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 lucrece oppressed by Tarquyn slough hir self

BVt at Lucrece s••yne I will a while It were ••ite hir story for to hide Or slouth the penne of my rude stile But for hir sake all maters set aside Also my lorde bad I shulde abyde By good auice at leyser to translate•• The doolfull processe of hir pitous fate

Folowynge the tracis of collucyus Which wrote of hir a declaracion Moost lamentable / moost doolfull / moost pitous Where he discriueth the dolorous treason Of hir constreyned fals oppression Wrought and compassid by vnware violence The light vntroublyd of hir clere conscience

Hir fader whilom callyd Spurius Hir worthy husbonde namyd collatyn Which by the luxurie and treson odious And vicious outrage of sextus proude Tarquyn Oppressyd was and brought vnto hir fyn Whoos dedely sorowe in Inglissh for to make Of pitous ruth my penne I fele quake

This saide Tarquyn this euyll auisyd knight This slaundred man moost hatefull for his dede Cam like a theef alas vpon a night With nakyd swerde whan noman toke hede Vpon Lucrece she quakinge in hir drede Lyenge abed ferre from hir folkes all And knewe no refuge for helpe for to calle

He manasynge in his frowarde entent On hir beholdynge with a furious chere That with his swerde but she wolde assent Hir and a boy he wolde prente I fere Suchone as was moost ougly of manere Moost vnlikely of {per}sone and of fame Thus he hir thrat for to slaundre hir name

But his entent whan she dyd fele And sawe no mene of hir woful chaunce The morowe after she list no thinge concele Tolde hir husbonde holy the gouernaunce Him requerynge for to do vengeaunce Vpon this cryme saide like a trewe wife She wolde hir herte perce with a knyfe

In this mater this was hir fantasie Better was to dye than to lyue in shame And lasse ill to put in Iu{per}dye Hir mortall body than hir good fame Whan honour dieth farwell a mannys name Be••••••••••t were out of his life diseuere Than slaunderous fame to sle a man for 〈◊〉〈◊〉

But to that purpos hir husbond saide nay Hir fader also was therto contrarie Makynge a promyce without more delay To do vengeaunce howe they wilnat tarie To her declaryngt with reasons debonarie Vndre these wordes trouth and right cōserued To sle hir self she hath no thinge deserued

For sodenly and also vnauisyd As a foole is trappyd in the snare By vnware fraude vpon the practisyd Thou were disceyued pleynly to declare Ha••inge this conceyt hard is to repare The name of theym which falsly be diffamyd Whan wronge report the high renowne hath shamyd

Touchinge thy {per}sone I dare offerme and s••yn That it were a maner impossible And like a thinge which neuer yit was seyn That thy worship was founde corruptible But stedfast ay and indiuisible Vnptyd vertue and made stronge And nowe desirous to auenge thy wronge

On thy Iniurye we shall auengyd be Consideryd first the dedely heuynesse Which thou suffridest by greate aduersite Whan the auoutour thy beutye dyd oppresse And reioysynge by a fals gladnesse Maugre thy wyll as a theef by night The encombred of very force and myght

But if thou woldest leue all thy mournynge And restreyne thy importable woo Sone shuldest thou se an egall punysshinge Vpon thy moost frowarde mortall foo To warne all other they shall nomore do s•• In chastisinge of fals auoutrie The and thy renoun of right to magnifye

What was diffasinge to thy true entent Though his youth vnbridelyd went at large•• So for to aforce a cely innocent Whoos wickydnesse ought to bere the charge And we of right thy conscience discharge The ioye vnlefull of his fals plesaunce With double palme thyn honoure doth auaunce

Conceyue ••nd se o thou my Lucrece Howe that reason and good discrecion Shulde thy trouble and thy mournynge ceo•• Of right restreyne thy opinion So rechelesly to do punycion With knyf or hande to sle thy silf alas For others gilt and didest no trespas

Latbe Lucrece / ••atbe all thy dool Cece thy complaynt and thy woo restreyne Shulde I fro the lyue alone all fool And thy deth {per}petuelly compleyne To put thy fader in importable peyne Of oure welfare be nat so recheles To dye and leue our childre moderles

Of prudence eke thou oughtest for to se And aduertise only of reason Though of force thy body corrupte be Thy soule inwarde and thyn entencion Fraunchisyd been from all corrupcion Offence is none considre in thyn entent With will and herte yeue therto full consent

Thou were nakyd in thy bed lyenge Alone vnware slepinge and voide of myght Suspeciousles all of his comynge That tyme namely bycause that it was night A feerfull woman and he a manly knight Al be it so vnknightly was his dede With nakyd swerde to assaile thy womanhede

He might thy body by force well oppresse By sleighty weyes that he had sought But wele wo••e I for all his sturdynesse He might neuer haue maistry of thy thought The body yeldyd the herte yeldyd him nought Ye were tweyne / thou feble / and he right stronge Thy trouth afforcyd he werker of the wronge

Where mightest thou haue greter preice or laude All right considred trouth and equite First counterpeysed his force and sleighty fraude Than to {per}seuere in femynite With thought enchaunged and infragilite Of woman hede to haue an hert stable What thinge in the might be more comendable

It is well••know•• thou were of herte ay one To all fals lustys contrarie in gouernaunce More like an Image ••erued oute of a stone Than like a woman flesshly of plesaunce The tyraunt fonde in chere and countenaunce Which euer after by womanly victorye Shalbe ascryued to thyn encreace of glorie

Thy fader Brutus hath the well excused Mysilf also thy blode and thy kynrede On this mater late nomore be musyd To sle thy silf or do thy sydes blede Certys Lucrece thou hast full litell nede It were greate wronge by all oure iugement To spare a tyraunt and sle an Innocent

Thy silf to murdre to sūme it wolde seme Thou were gilty where as thou art clene Dyuers wittes diuersly wyll deme Report thinge thou none didest mene For which thou shalt paciently susteene Tyll thy chast wifly Innocence May se him punysshed for his violence

Folke wyll nat deme a {per}sone Innocent Which wilfully whan he is nat culpable Yildeth him self to deth by iugement And neuer was afore of no gilt portable His owne dome vpon him self vengeable Causeth the people though their report be nought To deme a thinge that neuer was done ne wrought

To be auengyd vpon thyn owne life In excusynge of thy dedly fame To shewe thou art a true weddyd wife Wenynge by deth to gete the a name In this deuice thou art greatly to blame Where thou yit knowest thyn honoure clerly shyne To yeue the people mater to deuyne

And with that worde lucrece dyd abrayde Full dedely both of loke and chere To theym ageyn euyn thus she saide Lathe husbonde / lathe my fader dere Speke nomore to me of this matere Lest men dempt in hindringe of my name I dred deth more than fals diffame

Youre counseyle is I shall my life conserue To sorowe and sclaundre but no gladnesse But lasse ill it is at an houre to sterue Than euer languyssh in sorowe and heuynesse Deth maketh an ende of all worldly distresse And it was saide sith full yore ago Better is to dye than euer to lyf in woo

Whan that worship in any creature Is slayne and dede by sclaunderous report Better is of deth the dredfull peyne endure Than by fals noise ay to lif in discomfort Where newe / and newe diffame hath his resort Neuer dyeth but quickeneth by the outrage Of hatefull tunges and venymous langage

Do youre deuer to halowe and make stable The chast chaumbres of wifly gouernaunce For in this case if ye be variable On fals auoutrye for to do vengeaunce There shall folowe euerlastynge remembraunce Howe true spousaile as ye haue harde deuysed In youre cite broke and nat chastised

If ye be founde in such case necligent To punyssh auoutours of right as youre charge Through youre slouth as ye were of ••assent Luxuere vnbridelyd shall re••••e abrode at large Who shall than youre conscience discharge Or what woman stonde in sekirnesse Of Lucrece afforcyd the clennesse

O dere husbonde what ioye shulde it be To thyn estate in any maner place Like as thy wife to cherissh me Or in thyn armes me goodly to enbrace The gilt horrible considered and trespace By Tarquyn done alas and welaway Which in my {per}sone may neuer be wasshed away

And fader myn howe shuldest thou me call After this day thyn owne doughter dere Which alas refuce of wymen all That to thy plesaunce was whilom moost entere Within thy hous whan I dyd lere By clere exaumple of manyfolde doctryne All that {per}teyned to vertuous discipline

Which I haue lost nowe in my dayes olde Dispeyred it to recure ageyn Myn owne childre I dare nat theym beholde Bycause the wombe in that they haue leyn Diffoulyd is and pollute in certeyn Which was tofore in chastite conseruyd Chastise the auoutre as he hath deseruyd

And for my part to speke in wordes fewe Lenger to lyue I haue no fantasie For where shulde I out my face shewe Or dare appere in any company Sith a derke spot of fals auoutrie Shall euermore whether it be fals or true Into myn hindrynge the sclaundre to renewe

Lust afforcid hath a fals appetite Of freelte includyd in nature Maugre the wyll there foloweth a delite As sūme folkys say in euery creature Good fame lost full harde is to recure And sith I may my harmys nat redresse To you in open my gylt I wyll confesse

All be I was ageyn my wyll oppressyd There was a maner constreyned lust in dede Which for no power might nat be redressyd For feblenesse I stode in so greate drede For which offence deth shall be my mede Sith leuer I haue with sūme edge tole To sle my silf than lyue in slaundre and dole

O fader myn spare and haue pite And dere husbonde rue on myn offence Goddys and goddessys callyd of chastite To my trespas graunt an indulgence For of my gylt to make a recompence Where that venus gate in me a vauntage Deth shall redresse and chastise myn outrage

For if I shulde make a delay To perce my brest with sharpnesse of a knife Men wolde deme and say fro day to day To make my sclaundre more opyn and more rife Howe that I was more tendre of my life Than of my worship which to greate a shame To loue my lyfe more than my good name

In this mater no witnesse is so gode To put away all fals suspecion As with a knife to shede my hert blode I might nat make a better purgacion To all folke that haue discrecion Than fynally by my deth to excuse, The gilt horrible of which men me accuse

Goo forth my soule pure and inmortall Cheef witnesse of myn Innocence Tofore tho iuges which been infernall First Mynos kynge to deme my conscience With Radamanthus to yeue a sentence Lyke my desert that it myght be sene In wifly trouth howe that I was clene

Thou erthely body which through thy fairenesse Were to auoutry full greate occasion Of thy blode shed out the rednesse And by thy sides late it raile doun Stere and exite the people of this toun To do their deuer within a litell while For loue of tarquyn all kinges to exile

And firste I pray my husbonde moost entere Of this vengeaunce to make no delay With helpe and socoure of my fader dere To punysshe the auoutour in all the hast ye may Late him take his wages and his pay Lyke as ye se and pleynly nowe concey••e For his offence the deth I do receyue

And sodenly or they might aduert She toke a knife and with greate violence Through the brest euyn vnto the herte She made it glide there was no resistence Full pale and dede fyll doun in their presence And by occasion of this pitous dede Tarquyn exiled and hooly his kinrede

For which cause by recorde of writynge Was there neuer in Rome the cyte After that day no man crownyd kynge As in cronycles ye may beholde and se Thus for luxurie and their cruelte Their tyrannye and fals extorcion They were exiled oute of rome toun