My prime of youth is but a frost of cares,
My feast of joy is but a dish of pain,
My crop of corn is but a field of tares,
And all my good is but vain hope of gain.
The day is gone and I yet I saw no sun,
And now I live, and now my life is done.
The spring is past, and yet it hath not sprung,
The fruit is dead, and yet the leaves are green,
My youth is gone, and yet I am but young,
I saw the world, and yet I was not seen,
My thread is cut, and yet it was not spun,
And now I live, and now my life is done.
I sought my death and found it in my womb,
This is more mystifying. In autobiographical terms Tichbourne was awaiting execution for plotting to murder Queen Elizabeth 1 or else, depending on one’s interpretation, he was a freedom-fighter. His place in the Babngton Plot is a matter of historical fact.  But could this line suggest that he felt his cause was misunderstood? Or that he was regarded as a minor player, but felt he should be seen as a martyr. We can only speculate.
Tichbornes Elegy