The story of England

¶ De occisione gentis Moddredy.

Þat ilke day at Romeneye Arþur dide manion deye Line 14,132 Of Moddredes folk here & þere, & mo schulde, ȝyf þe nyght ne were. Arthur sey þe day gan faille, He bod & stynte his folk to taille; Line 14,136 He gaf al tente til his owen conrey. Þat while [to whils.] fledde Moddred a-wey; Al þat night Moddred fledde To seke recet, but yuele [reste bot ill.] he spedde; Line 14,140 He wende Londone wolde hym receyue; Þey wold hym nought, but let hym weyue. Temese & Londone he passed al, At Wynchestre þer tok he stal, Line 14,144 Þere he herbergwed al a nyght [MS. myght.] Ageyn þer wille, al þorow myght; Of þe burgeys he tok feaute

& homage, al [at.] þeir maugre. [De Sepultura Walwyny.] ¶ Arthur wolde no soiour make, But Moddred wold he sle or take; But sorewe ful þough, did hym gret pyn, Of sire Gawayn [Wawayn.] his dere cosyn, Line 14,152 & Agusel þe Scottische kyng: Arthur made here byrying [was at þer birieng.] At Wybyry, þat ys in Walys; . Þer lye þey boþe, seyþ Peres tales. [See Pierre de Langtoft's Chro|nicle, Rolls Series, vol. i. p. 220, l. 16-17.] Line 14,156 Now comeþ al Arthures [turnes Arthur.] sorewe & drede. To venge hym on þe false Moddrede, Day ne night ne wolde he blynne. To sege Wynchestre, Moddred wyþynne, Line 14,160 He dide þe contre somoune al out, & vmbyleide þe toun about.

Þen sey Moddred he was in clos, & byseged [bised.] wiþ his fos; Line 14,164 He þoughte þat ȝyf he so longe lay, Wel schulde he nought wynne a-way, Þat nedly taken schuld he be, . & maugre hym [his.] ȝelde þe cite. Line 14,168 Among his men he made a cry, & bad hem alle arme hem redy; Wyþ hym to fighte leuere he wylde . Þan, his vnþankes, to þem [þam him.] ȝelde. Line 14,172 His men in bataille gan þem [his batails set how þai suld.] renge, & wente right out hym [MS. hyn.] for to venge; Þe parties sone to-gydere ran, & lorn was þere þen many a man. Line 14,176 Moddredes partie ȝede al doun, [Lambeth folio 60b:1] ffor his folk had no fuisoun;

Hit was no wonder he hadde no grace, [P. leaves out this line.] . ffor traitour scholde nought spede in place. [P. leaves out this line.] Line 14,180 He sey his side no tyme ne spedde; ffor his misdede [he had misdone.] þe kyng he dredde; Hym self he þoughte algate [þouh for.] to saue, . Siþen he ne [sen he.] mighte no grace haue; Line 14,184 His priues alle til hym he tok, Þo þat Arthur alle fursok, Þo þat Moddred hadde forþ brought, [P. leaves out this line.] Þat neuere louede Arthur nought; [P. leaves out this line.] Line 14,188 Priuely wyþ hem he fledde a-wey, & lefte þer al his [left in bataile þat.] oþer conrey. To Souþhaumptone he tok þe sty, & huyred hym schipes al redy, Line 14,192 & swyþe anon þey gonne forþ [& son onward were to.] saille; ffor drede he fledde til Cornewaille. Þo þat Moddred byhinde hym left, Alle were þey slayn, þer lyues [& lyue.] reft, Line 14,196 & wan þe toun [doun.] of þem ilkon; But wo was hym Moddred was gon. Sire Vrienes sone, Iwene he hight, Gentil of blod, and ful god knyght; Line 14,200 Agusel cosyn was sire Iweyn, Þe reme of Scotland he gan to cleym, [

In scotland he mad a cleyme. P. adds—

for he was next of his kynþerfor mad he cleym þerin.

] He left hit til [He gaf.] [Petyt folio 82a:2] Iweyn in herytage, & Iweyn made Arthur homage. Line 14,204 Iweyn had laught gret honour, Ageyn Moddred he stod in stour, & dide & seyde Moddred gret schonde, [P. leaves out this line.] . Þe while Arthur was out of londe. [P. leaves out this line.] Line 14,208

Line 14,208

At ȝork to soiourne was þe quen, Scheo herde what wo hem was bytwen, Þat Moddred ne myghte in bataille dure, But euere was at desconfiture. Line 14,212 Scheo þoughte scheo was þen mykel to blame ffor þe vylenye & þe schame þat Moddred hadde brought hure inne, & wyþ hym hadde y-leyn in synne, Line 14,216 & wedded hure ageyn þe lawe,— He ne lefte for kyng [kynd.] ne Godes awe,— Scheo hopede þat hit scholde yuele [hoped ill it suld bind.] ende, . Hure noble lord so foule to schende, Line 14,220 & hure self for euere y-schent. [P. leaves out this line.] So mykel sorewe in herte scheo hent, [P. leaves out this line.] Scheo fledde away out of þe toun To Walys, vntil Carlioun; Line 14,224 Sch[eo] ȝald hure til [scho did hir in.] þat nonnerye, & tok þe veil for hure folye; Þer-inne was scheo hyd & sperd, Þat noman [non.] of hure more herd. Line 14,228 ¶ Moddred had sesed þen Cornewaille, ffor al Ingeland [all þe toþer.] gan hym faille, & sente aboute to landes sers [lond sers.] After knyghte & souders; Line 14,232 Payen & Cristen knyght of scheld, Alle þat wilde, at soud he held. He sente for Irysche & Noreys; [P. leaves out this line.] Þe Saxons come wyþ þe Daneys; [P. leaves out this line.] Line 14,236 ' Þat hadde nought on to lyue, [P. leaves out this line.] ' Lond,' he seyde, 'he wolde hem gyue;' [P. leaves out this line.] He highte & gaf to forthe his sped, [P. leaves out this line.] [Lambeth folio 60b:2] As man byhoues þat haþ gret ned. [P. leaves out this line.] Line 14,240

Line 14,240

But Arthur sore [sone.] ouer þoughte ȝyf he wiste what hym doughte; He dredde mykel his grete comynge, [P. þe grete comyng.] . Payens among þe Crystene to brynge. Line 14,244 Arthur wolde no lenger byde, But gadered folk on ilka [vpon his.] syde Of alle þe contres heþen to [cuntres vntill.] Humber; fful manye þer were, as seys þe [many he had it sais no.] noumber. Line 14,248 ȝyf Arthur hadde lenger abiden, Þe sykerere myghte Moddred haue ryden. When þe kyng had folk ynow, Toward Cornewaille he hym drow, Line 14,252 & com in þer by þat cost Þer þat Moddred logged [þer Modred lay with.] his host. Þen seide Moddred, 'he wolde nought fle, ' But abyde what chaunce so [he wild stand what chance mot.] [Petyt folio 82b:1] be; Line 14,256 ' He schulde er [suld ore.] putte hym self to deye, ' Er he wolde eft fle his weye.' [or he suld eft fle aweie.] Moddred hadde fourty þousand, . In a wode busched to stand Line 14,260 By-syde a water, Tambre, [Joste Camblan, MS. du Roi, 27; Joste Tanbre, MS. du Roi, 73, Cangé: Wace, ii. 229, l. 13,659.] y wene, Þat þe parties ran [was þe parties.] by-twene. Stronge were [was.] þe hostes, gret was þe hate, & wrathe [Hatered.] to-gydere dide þem abate. Line 14,264 Þorow hate & ire to-gydere þey ran, & Payens loues no Cristen man; Þerfore þe bataille was merueillous, & þe slaughter more hydous. [ll. 14,265-14,268. The Petyt MS. leaves out this line.] Line 14,268 On boþe partis were slayn fele,

ffor þer non wolde oþer [forbere ne] [for non wild oþer forbere no.] spele. ².When Arthur sey Moddred feloun, . He rod til hym wiþ gret raundoun; Line 14,272 Byfore hym dide bere his dragoun, Moddred to smyte as a lyoun. Moddred he smot, & he smot hym, . On boþe partis were woundes grym.² [^2-2 From Langtoft, i. 223, lines 18-23.] Line 14,276 But Moddredes side gan misfalle, ffor he was slayn, & his men alle; & als was slayn þer y þat stour, Of þe Rounde Table þe faire flour,— Line 14,280 Þe faire ȝonglynges so mykel y-preised [P. leaves out this line.] Þat Arthur had norisched & vp reysed, [P. leaves out this line.] Þat he had [Arthur.] gadered of alle landes, Þe doughtiest þat were of handes;— Line 14,284 & Arthur hym seluen þore, Men seyþ, he was wounded sore; &, for his woundes were to drede, Þer-fore he dide hym self [þei did him.] lede Line 14,288 In to þe Ilde of Aualoun. & þus seys ilka Bretoun, Þat on lyue þere he ys, Lyuende man wyþ blod & [Man in blode & in.] flesche, Line 14,292 & after hym ȝut þey lok. Maister Wace þat made þys bok, He seyþ [sais . . . . . dos . . . . . sais.] namore of his fyn Þat [þan. (Qu'en dist, Wace ii. 230, l. 13,690.)] doþ [sais . . . . . dos . . . . . sais.] þe prophete Merlyn. Line 14,296 Merlyn seide [sais . . . . . dos . . . . . sais.] ful merueillouse, [Lambeth folio 61a:1] Þat Arthures deþ was dotouse; [dede was doutous. (dotose, Wace.)] Þer-fore ȝyt þe Bretons drede, & seyn [sais . . . . . dos . . . . . sais.] þat he lyues in lede; Line 14,300

Line 14,300 But y seye þey trowe wrong; ffor ȝyf he now lyue, his lyf ys long; & ȝyf he lyue þys ilke day, [P. leaves out this line.] . He schal lyue for euere & ay. [P. leaves out this line.] Line 14,304

Nought þan y trowe þe Bretons [Bot þe bretons londe.] [Petyt folio 82b:2] lye; He was so wounded, he moste dye.