---

As sick men feare the cure & startle more

To feele the surgeons paine then than the sore

And rather then the steele & knife shall cease

There flesh they’le rather putrifie with ease

Thus we dread warr because itt shewes in blood

5

And death & iron; which misunderstood

Affright the eie soe much; we thinke itt sure

A countries ruine, which indeeds the cure

Then like our selves diseasd the Commonwealth

Takes Phisick onlie & letts blood for health

10

Take of this name of warr; it will soone appeare

Theres nothinge fearefull in itt but our feare

Thinke itt an arme lent to mainetaine our peace

And make itt safetie which was drowsines

Alas we nickname peace the sleepe of state

15

When tis obnoxious both to sword & fate

And feares all smoakes of warrs: when those our calmes

Proceed not from our strength, but from their almes

That doe forbeare of Courtesie & delaie

To crush our naked countrie, when they maie

20

Give me a peace that’s fenc’d from all alarmes

By itts owne power; & thats a peace in armes

Thinke itt a hand given to regaine our glorie

Which now is onlie livinge in this storie

Whilst men that read our Chronicles doe looke

25

To match our present vertue with the booke

And cannot, whilst the gentrie knowes noe field

Nor armes but that the herauld gives their sheild1

When each noise baffeld us, & we fear’d: more

Flie of enemies then a sword before

30

And even the lowest nation did dare

To be our foes whiles we were foes to warr

Thinke but that warr recovers what was lost

In honour onlie & itt quitts the cost

Thinke itt a sword then in religions hand

35

Which now alone unweapond could not stand

The sharpe encounters of whole Europes wrath

Were itt not arm’d as well with steele as faith

Whilst Spaine now knitts with France & France againe

Is foes soe much to us as friends to Spaine2

40

Whilst our profession3 is defied & wee

Maintaininge itt, maintaine an injurie

Warr must releeve this too; in warr alone

Subsists our honour, peace religion

And when this last doth call for wars that man

45

That is noe souldier is noe Christian

Indeed our triumphs have soe usuall beene

Upon those shores we loose when we not win

And tis a thinge scarce yett in storie read

That we saw Fraunce & Fraunce unconquered

50

Thus some that olde of Agincourt4 can tell

And judge of battells by the Cronicle

That after thinges are done of thinges can guesse

And measure all thinges meerelie by successe

Sweare att this bloodshed5 would have war to kill

55

As thriftilie as doth the cittie bill6

Thirtie a weeke or soe, & wonder why

A sword or gunn should strike soe mortallie

But valour allwaies masters not the field

Tis sometime greate masterie to yeeld

60

And some with weaker spiritts have aspir’d

A victorie, then others have retir’d

Thus those 300 Greekes that kept the straights

And held the Persian off att Europe gates7

Were Victors, although slaine & those that slew

65

They vanquisht that soe manie kild soe few

But we came safelier of nor need France boast

Our handfull could not overcome their hoast

Nor they our handfull; twas a brave defeat

In disadvantage we could thus retreat

70

Even we still orecame & beinge thus

In soe much ods they did but equall us

Naie we subdued them in not beinge subdued

This was a victorie in a multitude

Had France stept soe farre on the English shore

75

And brave our land & strength att our owne dore

Had soe few held us worke soe long in spite

Of our neere armie & thats more in sight,

Fought with our stone & Forts & which worse dants8

Then all these putt together their owne wants

80

And we thus forc’te them nak’te without supplie

And to each man oppos’d a companie

And came thus thinlie lopt awaie & stood

There countrie in so cheape a rate of blood

This had beene bonefires then & many a bell9

85

Had runge their joyes out that had scapt soe well

In desperate peril tis good luck we have

Not shipwrackt all, we conquer what we save

Were farre more dangerous then the sea the ground

Suckt us up faster then the sword could wound

90

Wee thought we singlie had with men to doe

But we had skirmish with their salt pitts10 too

Whose graves that not receav’d but made the dead

Easy to kill those were first buried.

Thus one might slaughter 20 & yett be

95

A greater coward in his victorie.

Thus fell our Captaines that were in such store

Had falne by them had they not falne before

Our losse was deere but lett not some base lie

And our feares make a worse mortalitie

100

Then all our warr, & doe our selves that wronge

The french would doe that kill more with their tongue

Then twice our number; true, some valiant blood

Had beene drawne here but we have left as good

If we would thinke but soe, nor can we bee

105

Enfeebled by soe small a companie

Our murmur onlie can resist our chance

Our vertue is as good as when t’wann France

Letts rather thinke our English corps upon

The French ground their have tane possession

110

Which when we prosecute againe we feare

Theyle hardly scape soe well as we scapt there.

---

Source. Rosenbach MS 239/27, pp. 14-17

Oii14

Quick links to other poems within this section

Select page here O0. Introduction Oi1. The Parliament sitts Oi2. Oh honoured England Oi3. Our digby digd’e Oi4. The base on which Oi5. There was a man Oi6. There was a great fleete Oi7. There was a Munkye Oi8. Yee Spanyards Oi9. There was some policye Oi10. The Kinge and his wyfe Oi11. Why did the fond Oi12. Fower Cheyffe Justices Oi13. Justice of late hath Oi14. Ould Ned Cooke Oi15. Rex and Grex Oi16. Come heare, Lady Muses Oi17. There is a man Oii1. when the uncivill civill Oii2. It makes mee to muse Oii3. Great Buckinghame Oii4. In reading these Oii5. And wilt thou goe Oii6. Charles would yee Prevaile Oii7. Rejoice, brave English Oii8. Why was the varlett Oii9. One askte me Oii10. Oure crossrow’s turnd Oii11. The noblest brave Oii12. And art return’d againe Oii13. All you that will goe Oii14. As sick men feare Oiii1. O Admirall! Oiii2. The wisest King Oiii3. The warrlike King Oiii4. Excuse me Eliott Oiii5. Avaunt you giddie Oiii6. Here Dr Lambe Oiii7. If heav’n rejoyce Oiii8. For Lambe go ringe Oiii9. Heare lyes the Impostar Oiii10. Our state’s a Game Oiii11. When onely one doth Oiii12. Of Brittish Beasts Oiii13. To hunt the Doe Oiii14. The Parliament of late Oiii15. A thinge gott by candle

¹   Nor armes...their sheild: i.e. the only arms the gentry know are their coats-of-arms, assigned by the royal heralds. <back>

²   Whilst Spaine...friends to Spaine: alluding to the Franco-Spanish rapprochement. At this time England was at war with both countries. <back>

³   our profession: Protestantism. <back>

⁴   Agincourt: the English armies under Henry V defeated the French at Agincourt in 1415. <back>

⁵   this bloodshed: i.e. the fighting on the Ile de Ré. <back>

⁶   the cittie bill: i.e. the Bills of Mortality that published names of the dead in London. <back>

⁷   300 Greekes...att Europe gates: allusion to the 480 BC battle of Thermopylae (literally “the warm gates”) in which a force of 300 Spartans led by Leonidas withstood for several days an assault by the massive forces of the Persian king Xerxes before being destroyed. <back>

⁸   dants: daunts. <back>

⁹   bonefires...bell: bonfires and bell-ringing were traditional forms of celebration. <back>

¹⁰   salt pitts: retreating to their ships, the English army had to cross treacherous salt marshes. <back>