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Book IV.

hasty man, lest

like a spark

unnoticed among ashes, it waken up a dreadful

blaze.

(MS. has
"happyn.")

This maiden

shall be the cause of much

woe to many

lands, and all on
account of
angry words.

While she was in bondage, Troy

was built and destroyed;

(fol. 25 a.)

and many kings, knights, and

people killed on her account.

May feston as a fyre with a fuerse lowe, 1428 Of a sparke unaspied, spred vnder askys, May feston vp fyre to mony freike sorow; So lurkes with lordes of a light wrathe, hat growes into gronnd harme, greuys full sore. 1432 (Happye) is þe here In no hate lengis,

Ne letis bele in his brest wherof bale rises,

Ne

mynnes no malis þat is of mynd past; As yt happes here harme for to come,

1436 And wreke to be wroght for wordes a few; Soche a kyng to be kylde, A cuntre distroyed, ffele folke forfaren with a ffeble ende.

Gyf an end hade ben now, & neuer noyet efter, 1440 Bothe of lure & of los, & oure lorde wolde,

Hit was euyn bot a venture of Angur to come,
And a Sesyn of sorow þat þere suet after.

Right as Lamydon pe lorde was of lyue broght, 1444 for he grethit with pe Grekys pat on his ground lay;

So pis Maidon shalbe mater of full mekull

harme,

And mony londes to lure þat euer ho lyffe hade.
Lo, how fortune is felle & of fer caste,

1448 pat drawes in a dede hate in a derke wille,
And of a litill hath likyng a low for to kyndull,
hat hepis into harme in a hond while!
By pis mater I meane what myschefe befell,
1452 pere no cause was to ken but vnkynd wordes.
And while pis Lady was on lyffe in a lond fer,
And all thies maters in mynde, þat I mene here,
Grete Troy was vp tild with mony toures vmbe,

1456 þat was meruelously [made], & mekell to shew,
And Sesyt was sython & to sorow broght,

And mony kynges were kyld & knightes perfore.
What ledys were lost & of lyue done,

1460 Now I turne for to telle, whill I tyme haue.

PRIAM'S FAMILY.

OFF KING PRYAM & HIS CHILDREN.

This Lamydon, þat was lord, hade a lefe son,

Book IV.

49

When his father
Laomedon was

away in a far land waging war with rebels.

A pert man þat was prinse, & priam he hight; slain, Priam was
A man witty & wise, wight, wildist in Armes.
1464 Hit felle hym [by] fortune at his fader dethe,
He was faryn to fight in a fer londe,

To riche hym of Rebelles pat of pe rewine held;
To cache a castell þat was kene holdyn,

1468 And to wyn it with werre, went þere a whilė
With his houshold hole, & here þat he walt.
He hade a woman to wyue worthy & noble,
Onest & abill & Ecuba she hight:

1472 By þat same hade he sonnes, semly men all,
ffyue þat were faire & fuerse men of armes,
And pree doghter by-dene pat were dere holden.
Of his sonnes to say or I sew ferre,

1476 Ector was oldist & heire to hym seluyn;
And most is in mynd for his mykyll strenght.
The secund of his sonnes sothely was parys,
Or Alisaunder ewther was his other name;
1480 He was fairest of pe freikes & a fyne archer,
A bowman of pe best & a buerne wise.
The prid was a pro knight, privand in Armys,
Deffebus pe doughty on a derfe stede.

1484 The fourth was a philosoffer, a fyne man of lore,

In pe Syense full sad of pe seuyn Artes.
The fyfte of the fre, þat I first nemyt,
Was Troylus the true, tristy in wer,

1488 That mykell worship wan, witnes ye of story.
Of his Deghter by dene, þat were dere holdyn,
One Creusa was cald kyndly by nome,

bat Eneas afterward Elit to wed,

1492 pat spokyn is of specially in our spede after,
And Virgill of his werkes writis also,

After takyng of þe toune how hym tid pen.
The secund of pe suster for to say feire,

By his wife Hecuba he had five sons and three daughters.

His sons were,
Hector

Paris, or Alexander, a famous archer.

Deiphobus,

Helenus, a
soothsayer,

(fol. 25 b.)

and Troilus.

The daughters were, Creusa,

wife of Æneas,

Book IV. 1496 Cassandra was cald, clennest of wytte,

Cassandra, a prophetess,

þat Enformet was faire of þe fre artis,

And hade knowyng by course of pe clere sternys.
The last of pos lefe children was a lysse faire,

and Polyxena, the 1500 Polexena the pert, prise of all other;

beautiful.

Besides these,

Priam had thirty sous and other

daughters, by

concubines.

Of hir ffeturs & fairhed is ferly to telle,

Alse noble for þe nonyst as nature cold deuyse
Bothe of color & clennes, to declare all.

1504 This prise kyng Priam hade of pert childer,
Thretty sonnes besydes, als other wemen,

þat he gate in his gamen, goode men of Armys, And felle men in fight, as we shall fynd after. 1508 Now I turne to my tale & tary here a while.

Here beginnys the Fyfte Boke: Of the Foundyng of New Troye and of the Qwerell of Kyng Priam for his flader dethe.

(fol. 26 a.) As Priam lay

Now as pis kyng vmbe the Castell lay closit abute, With his folke all in fere & his fyn childur, He was enformyt of pe fare & of his fader dethe; 1512 How his towne was takon and tirnyt to grounde; before the castle His Suster sesyd and soght into syde londis; His knightes downe kylde vnto cold vrthe. Soche sikyng and sorow sanke in his hert,

1516 With pyté and complaint pyne for to here, He toke vp his tentes & the towne leuyt,

Teght hom vnto Troy with tene þat he hade,

he was informed about the destruction of

Troy, and at once returned home.

Segh the buyldynges brent & beton to ground. The ruins of the

1520 Soche wo for þat werke pan þe wegh thowlit,
þat all his wongys were wete for weping of teres,
Thre dayes proly, with thriccing of hondys,
And drowpet of dole as he degh wold.

1524 pen he sesit of sychen & his sorow voidet,
Mendit his mode & his mynd stablit,
Toke councell in the case & his care leuyt.
The styfe towne to Restore & so strong make,
ffor daunger and drede of enny derfe enmys,
Gate masons full mony, þat mykull fete couthe;
Wise wrightis to wale werkys to caste;
Qwariours qweme, qwaint men of wit;

1528

1532 Mynors of marbull ston & mony oper thinges.

city overwhelmed him with sorrow.

But after three days he resolves to build a greater and stronger city.

Book V.

The new city,

built in the name of Neptune,

was three days journey in circumference.

(fol. 26 h.)

The walls were

20 cubits high,

Sone he raght vpon rowme, rid vp þe dykis,
Serchit vp the soile pere pe Citie was,

And byld vp a bygge towne of pe bare vrthe, 1536 In the nome of Neptune þat was a noble god.

THE DISCRIPCION OF TROYE.

This Cite was sothely, to serche it aboute, pre iorneys full iointly to ioyne hom by dayes: Was neuer sython vnder son Cite so large, 1540 Ne neuer before, as we fynd, fourmyt in vrthe, Nonso luffly on to loke in any lond oute. The walles vp wroght, wonder to se,

With grippes full grete was þe ground takon
1544 Bothe Syker & Sad, pat selly were pik
ffro the vrthe vpward vne of a mesure.

Of the walle for to wete to pe wale top,
xx Cubettes be coursse accounttid full euyn,

built of marble of 1548 pat of marbill was most fro pe myddes vp,

different colours

from the middle upward.

In the walls there were six gates,

called Dardan,
Tricerda, Thetas,
Trojana,

Anchinordes, and
Hylias, sur-

rounded by

towers.

Of diuers colours to ken craftely wroght.

hat were shene for to shew & of shap noble, Mony toures vp tild þe toune to defende,

1552 Wroght vp with the walle as þe werke rose, One negh to Anoper nobly deuyset.

Large on to loke, louely of shap,

In the Sercle of the Cite were sex faire zates,

1556 ffor entre & yssue & ease of pe pepull.

The furst and the fairest fourmet was Dardan,
Tricerda, Thetas, Troiana, po foure;
Anchinordes, Hylias, heght þe two other,

1560 With grete toures vmb-tilde & torettis aboute,
Well wroght for the werre, wacches O lofte.
Ymagry ouer all amyt þere was,

Of beste and babery breme to be holde,

1564 Bost out of pe best pe byg toures vmbe.
The wallis in werre wikked to assaile

With depe dikes and derke doubull of water.

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