The Ellesmere ms of Chaucer's Canterbury tales / edited by Frederick J. Furnivall.

[6-text p 500]

[THE PROEM.] ¶ The Prologe / of the ffrankeleyns tale . [folio 127b]

                                  
                                    THise olde gentil Britons / in hir dayes
                                  
                                    Of diuerse auentures / maden layes
                                  
                                    Rymeyed / in hir firste Briton tonge
                                  
                                    Whiche layes / with hir Instrumentz they songe
                                    Line 712 
                                  
                                    Or elles redden hem / for hir plesance
                                  
                                    And oon of hem / haue I in remembrance
                                  
                                    Which I shal seyn / with good wyl as I kan
                                  
                                    ¶ But sires / by cause I am a burel man
                                    Line 716 
                                  
                                    At my bigynnyng first I yow biseche
                                  
                                    Haue me excused / of my rude speche
                                  
                                    I lerned neuere Rethorik certeyn
                                  
                                    Thyng þat I speke / it moot be bare and pleyn
                                    Line 720 
                                  
                                    I sleepe neuere / on the Mount of Pernaso [¶ Vnde Persius ‖ fonte labra prolui caballino / nec in bicipite parnaso me memini sompniasse.] 
                                  
                                    Ne lerned / Marcus Tullius Scithero
                                  
                                    Colours ne knowe I none with outen drede
                                  
                                    But swiche colours / as growen in the Mede
                                    Line 724 
                                  
                                    Or elles swiche / as men dye or peynte
                                  
                                    Colours of Rethoryk/ been to queynte
                                  
                                    My spirit feeleth noght of swich mateere
                                  
                                    But if yow list my tale shul ye heere
                                    Line 728

¶ Heere bigynneth / the ffrankeleyns tale /

                                    
                                      IN Armorik/ that called is Britayne [[Painting of the Franklin.]] 
                                    
                                      Ther was a knyght / þat loued and dide his payne
                                    
                                      To serue a lady / in his beste wise
                                    
                                      And many a labour / many a greet emprise

                                      Line 732

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About this Item

Title: The Ellesmere ms of Chaucer's Canterbury tales / edited by Frederick J. Furnivall.
Author: Chaucer, Geoffrey, d. 1400.
Canvas: Page 335
Publication: London :: Published for the Chaucer Society by N. Trübner,; 1868-1879.

Technical Details

Collection: Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse
Link to this Item: https://name.umdl.umich.edu/agz8232.0001.001
Link to this scan: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/c/cme/agz8232.0001.001/365

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Cite this Item

Full citation: "The Ellesmere ms of Chaucer's Canterbury tales / edited by Frederick J. Furnivall." In the digital collection Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/agz8232.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 20, 2025.