Here begynneth the booke whiche is called the body of polycye And it speketh of vertues and of good maners, and the sayd boke is deuyded in thre partyes. The fyrst party is adressed to prynces. The seconde to knyghtes and nobles: and the thyrde to the vnyuersal people. The fyrst chapytre speketh of the dyscrypcyon of the body of polycye.

¶ Here it speketh of the syxte good condycyon that the worthy man of armes ought to haue. Capitulo. xlvi.

THe syxte good condycyon y^• the good man of▪ armes ought to haue as I haue sayd here tofore is that h•• sholde be wyse / well aduysed / & cautelous in dedes▪ that maye fall in armes / and in all maner feates of knyghthode / And for bycause that we wyll brynge to mynde by ensample the cautelous dedes of knyghthode / & worthy men that dyde y^• grete conquestes and grete thynges in theyr tyme / whiche maye be causers to brynge suche thyn∣ges agayne to mynde / to that entente that they in tyme y^• nowe is maye vse suche feates & not to be deceyued in them / we wyll shewe you here after folowynge lyke as auctoures recyteth / & also Ualere that nameth suche subtyltees to ouercome & noye his enemy Stratagones. But the fyrst ensample we wyll spe ke of ••hylostratus that was duke of Athenes / whiche as sto ryes sayth was ryght subtell & well aduysed in all thynges / & specyally in the feate of warre▪ ••or true it was that they of a Cyte of Grece that was called ••egara / bare it forthe vnder dys••y••ulacyo••▪ But in the tyme of this ••hylostratus they of Megera thought by a certayne wyle to fynde a meane to be a∣uenged vpon them of Athenes / for they had not forgoten y^• gre te hurtes and greues that they had done them before tyme / so they remembred them that the people of Athenes were yerely acustomed to go in to the yle of ••uletre / where the lady of Athenes wente on pylgrymage at a certayne day in the yere / whe re vpon they of Megera lete ordayne theyr nauye of shyppes & / thought they wolde auenge them on theyr enemyes semyn∣ge to thē that y^• Athenyences wolde take no hede of suche thyn ges▪ But this Phylostrates duke of Athenes whiche hadde a knowlege of this thynge ordeyned that y^• ladyes sholde holde theyr purpose lyke as they had acustomed before tyme / & that they sholde make gretter araye & gretter feest thā they vsed be fore tyme to y^• purpose that they of Megera sholde not thynke

they were escaped. So this ••hylostratus toke to hym a good felawshyp of men of armes and wente before in to the 〈…〉〈…〉▪ & put hym in a busshement / and anone as the men of Megera were come to londe he brake his busshement and felle vpon his enemyes and slue them euerychone. And whan this was done ••hylostratus entred in to theyr shyppes / and toke with hym many of the ladyes that were best besene and rychest arayed and toke his course towarde Megera / to that entente y^t they of Megera sholde vnderstonde that it was theyr owne people for bycause they sawe soo many ladyes come with theym / and supposed also that they had gotten grete goodes withall. For they knewe well theyr owne nauye & theyr tokens / & for y^• gre te Ioye that they had of this dede euery man drewe to the porte and they wente hastely to londe and kylled and slue the moost partye of the people. And anone after toke the cyte. ¶ ••aryus that was chosen kynge of Perce and Mede for the n••y••nge of his horse / assembled syxe hondred thousande men / as Iustyne sayth in his seconde boke for to destroye the Athenyences and theyr londe. They of Athenes herde therof sente for socours to Lacedemone and to other londes but they taryed passynge lon ge. Then ••yl••yades that was at that tyme duke of Athenes whiche made to nomble his people and founde that he had but x. thousande of his owne men / and a thousande of straungers yet this worshypfull man hadde more trust to renne vpon his enemyes then to tary for the helpe of them that were comynge notwithstondynge many of his men helde a yenst it incuerthe∣lesse he wente so hastely vpon them that or they coude beware or make themselfe redy they were amonge them & toke them out of ara ye in suche wyse that they were dyscomfyted / soo by this good wyle and manhode. xi. thousande dyscomfyted syxe hondred thousande of the Percyens. ¶ Ualere sayth that Ha nyball the Emperoure of Cartage hated gretely the ryght no

ble Romayne prynce that was named Fabyus ••aximus for bycause that he hadde done hym many greuous hurtes in ba tayle / and at all tymes made grete resystence ayenst his grete hoost. And ••ytus ••ynyus sayth also that he was the prynce in Rome that Hanyball moost hated. This sayd Fabyus was a dyctatour whiche was the soueraynest offyce of Rome & led with hym a grete hoost where so euer he wente. Then this ha nyball bethought hym on a wyle and laboured sore for to noye Fabyus / so that he toke his hoost & wente in to ytaly / and de∣stroyed all the lowe countre what with sworde & fyre excepte y^• londes & maners of y^• dyctatour Fabyus Marymus / to that entente that they of Rome sholde haue a suspeccyon that there were made some alyaunce amonge them / and yet he dyde mo re for he founde a waye to sende to Rome a letter closed whiche came to the hondes of the counsaylours of Rome and was dy∣rected to Fabyus from Hanyball whiche was not at that ty in the ••yte / and it semed by the contynewe of the letters that there had ben bytwene them grete famylyaryte & promyses / by the whiche it semed that Hanyball was come to his entent But and the Romaynes had not knowne the grete trouthe of Fabyus / & the grete malyce of Hanyball it myght haue bene cause of the destruccyon of this noble prynce.