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

Capitulum decimum tertium.

THE peple of Rome made stryf as þough þey were mysbode [mysledde by, Cx.] of the senatoures; þerfore þey made hem tribunes as deffen|ders [defendours, Cx.] of þe peple aȝenst [aȝenes, γ.] þe consuls. Quintus Marcius, duc [duke, Cx.] of Rome, þat hadde i-take þe Vulces to forhonde, [Vultes bifore, Cx.] was putte [pot, γ.] out of þe citee, [cyte, Cx.] and was wrooþ, and wente to þe Vulces [Vultes, Cx.] þat he hadde raþer i-take, [taken, Cx.] and hadde helpe of hem, and wente forto werre and destroye [destruye, γ.] þe contray [countre, Cx.] fyue [vyf, γ.] myle from Rome,

and ouercome ofte [efte, Cx.] þe Romayns and forsook pees þat þey profered and cesed nouȝt [cessed not, Cx.] to werre and to [to] om. Cx.] greue þe citee, or [er, β.; ar, γ.; till, Cx.] his moder and his wyf come out [of the cyte], [Cx.; not γ.] and prayed [praieden, β.] for þe citee. Þre hondred of [of] om. β. and Cx.] noble men þat hatte Familia Fabia fauȝt alone aȝenst þe Fegenses, [Vegenses, β. γ. and Cx.] and were i-smyte to deþe. Þe Romayns beeþ byseged [bisegede, β.] in þe [hul inserted in γ.] mont Algid, [Algyd, Cx.] and Lucius Quincius delyuereþ [delyuerd, Cx.] hem. He was i-take from þe plowȝ [plough, Cx.; plowe, β.] and i-made a traytour [dictator, α. β. γ.; dictatour, Cx.] ; he wyped awey his swote [swat, Cx.; swot, β.; swoot, γ.] and toke on a real [royall, Cx.; rial, β.] gowne. Egipt forsook Darius, kyng of Pers, and wolde nouȝt be vnder hym. Pomphilia, [Pompilia, β. γ. and Cx.] a mayde at Rome, was i-take into [in, α. β. γ. and Cx.] leccherie, and i-buried quyk alyue. [was buryed quyck alive, Cx.] Pyndarius [Pyndarus, Cx.; Pindarus, γ.] and Symonides, þe poetes, [poetis, β.] were þoo in hire floures. Trogus, libro 2^o. After þe deth of Philistratus, [Pisistratus, α. and Cx.] þe tiraunt of Athene, oon of his sones took a mayde wiþ strengþe, [by vyolence, Cx.] and lay with here; [by hir, Cx. and β.; by here, γ.] and þerfore þe maydens [maydes, Cx.; mayde, γ.] broþer slowȝ hym; þat oþer broþer hiȝte Hispyas, [named Espyas, Cx.; Hispias, β. and γ.] and [and] om. Cx.] helde [huld, γ.] þe kyngdom of Athene after his fader, and made hym bytake [be take, γ.] þat

hadde i-slawe [be taken that had slayne, Cx.] his broþer, and whan þe mansleer was i-com|pelled by torment to knoweleche what [what men wust and wer assen|tyng, γ.] men he wiste þat [and, α. β.] were assentynge to þe manis deeþ, [knowledge the men that were as|sentyng to the mannes deth, Cx.] he accusede and appelede alle [al, γ.] Hispias þe tyraunt his frendes, [appelled all the Hispias the ty|rauntes frendes, Cx.] and whanne þey alle were i-slawe, Hispias axede ȝif þere were eny moo þat woste and [woste and] om. Cx.] were assentynge to þat deþ, [consentynge to his broder deth, Cx.] and he answerede and seide, "Þere is no man on lyue [alyue, Cx. and γ.] þat is [þat is] om. Cx.] worþy to dye but þou allone." Þan þe peple knewe þe vertu of þe ȝong man, and put Hispias [Espyas, Cx.] out of þe citee. Þanne Hispias wente anon into Pers to Darius þe kyng, and excited [exited, Cx.; excitede, β.] hym aȝenst [aȝenes, γ.] þe men [them of, Cx.] of Athene. Orosius, libro 2^o. Þis Darius, after þat he hadde recouered [rekevered, α. γ; rekeurd, Cx.] by bataille þe Assiries and þe Babyloyns þat faillede from his kyngdom, [that rebelled ayenst hym, Cx.] he ordeynede werre and bataille [batayll and warre, Cx.] aȝenst [aȝenes, γ.] Anticirus, kyng of Schytes, [Schites, Cx.] ffor he hadde i-axed þe mariage of his douȝter and hadde it nouȝt, and went forth wiþ seuene hondred þowsand men of armes, and loste seuenty

þowsand men of armes [men of armes] om. α. and Cx.] in sodeyn reses and chekkes; [by sodayne reses and skar|mysshes, Cx.; reses and chekkis, β.] noþeles in þe tornynge aȝen he chasede þe Macedons [in retorning he chastysed the Macedoynes, Cx.] and þe Iones. Also he ordeyned a bataile aȝenst þe men of Athene, for þey hadde i-bee in help of Ionis. [helped and were assistente to Iones, Cx.] Noþeles [the] [Cx.] men of Athene wiþ ten þowsand [mette so meny þowsand], [From α. γ.] and were so glad forto fiȝte, so þat whan þere was [were, Cx.] a þowsand paas bytwene þe scheltroms, [shiltrons, Cx.; sheltrons, β.; scholtroms, γ.] þe cours was so i-sped þat the strokes [of arwes, added in γ.] come to fore [bifore, Cx.] þe enemyes. Þan þere was so strong fiȝte þat þey semede men in oon [on that one, Cx. and β.] side and bestes in þe oþer. [on that other, Cx. and β.] Trogus, libro 2^o. Þe Perses were ouercome and fliȝ to hire [fledde to theyr, Cx.] schippes, of þe whiche [whuch, γ.] schippes meny were adreynt, [dreynt, Cx.] and meny were i-take. In so grete a victorie hit were hard to telle who gat þe firste [firste] om. Cx.; furste, γ.] prys; [pryce, Cx.] noþeles oon Cinegerus, [Cynegyrus, Cx.] a knyȝt of Athene, after meny grete deedes and slauȝtes, [slaughters, Cx.] pursuede þe Perses þat fleiȝe [fledde, Cx.; flyȝ, γ.] to schippes. Þere a schippe þat was i-lade [laded, Cx.] he helde [heelde, β.; a huld, γ.] wiþ his riȝt hond forto [fort, γ.] þat he hadde i-lore his riȝt hond [til it was smyten of . . ., Cx.] and

eft wiþ þe lifte hond [and lost it, Cx.] [forto [fort, γ.] he had y-lore þe left hond], [From α.] and whan he hadde i-lore boþe [his] [Cx.] hondes at þe laste [at þe laste] om. Cx.] he boot [bote, Cx. and β.] on and hilde þe schip wiþ his teeþ, so þat þe stok of a man fouȝt wiþ his teeþ as it were a wood [woode, Cx.] beest. Two hon|dred of the Perses deide þere wiþ Hippius [Hipius, Cx.; Hispius, γ.] þe tiraunt, and sone afterward Darius lefte meny sones on lyue, [alyue, Cx.] and deide þe ȝere of his kyngdom seuen and þritty. [Cx. inverts this sentence, "Darius dyed . . . and lefte . . ."] Among his sones Artaxerses as he þat was i-gete [begeten, Cx.] in þe kyngdom, and he hadde þe grete Cirus to his moder graunt-sire þat was avaunsed [auaunced, Cx.; afansed, γ. This leaf of γ is greatly injured by fire.] to þe kyngdom.