| 580 |
After the deeth of Tholomee the king, |
| |
That al Egipte hadde in his governing, |
| |
Regned his quene Cleopataras; |
| |
Til on a tyme befel ther swiche a cas, |
| |
That out of Rome was sent a senatour, |
| |
For to conqueren regnes and honour |
| |
Unto the toun of Rome, as was usaunce, |
| |
To have the world unto her obeisaunce; |
| |
And, sooth to seye, Antonius was his name. |
| |
So fil hit, as Fortune him oghte a shame |
| 590 |
Whan he was fallen in prosperitee, |
| |
Rebel unto the toun of Rome is he. |
| |
And over al this, the suster of Cesar, |
| |
He lafte hir falsly, er that she was war, |
| |
And wolde algates han another wyf; |
| |
For whiche he took with Rome and Cesar stryf. |
| |
| |
Natheles, for-sooth, this ilke senatour |
| |
Was a ful worthy gentil werreyour, |
| |
And of his deeth hit was ful greet damage. |
| |
But love had broght this man in swiche a rage, |
| 600 |
And him so narwe bounden in his las, |
| |
Al for the love of Cleopataras, |
| |
That al the world he sette at no value. |
| |
Him thoughte, nas to him no thing so due |
| |
As Cleopatras for to love and serve; |
| |
Him roghte nat in armes for to sterve |
| |
In the defence of hir, and of hir right. |
| |
| |
This noble quene eek lovede so this knight, |
| |
Through his desert, and for his chivalrye; |
| |
As certeinly, but-if that bokes lye, |
| 610 |
He was, of persone and of gentilesse, |
| |
And of discrecioun and hardinesse, |
| |
Worthy to any wight that liven may. |
| |
And she was fair as is the rose in May. |
| |
And, for to maken shortly is the beste, |
| |
She wex his wyf, and hadde him as hir leste. |
| |
| |
The wedding and the feste to devyse, |
| |
To me, that have y-take swiche empryse |
| |
Of so many a storie for to make, |
| |
Hit were to long, lest that I sholde slake |
| 620 |
Of thing that bereth more effect and charge; |
| |
For men may overlade a ship or barge; |
| |
And forthy to theffect than wol I skippe, |
| |
And al the remenant, I wol lete hit slippe. |
| |
| |
Octovian, that wood was of this dede, |
| |
Shoop him an ost on Antony to lede |
| |
Al-outerly for his destruccioun, |
| |
With stoute Romains, cruel as leoun; |
| |
To ship they wente, and thus I let hem saile. |
| |
| |
Antonius was war, and wol nat faile |
| 630 |
To meten with thise Romains, if he may; |
| |
Took eek his reed, and bothe, upon a day, |
| |
His wyf and he, and al his ost, forth wente |
| |
To shippe anoon, no lenger they ne stente; |
| |
And in the see hit happed hem to mete -- |
| |
Up goth the trompe -- and for to shoute and shete, |
| |
And peynen hem to sette on with the sonne. |
| |
With grisly soun out goth the grete gonne, |
| |
And heterly they hurtlen al at ones, |
| |
And fro the top doun cometh the grete stones. |
| 640 |
In goth the grapnel so ful of crokes |
| |
Among the ropes, and the shering-hokes. |
| |
In with the polax presseth he and he; |
| |
Behind the mast beginneth he to flee, |
| |
And out agayn, and dryveth him over-borde; |
| |
He stingeth him upon his speres orde; |
| |
He rent the sail with hokes lyke a sythe; |
| |
He bringeth the cuppe, and biddeth hem be blythe; |
| |
He poureth pesen upon the hacches slider; |
| |
With pottes ful of lym they goon to-gider; |
| 650 |
And thus the longe day in fight they spende |
| |
Til, at the laste, as every thing hath ende, |
| |
Anthony is shent, and put him to the flighte, |
| |
And al his folk to-go, that best go mighte. |
| |
| |
Fleeth eek the queen, with al her purpre sail, |
| |
For strokes, which that wente as thikke as hail; |
| |
No wonder was, she mighte hit nat endure. |
| |
And what that Anthony saw that aventure, |
| |
"Allas!" quod he, "the day that I was born! |
| |
My worshipe in this day thus have I lorn!" |
| 660 |
And for dispeyr out of his witte he sterte, |
| |
And roof him-self anoon through-out the herte |
| |
Er that he ferther wente out of the place. |
| |
His wyf, that coude of Cesar have no grace, |
| |
To Egipte is fled, for drede and for distresse; |
| |
But herkneth, ye that speke of kindenesse. |
| |
| |
Ye men, that falsly sweren many an ooth |
| |
That ye wol dye, if that your love be wrooth, |
| |
Heer may ye seen of women whiche a trouthe! |
| |
This woful Cleopatre hath mad swich routhe |
| 670 |
That ther nis tonge noon that may hit telle. |
| |
But on the morwe she wol no lenger dwelle, |
| |
But made hir subtil werkmen make a shryne |
| |
Of alle the rubies and the stones fyne |
| |
In al Egipte that she coude espye; |
| |
And putte ful the shryne of spycerye, |
| |
And leet the cors embaume; and forth she fette |
| |
This dede cors, and in the shryne hit shette. |
| |
And next the shryne a pit than doth she grave; |
| |
And alle the serpents that she mighte have, |
| 680 |
She putte hem in that grave, and thus she seyde: |
| |
"Now, love, to whom my sorweful herte obeyde |
| |
So ferforthly that, fro that blisful houre |
| |
That I yow swor to been al frely youre, |
| |
I mene yow, Antonius my knight! |
| |
That never waking, in the day or night, |
| |
Ye nere out of myn hertes remembraunce |
| |
For wele or wo, for carole or for daunce; |
| |
And in my-self this covenant made I tho, |
| |
That, right swich as ye felten, wele or wo, |
| 690 |
As ferforth as hit in my power lay, |
| |
Unreprovable unto my wyfhood ay, |
| |
The same wolde I felen, lyf or deeth. |
| |
And thilke covenant, whyl me lasteth breeth, |
| |
I wol fulfille, and that shal wel be sene; |
| |
Was never unto hir love a trewer quene." |
| |
And with that word, naked, with ful good herte, |
| |
Among the serpents in the pit she sterte, |
| |
And ther she chees to han hir buryinge. |
| |
Anoon the neddres gonne hir for to stinge, |
| 700 |
And she hir deeth receyveth, with good chere, |
| |
For love of Antony, that was hir so dere: -- |
| |
And this is storial sooth, hit is no fable. |
| |
| |
Now, er I finde a man thus trewe and stable, |
| |
And wol for love his deeth so freely take, |
| |
I pray god lat our hedes never ake! |
| |
| |
Explicit Legenda Cleopatrie, Martiris. |
