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ANDROMACHE AND HER CHILDREN SET FREE.

12044 Priams pure dughter, pertist of wit,

And all grauntid pe grete with a gode will.
As pes kynges in counsell were comynyng to-
gedur,

Eneas egerly, euyn with Antenor, 12018 Put hym in prise & profferit to say: be dede of Andromaca duli þai told, And how Elynus egerly ertid pe lordis To pursu for pe pes to pe pure grekis;

12052 And how at praier of pat pure pe prise kyng

Achilles,

Was grauntid to be grauyn, & gyuyn to his
toumbe :

Eat worthi pai wilnet of wo to delyuer,

And grauntid po grete with a glad chere. 12056 Elynus egerly for Ectors childur

Praiet to po prinses, and hor pure modur:
And pe lordis to po litill þe lyuys han grauntid,
Namly Pirrus, pat purpost to put hom to deth,

12060 Assentid to pat same with a sad graunt.

hat left were on lyue, haue leue forto wend, 12064 Lause at hor lykyng, no lede forto harme.

393

Book XXIX.

Eneas and
Antenor plead
(fol. 184 a.)
for Andromache
and Helenus.

bat no dere for his deth was don 3et ynogh,

ffor he with treson in þe temple vntruly was

slayn.

Their request is granted.

Helenus and

ben ordant afterward þes honourable kynges,

hat all be worchipfull wemen of þe wale toune, The noble women

of Troy at liberty to depart or stay.

Andromache

plead for Hector's children: the

request is at once granted by all

except Pyrrhus.

ben purpost pai playnly to pas oute of land,
ffro troy forto turne, & tary no lengur ;
But be stormys were so stith, & stiryng of delayed by

The departure of the Greeks

storms,

wyndis,

12068 More pen a moneth myght þai not pas. hen come pai to Calcas pe cause forto wete, Of þe wedur so wikkid, & pe wan stormys. He said hom, forsothe, pe sayntis of hell 12072 Were wode in hor werkis for wreke of Achilles; still unavenged.

because the death of Achilles is

Book XXIX.

Polyxena, who was the cause of his death, must be slain.

Pyrrhus makes search for Polyxena:

(fol. 184 b.)

Agamemnon

inquires at Antenor regarding her: but all without success.

She is sent to Pyrrhus, who prepares to slay her on his father's tomb.

"3ow most sle ffor þat same, 3our sayntis to plese,

12076 bat was cause of his cumbranse, & keppit is on lyue."

ben Pirrus with pyne put hym to serche

Of Polexena pe pert, in priueté holdyn,

hat was cause of pe cumbranse of his kynd fadur;

12080 And nothir takyn þat tyme, ne tyrnyt to deth. Agaminon full graidly gos to Antenor,

ffraynyt at hym frikly of þat fre mayden:

He denyet hym onon, pat noqwere he knew 12084 pat commly be keppet, ne in cloese haldyn.

ben wrathid po worthi for wont of pe burde, And tenyt full tite for tarying so longe. Antenor, after pis angur, persayuyt

12088 þat þe kynges ffor pat clere had caght hym in

hate,

And poght fully his faulshed folow to an end.
He besit hym barly pe burde forto seche,
Thurght pe cité hym-selfe, and ser men of hest,

After many days' 12092 ffele dayes bedene, or he pat dere fonde:

search, Antenor
discovers her in
an old tower.

Till he aspiet hir with spit, by speryng of othir,
Doune in a dungion, don for to kepe,

A tyme for to tarie, of a toure olde.

12096 he losell to pe lady launchid full swithe,
Braid hir out bigly bi þe bryght armys,
Present pat pert to be prise kynges.
Agaminon pat gay gert forto send

12100 To Pirrus pat presound, prestly onone;

And he cast hym pat coumly to cut into pesis,
ffull tite on pe toumbe of his tru fadur.
As this lady was led tell hir last end,
12104 Kingis comyn cantly pat cumly to se.

he pupull had pité, & presit full pik
To se pat louely be lost, pat no lak did.

TO ATONE FOR THE DEATH OF ACHILLES.

All þe folke were vnfayn, & of fyn will 12108 To haue reft hir the rynke, for ruth pat pai had. Hit hade doutles ben done, and hire deth voidid, Had not Calcas pe cursit carpit before, pat neuer po lordis to hor londis lyuely shuld wyn,

12132 pen be exild for euermore, erdond in sorow;
In othir prouyns & pertis pouert to suffer;

In pronge and in praldom prepe with pe werld.
perfore welcum, I-wis, is my wale deth!

395

12112 Till ho duly were ded & dressit in pesis.
When pis burd was broght to pe bare toumb,
Ho askewsit hir of skath, & sklaundur of his

deth ;

having had knowledge of, or desire for,

þat neuer ho wist of þe werke, ne in will poght She denies 12116 pat pe dughti shuld degh, till hit don was. be kyngis and pe comyns had care at paire hertes, the death of To se pat fre be fforfaryn, þat no faut did : All þai sparit þat speciall to spill at þe tyme, 12120 To periche pat pure pité pai had;

Achilles.

But ho doutid no deth in [hir] du ryght,
ffor hit laithit hir les pen on lyue be.

Syn ho borne was a burd of a blod nobill, 12124 Comyn of a kyng & a clene maydyn,

Hir was leuer in hir lond out of lyue pas, hen be defoulit in filth with febill of astate; Or be led of hire lond with a lede straunge; 12128 Set vndur seruage and sorow for euer,

With pe fose of hir fadur, & hir fre kyn,
And hir brethir had britnet, & broght vnto end.
"Me is leuer," quod pat louely, "in my lond
degh,

12136 My maydynhed I merk to myghtifull goddis:
Accepte hit as sacrifise, & my saule to!
his holly with hert here I beseke !"
When pe lady had leuyt of hir loud speche,

Book XXIX.

The people are

willing to rescue

her:

but Calcas
declares the

(fol. 185 a.) tempest will not cease till she be slain.

But she will rather die than be wedded to an inferior,

or live with those who have slain all her friends.

Book XXIX.

Pyrrhus smites her with a

(fol. 185 b.) sword; cuts her in pieces, and scatters them over his father's tomb.

Hecuba swoons, and becomes mad.

In her wildness she wounds

many of the Greeks.

She is bound, and taken to

Aulis, where she

is stoned to death.

A splendid tomb

of marble is erected for her.

12140 Pirrus with a pale sword presit hir to;
Britnet pe burde brightest on lyue,

At þe tumbe full tit of his triet fadur;

Gyrd hir in gobettis & on his graue cast. 12144 Hire blod all aboute aboue hit was sched, And strawet in þe strete strenklit full þik. Honourable Ecuba, þat was hir aune modur, Segh hir doghtur with dol be delt into peses: 12148 Scho welt into wodnes, & hir wit leuyt,

And ran furthe rauis ruthe to beholde.
Scho bete hom bitturly with hir bare teth,
And with stonys in pe strete strok hom to
ground;

12152 his lif scho lad lelly þat day,

And myche gremyt þe grekes in hir grete angur.
bai toke hire full tit, and teghit hir hondis,
Send hir sone by soume of hire men,
12156 Into the Ile of Aulida angardly swythe;
And stithly with stonys steynyt hir to dethe.
The grekes for the grete graithet a toumbe,
Of a heght þat was hoge, all of harde marble;
12160 And broght hir to berenes, as hom best þoght.

In mynd of þat mighty, to myn hit for euer,
The plase all of penaunce, the pepull hit calles,
The lede in hor langage, pat lengys þerin,

12164 Duly to this day, as demys the boke.

The xxx Boke. Of Stryfe of Thelamon and
Vlixes, & of he dethe of Thelamon.

All this tyme in þe toun, tellis þe story, be grekis were togedur for þe grete stormys Of wyndis full wikkid, & waues of þe se: 12168 No shalke went to schip on þe schir water. be tor kyng Thelamon, tidé of hondis,

Telamon complains to the

Before pe grete of pe grekis,-Agamynon & Greek nobles

othir,

against Ulysses
holding the
Palladium:
and claims it as
a reward for his
services.

To Vlixes, in angur, angardly speke, 12172 ffor dole to pe duk of pe du goddes,

(fol. 186 a.)

hat was sesit in pe Cité at þe same tyme.
ffor paladian of prise was put to Vlixes,

He wrathit hym, I-wis, & to be wegh saide:12176 "pat gyfte is to grete of pat god nobill;

And my-seluyn for-sothe haue seruyt hit bettur,
And more worthi to weld for my wale dedis.

I haue besit me full boldly, & my blode sched, 12180 Oure folke forto filsyn qwen oure fode lakkid; And in were with my wepyn wondurfulli don, Ofte fellit oure foe with my fyn strenkith. Polimnestor, pe proud kyng, I put vnto deth, 12184 þat was of riches full rif & myche red gold.

He had slain
Polyinnester,
Polydorus, and
many other

be sun of pe sam kyng I slogh with my leaders of the

enemy:

hondis,

Polidarius pe pert, pat Priam did kepe,

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