Book XV. Although on foot, he holds the Greeks at bay. His brothers missing him assemble and agree to search for him. They dash through the ranks, and wound Telamon. Wore hym full wightly, & myche wo did: Was non so bold in pat batell, of po buernes all, 6752 fforto deire hym with dynt, ne pe Duke touche, Ne negh hym with noy, for nolpis of his hond. His nobill brether naturile nemly persayuit, bat pe troiens in the toile had turnyt þe backe, 6756 And segh not pere souerain, paire sorow was pe more, Wend pere lord hade ben lost, or of lyue broght. 6760 ffull bremly þurgh the batels þe buernes can pas, Dynadorus hurls 6764 Dynadron, a derf knight of his dere brother, Polixenus from his horse, seizes it, and leads it to his brother Hector, who quickly mounts. (fol. 105 a.) Deiphobus leads on his archers, who hurt and slay many of the Greeks. Deiphobus wounds Theuter in the face. Preset to Polexuma, þat hade a proude stede, Gird hym euyn to þe ground, grippit his horse, Raght to be Reynes, ricchit hom belyue, 6768 Broght hym his brother, þe best vpon erthe, And he launchit o lofte with a light wille. All the nobill anon,-þo naturill brether,Wonderfully wroght with wepyn in hond, 6772 Gird doun of the grekes vnto grym dethe, And stird hom in the stoure stightly vnfaire. Then Deffibus drogh negh with a derfe pepull, bat by ordynaunse of Ector was etlit to hym; 6776 The prise folke of Poyeme presit hym after, Bowmen of þe best, big in hor armys, Myche greuaunce & grem to be grekes did. Mony woundit po weghis & warpit to ground, 6780 Mony shalke purgh shot with pere sharpe gere, And myche hyndrit the hepe with pere hard shot. Tachit vpon Teutro, a full tore dynt, 6784 Vne fourme in the face foule to behold. THESEUS SAVED BY HECTOR. pen the troiens, full tite, tokyn þere hertes ffull stithe was þe stoure for pe striffe new; 6788 Mony bold on the bent brytont to dethe; Book XV. Theseus is attacked by Mony lyue of lept with lasshyng of swerdis! And Modernus, the mayn kyng, on pe mon set. 219 and a brother of Hector. And wold haue slayn hym in þe slade sleghly They are about to anon; 6796 But Ector aurthwart pis auntrid to se, Bade hom leue of lightly, let hym pas forth, Gird furth to pe grekes with a glad chere, 6804 Then þe kyng of Calsidon com into batell, And Philote, a fuerse kyng, with a fell power, 6808 Toax, in his tene, with a tore speire, slay him, when Hector bids them let him alone. He thanks Hector, and dashes off to the Greeks. (fol. 105 b.) Thoas and Phylotas with a great number of Greeks enter into battle. Thoas engages with Cassibilan, Caupit to Cassibilan, þe kynges son of Troy,- and slays him. And pe lede on lokond, hym launchit to dethe: Gird euyn to the grekes in his gret yre, Sum hurlit to pe hard yerth, & on hede light; Hector, enraged at the death of his brother, attacks the Greeks more fiercely; wounds and slays many of them; Book XV. and puts them to fight. Nestor comes to their assistance with 5000 men, and the battle is renewed. The Greeks surround King Philon, and are about to slay him; but Esdras and Iacomas rescue him. (fol. 106 a.) Hector and his natural brothers, with Deiphobus and Polydamas, sorely press the Greeks; and would have put them to flight, but for Menelaus and 6820 So fuersly he fore in his fight þen, With other helpe pat he hade, his harmys to venge, þat þe grekes gyuen bake, & the ground leuyn, And were forsit to þe fight or pai fay worthit. 6824 pen gird in on pe grekes half with a grym fare, Nestor, the noble duke, with a new batell Of v thousaund fuerse men, & felle to be stour, þat mony warchand wound wroght on hor fos. 6828 ffull tyte fro þe toun turnyt hym agayne, Philon, a felle kyng, & his fere Esdras, 6836 hat shot purgh pere sheltruns & shent mony knightes. This Philon, in fight, mony freike slogh. 6832 pen the grekes with grym gedirt hym vmbe, Wold haue kyld the kyng with a kant wille ; But on Iacomas, a Ioly mon, as the gest tellis, To Esdras, in ernyst, egirly saide :"Se Philon, the fre kyng, is with his fos takon : High we vs hastely, help hym away! Let vs reskew the Renke, refe hym his fos!" pen the Troiens, with tene, tidely pai faght; 6840 Sore greuit the grekes, gird hom abacke; Wonen to be wale kyng, & away toke, Withouten hurt, other harme, in a hond while. ben Ector Eftersones entrid agayne, 6844 With the noble men, þat I neuenyt, his naturill brether, And Deffebus the Duke, dughty of hond; Polidamus, the pert knight, preset in als. Thes wonderfully wroght in hor wale strenght, 6848 With pere company clene of kyd men of Troy, bat the grekes, of þe ground, gird were anon, fflagh fro the frekes, & the fild leuyt ; But Menelay the mighty, & the mayn Telamon, 6852 So sturnly withstod with paire strenkyth holl, AJAX BRINGS UP THE RESERVE. þat þe troiens tite tynt of hor purpos, And were foghtyn with felly, folut no lengur. 6856 With the comyns full clene in a close batell, bat neghit no note, ne no noy feld, With baners on brede, & bold men of armys, here all pe grete of pe grekys, & pe grym knyghtys, 6868 And pe chose of hor chyualry, was chargit to lenge. ben he said to po souerans, pat pe saut lefte; 6872 pen gird in þe grekys with a grete wyll, And he keppit hym cantly with a kene spere, 6876 pat bothe were pai bakeword borne to be grene. ben gyrd in þe grekys syde with a grym pupull, Philothetes, a freke, with a freshe batell, bat kyng was of Calsidon,-a kid mon of were, 6880 With iij м. pro knyghtis pronge into prese. he troiens to pis tyme tyd ay þe bettur, 6884 Philoc pe freke, pat I first saide, Tenyt the troiens with mony tore dintes, 221 Book XV. Eneas and Euphorbus bring assistance to the Trojans, and the Greeks are driven back. Ajax, sorely vexed on account of this defeat, orders up the reserve; checks and encourages those who fled; and the battle is (fol. 106 b.) Ajax and Æneas rush together; and both are unhorsed. Philoctetes, with 3000 knights, engages the Trojans, and checks them. Book XV. be freke, with a felle spere frunt vnto Ector, He attacks Hector 6888 þat hit shok alto schyuers, & pe schalk holl: But Ector Aurthewert hym Auntrid to hyt, with a spear: it is shivered. Hector, uninjured, strikes him to the ground. The Greeks, to the number of 10,000, led by Henex, Ulysses, Eumelus, and other kings, fall upon the Trojans, who are nearly worn out: but Paris with a host of Persians comes to their assistance. (fol. 107 a.) bat he frunt of hys fol flat to be ground, 6892 þen Henex, with hese men, happit to come, Of tulkis of Traci, tor men of strenkyth; 6896 Humelius with hast highit hom after, And all be kyngis clene, pat comyn out of grice, hes bounyt vnto batell & to bent droghyn. And bounet into batell with a brym will. He kills the king 6908 þat þe kyng, to pe cold erthe, cayrs out of lyue. of Phrygia, at which the Greeks are much grieved. In revenge for the death of his cousin, Ulysses drives at Paris with a spear. Missing him, he kills his horse, and Paris falls to the ground. Troilus wounds Ulysses on the face; ben þe grekys, for greme of þe gay kyng, 6912 To venge of þat vilany vili dissirit: He put hym to Paris with a proude will, Sparrit at hym with a spere spitusly fast. He myst of þe mon with his mayn dynt, 6916 But he hit on his horse, hurt hym full sore, hat he deghit of pe dynt, dusshit to ground, And Paris, in þe plit, pight vppon fote. Troiell, pat tyme, was truly besyde, 6920 Segh pe bold at his brother boun for to strike; He swapt at hym swyth with a sword fell. Hit brake thurgh þe basnet to pe bare hed, |