The chronicle of Iohn Hardyng. Containing an account of public transactions from the earliest period of English history to the beginning of the reign of King Edward the Fourth. Together with the continuation by Richard Grafton, to the thirty fourth year of King Henry the Eighth. The former part collated with two manuscripts of the author's own time; the last, with Grafton's duplicate edition. To which are added a biographical and literary preface, and an index, by Henry Ellis.
Hardyng, John, 1378-1465?, Ellis, Henry, 1777-1869, ed., Grafton, Richard, -1572?
The. lxxii. Chapiter.
¶ Howe the kyng was an amoured of the duke of Gorloys wyfe, and how he gatte on her kyng Arthure.
EMonges other, Gorloys, duke of Cornewayle,
His wife did bring, Igrene16. [Igerne.], fayre of figure,
Whose beautee their all others made to faile;
So well and hole auised was nature,
Her womanhede excede[d euery]17. [ech.] creature:
That though nature her beautee woulde [haue] amēde,
Hir cōnyng might therto in no wise extēde.
¶ Of whiche beautee, and of her goodlyhede,
The kyng with loue so greatly was oppressed,
It chaunged all his corage and manhede,
In kalendes18. [kalenders.] of eschaunge he was [so] impressed:
Page 119For whiche the duke with hir then home adressed,
Perceauynge well the kynges fykelnesse1. [sekelynesse.]
Was set, for loue, on2. [of.] her womanlynesse.
¶ In Tyntagell his castel strong [he] her set,
Hymselfe then laye in castell Dymyoke,
Wher then the kyng hym sieged her to get;
But Merlyne then from it hym did reuoke,
[And by his councell subtelly dyd prouoke,]3. [And made the kynge the sege that he forsoke.]
Knowyng his loue he had to dame Igrene4. [Igerne.],
By coniurisons5. [congerasiouns.] made in haste6. [grete haste.] full yerne.
¶ He made the kyng vnto duke Gorloys like,
Hymselfe like [to] Brethel in all semblaunce
That [then was]7. [was then so.] the dukes preuy myke,
And Vlyn lyke, by all [kyns gouernaunce,]8. [maner conysaunce.]
Vnto Iordan9. [Iurdayne.] in all maner conysaunce10. [gouernaunce.],
That moste knewe of the dukes preuytee,
By whiche he brought to Igrene4. [Igerne.] all three. [Fol. lxi.]
¶ Thus laye the kyng hir by euer11. [aye.] whē he would,
She trustyng then12. [euer.] that he had been hir lorde;
But euer his siege he made sadly [to] been holde,
[His people assautyng the castell by one accorde:]
But Gorloys men then pleynly did recorde
Theyr lorde was slayn, and Vter13. [Vther.] had the felde,
Of which she merueyled, & then fast hym behelde.
¶ There gatte he then on hir a sonne full fayre,
And fro hir went vnto his hooste agayn,
The duke was slayne, with all his moste repayre,
[Of whiche the kyng glad is not to layne:]
To Tyntagell, with all his hoste full fayne14. [The Harleian MS. adds Fro Dymyoke they were remeued certayne.],
He came anone and had it at his wyll;
He comforted hir and bad her holde it styll.
¶ But then betwene theim two he did discure,
The priuetee in all, as it was wrought,
And sette his daye to wed hir, and to cure
Page 120Of heuynes, that she was then in brought,
Her lordes death so muche was in hir thought;
For hir so slayne, hir wyfehode also1. [als.] defouled,
Afore that tyme that euer was kept vnfouled2. [vndefouled.].
¶ And at the daye he [wedded hir]3. [hir wed.] and cround,
And she ferforth with childe was then begonne,
To comforte her he sette the table rounde
At Wynchester, of worthiest knightes alone
Approued best in knighthode of4. [on̄.] their foone;
Whiche table rounde Ioseph of Arimathie,
For brether made of the [seynt Grall]5. [Seyngrale.] onely.
¶ In whiche he made the seege pereleous,
Where none shulde sytte without great mischeife;
But one that shuld be moste religious
Of knightes all, [&] of the rounde table chiefe,
The saynt Graal6. [Seyntgrale.] that shuld recouer and acheue7. [eschief.]
By aduenture of8. [and.] his fortunitee,
And at his death a virgyne shulde bee9. [he be.].
¶ But at hir tyme the quene had borne a soonne,
That Arthure hight, and10. [that.] was of statur fayre,
More large of lymme and wysest vnder sunne
Of hs age then, to bee his fathers heyre,
[Of all his lymmes right comly stronge & fayre;]11. [Vnto this kynge the Britons dide repeire.]
But Occa12. [Octa.] then, and Oysa13. [Eosa.], that afore
Stale14. [Were escaped.] home, were come & warred [in Britayn] sore.
¶ The kyng sent forth syr Loth of Lowthian15. [Lothyanne.],
A worthy prince, hardy and bounteous,
His doughter had wed[ded], yt hight thē dame Anne;
[A manly manne and right cheualrous,]
The first knight [that] was electe, right fortunous16. [The Harleian MS. adds In marciall actes full adventerous.],
Of the table round, that ofte with theim did fight,
That17. [And.] ofte preuayled, and sometyme put18. [was put.] to flight.
¶ For whiche the kyng ordeyned a horse litter,
To beare hym [so then vnto the]19. [than so to.] Verolame,
Page 121Wher Occa1. [Octa.] laye, and Oysa2. [Eosa.] also in feer,
That Saynt Albones nowe hight of noble fame:
Bet downe the walles, but to hym forth they came,
Wher in battayll Occa1. [Octa.] and Oysa2. [Eosa.] were slayne,
The felde he had, and therof was full fayne.
¶ There was a well whiche his enemyes espied,
That he vsed [the water ofte]3. [with that water.] to alaye [Fol. lxii.]
His drynkes, all his sores to be medifyed4. [modified.],
Whiche they venomyed with poyson on a daye,
Of5. [On.] whiche he dyed, and went to blisse for aye,
In the carole, besyde his brother dere
As to suche a prynce it dyd ryght well affere.
¶ He reygned had then. ix. and thyrtye yere,
And in the yere of Chrystes natiuyte,
Fyue hundreth and syxtene, then was full clere,
The realme he lefte in good felicyte
Arthure his sonne to haue the royalte,
To reygne and rule the realme yt then was able,
That, of his age, was none so cōmendable.
