For my right hand is here to helpe thée now Blush not to sée the raging worlds despite The bloudy are nor scaffolde full of bils My mercy seat shall be thy chiefe delihte And though on earth thine enimies haue their wils I am the God that stormes and tempests stils In quiet calme passe gently thou away And suffer much yet doe but little say Death is the end of all that beareth life Not one shall scape this world is but a dreame The seeds of sinne brings forth but flowres of strife In painted robes lies many a rotten seame It is but griefe to guide and rule a Realme Great charge and care a great accompt must make And when I frown the whole round world I shake I cause one wight to take anothers place To chop off heads to kill to hang and draw And when I take from rulers new my grace His head againe shall yeeld to sword and law Men blowes the cole but I put fire in straw And where doth fall the flame of my great â—e All things consumes to cinders in that fire Come Murton come and play thy pageant well Thou goest before perhaps a yeare or twaine But after thee shall passe to heauen or hell A number more that mercy now remaine World hath no stay I tell â—hee all is vaine Both raigne and rule and regall power most hie When bastards dreame in durt and dust shall lie My God thus sayd with that my sprites reuiude My wits were armde my sence redoubled than And with my flesh the holy Ghost he striude By Angels force but not by might of man A marulous stirre in stomacke then beganne For to subdue the â—arrein corps of care And burthend breast that sinfull body bare Now hope in hast made heauy heart full light The feare was fled that comes by course of law Gods promise wrought through mercy grace and might A noble worke in me cleare conscience saw A fig for death his force not worth a straw Qd. I a rush for worlds reproach and shame For written is in booke of life my name The Preachers then began to wéepe for ioy Your firme beliefe my Lord shall make you frée Qd they and sure your soule is from annoy Both in this world and where swéete Angels be And where right soone you shall Gods glory see Not with bare view but with immortall eies As body shall at latter day arise Then knéeld I downe and to the cloudes I looke The thought and care the while of world was past And I in God such ioy and pleasure tooke That at my héeles all earthly pompe I cast By this the houre of death approached fast The Gard gaue sign with halbards bright in hand I must prepare on Skaffold streight to stand The stréetes were full of souldiers armed well With shot and match and all belongs for warre I saw in house I could no lonâ—er dwell For people said the day was spent full farre Then ope the doore qd I draw backe the barre I will goe hence to better home I trust Here is no hope I see that die I must To comfort sence and strengthen vitall sprete I tasted foed and dranke a draught of wine And pawsde a while as I thought fit and méete But sure no dread of death within mine eine Was seene for God by speciall grace deuine Held vp my heart and head as high to shoe As when from home I did a walking goe Milde words I gaue when bitter spéech I hard So passed through them all with manly chéere And did no more this world nor earth regard Then though in deede I neuer had beene here But when in sight the Skaffold did appeare My minde was bent to fight the battle out And conquere death and banish feare and dout So stept I vp on Skaffold lightly than Where sundry came to aske me many a thing I lookte to God and made small count of man Saue that alowd I saide God blesse the King God giue him grace in peace the state to bring And shunne the harmes and dangers ore his head To finde on earth long life when I am dead Had I serud God aswell in euery sort As I did serue my king and maister still My scope had not this season beene so short Nor world haue â—ad the power to doe me ill But loe I liude against my makers will That feeles my flesh that feeles my soule alas That fault I feare where now my soule shall passe That that good Lord forgiue whilst breath I haue It is the sinne that to this world I brought It buried shall be with my flesh in graue It is a sore and sickenesse of the thought It is most vaine a wretched thing of nought A wicked wound that death doth heale alone Dwels last in flesh and first was bred in bone Pray you for me that sets your sinnes by mine And such as doe professe the faith I hold Marke who I am that here by power diuine Am forst this daie my conscience to vnfolde Looke neerely both to your owne Faults vntolde And pray as well for me with humble minde As for your selues that here I leaue behinde My matter stands before the iudge of all Men haue condemnd my body to the tort When that great iudge will for a reckning call Both you and I shut vp in sentence short Shall soone be known who gaines the best report There accuse ne small nor great this day My part is plaide and I must passe my way The faith this howre that all the Realme doth know I die in here and seale it with my blood To other faith beware bend not your bowe The râ—tten string will breake and doe no good Whilst in this land such trash aâ—d tromprie stood God was not pleasd the King not serude aright And we did walke in darkenes stead of light Good â—earers all my babes and children deere I brought you vp full long in this beliefe Your regent ones now preacheth to you here Chaunge not my barns religion to your griefe Serue first your God next honor King as chiefe This lesson keepe and so good friends adiew The dead from quicke so takes his leaue of you Thus full resolude temptation to resist Great time I stood and talkte in stoutest shoe Of sondry things as freely as I list But waying then that hence the soule must goe And that my necke must bide the blouddy bloe I stretched armes as hie as I could heaue So turnd my backe and did the audience leaue The heauenly hope that heart doth long vphold Did hale me hence and bad dispatch in haste As firme as rocke I stood say what they would For after this I spake no word in waste Then downe I lay and balefull blocke embraste And there receiude the blow as are did fall That cut me cleaue from cares and cumbers all The gasping head as in the Lorde I slept A vision had ye may the fame suppose I dreamde it saw how friende
CHVRCHYARDS Challenge LONDON Printed by Iohn Wolfe 1593. To the right honourable Sir Iohn VVolley Knight Secretary for the Latin tung to the Queenes Maiestie and one of her priuie Councell Thomas Churchyard wisheth increase of honor blessednes of life and abundance of worldly felicitie and heauenly happines THe long trauell and tracing out of life in this wearisome pilgrimage right honorable hauing brought me now almost to the ende of my iourney makes me glad with a restles desire to be rid of the burthens of my minde and the labours of my body the one neuer free from studie and the other seldome voide of toyle and yet both of them neither brought great benefite to the life nor blessing to the soule in which small rest and vnquietnes many sorrowfull discourses in my dayes I haue written and numbers of bookes I haue printed and because they shall not be buried with me I challenge them all as my children to abide behinde me in the worlde to make them inheritors of such fame dispraise as their father which begat them on sweet inuention heere enioyes or deserues hoping they shall not be called bastards nor none aliue will be so hardy as to call them his babes that I haue bred in my bowels brought forth and fostred vp so carefully at mine owne charges and hazard of an enuious worlde And now indeede for that diuers of disdainfull disposition doo or may hinder the good reporte of those labors which I thinke well bestowed among my freends I haue set forth while I am liuing a great number of my works in this booke named my Challenge that after my death shalbe witnesses they were mine owne dooings not for any great matter in them but for the iustnes of troth and true triall of all my honest exercises and so to purchase credit and the more freends and fauourers to prop vp my poore reputation I not only dedicate this booke and all therein to your honor but haue made also in the same booke diuers dedications to sundry honorable and worshipfull personages protesting that there is nothing heerein but came from mine owne deuice which inuencions spoken as becomes me shal be in all honest sorte defended by pen or any way I may to the vttermost of my breath or abilitie ioying much with all gladnes of hart that they are presented to so honourable a personage and one of such singuler learning whose worth and value by a worthy and vertuous Princes is seene into and throwly considered of which gracious Queene hath alwaies made her princely choice in such an excellent and vnspeakable maner as God himselfe should deuinely appoint and direct to our great wealth and his great glory and in whose râ—re commendation all the pen men of the world may write Now good sir vnder your excellent fauour and countenance I shielde my presumption and boldenes that hath offred a booke of so many discourses to the iudgement of such a multitude that quickly can discouer the weakenes of my labors but hauing ventured so farre as to publishe them in print I must now of necessitie commit them to the common opinion of the world So in hope the best will fall out I present you with my studies and take leaue of your honor desiring of God what goodnes can be wished to be alwaies at your commaundement Dutifully and loyally in all at commaundement Thomas Churchyard To the worthiest sorte of People that gently can reade and iustly can iudge GOod Reader if my presumption were so great that I thought my booke might passe without your fauourable iudgement mine error were as much as my ouer-weening and yet to vse perswasions in purchasing your good liking I should passe the bounds of common reason and fall into the danger of adulation for your good wils are rather won with good matter then bare wordes and say what I can to gaine your affection toward my worke you will speake what seemeth best in your owne conceites For among many thousands are many of deepe consideration and some vndoubtedly of as shallow iudgement so that the one or the other cannot nor will not be led and caried away with any deuice of my pen though all the hye spirits and excellency of Poetry might drop out of the quill I writ withall wherefore now I must as well abide the hazard of your censure as I haue boldely vnfolded my selfe to the worlde there is now no crauing of pardon nor pleading for your furtherance to encrease my good fame my works must abide waight they are thrust into the ballance and I of necessitie must content me with your allowance and what price pleaseth you to set on my marchandise but if they proue too light in the skales I pray you helpe them with some graine of good skill that they be not condemned as trifles because they haue cost me great labour and study and put me to no little charges I freely offer them to you for three or foure causes the one to keep the reputation of a writer the second to pleasure my freendes with the reading of new inuentions and thirdly to desire my foes to giue me true reporte of those workes I haue made and last of all to affirme that euery thing in this my booke of Challenge is mine owne dooing which iustlye no man can deny Not boasting thereof as matter worthy memory but claiming a better regarde then enuy would giue me I stand to the praise or dispraise of all I haue done maruelling much that in my life time any one would take from me the honest laudation I deserue I striue no further in that point but commit to God and good people the indifferency and iustnes of my cause and the best is which shall beare it selfe the wise of the worlde and worthiest of knowledge and capacitie are the only Iudges shall yeeld me my right the rest are but hearers and lookers on whose voices may make a great noise but giues so vncertaine a sound they can doo no great harme because of nature and condition they neuer doo no great good Now my pleading time is past my booke must appeare in that bare fashion as I haue formed the matter I hope it shall not walke so nakedly abroade but shalbe able to abide the coldenes of ill will and the extreame heate of hatefull mens disposition God the giuer of goodnes guide my verses so well that they neuer happen into their hands that loues me not and make my prose and plainenes of speech be as welcome to the Reader as it was well ment of the writer So with double and treble blessing Farwell FINIS My next booke shalbe the last booke of the Worthines of Wales And my last booke called my Vltimum Vale shalbe if it please God twelue long tales for Christmas dedicated to twelue honorable Lords Heere followes the seuerall matters contained in this booke THe tragedie of the Earle of Morton The tragedie of sir Simon Burley A discours that a man
théefe that steales away our wealth Is sore afraide a true mans steps to sée The fearefull wight that doth misdoubt his health Will blushe to come where that sound people be The faithfull stands the faulty man will flée The rebell shrinks where rule and order swaies Troth bides the brunt the Traitor runs his waies Bold practise quakes when power supplants his pride Where biles breaks out there is rebellion spide Among good Ewes beware of scabbed shéepe The Wolfe with Lambe may not be matcht aright The flocke is spoilde where For the Géese doth kéepe The sicke with sound is sure no comely sight What néedes more tearmes who dares not bide the light In darkenesse dwels a blinde rebellious minde Is more corrupt then any thing we finde Then either heale the member that doth smell Or cut him of before he further swell But farre more fit that flesh should be reformde And sanâ—de from harme that else corrupt would grow The itching hand of force must needes be wormde Least skinne waxe rough and pimples rise ye know If knife pare well a corne vppon the toe The foote is easde and man shall march vpright Take slime from eies the blinde receiues his sight So cleansing cleane each part and member well The state of man in safety long shall dwell So all thinges meant that here doth passe the pen Woundes to be heald and searched as they ought All to be done for health and wealth of men And nought amisse in word in deede nor thought Yea when my verse so great a worke hath wrought To linke in loue good subiects all in one To stand as firme as rocke or marble stone Then shall my mouth my muse my pen and all Be prest to serue at each good subiects call FINIS THE HONOR OF A Souldier TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPful Sir George Carew Knight Lieutenant of the Ordinance Thomas Churchyard wisheth worldly felicity and heauenly blessednes IN calling to minde good Sir George our méeting in Ireland a long while agoe for the seruice of the Quéenes Maiesty your good brother then liuing to whome I was bound in good will I penned at that instant by his meanes the life and death of a Pirate and promised a further worke to your selfe which now I performe because your Souldiour-like disposition is aunswered with the aduauncements of Fortune and your ancient house and bloud is beautified with an honourable place the Prince hath possest you of a signe and token as I beleeue that a noble Souldiers profession shall neuer goe out of your remembraunce for the which cause I haue dedicated this worke called The honor of a Souldier vnto your protection in hope that which you haue séene and read for the commendation of Souldiers shall be a sufficient testimony of their value and worthines and shall not only procure you and others like your selfe to further their fame but like wise willing to read that I haue set downe in their behalfe for as briefely as my small Iudgement can discharge a true discourse thereof with good probable reasons and auncient authors of famous credite I minde to expresse and set foorth at large how Souldiours were made off and honoured in times past and what prerogatiue they hadde aboue other people And to declare how Princes held them in admiration and gaue them liberties titles and dignities farre beyond the rest of any that liued vnder their lawes and obedience And this by the waye is to bée thought that all my former discourse and rehearsall of warres attended to no other purpose and effect but for the aduauncement of Souldiours and to bee as it were a foile to sette foorth the matter I presentlye mind to publishe out For nowe I will in a manner shewe howe Gentility beganne and where and in what sort honour was first gotten and maintayned which argument as I hope shall not onely content the wise and well learned but also please euery degrée and make the simple sort plucke vp their courages and imitate by some honest exercises the liues of noble Souldiers I trust I néede not in this ready and ripe age wherein good writers great learning and studious iudgements doth florishe rehearse by particulars euery parcell and poinct that belongeth to a Souldiers profession Nor that you looke I should recite when and where the Romanes Lacedemonians Athenians and other nations did preferre and extoll men of Marshall minds and noble courages For their books and Commentaries and the innumerable Libraries of great antiquity are the very recordes of my discourse and remaine as mirrours for you to looke in And shall proue a thousand partes more in the commendation of Souldiours then either my penne or tongue by sufficient cunning hath power to expresse For it can not be that from a little gutte or Channell of water you should looke for so great a floud as from a multitude of springes from whence mighty Riuers takes originall and recourse And so I send you to the Welspring of knowledge I mean the auncient Fathers workes to fetch true intelligence of the thinges I make mention of touching the worthy reputation of a good Souldiour and the antiquity of his credite triumph and glory First looke in the sacred Scriptures and search from the death of Abell comming downe orderly to the birth of Christ And sée whether Souldiours were made of or no. And doubtlesse you shall finde they were not onely embraced and maintained but likewise they are of a long continuance and credite As all the Bible before Iohn the Baptistes time declareth And Christ himselfe in a sort did vtter when he saide he had not found such faith in Israell as he saw in a Centurion Yea and in the Apostles Actes there is a speciall poinct to be noted Deuout Souldiours were sent to Simon Tanners house to find out Peter Well now I committe you to the Scripture and I will follow prophane Histories begin at the very Infidels a scorne for a Christian to be taught by which are no small number nor of no little continuance people alwayes brought vp in war and Princes of great fame power and auctority Yea conquerours of the whole world and Kinges to whom all people did stoupe and doe homage These Paganes or as we may terme them lost shéepe to whome the great Shepheard would not be knowen and yet among them tormented and crucified did make such lawes and orders for Souldiers as the Turke to this day obserueth and holdeth in great reuerence Regard but the liberties and auctority of the Ianessaries and that shall manifestly proue that men of warre are had in great admiration But because you shall haue the more beliefe to the matter read the life of Alexander the Great The Commentaries of Iulius Caesar and the noble actes and victories of a number of other notable Princes And then assuredly you shall be perswaded that the renowne of Soldiours hath reached and spread as farre as fame can flie or good report could haue passage I