---

“A Song”

Rejoyce brave English Gallants

Whose Auncestors wonne France1

Our Duke of Buckingham is gone

To fight and not to daunce.

Beleive it; for our Ladies

5

His absence greatly mourne,

And swear they’l have noe Babies

Untill hee doth retourne.

They feare him very sore,

But hope hee’s wondrous strong,

10

And therefore they doe thinke hee will

Bee with them er’t bee long.

But they and every Man

Are glad that loves a Wench,

That since hee’s gone, hee’s gone to kill

15

His Enemie the French.2

They sing how many thousands

With him of worth there bee,

Of whom the worst amongst them all

Is better skilld then hee.

20

Besides a gallant Fleet of Shipps

That with him still must stay,

Either that they may fight with him,

Or with him runne away.

His Army was twelve thousand,

25

Well nombred on our shore,

Besides his Pasties and bakt meates,

Which were as many more,

Besides his many Partridges,

His Quailes and many Pullen,

30

That it is thought a greater hoast

Than Harry led to Bullen.3

At last hee is for France

After his thus long tarrying,

Hee stay’d but for his victualling

35

And for some kinsfolks marrying.4

But now hee is at Sea

Where hee commaunds amaine

Whence all true Englishmen doe hope

Hee’l ne’er come back againe,

40

Without such Victories and spoiles

From that proud and rich people

That England all must ring of them

And ev’rie flattering steeple.

For he doth threaten sore,

45

And Frenchmen greatly feare

Hee’l have a Royall Subsedie

In France as well as heere.

For when hee came to land

His Soldiers, that were starting,

50

Hee stood behinde and backt them soe

That they have won Saint Martin.5

Yet at the first Encounter

The Frenchmen were soe hott,

Our Englishmen were like t’ave been

55

Devour’d in a showre of shott.

But though they did prevaile

Against us at the first,

Yet wee bore up so well againe

That wee gave them the worst.

60

This was noe sooner done,

But Grymes6 posts to the King,

Where all that hope by flatterie

To bee preferr’d doe singe.

They ranck the Duke with Bevis,

65

This skirmish they doe place

Before the Cowe of Dunmowe heath

And next to Chevy Chase,7

And sweare that through our Chronicles

Wee farr and neere doe wander

70

Before that such an one wee finde

Imploy’d as a commaunder.

Algiers, Cales, and Guyana8

Were spoild before they went,

They had commission to doe naught

75

But onely to bee sent.

And i’st not a great wonder

That hee should compasse more

Than all our old Sea-Captaines

That never fought before.

80

Returne then glorious Duke

Unto thy old commaund

For though th’art Admirall at Sea

Th’art admirable at land.

Heere thou commaunds the Sea,

85

Religion, and the States

Art Admirall of our Bishops Seas9

Aswell as of the Straites.

Or do’st thou stay soe long

To love thine Enemie,

90

And stay with him because thou think’st

Hee hates thee lesse than wee?

Ne’er fear: For men must love thee

When they behold thy glorie

To fill two leaves in a Currant10

95

Or bee a Bishops Storie.

London, prepare thy Faggotts11

Against the Dukes returne,

And see thou hast them readie

Layd for the Duke to burne.

100

For hee deserves them all,

All that thou canst lay on,

I thinke his greatest Enemies

Will sweare it, every one.

So God preserve our noble King

105

And send him long to Raigne,

And gett a boy that shall enjoy

England and France againe

God blesse the Church and Parliament,

Our Queene12 God blesse, and Wee,

110

And send us Peace that ne’er shall cease,

But that wee all agree.

---

Source. BL MS Sloane 826, fols. 167r-171r

Oii7

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   Whose Auncestors wonne France: alluding to the (temporary) conquests of French territory during the Hundred Years’ War of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. <back>

²   His Enemie the French: the last four lines of this stanza depend on the pun in the tail. “The French” was a common term for syphilis (“the French pox”). <back>

³   Than Harry led to Bullen: allusion to Henry VIII’s large-scale military expedition to France and his siege and capture of Boulogne in 1544. <back>

⁴   some kinsfolks marrying: Buckingham was an aggressive promoter of politically and socially advantageous marriages for his kindred. <back>

⁵   Saint Martin: the chief town on the Ile de Ré. Buckingham took the town of St. Martin early in the expedition, but had to besiege the French force in the citadel of St. Martin from July to October 1627 before a failed assault on the fort forced the English to retreat. <back>

⁶   Grymes: Richard Graham, one of Buckingham’s clients, who brought news of the first phase of the Ré expedition back to court. <back>

⁷   They ranck the Duke...Chevy Chase: these lines mock Buckingham by ironically comparing his achievement in the early days on Ré with legendary battles (like Chevy Chase) and the actions of heroes (like Sir Bevis of Southampton), celebrated in the English broadside ballad tradition. <back>

⁸   Algiers, Cales, and Guyana: alludes to earlier, apparently less successful naval expeditions: Sir Robert Mansell’s expedition against the Barbary pirates in Algiers in 1620-21, Wimbledon’s Cadiz expedition of 1625, and Ralegh’s second voyage to Guiana in 1617-18. <back>

⁹   Admirall of our Bishops Seas: a pun on “bishops’ sees”, implying that Buckingham controls the allocation of appointments to bishoprics. <back>

¹⁰   Currant: coranto; a printed serial newsbook. An authorized serial newsbook reported Buckingham’s exploits on Ré. <back>

¹¹   Faggotts: firewood for the celebratory bonfires in the case of Buckingham’s victorious return. Of course, the subtext here is that the firewood could also be used to burn the duke. <back>

¹²   Our Queene: Charles I’s wife, Henrietta Maria. <back>