Ad illum
Per Hanc
Ab Istac
AN ELOGIE, AND EPITAPH, Consecrated to the ever Sacred Memory of that most ILLUSTRIOUS, and Incomparable MONARCH, CHARLES, By the Grace of God, of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, late King, &c.
Together with an Elogy and Epitaph upon the truely lamented death of that Excellent patterne of perfect Magnanimity, Virtue, Valour, and Loyalty, Arthur Lord Capell.
With some streames of remembrance issued from the bloods of his Noble Fellow-sufferers, Duke Hamilton, and Henry Earle of Holland.
By F. H. Philomusus.
Printed in the Yeare, 1649.
An Elogie and Epitaph, &c.
1
HOwle, howle, distracted Kingdome, let thy cryes
Like Dragons roarings, terrifie the earth,
Amaze the Heavens, fright Hell, and darke the skyes;
For now thy throwes have issued a cursed birth:
Let the Sun blush, and all the trembling starres
Refraine bespangling of their moving Spheares,
Untill they see the termine of our jarres;
Let this, of all, be deleated from yeeres,
Lest in't the guilt of King-shed sacred bloud.
Increase t' a torrent, period in a floud.
2
O could we see the depth of our distresse
With Linxceys eyes! it would torment our soules:
All Rhetorique's dumbe, our anguish to expresse,
Horror our mourning, feare our teares controules;
Th'imminent judgements and impetuous stormes
Hov'ring in vengeance ore our hardned Nation,
Makes zeale for woe, rave in preposterous formes,
And stretch our heart-strings on the Racke of passion,
Whil'st bleeding soules, in stead of dropping eyes
Bedewes the foot-steps to our miseries.
3
Rent, rent your hearts, your garments are defil'd
Ye trayterous Nation, with your deare Kings bloud;
Whil'st th'hopefull branches of his root exil'd,
Adds a full sea to our afflictions floud:
Ye have betray'd a gratious King to death
Ye murtherous varlets, by your base revolt
From th' Diadem to th' dunghill, could the breath,
That nine yeares since his glory did exalt
Unto the Heavens, with cursed yealps now cry,
Give us these Barrabbesses? let our Soveraigne die.
4
Busiris like, ye murderers did ye dreame,
Heaven would raine peace f [...] this strange Sacrifice?
Ye should have let your owne ours'd bloods to streame,
And quench'd the flame of all our miseries:
But he in Lamb-like sufferings hath wrought
More then Herculian conquest o're your rage,
Though with the deare price of his blood y' have bought
England th' Aceldama; your dreadfull stage,
Whereon y'have acted such a Tragedy,
Nero had wept, had he but liv'd to see:
5
Had he by Schythians, or a ruder hand,
Been ravish'd from us to his Crowne of glory,
Reason might o're our passions claime command,
Because their natures yielde their acts a story:
But for a Tribe of Hypocrites to lurke
Under the wings of Zeale and Reformation,
Till they had finish'd Satans master-worke,
And ruin'd all the Bulworks of our Nation:
Thus making God, whose Soule abhorres all evills,
Seeme to command those acts proclaime them Divells.
6
Trembled yee not, yee Furies, for to see
When yee conven'd, such reverence in his face?
Such high deportment, sacred Majesty,
Such radiant Luster, and such awefull Grace?
No, no, thriving Rebellion's mov'd no more
With such transfixions, then a flint with teares;
But their desire to wallow in his goare
Have proved them such, nor God nor Devill feares;
But in contempt of both, have challeng'd all
The powers of VENGEANCE on their heads to fall.
7
Yee viperous broode, who with your subtill teeth,
Unseene, have gnawne through th'bowels of our State:
Thinke yee REVENGE with REGICIDE agreeth?
Or Kingdome ruines can shake hands with hate?
Thinke yee the extirpation of a Race
Divinely Royall, can establish Peace?
Or seat rude Traytors in our Princes place?
Or blood can fill our garners with increase?
No, no, VENGEANCE but writes in these red letters
How much to Hell, and torment ye are debters.
8
But Reader, lest our sorrows and exclaims
Should seeme for one whose graces are forgot,
Because Rebellion tooke such tedious pains
His spotlesse soule, with hellish guilt to blot:
Though language faulter, and our Contemplation
Reach but the Idea of his blest perfection;
Yet let our groans disburthen's of some passion;
Communicating Mourners (Sans exception)
May clap a plaudit, to th' eternall Fame
Of him, whose exit seal'd our lasting shame.
9
Would yee have Heaven in a choice Cabinet
Treasure her richest graces up in store▪
For a selected people to be set
In th' Arke of their affections? he was more,
For the continued fire of Divine ZEALE,
For his Redeemers glory did inflame
The darkest angles of our Common-weale;
He was a burning Light, whose shining Fame
Made ENGLAND seeme, once, as she had conspir'd
With radiant truth▪ the world t' have wholly fir'd.
10
RELIGION was enhaunc'd to such a price
In his esteeme, 't seem'd as Devotion had
Been onely moulded by his exercise,
(To make the ZEALOUS-HEARTED truly glad:)
Nor onely in a Cell his piety,
Gave life to th' hou [...]es of his well spent dayes;
But in the Temple of the Diety,
He oft proclaimed his Creatours praise:
So fervent in, of prayer, so rich a prizer,
As earth had had no other Sacrificer.
11
Have ye observ'd the curling Maine to treasure
Each Rivers Off-spring in her spacious wombe,
Rendring to every Fountaine her just measure,
Making her selfe againe their tributes tombe;
So did this Sea of wisedome still receive
Th'issuing Rivolets of ingenious store,
Nor did he by retention thus bereave
Them of their wealth, but rendred foure fold more,
To each small Spring that stream'd pure waters forth,
Yet still reserv'd's owne inexhaustine worth.
12
The Arts in him conspired to erect
A lasting fabrick to eternity,
Whose concave did containe the true effect
Of the most absolute ACADEMIE:
Had ye observ'd, this Mirour did present
The Sciences in an EPITOMIE;
Or rather't seem'd they had beene onely sent
From him to borrow light and dignity;
Each Science serving but t' attend and doe
Those Acts that his perfection prompt them to.
13
So highly Gods pure worship did he tender,
That in his latest exigent of breath
He prov'd himselfe our saving faiths Defender,
By signing with his blood 'ts reprieve from death;
Still David-like in valour he appear'd,
And in his troubles Job and David too,
For Patient Magnanimity, y' have heard,
Were perfect patterns of his tedious woe,
Who SAMPSON like, drownd in his last spilt goare
Thousands of soules, that laugh'd at's greefe before.
14
Now snarle accursed ENVIE, let thy gall
Burst with thy Venome, for this object will
Rebound thy blunt aspertions, like a wall
Of Adamant, (thy meager soule to kill:)
And when the Armies of our Nation shall
Disclaime to treasure, with his glory, our shame,
His glories tryumph in our fatall fall,
T' eternity shall still preserve his Fame:
For death hath murder'd in this cruel stroke
Three Kingdomes Honours, and their Basis broke.
15
Rest sacred Mattyr, whose blest Temples are
Crown'd with the glory of thy SAVIOURS merit,
And let these Traytors for thy Scepter jarre,
Whilst thou a heavenly Kingdome do'st inherit;
And though we languish in a dying life.
Yet may thy Royal Off-spring be preserv'd
From being butcher'd on our stage of strife,
(More swift to urge our vengeance, just deserv'd,)
And whilst the woes of REGICIDES increase,
May thy blood be our Sacrifice of peace.
EPITAPH.
Reader, here lies three Kingdomes Peace,
Their Honours, plenty, and increase▪
Religion, Learning, Faith, Law, Grace,
Are all inshrin'd in this small place;
One accurs'd Instrument of wrath and woe,
Made three brave Kingdomes headlesse with a blow.
FINIS.
An ELOGIE, and EPITAPH upon ARTHUR Lord CAPELL.
WRetched'st of Kingdomes, late the world admir'd
Thy glorious Lustre, State, magnificence,
Untill prepostrous ZEALE thy brambles fir'd.
Whose rage hath ruin'd all thy excellence;
Thus Heaven we see when Kingdomes but augment,
Their sinnes appeare, or plenties doe increase,
(And with choyce mercies their base lusts foment)
Can change th'abused benefits of peace
Into continued judgements, as Heaven woo'd
Drownd's in a deluge of our noblest blood.
2
Suffic'd it not your thirst (ye hell-fir'd soules)
T' have drunke the dregs of wrath in your Kings gore?
But must ye quaffe damnations healths in bowles
Of our Peeres blood, t'intoxicate ye more?
Feed ye upon our poore like bread, and will
Nought surfet ye? nor Prince, nor peoples meanes?
Must Lords estates your Idoll panches fill?
Can Heaven designe's no plagues but these extreames?
No, no, tis just that Tyranny and Hate
Should feed on people ripened in debate.
3
Me thinks it seemes a wonder ye should thirst
After ye have drunke the Royall fountayne dry:
But oh! that blood exasperates your curs't
Insatiate drought; whose rage will never die
Whil'st streames of noble tincture flow in vaines
Of chrystall, t'out shine yours of Stygian hue;
Your soules though di'd with Regicidiall staines,
Must be redrench'd in blood of Worthies too,
And lest swift vengeance seize ye on lifes shore,
Yee'l swim to hell ore seas of noble goare.
4
But say, (ye ENGINEERS of TORMENT, why
Devise yee plagues to languish us to death?
Could yee not (as
Cali gula.
ROMES TYRANT wish'd) once tyeOur vassal [...]d necks to one fierce stroake of death?
Though yee becharm'd us to believe our woe
For chiefest good, yet when we see ye teare
The Limbs from the falne Cedar, we must shew
The world your falshoods in our trembling feare;
But vengeance will not spare that blaspemie
Which makes Heaven seeme t' approve curst cruelty.
5
Can neither cries of Widdows, nor the teares
Of tender Orphans, not the dreadfull groanes
Of three sad Kingdomes pierce your deafned eares?
Will ye not heare the Prisoners ruefull moanes?
The cries of blood have peirc't the Firmament,
And vengeance slumbereth not, ye brands of ire,
TOPHET'S prepar'd of old, not as ye meant
For glorious CHARLES, nor CAPELL, but with fire
Eternally to torture those that sell
Kings and Peeres bloods to purchase Thrones in Hell.
6
Readers, perchance now ye expect to know
Why we amaze the world with our exclaimes;
And whence those torrents of dire passions flow,
That these sad dirge-strains powerfully proclaimes?
Did not the flames of Zeale for our late losse
Extract the quint'sence of all anxious teares?
That ruine quite transform'd our joyes to drosse,
And this our hopes to agravated feares;
Ruine said I? no, CHARLES and CAPELLS name
Rests crown'd with glory, but their Foes with shame.
7
He whom we now lament earth equals not, in him
Valour, and Fortitude, feem'd both to place
Their choise demensions in his every Limb,
Which his Zeale manag'd with HEROICK grace;
Prudence but usher'd his accomplishments,
And though blinde fortune, him betray'd to th'hate
Of a perfidious enemy, 's in tents
Proclaim'd him Victor in his captive state;
Who in his latest exigent of breath,
Conquer'd his murdters in outbraving death.
8
Nor here expect our griefes should entertaine
Their Worths,
Hamilton and Holland.
as th' honor'd losse we chiefely waile,Though with their bloods th' have purified the staine
Of their disloyalty; true, flesh is fraile,
Nor therefore shall black obloquy cloud or'e
Their redeem'd Honours; but joynt suffering shall
Write their eternall glory with the goare
That stream'd from CAPELL in's HEROICK fall;
Religion, King, Lawes.
For one true Martyr in that * three fold causeMay render three brave exits their applause.
9
You whose afflicted soules doe merrit here
True Crownes of Patience, O remember how
This constant president did still appeare
Glorious in Tryals, crown'd with glory now;
Let not base feare of Tyranny and Rage
Betray your Honours to a lasting shame,
Their Tragick Tryumphs but their woes presage,
Which will increase, as your eternall Fame:
Your blood's so spilt most potently invoke
Your Mercies, whilst REVENGE prepares their stroake.
10
Cease, cease your mournings, ye indulgent soules;
Give not occasion to those insolent
To tryumph whilst your passions hope controules,
Teares now seeme stream'd from inward discontent
At his eternall happinesse (the Sunne
Appears most radiant still before a showre)
But if your sorrowes in a full streame runne,
'T may cloud his lustre, and augment the power
Of petulency, deluge like t' o'reflow
His honours Pillar in their flood of woe.
11
Rest, rest, Renowned Martyr, whilst we praise
Gods power that in thy constancy appear'd;
Thy vertues thee a Pyramid shall raise,
Whil'st Tyrants of their shadowes are affeard,
Thou who hast sacrific'd thy well-spent life,
For God and King, with them art crown'd in glory,
May thy blest Off-spring and thy fruitfull Wife,
Joy to contemplate on thy honour'd story;
And may thy blood, or prove a drench to purge
Thy Murderers mallice, or their ruines urge.
EPITAPH.
Grace, Valour, Magnanimity,
Zeale, Fortitude, Faith, Loyalty.
Chose this true HEROE here inshrin'd,
To be their Champion, he whose minde
Vanquish'd the power of Tyranny and rage,
Defying death upon's owne tragicke Stage,
And though his Murderers on his suffrings fed,
They drunke their bane when's innocency bled.
FINIS.