Lydgate's Fall of Princes :: :: University of Virginia Library

Bochas in herte brennyng hoot as fir
Off verai ire and indignacioun
Ageyn tho princis, which in ther desir
Han fulli set ther delectacioun,
Ther felicite and ther affeccioun
To folwe ther lustis off fals lecherie,
Froward spousbreche and off auoutrie.

361

He writ ageyn hem that seeke occasiouns,
Places off lust to han ther libertees
For to fulfille ther delectaciouns;
And for tacomplisshe ther gret dishonestees,
Deuyse out tauernes in burwes & citees,
And sittyng ther among ther cumpanye,
Afftir the deede thei booste off ther folye.

Yiff any man pynche at ther outrage,
Or them rebuke for ther tran[s]gressiouns,
Thei will ansuere with froward fals language,
And for ther parti allegge gret resouns:
First how it longeth to ther condiciouns
Be riht off Nature, as it is weel kouth,
Freli to vse lecheri in youth;

Afferme also, how lawe of Kynde is fre,
And so afforce hem to sustene ther partie
Bexaumple off Dauid, which that took Bersabe,
And for hir sake how he slouh Vrie,
Dede manslauhtre and fals auoutrie,—
For hem aleggyng, ageyn riht and resoun,
For Dalida the luxure off Sampsoun.

The stori also thei frowardli applie,
How for a woman prudent Salamoun,
The Lord offendyng, dede ydolatrie.
And in diffence off ther opynyoun,
Reherse these storyes for excusacioun
Off ther errour, therbi a pris to wynne,
As tofor God lecheri wer no synne.

Thei nat considre in ther entencioun
Off these stories eueri circumstaunce:
First off kyng Dauid the gret contricioun,
Nor vpon Sampson how God took gret vengaunce;
First how he loste his force & his puissaunce
For his offence—thei ha[ue] nat this in mynde,
Nor how that bothe his eien wer maad blynde.

Nor ther resouns thei list nat to enclyne
For to conceyue in ther discrecioun,
The sperit off wisdam, heuenli & dyuyne,
Was take away fro prudent Salamoun
In chastisyng for his transgressioun.

362

And summe doctours affermen ouermore,
How Salamon repentid hym ful sore.

The play off youthe folk calle it lecherie,
Seyn that it is a gamen off Nature,
And to sustene and bern vp ther partie,
How it sit weel, be record off scripture,
Onto euerich liffli creature
That stant in helthe and is coraious,
Off verrai kynde for to be lecherous.

Vicious report thei han in remembraunce,
But vertuous thyng is ferr out off mynde;
Flesshli lustis and lecherous plesaunce
In ther desirs be nat lefft behynde.
Auauntyng, lieng thei can off newe out fynde;
And now-adaies thei holde curtesie
Othes horrible, flatryng and ribaudie.

In ther auys thei taken litil heede
Onto the doctryn off noble Scipioun,
Which comaundid, in story as I reede,
To Masmissa, ful famous off renoun,
Nat to touche be no condicioun
Sophonisba, fairest off visage,
But yiff it were be weie off mariage.

Thouh she wer born off the blood roiall,
Hir youthe was set to al honeste,
Douhter and hair to noble Hastruball,
Duc off Cartage, the story ye may see;
And for hir vertues off femynyte,
She weddid was, off berthe as she was lik,
To kyng Siphax, which regned in Affrik.

And for to preue the grete liberte
Which is in vertu conveied be resoun,
And the fals thraldam off dishoneste,—
Off bothe to make a pleyn comparisoun,
Afftir the doctryn off Censoryn Catoun,
Shewid be hym to folkis in comune,
That vertu neuer is subiect to Fortune:

363

Vertu conserueth mesour and resoun,
Considreth thynges aforn or thei befall,
Takith non enprises but off discrecioun,
And on prudence foundeth hir werkes all;
Ay to hir counsail attempraunce she doth call,
Warli prouydyng in hirsilff withynne
The eende off thynges toforn or she begynne.

This was the doctryn tauht foorth off Catoun,
Lecherous lustis to put hem vndir foote,
Grauntyng to vertu the domynacioun,
Plukke up vices, braunche, cropp & roote.
Frut off goodnesse groweth up so soote,
Whan it is plauntid off youthe in a corage,
It neuer appalleth in helthe off his tarage.

Catoun with vertu was a cheeff officer,
Preferryng euer comoun commodites
Tofor profites that wer synguler;
Tenhaunce the comoun in kyngdames & citees,
Ther wittis peised and ther habilitees,
Personys promotyng, in whom it was supposid,
That thei in vertu wer natureli disposid.

Manli off herte he was ay to susteene
Indifferentli trouthe and al iustise;
Flesshli delites off folk that wer oncleene
He was ay redi be rigour to chastise,
And sette lawes in ful prudent wise
For to punshe flaterers and lechours
And such as wern openli auoutours.

He hadde off wommen non opynyoun
With hem to dele for lust nor for beute,
But yiff it were for procreacioun,—
So stable he was founde in his degre,
The book reedyng off inmortalite
Which Plato made, the trouthe weel out souht,
Therin concludyng, how soulis deie nouht,

But lyueth euer outher in ioie or peyne.
Thus wrot Plato in his orygynall:
Men may the body be deth ful weel constreyne,

364

But the soule abit ay inmortall.
For which this Catoun, stedfast as a wall,
For comoun profit to deie was nat afferd,
Whan he hymsilff slouh with a naked suerd.

But to Fortune aforn his deth he saide,
“O thou pryncesse off worldli goodes veyne,
To thi flatereris I neuer dede abraide,
Thi fauour is so fals and oncerteyne
That neuer I fauht no fraunchise to atteyne
As for my-silff, nor parcial syngulerte,
But al for profit touchyng the comounte.

A-geyn Cesar I made resistence,
To conquere fredam to me & to the toun,
Freli teschewe his mortal violence,
This world despisyng in myn opynyoun,—
Our fraunchise thrallid vnder subieccioun,
Iustli forsakyng the variaunce off this liff,
Mi soule conveied to be contemplatiff.”

This philisophre, this prudent old Catoun,
Tendryng in herte comoun comoditees,
Toforn his deth wrot off compassioun
To them that sat in roial dignitees,
Which hadde off vertu lost the libertees,
Pryncis besechyng, that wer luxurious,
To take exaumple and folwe kyng Drusus.

The which[e] Drusus, be successioun
Heir to Augustus, was next hym emperour,
Sett al in vertu his affeccioun,
And it to cherishe dede hooli his labour.
To lust onleefful he neuer gaff fauour;
And touchyng loue, duryng all his liff,
He neuer hadde lust but onli to his wiff.

And in his paleis, myd off his roiall see,
Off noble pryncis duellyng in Rome toun
He axed was, for al his dignite,
What maner corage or temptacioun,
Or what feruence or delectacioun

365

Withynne hymsilff he hadde off louys play,
Sool bi his wiff whan he a-bedde lay.

And lik a prynce fulfillid off hih noblesse,
Ansuerde ageyn with sobre cuntenaunce,
“Touchyng such lust as folweth flesshlynesse,
Lik as Nature me put in gouernaunce,
In oon alone is set al my plesaunce:
For with non other for no concupiscence,
Sauff with my wiff I neuer dede offence.”

Pryncis echon folwe nat the traas
Off noble Drusus, as ye shal vndirstonde;
For summe ha[ue] stonde al in a-nother caas,—
Such as can holde too or thre on honde,
Now heer, now ther, as botis home to londe,
Nat considryng ther cres nor disauail,
Whan newfangilnesse bloweth in ther sail.

Eek Bochas writith, sum princis ha[ue] be founde,
Which viciousli ha[ue] do ther besy peyne,
Vertuous wommen be flatrie to confounde,
And tendre maidnes to bryngen in a treyne,
Such manacis & tormentis to ordeyne,
Them to transfourme from ther perseueraunce
And interrupte ther virgynal constaunce.

But off such folk that yeue no fors off shame,
Nor dreede God such treynes to deuise,
Husbondmen in soth ar most to blame
With foreyn women to trespase in such wise:
I trowe ther wyues may hem inouh suffise;
For many ar feeble ther dettis for to quyte,
Thouh thei in chaung themsilff falsli delite.

Summe afferme, for themsilff alleggyng,
To such outrage that thei ha[ue] licence
Freeli off Nature to vse ther owne thyng,
And in such caas to no wiht doon offence.
But froward is ther errour in sentence,
Fro bond off wedlok, whan thei be so onstable,
And tofor God most hatful and dampnable.

366

For she that is thoruh hir hih noblesse
Namyd off clerkis, which cleerli can concerne,
Douhter off God, ladi and pryncesse,
Resoun callid, to guye man and gouerne,
Tween good and euel iustli to discerne,—
She hath departid, pleynli to conclude,
The liff off man fro liff off beestis rude.

This ladi Resoun, sithen go ful yore,
Gaff onto man witt and discrecioun,
Tauhte hym also bi hir souereyn lore
Twen vice and vertu a gret dyuysioun,
And that he sholde in his eleccioun
Onto al vertu naturali obeie,
And in contraire al vicious liff werreie,—

And to enprente in his memorial,
How off luxure the gret dishoneste
Difforme a man & make hym bestial,
And disfigure, off what estaat he be:
For whan that resoun, in hih or low degre,
Is fled away, folk may afferme than,
He is lik a beeste rather than a man.

Wherfor lat pryncis that ha[ue] be defectiff
To folwe ther lustis off sensualite,
Shape hem be resoun for tamende ther liff
And to conserue and keepe ther chastite,
Bothe off virgines and wiffli honeste,
And to pun[y]she all tho that list laboure
The honest fame off wommen to deuoure.

For whan a lechour be force or be maistrie
Defoulid hath off virgynes the clennesse,
Widwes oppressid, and be auoutrie
Assailed wyues that stood in stabilnesse,
Who mai thanne ther sclaundrous harm redresse,
Whan ther good name is hurt be such report?—
For fame lost onys can neuer haue his resort.

367

A theeff may robbe a man off his richesse
And be sum mene make restitucioun;
And sum man may disherite & oppresse
A poore man from his possessioun,
And afftir[ward] make satisfaccioun;
But no man may restore in no degre
A maide robbid off hir virgynyte.

A man mai also bete a castell doun,
And beelde it afftir mor fresshli to the siht,
Exile a man out off a regioun
And hym reuoke, wher it be wrong or riht;
But no man hath the poweer nor the myht
For to restore the paleis virgynal
Off chastite, whan broken is the wal.

Men mai also put out off seruise,
And officeres remeue from ther place,
And at a day, whan Fortune list deuise,
Thei mai ageyn restored been to grace;
But ther is nouther tyme set nor space,
Nor neuer in story nouther rad nor seyn,
That maidenhed lost recurid was ageyn.

For which men sholde haue a conscience,
Rewe in ther herte and repente sore,
And ha[ue] remors off ther gret offence,
To rauysshe thyng which thei may nat restore.
For it is said and hath be said ful yore,
The emeraud greene off parfit chastite,
Stole onys away may nat recurid be.

And hard it is to rauysshe a tresour
Which off nature is nat recuperable;
Lordshipe may nat, off kyng nor emperour,
Refourme a thyng which is nat reformable:
Rust off diffame is inseparable,
And maidenheed[e] lost off newe or yore,
No man alyue mai it ageyn restore.

368

Romeyns olde thoruh ther pacience
Suffrede tirantis in ther tirannyes,
And in ther cite to do gret violence,
The peeple toppresse with ther robberies;
But to pun[y]she thei sette streiht espies
On fals auoutours, as it is weel kouth,
Widwes to rauysshe & maidnes in ther youth.

Vpon this mateer the stori berth witnesse,
Touchyng thexil off kyng Tarquynyus,
Afforn rehersed be writyng ful expresse
The hatful deth off Appius Claudius
For his trespas doon to Virgynyus,
The iugementis rehersed and the peyne;
And fro ther office depryued bothe tweyne.

Was nat the cite whilom desolat
Off Synachites for the ribaudie
Off oon Sychem, which gan a gret debat
To haue acomplisshed his foul lecherie,
Whan yonge Dyna, as bookis specefie,
Wente rek[e]lesli walkyng vp and doun
To seen the maidnes off that roial toun?

But whan Sichem this Dyna dede espie
Sool bi hirselff[e] walke in the cite,
He gan anon assaile hir be maistrie,
And for tafforcen hir virgynyte,
Because she hadde no leiser for to fle.
Whos gret offence and transgressioun
The cite brouhte onto destruccioun.

Hir fadir Iacob & hooli hir kynreede
Ageyn this Sichem gan inwardli disdeyne;
Whan the furie off Mars was most to dreede,
To be vengid thei dede ther besy peyne.
And speciali hir worthi brethren tweyne
Fill on the cite, Symeon and Leuy,
Tauenge ther suster & stroie it fynaly.

369

So mortalli thei gan with hem stryue,
With ther suerdis grounde sharp & keene,
Off male childre thei leffte non alyue,
Thei wer so vengable in ther furious teene.
The Sichanytes myhte nat susteene
That dai ageyn hem to stonden at diffence,
So importable was ther violence.

For wher that God list punshe a man off riht
Bi mortal suerd, farweel al resistence:
Whan grace faileth, awey goth force & myht,
Feblith off pryncis the magnyficence,
Chaungeth ther power into inpotence,
Reuersith the kynges ther statli regalie,
Exaumple in Sichem, for his fals ribaudie.

It was an hard dreedful punycioun,
That, O Pryncis, trespas in lecherie
Caused afor God that al a regioun
Destroied was withoute remedie.
This story told[e] for texemplefie,
Whan noble pryncis to wommen them submitte,
Grace and al fauour anon doth fro them flitte.

Off this stori what sholde I write mor?
In Genesis the residue ye may reede,
The deth off Sichem and off kyng Emor,
And how ther kyngdam destroied was in deede.
Off Sichanites, loo, heer the fynal meede,
Off lecherie and off his fals plesaunce,
Which many a rewm hath brouht onto myschaunce!

What sholde I efft reherse ageyn or write
The fals auoutri off Paris and Heleyne?
Ther woful fall Guido dede endite;
Poetis echon dede eek ther besi peyne
To declare, how onli bi these tweyne
The worthi blood, for short conclusioun,
Off Troie and Grece cam to destruccioun.

370

But offte it fallith that mekil habundaunce
Off worldli good, with gret ese and richesse,
In folkis that sette al hooli ther plesaunce
To folwe ther lustis off froward wilfulnesse,
Hath caused in londes gret myscheeff & distresse,
Whan vicious liff ther corages dede encoumbre,
Destroied kyngdames & peeplis out off noumbre.

For whan the peeple thoruh fals obstynacie
Is indurat tamende hem and correcte,
And wil nat turne hem from ther lecherie,
But ay ar redi ther soules to infecte,—
And onto purpos my stile I will directe,
Texemplefie how Gabaa the toun
Was for his synne brouht to confusioun.

Whilom this peeple callid Gabanytes,
From Beniamyn descendid in ther lyne,
Wer ai disposid to folwe ther delites,
And off custum ther wittis dede enclyne
In worldli plente to flouren & to shyne,
And dempte alwai, to them it was most due
Off wilfulnesse ther lustis for to sue.

In lecherie was set al ther plesaunce,
And in that vice thei ladde most ther liff,
Wherbi thei wer[e]n brouht onto myschaunce,
And many on slayn be ful mortal striff,
Whan the Leuite cam forbi with his wiff,
Ful excellent off fetures and beute,
And took his loggyng withynne that gret cite.

He was ful old, and she was inli fair,
He inpotent and she but tendre off age,
Thoruh Gabaa makyng ther repair.
The citeseyns off inportune rage,
Shewing the furie off ther gret outrage,
So longe that nyht hir beute dede assaile,
Till liff and breth attonys dede faile.

371

Contagious was the sclaundre & diffame,
In Iudicum the story ye mai reede,
Which to reherse is a maner shame,
To heere thabusioun off that foule deede;
And how the Leuite amorwe gan take heede
With pitous cheer, & sauh his yonge wiff
Tofor the gate depryued off hir liff.

He hente hir up & leid hir on his asse;
To noise this crym vpon eueri side,
Thouhte in such caas he myhte do no lasse,—
Took a sharp suerd, & list no lenger bide,
On twelue parties he gan hir to deuide,
And to ech Tribe off Jacob he hath sent
A certeyn parti, to seen ther iugement.

Which thyng to hem was hatful & terrible,
And in ther siht ful abhomynable.
And in al haste likli and possible,
Alle off o will and o corage stable,
On Gabonites for to be vengable
Thei gadred han, shortli to conclude,
Tassaile that toun a ful gret multitude.

Whan thei first mette, atwen hem thus it stood:
The twelue Tribus wer twies put to fliht,
On outher parti gret quantite off blood
Was shad among hem in that mortal fiht;
For sexti thousand, who that counte ariht,
Wer slay[e]n ther, the stori wil nat lie,
Tauenge the sclaundre off fals avoutrie.

Loo, heer the guerdoun off the froward firis
In lecherous folk, that wil nat staunchid be,
That brente so hoote thoruh bestial desiris
In Gabaa the myhti strong cite,
Which was destroied for his iniquite,
And almost brouht off Beniamyn the lyne
Thoruh this offence to eternal ruyne.

372

Eek for his feruent dronken lecherie
Oloffernes be Iudith loste his hed;
And al his host and al his cheualrie
Leffte the feeld & fledde awei for dreed,
And he lai bathed in his blood al red.
Thus thoruh this vice, yiff it be weel souht,
Ful many a prynce hath be brouht to nouht.

These said[e] stories ouhte inouh suffise,
Yiff men wolde considre & taken heede,
The grete vengaunces in many sundri wise
Which God hath take for this synne in deede,
As in ther bookis thei may beholde & reede
Warnynges afforn, ful offte put at preeff,
How thei hemsilff shal saue fro myscheef.