University of Virginia Library

How Kyng Naulus by treason was caused to sett vpon the Grekes nauye, & draue þem vppon Rokkes.

In Grece whilom was a worþi kyng,
Manly & riche, & prudent of living,
And had, in soth, lik as writ Guydo,
In his tyme worþi sonys two:
Pallamydes was þe eldest broþer,
And Oetes called was þe toþer,
Boþe tweyne of o moder borne.
And as þe stori rehersed hath to-forne,
Pallamydes was a noble knyȝt,
Ful famous eke of power & of myȝt,
And fer spoke of in many sondri cost,
And hadde also of al þe Grekis host
For his wisdam whilom gouernaille;
But he, allas! was slay[e]n in bataille,
Þoruȝ vnhap of Martis cruel tene,
Whanne þe sonne shon most briȝt & shene
Of his knyȝthod & his worþines,
Lik as to-forn þe stori bereth witnes,
And of his deth doth pleinly specefie.
But now, of malys, hatrede, & envie,
Of swiche as haue tonges infortunat,
To make [only] kyng Naulus at debat
With þe Grekes, contrived was of newe
An hiȝe tresoun, fals & ful vntrewe,
Þe whiche, in soth, was neuer don ne wrouȝt,
Nor, in effect, ymagined nor þouȝt,
But a fals þing [y-]feyned of malis:—
Þat þis kyng, so manly & so wys,
And so prudent, þis Pallamydes,
Shuld of envie, God wot, causeles,
At þe sege of Troye þe cite,
Vp-on a nyȝt falsly mordred be,—
So þat þis slauȝter & þis lothsom dede
By Vlixes & by Dyomede
Wer fully wrouȝt, as ȝe han herd deuise,
Whiche euery hert ouȝt[e] to a-grise.
Þis fals also, þat þis tale han feyned,
To kyng Naulus han traitourly compleined
—Al-be in dede it was neuere ment—
Þat Grekis wern also of assent
To þis mordre and conspiracioun,
Boþe Menelay and Agamenoun—
Al-be, in soth, þat euerydel was false!
—Þat hanged be þei hiȝe be þe halse,
Þat can talis so forgen & contrive,
To make frendes causeles to strive!—
For þei þoruȝ fraude of fals collusioun
Kyng Naulus putte in suspecioun,
Þat Grekis had conspired, dout[e]les,
Vp-on þe mordre of Pallamydes,
Making her ground, whiche þei dide feyne,
Þat fro Troye wer sent lettris tweyne
To Pallamydes, in-mediately direct,
Whiche concluded tresoun in effect:
How þat he was, for al his hiȝe estat,
Falsly allied and confederat
To hem of Troye for a somme of gold,
(Al þis þei han feyned and y-told)
And how he had oute of þe cite
Of gold resseyved huge quantite,
To fyn only Grekes to be-traye,
And to prolonge hem, platly, and delay
At þe sege in getynge of þe toun,
By his engyn and mediacioun.
And to conferme al þis in sentence,
To make Naulus ȝeue ful credence,
Þei seide pleinly, in conclusioun,
Þe lettres which wer sent fro þe toun
I-fonde wern enclosed in a sheld
Vp-on a knyȝt y-slawen in þe feld,
Comprehendynge hool þe trecherie,
Þe tresoun ful, and confederacie
Atwene þe toun and Pallamydes,—
Verraily, þouȝ he were gilt[e]les.
And to ȝeuen more open euydence,
To make a pref of þis grete offence,
Þei seide Vlixes—affermynge in certeyn,—
Accorded was with a chaumberleyn
Þat was in offis with Pallamydes,
Wondre secre & no þing rekkeles,
For to assent to þis conspiracie,
Wrongly compassid of brennyng hot envie,
Behotynge hym guerdoun & gret mede,
Like his devis texecute in dede:
To take a tresour & a somme of good,
Ful secrely, & knyt it in an hood,
And hyden it, whan voided was þe pres,
Vnder þe bedde of Pallamydes.
And more to putte Grekis in surete,
Þe tresour was þe same of quantite,
—Þat it ne myȝt after be denyed,—
Liche as þe lettris had[de] specified.
And whan al þis founde was & knowe,
Þoruȝ-oute þe hoste noised & y-blowe,
Boþe of þe lettris & þe gold also,
Fro point to point according boþe two,
Whiche þat þis kyng, assentyng to tresoun,
Receyved hadde oute of Troye toun,
To be assentid (as ȝe han herd me telle),
Þe Grekes þo no lenger wold[e] dwelle,
But shop hem forþe, alle of on entent,
And in al haste cam in-to þe tent
Of þis kyng, ful Innocent & clene,
Þat litel knewe what þei wolde mene,
But vp-on hym, ful knyȝtly as he stood,
In her Ire furious and wood,
To be vengid loude gan to crie—
Þer may no man her malys modefie,
Þei wern on hym so merciles at al.
And, as I fynde, most in special,
Kyng Menelay and Agamenoun,
Only meved of indignacioun,
Wolde haue proceded vn-to Iugement,
Of hasty rancour with-oute auysement
On þis tresoun avenged for to be,
Nat-with-stondynge al his hiȝe degre;
But, in sothnes, whan þis worþi kyng
Conceyued hath þis malis in werkyng,
First astonid in his inward siȝt,
Al sodeynly stirt vp lik a knyȝt,
Þis wyse worþi, þis Pallamydes,
Hardy as lyoun amyd al þe pres,
No þing agast, him knyȝtly gan excuse,
And pleinly seide he wolde nat refuse
Taquite hym silf of þis orrible cas,
Nat excepting þat he so worþi was
Of birþe & blood & of hiȝe kynrede,
Al þis devoidinge, of knyȝthod & manhede,
As he þat gaf of lif nor deth no fors,
To-forn hem alle to iuparte his cors
With-Inne a feld, wher hem list ordeyne,
Lyk as a knyȝt his quarel to darreyne
With who þat list or durst it vndirtake,
Excepcioun hym liked noon to make
Of hiȝe nor lowe, who þat were so bolde
To preue þe tresoun, þat I haue ȝow tolde,
Besechinge hem to make no delay
Nor prolonge hym, but þe same day
Manly requeringe it may be don in hast.
But þei þat had falsly þis þing compast,
Of his answer astonyd wern echon
In al þe host þat þer was nat oon
Þat hardy was, ȝif I shal nat feyne,
In chaumclos þis quarel to darreyne—
Nouþer Vlixes, nouþer Dyomede,
Chef werkers of þis foule dede.
But Vlixes, as he was customable,
In euery þing to be deceyuable,
Double in his werk & ful ay of deceit,
Liche a serpent þat lyth in a-wait,
Whiche vnder floures can so glide & trace,—
Riȝt so Vlixes, with a feyned face,
Whan þat he sawe þe knyȝtly hiȝe prowesse,
Þe manly cher, and þe hardynesse
And hiȝe renoun of þis Pallamydes,
Anoon of falshede put hym silf in pres,
And liche a frende þat ment[e] nat but wel,
Brotel as glas, pretendinge outward stel,
With oon þe first gan [him] to excuse,
Hem conseillinge no lenger for to muse
On þis mater, for her alder ese,
And by craft gan hem so appese,
Touching þe rumour of þis hiȝe tresoun,
Þat he hath voided al suspecioun
Oute of her hertis,—concludynge, in certeyn,
Þis accusynge made was in veyn,
And conspired only of hatrede—
Al-be hym silf was rote of al þis dede.
But whanne he saw he myȝt[e] nat acheve,
As ȝe han herd, þis worþi kyng to greue,
Som spot of tresoun on hym for to leye,
He hath anon founde anoþer weye
By thassent fully of Diomede:
Vnder pretence, pleinly, of frendlyhede
Comynge to hym ageyn a certeyn nyȝt,
Vnder surance, as he was trewe knyȝt,
Counseil to kepe, ouþer for sote or sour,
Enformyng hym of a grete tresour
Of gold & good and infinit richesse
To hem discured vnder secrenesse,
Þe whiche, sothly, no man dide knowe,
Hid & enclosid in a welle lowe
With-Inne a feld a litel þer be-side,
Þe whiche hem list fro hym nat to hyde,
But of trust vn-to hym discure,
So he wolde done his besy cure
Þe same nyȝt with hem for to go
Vn-to þe welle—þei þre & no mo—
To fet a-way þat grete some of good.
And he, in soth, þat no þing vndirstood
What þei ment, assentid was anoon;
And so þei þre be to-gidre goon
Vn-to þe welle, lik as I haue told,
And for þat he most manly was & bold,
Pallamydes, liche as þei hym telle,
Descended is lowe in-to þe welle,
Supposinge to haue a tresour founde.
But þei, allas! hym falsly to confounde,
Han mordrid hym with stonys gret & huge,
He in þe botme havynge no refuge;
And whan þei had acomplished þer entent,
Þei be repeired eueryche to his tent.
Þis þe tale, þe stori telleth vs,
Þat feyned was to þe kyng Naulus,
Tochinge þe deth of Pallamydes,
Hem to disclaundre þat were gilt[e]les!
For Vlixes, & with hym Diomede
Were Innocent, platly, as I rede,
And Grekis alle, boþe nyȝe & ferre:
For he was slayn knyȝtly in þe werre,
Duringe þe sege, of Paris with an arwe.
But who is fals, feyne can ful narwe
To fynde a tale þat neuere ȝit was þouȝt!
And of þe tresoun þat shuld haue be wrouȝt
Touchynge þe lettris sent oute of þe toun,
Þer was no swiche conspiracioun
By Grekis wrouȝt, but a fable vnsoth,
Falsly feyned to make Naulus wroth
With Vlixes and Diomede also,
Agamenoun, and oþer Grekis mo,
To letten hem homward in her weye,
And hyndre also—þer is no more to seie—
As þei repeire to her regiouns.
And Naulus þanne by þis occasiouns,
And Oetes his sone, a manly man,
Accorded ben, in what þei may or can,
Be oon assent tavenge merciles
Þe cruel mordre of Pallamydes,
And to ordeyne at her hom passage
To werke fully in-to her damage,
For Grekes moste of necessite
Homward saille for-by his contre.
Wherfore þis kyng shapen hath a wyle:
On hilles hiȝe, by a lytel yle,
In wynter sesoun euery maner nyȝt
To make fires and to sette vp lyȝt,
To causen hem on þe se to erre.
For, as Grekis sawe þe fire a-ferre,
Vnwar of harme, cast hem for to londe,
As þei þat coude no pereil vndirstonde,
But shopen hem with al her ful[le] myȝt
For to arive fast[e] by þe liȝt,
Wher-with two hundrid of her shippes brak
Amonge rokkes, and fully go to wrak,
Þat þer was drowned many worþi man.
And þus þe vengaunce alderfirst be-gan
Þat kyng Naulus hath on Grekis take
Of dedly hate for his sonis sake,
To gret mischef and confusioun
Of Grekis navie; but Agamenoun
With gret pereil is þe deth eskaped,
Þat had almost among hem be beiapid:
For erlys, dukis, & worþi kynges crowned,
Þoruȝ þis treyne in þe se wer drowned.
But Menelay and also Diomede
Eskapeden þis meschef, as I rede.
And when þei wern from al daunger goon,
Þis Oetes, wood for Ire, anoon
In his herte shope anoþer wyle,
And þouȝt he wold Agamenoun be-gyle,
Compassinge a ful mortal strif,
Leet send a lettre anon to þe wyf
Of þis myȝti grete Agamenoun,
In whiche þer was included fals tresoun;
For evene lik, ȝif I shal nat lye,
Þus in effect þei dide specefie:
First, how hir lord Agamenoun þe kyng
Hadde at þe sege wrouȝt a wonder þing
In preiudyse and sclaunder of hir name,
Al-be in hir was no maner blame,
(Liche as he wrot) platly, nor trespace
His kyngly honour of foly to difface;—
Þis to seyn, Guydo telleth þus,
He loued a douȝter of kyng Priamus,
And for bewte had hir to wyve take,
And hir in herte finally for-sake,
Þis worþi quene, whilom of so gret fame;—
And Clemestra sothly was hir name,
Wonder semly and riȝt fair with-al,
And be descent borne of þe stook royal,—
Hir tellynge eke, for al hir excellence,
Al-be þat she neuere dide offence,—
Ȝet hir lord of newfangilnesse
Toke anoþer, þe lettres dide expresse,
Fully in purpos anoon at his repeire,
Þouȝ Clemestra wer boþe good & fayre,
Al sodeynly hir[e] to exile
Oute of his lond many þousand myle,
Warnyng hir þat she be prudent.
Þis was þe substaunce, as in sentament,
Þat Oetes wrote vn-to þis quene,
Al-be þe kyng was Innocent & clene,
And was to hir in al his forn lyvynge
Lovynge and trewe in al maner þing,
And hir to plese passinge ententif
In word and dede duryng al his lyf,
As fer as ouȝt of resoun be desyred.
But þe letteris, þat falsly were conspired,
Þei han hir put, par cas of Innocence,
For to ȝeven to hastily credence,
Þankynge first Oetes for his trouþe,
Þat so goodly hym list to haue rouþe
Vp-on hir wronge of hiȝe compassioun.
(And ȝet þe story makeþ mencioun
Here-afterward, as I shal descrive,
Þat she was þe falsest oon alyve
Vn-to hir lord in his longe absence.)
And in al hast she made strong diffence
Ageyn þis kyng, & gan hir to purueie
Be swiche fraude þat she shal nat deie;
But of hir werk, in soth, she was to wyte,
Þe whiche, allas! I must anoon endite,
As þe story, platly, doth me lere,
Whiche doolful is & mortal for to here!