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[PAGI) The xvjth boke: of a trew takyn two monythes, & of the inja batell

[230] The xvijth boke: of the counsell of the grekes for the deth of Ector, & the iiijth batell

[238] The xviijth boke: of the fyuet batell in the feld

[245] The sixth boke: of the sext batell

[254] The xxth boke: of the vijth batell & skyrmychis lastyng xxx dayes betwene the towne & the tenttes

[266] The xxjth boke: of the viij batell, and of the drem of Ector wyf

[274] The xxij boke: of the Elleuynt batell of the Cité

(292) The xxiij boke: of the xij and the xiij batell

[306] The xxiiij boke: of the xiiij and the xyth batell of the Cité ... [314] The xxv boke: of the sextene, seyuentene, the eglitene, and the xix batell

[322] The xxvj boke: of the xx batell of the Cité

[331] The xxvij boke: of the xxj batell of the Cité of Troy [352] The xxviij boke: off the councell of Eneas & Antenor of treson of the Cité

[364] The xxix boke: off the takyng of the toune & the deth of Kyng Priam

[386] The xxx boke: of the stryfe of Thelamon & Vlyxes, & of the

deth of Thelamon, with the exile of Eneas & Antenor [397] The xxxj boke: of the passage of the grekes fro Troy [407] The xxxij boke: of the lesyng that was made to Kyng Nawle,

& of the dethe of his son Palamydon : the dethe of Aga-
mynon, & the exile of Dyamede by þere wifes

[410] The xxxiij boke: how Orest toke venionse for his fader dethe [423] The xxxiiij boke: how hit happit Vlixes aftur the sege [429] The xxxv boke: of P; is, & his passyng ffro Troy, & of his cronyng, & of his deth

· [138] The xxxvj boke, & the last : of the dethe of Vlixes by his son.

Whiche endis in the story wł the nome of the knight þe
causet it to be made, & the nome of hym that trans-
latid it out of latyn in-to englysshe. And how long the
sege last, with the nowmber of grekes & troiens that were
slayn : & what kynges Ector slogh : whom Paris slogh :
whom Achilles slogh: whom Eneas slogh : whom Pirrus
slogh : and Laudes deo

[452]

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1

Prologue.

Invocation.

of the noble deeds

and of the stout

been all but

Maistur in magesté, maker of Alle,

(fol. 2 a.) Endles and on, euer to last !

Now, god, of þi grace graunt me þi helpe, 4 And wysshe me with wyt þis werke for to end ! Off aunters ben olde of aunsetris nobill,

of our ancestors, And slydyn vppon shlepe by slomeryng of Age: Of stithe men in stoure strongest in armes,

and wise in war, 8 And wisest in wer to wale in hor tyme,

bat ben drepit with deth & pere day paste,
And most out of mynd for þere mecull age, true stories have
Sothe stories ben stoken vp, & straught out of forgotten; while

mind,
12 And swolowet into swym by swiftenes of yeres,
Ffor new þat ben now, next at our hond,

modern times, Breuyt into bokes for boldyng of hertes ;

"for boldyng of On lusti to loke with lightnes of wille, 16 Cheuyt throughe chaunce & chaungyng of

peopull;
Sum tru for to traist, triet in þe ende,
Sum feynit o fere & ay false vnder.

Yche wegh as he will warys his tyme,
20 And has lykyng to lerne þat hym list after.

But olde stories of stithe pat astate helde,
May be solaz to sum þat it segh neuer,

of those of more

recorded in books

hertes,

some are true and some are false.

Each desires to learn what he likes best.

But old stories of renowned deeds

recorded by men who witnessed them may delight some who never saw them.

Be writyng of wees þat wist it in dede,
With sight for to serche, of hom þat suet after,
To ken all the craste how pe case felle,
By lokyng of letturs þat lefte were of olde.

28

The Poet declares his subject and the authors from whom he has drawn his information.

(fol. 20.)

Now

ow of Troy forto telle is myn entent euyn, Of the stoure & þe stryfe when it distroyet was. pof fele yeres ben faren syn þe fight endid, And it meuyt out of mynd, myn hit I thinke

Alss wise men haue writen the wordes before, 32 Left it in latyn for lernyng of vs.

But sum poyetis full prist þat put hom þerto,
With fablis and falshed fayned þere speche,
And made more of pat mater þan hom maister

were :

q

Homer, who is not to be trusted, tells how the

gods fought like men, and

other such trifles,

36 Sum lokyt ouer litle and lympit of the sothe.

Amonges pat menye,-to myn hym be nome, -
Homer was holden haithill of dedis.

Qwiles his dayes enduret, derrist of other
40 bat with the Grekys was gret & of grice comyn.

He feynet myche fals was neuer before wroght,
And traiet pe truth, trust ye non other.

Of his trifuls to telle I haue no tome nowe,
44 Ne of his feynit fare þat he fore with :

How goddes foght in the filde, folke as pai were,
And other errours vnable pat after were knowen,

That poyetis of prise have preuyt vntrew :
48 Ouyd and othir þat onest were ay,

Virgill þe virtuus, verrit for nobill,
Thes dampnet his dedys & for dull holdyn.

But þe truth for to telle & þe text euyn
52 Of þat fight how it felle in a few yeres,

hat was clanly compilet with a clerk wise,
On Gydo, a gome, þat graidly hade soglit,

And wist all þe werks by weghes he hade,
56 That bothe were in batell while the batell last,

Guido de Colonna is the author of the following story,

from the works of

the historians.

deeds which he

Greck.

translated it into

work had to he amended by Guido.

And euper sawte & assemely see with pere een. which is compiled
Thai wrote all þe werkes wroght at þat tyme,

In letturs of bere langage, as pai lernede hade : 60 Dares and Dytes were duly þere namys.

Dares and Dictys
Dites full dere was dew to the Grekys,
A lede of þat lond & loged hom with :

(fol. S a.) The tothyr was a Tulke out of Troy selfe, 64 Dares, þat duly the dedys be helde.

Dares, who was

present at the Aither breuyt in a boke on pere best wise,

recor-led, wrote That sithen at a cité somyn were founden

his history of the

Trojan war in After at Atthenes as aunter befell ; 68 The whiche bokes barely bothe as þai were,

A Romayn ouerraght & right hom hym-seluyn,
That Cornelius was cald to his kynde name. Cornelius Nepos
He translated it into latyn for likyng to here, Latin, but so

briefly that the 72 But he shope it so short þat no shalke might

Haue knowlage by course how þe case felle ;
ffor he brought it so breff, and so bare leuyt,

bat no lede might have likyny to loke þerappon, 76 Till þis Gydo it gate, as hym grace felle,

And declaret it more clere & on clene wise.
In this shall faithfully be founden to the fer in this history
ende,

deeds as they All þe dedes by dene as þai done were ;

were done; 80 How þe groundes first grew, & þe grete hate,

Bothe of torfer and tene þat hom tide aftur.
And here fynde shall ye faire of þe felle peopull, of the origin and
What kynges þere come of costes aboute :

war; of the Kings, 84" Of Dukes full doughty, and of derffe Erles, ? (

who fought on That assemblid to be citie þat sawte to defend : Of þe grekys þat were gedret how gret was þe

nowinber, How monyknightes pere come & kynges enarmed, 88 And what Dukes thedur droghe for dedis of

there is a faitlıful account of the

progress of the

Dukes, and Early

either side;

were:

What Shippes þere were shene, & shalkes with in,

of the ships and
barges that were
brought from
Greece; of the
battles that were
fought, and
those who fell in
battle; of the
truces and

(fol. 3 6.) treasons that took place; in short, of every event from first to last.

Bothe of barges & buernes þut broght were fro

grese : And all the batels on bent pe buernes betwene. 92 What Duke þat was dede throughe dyntes of

hond, Who ffallen was in ffylde, & how it fore aftur : Bothe of truse & trayne þe truthe shall þu here,

And all the ferlies þat fell vnto the ferre ende. 96 ffro this prologe I passe & part me per with,

ffrayne will I fer and fraist of þere werkes,
Meue to my mater and make here an ende.

Explicit Prologue.