صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني

Book XIX.

On earth, every

one despises you;

and in hell you must dwell with fiends.

(fol. 126 a.)

Thinkest thou the Greeks will trust you?

Surely, it was not the god Apollo, but some fiend of hell that advised you."

"Daughter, the gods would be

against us, if we did not obey them.

As thy fall and þi faith is foulé loste, And þi worship is went & wastid for euer, Of shame & shenship shent bes pou neuer : 8120 Euery lede will pe lacke and pi lose file, And þe fame of þi filth so fer wilbe knowen. Ne hopis pou not hertely, for pi hegh treason, If men laith with pi lyf, lyffyng in erthe, 8124 That the shall happon in helle hardlaikes mo, ffor thy filthe & pi falshed with fyndes to dwelle ? Hit were bettur the to byde with buernes of

þi kyn,

In sum wildurnes wilde, & won þere in lyf,
8128 Then the ledys vpon lyue to laithe with pi shame.
Hopis pou fadur, in faith, in þi faint hert,
hat pou be takon for tren with thies triet kynges,
Or be holdyn in hert of pi hest stable,
8132 þat art founden so fals to pi fre londes?

Now appolyn with answare hase euyll the begiled,
And belirt pe with lesynges þi lose forto spille ;
Gert the fall fro pi fryndes, & pi faire godis,

8136 And sorily to syn, and þi selfe lose!

Hit was neuer appollo the pure god, þat put the in mynd,

But sum fend with his falshed, faren out of helle, þat onsward the owkewardly, ordand þe skathe, 8140 fforto set the in sorow, and þi soule tyne!" Thus the lady at the last left of hir speche, With myche sobbyng & sorow, sylyng of teris. Than the bysshop to his barne barely onswart, 8144 And shend to pat shene all in short wordes. "Ne hopis pou noght, hend doghtur, þat our hegh goddes

Wold be wrothe at our werkes, & wisshe vs to skathe,

If we bowet not hor biddyng, & hor bone kept. 8148 And nomly in pis note, pat noyes to pe dethe,

8152

8156

8160

8164

BRISEIS FORGETS TROILUS.

Oure seluyn to saue, and oure saule kepe
Out of daunger & drede, & oure dethe voide.
This wot I full well, thurgh wisshyng of hom,
That pis sorow wilnot sese, ne the saute leue,
Tyll the toun be ouerturnyt, & tumblid to ground;
All the folke, with pere fos, frusshet to dethe,
And the wallis ouerwalt into be wete dyches.
Therfore bettur is a-byde in pis bare fild,
Than be murthert with malis, & to mold put."

265

Book XIX.

I know that Troy shall be

destroyed, and all her people.

Therefore we are better here."

(fol. 126 b.)

The Greeks are pleased with Briseis;

All the grekes were glad of þat gay lady,
And comyn in companys, þat comly to se,
All the souerans for sothe, into hir syre tent,
And spire at hir specially of hor spede ay,—
Of the tulkes of Troy, and the toun selfe ;
Of the pepull full prest, & pe prise kynges:
And all the maner of po men the maidon hom Troy and the

tolde,

ffrely with faire chere, pat thei frayn wold.

she answers their questions about

Trojans.

The kynges full curtesley cald hir pere doughter, They call her,
And heght hir to haue all þere helpe pen;

daughter; promise to defend her;

and give her rich presents.

8168 To be worshypt well with welthis ynow;
And grete giftes hir gafe all to grete kynges.
Er þis day was done, or droghe to pe night,
All chaunget the chere of this choise maidon,
And hir leuer to leng in lodge with the grekes, the Greeks.
Then turne vnto Troy, or to toun wend.

8172

Now, she desires to abide among

Now is Troiell, hir trew luff, tynt of hir thoght, Troilus is

forgotten.

And yomeryng for-yeton, & yettyng of teres.

8176 Lo, so lightly ho left of hir loue hote,

8180

And chaunget hir chere for cherisshyng a litle !
Tristly may Troiell tote ouer the walle,
And loke vpon lenght, er his loue come!
Here leue we this lady with hir loue new,
And turne to oure tale, & take pero we lefte.

266

The xx Boke. Of the vijnt Batell, and Skarmiches Lastyng xxx dayes Betwene the Towne & the tenttes.

(fol. 127 a).

The truce is ended:

the Trojans

prepare for battle.

Hector, with a division of 15,000, goes forth first:

then Troilus with 10,000:

then Paris with

the Persian

archers, 3000 strong:

then Deiphobus with 3000:

then Æneas, and all the other

leaders in their order.

The Trojans were 100,000 strong.

Of the Grecks

After the monethis were meuyt of pe mene true, ben waknet vp were and myche wale sorow! 8184 The secund day suyng, says me þe lyne,

There bownet vnto batell from the burgh euyn,
Mony triet men of Troy, and tokyn þe fild,
Euyn ordant by Ector, after his deuise.
8188 The prinse with his pouer past on first,
With xv M. fully, all of fyn knightes,
In his batell full bold boun to pe feld:

And Troiell with x .M. turnit forth aftur.

8192 Then Paris put furth, the percians hym with,— Abill men of archery, auntrus in wer,—

Three M. thro and thristy of hond,

Vppon horses full hoge, hardy men all. 8196 Then Deffibus drogh furth, & to pe dede went, With thre M. thro men, prepond in armys. Eneas afturward with angardly mony, And oper kynges full kant, as pere course fell. 8200 As Dares in his dyting duly me tellus,

The sowme of the sowdiouris, that fro pe Cité

came,

ffor to tell at this tyme of triet men & noble, A C. M. all hoole, herty to stryke!

8204 ffro the tenttes come tyte of the trict grekes,

THE SEVENTH BATTLE.

Menelay full monly, with a manur pepull,

Seuyn M. be sowme assignet for hym.

Then meuit with as mony, mighty Dyomydes,

8208 And Achilles with choise men chosen of the

same.

Than sought furth Xantippus with sad men a

hepe,

Thre thowsaund thristy, prong to the fild. Than Agamynon the grete gird on the last, 8212 With a noyus nowmbur, nait men of strenght.

The first, þat to fight past, was Philoc the kyng,
Put hym furth prudly, presit to pe Troiens!
Ector met hym with mayn, macchit hym so

harde,

267

Book XX.

Menelaus came first with 7000

men:

then Diomedes with as many

more:

then Achilles, and Xantippus, and Agamemnon.

(fol. 127 b.)

Hector slays King
Philoctetes.

8216 That he gird to the ground & the gost past.
Myche clamur & crye for the kynges sake,
And dynttes full dedly delt hom betwene.
Then girde o the greke halfe with grym fare,
8220 Xantipus, a sure Kyng, with a sad wepyn,
ffor to dere for pe dethe of his dere vncle.
He suet furth sadly to be sure prinse,
And stroke hym full stithly with a stiff sworde.
8224 Ector turnet with tene, toke hym on þe hed,
þat he slode doun sleghly, & sleppit euer after.
Then the grekes were greuit for the grym kyng; The Greeks
Oppressit hom with pyne, pressit full hard;

8228 Turnit to the Troiens, tenit hom full euill;

"The dethe of Xantipus by Ector Stayn."

revenge his death.

Mony woundit full wickedly, & warpit of horse.
Achilles mony choise men choppit to pe erthe; Achilles slays

Mony ledes with his launse out of lyfe broght.

8232 Two Dukes full derne vnto dethe kyld,
bat were comyn to pe kyng with pere kyde
helpis,-

ffull bold men in batell, & myche bale did. Hit auntrit, þat Ector was angrit full euill, 8236 Woundit full wickedly, wist not of woo,

many both with sword and lance,

Hector is severely wounded in the face;

Book XX.

the Trojans are

borne back

Vne before in the face, with a fell stroke,
þat myche blode fro pe buerne on þe bent fell;
And pan bakeward was borne all pe bold Troiens,

towards the walls. 8240 With myche noye for pe note of pere noble

Hector observes some ladies

standing

on the walls;

(fol. 128 a.)

ashamed of his position, he turns in rage and kills Merion.

prinse.

But the knight, in his kene yre, cast vp his egh,
Brusshet on the burgh & the bright walles,
Segh the ladies o lofte leghen to waite,-

8244 Elan an other, the oddest of Troy,

His worshipful wife, þat he well louet, With his Suster beside, the semliest on lyue, hat were sory for pe sight, Semple of chere. 8248 And the grekes so grymly had gird hom abacke þat euyn borne were pai bigly to the bare wallis Than shamet was the shalke for the shene ladies, And euyn wode of his wit wex he belyue.

Achilles rushes on Hector with a great spear.

Hector with a

fierce blow hurls

through the

helmet of Achilles, and

stuns him.

THE DETHE OF MYRION BY ECTOR SLAYN.

8252 He kyld þere a kyng, cosyn to Achilles,

On Merion the myghty,-thurgh the mayn dynt. He hurlet thurgh the helme, pat the hed yemed, hat the brayn all-to brast, & on bent leuyt. 8256 Achilles aurthwart this aunterd to se,

8260

8264

Grippet to a grete speire with a grym wille ;
Pight on the prinse, persit his wede;

Mart of his mailes, meuit hym noght;

And nauther hurt he the hathell, ne hade hym

to ground.

ben Ector in angur, angardly fast,

With the bit of his brond, on the bold light;
Hurlit þurgh the helme & the hard maile.
But it breke not the brayn, ne the buerne
woundit.

Achilles, with a chop, cheuyt on syde;

All in wer for to walt, wayueronde he sote,
But he held hym on horse, houyt o lofte.

« السابقةمتابعة »