -The first England means the king, the second the country. Compare Part ii.,

lines 303, 306; and Tempest, Act v., Scene 1, | so that I were out of prison. Compare, line 205: so you would love me," in the last line of this speech.

PART II.

Line 6. The faiths of men ne'er stainèd | In Ger. der is so used; and in English that with revolt.-Supply were. The allegiance of your subjects has not been tarnished by revolt: it needs not, therefore, to be renewed.

35. To choke his days with barbarous ig- | action, are arrived" to the present state. norance-To deny him the advantages of In the latter case, arrived" is to be reeducation. garded rather as an adjective than as a participle.

41. Which for our goods, &c.-We do not ask this for our own advantage further than that is bound up in your welfare.

43. He have.-For that he should have. The subjunctive mood, implying that he has not his liberty now.

46. The man should.-For the man who should. On the ellipsis of the nominative relative, see Book I., 31 (239), 66 (232). 51. 'Tis done, what. "That is done which" would be the modern idiom; but "it what" is strictly correct. It is the neuter of the demonstrative, what is the neuter of the relative. Compare

What you have spoke, it may be so perchance."-Macbeth, Act iv., Scene 3. But Shakespeare habitually uses what without a correlative expressed:

102. If-Whether.

125. The whilst.-This phrase, equivalent to "the while" (see line 77), usually an adverb, is here a conjunction. For an example of its adverbial use see Richard II., Part iii., line 198.

130. A many thousand· -For many a thousand; that is, many times a thousand, or many thousands. But the article a is often used before a numeral adjective (a many, a few) to indicate that the things to which it refers are to be regarded as one mass. Compare an eight days" (Luke ix. 28), " a fortnight," a many merry men.

"

138. No had! Hubert's meaning is plain, though the expression, from its brevity, is obscure. He means, obviously,

66 What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won."-Macbeth, Act i., Scene 2.

And who, with the same ellipsis:

"Who was the thane, lives yet."

-Macbeth, Act i., Scene 3. 68. The shears of destiny.—A reference to the Parcae, the goddesses of Destiny in classical mythology. They were three in number-Clotho, the spinner of the thread of life; Lachesis, who determined man's lot; and Atropos, the inevitable, who was armed with an instrument to cut the thread of life.

77. The while.--While is properly a noun (A.-S. hwil, time), and is here the "objective of duration." The phrase, the while, common in Shakespeare, may, however, be regarded as an adverb of time.

87. From France to England. The messenger thus answers the king's question: All in France goes from France to England. 90. The copy of your speed.-Compare Part i., line 117.

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92. The tidings comes.-Tidings (things that tide or happen) is properly plural -e. g., these ill tidings," line 111-but, like 'news," it is occasionally used, as here, as a singular. The singular form tiding is not used. See Book I., 32 (339), 107 (155). Are arrived.-Many intransitive verbs signifying motion form their perfect tense with the auxiliary be, instead of have; e. g., are come, 'were crept," "is ascended," is run," "is walked." The forms with have are also used. The difference seems to be, that "have arrived" refers to the completed

"

66

Had I no cause, my lord! why, did you not provoke me?" Some editions have none had;" but this does not make the meaning clearer, while it may even suggest a different interpretation.

151. Make deeds ill done.--The subject of make is sight; it should therefore have been makes; but the intervention of two plurals (means and deeds) probably led to the use of the plural verb. The transposition of the adjective and noun-deeds ill for ill deeds-is made for the sake of the rhythm. It is better that the accent should fall upon deeds than upon ill.

165. As-Such as.

CORIOLANUS.

PERSONS REPRESENTED.

CAIUS MARCIUS, afterwards CAIUS MAR- | A Roman Herald.

Lieutenant to Aufidius.

CIUS CORIOLANUS.
TITUS LARTIUS, generals against the Conspirators with Aufidius.
COMINIUS,

Volscians.

MENENIUS AGRIPPA, friend to Coriolanus.
SICINIUS VELUTUS, tribunes of the peo-
JUNIUS BRUTUS,

ple.

Young MARCIUS, son to Coriolanus. TULLUS AUFIDIUS, general of the Volscians.

VOLUMNIA, mother to Coriolanus.
VIRGILIA, wife to Coriolanus.

Roman and Volscian Senators, Patricians,
Aediles, Lictors, Soldiers, Citizens, Mes-
sengers, Servants to Aufidius, and other
Attendants.

SCENE: Rome and the neighbourhood; Corioli and the neighbourhood; Antium.

99 66

THE ARGUMENT.

PART I.-THE citizens of Rome are in mutiny against the Patricians, whom they blame for withholding bread from them in time of famine. The chief object of their fury is Caius Marcius (afterwards Coriolanus), who has proposed that the supplies of corn should not be given to the people unless they agree to give up their tribuneships.* He is a haughty, impetuous, and intolerant Patrician, who speaks harshly to the people, calling them " rogues," curs," and other offensive names. News arrives that the Volsces, under Tullus Aufidius, are preparing to make war upon Rome. The Senate dispatches an army to Corioli against them, under Cominius and Lartius. Marcius accompanies them. The armies meet under the walls of Corioli. Marcius performs prodigies of valour. Single-handed, he drives the Volsces into the city, and "following the fliers," alone of all the Romans he is shut within the gates. All blood-bespattered, he fights his way out again; but the blood is that of Volsces, not his own. For this exploit Cominius awards him the garland of the war, and hails him as Caius Marcius CORIOLANUS.

PART II.—On his return to Rome he is nominated Consul; but his appointment requires to be confirmed by the people. His proud spirit revolts against the submission which custom requires him to make to them, and the flattery which he is expected to bestow upon them, in order to gain their votes. He tries to command his fiery temper, but fails; and he is not only refused the consulship, but is condemned to exile by the comitia of the tribes.

PART III.-Panting for revenge, and sacrificing patriotism to personal animosity, he betakes himself to the Volsces, and offers to Aufidius, his former foe, his services against Rome. Elated by his presence, the Volsces equip an army for the invasion of the Roman territory, of which Aufidius and Coriolanus are the leaders. Though these rivals are apparently reconciled, Aufidius is evidently jealous and distrustful of his late conqueror. When the army arrives within sight of Rome, Menenius, an aged senator * See INTRODUCTION to Notes, p. 202.