The xvjth boke: of a trew takyn two monythes, & of the iij batell

...

...

...

...

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

...

...

...

The xviijth boke: of the fyuet batell in the feld
The xixth boke: of the sext batell

...

...

...

The xxth boke of the vijth batell & skyrmychis lastyng xxx dayes betwene the towne & the tenttes

The xxjth boke: of the viij batell, and of the drem of Ector

wyf The xxij boke of the Elleuynt batell of the Cité

[254]

[266]

...

[274] [292]

[306]

The xxiij boke: of the xij and the xiij batell
The xxiiij boke: of the xiiij and the xvth batell of the Cité
The xxv boke of the sextene, seyuentene, the eglitene, and
the xix batell
The xxvj boke: of the xx batell of the Cité

...

...

...

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

[352]

[364]

The xxix boke off the takyng of the toune & the deth of Kyng

Priam The xxx boke of the stryfe of Thelamon & Vlyxes, & of the deth of Thelamon, with the exile of Eneas & Antenor

The xxxj boke of the passage of the grekes fro Troy
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 pere wifes

[407]

[410]

[429]

The xxxiij boke: how Orest toke venionse for his fader dethe [423] The xxxiiij boke: how hit happit Vlixes aftur the sege The xxxv boke: of Pirrus, & his passyng ffro Troy, & of his cronyng, & of his deth .. [438] The xxxvj boke, & the last of the dethe of Vlixes by his son. Whiche endis in the story wt the nome of the knight p causet it to be made, & the nome of hym that translatid 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

Prologue.

Maistur in magesté, maker of Alle,

Endles and on, euer to last!

Now, god, of þi grace graunt me pi helpe,

4 And wysshe me with wyt þis werke for to end! Off aunters ben olde of aunsetris nobill,

And slydyn vppon shlepe by slomeryng of Age :
Of stithe men in stoure strongest in armes,
8 And wisest in wer to wale in hor tyme,

pat ben drepit with deth & pere day paste,
And most out of mynd for þere mecull age,

(fol. 2 a.) Invocation.

Of the noble deeds of our ancestors,

and of the stout

and wise in war,

true stories have been all but

Sothe stories ben stoken vp, & straught out of forgotten; while

mind,

12 And swolowet into swym by swiftenes of yeres,

Ffor new pat ben now, next at our hond,
Breuyt into bokes for boldyng of hertes;
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 solas to sum þat it segh neuer,

of those of more modern times, recorded in books "for boldyng of 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.

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

drawn his

information.

(fol. 2 b.)

Homer, who is

not to be trusted,

tells how the

gods fought like

men, and

other such trifles.

Guido de Colonna

is the author of

the following

story,

Be writyng of wees pat wist it in dede,

21 With sight for to serche, of hom pat suet after, To ken all the crafte how pe case felle,

28

32

36

40

By lokyng of letturs pat lefte were of olde.

Now of Troy forto telle is myn entent euyn,
Of the stoure & pe 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,
Left it in latyn for lernyng of vs.

But sum poyetis full prist þat put hom perto,
With fablis and falshed fayned pere speche,
And made more of þat mater pan hom maister

were:

Sum lokyt ouer litle and lympit of the sothe.
Amonges þat menye,-to myn hym be nome,—
Homer was holden haithill of dedis.

Qwiles his dayes enduret, derrist of other
pat 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 pe truth for to telle & pe text euyn
Of pat fight how it felle in a few yeres,
bat was clanly compilet with a clerk wise,
On Gydo, a gome, pat graidly hade soght,
And wist all þe werks by weghes he hade,
56 That bothe were in batell while the batell last,

52

9

PROLOGUE.

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

In letturs of pere langage, as þai lernede hade : 60 Dares and Dytes were duly pere namys.

Dites full dere was dew to the Grekys,

A lede of þat lond & loged hom with: The tothyr was a Tulke out of Troy selfe, 64 Dares, pat duly the dedys be-helde.

Aither breuyt in a boke on pere best wise,
That sithen at a cité somyn were founden
After at Atthenes as aunter befell;

68 The whiche bokes barely bothe as pai were,
A Romayn ouerraght & right hom hym-seluyn,
That Cornelius was cald to his kynde name.
He translated it into latyn for likyng to here,
But he shope it so short pat no shalke might
Haue knowlage by course how be case felle;
ffor he brought it so breff, and so bare leuyt,
bat no lede might have likyng to loke perappon,

72

76 Till pis Gydo it gate, as hym grace felle,

And declaret it more clere & on clene wise.

3

which is compiled

from the works of

Dares and Dictys the historians.

(fol. S a.)

Dares, who was present at the deeds which he recorded, wrote his history of the Trojan war in Greek.

Cornelius Nepos translated it into

Latin, but so briefly that the work had to he amended by

Guido.

In this shall faithfully be founden to the fer In this history ende,

All pe dedes by dene as pai done were;

there is a faithful

account of the

deeds as they

were done;

80 How þe groundes first grew, & pe grete hate, Bothe of torfer and tene pat hom tide aftur. And here fynde shall ye faire of pe felle peopull, of the origin and

What kynges pere come of costes aboute:
84[Of Dukes full doughty, and of derffe Erles, 7

That assemblid to pe citie pat sawte to defend:
Of pe grekys þat were gedret how gret was pe
nowinber,

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

were:

What Shippes pere were shene, & shalkes with in,

progress of the war; of the Kings, Dukes, and Earls who fought on either side;

Bothe of barges & buernes pat broght were fro

grese:

And all the batels on bent pe buernes betwene. What Duke pat was dede throughe dyntes of hond,

Who ffallen was in ffylde, & how it fore aftur : Bothe of truse & trayne pe truthe shall þu here, And all the ferlies pat fell vnto the ferre ende. 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.