Anne of the Thousand Days by Maxwell Anderson

Author:Maxwell Anderson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Drama
Publisher: Reading Essentials
Published: 1948-01-06T05:00:00+00:00

Act Two

SCENE 2

A great sunburst window brightens first, then we see York Palace. norfolk and cromwell enter to the window and listen to the sounds of cheering without. A few voices cry:

voices

Long live the new queen! Long live Queen Anne!

a voice

Long live Queen Katharine! Long live—

voices

Down with him! He took foreign money! Long live Queen Anne!

norfolk

It seems to me the shouting for Queen Anne was somewhat sparse along the streets—not what you’d expect for a royal wedding and a coronation. You should have paid them a bit and we’d have heard something really spontaneous.

cromwell

They were paid.

norfolk

How many of them?

cromwell

A thousand apprentices.

norfolk

How much were they paid?

cromwell

One groat each.

norfolk

A groat? Man, that won’t buy a whole drink of good liquor! They should have had a silver penny apiece and they’d have shaken the foundations! They’d have rung the bells! They’d have jumped out of windows! Anyway, they’d have thrown their caps in the air! The rabble I saw must have had the mange. Their headgear was stuck tight on their skulls and when they yelled it was more like a growl.

cromwell

For a half-crown each, or a whole one, they wouldn’t cheer Queen Anne—not as they’d like to be cheering Queen Katharine.

norfolk

Why man, have you lost faith in money? And in King Henry? They’ll go along with Henry in time. Give him a few years and he’ll make them love this queen as much as the first.

cromwell

Those that were yelling loudest were calling her a whore.

norfolk

Those were paid, too, Cromwell. Those were paid, too—and probably more. By the Spanish ambassador. Or by our friend Wolsey. I’m pretty sure they were paid more than you paid, because what they shouted came straight from the heart.

[The cheering begins again]

voices

God save Queen Anne!

[henry and anne enter from the right and pause to listen to the cheering]

anne

Wasn’t it rather flimsy applause?

norfolk

Nonsense, Your Majesty. It was what you always get in London when the folk are truly moved. It goes too deep for noise. They just stand there and weep.

anne

Uncle, uncle, you’re an unprincipled old sinner. There were no tears. They didn’t even bother to uncover.

henry

Let’s be thankful for the friends we have, my dear. Will you be happy here?

anne

I’ve never known there was anything so perfect in England.

henry

There isn’t, anywhere else. This must have been his library.

cromwell

Yes, it was. He worked in this room.

henry

And so, will you be happy?

anne

Who else will live here?

henry

Only you.

anne

There’s room for so many.

henry

There’ll be no apartment here for anyone save you. Not even for me unless you ask me.

anne

I’ve never had a place that was mine.

cromwell

There’s someone here.

[The lights come up a little at stage right, and we see an old man bowed over papers at a table. He looks up. It is Cardinal Wolsey, much changed]

wolsey

Ah, forgive me. Go on with whatever you have in hand, you young people. I’m only finishing an inventory for the new owner.

cromwell

His Majesty waits for you to rise, Cardinal Wolsey.

wolsey

You must forgive me. I can rise only with assistance. My legs are not for dancing, any more.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.