University of Virginia Library

28. THE TITLE AND PEDIGREE OF HENRY VI

Þe prolog.

Crist Ihesu, Prince and souerain Lord
Of vnyte, of peas, and of accorde,
Seyng the myschief & þe hie distaunce
Betwene the kynges of Englond and of Fraunce;
Peryll of soules both[e] nygh and ferre,
By occasioun of the mortall werre;
Seyng also the grete confusioun
Of both reames, by devisioun
Thurgh feyned falshed caused cursidly
By the Dolphyn, that so horribly
Made sleen withoute drede or shame,
At Monstreux, a toun of grete fame,
Iohn duc of Burgoyne, by grete violence,
Doyng to him honure & reuerence,
And euermore of inyquite,
By false tresoun and cursed cruelte
Compassed; alas! þat was to grete a ruth
Undir colour and shadowe of veray trouth,
In dispite of the Chirche, alas!
Hauyng no reward in þis horrible cas
To suerte nor othe ymade to-forne,
Nor asurance in holy place asworne,
The high lord, Herry Bully, to offende;
That wit of man coude not comprehende,
That this Dolfyn shuld in any wise
So hygh tresoun compassen or devise,
Himself, alas! in hindryng of his name,
Thurgh the world to sclaundre & to blame;
Causing in soth his vnabilite
For to succede to any dignite,
Of knyghtly honure to regne in any lond,
As by letres ensealid with his hond
Clerly recorde, truth[e] woll not vary,
He to his othe wirching the contrary:
Consideryng this & peised in balaunce,
Touching the right of true enheritaunce,
God thurgh his myght who can vndirstond
More of grace than of mannes hond,
All oure trouble to enden & to fyne,
By purveaunce, which þat is devyne,
Provided hath of his hy[e] grace
For reames two large to compasse
A rightfull heir, I dare hit wel endite,
As þis figure vnto euery wight
Shewyng in ordre descendyng lyne right,
To forein blode þat it not ne chaunge,
The crowne to put in non hondis straunge,
But it conveied þere it shuld be.

Shewyng of þe peedegre in portrature.

Verily, liche as ye may se,
The pee-degre doth hit specifie,
The figure, lo, of the genelagye,
How that God list for her purchase
Thurgh his power and benigne grace,
An heir of peas by iust successioun,
This ffigure makith clere demonstracioun,
Ageins which noman may maligne,
But þat he stondith in þe veray ligne,
As ye may se, as descendid is
Of the stok and blode of Seint Lowys;
Of which we aught of equite & right
In oure hertis to be glad and light,
That we may se with euery circumstaunce
Direct the lyne of Englond & of Fraunce.
On þe othir part byhold & ye may se

Shewyng þe portratur of þe pedegre. Henry comes direct from St. Louis.

How this Herry in þe eight degre
Is to Seint Lowys sone & very heir;
To put awey all doute & dispair,
God hath for vs so graciously provided,
To make al oon that first was devided,
That this Herry stonding in the lyne,
Thurgh Goddis hond & purviaunce devyne,
Is iustly borne, to voide all variaunce,
For to be kyng of Englond & of Fraunce;
To whom we owe truly to obey
In euery thing, ther is nomore to sey;
By whom we se the werre doutelesse
Fully finisshed, brought in werre & peas,
Betwix this noble worthi reames twayn,
Ful long aforne with labour & grete payn
Sought & required, which ben now at rest,
Thanked be God, þat all doth for the best;
And that this peas in sothfast vnyte,
Be endid sone withoute strif or plee,
By thavise and mediacioun
Made by trete of both regioun,
Sworne and asured by full besy peyn
Of both parties at Trois in Champoigne.
Charlis þe Sext makyng thassurance,
Thilke tyme beyng kyng of Fraunce;
The quene also sworne in the same wise,
And after hem, as I shal devise,
The boke also entouchid with his hond,
Was Herry sworne, kyng of Eng[e]lond,
Heir of Fraunce, and also regent,
And Phelip eke beyng þere present,
Duc of Burgoyne, assured eke & sworne,
Sone to the duc of whom I spake byforne,
That slayn was & murdred traitoursly;
Than thre astatis beyng by & by,
Prelatis, Erles, Lordis, and Barons,
Sworne and assured, of both regions,
As the traite fully hath devised.
And there in Troys also was solempnesed
The mariage, to conferme vp the peas;
And to declare the maner douteles
Of this weddyng, who so lyst to serche,
At Seint Petirs Aundels of the chirche,
The said Herry, manly & prudent,
Of Englond kyng, of Fraunce the regent,
Etrouthed hath my lady Kateryn,
And þe mystery wich that is devyne.
O[f] mariage by grete reuerence,
The sacrement for the excellence
He hath worshipped, and full humbly
In the chirch made axid openly,
After custume of hy or low degre,
To shew ensample of humylite.
In the chirche thries of Seint Iohn,
Liche the custume of new & yore agon,
Thries publisshed in open audience,
As the lawe byndeth in sentence.
Touching the statuyt in cas of mariage,
For any fauour of blode or lynage,
The cours suyng in all his hole entent,
And in no wise list not be exempte;
From poynt to poynt list no thing withdrawe,
The bonde filowyng of Holy Chirche lawe,
Notwithstonding his astate riall:
But in his chirche þan parochiall
Of Seint Iohn he came with good entent,
For to receive the holy sacrement
Of mariage, he and Kateryn,
As ye toforne haue herd me determyn.
The which Herry if I shal discryve,
I dare wele sey þere was neuer on lyve
No manlier to speke of worthinesse,
Of gouernaunce, nor of hy prowesse,
Whiche thurgh his manhode & grete labour,
Lyche a notable worthi conquerour
Cesid not, thurgh his besy peyne,
Iustly to bring worthi reames twayn
Vndir oo crowne by desceynt of lyne;
For which he may among þe Worthie Nyne
Truly be set & reconed for oon,
Who can take hede among hem euerichone.
And of this Henry, of knyghthode moste famous,
Moste avisy, and moste victorious,
From Seint Lowys in the right[e] lyne,
I sey, of him and of Kateryne,
Doun in ordre by corious lyneall,
Descendid is from þe stok riall
Of Seint Lowis, who can vndirstond,
Henry the Sext, borne in Eng[e]lond,
For to possede by enheritaunce
Crownes two of Englond & of Fraunce,
By true title, as ye haue hard toforne,
The first yere in soth that he was born.
By the which of [hem] he & his fader dere
Both[e] two passing in oon yere,
Eueriche in haste suyng aftir othir,

Kyng of Fraunce, Charles þ[e Sext], & þe kyng of Englond, Her[ry the Fift].

By pitous faate, hit wold be non othir,
The yere of grace by computacioun
A thousand foure hundrid by conclusioun
Twenty and two, who so compte right.
God graunt her soulis of her grete myght
Ioy & rest which is eternall,
In his court aboue celestiall;
And graunt oure kyng ioy, honure & glorye,
Peas & quiete, & of his foon the victorye,
To loue his people, & to be loved ayen,
As þei loued her lord most souerain,
Charles þe Sext, which was his aiell;
And in doctryne he norisshed be aswele,
And als wys and prudent fynally,
As was his fader callid eke Henry.
Graunt him grace & also good fortune,
In his regnes also to contynue
His riall lyne also to habound,
And that hit may verily be founde
Hy to encrece in worship & vertue,
As an heir blessed of Ihesu,
And of renoun excellent in vertue.
To drawen oute a true peedegrue,
Lyneally descending even adoun
From Seint Lowys, most famous of renoun,
And renommed of parfite holynesse;
And specially, the trouth[e] to expresse,
Amonges oþer to reken euerychone,
Of Frenssh-men oonly þere was oon
From the trouth which wold not varie,
Oure liege lord chosen secretary
For his feithfull true diligence,
Which by name callid is Laurence
Calet, of the Counseill clerk,
Which toke on him þe laboure of this werk,
Euer aftir to be rad & song;
First to compile hit in þe Frenssh tong,
Compendiously drawe hit in sentence
In that language, by grete prouidence,
As he þat was passing excellent,
In rethoryk famous & eloquent,
And diligent withouten any slouth
To declare oute the trouth,
The chaf to voide & take the true corne.
Of which my lorde þat I spak of byforne,
My Lord of Warrewyk, ful worthi of renoun,
Of high prudence & discrecioun,
Touching þe writyng of this Calot clerk,
Draw into Frenssh by his besy werk,
Gaf me precept in conclusioun
To make therof a playn translacioun
In Englissh tong, & bad me hit translate.
And to reherce þe very true date
Of this labour, when I first bygan,
Hit was in soth, as I reherce can,
The monyth of Iuyll twenty daies comen,
And eight ouere, when þe sonne shone
Made his paleys & his duellyng place
Ameddis the heuen in the thrid[de] face,
The signe I mene callid the Lioun,
Which is the toure & chief mansioun
Where Phebus hath moste souerain dignite
And thilke tyme in the thritteneth degre
He entred was of the same signe,
Thatempre wedir lusty and benigne,
Saturne beyng in the Scorpyoun,
In which he hath no domynacioun,
Ne dignite, shortly for to tary;
Iubiter in þe Sagittary
Seven degres wher he is dignified,
Full fortunat & gretly magnified;
Furious Mars, þe ferfull red[e] sterre,
Causar of stryf, patroun of þe werre,
With his bemes cast moste feruently,
Was two pocys passed of Gemeny;
Fressh Venus, lady of Citheroun,
Was nyne degrees entred the Lyoun;
And þe mone, with her hernes pale,
From the Bolle gan her cours availe;
The same tyme when þat Mercurious
In the Lioun had[de] take his hous,
Ful contrary to his dignite,
Beyng tho in the tenth degre;
And of the Bulle also douteles
By accomptes also twenty grees
Entred was the hed of the Dragoun;
And his taill in thopposicioun;
The same tyme, as I vndirstond,
My Lord bad me þis werk take an hond.
That he may se his generacioun
Vnto the forteth multiplicacioun
Victoriously for to regnen here,
Aftir this lif aboue the sterres clere,
God him graunt oonly of his grace
Of mercy þere for to haue a place.