Mother Shipton Investigated: Chapter Third

The earliest known record at present in existence relating to Mother Shipton, is a pamphlet in good preservation, dated 1641, presented to the British Museum by King George III. The following is a verbatim reprint of the whole of it, printer's errors and all:--

"The Prophesie of Mother Shipton, In the Raigne of King Henry the Eighth. Fortelling the death of Cardinall Wolsey, the Lord Percy and others, as also what should happen in insuing times. London, Printed for Richard Lownds, at his shop adjoining to Ludgate, 1641." [This is the title-page.]

"The Prophecie of Mother Shipton, in the Raigne of King Henry eighth."

"When shee heard King Henry the eighth should be King, and Cardinall Wolsey should be at Yorke, shee said that Cardinall Wolsey should never come to Yorke with the King, and the Cardinall hearing, being angry, sent the Duke of Suffolke, the Lord Piercy, and the Lord Darcy to her, who came with their men disguised to the King's house neere Yorke, where leaving their men, they went to Master Besley to Yorke, and desired him to goe with them to Mother Shipton's house, where when they came they knocked at the doore, shee said Come in Master Besley, and those honourable Lords with you, and Master Besley would have put in the Lords before him, but she said, come in Master Besley, you know the way, but they doe not. This they thought strange that she should know them, and never saw them; and then they went into the house, where there was a great fire, and she bade them welcome, calling them all by their names, and sent for some Cakes and Ale, and they drunke and were very merry. Mother Shipton, said the Duke, if you knew what wee come about, you would not make us so welcome, and shee said the messenger

"Master Besley seeing these things fall out as shee had foretold, desired him to tell him some more of her prophesies; Master, said she, before that Owes Bridge and Trinitie Church meet, they shall build on the day,

"Then best for them that have the least, and worst for them that have the most, you shall not know of the War over night, yet you shall have it in the morning, and and when it comes it shall last three yeares, betweene Cadron and Aire shall be great warfare, when all the world is as a lost, it shall be called Christs crost, when the battell begins, it shall be where Crookbackt Richard made his fray, they shall say, To warfare for your King, for halfe a crown a day, but stirre not (she will say) to warfare for your King, on paine on hanging, but stirre not, for he that goes to complaine, shall not come backe again. The time will come when England shall tremble and quake for feare of a dead man that shall bee heard to speake, then will the Dragon give the Bull a great snap, and