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THE BATTLE AT THE LANDING.

The Grekes geton hor ground, þat [graidly was
lost],

189

Book XIV.

The Greeks, thus encouraged,

And myche comford hom the colm of pat kene gain ground:

knight]:

Mony woundes pai wroght, [and warpit to dethe]! 5808 Vlixes with vtteraunse vnder [his shild],

and Ulysses,
dashing wildly
through the

enemy, works
sad havoc among
them.

(fol. 90 b.)

Mony stithe in stoure stroke on [þere helmes]; Launsit, as a lyoun, þat were [lengen aboute], And of the ffrigies fell with [his fuerse dinttes]: 5812 Sum he stroke in the stoure streght to pe erthe;

Pylæmenes

Sum dange to the dethe, & derit full mykyll. The proud kyng of Pafligon persayuit his dede, struck him to the One Philmene, a freike of the ferre halue,— 5816 He gird hym to ground with a grym speire;

ground with a
spear; but still
he fights.

And he fell vppon fote, faght with the kyng.
And Philmene the fuerse, with a fell dynt,
Vttrid Vlixes vne in the place,

5820 pat hit shot prough the shilde & pe shire maile,
To pe bare of pe body, pat the blade folowet;
And he gird to pe ground with a grym hurt,

Hade no strenght for to stond, 3et he stert vp, 5824 And frusshit at Philmene with a fyn launse.

bat he breke þurgh the burd to the bare throte; 5828 Hurlet burghe the hawbergh, hurt hym full sore;

The gret vayne of his gorge gird vne ysondur,
hat the freike, with the frusshe, fell of his horse,
Halfe ded of the dynt, dusshet to ground.

5832 The Troiens for pat tulke had tene at hor hert;
Kayron euyn to the kyng, caght hym belyue;
Harlet hym fro horsfet, had hym away.

[He] for ded of pe dynt was drest on his shild, 5836 [And bou]rne on the burde to þe burgh hom;

[For the de]the of þis duke doll was ynogh
[That trublit pe] Troiens with tene, trist ye no

nother

He is again dashed to the ground with a sore wound; but

starting up he
wounds
Pylæmenes in
the throat, and

With all the might & the mayn, pat the mon hade, hurls him to the
He hit hym so hetturly on hegh on the shild,

ground.

The Trojans drag him from the ground and carry him to the city on his shield.

Book XIV.

(fol. 91 a.) Menelaus and his men then land,

dash into the

Protesilaus, worn

out with his long,

hard struggle,

battle to aid their

friends, and

sorely oppress the 5848 And fellon vnto fight pere feres to helpe,

Trojans.

[Myche harm to pem] happit here at þis tyme! 5840 [The Grekes were] so grym þat were to ground

comyn,

[Mony dukes were] ded of pe derfe Troiens.
[pan Toa]x of Toilé Telemon the kyng,
[Agamynon, &] Aiax, & all oper shippis,

5844 [Come launchond to] lonnd and hor lordes all:
And Menelaus the mighty, & his men hole,
ffull radly arofe, raiked to lond;

Halet vp horses, highet olofte;

When he saw that all his band had perished, he

was overcome

with grief and rage.

hat were strongly be-stad in a stoure hoge. To the Troiens pai turnyt & mekill tene wroght! The frusshe was so felle, po fuerse men betwene, 5852 Crakkyng of cristis, crusshyng of speiris,

The clynke & pe clamour claterit in the aire,
And with dynttes of derfe men dynnet the erthe;
Mony Troiens with tene were tyrnyt to ground,
5856 Sum ded of po dynttes, sum depe woundit ;—
Restoret the stithe batell strongly anon,

And mony dongen to dethe of the derfe Troiens.
Then Prothessalon pe prise kyng, pat preset to

lond

now withdraws

from the battle to 5860 ffirst in the forward, pat his folke lost,

rest a little on the bank.

5864

5868

5872

He was wery for-wroght, & woundet full sore,-
Hade laburt so longe, hym list for to rest,-
And bowet fro the batell to pe bonke side,
ffor to beld hym on þe bent, & his brethe take.
And o sithen he soght to pe se euyn,

bere pe fight was first, & the folke drounet;
ben he plainly persayuit his pepull were ded,
hat no lede of pat lordes vppon lyue was.
Soche a sorowe of pat sight sanke to his hert,
hat his wedis wex wete of his wan teris,
And he, stithely astonyt, stert into yre;
More breme to be batell his baret to venge,

THE BATTLE AT THE LANDING.

Of his folke þat were fallyn vnto fell dethe, Hard highet vnto horse with a hert pro, fforto felle of pe ffrigies felly he poght. 5876 Onon with a naked sword neghit to batell, Vne wode of his wit as a wild lyon,.

Mony breme on þe bent brittoned to ground.
Mony kild the kyng in his clene yre!

5880 Myche tene pe Troiens tid of his hond!

As fresshe to pere fos as at the first tyme,
Gird to the Grekes, & moche grem wroght;
5888 Woundit hom wikkedly, walt hom to ground,
Oppresset hom with pyne, put hom abake,

All the batell to pe bonke, & mony buerne slogh. here the grekes hade ben grymly gird vnto dethe, 5892 Ne hade Palomedon, the prise kyng, preset to lond,

With fele fightyng folke of fuerse men of armys;
Halet vp horses hard out of bote,

Wonyn on wightly, wentyn to batell,

5896 His folke to refresshe with a fyn wille.

191

The assembly was sorer o pe se banke ; Mony deghit full dernly, dole to be-holde! Then the grekes agayne geton þere hertes, 5900 And myche comford kaght of his come pen. This Palomydon paynyt hym pepull to slee, And mony woundys he wroght in his wild yre. He soght to on Symagon, a sad mon of armys,5904 Kyng Merion pe mighty was his met brother, pat fele had confoundit of the fuerse grekes ;— He bere to be bold with a big sworde, And rof þurgh the Ribbes right to be hert,

Book XIV.

Then Perses the proude kyng prise mon of ynde,
With a batell of bowmen fro the burgh come,
And with a fernet fare fell to be stoure.

5884 At whose come the cuntre-men comford were all, The Trojans again

take heart, and

And restoret the stithe fight stuernly agayn;

Rushing against the enemy, he

(fol. 91 b.) cut down a great many.

press the Greeks back to the shore.

But for the arrival

of Palamedes,

they would have

been destroyed.

The Greeks then recover themselves; and Palamedes, meeting Symagon,

drives his sword into his heart.

Book XIV.

(fol. 92 a.)

Such havoc ho works among the Trojans, that they scatter and begin to flee;

but the noise of the battle had reached the ears of Hector, and he rushes to their assistance.

Driving in among
the Greeks, he
cut his way right
and left.

He presses to
Palamedes,

and with a fierce swing of his sword clove him to the middle,

5908 þat he fell of his horse flat to be ground,
Deghit of pe dynt, & deiret no moo.

Palomydon preset furth into pe prise batell; Mony tulke out of Troy tyrnyt to dethe; 5912 Mony knight don cast to pe cold erthe.

All were ferd of þe freike, fled of his way;

Durst no buerne on hym bate for his bold dedis.
Myche clamour & crye was kyde in pe ost,

5916 pat the Troiens for tene might tary no lengur ;

But with prise of Palomydon put all abake,
And fer in the fight fell hom the worse,

Vne boun fro pe batell busket to fle, 5920 Vntill Ector eris hit entrid belyue

The great noise of þe noy, þat in note was.
He lepe on a light horse lyuely enarmyt,
And soght to pe se banke to socur his pepull;
5924 Wode in his wrathe wynnys into batell!
All shone his shilde & his shene armur,
Glissenond of gold with a glayre hoge:
Thre lions the lord bare all of light goulis,

5928 þat were shapon on his shild, shalkes to be

holde.

He gird to the grekes with a grym yre ;

In the brest of the batell, pere buernes were

thicke,

He ffrusshet so felly freikes to ground; 5932 Made wayes full wide pe weghis among;

Shot thurgh the sheltrons, shent of pe pepull. To Prothesselon he preset, þat pepull hade slayn,

And myche wo had wroght on pe wild troiens.

THE DETHE OF PROTHESSOLON BY ECTOR SLAYN.

5936 He swappit at hym swithe with a swerd felle ; Hit on his hede a full hard dynt ;

Clefe purghe the criste & the clene maile;

THE BATTLE AT THE LANDING.

Slit hym down sleghly thurghe the slote euyn, 5940 Bode at the belt stid, and the buerne deghit. Then leuet he the lede, launchet on ferre,

Mony dange to the dede with dynt of his hond:
Who happit hym to hitte harmyt nomo.

5944 Mony brem in the batell britnet to dethe,
Sundrit the soppis vnsarkonly with hondes:
All gird of his gate, gevyn hym the way.
Iche freike of pat furse fraynit at other,
5948 pat our folke pus felly flynges to ground:

Thai fled fro the fase of his felle dynttes, 5952 So bold was no buerne his bir to withstond, Ne pe caupe of his kene sword kast hom to mete. Whill he bode in the batell, pe buerne with his honde

193

ben þai knowen by course of his clene shap,
hat it was Ector the honerable, eddist of Hector who is

The Greeks
perceive that it is

knightes.

upon them, and no one dares to oppose him.

Mony grekes with grem he gird to the dethe. 5956 All failit pere forse, feblit þere herttes,

The batell on backe was borne to be se.
Then wery he wex, & of his werke hote,
Bowet fro the batell, & his buernes leuyt.
5960 The sun in his sercle set vndurnethe;
The light wex las, he leuyt the fild,
Soght to pe Cité soberly & faire,

Left his feris in þe fild fightyng full hard. 5964 Then grekes agayne getton þere herttes, ffrushet pe ffrigies felly to ground;

So hit tid hom tensiche betymys þat day. But þe Troiens full tore turnyt agayne, 5968 ffoghten so felly, frunt hom o backe,

Kyld mony knightes, cacchit on hard, Greuyt so the grekes, pai graithet to fle, Were borne to pe banke with baret ynogh. 5972 Then Achilles the choise cheuyt to land,

Book XIV.

Their courage

fails, and they are driven back to the sea.

Hector quits the field for a time.

The Greeks again take heart; make a rush on the enemy, but are driven back with much loss.

(fol. 93 a.)

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