THE FOURTH BATTLE.

7368 Achilles by chaunse may chefe to pe worse,

And be dede of his dynttes, but if desteny let.
When this purpos was plainly putto an end,
Then partid the prinsis, and the prise dukes,
7372 Turnyt to pere tenttes & tarit no lengur ;
And Rapit to pere rest, rioll & other.

When the light vp launchit, littid the erthe,
The derke ouer-done, and þe day sprange,
7376 All the grekes in hor geire gedrit to feld,
Were boun on the bent on hor best wise.
And pe stithest in stoure, sturnyst of knightes,
Honerable Ector, þat eger was ay,

7380 Euer waker and vnwar, wightist in armys,
Past furth with his pepull fro the pure Cité:
ffore euyn to be fild with fuersmen of Troye,
That hym self hade assignet surest of othir.
7384 Eneas afturward with abill men ynow;

Paris pen put furthe with a proude folke; Deffebus drogh next with a derfe pepull; Troiell, the tru knight, with a triet menye, 7388 And other, þat Ector had ordant before,

Suet furth to pe semely, as pai assignet were.
The first of po fuerse men, þat to fight past,
Was Ector, hym aune selfe, with odmen of troye,
7392 As Dares in his dytyng of his dedis tellis.

ffro the Cité, the same day, soght to be fild,
With the prinse, to the plase, and his prise
brether,

& iij .M. thro men, priuond in armys,

7396 And V.M. fer, fuersmen & noble.

ben gird thai to-gedur with a grym will!

239

Book XVII.

Achilles is chosen to accomplish his death.

Next day the Greeks take the field in their best array;

(fol. 115 a.)

and Hector leads out his chosen band.

Æneas, Paris, Deiphobus, Troilus, and the other Trojan leaders follow, each with his own division,

The stere was full stithe; pere starf mony The battle is

knightes!

Paris, with the perscans, presit in first,

7400 With his bowmen full bold bykrit with the

grekes.

begun by Paris with the Persians and archers.

Book XVII.

Agamemnon is struck down by Hector,

who is next set on by Achilles; and has his helmet broken.

Troilus and
Eneas rescue

him.

Diomedes attacks

Eneas; wounds

(fol. 115 b.) him severely; taunts him;

and with a fierce

blow unhorses him.

Hector rushes on

Achilles; breaks

his helmet;

wounds him

severely;

Mony woundit tho weghis & wroght vnto dethe,
And harmyt full hogely with pere hard shot.
Than Agamynon the grete gird into batell!
7404 Ector full egerly etlit hym to mete,

Gird hym Euyn to pe grond with a grym hurt:
Halfe dede of pe dynt pere pe duke lay.

Than Achilles with a choise sword choppit to
Ector,

7408 Alto hurlet the helme of þe high prinse;
But hym seluyn was safe, & his seate helde.
Than Troilus full tite, & tidé Eneas,

Chefyn to Achilles with choise men ynogh,
7412 Hurlit hym hastely, harmyt hym full mekull,
Bere hym bak of pe bent & his buernes all.
Then Diomede, the derfe kyng, drof to Eneas,
Woundit hym wykkidly, & to pe whe saide :-

7416

'Now, welcum I-wysse, for þi wale counsell, hat in presens of Priam pursuet me to fle! Wete hit full well for pi wyll febill,

If pou contynu by course, & cum into batell, 7420 You shall happyn in my handis hardly not faile, And be ded of my dyntis for þi dissire old."

pen he drof to the duk with a dynt fell,
Vnhorsit hym in hast, had hym to ground.

7424 Ector eftirsons ettlyt on Achilles,

And greuit hym full gretly with a grym stroke,
Alto hurlit his helme, hurt hym full euyll,
Wold haue takyn hym full tit, but at tene fell

but is stunned by 7428 A sad man full sone, pe sun of Theseus,

a blow when

about to capture

him.

Recovering, he strikes Diomedes to the ground,

Segh Achilles myscheuyt, choppit to Ector:
With a swyng of his sword swagit on pe prinse.
Ector, for pe stithe stroke stoynyt no thyng,
7432 Gryppit to his gode sword in a grym yre,

Drof vnto Diomede, þat deryt hym before,
pat hedstoupis of his horse he hurlit to ground.
bat Toilus in pe toile pis torfer beheld,

THE BATTLE BECOMES GENERAL.

7436 Segh Dyomede with a dynt dryuyn to fote,

He lyght doun full lyuely leuyt his horse, And dressit to Dyamede with a derfe chere. be freke hym defendit with a fyn wyll, 7440 Were hym full wightly, and his woche past. Achilles and Ector angarely faght! Furse was pe fare po fyn men betwene; But þer hastid on hond help vnto bothe, 7444 With batels full byg, þat on bent met. ben Menelay pe myghti, & monly Vlixes; Palomydon, Philomytes, Philothetes pe grete; Neptolon pe nobill, & Nestor pe duk;

7448 Theseus, & Thoax, & mony tryed knight; Menestaus þe myghty, & modé Girilius ; Stelleus, pe stythe kyng, with a sturne wyll; þes gyrd in o þe grekys side with a grym ost. On the tothir Side fro Troy turnyt in swith,

7452

241

Book XVII.

where he is set upon by Troilus; but defends himself bravely.

Achilles and Hector again meet and fight furiously.

Menelaus,

Ulysses, and other
Greek leaders
hasten with their
divisions to
assist Achilles ;

(fol. 116 a.)

All pe kyngis, þat were comyn by course of and to resist the þere helpe,

With pere batels full big & mony buerne felle,

As honerable Ector hade ordant before.

allied kings and their divisions, that had come to assist Hector.

7456 Hit is wonder to wete of po weghes pen,
How fell was pe fight of pe fuerse pepull!
How stith men & stedis were strikon to ground,
And mony derf þat was ded er þe day endit!
7460 Agamynon þe grete, & his gay brother,
Menelay with mayn macchit hom in fere,
And presit vnto Paris all with pale hate,
The duke for to deire & to dethe bringe.
Menelay hym met with a mayn speire,
And woundit hym wickedly, warpit hym wounds him and

7464

doun;

But his armour was od good & angardly picke,
And sauit pat Syre, socurd his lyfe.

7468 Then shamet pe shalke for pe shene Elan,
þat he held in his hate fro pe hed kyng.

Menelaus engages with Paris:

dashes him to the earth.

Paris is ashamed.

Book XVII.

Ulysses fights

with Adrastus;

pen Vlixes & Arest angurdly faght:

Vlexes gird hym to grond, grippit his horse,

strikes him down, 7472 Sent hym by a seruaund sone to his tent.

and captures his

horse.

Polymetes kills

Hupon.

Neoptolemus and

Archilochus

unhorse each

other.

Polydamas strikes

down Palamedes.

Stelleus fights with Carras, and unhorses him.

Pylamenes

strikes down the

Polimytes, pe proud kyng, presit vnto Hupon,

Wondit hym wickedly, warpit hym to dethe. Neptolemus, the noble, nolpit to Archilagon, 7476 That both went backward & bult vppon the erthe. Polidamas to Palomydon presit so fast,

hat he gird hym doun grymly with a grym wound;

Spake to hym spitously, dispisit hym foule; 7480 ffore with hym fuersly all in fell angur. Stelleus, the stithe kyng, stroke vnto Carax, Hurlet hym of horse, hade hym to ground. Philmen, the fuerse, with a fell dynt

Duke of Athens, 7484 Drof to the derfe duke, doughty of Athens;

and captures his

horse.

(fol. 116 b.)

Philoctetes and

Remus are

Hurlit hym doun hedlynges, & his horse toke;
Raght hym full radly to a rynke of his owne.
Philoc with felle angur frusshet to Remo,

unhorsed: so also 7488 Till bothe welt backward of hor bare sadles.

are Theseus and

Eurialus.

The brothers of
Hector slay

many Greeks,

and wound

many kings.

Telamon fights with Sarpedon till both fall to the ground sore wounded.

Achilles and his cousin Thoas fall upon Hector, and

Theseus, a tore kyng, tachit on Eurialon,

That aither wegh other woundit, & welt to pe

grene.

The noble brether naturell naited pere strenght, 7492 Mony woundit in wer wroght po pat day; Mony grekes, thurgh hor grefe, on pe ground leuyt;

Mony woundit po worthy of paire wale kynges.
Telamon, the tore kyng, with a togh speire,
7496 With the kyng of Capadoys caupit so harde,
pat bothe were pai bold men borne to þe grene,
Woundit full wickedly in wer of hor lyues :
In the brest of pe batell pere pe buernys lay!
7500 pen Achilles cherfull, & his choise cosyn

Toax, þat other, a tore mon of strenght,
Ayren vnto Ector angardly sore !

THE FOURTH BATTLE.

With the strenght of hor stroke, & hor store fare, 7504 The helme of his hede pai hurlit to peces;

Woundit hym wickedly with wepon aboue,

243

Book XVII.

wound him in the head:

bat pe Rinels of red blode ran doun his chekes. Hector in a rage

But Ector in angur aykeward he stroke,

7508 Tachit vpon Toax, toke hym in the face,

He hade of pe halfe nase to pe hard chekes ;

And he, for dere of pe dynt, droppid on pe laund.

strikes at Thoas and cuts off half

his nose.

ben his noble brother naturell neghit hym The brothers

aboute,

7512 Socurd hym full sone with paire sad helpis.

come to Hector's
aid; kill many

Greeks, capture
Thoas, and

Mony grekes pai gird doun with pere grym fare! wound Telamon.

Kyng Toax þai toke, & to toun led;

Telamon, pat tore kyng, so tenfully wondit,

7516 þat he was borne on his brode sheld with

buernes to his tent,

As for ded of the dynt, dressit of pe fild,
And left halfe lyueles with ledis of his aune.
Menelay with malys meuyt hym to Paris,

7520 pe freke forto felle fondit at all;

7524

But Paris, with a prise arow put into Venum,
Hurt hym so hidously, pat he his horse leuyt,
And was borne to his bare tent with his bold

knightes,

As for dede of pe dynt, so derit hym sore;
But leches full lyuely lokid his wound;
With oile and with ointment abill perfore,
Bond it full bigly on hor best wise.

7528 And Menelay with malis meuit vnto batell,
To venge on his velany & his vile harme ;

Presit vnto Paris with a prise speire,

Wold haue hurt hym full hidusly, or had hym

to ground.

Paris wounds Menelaus with a poisoned arrow. (fol. 117 a.)

Menelaus having had his wound dressed, again attacks Paris.

7532 But Encas come ouerthwert, as aunters befelle, Eneas separates

And Keppit the caupe on his clene shild,
ffor the buerne was bare of body vnarmyt,

them, and