Here begynnethe the boke calledde Iohn bochas descriuinge the falle of princis princessis [and] other nobles tra[n]slated i[n]to englissh by Iohn ludgate mo[n]ke of the monastery of seint edmu[n]des Bury ...

Howe amilius for couetise slough his brother and Remus / and Romulus norisshed by a wuluesse

aFter kinge cirus bochas dyd espye Two worthy brethren with facis pitous Borne by discent to regne in albanye Both of one fader the story telleth vs The one of them callyd Amylyus And to remembre the name of that other Muniter I called was his brother

They hadde a fader which namyd was {pro}chas Kinge of that londe the story doth deuyse After whoos deth pleynly this the cas Amilius for fals couenese His brother slough in full cruell wise That he vniustly by fals tyrannye Might haue the kingdome alone of albany••

This albana by discripcion Lyke as bochas affermeth in certeyn Is a cite nat ferre fro rome toū Set on an hyll beside a large pleyn The beldinge statly rich and well beseyne Stronge walled with many a rich toure And ascannis was first therof fondoure

Which callid was in his fundacion Albania for the grete whitnesse The••e kinges after by succession Named albonoys princes of greate noblesse And by descent the story bereth witnesse From kinge prochas recorde on bokes olde Cam these two brethren / Rea ther suster tolde

Muniter slayne as made is mencion The kinge occupyed by amilius And rea entred into religion For to be wympled in that holy hous Sacryd to vesta with virgynes glorious Therfore to a byde and be contemplatyf With other maydyns duringe all hir lif

And this was done while she was yonge of age By hir brother of fals entencion That she shulde haue no maner heritage Nor clayme no title in that region Of hir kinrede by none accasion But stonde professyd in virginyte Tofore vesta and lyue in chastite

¶Yit natwitstandynge hir virginall clennesse She hath conceyued by naturall myracle Gan to encreace in hir holynesse Whoos wombe aros in kinde was none obstacle Ageyne such bolnynge auayleth no tryacle But the goddesse for hir so dyd ordeyne That she at onys had sonnes tweyne

The temple of vesta stode in wildernes Where Rea had hooly the ••ouernaunce Of preesily honoure done to the goddes With many straunge vncouth obseruaunce But by hir brothers mortall ordenaunce Hir yonge sonnes might nat be socoured But cast oute to bestes for to be deuoured

But a she wulfe which whelpyd had late To yeue theym soke dyd hir besynesse By god ordeyned or by some heuenly fate Theym to conserue fro deth in theyr distresse For holy writ playnly bereth witnesse God can diffende as it is well couth Children from myscheef in theyr tendre youth

But in this while this sayde amilius That was their vncle as made is mencion Ageyne his sustre froward and furious Made hir be sh••t in a full derke prison And ther compleynynge the distruction Of her two children borne to hir repreef For very sorowe dyed at greate myscheef

These sayde children deuoyde of all refute Beside a ryuer lay pitously cryenge From all socoure nakyd and destitute Except a wulues vpon theym waytinge At whoos wombe full styll they lay soukinge Vnto nature a thinge contrarious Children to souke on bestes raueynous

But he this lorde of euery creature Right as him list can both saue and spyll And bestes which been rage of their nature He can aduerte and make theym lye full styll Tygres lyons obeyen at his wyll The same lorde hath made a fell wulues Vnto tweyne children hir biggys for to dresse

And while this wulues had theym in depos There cam an herde called Faustulus Behelde their soukynge and sawe theym lye ful clos Which shepperde was of kinge amilius Caught vp these children the story telleth thus And brought theym forth with greate diligence Vnto his wife that called was laurence

And she for loue dyd hir besy peyne Theym to fostre tyll they cam of age Gaue theym souke of hir brestes tweyne Fro day to day of herte and hole corage And they were called as in that langage After the story that one of theym remus And the seconde was named romulus

Of which brethern breuely to termyne The toun of rome to ••e origynall Of fals disclaundre first began that lyne The rote oute sought full vicious founde at all Cleerly remembred for a memoriall Their begynnynge grewe of such incontinence As clerkes call incestus in sentence

Incestus is a thinge nat faire nor gode After that bokes well deuise cūn•• As trespassinge with kyn or with blode Or frowarde medlynge with hir that is a nūne And th••••s the lyne of rome was begūne For slaughter murdre and fals robbrye Was cheef begynnynge of all their auncetrye

Of couetise they toke their auauntage Ligge••s of weys and robber•• openly Murdrers also of their owne lynage And stronge theuys gate to their cumpany Spoiled all tho that past theym forby Vnder shadowe of kepinge their berstaile All maner people they proudly dyd assaile

To sle marchauntys they had no conscience And for to murdre folke of euery age Wymen to oppresse of force and violence In all that cuntre this was their vsage Where they abode there was no sure passage And these two brethren like as it is founde Fonde first the maner of speris sharp grounde

A spere in greke callyd is quiris And for that cause the sayde romulus As bokes say and sothely so it is He afterwarde was callyd quirinus Which with his brother that callyd was Remus Was in all thinge confederat and partable That 〈◊〉〈◊〉 was vious and dampnable

And a•• i•• 〈◊〉〈◊〉 accordynge to their life For lak of vertue they fyll in greate diffame And atwene theym there was an vncouth strif Which of both shulde yeue the name Vnto the cite atwene ernest and gaine After their names come to be called Thus fyll the cas afore or it was walled

And therupon full longe lasted their stryues Which shulde of theim haue domynacion Shewynge their tilles and prerogatyues Who shulde of theym yeue name to the toun And regne as kinge in that region There was no reason who shulde go beforne Bycause they were both at onys borne

But to fynyssh their fraternall discorde They haue prouyded atwene theym anone right Thus condescendinge to put theym at acorde Nouther by force oppression nor myght Th••t 〈◊〉〈◊〉 of theym sawe grettest flight Of 〈◊〉〈◊〉 flyenge high vpon ••n hyll Shulde name the cite at his owne wyll

Of this accorde for to be witnesse They with theym ledde a full greate multytude Throf to yeue adome of rightwisnesse Both of wyse and of people rude All at onys this mater to conclude And to an hyll callyd auentyne They been ascended this mater for to fyne

And bryddes sixe to remus dyd appere By augurye as they gan procede Called vultures ful feers in ther manere But in noumbre the double dyd excede That romulus sawe whan he toke gode hede Wherof there fyll a greate contrauersye Which of theym shulde preuaile on his {per}tye

Thus first of all remus had a sight Of sixe byrdes called vultures And for to auaunce and preferre his right He full proudly put him silf in prees But romulus was nat recheles His brothers clayme playnly to entrouble Afforced his title with the noumbre double

¶Yit of his purpos one of theym must faile Though it so be that they euer striue But Romulus gan fynally preuayle And to the cite he forth went blyue And as auctours lyst ••chone discryue And in their bokes as they reherce all After his name rome he dyd it call

An•• all foreyns to exclude oute And ageyne theym to make stronge diffence First he began to wall i•• rounde aboute And made a lawe full dredefull in sentence Who clymbe the wall by any violence Outwarde or inwarde there is nomore to seye By statute made he must nedys dye

This was enact by ful pleyne ordynaunce In peyne of deth which no man breke shall But so befell remus of ignoraunce Which of the statute knewe no thinge atall Of auenture went ouer the wall For which a knight ordeyn in certeyn The seyde remus hath with a pykeys slayne

His brother list••at in no maner wise Ageyne the lawe to be fauourable But assented parcell for couetyse Vpon remus to be more vengeable Of this entent to make his regne stable That he alone might gouerne and none other By no clayme founde nor brought in by his brother

And that the people shulde theym more delyte There to abyde and haue possession As olde auctours of romulus do write Within the boundes of the same toun That he deuised by greate prouision In cumpas rounde so cronycles compile A teritorye that called was asile

This asilum by romulus deuysed ••as a place of refuge and socours Like a theatre with libertees fraunchised For to receyue all foreyn trespassours Theuys murderers weyliggers and robbours By greate resort within the walles wyde To fostre all brybours that durst no where abyde

And with fled people fro dyuers regions The cyte gan to encrece and multyplye And banyshed folke of straunge nacions To finde refuge thidre gan theym hye And thus by processe gan their chiualrie F••••st through tyrauntes recheles of werkynge Tyll al the worlde obeyed their biddynge

Of wylfull force without title of right They brought all people vndre subiection A••leyme they made by violence and might And toke no hede of trouth nor reson And the first auctour of their fundacion Was romulus that gadryd all this route Within the cite and wallyd it aboute

And many day as made is mencion He had this cite in his gouernaunce And was the first kinge crowned in that toun And regned there by contynuaunce Full many ••erys tyll the variaunce Of fortune through hir fals enuye In campania made him for to dye

Vpon a day whan it gan thundre loude His name for euer to be more magnefied Sūme bokes ••ay he was rapt in a cloude High vp in heuene to be stellified With other goddys statly deif••ed There to be stalled by iupiters syde Lyke for his knightes as mars list prouide

Lo here of panymes a fals opinion To cristes lawe contrarye and odious That tyrauntes shulde by fals opprossion Be called goddys or named glorious Which by their lyue were founde vicious For this pleyne trouth I dare it well tell They rather b••en fendes full depe in hell

For but in erth their domynacion Conueyed been by vertuous noblesse And that their power and high renoun Be set on trouth and rightwisnesse Lyke their estates in prince or princesse I dare afferme of theym both tweyne For vicious lyuynge they must endure peyne

But whan they been feythfull of entent Right and trouth iustly to mayntene And in their roiall power be nat blen•• Wronges redressinge and pore folke sustene And so contune with concscience moost clene Such life more rathe than pompe of worldly we••••ys Shall make them regne in heuene aboue the sterrys

For which late princes vnderstonde atonys And worldly princessys with all their greate riches That their high hornys fret with rich stones Towarde heuene their passage doth nat dresse But vertuous lyfe charite and mekenesse Whan they lyst pride oute of ther herte arace That causeth theym in heuene to wynne a place

There is nomore straunge abusion Nor tofore god greate ydolatrye Than whan princes list catche affecion Creatures falsly to deifie Be collusion brought in by sorcerye Nowe god defende all princes well disposed With such fals craft neuer to be enoysed

And their iyen by none illusions Be nat englued nouther with hoke nor lyne Nor by no boytes of fals inspeccions Wrought by cyrenes by drinke or medecyne Which of their nature resemble to a shryne Through richesse outwarde and beutye souereyne And who loke inwarde be lyke a foule careyne

God of his grace amende all such outrage In noble princes and saue theym from such werre And theym enlumyne disposinge their corage In such fals worship they nomore ne erre Like to argus that they seen afcere That no false fagynge cause theym to be blinde Goddys nor goddessys to worship ageyne kinde

And though that romayns dyd worship and honour To romulus by a constreynt drede Lette no man take exaumple of their errour But to that lorde whoos sydes were made rede To saue mankinde and on a crosse was dede Let men to him in cheef their loue obserue Which can theym quyte better than they can deserue