Incipit Legenda Didonis martiris, Cartaginis Regine.
| |
Glorye and honour, Virgil
Mantoan, | |
Be to thy name! and I shal, as I can, | |
Folwe thy lanterne, as thow gost byforn, | 925 |
How Eneas to Dido was forsworn. | |
In thyn Eneydos and Naso wol I
take | |
The tenor, and the grete effectes make. | |
Whan Troye brought was to destruccioun | |
By Grekes sleyghte, and namely by
Synoun, | 930 |
Feynynge the hors offered unto Mynerve, | |
Thourgh which that many a Troyan moste sterve; |
|
And Ector hadde, after his deth, apeered; | |
And fyr so wod it myghte nat been steered | |
In al the noble tour of Ylioun, | 935 |
That of the cite was the chef dongeoun; | |
And al the contre was so lowe ybrought, | |
And Priamus the kyng fordon
and nought; | |
And Enyas was charged by Venus | |
To fleen awey, he tok Ascanius, | 940 |
That was his sone, in his ryght hand, and fledde; |
|
And on his bak he bar and with hym ledde | |
His olde fader ycleped Anchises, | |
And by the weye his wif Creusa he les. | |
And moche sorwe hadde he in his mynde, | 945 |
Or that he coude his felaweshipe fynde. | |
But at the laste, whan he hadde hem founde, | |
He made hym redy in a certeyn stounde, | |
And to the se ful faste he gan hym hye, | |
And sayleth forth with al his companye |
950 |
Toward Ytayle, as wolde his destinee. | |
But of his aventures in the se | |
Nis nat to purpos for to speke of here, | |
For it acordeth nat to my matere. | |
But, as I seyde, of hym and of Dido | 955 |
Shal be my tale, til that I have do. | |
So longe he saylede in the salte se | |
Tyl in Libie unnethe aryved he | |
With shipes sevene and with no more navye; | |
And glad was he to londe for to hye, | 960 |
So was he with the tempest al toshake. | |
And whan that he the haven hadde ytake, | |
He hadde a knyght, was called Achates, | |
And hym of al his felawshipe he ches | |
To gon with hym, the cuntre for tespie. | 965 |
He tok with hym no more companye, | |
But forth they gon, and lafte his shipes ryde, | |
His fere and he, withouten any gyde. | |
So longe he walketh in this wildernesse, | |
Til at the laste he mette an hunteresse. | 970 |
A bowe in hande and arwes hadde she; | |
Hire clothes cutted were unto the kne. | |
But she was yit the fayreste creature | |
That evere was yformed by Nature; | |
And Eneas and Achates she grette, | 975 |
And thus she to hem spak whan she hem mette: | |
"Saw ye," quod she, "as ye han walked wyde, |
|
Any of my sustren walke yow besyde | |
With any wilde bor or other best, | |
That they han hunted to, in this forest, | 980 |
Ytukked up, with arwes in hire cas?" | |
"Nay, sothly, lady," quod this Eneas; | |
"But by thy beaute, as it thynketh me, | |
Thow myghtest nevere erthly woman be, | |
But Phebus syster art thow, as I gesse. | 985 |
And, if so be that thow be a goddesse, | |
Have mercy on oure labour and oure wo." | |
"I nam no goddesse, sothly," quod she tho; |
|
"For maydens walke in this contre here, | |
With arwes and with bowe, in this manere. | 990 |
This is the reyne of Libie there ye ben, | |
Of which that Dido lady is and queen" |
|
And shortly tolde hym al the occasyoun | |
Why Dido cam into that regioun, | |
Of which as now me lesteth nat to ryme; | 995 |
It nedeth nat, it were but los of tyme. | |
For this is al and som, it was Venus, | |
His owene moder, that spak with him thus, | |
And to Cartage she bad he sholde hym dighte, | |
And vanyshed anon out of his syghte. |
1000 |
I coude folwe, word for word, Virgile, | |
But it wolde laste al to longe while. | |
This noble queen, that cleped was Dido, | |
That whilom was the wif of Sytheo, | |
That fayrer was than is the bryghte sonne, | 1005 |
This noble toun of Cartage hath bigonne; | |
In which she regneth in so gret honour, | |
That she was holden of alle queenes flour | |
Of gentillesse, of fredom, of beaute, | |
That wel was hym that myghte hire ones se; | 1010 |
Of kynges and of lordes so desyred | |
That al the world hire beaute hadde yfyred, | |
She stod so wel in every wightes grace. | |
Whan Eneas was come unto that place, | |
Unto the mayster temple of al the toun | 1015 |
Ther Dido was in hire devocyoun, | |
Ful pryvyly his weye than hath he nome. | |
Whan he was in the large temple come, | |
I can nat seyn if that it be possible, | |
But Venus hadde hym maked invysible | 1020 |
Thus seyth the bok, withouten any les. | |
And what this Eneas and Achates | |
Hadden in this temple ben overal, | |
Thanne founde they, depeynted on a wal, | |
How Troye and al the lond destroyed was. | 1025 |
"Allas, that I was born!" quod Eneas; |
|
"Thourghout the world oure shame is kid so wyde, |
|
Now it is peynted upon every syde. | |
We, that weren in prosperite, | |
Been now desclandred, and in swich degre, | 1030 |
No lenger for to lyven I ne kepe." | |
And with that word he brast out for to wepe | |
So tenderly that routhe it was to sene. | |
This fresshe lady, of the cite queene, | |
Stod in the temple, in hire estat real, |
1035 |
So rychely and ek so fayr withal, |
|
So yong, so lusty, with hire eyen glade, |
|
That, if that God, that hevene and erthe made, |
|
Wolde han a love, for beaute and goodnesse, |
|
And womanhod, and trouthe, and semelynesse, |
1040 |
Whom shulde he loven but this lady swete? |
|
Ther nys no woman to hym half so mete. |
|
Fortune, that hath the world in governaunce, |
|
Hath sodeynly brought in so newe a chaunce |
|
That nevere was ther yit so fremde a cas. |
1045 |
For al the companye of Eneas, |
|
Which that he wende han loren in the se, |
|
Aryved is nat fer from that cite; |
|
For which, the gretteste of his lordes some |
|
By aventure ben to the cite come, |
1050 |
Unto that same temple, for to seke |
|
The queene, and of hire socour to beseke, |
|
Swich renoun was there sprongen of hire goodnesse. |
|
And whan they hadden told al here distresse, |
1055 |
And al here tempest and here harde cas, |
|
Unto the queen apeered Eneas, |
|
And openly biknew that it was he. |
|
Who hade joye thanne but his meyne, |
|
That hadde founde here lord, here governour? |
1060 |
The queen saugh that they dide hym swych honour, |
|
And hadde herd ofte of Eneas er tho, |
|
And in hire herte she hadde routhe and wo |
|
That evere swich a noble man as he |
|
Shal ben disherite in swich degre; |
1065 |
And saw the man, that he was lyk a knyght, |
|
And suffisaunt of persone and of myght, |
|
And lyk to been a verray gentil man; |
|
And wel his wordes he besette can, |
|
And hadde a noble visage for the nones, |
1070 |
And formed wel of braunes and of bones. |
|
For after Venus hadde he swich fayrnesse |
|
That no man myghte be half so fayr, I gesse; |
|
And wel a lord he semede for to be. |
|
And, for he was a straunger, somwhat she |
1075 |
Likede hym the bet, as, God do bote, |
|
To som folk ofte newe thyng is sote. |
|
Anon hire herte hath pite of his wo, |
|
And with that pite love com in also; |
|
And thus, for pite and for gentillesse, |
1080 |
Refreshed moste he been of his distresse. |
|
She seyde, certes, that she sory was |
|
That he hath had swych peryl and swich cas; |
|
And, in hire frendly speche, in this manere |
|
She to hym spak, and seyde as ye may here: |
1085 |
"Be ye nat Venus sone and Anchises? |
|
In good feyth, al the worshipe and encres |
|
That I may goodly don yow, ye shal have. |
|
Youre shipes and youre meyne shal I save." |
|
And many a gentil word she spak hym to, |
1090 |
And comaunded hire messageres to go |
|
The same day, withouten any fayle, |
|
His shippes for to seke, and hem vitayle. |
|
Ful many a beste she to the shippes sente, |
|
And with the wyn she gan hem to presente, |
1095 |
And to hire royal paleys she hire spedde, |
|
And Eneas alwey with hire she ledde. |
|
What nedeth yow the feste to descrive? |
|
He nevere beter at ese was in his lyve. |
|
Ful was the feste of deyntees and rychesse, |
1100 |
Of instruments, of song, and of gladnesse, |
|
Of many an amorous lokyng and devys. |
|
This Eneas is come to paradys |
|
Out of the swolow of helle, and thus in joye |
|
Remembreth hym of his estat in Troye. |
1105 |
To daunsynge chaumberes ful of paramentes, |
|
Of riche beddes, and of ornementes, |
|
This Eneas is led, after the mete. |
|
And with the quene, whan that he hadde sete, |
|
And spices parted, and the wyn agon, |
1110 |
Unto his chambres was he led anon |
|
To take his ese and for to have his reste, |
|
With al his folk, to don what so hem leste. |
|
There nas courser wel ybrydeled non, |
|
Ne stede, for the justing wel to gon, |
1115 |
Ne large palfrey, esy for the nones, |
|
Ne jewel, fretted ful of ryche stones, |
|
Ne sakkes ful of gold, of large wyghte, |
|
Ne ruby non, that shynede by nyghte, |
|
Ne gentil hawtein faucoun heroner, |
1120 |
Ne hound, for hert or wilde bor or der, |
|
Ne coupe of gold, with floreyns newe ybete, |
|
That in the land of Libie may be gete, |
|
That Dido ne hath it Eneas ysent; |
|
And al is payed, what that he hath spent, |
1125 |
Thus can this quene honurable hire gestes calle, |
|
As she that can in fredom passen alle. |
|
Eneas sothly ek, withouten les, |
|
Hadde sent unto his ship by Achates |
|
After his sone, and after riche thynges, |
1130 |
Bothe sceptre, clothes, broches, and ek rynges, |
|
Some for to were, and some for to presente |
|
To hire that alle thise noble thynges hym sente; |
|
And bad his sone how that he shulde make |
|
The presenting, and to the queen it take. |
1135 |
Repeyred is this Achates agayn, |
|
And Eneas ful blysful is and fayn |
|
To sen his yonge sone Ascanyus. |
|
But natheles, oure autour telleth us, |
|
That Cupido, that is the god of love, |
1140 |
At preyere of his moder hye above, |
|
Hadde the liknesse of the child ytake, |
|
This noble queen enamored to make |
|
Of Eneas; but, as of that scripture, |
|
Be as be may, I take of it no cure. |
1145 |
But soth is this, the queen hath mad swich chere |
|
Unto this child, that wonder is to here; |
|
And of the present that his fader sente |
|
She thanked hym ful ofte, in good entente. |
|
Thus is this queen in pleasaunce and in joye, |
1150 |
With alle these newe lusty folk of Troye. |
|
And of the dedes hath she more enquered |
|
Of Eneas, and al the story lered |
|
Of Troye, and al the longe day they tweye |
|
Entendeden to speken and to pleye; |
1155 |
Of which ther gan to breden swich a fyr |
|
That sely Dido hath now swich desyr |
|
With Eneas, hire newe gest, to dele, |
|
That she hath lost hire hewe and ek hire hele. |
|
Now to theffect, now to the fruyt of al, |
1160 |
Whi I have told this story, and telle shal. |
|
Thus I begynne: it fil upon a nyght, |
|
Whan that the mone up reysed hadde his lyght, |
|
This noble queene unto hire reste wente. |
|
She siketh sore, and gan hyreself turmente; |
1165 |
She waketh, walweth, maketh many a breyd, |
|
As don these lovers, as I have herd seyd. |
|
And at the laste, unto hire syster Anne |
|
She made hire mone, and ryght thus spak she thanne: |
|
"Now, dere sister myn, what may it be |
1170 |
That me agasteth in my drem?" quod she. |
|
"This newe Troyan is so in my thought, |
|
For that me thynketh he is so wel ywrought, |
|
And ek so likly for to ben a man, |
|
And therwithal so moche good he can, |
1175 |
That al my love and lyf lyth in his cure. |
|
Have yet nat herd him telle his aventure? |
|
Now certes, Anne, if that ye rede it me, |
|
I wolde fayn to hym ywedded be; |
|
This is theffect; what sholde I more seye? |
1180 |
In hym lyth al, to do me live or deye." |
|
Hyre syster Anne, as she that coude hire good, |
|
Seyde as hire thoughte, and somdel it withstod. |
|
But herof was so long a sermounynge, |
|
It were to long to make rehersynge, |
1185 |
But finaly, it may nat ben withstonde: |
|
Love wol love, for nothing wol it wonde. |
|
The dawenyng up-rist out of the se. |
|
This amorous queene chargeth hire meyne |
|
The nettes dresse, and speres brode and kene; |
1190 |
An huntyng wol this lusty freshe queene, |
|
So priketh hire this newe joly wo. |
|
To hors
is al hir lusty folk ygo; | |
Into the court the houndes been ybrought; | |
And upon coursers swift as any thought | 1195 |
Hire yonge knyghtes hoven al aboute, | |
And of hire women ek an huge route. | |
Upon a thikke palfrey, paper-whit, | |
With sadel red, enbrounded with delyt, | |
Of gold the barres up enbosede hye, |
1200 |
Sit Dido, al in gold and perre wrye; | |
And she as fair as is the bryghte morwe, | |
That heleth syke folk of nyghtes sorwe. | |
Upon a courser stertlynge as the fyr |
|
Men myghte turne hym with a litel wyr |
1205 |
Sit Eneas, lik Phebus to devyse, | |
So was he fressh arayed in his wyse. | |
The fomy brydel with the bit of gold | |
Governeth he, ryght as hymself hath wold. | |
And forth this noble queen thus lat I ride | 1210 |
On huntynge, with this Troyan by hyre side. |
|
The herde of hertes founden is anon, |
|
With "Hay! go bet! pryke thow! lat gon, lat gon! |
|
Why nyl the leoun comen, or the bere, |
|
That I myghte ones mete hym with this spere?" |
1215 |
Thus seyn these yonge folk, and up they kylle |
|
These bestes wilde, and han hem at here wille. |
|
Among al this to rumbelen gan the hevene; |
|
The thunder rored with a grisely stevene; |
|
Doun cam the reyn with hayl and slet, so faste, |
1220 |
With hevenes fyr, that it so sore agaste |
|
This noble queen, and also hire meyne, |
|
That ech of hem was glad awey to fle. |
|
And shortly, from the tempest hire to save, |
|
She fledde hireself into a litel cave, |
1225 |
And with hire wente this Eneas also. |
|
I not, with hem if there wente any mo; |
|
The autour maketh of it no mencioun. |
|
And here began the depe affeccioun |
|
Betwixe hem two; this was the firste morwe |
1230 |
Of hire gladnesse, and gynning of hire sorwe. |
|
For there hath Eneas ykneled so, |
|
And told hire al his herte and al his wo, |
|
And swore so depe to hire to be trewe, |
|
For wel or wo and chaunge hire for no newe, |
1235 |
And as a fals lovere so wel can pleyne, |
|
That sely Dido rewede on his peyne, |
|
And tok hym for husbonde, and becom his wyf |
|
For everemo, whil that hem laste lyf. |
|
And after this, whan that the tempest stente, |
1240 |
With myrthe out as they comen, home they wente. |
|
The wikke fame upros, and that anon, |
|
How Eneas hath with the queen ygon |
|
Into the cave, and demede as hem liste. |
|
And whan the kyng that Yarbas highte it wiste, |
1245 |
As he that hadde hir loved evere his lyf, |
|
And wowede hyre, to han hire to his wyf, |
|
Swich sorwe as he hath maked, and swich cheere, |
|
It is a routhe and pite for to here. |
|
But as in love, alday it happeth so |
1250 |
That oon shal laughen at anothers wo. |
|
Now laugheth Eneas, and is in joye |
|
And more richesse than evere he was in Troye. |
|
O sely wemen, ful of innocence, |
|
Ful of pite, of trouthe and conscience, |
1255 |
What maketh yow to men to truste so? |
|
Have ye swych routhe upon hyre feyned wo, |
|
And han swich olde ensaumples yow beforn? |
|
Se ye nat alle how they ben forsworn? |
|
Where sen ye oon, that he ne hath laft his leef, |
1260 |
Or ben unkynde, or don hire som myscheef, |
|
Or piled hire, or bosted of his dede? |
|
Ye may as wel it sen, as ye may rede. |
|
Tak hede now of this grete gentil-man, |
|
This Troyan, that so wel hire plesen can, |
1265 |
That feyneth hym so trewe and obeysynge, |
|
So gentil, and so privy of his doinge, |
|
And can so wel don alle his obeysaunces, |
|
And wayten hire at festes and at daunces, |
|
And whan she goth to temple and hom ageyn, |
1270 |
And fasten til he hath his lady seyn, |
|
And beren in his devyses, for hire sake, |
|
Not I not what; and songes wolde he make, |
|
Justen, and don of armes many thynges, |
|
Sende hire lettres, tokens, broches, rynges |
1275 |
Now herkneth how he shal his lady serve! |
|
There as he was in peril for to sterve |
|
For hunger, and for myschef in the se, |
|
And desolat, and fled from his cuntre, |
|
And al his folk with tempest al todryven, |
1280 |
She hath hire body and ek hire reame yiven |
|
Into his hand, there as she myghte have been |
|
Of othere land than of Cartage a queen, |
|
And lyved in joye ynogh; what wole ye more? |
|
This Eneas, that hath so depe yswore, |
1285 |
Is wery of his craft withinne a throwe; |
|
The hote ernest is al overblowe. |
|
And pryvyly he doth his shipes dyghte, |
|
And shapeth hym to stele awey by nyghte. |
|
This Dido hath suspecioun of this, |
1290 |
And thoughte wel that it was al amys. |
|
For in his bed she lyth a-nyght and syketh; |
|
She axeth hym anon what hym myslyketh |
|
"My dere herte, which that I love most?" |
|
"Certes," quod he, "this nyght my faderes gost |
1295 |
Hath in my slep so sore me tormented, |
|
And ek Mercurye his message hath presented, |
|
That nedes to the conquest of Ytayle |
|
My destine is sone for to sayle; |
|
For which, me thynketh, brosten is myn herte!" |
1300 |
Therwith his false teres out they sterte, |
|
And taketh hire withinne his armes two. |
|
"Is that in ernest?" quod she, "wole ye so? |
|
Have ye nat sworn to wyve me to take" |
|
Allas, what woman wole ye of me make? |
1305 |
I am a gentil woman and a queen. |
|
Ye wole nat from youre wif thus foule fleen? |
|
That I was born, allas! What shal I do?" |
|
To telle in short, this noble quen Dydo, |
|
She seketh halwes and doth sacryfise; |
1310 |
She kneleth, cryeth, that routhe is to devyse; |
|
Conjureth hym, and profereth hym to be |
|
His thral, his servant in the leste degre; |
|
She falleth hym to fote and swouneth ther, |
|
Dischevele, with hire bryghte gilte her, |
1315 |
And seyth, "Have mercy; let me with yow ryde! |
|
These lordes, which that wonen me besyde, |
|
Wole me distroyen only for youre sake. |
|
And, so ye wole me now to wive take, |
|
As ye han sworn, thanne wol I yeve yow leve |
1320 |
To slen me with youre swerd now sone at eve! |
|
For thanne yit shal I deyen as youre wif. |
|
I am with childe, and yeve my child his lyf! |
|
Mercy, lord! have pite in youre thought!" |
|
But al this thing avayleth hire ryght nought, |
1325 |
For on a nyght, slepynge he let hire lye, |
|
And stal awey unto his companye. | |
And as a traytour forth he gan to sayle | |
Toward the large contre of Ytayle. | |
Thus he hath laft Dido in wo and pyne, | 1330 |
And wedded ther a lady hyghte Lavyne. | |
A cloth he lafte, and ek his swerd stondynge, | |
Whan he from Dido stal in hire slepynge, | |
Ryght at hire beddes hed, so gan he hie, | |
Whan that he stal awey to his navye; | 1335 |
Which cloth, whan sely Dido gan awake, | |
She hath it kyst ful ofte for his sake, | |
And seyde, "O swete cloth, whil Juppiter it leste, |
|
Tak now my soule, unbynd me of this unreste! | |
I have fulfild of fortune al the cours." | 1340 |
And thus, allas, withouten his socours, | |
Twenty tyme yswouned hath she thanne. | |
And whanne that she unto hire syster Anne | |
Compleyned hadde of which I may nat wryte, |
|
So gret a routhe I have it for tendite |
1345 |
And bad hire norice and hire sister gon | |
To fechen fyr and other thyng anon, | |
And seyde that she wolde sacryfye, | |
And whan she myghte hire tyme wel espie, | |
Upon the fir of sacryfice she sterte, |
1350 |
And with his swerd she rof hyre to the herte. |
|
But, as myn auctour seith, yit thus she seyde; |
|
Or she was hurt, byforen or she deyde, | |
She wrot a letter anon that thus began: | |
"Ryght so," quod she, "as that the white swan |
1355 |
Ayens his deth begynnyth for to synge, | |
Right so to yow make I my compleynynge. | |
Not that I trowe to geten yow ageyn, | |
For wel I wot that it is al in veyn, | |
Syn that the goddes been contraire to me. | 1360 |
But syn my name is lost thourgh yow," quod she, |
|
"I may wel lese on yow a word or letter, | |
Al be it that I shal ben nevere the better; | |
For thilke wynd that blew youre ship awey, | |
The same wynd hath blowe awey youre fey." | 1365 |
But who wol al this letter have in mynde, | |
Rede Ovyde, and in hym he shal it fynde. | |
Explicit Legenda Didonis martiris, Cartaginis Regine. |
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