Caxton's Blanchardyn and Eglantine, c. 1489 : from Lord Spencer's unique imperfect copy, completed by the original French and the second English version of 1595

¶ The xxiij chapiter conteyneth how Þe prouost retourned tyll his house, and recounted vnto Blanchardyn that the proude pucelle in amours had tolde hym / And how she sent for hym, that he sholde come toward her / And how Blanchardyn went thither / And how they talked togydre at leyser, to the grete pleasure of bothe partyes. And how theyr loue was knytted and [Wanting in the French.] expand_less confermed /

After the humble leue that the prouost toke of the lady, he went homward agayn tyl his place, all penseful of the wordes that he had herde of the pucelle. It was tyme to go to bed; so cam he toward blanchardyn / that was alredy goo in to his chambre / and gaff hym the goode nyght / & on the morowe, after the masse / the prouost sayde vnto Blanchardyn that he wold talke wyth him atte leyser. And blanchardyn ansuered, 'fayre hoost / in good oure be it' [in good oure be it = en la bonne heure] / Thenne they two sette hem self vpon a benche / The prouost bygan hym to recounte and telle hou the

proude mayden in amoures, the euen last past, had spoken wyth hym of many thynges, & emonge other tolde hym that she was right well content of his seruyce, and wolde reteyne hym in wages, and gyue hym of her goodes, for he was worthy therof. 'Morouere,' sayde þe prouost, 'sire, she hath tolde me that ye be enamored of a hyghe and a riche pryncesse, wherof I merueyll me not / for on my feyth ye be well the man that ought to chuse your specyall loue in a hyghe place. But allewayes it is force that j bere you in hande that it is her owne silf, for it semeth me not wel possyble that yf it were in som other place / hit sholde not haue comen to her knowlege. how wel that here is one doubte that retardeth myne ymagynacyon, she sette neuere nought by amours / & loue, But iapeth [se farse] & playeth her self of theym that ben amerouse. I wote not allewayes yf the god of loue myght haue shewed his vertues in her. Alas, we sholde wel desyre that it were so, to thende she myght take a goode lord for to deffende vs and her lande' /

¶ After that the prouost hade sayde to blanchardyn all that semed him good to be tolde / Blanchardyn curtoysly, wyth a smylyng contenaunce, ansuered hym, that god hath well kept hym from so moche an hap and so hyghe, as for to haue the grace of so noble and so grete prynces as was the proude pucelle in amours / '& also I byleue,' sayde blanchardyn, 'that ye make your self these tydynges. But I can not bethynke to what purpos ye haue seen eny token ne apparence for to coloure your gracyouse suspecyon; I neuer spake wyth her, nor neuer in my dayes I dyde see her / wherof sholde to me come suche a wylle?' 'I wot not,' sayde the prouost. 'I telle you that, that I haue herde of my lady. Yf ought be ther to your auauntage, soo take hit /

¶ Now pleased god that she were that woman

that suffred so moche of sorowe and angwysshe at her herte for the loue of you.' 'I thanke you,' sayde Blanchardyn /

¶ 'I wolde not that noobody sholde suffre for loue of me any thyng to his dyspleasure, where as I myght by ony manere of waye putte a remedy. But alwayes,' sayde blanchardyn, 'I can merueyll me not to moche wherof suche langage commeth, & can not thinke that it shold come of the doughter of a kyng / for thus to say, she in a manere [in a manere = aucunement] mocketh me: suffyse her yf I am come to serue her in kepyng my worship. And as to me, suche an vse I seke not; but I wyl onely proue and aduenture honorably my body, as a gentyl man ought for to doo / Ioustyng, tournoynge, and behourdyng [Wanting in the French.] expand_less are my passe tyme / and no wyffe I thynke not to take.' 'Aa, sire,' sayde the prouost, 'I wold well kepe me, and be loth for to denounce thynge vnto you that sholde tourne you to a displeasure, and praye you that ye wyll not take the thynge other wyse than I haue tolde hyt to you, and thynke nomore vpon it. But let vs go see my lady / for in goode ernest she doth sende for you by me' / Blanchardyn graciously ansuered to his hoste that he was content, excusyng hym silf alwayes of that loue that he had spoken to hym of. How be it, he felt the contrary at his herte / They cam to þe ladyes palays, and went thourgh þe grete halle in to a fayre chambre. And after that announced was there comyng, men made them to entre in to the chambre of parement, wher as the right gracyouse and fayre, the proude pucelle in amours, was wyth many of her ladyes, and other her gentyll women / and spake at that same owre wyth certayne of her counseyll vpon the faytte of her werre. Blanchardyn and the prouost entred in to the chambre; and thenne, as blanchardyn

sawe & perceyued þe noble pucelle, he dyde vaunce him self toward her, & make vnto her the reuerence so gracyously and so boldly in all worship / that non coude amende it; and consequently to all the lordes, ladyes, and gentyl women, so goodely & wel that euery one saide good of hym. þe noble mayden behelde hym moche humbly, whiche toke a right grete pleasure to see his gracyouse & assured behauyng, that tysed and doubled in her herte the fyre of loue, wherof she was sore esprysed / And thenne, after the fayre and swete welcomynges, the lady wythdrewe her toward a couche that was in the sayd chambre, & toke blanchardyn by the hande, and made hym to sytte besyde her. He made hym self to be prayed & drawen sore or euer he wolde vaunce hym self for to sytte hym doune by her. But force was to hym to obeye her commaundement, wherof al they that thenne were wythin the chambre coude not tourne their eyen from Blanchardyn, for his right grete beaulte, fayre behauoure, & good manyere. And she to whome the dede most touched, had grete Ioye at her herte / to fynde her self in the presence of hym. And for to saye the trouth, she was so enbrased and taken [Wanting in the French.] expand_less wyth the brennyng fyre of loue, that she not coude kepe her contenaunce; & yf rayson had not restrayned her, wythout other premysses nor conclusyons, she sholde haue gladly of pryme face tolde vnto blanchardyn, how loue constrayned her for the loue of hym. And at ende of a while, the best wyse that she coude, Wyth a lowe voyce she sayde vnto blanchardyn: 'Syre, ye knowe the werre that the vntrewe kynge Alymodes hath alredy don to me dyuerse tymes, Wherfore I mystered gretly of thayde and socours of you and of other / So praye I you, that ye wyl helpe & conforte me in my said werre, & I shal rewarde you so that ye shalbe content.' 'Madame,' sayde Blanchardyn,

'I ensure you on my feyth, that in all that I shal mowe, I shal employe me in your seruyce: I wyll not spare my self. I am come out of myn owne contrey for to fynde me in a place where as I myght excercise the fayttes of armes, as longeth tyl a knyght to doo / And thanked be god, I am here right well arryued: I aske no thynge of you. But I praye you / syn that it pleaseth you to gyue me wages, that ye wyl doo them to be delyuered vnto myn hooste, youre prouost / for moche beholden [tenu] I am to hym; and I shal gladly dwelle wyth you, in the companye of your other knyghtes / And shal serue you truly' / 'Syre,' sayd the pucell, 'I promette you that youre hoste shalbe al to gydre contented of you / and alle of myn owne' / And after thees wordes she dyde cast a profound syghe, that proceded from the depnes of her herte, that sore was pressed / She was so ouer perced and enflammed of loue / that she had so moche on it as the herte of eny lady myght bere or comprehende, vnto the grete extremyte. And the reyson is goode / for the strenthes and vertues of the gode of loue, that departeth wyth where as hym semeth goode, are suche that the more that þe persone is more harde to be conuertysed and tourned to his lawe, the more ought she afterward, whan she is ouercome, to be more constant & stedfast to kepe hit. This experyence was playnly shewed in this lady. Blanchardyn trowed to perceyue a lytyl her manere, and remembred hym self of the wordes that his hooste had tolde hym the same daye, And syth sayde to þe lady: 'Madame, myn hoste hath tolde me this daye that ye knowe well my lady paramours, and that she is of your lynage. by my ſeyth, this thynge semeth me right straunge.' Thenne the proude pucelle in amours byganne to ansuere, and sayde / 'The lady of whom I touched the prouoste, your hoste, is well

trusted wyth me, and I wolde doo for her as moche honoure as I wolde for my self' / 'A, madame,' saide blanchardyn, 'pardoune me yf I desyre by manere of replycacyon to knowe the name of her of whom ye haue made nowe mencyon / for I ensure you, madame, that whan I dyde that grete oultrage, wherto I was constrayned by force, to nyghe & touche youre swete mouthe, I had not seen no lady, nor non other gentylwoman, of whom I desyred to be reteyned her seruaunte / But syth I haue ben fayne of the seruyce of one whiche I repute to me a grete fredom, in suche a wyse / that yf I sholde deye for deffawte of her socours, yet coulde I not, nor wolde not departe nor be from her for no thyng of the worlde / & therfore, my ryght redouted lady, I beseche you in all humylyte, that it please you of your grace to pardoune me my vayne wylle / for in you lyeth my bytter deth, or my prosperouse lyf. I am and shalbe, yf it please you, youre feythful & true seruaunt, for temploye my self in youre seruyse in al that shal please you to commaunde me, as longe as lyf shalbe in me, what someuer happeth to me for' / whan the pucelle herde this swete & graciouse langage, of the heryng of whiche she toke no displeasure, wold no lenger suffre hym to be in peyne, vpon whom she had sette her herte, & in whom she hoped of goode seruise for to brynge her werres tyl an ende / but seide vnto him: 'Aa, gentyl knyght, forced I am atte this houre present, syth it is your wylle, that I declare & saye that whiche my herte thynketh & suffreth for your sake; be ye sure that all that I sayde vnto þe prouost, toucheth noo body but only to my self / for so helpe me god, as I loue you wyth all my veraye herte / & am so esprysed wyth your loue, that reherce it to you I can not. I haue debated þe quarelle ayenst the god of loue / but at the

last I haue ben subdued & vttirly ouercome thourgh the graciouse maneres, honeste behauing, hardy & noble corage that I haue perceyued in your persone, whiche I loue moche better than alle the remenant of the world / And from hens forth I reteyne you myn onely true louer and goode frende / neuer to chaunge vnto the oure of deth' / Wherof men may thynke al ynough that in spekyng and vttraunce of suche wordes / they were not wythout mutacion of coloure, chaungyng of contenaunce, and suche other thynges in this caas acostumed / And where vpon is to byleue that blanchardyn was neuere in hys lyff half so glad, and not wythout a cause / as whan he vnderstode this Ioyouse tydynge /

¶ And as that thinge whiche most he desyred in this world, dyde accepte this gracyouse and desyrable ansuere / and how he thanked that noble mayden / It is not to be demaunded / for he forgate noo worde that therto serued to be sayde. And thenne thourghe a soubdayne fyre, that descended from the heuens aboue, was theire loue confermed to gydre. And fro that oure abode bothe their hertes in one hole wylle. The prouost at the same tyme perceyued well that blanchardyns besynes was in non euyll waye. How be it he coude knowe noo thynge therof but by suspecyon / Betwix the lady and blanchardin were noo wordes more for that tyme, but that the yonge knyght toke a gracyouse leue of the fayre pucelle, that myght not tourne her eyen from Blanchardyn /