| Incipit Legenda Didonis martiris, Cartaginis Regine. |
| | Here begins the legend of
Dido, martyr,
Queen of Carthage. |
| Glorye and honour, Virgil
Mantoan, | | |
Glory and honor, Virgil of Mantua, |
| Be to thy name! and I shal, as I
can, | | |
Be to your name! And I shall, as I can, |
| Folwe thy lanterne, as thow gost
byforn, | 925 | |
Follow your lantern, as you go before, |
| How Eneas to Dido was forsworn. | | |
How Aeneas to Dido was forsworn. |
| In thyn Eneydos and Naso wol I
take | | |
In your Aeneid and Ovid will I take |
| The tenor, and the grete effectes
make. | | |
The tenor, and the great effects make. |
| Whan Troye brought was to
destruccioun | | |
When Troy brought was to destruction |
| By Grekes sleyghte, and namely by
Synoun, | 930 | |
By Greeks' sleight, and namely by Sinon, |
| Feynynge the hors offered unto
Mynerve, | | |
Feigning the horse offered unto Minerva, |
| Thourgh which that many a Troyan moste
sterve; | | |
Through which that many a Trojan must perish; |
| And Ector hadde, after his deth,
apeered; | | |
And Hector had, after his death, appeared; |
| And fyr so wod it myghte nat been
steered | | |
And fire, so wild it might not been steered, |
| In al the noble tour of Ylioun, | 935 | |
In all the noble towers of Ilium, |
| That of the cite was the chef
dongeoun; | | |
That of the city was the chief dungeon; |
| And al the contre was so lowe
ybrought, | | |
And all the country was so low brought, |
| And Priamus the kyng fordon and
nought; | | |
And Priam the king defeated and naught; |
| And Enyas was charged by Venus | | |
And Aeneas was charged by Venus |
| To fleen awey, he tok Ascanius, | 940 | |
To flee away, he took Ascanius, |
| That was his sone, in his ryght hand, and
fledde; | | |
That was his son, in his right hand, and fled; |
| And on his bak he bar and with hym
ledde | | |
And on his back he bore and with him led, |
| His olde fader ycleped
Anchises, | | |
His old father called Anchises, |
| And by the weye his wif Creusa he
les. | | |
And by the way his wife Creusa he lost. |