8996 THE ELEVENTH BATTLE. Palamydon, þat was prinse of the proude grekes, hat he gird hym to ground of his grete horse : 9004 Mony woundet pat worthy, & wroght vnto dethe; 9008 293 Book XXII. Palamedes arrays the Greeks: a fierce battle follows. Priam smites down Palainedes : kills and wounds many. His feats of arms are wonderful. 9012 Kyng Seppidon, for sothe, a sad mon of strenght, Sarpedon and Bounet vnto batell with a brem wille, And to Neptilon anon, a noble mon of Grese, As by stowrnes of strenght, streght on hym met. 9016 This Seppidon, for sothe, he set soche a dynt, 9020 That he gird with a grone to the ground euyn: batell, And Seppidon fro the Soile set vpo lofte. 9024 Thurgh the tulkes of Troy, & hor triet helpe, 9028 Neoptolemus rush on each other. (fol. 139 b.) Sarpedon is borne down, but wounds Neoptolemus in the thigh. The Duke of Athens drogh in, & derf Menelaus, Menelaus and With a noyus nowmbur, nowble men all, Vmcloset the kyng and his knightes als. the Duke of Athens, with their forces, rush in: kill the king of Persia: and The kyng of Persy pai put down vnto pale dethe; beat back the Trojans. Book XXII. Priam slays many Greeks. Sorrow for the death of Hector restores the strength of his youth. The Greeks cut off the Trojans from the city. (fol. 140 a.) Priam comes to their rescue: Paris also brings up his company of archers. In defence of his folke, the fuerse kyng Sepidon ffull worthely wroght with his wale strenght. 9032 Thedur Priam can prese with his prise knightes, And his noble sons naturell, þat naitly hym folowet, On yche syde for his socour, soght hym aboute. Then the Troiens full tyte, in hor tore angur, 9036 Girdon to the Grekes with a grym fare. The noble Priam full prest put hom to ground, 9040 Was non so doughty þat day, ne did halfe so Ne so wight in his werkes, as the wale kyng, hat for sorow & sorgrym of his sonnys dethe, Restouret hym his strenght as in stuerne yowthe. 9044 Then the Grekes by a-grement gedrit hom somyn, Betwene the Troiens & the towne, yf þai turne 9048 9052 9056 9060 wold, In companys cleane, knightes full mony, bat faght with hom felly, & mony frekes slogh. bat was feghtyng in the feld on the fer syde, fallyn; And of his ledis ben lost mony lell hundrith. THE TROJANS DEMAND A TRUCE. Mony birlt on the brest, & the backe pirlet. 9064 Turnet to pere tenttes, the Troiens beheld. Was no freke vpon fel[d]e folowet hom after, And entrid in Easely efter þere wille : 9068 And all worshiptin the werke of pe worthy kyng Priam, As for best of the batell, boldest of hond. The secund day suyng, when the sun rose, The Troiens to the tenttes tristy men send, 9072 ffor a tru to be tan, as the trety sais: (Whethur long, othir littull, list me not tell, ffor no mynd is pere made in our mene bokes, Ne noght put in our proses by poiettes of old.) 9076 Within the tyme of pis tru, the Troiens did aske The corse of the kyng, [that] come out of Pers, ffor to bery in the burghe on hor best wise. ffor whom mournyng was made mekill ynogh, 9080 And prinsipall of Paris, that the prinse louit, pat of faith & afinytie were festnet to-gedur; bat ordant on all wise after his dethe, The souerain to send into his soile hom; 9084 On a bere to his burgh broght hym belyue, To be entiret trietly in a toumbe riche, As bi-come for a kyng in his kythe riche, In presens of his prise sonnes, as the prose tellus, 9088 That shuld be ayres after him auenond of lyue. THE SOLEMPNITE OF THE OBIT OF ECTOR, AND HOW Duryng the dayes of this du pes, 295 Book XXII. The Greeks are driven to their tents, and the Trojans return to the city. The Trojans demand a truce. (MS. has 'to') The Trojans mourn for the King of Persia, (fol. 140b.) Book XXII. Priam appoints a time of solemn sacrifices in honour of Hector: and a funeral feast. The prise kyng Priam prestly gert ordan In honour of Ector oddist of knightes, 9096 pen ordant was on,-oddist of all, During this truce, 9100 That in tymes of the tru the Troiens might the Greeks and Trojans visit each other. Achilles goes to the temple of wend, In-to the tentis by tymes, and tary while þem list; And the grekes, agayne, go to the toune, To sporte hom with speciall, & a space lenge. 9104 Achilles hade appetite, & angardly dissiret, The Citie for to se, and the solemne fare At the entierment full triet of pe tru prinse. þan vnarmyt he entrid, euyn to pe citie; Apollo, where the 9108 To Appollo pure temple passit anon, body of Hector was set. The temple is filled with mourners: Hector is beheld as when he was alive. fol. 141 a.) At his feet, There the body of the bold blithly was set, Of honerable Ector, as I ere said. There were plenty of pepull, prise men & noble, 9112 And worthy wemen to wale weping with teris, In sykyng & sorow syttyng aboute. The taburnacle titly vntild was aboue, On yche syde, as I say, who pat se wold, 9116 here the body was aboue of the bold prinse, 9120 With bame & with balsaum, þat brethid full swete. At the fete of pat fre was his faire moder, And Polexena the pert, þat was his prise suster, ACHILLES AT THE TOMB OF HECTOR. With mony worshipfull wemen to wale in þe towne, 9124 The here of pere heddes hynging on brede, 9128 Polexena the pert pairet of hir hew, hat was red as the Roses, richest of coloure, Hit was of hew to behold with hend men aboute. 9132 The teris pat trickilt on her tryet chekes, As pure watur pouret vn polishet yerne, pat blaknet with bleryng all hir ble qwite. The faire heris of pat fre flammet of gold, 9136 All abouen on hir brest & hir bright swire, pat sho halit with hond, hade it in sonder, And puld hit with pyn, pité to be-hold. When the hond of þat hend to be hede yode, 9140 Hit semyt by sight of sitters aboute, As the moron mylde meltid aboue, When ho hasted with hond pe hore for to touche. 297 Book XXII. the noblest ladies of Troy, sit with disnevelled hair, mourning. The beauty of seen through her When Achilles the choise maidon with chere Achilles gazes on can behold, 9144 He hade ferly of hir fairhede, & fell into thoght. To hym-seluyn he said in his saule pen, 9148 Ne so pleasaund of port, ne of pure nurtur. All hatnet his hert, as a hote fyre, Made hym langwys in Loue & Longynges grete. Polyxena with wonder and admiration. He is love-struck: (fol. 141 b.) Ay the more on pat maidon the mighty beheld, and the longer he |