Duke upon duke: an excellent new play-house ballad. Set to musick by Mr. Holdecombe.

Table of contents

- [titlepage]

DUKE upon DUKE, &c.

〈♫〉TO Lordings Proud I tune my SONG Who feast in Bow'r or Hall; 〈♫〉〈♫〉Tho' Dukes they be, Yet Dukes shall see, that Pride will have a〈♫〉〈♫〉Fall, that Pride will have a Fall. 〈♫〉〈♫〉〈♫〉

I.

TO Lordings Proud I tune my Song,

Who Feast in Bow'r or Hall;

Tho' Dukes they be, yet Dukes shall see

That Pride will have a fall.

II.

Now that this same it is Right Sooth,

Full plainly doth appear;

From what befel JOHN DUKE OF GUISE,

And NIC of LANCASTERE.

III.

When Richard Coeur de Lyon Reign'd,

(which means a Lyon's Heart)

Like him his Barons rag'd and roar'd,

Each play'd a Lyon's Part.

IV.

A Word and Blow was then enough,

Such Honour did them Prick,

If you but turn'd your Cheek, a Cuff,

And if your A_+e, a Kick.

V.

Look in their Face, they tweak'd your Nose,

At every turn fell to't;

Come near, they trode upon your Toes;

They fought from Head to Foot.

VI.

Of these the Duke of Lancastere

Stood Paramount in Pride;

He kick'd and cuff'd, and tweak'd and trode

His Foes and Friends beside.

VII.

Firm on his Front his Beaver sate,

So broad it hid his Chin;

For why, he thought no Man his Mate,

And fear'd to Tan his Skin.

VIII.

With Spanish Wool he dy'd his Cheek,

With Essence oyl'd his Hair;

No vixen Civet Cat more Sweet,

Nor more could Scratch and Tear.

IX.

Right Tall he made himself to show,

Tho' made full short by G_+d;

And when all other Dukes did Bow,

This Duke did only Nod.

X.

Yet Courteous, Blith and Debonaire,

To GUISE's DUKE was he;

Never was such a Loving Pair,

Why did they disagree?

XI.

Oh! thus it was, he lov'd him dear,

And cast how to requite him;

And having no Friend left but This,

He deem'd it meet to fight him.

XII.

Forthwith he drench'd his desperate Quill,

And thus he did Indite,

This Eve at Wisk OUR SELF will Play,

Sir Duke, Be here to Night.

XIII.

Ah no! ah no! the Guileless GUISE,

Demurely did reply;

I cannot Go, nor yet can Stand,

So sore the Gout have I.

XIV.

The DUKE in Wrath call'd for his Steeds,

And fiercely drove them on;

Lord! Lord! how rattled then thy Stones,

O Kingly Kensington!

XV.

All in a Trice on GUISE he rush'd,

Thrust out his Lady Dear;

He tweak'd his Nose, trod on his Toes,

And smote him on the Ear.

XVI.

But mark! how midst of Victory

Fate shews an Old Dog-Trick;

Up leap'd DUKE JOHN and knock'd him down,

And so down fell DUKE NIC.

XVII.

Alass, Oh NIC! Oh NIC, alass!

Right did thy Gossip call thee,

As who should say, Alass the Day

When JOHN of GUISE shall maul thee.

XVIII.

For on thee did he clap his Chair,

And on that Chair did sit?

And look'd as if he meant therein

To do what was not fit.

XIX.

Up didst thou look, Oh woful DUKE,

Thy Mouth yet durst not ope,

Certes, for Fear of finding there

A T_+d instead of Trope.

XX.

" Lye there thou Caitiff vile, quoth GUISE,

" No Sheet is here to save thee,

" The Casememt it is shut likewise,

" Beneath my Feet I have thee.

XXI.

" If thou hast ought to say, now speak,

Then Lancaster did cry,

" Knowest thou not ME, not yet thy self,

" Who Thou, and WHO AM I?

XXII.

" Know'st Thou not ME, who God be prais'd,

" have bawl'd and quarell'd more

" Than all the Line of Lancaster

" That battled heretofore?

XXIII.

" In Senates fam'd for many a Speech,

" And what some Awe must give Ye,

" Tho' laid thus low beneath thy Breech,

" Still of the Council Privy.

XXIV.

" Still of the Dutchy Chancellor,

" Durante Life I have it,

" And turn (as now thou dost on me)

" My A_+e on those that gave it.

XXV.

But now the Servants they rush'd in,

And DUKE NIC up leap'd He,

I will not cope against such Odds,

But GUISE, I'll fight with Thee.

XXVI.

To Morrow with Thee will I fight

Under the Greenwood Tree;

No, not to Morrow, but to Night,

Quoth GUISE, I'll fight with Thee.

XXVII.

And now the Sun declining low,

Bestreak'd with Blood the Skies,

When with his Sword at Saddle Bow

Rode forth the Valiant GUISE.

XXVIII.

Full gently praunc'd he on the Lawn,

Oft rowl'd his Eye around,

And from his Sirrup stretch'd to find

Who was not to be found.

XXIX.

Long brandish'd he his Blade in Air,

Long look'd the Field all o're,

At length he spy'd the merry Men brown,

And eke the Coach and Four.

XXX.

From out the Boot bold NICHOLAS

Did wave his Hand so white,

As pointing out the gloomy Glade

Whereat he meant to fight.

XXXI.

All in that dreadful Hour so calm

Was Lancaster to see,

As if he meant to take the Air,

Or only take a Fee.

XXXII.

And so he did, for to New Court

His trowling Wheels they run;

Not that he shunn'd the doubtful Strife,

But Business must be done.

XXXIII.

Back in the dark, by Brompton Park,

He turn'd up thro' the Gore,

So slunk to Campden House so high,

All in his Coach and four.

XXXIV.

Mean while the GUISE did fret and fume,

A Sight it was to see,

Benumm'd beneath the Evening Dew,

Under the Greenwood Tree.

XXXV.

Then wet and weary home he far'd,

Sore mutt'ring all the Way,

The Day I meet NIC he shall rue

The Cudgel of that Day.

XXXVI.

Mean time on every pissing Post

Paste me this Recreant's Name,

So that each Pisser-by shall read,

And piss against the same.

XXXVII.

Now God preserve our GRACIOUS KING,

And grant his Nobles all

May learn this Lesson from Duke Nic,

That •Pride will have a Fall.

FINIS.

DUKE upon DUKE, An Excellent New PLAY-HOUSE BALLAD.

Set to Musick by Mr. HOLDECOMBE.

LONDON: Printed for A. MOOR near St. Paul's Church, and Sold by the Booksellers. 1723. (Price Three Pence.)

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Title statement

Duke upon duke: an excellent new play-house ballad. Set to musick by Mr. Holdecombe.

Pope, Alexander, 1688-1744.

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ID [ota]

http://ota.ox.ac.uk/id/3670

ID [isbn10]

1106006690

ID [isbn13]

9781106006691

ID [TCP]

K023024.000

ID [BIBNO]

CW3313448874

ID [ECLL]

0590300900

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Source

— Duke upon duke: an excellent new play-house ballad. Set to musick by Mr. Holdecombe., Pope, Alexander, 1688-1744.. [2],4p. ; 2⁰. London :: printed for A. Moor, and sold by the booksellers,. 1723.. [A "good part" of this ballad is ascribed to Pope by Spence on Pope's authority.] [Typeset music at head of p. 1.] [A satire on the quarrel between Nicholas Lechmere and Sir John Guise.] [Reproduction of original from the British Library.] [Foxon, D507] [English Short Title Catalog, ESTCT5536.] [Electronic data. Farmington Hills, Mich. : Thomson Gale, 2003. Page image (PNG). Digitized image of the microfilm version produced in Woodbridge, CT by Research Publications, 1982-2002 (later known as Primary Source Microfilm, an imprint of the Gale Group).]

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