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Book XXVI.

(fol. 163 b.)

Mnestheus jousts with Polydamas.

Ajax, though unarmed, cuts down many Trojans, and

escapes without a wound.

The Persians break and flee.

10672 Mony wondit þat wegh of þe wale grekes,

And mony slogh in þat slade with slight of his bowe.

Dyamede full dernly drof to the kyng,

Phylmyn the fuerse, with a frike wille; 10676 Hym keppit þat kant on a kene speire.

With prise of pe pafigons, his oune pure men, Mony grekes po grym vnto ground broght; Woundit full wickedly, walt hom to dethe. 10680 pai hurlet hom full hard with hor hoge dynttes, þat Diamed full dernly was dryven abacke. Menestaus, pe mighty maistur of Athenes, Presit Polidamas & put hym of horse,

10684 With a spar of a speire in dispit felle.

han he braid out a brand, bikrid hym hard, Wold haue kyld the knight to the cold erthe; But pat Philmyn, þe fuerse kyng, fell to pe duke,

10688 Halpe hym of hondes, hade hym away.

Paris full prestly put hom to ground,

With sharpnes of shot, shent mony knightes,
And greuit full gretly be grekes pat day.
10692 pan Aiax, the auntrus, come angardly faste,
With bornysshed brand britnet his folke:

Mony troiens with tene he tirnit to dethe,
And angart hom euyll, vnarmyt þai were;

10696 And he vnwoundit, I-wis, out of wothe paste.
To the percians he put hym, þat Paris did lede,
Britnet of po bold, & myche bale wroght,
þat all flagh hym in fere for ferd of his dynttes.

(MS. has "in")

Paris wounds
Ajax with a

poisoned arrow.

THE DETHE OF AIAX, BY PARIS SLAYNE.
10700 Paris (with) pyne was pricket at his hert,

To se his men so be-mard, & murtherit to dethe.
With the birr of his bowe, & a big arow,

hat put was in poison, he pairet his armur,

DEATH OF PARIS AND AJAX.

10704 Rut þurgh his rybbes, rent hym with in, Betweene the lyuer & the lightes launchit hym

purghe,

þat all blackonet his blode, & his ble chaungit: pan feld wele the freike pat he fey was, 10708 And ded of pe dynt or pe day past.

THE DETHE OF PARIS, BY AIAX SLAYNE.

He presit vnto Paris in his pale angur, And as he faght in the feld, to pe freike said :"Paris, pou prestly hath put me to dethe, 10712 And shent me with shot of þi sharp geire,

But I degh of þi dynt, and damp into helle,
how shall first go before, and fraite of our way.
Hit is reason and right for þi Ranke loue,
10716 bat pou part now with pyne fro þi prise Elan,
hat is cause of his care, and this cold angur;
And mony doghty ben dede of Dukes &
Knightes."

Than he bere to be buerne with a bigge sworde,
10720 Hurlyt þurgh þe helme & the hard chekys,
And he girt to pe ground & the gost yalde:
Euyn ded of pe dynt, deiret no mo.

pan Aiax also, angardly swithe,

10724 ffell of his fole, flat to pe erthe,

ffor payne of his pale wound passit o lyue,
Euyn ded of pe dynt, & to dole went.

The troiens, with tene for tirnyng of Paris,

10728 Myche mournyng & myschefe in hor mynd hade;
The korse pai rekoueryt with paire kant fight,
And broght hit to burgh with bale at þere hert.
Dyomed the Duke, & Derfe Menestaus,

10732 With a folke þat was fuerse, felly with-stode,
Till þe troiens with tene turnyt the backe.
The sun in his sercle set vnto rest,
And the day ouer-drogh to pe derke night,

349

Book XXVI.

(fol. 164 a.)

Ajax in revenge rushes on Paris, and cleaves his

head.

Paris and Ajax fall to the ground dead.

The Trojans are driven within the gates.

Book XXVI.

(fol. 164 b.)

During the night,
Agamemnon

causes the

Greeks to encamp close to the walls.

The body of Paris

is carried to the palace.

The Trojans despair and mourn.

Helen swoons again and again over the dead body of Paris.

10736 The troiens with torfer into toun entrid, With myche lure & los of hor lefe knightes. pai zarkit to be yatis 3epely onon,

Barrit hom bigly on hor best wise;

10740 Passit on prestly with payne to pere Innes. When the light was lesse, the ledes with-oute, Thurgh gouernaunce graithe of Agamynon the kyng,

Laidon wacche to be wallis, pat no wegh past; 10744 Pavilions and pure tenttes pightyn aboute,

And pere logget hom to lenge, while hom lefe thoght.

The troiens in toures, & on toun walles,

Laidon spies specially, & spekon hom to,

10748 On all wise for to wacche & waite on hor fos, ffor gawdis, othir gile, þat hom grefe might.

The

he same night sothely, sais me pe lettur,

The corse caried was to courtte of the knight

Paris,

10752 With myche weping & wo of his wale fryndes: And sorow in the Cité was selly to here.

Now all the brether with bale were britnet to

dethe,

bat the folke shuld defend, & hor fos harme : 10756 Was no lede, þat hade lust, on lyue for to be, Ne hope of hor hele in hor hert thoght!

Myche pité was of Priam & his prise qwene,
With sobbyng of syster, þat semly were euer :

10760 And Elan, of all wemen, angardly fast

Swonyt full swiftly, & in swym fell.

XXti tymes hit tide truly þat night,

hat was draghen fro the Duke all in dede swone. 10764 Myche leuer, for pat lure, out of lyue passe, han any longur to lyffe, & hur luffe want. Hir wordes & weping, wo to be-hold,

MOURNING FOR PARIS.

Of care & complaint, coldyng in hert,

10768 Hit wold haue persit with pyté any pure sawle,

And tendrit with teres hor torfer to se.

Hit were labur to long hir lotis to tell,

Or any wegh for to write, pof he wit hade, 10772 The sorow of pat semly, as sais me the lyne.

Both of kyng, & of kythe, & the cleane qwene,
Abriget of baret, for bale pat sho polet;

And hade pitie of þat pure, hir payne for to here. 10776 ffor the luff þat she laid on pere lefe sun,

And the dole, pat she dregh, for his dethe one,
Thai worshippit þat worthy as pere wale
doghter;

And lelly no lesse louyt hir in hert.
10780 pan in Iono ioly temple, as the iest tellis,
Atyret was a tabernacle, triet for pe nones,
Made all of marbill, of mason deuyse,
With mony staryng stone stondyng aboute.
10784 Therein Paris was put with prestis of pe laghe,
And closit vp his corse vpon clene wise,

With Sacrifice and solenité suche as pai vsit,
And come to corupcioun, as his kynd asked.

351

Book XXVI.

(fol. 165 a.)

Paris is entombed in the

temple of Juno,

with great

ceremony.

(MS. has xxj)

The xxvij Boke: of (xxiij) Batell of pe Cite of Troy.

(MS. has "Paris" 10788 Priamus, for pité of his pure sons,

and "Priamus"

written above.)

For two months

the gates of Troy are not opened: the Trojans are hopeless.

Hade no wille for to weire, ne the wallis pas.
Two monethis with might, er he meue wold,
The yates to yeme he yepely comaundit.
10792 The troiens in the tyme, as the text sais,
With myche sorow in the Cité, sobbyng vnfaire,
Hade no hope of pere hele pan þere hert failet,
And pai drepit in dole, as pai degh shuld.

Agamemnon calls 10796 Agamynon, by graith men, to pe gret send
Oft-sythes, for sothe, in the same tyme,

on Priam to fight or surrender.

(fol. 165 b.)

Priam waits for the coming of Penthesilea,

queen of the Amazons.

Amazon, a province where only women dwelt.

Bade hym send furth his soudiouris, assemble

to feld,

And buske vnto Batell, or his burgh yelde.

10800 The noble hym denyet, for noy pat might happon,
He drede hym full depely for desteny feble,
Lest his folke in the feld were fynally distroyet;
And for hope þat he hade of a helpe sone.
10804 Of Amysones auntrus atlet the qwene,

þat was born to the burghe in the bare tyme,
Honerable Ector in armes to helpe.

There out in the Orient, in old mens dayes,
10808 A prouynse of prise, pat prestly was cald
Amysone with all men, aftur full longe,
There wond in no wegh but wemen allone,

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