Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden maonachi Cestrensis; together with the English translations of John Trevisa and of an unknown writer of the fifteenth century.

Capitulum vicesimum primum.

ABYMALECH, Gedeon [So α.; Geon, MS.] his son i-bore of a concubyn, was ledere in Sichem after his fader þre ȝere, and slow his owne broþern þre score and ten, outake oon, þat were i-bore of diuers wifes. [So α and Cx.; a concubyn, MS.] Þat tyme was þe batayle of Athene bytwene þe Laphites and Centaures. Palefatus, libro De Incredibilibus, seiþ þat þe Centaures [So α.; Sentaures, MS.] were noble hors men of Thessalia, þat fauȝt aȝenst þe Thebes men of Thebe in Egipt. Thola of þe lynage of Isachar was iuge in Israel þre and twenty ȝere. In his fourþe ȝere Medea [Meda, MS., and so below. A few similar slight errors have been tacitly corrected in this chapter; as Gereon, Synope, Archadia.] wente from hire hous|bonde Egeus, kyng of Athene, in to þe ilonde Colchos, þere sche was i-bore. Trogus, 43. Aboute þat tyme Faunus [Picus his sone regnede in Italy. In his tyme Euander come out of Arcadia and feng fildes [receyued and toke feldes, Cx.] and þe hil mount Palatyn. Þis Faunus] [Added from α. and Cx.] had a wyf þat heet Fatua, and hadde ofte a spirit of prophecie. Þerfore ȝit ofte þey þat haueþ a spirit of prophecie beeþ i-cleped Fatui. Þoo Hercules hadde i-slawe Geryon þe geant, kyng of Spayne, and ladde

his bestes þoruȝ Italy in token of þe victorie; he lay by þis Faunus his douȝter vnlawfulliche and gat Latinus, [So α. and Cx.; Lathinius, MS.] þat regnede afterward in Itali. Orosius, libro primo. Aboute þis ȝere Vesores, kyng of Egipt, werred first aȝenst þe Scites; noþeles [yet, Cx.] firste he sente messagers and heet [his] [Added from Cx. (only), who varies the clause.] enemyes be soget to his lawe; and þe Scites answerede: "A dul kyng and most riche meueþ bataile aȝenst pore men and nedy, nameliche while it douteþ what ende þe batayle schal haue; profite comeþ þerof noon, but grete and opoun harme and damage." And nouȝt longe after the dede acordede [acord, Cx.] wiþ þe answere; for þey com|pelled þe kyng of Egipt forto flee aȝen, and chasede and spoyl|ede his oost, [and wolde have i-spoylled] [Added from α. and Cx.] al Egipt, hadde þey nouȝt be lette by watres of þe ryuer Nilus. Þanne in þe torn|ynge aȝen þey werred fiftene ȝere in Asia, and made Asia tributarie; and here wifes sent hem worde, þat but þei wolde come home þey wolde haue children by men of þe contrayes aboute. Þe mene tyme among þe Scites tweye real ȝonge|lynges by fraude and deceyt of þe grete werre [So MS.; were, Cx.] i-putte

from home, and took wiþ hem a grete multitude of peple and strengþe, and werred in þe contrayes of Pontus and Cappado|cia. [Capadocie, Cx.] And whanne þey hadde i-doo greet destruccioun, þan þey were i-kilde of men of þe contrays aboute. Þanne hire wifes exilede and wydewes armed hem, and toke wreche of hire housbondes deþ; and whanne þey hadde i-made pees by strengþe and by dedes of armes þey took men of oþer londes to ligge [lye, Cx.] by hem forto haue children, and slow hire owne knaue children, [men childer, Cx.; who, however, has childerer above.] and kepte here mayde children, and brende of þe [her, Cx.] riȝt brest. At þe laste tweyne of þese women were queenes, Marsepia and Lampeto, and departed hire oost, and kepte and mayntenede hem, and batailled [hem in batel, Cx.; bataille, α. γ.; batel, β.] eiþer by hir cours. Þan whanne þey hadde ouercome a grete dele of Europa and many citees of Asia, þey sent home þe bettre part of here oost wiþ prayes þat þey hadde i-take. Þan enemyes slowȝ Marsepia þe queene and [So α. and Cx.; of, MS.] þe oþere women þat were i-left þere forto kepe Asia. And here douȝter Sinope regned after hir moder deþ, and gadered a singuler ioye of vertue by euer|lastynge chastite. Men wondrede so hugeliche of this wom|man, þat whanne Hercules hadde heste of his lorde for to werre

aȝenst þis [the, Cx.] queene, he gadrede al þe grete strengþe of þe ȝong men of Grees, and ordeyned hym nyne longe schippes, and fil vppon þe wommen þat were vnarmed. For hym was leuere stele [to stele, Cx.] vppon hem þan come vppon hem wiþ a bataile opoun|liche. Þan, whanne þe tweie queenes þat were sustres were sodeynliche ouercome, Hercules ȝaf Menalippa to his suster Antiopa, and wedded hir suster Hippolyta [Ypolita, MS., α.; Ipolita, β. γ.] to his knyȝt Theseus, and fenge þe armure of þe queene in prys of redemp|cioun. At the laste after Orthia þe queene, Penthesilea [Pentasilea, α.; Pentafiles, MS.] þe queene was in þe batayle of Troye, and ȝaf and [ȝaf and] om. Cx.] dede meny grete dedes aȝenst the Grees.