Book of the Knight of La Tour-Landry : compiled for the instruction of his daughters : translated from the original French into English in the reign of Henry VI / [by Geoffroy de La Tour Landry] ; edited ... with an introduction and notes by Thomas Wright

PROLOGUE

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IN the yere of the incarnacion of oure lord̛ M ^ƚ iij ^c lxxj, as y was in a gardin, al heui and fuƚƚ of thought, in the shadow, about the ende of the monthe of Apriƚƚ, but a liteƚƚ y reioysed̛ me of the melodie and song of the wilde briddes; thei sang there in her langages, as the Thrustiƚƚ, the thrusshe, the nytinggale, and other briddes, the whiche were fuƚƚ of mirthe and ioye ; and thaire suete songe made my herte to lighten, and made me to thinke of the tyme that is passed of my youthe, how loue in gret distresse had̛ holde me, and how y was in her seruice mani tymeȝ fuƚƚ of sorugℏ and gladnesse, as mani lovers ben. But my sorw was heled, and my seruice wel ysette and quitte, for he gaue [me a fayr] wyff, and.....that was bothe faire and good [Part of the first column is scarcely legible, and I have been obliged to insert a few words from Caxton's translation.] , [whiche had [Caxton has "hath." The whole sentence in Caxton reads thus: But alle myn euylles haue rewarded me. Sythe that the fayre and good hath gyyuen to me/ whiche hath knowleche of alle honoure/ alle good/ and fayre mayntenynge/.] knowleche of alle honoure, alle good, and fayre mayntenynge,] and of aƚƚ good she was beƚƚ and the floure; and y delited me so moche in her that y made for her loue songges, balades, rondelles, virallës, and diuerse nwe [? MS.] thinges in the best wise that y couthe. But detℏ, that on aƚƚ makithe werre, toke her from me, the whiche hathe made me haue mani a sorufuƚƚ

thought and gret heuinesse. And so it is more than̄ .xx. yeere that I haue ben for her ful of gret sorugℏ. For a true lover-is hert [fol/col 1/2] forgetitℏ neuer the woman that enis he hathe truli loued. And as y was in the saide gardein, thinkynge of these thoughtȝ, y sawe come towardes me my .iij. doughters, of the whiche I was joyfull, and had grete desire that thei shuld̛ turne to good and worshipe aboue aƚƚ ertheli thinges, for thei were yonge, and had but tendir witte; and so atte the begynnyng a man aught to lerne his doughters with good ensaumples yevinge, as dede the quene Proues of Hongrie, that faire and goodly chastised and taught her doughters, as it [is] contened in her boke. And whanne my doughters come towardes me, I be-thought me of the tyme whan that y yede and rode with my felawes in Paytov and other diuerse places that y had ben in. And also y bethought and remembered me that my felawes comened with ladies and gentil-women, the whiche praied hem of loue, For there was none of them that might finde, lady or gentill-woman, but thei wolde praie her; and yef that one wolde not entende to that, other wolde anone praie. And whethir thei had good ansuere or eueƚƚ, thei raught neuer, for thei had in hem no shame nor drede for the cause thei were so used̛. And therto thei had faire langage and wordes, for in eueri place thei wolde haue hadd̛ her sportes and thei might. And so thei dede bothe deseiue ladies and gentilwomen̄, and bere forthe diuerse langages on hem, som true and som fals, of the whiche there come to diuerse gret defames and sclaundres withoute cause and reson. And there is not this day [fol/col 1b/1] no gretter treson̄ thanne a gentiƚƚ woman to yeue her selff to a traitour fals churle, blamed with vices, for there ys mani of hem deceiued bi the foule and grete fals othes that the fals men vsen to swere to the women; for y haue herd̛ my felawes suere ofte diuerse fals othes, and y asked hem whi thei forsuore hem, saieng that thei loued euerich woman best that thei spake to. For y saide vnto hem, "Seris, ye shulde loue, nor be aboute, to haue but one." But wha[t] [hole in MS.] y saide vnto hem, it was neuer the beter. And therfor bi-caus y sawe atte

that tyme the gouernaunce of hem, the whiche y douted, that tyme yet regnithe, And ther be suche felawes now or worse, And therfor y purposed to make a liteƚƚ boke, in the whiche y wolde write the good condiciones and dedes of ladies and gentiƚƚ-women, that for her goodnesse were worshipped, honoured, praised, and renomed the tyme passed, and euer shaƚƚ be, for her weldoinge and goodnes, to that entent that my doughtres shulde take ensaumple of faire continuaunce and good manere. And also y wol make write the manere contrarie of goodnesse, the whiche is "called the boke of hurtinge of eueƚƚ women, that hathe vsed to do eueƚƚ, and had blames," to that entent that who so luste may kepe hem from harme ther thei might erre, as thei that yet be blamed, dishonoured, and shamed. & for these causes aforesaid, y thought to make this liteƚƚ boke to my yong doughtres,wherupon thei might rede and studie, to that entent that thei might lerne and see bothe good and [fol/col 1b/2] eueƚƚ of the tyme passed, and forto kepe hem in good clennesse, and from aƚƚ eueƚƚ in tyme comyng. For there be sucℏ men that lyethe and makithe good visage and countenaunce to women afore hem, that scornithe and mockithe hem in her absence. And therfor it is harde to knowe the worlde that is now; and ther [for] the resones that y haue saide you, y parted and yede oute of the gardein, and fonde in my way .ij. prestes and .ij. clerkes that y had. And y said̛ to hem that y wolde make a boke of ensaumples, for to teche my doughtres, that thei might vnderstond̛ how thei shulde gouerne hem, and knowe good from eueƚƚ. And so y made hem extraie me ensaumples of the Bible and other bokes that y had, as the gestis of kingges, the cronicleȝ of Fraunce, Grece, of Inglond̛, and of mani other straunge londes. And y made hem rede me eueri boke ; And ther that y fonde a good ensaumple, y made extraie it oute. And thanne y made this boke. But y wolde not sette it in ryme, but in prose, forto abregge it, and that it might be beter and more pleinly to be understond̛. And y made this boke for the gret loue that y had̛ to my said̛ doughtres, the whiche y loued as fader aught to loue his child̛, Hauing hertely ioye to finde wayes

to stere and turne hem to goodnesse and worshippe, and to loue and serue her creatoure, And to haue loue of her neigℏboures and of the world̛. And therfor aƚƚ faders and moders after good nature aught to teche her children to leue aƚƚ wrong and eueƚƚ waies, and shew hem the true right [fol/col 2/1] weye, as wele for the saluacion of the soule as for the worshipe of the worldely bodi. And therfor y haue made .ij. bokes, one for my sones, an other for my doughtres, forto lerne hem to rede. And in reding, it may not be but that thei shaƚƚ kepe with hem som good ensaumple forto flee eueƚƚ and withholde the good. For it shaƚƚ not be posible but sumtyme thei shaƚƚ haue mynde on sum good ensaumple, sum good doctrine of this boke, whanne thei knowe or here speke here-after, as thei faƚƚ in the rewe vpon sum spekers of suche matiers.