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

CHAPTER LXIII.

[Of proud women.]

Now woƚƚ y touche of sum women that haue be proude of the worshippes and goodes that God hathe sent vnto them, and might not suffre ne endure in ese, as it is conteined in the Bible, where he telles of Apemena, doughter of a symple knight that was called Verar. This Apemena was yonge, and of gret beauute, in so moche that the king of Surre, that was mighti and of gret nobelnesse, had take her in suche manere of loue that thorugℏ the said folious loue he toke her into his wiff, and so was she quene of Surry. And whanne she see her selff

exalted into gret puissaunce and worshipe, she preised no [fol/col 27b/2] more her owne lynage, but had despite and indignacion of hem, and become so folyously proude that she deigned not to do reuereuce and worshippe unto the kinge as [MS. "and"] she aught for to do, for because he was symple and debonaire; nor also to his lyneage, in so moche that aƚƚ manere of peple had her in hate. And the king toke wrathe vnto her in suche manere that she was shent and driuen awey bi the counsaile of the kingges lynage, and she lost the worship that she was in. For mani women may not suffre whanne thei haue worshipe and be wel atte ease, unto the tyme that thorugh her orguylleus port ben throwen doune of her worshippe and astate, as dede this quene that come from pore lynage to gret astate. And therfor euery woman that seithe her husbonde esy and symple unto her withoute malice, in so moche she aught to do hym the more reuerence, and to fulfeƚƚ the sonner his wiƚƚ, and to kepe his loue; and therein she worshippes her selff, for she may not do to her husbonde to mohe worshipe. And but yef she do so, it may happe to make her husbondes herte to turne from her and hate her, the whiche were gret harme and pereƚƚ, that there shulde be suche diuision betwene hem that shulde be one.

I Woƚƚ teƚƚ you an ensaumple of the gret kinge Heroudes wyff he loued merueylously. So it happed he went to Rome, and duryng the tyme of his [fol/col 28/1] being there, the pepiƚƚ of his housholde purposed to finde a wey to hynder his sayd wiff ayenst hym, for they loued her not, bycause she was to crueƚƚ and to fers; and reported unto hym that she hadd̛ a priui loue bisyde hym, and in this wise dishonoured her ; of the whicℏ the saide Herode was greuously wrothe, and of this reproued her. And she ansuered hym fersely and proudely, and demened her not in fairesiesse and curtesye, nor so mekely as she shulde do ; so that the sayd Herode was crueƚƚ and dispitous to her [for] her orguilleux langage, and toke a kniff aud slow her, of the whiche he was afterwarde fuƚƚ sory, for he fonde that she was untruly accused. And so bi her presumptuous port of langage she made

her selff to be slayne. And therfor it is a good eusaumple to euery woman to be meke and curteis, and to ansuere mekely, curtaisly, and softely ayenst of couroux of her husbonde. For the wyse Salamon saithe that, by curtesye and softe wordes, good women shulde abate the yre of thaire husbondes. For the wiff of right owithe to honoure her husbonde, though his speche be right or wronge, and in special in hys yre tofore the pepiƚƚ. And whanne his yre is passed, she may weƚƚ shew unto hym that he had wronge. And so shal she kepe the pees and the loue of her husbonde, and of her housholde, and shaƚƚ not make her selff blamed nor slayne, as dede the furst wyff of king Herodes.