thée taking againe the force to serue hir the whiche of hir grace and goodnesse hath reuiued thée Orianes letter to Amadis by the which she excuseth hir selfe vnto him of certaine faultes of loue the which were in hir In the second booke and .10 Chapter IF the greate faultes committed through enmitie afterwards reknowledged to humilâ—at hirselfe be worthy of parâ—on what ought it to be of those that are caused through too great abundance of loue yet my faithfull louer I do not denie you that I deserue not much paine For I should haue considered that when things be most prosperous and ioyful that fortune the which doth spye and considereth them doth come then to bring them heauinesse and miserie Also I should haue remembred your vertue and honestie the which was neuer found in fault and aboue all I should not no not to dye for I haue separated from my vnderstanding the remembrance of the great subiection of my heauy hart the whiche procéeded nor came not but of that wherein youre owne was inclosed being certaine that if any flames haue bene cooled so haue myne also as it is perceyued and in suche sorte that the enuy that he had to find rest vnto hys mortall desires hath bene the cause to augment tâ—em But bicause I haue fayled as they doe that being in the hyghest of their good houre and fortune and very certaine of theyr loue of whome they be loued nor cannot comprehende in them so much goodnesse become iealous and suspitious more by their imagination than by reason dusking this cleare felicitie with the cloude of impacience beléeuing sooner the report of certaine persons it may be that speake euil not very true and vicious than that of their owne conscience and certaine experience Therefore my faithfull friende I pray you effectually to receiue this my damsell as from hir that recogniseth in all humilitie the great fault that she hathe commiited as concerning you the which shall cause you to vnderstande better than my letter the extremitie of my life oâ— whome ye should haue pitie not for any merite but for your reputation the which is not estéemed and iudged cruell nor séeking veÌ„geance there where ye find repentance and subiection when that no penance can come from you more rigorous than that that I my selfe haue appointed and ordeined for my selfe the which I beare and paciently do suffer trusting that ye will remit it and restore vnto me your grace and fauour and lykewise my life that dependeth thereof The lamentation of fayre Tenebreuâ— whiche returned from Mireflâ—ur declaring vnto the Damsell of Denmarke that without cause he had suffered many things touching hir that she was not a faithfull louer In the second Booke the .10 Chapter BY my conscience sayde the fayre Tenebreuâ— I was neuer in more daunger of death and I maruell where she hath forged this fantasie that she had against me seing that I neuer thought to do the thing that shuld displease hir And notwithstaÌ„ding I had forgotten to think on it yet I deserued not so cruel a letter as this is that she wrote vnto me And although I make not the outward shewes and hypocrisies that many caÌ„ do and make yet I leaue not of to measure the goodnesse and graces that I haue receiued of hir nor this thought was not sowen in so euill ground that she shuld not regard the fruite as long as the spirit shal haue meanes to cause the heart to liue seing that the one and the other are wholy dedicate to serue and to obey hir Ah ah my God I remember that when Corissande came into our poore hermitage I beléeued then that it was done for me The good Lady lamented hir selfe of the passion that the suffered for louing my brother Florestan too much and I should die for very displeasure to be so wrongfully chased away by Oriane How great paines what trauels what vnmeasurable torment haue I thus long suffered in the poore Rocke hauing consolation of no creature liuing but of the good Hermit the which solicited me and spake to me of pacience Alas what hard penaÌ„ce for a thing not offended beléeue me my welbeloued Damsel that I was so greatly troubled that from one houre to another I desired deathâ— and oftentimes also I feared to lose my life but thinke vpon the desperation wherein I was then when I shewed the Damsels of Corisâ—ande the song that I made in my great tribulation The Oration of Gandalin vnto fayre Tenebreus brethren to encourage them to searche and to succoure him In the .2 booke the .12 Chapter BY God my Lords all your wéepings cannot cause him to be found whome ye desire if it be not by some other good diligence that ye may newly take vpon you And notwithstanding that ye haue already done what ye can so ye should not he anoyed to séeke him better than euer he waâ— yet sought for seing that ye know welynough what he particularly would haue done for you if fortune had aduanced the occasion Nowe therefore it is youre partes to doe the lyke â—or if ye léese hym thus it shall not be onely the losse of the most gentlest knyghte of all the worlde but of the best pacient that ye haue and furthermore all ye paraduenture may be blamed Therefore my Lordes I praye you for the loue of God to do vnto him the duety of a brother of a friende and of a companion beginning agayne to séeke him without sparing of your bodies or the prolonging of tyme. Defyance made by a straunge knyghte vnto king Lisuard prouoking hym to warre if he wyll not accord to the mariage of Oriane with the prince of Basiganâ— In the .2 booke the .12 Chapter I Defye thée king Lisuard and all thy aliens in the name of the puissant and mightie princes Famongomad Giant of the burning lake Cartadaque his neuew Giant of the defended mountayne Madafabull hys brother in lawe Giant of the redde tower Lord Quedragant brother to Abies that was king of Irelande and of Arcalaus the inchanter the whyche doe sende thée worde by me that they haue sworne the death of thée and thyne And to do thys they wyll ayde king Cildadan to be in the number of the hundreth knightes the whiche shall surely destroy thée Yet neuerthelesse if thou wilt giue Oriane thy inheriter to fayre Madasime the daughter of the most douty Famongomad to serue hir as hir Damsell they will suffer thée to liue in peace and be thy friendes â—or they will marrie hir to thâ— Prince Basiganâ— the which doth well deserue to be Lorde of thy countreys and of thy daughter also Therefore king Lisuard chose of these two coÌ„ditions the best peace as I haue deuised or the most cruel warre that may chance vnto thée hauing to do with so mighty and so doutye princes The answer to the strange knight by king Lisuard shewing the greatnesse of his courage In the .2 booke the .12 Chapter BY God knight they
right good part in your good grace the which is and shall remayne for euer your auncient and perpetuall friende neighbour and seruant Lisuard Axianes letter to the Empresse Abra sending hir word of the warre with the destruction and entier ruine of hir person In the .8 booke the .78 Chapter WE disherited Empresse of the Babyloniās Axiana princesse of Argenes the most humble seruāt of one only God almightie to you Abra the vsurper of our Empire and paternall goodes we cause you to wit and vnderstand that the diuine iustice willing to put in execution the sentence and arrest pronounced by the soueraigne iudge against you and in the fauor of our repell and banishment hath caused vs to come vnto this countrey where you and yours shall receyue the hyre of their merites yet there is that somwhat displeaseth vs that ye are ariued euen at the very pointe where the fall and ruine of your vnrighteousnesse dothe threaten you For as muche as we be so nigh of kinne the whyche kinred and amitie ought to be so much our familiar as hatred is our domestike and neighbour but seing that our soueraigne iudge would not suffer our possession to be taken but by the price and sheading of manye mens bloud we doe signifye and denounce vnto you the battell within these four days and in the campe féeld where we be And for our iudges he alone whome we Christians do adore in trinitie of persons God omnipotent the first and the last of all things the which shall giue if it so please him for the suertie of yours and ours the rigorous iustice of his eternitie and for the equall compartment of the sunne the night or the victory As touching our harneis ye haue them in your hand and caused them to be taken of our own vassalles and subiects so vniustly that the men the earth and the waters do crie vengeance alreadie the which God will not denie them as their bloud being shed shall beare witnesse A letter from Abra to Axiane graunting hir the battell by hir required In the .8 booke the .78 Chapter ABra the Empresse of Babilon Quéene of the Parthes to you Axiana Princesse of Argenes such salutatiō as we estéeme you to merite We haue receiued your letter no lesse accompanyed with temerarious and proude words than with vniust quarrels and without any reason the which things we trust we shall cause to be knowen in the selfe same campe that ye haue chosen and we graunt you such battell as ye demande And for soueraine iudges your God and ours Mars Cupido and Venus from the which we cannot go in no wyse but for as much as the victorie doth more consist in the effect than in many words we remit the whole to that that shall chaunce aduising you that we may haue pitie vpon you that vnder the shadow I cannot tel of what presumptiō do take paine to léese so little lande as is left you the which we trust shortly after that we haue ended this enterprise to ioyne to our Empire In the meane space let there be a truce betwéen you and vs for these foure dayes as ye haue required the whyche as touching our parte we promise you in the faythe of a Princesse to obserue withoute breaking them by anye meanes The heauinesse of Abra for the losse of the battell In the .8 booke the .80 Chapter AH ah fortune fortune thou hast pursued me so much that the spoyle of me and of my goods from henceforthe shall serue thée for a triumphe fortune enimie of all vertuous persons O troublous ingrate and accursed fortune the which to deceiue abuse me didst promise not only the Empire Monarchie of all the Orient but the frée or the enforced enioying of my Lisuard Alas he was neuer mine althoughe I haue deserued him more thā any other that euer was borne And yet so muche there lacketh that such merite hath taken place that he hath destroyed me both of goods and of honour but not of the honour that all ladies should prefer aboue life but of the honour and victorie that he hath conquered vpon my heauie vassalls being all dead or slaues Ah ah Lisuard what recompence or degrée of amitie is so stedfast and constant as that I all my life haue borne thée Alas if ye haue béen in doubt in time past I beseche mightie Iupiter that the death which I féele doth approch may giue you sure witnes for I protest that I die not for any heauinesse that I haue of any losse either of men of reputation or of goods but onely that I haue no hope hereafter to haue any thing of you estéeming that this glorious victorie hath so pufte vp your heart that disdaining your Abra ye shall nor will not receiue hir for the least of your slaues The letter of Niquea to the Soudan hir father by the whiche she prayeth him to pardon hir offence that shee hath committed marying hir selfe and departing from his countrey without his leaue In the eyght booke the .84 Chapter MY Lord I beséech you most humbly soner than to blame my absence to take the paine if it please you to read this my letter and reading it to consider in your selfe with what mighte and power loue is accustomed to cause them to obey him that are in his rule and dominion And willing to exercise it in mée he presented long since before the eyes of my spirite not onely the renoume of the valiant and inuincible Amadis of Greece but also his beautie dexteritie and good grace for the whiche he is commended of all men that haue had the chaunce to sée him and to frequent him And for this cause I set my loue and affection so to him wardes that I was readie to die also he was sorie that I coulde lyue without the meane that I founde oute to giue him knowledge not once but more than twice of the payne that I endured for the great desire that I had to him whereof he onely had compassion For loue it selfe was so gentle vnto me that he wounded him with the like shotte that he hurted me making him so muche myne that vnder the fayned habite of Nereide the slaue he came to this your Courte where that afterwards he had the combat with the vsurper of his name and of his figure what the ende thereof was my Lorde ye knowe sufficiently inoughe So much there is that within a while after the houre and time was giuen me to knowe him And we agréed so well and so accorded our intentions togither that finally we were maried the which if it be your pleasure ye shall not take in yll parte his person beyng of suche merite for why his valiantnesse and the noble bloud whereof he is descended séemed onely worthy of my beautie and Trebisonde more méete for the celebration of our mariage than your towne Niquea bicause of so many Emperors Kings Princes and highe Ladies as he and I truste to finde
vpon the Giantes your cruell tyrants and rulers whose deathe and correction ye shoulde not estéeme to procéede from anye other than from the gods immortall wherof they will gyue you very swifte witnesse seing that two onely persons haue destroyed and brought to ruine suche and so fearefull mâ—nsters notwithstanding the situation of the very strong and inaccessible places the Gigantine forces and all their puissance and might both craftie and subtill Againe my deare and good friendes we counsell and admonishe you that ye giue no place to your affections so that the anger of God fâ—ll not vpon you if ye disobey the children of Mars sent hither to be soueraines and to set peace in your countrey As touching the rest ye shall come vnto vs to vnderstande the â—uerplus of our will. Arlande the Princesse of Thrace letter to Dom Florisel of Niquea praying him to come to see hir to vnderstande and to reuenge the wrong done by Amadis of Greece to Balarte his brother In the .9 booke the .14 Chapter ARlande Princesse of Thrace to the Knight of the shée shéepeheard gréeting The renoume of your excellent beautie and glorious actes of armes that runneth not only throughout all this countrey of Thrace but almoste throughout the world hath drawne me into so great admiration and desyre to know the truth that after I had consulted with our goâ—â— vpon these affaires and matters and that they answered 〈◊〉 after the common brute and rumour I was well willing to sende you this presente and to praye youre Lordshippe to come hither to vnderstande and to perceiue the wrong that the vnfaithfull and traitour Armadis of Greece did to my verie déere and onely brother Balarte Prince of Thrace by whose death the succession of this Realme after the decease of my heauie father shall pertaine to me yet with this charge to pursue and reuenge the death of my foresaide Lorde and brother Therfore if it please you to come hither to execute this reasonable vengeance I haue purposed and doe promise you in recompence of the duetie that ye shall doe to make you Lord and master of my selfe and of all that I possesse in this worlde aduertising you moreouer that the gods haue reuealed vnto me that ye onely are he to whom this great iustice and glorious vengeance is reserued Obeyng then the diuine prescieÌ„ce of the gods leaue off from henceforth to pursue the vengeance of a sort of euill iniuries and quarrels of Damsels of to base qualitie and come to take the possession and enioying of great goods and honors the which are prepared here for you thus doing ye shall content me and make me ioyfull She that desireth to remaine for euer in your good grace and remembrance Arlande The answere of Dom Florisel of Niquea to the letters of Arlande graciously refusing hir demaunde aswell bicause that Balarte was iustly slaine as that Amadis of Greece was his father In the .9 booke and the .14 Chapter DOm Florisel of Niquea the sonne of the right vertuous and stout Prince Amadis of Greece to Arlande the Princesse of Thrace salutatioÌ„s eueÌ„ such as hir excelleÌ„cy deserueth Madam I haue receiued the letters which it hath pleased you to send me by this your Damsell and reading them I knowe the great desire that ye haue to reuenge the deathe of Prince Balart your brother slaine as I haue vnderstanded most valiantly in the campe of the battell by the handes of my right déere father Amadis of Greece for a good and a iust quarrell a thing that should diuert and turne you to make any such suteâ— for the more that the cause of his death shall be published the more dishonor shal fall both vpon him vpon those that shal enforce themselues to reuenge him euerie man euidently knowing his vnrighteousnesse for the mischeuous turne that he purposed to doe vnto him that with all graciousnesse and good intreating receiued him into his house Therfore Madam finde it not strange at al if in this I satisfie not your desire not for the regarde of the honour and reuerence that I ought to haue naturally to him that hath begotten me but for as much as I should greatly offende God and my honour yea I should do against all reason to reuenge so vertuous an acte putting the case that another than my father had done it And I well assure you that who so euer woulde obey you in tâ—at he shall finde himself iustly smitten of God augmenting the shame and dishonour of him that deserueth to be buried in the darkenesse of obliuiousnesse As concerning the goods that ye promise me that is to make me possessour and to enioye your excellent beautie and all your possessions ye may vnderstande by these present letters that I vnder the condition that ye damaund haue a iust occasion to refuse theÌ„ neuerthelesse I thanke you as much as I caÌ„ possible for your good wil and affection that ye beare me in recompence wherof I promise you to employ me to be your seruaunt and to serue you in all that honour and vertue shall commaund me Thus much Madam praying the creator of al things vnto whom vengeance ought to be reserued to giue you his holy grace and after that I may be affectuously recommended â—o yours He that desireth you all goodnesse and encrease of honour the knight of the she shepherde A letter from Dom Florisell of Niquea to fair Helen princessâ— of Apolonia excusiâ—g himselfe of the boldnesse that he taketh to write vnto hir and to present hir his heart In thâ—â—â— booke the .33 Chapter MAdame if ye wil measure your highnesse and aduise you vpon the kingdome that ye possesse in respect of me that am but a wandring knighte and yet vnknowen vnto you I thinke well that ye would maruell of my temeritie and foolish boldnesse that durst write vnto you at this present but if ye would consider how great the force of loue is I am wel assured that your benignitie and sweetenesse shal excuse me and accuse this diuine beautie and good grace the which yesterday did so rauish me of my libertie that I had not the power nor the will neuer to loue or to serue any other but you For this cause I tooke boldnesse to pray you as humbly as I may possible to receiue my faithfull heart the whiche hathe left me to be wholly yours and doth suffer me to keepe and to name me your knight and very affectionate â—eruant the which shall little estéeme all his misfortunes that are past if ye would do him so great honor as that he might one of these dayes tell you by mouth that he feareth to write vnto you bicause of the little aquaintance that ye haue of him praying the creator and maker of all things the which hath mâ—ued you with so great beautie to giue you the increase of honor and felicitie You re most humble and obediente the knight of the she shepherde The princesâ—e of Apolonia doth
to â—e preferred aboue al persons and for whom I haue oftentimes put my body in hazard aud peril of death hauing no other hope of them but to please God and to augment my name in this world the which was the onely cause that last moued me to absent my selfe so from these câ—ntries to go serch among strange nations those that had néede of my helpe where I haue had many perillous aduentures the which thou hast séen and maist report them vnto him Also I comming to this Isle was aduertised how that King Lisuard forgetting the honoâ—r of God the right of men the counsell of his and the instinct of nature that euery good father dothe commonly beare to his childe woulde as it were by a certaine manner of extreme crueltie driue from his countreys my lady Oriane his owne daughter and principal inheritour gyâ—ing hir in mariage against hir will to the Emperour Patin Whereof she made her complainte not onely to those of the Realme of England but required also aide and succor of all knightes that beare armes aswell by letters messages as other wayes praying them with hir handes ioyned together and abundance of teares to haue pitie and compassion of hir miserie And so much she could do with prayers huÌ„ble Orations that the Lorde of all things hath loked mercifully from heauen vpon hir gyuing the addresse and helpe to the knightes that are nowe in this place to assemble them as it were by a miracle where I founde them as thou knowest purposing to aduenture their lyues to set hir and the other that perforce accompanied hir at libertie considering that doing otherwise they in time to come shoulde haue bene blamed giuing occasion to many to presume that cowardise only had turned backe this ayde so greatly recommended and for persons of the qualitie that they be By the meanes wherof the conflicte and battel chaunced vpon the Romanes â—uen suche as thou hast séene it of the which we haue many prisoners and the ladies out of their handes But to make a meanes for their appointment to King Lisuard Quedragant and my cousin Lorian of Moniaste departed lately with an expresse charge and commaundement from vs all to beséeche him take the thing that we haue done in good part and to receiue to his good grace and fauour my lady Oriane and those of hir companie being yet well minded if he will not receiue this offer audaciously boldly by the meanes of the aide of our good friends alies to defend vs against him of y which number Gandalm thou shalt say vnto him that all we together do estéeme him the first chiefest praying him most humbly that he will â—â—ccorâ—s when néede is 〈◊〉 thâ—â— the Quéene my mother also kisse hir hands in my name say 〈…〉 that I pray hir to send hitheâ— my siâ—ter Meâ—â—tiaâ—◠〈…〉 company with these other ladies with whom she may sée â—earne mâ—inie things But or euer thou depart know 〈◊〉 of my cousin Mabile whether it wyll please hir to sende anye thyng thither and therâ—with that thou aâ—ayâ— to speake to Oâ—iane the which will not be so straunge to thée that thou shalt not vnderstande of hir in what estate hir health is and the good will she beareth me Amadis letter to King Tafiner of Boeme praying him to succour him in his great affaires In the .4 booke the .4 Chap. SYr if euer I did you any seruice that any time contented you the honor and the good receyte that I receiued of you and of yours al the time that I soiournd in your Court haue caused me to remaine and as long as I shall liue to be readie not to spare my person to obey and to saue you Therefore I beséech you most humbly not to estéeme that this thing which hath caused me to dispatch this knight and bearer vnto you is to haue any recompence Neuerthelesse I remembring the honest offers that you made me at my departing from Boheme I haue boldned my selfe to send him vnto you to require you effectuously to helpe me in a certaine affayre that is nigh me of the which he shall certifie you beséeching you syr to beléeue him as my selfe and to commaunde his dispatch as sone as it shal be possible to put him out of paine that for you would hazarde his life the whiche is Amadis of Fraunce surnamed in many places the knight of the gréene sworde The deuice of Orian to Gandalin vncouering to him hir heauinesse and that he would finde meanes she might speake with Amadis whome she loueth so well In the .4 booke the .4 Chapter GAndalin my friende what thinkest thouâ— of fortune the which is to me so contrarie that it depriueth me of that person of all the worlde whose frequentationâ— I loue moste being so nigh me and I wholly in his power This notwithstandinge we can not haue the meanes priuily to speake togither without offending my honor and that greatly wherby my heart endureth such paine that if thou knewest it I beléeue certenly thou woldst haue more pitie on me thaÌ„ thou hast the which thing I pray thée shew him to the inâ—eÌ„t that complaying me he may reioyce of the greate affection that dayly increaseth in me to will him well also that he finde some fashion or meane that we may see one another repayring to some part with his companions vnder the collour of thy voyage and of my comfort Gandalins answer to Oriane aduertising hir that she be not deceiued in the singular loue that she beareth to Amadis for his amitie is stedfast as he dayly doth shew in all his actes In the .4 booke the .5 Chapter MAdame que GaÌ„dalin ye haue good cause to beare him such amitie and to remember also the remedie the which he desireth aboue al things for if ye knew the extremitie wherin I haue a hundred times found him ye would not beléeue with what power loue doth rule him I haue séene him dye a thousand timâ—s remembring the fauors that be past the whiche ye haue shewed him and as often times by the remembrance of them to recouer life And I haue séene him among the great dangers of the worlde do seates of armes caling vpoÌ„ you to succoure him so that it is not easy to be beléeued that any knight might haue in hym so great valiantnesse Therefore Madame I pray you to haue pitie on him and to entreat him as he deserueth assuring you that there was neuer a more faithfull knight nor more yours than he is nor there was neuer Lady that had such power vpon a man as ye haue vpon him for in your hands they may entreat of his death or of his life euen as it shall séeme good to you The Oration of king Lisuard to the Queene his wife declaring to hir the wrong that they do vnto him taking the Romanes that conducted his daughter and yet that she dissembled the matter as much as she might so doing he
will send Nascian agayne to king Perion to pray him to returne and to remoue his campe one day more backwards and we shall depart from the towne Lubanie for the tyme that the communication of the peace shall endure and continue Amadis speaking to Arcalaus the prisoner that asked him mercie sayde that he had not deserued it seing he woulde not haue mercie vpon himselfe yet repenting him and renouncing the euill he woulde pardon him In the .4 booke and 23 Chapter MErcie quoth Amadis I cannot tell how thou woldst I should giue it thée considering that thou couldst neuer giue it to thy selfe for if it had bin so thou wouldst haue made an end long since of so many cruelties as thou hast done exercised Notwithstanding if thou wilt repeÌ„t thée with a good hart promis me to returne no more I wil pardon thée Arcalaus answer to Amadis the whiche sayde that his nature could not incline to repent if the necessitie that he is in coÌ„strayned him not In the .4 booke the .23 Chapter I Thinke quoth he that it should be for me too hard yea verely impossible for the custome hathe knowen so to ouercome me and accustomed me to take pleasure to do ill that now I cannot giue me to goodnesse but necessitie the whych is the hard and the rigorous bridle to chaunge all euill custome to vertue shall peradueÌ„ture constrayne my old yéeres séeing the state that I am in to haue that in them that my youth and libertie haue disdayned both in déede and in will. Arcalaus continuing his words and setting before his eyes king Arauigne prayeth him to be beneuolent to the poore afflicted that fall sometimes into the power of their enimies and that he gloâ—ifye not himselfe too much in his good fortune In the .4 booke the .23 Chapter I Pray thée Amadis behold this vnfortunate king the which was not long ago ready to be one of the greatest princes of the world and in a moment the selfe same fortune that shewed hirself to loue him hath vtterly cast him downe and destroyed him to whome thou shouldest giue good regard for thou and all other that aspire to greate thinges are subiect to suche and like diffame And bycause the victor and the pardoner haue commonly noble and couragious hearts intreate vs now so as thou wouldst that we being in the place that we be should intreat thée that hereafter thou be not reproched Amadis Oration to the Romaines that were prisoners vpon the treatie of peace In the .4 booke the .23 Chapter MY masters it cannot be but that ye haue knowen the end of the war moued in these countries by the meanes wherof al the princes in a maner of the West and the most parte of those of the East were in armes and bycause that we be now vpon the pointe of a perpetuall peace I thoughte it reasonable that nothing notwithstanding ye be my prisoners shoulde be concluded without your knowledge and as well for this occasion I haue caused you to come as also to praye you for my loue and fauoure to fynde and to thynke it good to choose and to accept Arquisil to your Emperoure for besydes that there shall not be found as I haue vnderstanded a more néerer to come to the Empire than he I knowe that he deserueth it and for thys cause I praye you moste affectuously And doing thys ye shall shall prepare and obtaine two great profitable good things the first calling to the gubernation of so excellent a Monarchie a sage wise and vertuous Prince well to kéepe it and to intreate you swéetely and amiably the other that for the loue of him I wâ—l giue you with libertie the raunsome that I shoulde haue of you remayning besides as long as I shall liue your particular friende Therefore aduise what answer ye will giue me that I of my part may afterwardes aduise me how to vse my selfe towards you The answere of Brandaiel the most auncient of the Romanes to Amadis the which declared vnto him that he was readie to obey his will and that conferring of this matter wyth Flamian with libertie to do so and other Romanes he assured him that all things shoulde be after the will of Amadis In the .4 booke the .23 Chapter MY Lorde true it is that we are your prisoners and wée knowe full well the honor that ye do vnto vs the good entreating that we haue had of you since the time that we ariued and came into the inclosed Iland therefore I wyll surely answere for my companions that there is not he among vs that will not employe himselfe most willingly to serue you but we can not resolue you of that that ye labour for the Lorde Arquisil before we haue spoken with Flamian and other captaines of Rome which are in this armie and therfore we pray you that we may conferre with them swering vnto you that we for our part shall so extend our hand that in all things your will shal be satisfyed The OratioÌ„ of King Lisuard to Amadis his sonne in law aduertising him to laude God for the fauour that he hath borne him in his great affaires and that he most recompence those that put their bodyes and their goods to succour him in his most great affaires And also that he remember the Ladyes that haue continually accompanied and comforted Oriane In the .4 booke the .25 Chapter MY sonne séeyng it hath pleased God that with so great honour ye haue ended your quarrells ye must referre the glorie wholly vnto him and that as long as ye shall lyue ye be thankefull â—o your friendes the which to succour you in such businesse haue not spared their own liues the which do binde you to loue them honor them moreouer to recompence theÌ„ the best ye may possible considering that without the aide that they haue holpen you withall it is most certain ye should haue béen in great doubt to léese not only your life but your honor the which is estéemed a hundred times more And therfore it is reason that euen as they haue béen partakers of the perils and daungers that they be now also of the pleasures and conteÌ„tations that ye haue receiued by theÌ„ So then aduise you to fauor them in all that ye shall know them to be affectionated vnto distributing vnto theÌ„ the pray that is in your hands hauing the Kings Arauigne Barsinan and other prisoners And furthermore to do so much for those whoÌ„ ye know to pretend any affection to the Ladies which are in the company of Oriane that they may haue like conteÌ„tation as ye haue marying theÌ„ to those that they do like and loue And for this cause I put into your hands your sister Melicia to giue hir vnto him that ye shal estéeme to deserue hir Ye haue also your cousin Mabile the Quéene Briolanie that hath so greatly bound you vnto hir Grasinde and the Quéene Sardamire the which haue had a
ye should beare me For it séemed to me if ye had loued me so much as I loued you ye would not haue deferred the healing of my sickenesse so long as ye haue done Alas Madame howe farre are ye deceiued if ye thinke that I at any time haue the power to repent or to go farre from the great loue that I haue borne you and shall beare you as long as the spirite shall breath within my body for truely there is nothing in the world that was more impossible for me Think not at all Madame louing you as I doe loue you that euerâ— I coulde fall into any repentance of your loue considering the glorie and pleasure that I finde in louing of you I pray you then to giue me life through your fauour to my great ioye or shortly to send me death through your disfauour to make an ende of my anoyance and of the dolour in the which I shall continually remaine vntil ye giue me rest and the tranquillitie that your letter dothe promise mée and looking for so great and good and houre I kisse a thousand times your fayre and delicate handes A letter from Filisell of Montespin to Marfira complayning of the long terme and time that she hath set him to haue the ioyfull pastime whereof he had alreadie tasted and he prayeth hir to alleage it In the twelfe booke the .14 Chapter DOm Filisell of Montespin doth sende to the faire and gracious Marfira health the which he hathe losâ—e by the moste gréeuous sickenesse that he as yet hath proued Alas Madam if euer I loued you with good affection nowe I die wholly for your loue and if euer I had any hope to reioâ—ce of your diuine beauties now I am at the last in desparation bicause the long time that I must tarie without hauing any more the ioy of the goodnesse and pleasure whereof through your good grace I haue tasted and sauored the tranquilitie and gracious swéetenesse If before this I haue had any desyre I haue desired it after such a fashion that I knew not the thing that I desired But now being learned by experience I know that I desire the most pleasure and goodnesse that is possible to desire sauing one other that I knowe but ye maye not know it although the pleasure that I desire be extréeme Hitherto Madame I haue tormented my selfe to sée and to beholde the apparant graces of your beautie by the whiche yé◠maye make subiect to your seruice the fierce heartes of men more than barbarous but nowe I torment me to reioyce and play with your graces secretes of the which I among all other haue merited the pleasure Alas Madame cause I beséech you that so great goodnesse as ye haue shewed me turne me not to greater euill and denie me not the remedie which kissing your fayre and white handes I pray you to graunt me as soone as the dolorous passion in the whiche I am doth requyre it Filisels letter to Marfira reioysing himselfe and giuing hir thankes for the good houre that shee caused him to haue praying hir to continue vnto him hir grace and fauour In the .12 booke the .15 Chapter DOn Filisel of Montespin doth sende to the fayre and gracious Marfira the salute whereof he enioyeth to his great contentation The glorie wherein I am is so great that I can not tell with what wordes I ought to prayse it so that the prayse may be compared to his greatnesse O I the most happiest of all knightes of the worlde séeing it hath pleased you Madame to make me worthie through your fauours of the thing that I by my selfe could in no wise decerne This letter is onely to cause you to vnderstand my great ioy by the which ye are now indetted to me for the thing that hath caused me to merit it that is that I returne very shortly vnto you to take and to haue the selfe same pleasure of your beautie that it pleased you the last night to graunt me so that by this newe ioy I may rewarde the anoyance that I endure in the time that I cannot finde the oportunitie of so great a pleasure Wherefore Madame I pray you continually to intertaine me in such a good houre that if ye haue béene the cause that I am nowe exalted to so high a degrée that hereafter ye be not the cause of my miserable fall and ruine But to the entent ye shall not reprehend me of too great importunitie I will make an ende of my letter kissing a thousande tymes your white and delicate hands in remembrance of the peace that folowed the warre that is past I recommend me to my deare Caria praying hir shortly to purchase me the tyme so greatly desyred in the whiche I maye renue the fortunate occasion of my glorie The complaint of Queene Sidonis In the .12 booke the .21 Chapter O Graue honour of my high and royall lynage howe hast thou conducted me to an euill fortune whereof I may receyne a iust rewarde of my folly O loue howe doest thou cause to appeare in me thy deceytfull force and strength causing mée to vse hatred and crueltie vnto him that I loued much more than my selfe O Fortune with what inconstancie and lightnesse art thou chaunged putting me then in such desperation when I beganne to haue hope shortly to accomplish the thing that I desired most in this worlde O Gods immortall with howe much rigour haue ye willed to recompence the flerce pride and the prowde presumption of the Quéene Sidonia O my deare daughter and yet the daughter of him that robbed the holy rites of my chastitie Alas howe woulde ye haue payed me for the thing that ye denyed anâ— for the loue that ye bare continually to your father in recompence of the outrages and iniuries that I dayly sought for him O my daughter the first of the worlde and none like in beautie to the ende to make and to render like vnlike the delour that I endure nowe for thy death O cruell death howe doest thou leaue me in so miserable a life O cruell life howe doest thou leaue me in so miserable a death O Gods immortall wherefore doe ye suffer so great an iniurie as is that which I receyue by my life séeing my daughter Diana is dead But what do I say It is iust that ye as ye are iust doe shewe me to rigorous iustice to cause me to take vengeance vpon my selfe confounding me in a certaine dolour and heauinesse the which I haue procured to my selfe Alas Daraide howe doest thou giue to me and my daughter the dutie whereof thou wast indetted vnto vs to me giuing me with thy ende the ende of the folly of my vengeance in killing againe by thy death the hope and confidence that I had in thy life to my daughter recompencing hir death by thine the which is the last payment whereof thou wast bounde to the loue that thou didst beare hir and to that that she did
them taking there feare deliuering them our victorie for if they sée but your assured faces only I am fast and sure that they cannot suffâ—r nor abide it let vs rush in among them for God doth helpe vs. The oration of Lisnarde the King of England vnto his subiectes and freendes exhorting them to giue him counsell About the beginning of the .33 Chapter of the first Booke MY fréendes there is none of you that is ignorant of the graces that it hath pleased God to shew me making me the greatest earthly Lorde that is this day in al the Iles of the Occean therefore it séemeth vnto me very reasonable that euen as we in this countrie be the chéefest that also we be not the second to no other prince to render vnto him immortall thankes throughe good and vertues déedes in the which we ourselues ought to rest and to continue For thyâ— cause I pray and commauÌ„d you for asmuch as kings are the chéefest of the monarchies ye the members that ye aduise you togither in your consciences to counsell me what yâ—â— shall thinke best for me to â—o in this matter as well for the consolation of my subiects as for the entertainement and augmentation of our estate assuring you my friendes that I purpose to beléeue you as my loyall and faithful subiects therefore I pray you once againe that euery man without feare deuise as wel particularly as generally what yé◠shall thinke we should or ought to do in this behalfe The oration of Serolo is the Fleming and Earle of Clare the which he spake and made to the counsell to induce them to the thing that King Lisuard ought to vnderstand and know for the vtilitie and profite of his kingdome In the selfe same Booke MY Lords ye al haue perceiued the good zeale that the king hath to the gouernment and rule not only of the common wâ—ale of his kingdome but particularly for the augmeÌ„tation and honour of cheuaâ—rie and knighthoode the whiche he doth desire to entertaine in greater preheminence than euer it hath bene And therefore my Lordes sauing yours better aduice and opinioÌ„ my mind is that all we doing and following the interpretation of our prince should counsell him that he make himselfe strong with money and men for they are the sinnews and the spirites of war peace by the meanes whereof all earthly kings are mainteyned in their force and authoritie considering that greate treasure truely is to pay the souldiers that cause kings to reign the which by no occasion shoulde any other where he spent or else it shoulde be a very sacriledge seing that it nameth it selfe holy And thus doing he may mainteinâ— his estates in tranquillitie and make and obtayne glorious conquests against those that would let him And to come the better thervnto he ought by meanes to séeke and to recouer and get all the good and valiants of whome he should be aduertised aswell straungers as other shewing them great liberalitieâ— wherby his name shal slye and he spoken of throughout al the world the which from the furthest part of all the earth shall come vnto his seruice trusting for their laboure and seruice to be well rewarded By whose ayde and help he may easely oâ—tayne the monarchie aboue all the princes of the North and West for it was neuer red nor perceyued that anyâ— princes made themselues mightie and greate but hée that â—ought and drew vnto him the good and valiant knightes I say bought fauoring and honoring them and distributing their riches and treasures vnto them that did them little harme but haue conquered greater pursuing and following their victories The oration of Barsinam the Lorde of Sansuegue the whiche held in counsell against the president of Serolois wherein heâ— exhorteth them not to deceiue themselues through euill counsell In the first Booke MY Lords it séemeth beholding your countenance that the Earle of Clares opinion is wholly approued for I sée already that the most part of you do agree vnto his saying without hearing the contrarie part debated neuerthelesse I trust my Lordes to make you all and hereafter the king presently to knowe and vnderstande how greatly I desire to bée a friende vnto him and to you and to all hys realme The Earle of Clare not long since hath counseled that the King your maister shoulde fortifie himselfe in the strength and multitude of straunge knightes the whyche hée counseled to bée called forâ— and that from all the partes of the worlde Certes if hys opinion bée beléeued and that ye bynde youre selues to followe it I am fast and sure that within a little whyle the quantitie of them shall bée so extreame and greate that youre King the whyche is a good Prince and a liberall â—â— willing too thanke and aduantage them shall not onely gyue them the thyng that he is accustomed and woont to gyue you but shall take that is yours from you to gratifie and aduantage them the more considering that naturally all newe thinges not gotten and woonne doe please vs And thuâ— whatsoeuer seruice â—ee shall doe be it neuer so good â—eâ— shall fall into his disdayne and forgetfulnesse and those straÌ„gers shall lift you out of your seates that nowe do promise you sure rest and therefore my Lordes firste or euer I conclude thys fact séemeth to me such and of so greate importance that ye all should take heede with good and ripe deliberation of your wise and sage iudgemeÌ„ts I estéem that there is none of this assistance that doth presume or thinke that I speake otherwise than reason and the good loue that I beare you doth monish me for God be thanked I am such a one that I may as easely passe and set by the greatest prince my neigbour as he may passe and set by me but finding my self and being in so noble a companie among whome I haue receiued so great honoure and fauor I had rether God be my witnesse neuer to haue bin borne than to bowe and turne Thus my Lordes ye ought promptly and diligently to thynke vpon this matter least that hereafter ye repent you with too much leysure The oration of King Lisâ—arde wherein he resolueth the pluralitie of aduises and counselles that was giuen him In the first Booke MY greate fréendes I am well assured that the loue which ye beare me and the desire to do me seruice hath set you in these difficulties and I beléeue that there is not he of you all that hath not spokeÌ„ as nigh the truth as was possible for him to do and so that your aduises be so good that they cannot be better yet this is a thing sure and certaine that the kings of the earth be not estéemed greate for the number of places that they possesse but for the quaÌ„titie and multitude of people whom they command and rule What can a King doe alone it may bée that lesse than the moste simplest of hys subiectes and furthermore it shoulde
be too hard for him yea truely impossible withoute people to gouerne and too maynteyne hys estate had hée neuer so greate a treasure the whyche cannot be better emploied thaÌ„ to deuide it among those that deserue it Thus euery man that is of a good iudgement as I suppose will say that good counsell and the force and strength of men is the true treasure And yet if ye will know this thing the better ye sée that this by the selfesame meanes made Alexander so great Iulius Caesar so strong and gentle Haniball with many other the which haue gotten by their name immortalities and by tresoring vp of men and not of gold they were made Kings Emperors and Monarches for they knew liberally to distribute their money to those whose merites they knew and to entertaine them so graciously that they might call themselues Lords both of hearts and of bodies wherby they were serued with great fidelitie Therfore my good friendes I pray you all as effectuously as I may possible that ye will ayde and helpe me as much as ye may to recouer those good and valiant Knightes whether they be of this countrie or strangers the whiche I promise you by the faith and worde of a king to entreat and honor in such sort and wise that they shall haue cause to praise and to content themselues for you are not ignoraunt that the better we are accompanied the more we shal be feared and redouted of our enimies and you the better kepte ntertayned and estéemed And if there be any vertue in me you may easily iudge that the auncients for the new whilest I liue shal not be forgotten therfore none of you ought to delay the request that I make vnto you but obey it the which thing I pray you againe and expresly commaunde you and that incontinently euery one of you particularly do name those vnto me whom ye know and as yet to in are evnknown and for this inteÌ„t that they if there be any in this Court may obtaine and get such rewardes of vs that they whiche are absent may be affectionate to come and serue vs and also to pray them that they depart not from our company without our knowledge The Oration of the Queene of England vpon the fauour that men ought to beare to Ladyes In the first booke about the â—nd of the .38 Chapter SEing it pleaseth you to giue place and to fauoure my request I praye you from hence foorth so doe and to shewe so much goodnesse and honour to all Ladyes and Damselles as to haue them in your protection and to defende them taking their quarels agaynst all those that woulde in any maner of wise molest them and so that if by fortune you haue promised a gyfte to a man and an other to a Ladie or to a Damsell that you first accomplishe the Ladyes as bâ—ing the fâ—ebler person and that hathe more néede to be recommended and holpen Thus doing they shall be from henceforth more â—auored and better taken heede to than they haue â—éene for why the euill whiche are customed to doe them iniurie fynding them in the fieldes and knowing that they haue suche Knightes for their Protectors and defenders as you be shall not be bold to trouble them The Oration of King Arban to his Souldiers fighting agaynstâ— King Barsinan Lorde of Sansuegue the whiche by treason woulde haue made himselfe King of England In the â—irst boke the .38 Chapter MY fellowes and friendes you haue fought so well this day that there is not he that dothe not merit to be esteemed among the moste gentle companions of all the worlde but if you haue begonne well I truste we shall dayly goe from better to better and if you remember that you defende your â—elueâ— as well to mayntaine your good Prince as your libertie and that agaynste a tyrant 〈◊〉 an euill man the which without the feare of God wold vsurp other mens and feedâ— him selfe with the bloude of your Chyldren Sée you not howe he hathe entreated those of the Castle that he hath taken by falshoode â— Doe you not sée the ende whereto he intendeth the whiche is not but to bring this noble kingdome and the subiectes thereof to ruine the whiche haue béene by the grace of God so long conserued and continually haue liued in reputation to be faithfull subiectes vnto their Prince Knowe you not the persuasions the whiche that knaue hath vsed before the assault that he gaue vs thinking to deceiue vs by his golden tong No no he is very yll ariued I am sure that there is not he of vs all that woulde not rather chose to die a thousande deathes And is it not true â— certes I sée in your good visages that if I shoulde thinke or say otherwise I shoulde lie and althoughe they haue moe meÌ„ than we yet we haue better hearts and more right than they And thus we ought not to feare but to leaue off all doubte to lyue henceforth in the reputation that we merite and deserue assuring you my friendes that they are retyred if you haue markt it with a countenance of men not affectionated to see vs agayne and what so euer that traytor Barsinan hath sayde our King is not dead for he will come shortly to succour vs In the meane while I pray you my companions that none of you be troubled but to doe and continue as he hath begon hauing before his eyes that it is much better to die for libertie than to liue long in captiuitie and miserie and that vnder a miserable Prince The Oration of the Lorde of Sansuegue vnto his Souldiers fighting against King Arban inducing them to take and to be of good courage In the first booke .38 Chapter MY friendes it is not inoughe to haue giuen knowledge vnto oure enimies that they be if I will at my mercie therefore I am mynded wythoute the losse of any moe of you to delay the matter for fyue or sixe dayes that Archalaus may or shal sende me Kyng Lisuardes head for that I beléeue that they shewing it vnto them shall no more be so bold to gainesay me and thus by loue we may draw them vnto vs Therefore let every one of you reioyce and be mery for I being King as I trust shall enrich you all The Oration that Abisco which through tyrannie occupied the Lordshippe of Sobrâ—dise made vnto the inhabitants of the countrey In the first booke .43 Chapter O Captiue and vnfortunate people I haue well perceiued the ease that the presence of this wench doth giue you and that you lacke witte to labour for why as farre forth as I knowe you will loue hir and better accepte hir for your Lady althoughe she be a woman feeble and weake to defende you than me that am a wise and a hardy Knight notwithstanding you sée hir weakenesse and that in so long a time she coulde not recouer but only two Knights the which are come to receiue their
should giue any occasion to you or to any other to falsifie or to breake it Grasinde speaking to Amadis otherwise called the Knight of the greene sworde dothe prayse him for keeping of his promise In the same Chapter BEléeue Knight of the gréen sword that if I haue had in time past good estimation of you that now I haue much better séeing that so faithfully you haue kept promise with me being returned from your iourney or euer that it be past ended the which thing maketh me beléeue that you seing you haue not fainted in that will do likewise in this that I haue purposed to put you to ensuing the purpose that we had togither a little before you tooke shipping to go into Gréece Amadis sorowing the absence of Oriane In the .3 booke the â—1 Chapter ALas my louer the long absence of your person hath giueÌ„ me so great passions and sorowes that if it had not bene for feare of the displeasure you should haue had for my death I had bene buried long since and depriued of the greatest goodnesse that could haue chaÌ„ced vnto me that is to haue the sight of you Ha my eyes are you not to blame thus to draw out by force of wéeping the little humor wherewith my heauie heart doth nourish it selfe considering the returning to hir for whose seruice only my spirite is content to be resident and remaine in this painfull heart also if you should haue no hope to sée hir againe yet you haue had more goodnesse through the fauour that she hathe shewed you in times past than euer you deseruedâ—â— And furthermore you may be assured that the stablenesse of hir is so constant that for any accident or chaunce that shall happen vnto hir she feeling in hir heart my fidelitie can not vary and suche that I had a great deale rather die a hundred thousand times than to lose hir good grace Gandalin goeth aboute to turne his master Amadis from sorowe and heauinesse wherein he sawe him for his louer Oriane In the .3 booke the .12 Chapter YOu are que Gandalin a straunge personage thus to punish your selfe when you shoulde comfort your selfe and take a good heart considering that we be in the way to returne to my Ladie Oriane that causeth all these sycknesses and as I thinke you should doe well to drawe you from those thoughts that thus do cause you to die For it is hard if ye fall not then into sicknesse when ye shall haue most néede of health and so ye prepare a worse infirmitie and sicknesse than was before of the which ye shall afterwardes repent you at leasure The Oration of Grasinde to the knight of the green sworde to draw him to hir amitie In the .3 booke the .12 Chapter VNderstand knight that a yeare before ye entred into this countrey I being in a company that the Duke of Basle prepared and made in his owne house wherevnto all the faire ladies and damsels of the countrey were called and inuiteâ— euen as we were in the midst and force of our good théere I cannot tell what moued my brother the Marques of Salander whome ye knowe full well in whose garde and kéeping I was then when he said with a loude voice before the assistance that my beautie was so excellent that no other of the companie ought in nothing to be compared to me and if there were any knight that would hold and sustaine the contrarie that he was ready to fyght with hym Yet eyther bicause he was â—eared and redoubted or it maye be that the opinion of the assistence was such no man wold say against it By the meanes whereof I beare the honour away aboue all the faire ladies of Rome whereof I had such pleasure and contentation as ye may estéeme and if by your meanes I may go further and come to that that my heart hath since desiredâ— I shall estéeme my selfe the most fortunates of all the world The lamentation of Bruneo of Good Mer the which being in the pray and custodie of Amadis fell into the hands I cannot tell of what trayters the whiche wounded him very sore In the .3 booke the .12 Chapter AHah caytife infortunate Bruneo of Good Mer now thou séest well that thou must néedes ende thy dayes with affectionate desire by the which thy faithfull hart hath bene so long afflicted Alas Amadis of Fraunce my good Lord ye shal neuer sée your faithfull companion Bruneo For séeking you as your welbeloued sister Melicia commanded him he is fallen into the handes of traytors that shall sley him without hauing of ayde or succoure of any of his friendes Ah ah fortune the enimie of my good houre thou hast set me so farre from all remedie that I haue not the meane only to make any man to vnderstand how to reuenge me the which thyng should be vnto me such a comfort that my spirite with better will and contentation shoulde depart out of this wretched and miserable world Alas Melicia the floure and glasse of all the most perfectest of the worlde ye shall léese this day the most faythfullest seruant that euer had Lady or Damsell for he neuer thought in his life but to obey please and to serue you And by my soule if ye consider it well ye shall fynde it may be so that this is an extreme losse for you being assured that ye shall neuer recouer any other that is so giuen vnto you as was your Bruneo the wyche doth féele euen now that the light of his life doth go out and his afflicâ—ed heart to léese his strength with the which to remember you onely I at other times haue had meanes and wayes to do many high actes of armes and of great cheualrie Thus I recommend him vnto you desiring you to fauor him and to entreate him as one that neuer fauted in his faithfulnes Alas death that takest me away thou dost shew thy selfe too sharpe and too rigorous towards me causing me to lease all my goodes my pleasure and my ioy not that I will expressely blame thaâ— for depriuing me of my life but for that thou hast not sâ—ffered me or euer I died to accomplish the thing that Melicia had greatly charged me withal the which thing was to â—ind hir brother Amadis Alas this was the first commaundement that euer she made me and shall be as farre as I sée the last whereby I féele my torment to double For if I had had a meane to haue satisfied hir I would haue thoght my trauel wel bestowed But what my louer ye shal léese me or euer I haue had the power to recognise the graces and the fauors that ye haue done for me and shewed meâ—assuring you by my God that I would neuer haue feared death but well to haue finished and ended my life louing you with great affection But yet my euill houre hath depriued me of so great goodnesse causing me to fall into the perill and danger wherin I am The
same man continuing hys complaynt dothe saye In the .3 booke the .12 Chapter Ah my great friende Angriota of Estrauauxâ— where are ye now and how haue ye forsaken me hauing so long time mainteined this company togither and when need is ye leaue me without any ayde or succoure not that I wil blame you for I my selfe haue bene the cause to separate vs thys day to our great misfortune the which shall also separate vs one from another for euer The Oration of Oriane to Florestan declaring vnto him that the absence of him and of Amadis hath caused great harme to many damsels In the .3 booke the 12â— Chapter IN good fayth my Lord Florestan it is loÌ„g ago since we saw you in this countrey whereof I greatly mused as well for the good will that I do beare you as for the néede that manye poore creatures haue suffered the whiche were wont to fynde and to haue succour of you of Amâ—dis and of many other that haue folowed him Cursed be ther that are cause of so long a separation And beléeue that I speake not thys wythoute greate occasion for I know a poore Damsell that is verye néere to be dishorited bycause she hathe not one to defende the wrong that men haue done hir And if Amadis were â—ere agayne and likewise the other whyche are farre from hence she might be sure that hir right should not as it is be taken from him but seing they be abseÌ„t she hath no better hope nor no other recourse but vnto death Florestans answer to Oriane certifying hir that Amadis maketh good cheere and that his name is dayly diuulgate thorough his fortunable conquests In the .3 booke the .14 Chapter MAdame God that is mercifull doth neuer forget those that put their trust in him and if it please him he shall not begin with the damsell that is so desolate As touching my Lord Amadis be ye assured that he is in very good health searching continually strange aduentures and in such wise that for the great feates of armes that he doth in farre countreys where he is his renoume doth diuulgate it selfe in all the coasts of the world King Lisuards Oration to Galaor concerning the mariage of Oriane and the Emperour desiring him to giue his aduise In the .3 booke the .14 Chapter MY great friend I haue alwayes knowen so great fidelitie in you and haue found it so profitable that I ofteÌ„ times haue beleeued your counsell and am purposed neuer to conclude any matter of importance without it Ye knowe the honor that the Emperoure doth me and the embassade that he newly hath sent vnto me desiring me to giue him my daughter Oriane to be his wife And ye shall beléeue me I thinke that the Lord in this thing dothe muche for hir and me for he is at this present the most mightie and redoubted Prince of all chiâ—tendome And being thus well alyed wyth him I from hencefoorth shall haue no neighboure nor enemie that shall dare once lift vp his hornes to hurt or to enuie me and I shal be more feared and obeyed than euer was any king of England Furthermore it shall be in a manner impossible to prouide better for hir than she shall be being the wife of suche an Emperoure and thus Leonor shall remaine after me sole Lady of my landes and countries the which otherwise might be deuided and a thing very hurtful But yet I am purposed to do nothing without the aduice of the Lords and knights of my Court and specially yours the which I pray you by the amitie that ye haue alwayes borne me to tell me freely and frankly and without any dissimulation The answer of Galaor to king Lisuard the which doth tend to disswade to turne him by the reasons that he bringeth in from the foresaid mariage In the .3 booke the 14â— Chapter SYr ye say that marying my Lady Oriane to the Emperoure ye shall prouide so well for hir that it should be impossible to prouide better The whiche thing séemeth to me cleane contrary for she being your principall heire and to send hir into a farre countrey to cause hir to leese hir realme the which is hirs already ye shall make hir poore without men and in subiection to a people not agreing with the maners and conditions of this countrie And if it séeme to you that she to be the Emperours wife to beare the name of an Empresse shall be in more authoritie in time to come by God Syr ye do abuse your selfe and here is the reason therof Suppose that it may chaunce hir to haue male children by the Emperoure hir husband if she remaine widow the first thing that hir sonne shall do vnto hir shall be to cause hir retire and to haue the rule of the Empire alone and if he marrie it will be worse for the new princesse will be inferior to none And therefore it is most sure that my Lady your daughter shall fall into a thousand inconueniences and extreme sorowes hauing forsaken this countrey the which certenly is hir natiue land to liue in a straunge countrie from hir parents subiects and seruants And as conceâ—ning ye say that thorough his fame you shall be succoured feared and redoubted truly sir ye haue thanks be to God so many friendes and knightes at your commaundement that without the ayde of the Romaines ye may easely if ye think it good extend your limits and I beléeue that in the steade to haue any support they shall rather assay to bring you to ruine and to destroy you than as ye estéeme to ayde and succour you for they will haue no egal vnto them nor none greater nor aboue them And furthermore this is certaine that they would demaund nothing more than to haue an occasion to set you in their Chronicles to your confusion and their glory vnder the shadow of some little fauor that they haue borne you the which thing should be the greatest euill that might happen to you and yours And also Syr what reason should it be to put my Lady Oriane your daughter and principall inheriter so farre from you to aduantage so much the princesse Leonor the whiche is the yonger by my soule for a righteous king and that is taken throughout all the world for an author of iustice ye shall make peraduenture the greatest wound in your renoume that euer did prince or mightie king And God neuer giue not only to you the will so farre out of reason but also to the poorest knight of your court beséeching you sir most humbly to beléeue that I would not haue bin so foolish hardy to declare vnto you so freely the thing that I thought good if ye had not expressely commaunded me and also bicause I am minded and apointed to kéepe vnto you all my life the fidelitie that I haue promised as he that doth feele him bound vnto you for the goodnesse and fauor that ye haue done for me Oriane complayning to
or euer ye my Lord and cousin arriued and came hither we were gathered togither in thys place to prouide for the same and now that we fynde you so conformable to our willes I am sure that there is none of vs that thinketh any other thing but that fortune doth call vs to performe it and end it promising vs certen victorie being pensife sory for the fauor that she hath borne thus loÌ„g to king Lisuard the which at this present in no wise doth know himselfe and that it is so what hath he to do to sende my sister against hir will into a straunge countrey hath the king my father giuen hir vnto him to do his pleasure with hir ye knowe that a little after our departing out of Englande I sent to the Quéene for hir but she refused me that sending me word by Gandales that she would sée hir intreated nourished as hir proper person Is this the good intreating that she hath kept for hir at the last to destroy hir hath Mabile no nother place to conuey hir selfe vnto but to the Emperours house Is not the Realme of Scotland rich ynough to nourish and to bring hir vp by God this manner of doing of king Lisuard is so vnfortunable and so farre out of reason that I had rather die a huÌ„dreth fold if it were possible than not to be reuenged and already I haue sent to my father to prouide therefore In the meane while I pray you all my Lords to ayde me and you specially whome this iniurie doth touch in a manner as well as me being done not only to my sister your cousin and nigh parente but to Olinda and other of whome folowing the thing that we haue promised and sworne as my Lorde Amadis hath saide we ought to be the protectors and defenders The Oration of Grasind to those of the enclosed I le praising their enterprise going to succoure Oriane and hir damsels In the .3 booke and .17 Chapter BY my God your enterprise is high and worthy of very greate laude and prayse considering that besides the good that ye do to them that ye go to help and succcoure ye shall ensue and follow the other good knights the whiche are of this countrie or strangers so that from hencefoorth men shal not suffer folowing you that any man should do wrong to any Lady or to any other damsell And therefore ye shal so indet them that both they and these that be and that shal come a hundred yeares and mo hereafter shall thanke you King Lisuards Oration to my Lady Oriane his daughter exhorting hir to allow the mariage to be good that he hathe vndertaken to make of hir with the Emperoure In the 3. booke the .18 Chapter MY welbeloued ye haue alwayes shewed your selfe obedient to my will without any contradiction and will ye not continue still as reason willeth you ye melancoly your selfe as farre foorth as I see for the mariage that I haue found out for you whereof I do greatly maruell Estéeme you that I would once thinke to do any thing that shoulde not turne to your honoure and profite Thinke you that I am of so euill a nature towardes you I sweare vnto you by my faith that the amitie that I beare you is so certein and sure that I haue no lesse heauinesse for your departing from hence than â—e haue But ye know that it should be impossible to prouide for you so well as vnto my selfe Therfore I pray you vsing your accustomable wisedom to make better cheere and to reioice your selfe of the goodnesse that is chanced vnto being the wife of the greatest prince of all the world And if ye do that ye shall besides that ye shall be esteemed receiue and comfort your father the which is as heauy of your anoyance as nothing more The answer of Oriane to king Lisuard hir father declaring vnto him the great wroÌ„g that he doth hir to marrie hir against hir will. In the .3 booke the .17 Chapter MY Lord ye haue theÌ„ as farre foorth as I sée resolued the mariage of me and the Emperoure It may be that ye haue made one of the greatest faults that any Prince can do for first of all I will neuer loue the husband that ye gyue me and I am well assured and certaine as I haue declared vnto you not long since that Rome shall neuer sée me willing rather to fall into the mercie of fishes than to dwell in a place wherevnto I haue no desire or affection Now I cannot thinke what hath induced you or perswaded you to do this but the loue that ye beare to my sister and the desire that ye haue to leaue hir your sole heyre and me the moste miserable damsell of all the world but God that is iust wyll not suffer that your intention so vnreasonable shall come to effect but rather shal send death vnto me if it so please him Amadis Oration to his companions admonishing them to take good courage to succoure in so great neede so many noble damsels In the selfe same Chapter MY companions and friends were it not for the assuraÌ„ce that I haue of the vertue and magnanimitie that is in you all I without doubt would refraine to put in aduenture the battell that we sée is ready if we would take it in hande But yet I knowing you to be such as ye are indéede and also the iust occasion for the which we are entred and haue taken the sea I thinke that we shuld not delay it but to cast away all feare to deliuer froÌ„ captiuitie so many desolate damsels the whiche call vnto vs to succoure and to help them by the only obligation and band that we haue to defend their libertie Therefore I beséech you let vs so liuely set vpon these shippes in such sort y setting these ladies out of danger their coÌ„ductors shal neuer bring newes to their Emperour The complainte of Queene Sardamire for the Prince Salust Quide complayning of the euilles and miseries that were to come In the .4 booke the .1 Chapter ALas fortune doth now shew that she will go not only to the ruine and destruction of vs miserable captiues but of the Emperoure and of al his Empire Ah ah poore prince euill lucke hath méetely well runned vpon thee Alas what losse and what heauinesse shall they haue for euer that loued thée when they shall know thy sodein end I cannot tell how thy master may support it and beare it but I beléeue that he shal not so soone heare the newes but that he shal die throgh great anger hauing a good cause for the losse at once of so many great vessels and good men and specially for you my Lady que she to Oriane whome he desired much more than any thing of this world and for whome from hencefoorth shall be moued so strange warres that néedes it must be for many good knights most cruelly to finish and to ende their dayes
he foresayd in the which he declareth that vpon â—ust occasion they enterprised against the Emperoure and that it is needefull in all sweetnesse to aduertise king Lisuard least he shoulde be miscontent In the .4 booke the .3 Chapter MY Lord Amadis it is very certeine that the enterprise that hath bin made vpon the Emperoure was not for any enmitie that we bare him but only to kéepe our fayth as al good knights should to sustayne and defend the wrongfully afflicted and specally all good Ladies of the whiche all we should be protectors And therefore I am thus minded first or euer we begin this warre that we send to king Lisuard and to cause him to vnderstand the occasion that moued vs to assaylâ— and inuade the Romaines and as quietly as may be if he be miscontent to pacifie him declaring vnto him with all graciousnesse the iniurie and wrong that he did to my Lady his daughter disheriting hir vnder the coloure to marrie hir with a strange Prince the which thing is not agreable vnto God nor to none of his subiects and therfore if it be his good pleasure to receiue hir to his grace and fauor and to forget the enuie if he heare hir any offering vnder this condition to restore hir vnto hym and no otherwise And if he refuse it and disdaine the duetie that we put oure selues in that then we declare resolutely vnto him that we doubt him not and that we if he make warre vpon vs be ready to defend vs In the meane while it is necessarie that we fortifie vs with all things thaâ— are requisite â—o a thing of such importance as this is at least way if he purpose to inuade vs that he find vs not vnprouided although he will be as my mind giueth me more ready to peace than to any other thing but yet that should not cause vs tâ— be slacke to make vs ready and to send to our friends and alies to pray them to ayde vs when we shall send them word The Oration of Oriane to Agrayes thanking him for his benefites and praying him to labour for peace betwene king Lisuard and Amadis In the .4 booke the .3 Chapter MY cousin notwithstaÌ„ding I haue great hope in the wisdome of your cousin Amadis in the good will that thesâ— knightes beare me so me thinketh that I haue good reason and cause to haue in you a speciall fidâ—litie as well for the obligation in the whiche I finde my selfe bound to the king your father and also to the Quéene for the good intreating that they made me in Scotlande as for that they deliuered me your sister Mabile to kéepe me company by whome onely next vnto God I do liue for why without the comfort that she oftentimes made and gaue me when my misfortunes were most greeuous I had bene buried long since and depriued of this world And although that at this present I haue not the meane to recognise nother to them nor to you how muche I am bound to you yet I hope with the time by all meanes to endeuer me thereto And in the meane while ye shall not if it please you he miscontent that I familiarly do cause you to perceiue the gréeues that I suffer And to begin I pray you that ye leauing off the wrong that my father hath done you will to your power make meanes to haue peace betwene my cousin and him for I doubt not seing the auncient and old hatred that they haue together the occasion that ye all haue to will him little fauor but that full honestly the things begon shall come to no other end than to a great ruine of the one part and other if it be not through the resistance that ye may do vsing in this thing your wisedome and good counsell Of the which thing I pray you againe as well to auoide such inconuenience as not to make me suspect to straunge nations the whiche may hereafter doubt of my innocencie and bespot my good renoume the which is to me of such consequence as ye may iudge and estéeme Agrayes answer to Oriane excusing him selfe vnto hir and promising hir to satisfye hir mind as much as he may posssible and to fynd peace in tyme oportune In the .4 booke the .3 Chapter MAdame quoth he as touching the good intreating that ye receiued and had in Scotlande the king my father and the Quéene in that did nothing but that it becoÌ„med theÌ„ to do and I am sure that they haue you in such affection and loue that in things whervnto their power may extend they will emplâ—y it and do it for you as for their best parent and â—â—ie And considering that you doe say of my sister and me the effect shall dayly beare witnesse of our good will that we heare you beséeching you to beleeue that you may commauÌ„d vs as those the which desire your wealth and honor asmuch as their owne And as touching that you haue to cause me to forget the iniurie that the King your father hath dnoe to me and not only to me alone but to all my parents and friends he you assured Madame that the wounde is so great that it will bléede as long as I shall liue knowing the ingratitude that he hath vsed towards vs denying my Lord Amadis me and many other good Knights the request that we made vnto him to giue my vncle Galuanes the Isle of Mongase the which had deserued it and better coÌ„sidering also that it was conquered by the vertue and noble actes of him that prayed him but yet for the honor of you I am content to dissâ—Ì„ble that matter and to force my self vntil then to defer for a time the iust occasion that I haue to will him ill specially bycause he so straungely and after he had receiued of vs so many great seruices chased vs from his Courte as though we had bene his mortall enimies And to shewe you that I will wholly prepare me to please you I promise you Madame to assay to do to my power the thing that you desire of me but it were not reasonable that it shoulde be done so promptly for if I should nowe begin in the word and communication the thinges being thus disposed to warre in place to encourage so many good Knightes as be in this Isle I shoulde put the most part of them hearing me speake of peace in feare presuming that I it might be so helde suche a purpose as though I were the first that were afearde Also I should doe two euils togither that which after this might turne to the losse of vs all and to me alone great dishonor But I hauing your fathers answere shall pray my companions to do as ye haue deuised and counselled in the mean while you should as I do thinke be heauie as little as you may and take the time and fortune most paciently as constantly as you may possible Amadis Oration to Grasinda offering hir all pleasure and
good will. In the .4 booke the .4 Chap. MAdame I am maruellously displeasant that I had no better oportunitie to do you in this place the honor and the seruice that you merite and deserue but the time so euil to that purpose doth take away the occasion therefore I excusing my selfe do pray you not to take or impute a fault of a good will. For in times past you haue bounde me vnto you that there shall be no daye of all my life but I shall féele me your debter what seruice soeuer I may doe for you And bycause it is nowe long agoe since you did departe from your countrie it may be that the long abyding here in this countrie hath wrought you some displeasure I would therefore very greatly desire to knowe your deliberation and mynde that I might if it were possible haue some meane to obey you in the thing that should please you to commaunde me The answere of Grasinda to Amadis thanking him for his good will and affection that he beareth hir and that she will gather men to succour him in his affaires In the .4 boke the 4. Chapter MY Lord Amadis quoth she I shoulde be of a poore and of a verie slender iudgement if I knewe not certainly the companie and fauor that you did shewe me and that greater honour than coulde haue chaunced vnto me And the good intreating that you had as you say in my countrie if any such was shewed you is nowe but recompensed but to put you out of paine I will shewe you what I thinke I sée many good Knightes assembled for to helpe this Princesse the which altogither for the amitie and good estimation that they beare you haue put their hope and conduct vpon you â—o that it shall be impossible for you to put them from you without your great blame And seing that suche a charge is wholly set and layde vpon you ye must trauell to send on euery side to recouer people to help you so that the honour of so greate an enterprise may remayne with you and by the meanes and help of your friends be yours of the which I esteeme my selfe the firste And for this cause I intende to morow to send maister Elizabet into the parts of Rome to gather as many men as he can as well of my owne subiects as other and as shortly as he may to shippe them and to coÌ„uey them hither And in the meane time I shal kepe companie if it so please you with these other Ladyes if they wyll do me the honoure to receiue me trusting not to forsake theÌ„ vntill this warre begon haue taken another end Amadis letter to the Emperour of CoÌ„stantinople praying him to help him in his warres In the .4 booke the .4 Chapter RYght high and excellent Prince the knight of the gréene sword whose proper name is Amadis of Fraunce doth most humbly salute you And therefore sir I trauelling the countries after the destruction of Endriagne it pleased you to receiue me into youre Citie of Constantinople where after the honoure ye did me and had gently receiued me ye of your liberalitie offered to ayde me in fauoure of the seruices that I had done for you and to giue me succoure when néede shoulde require it through the reduction of the countrie the which ye named afterwards the I le of Sainct Mary Now the occasion is come whereby if it so please you ye may accomplish and fulfill your promise with the most iust quarell that is possible to be had or taken as master Elizabet shall shewe you whome I pray you sir wholly to beléeue for hys sake that doth kisse the hands of your maiestie Amadis Letters to Queene Briolania praying hir to giue good heede to the thing that he writeth and to helpe him folâ—owing hir good will. In the .4 booke the .4 Chap. I Beléeue Madame that after you haue perceiued by Tantilles your Steward the cause that hath moued me to send so diligently that you should fauour the thing that he shall tell you from me being well assured that vsing your gentle nurture you will not fayle me no more than ye beléeue that I woulde be readie to put my foote in the styrrop for you where necessitie shoulde offer it And bicause he hath bene present at the things which after my returne into this countrie haue chaunced me and that I haue giuen him charge to cause you to vnderstand them at length I will not trouble you to put you to the paine to reade any longer letter but I shall pray youâ— after you haue beléeued him to haue me continually in your grace and fauor of the whiche the same Amadis as long as he shall liue as yours desireth to haue a good part Amadis oration to Gâ—ndalin aduertising him of the good confidence that he hath in him and for this cause to goe to king Perin to aduertise him of his affaires to the ende and intent to helpe him In the .4 booke the .4 Chap. GAndalin thou art he that hath euermore had the kéeping of my most secrete and priuie affaires for the great amitie that we from our first yeres haue had togither as if nature of hir own selfe had called vs into one fraternitie Thou knowest that my honor is thyne and that thine doth touche me as myne owne Thou séest the affaires that I am in and of what consequence they be vnto me also the conclusion that by all these Knightes hath bene taken too busie and to call vpon our friendes and alies to haue mightie succour to sustain the force of king Lisuard if he assay and attempt to assayle vs By the meanes whereof I haue alreadie prepared letters to many Princes of whom I trust to recouer a good and a great company of men And notwithstanding thy absence is gréeuous vnto me yet I trusting more in thy diligence than in any others haue thought to send the to King Perion my father the which hath knowen thée long whom thou shalt cause to vnderstand better than any other of what importance this warre is if King Lisuard take it vpon him for as thou maist say vnto him it partly toucheth him in as much as this vnkinde King hath done shewed so great diâ—fame to all those of our linage as to driue them oute of his court after he had receiued of them an infinite of great seruices Thou shalt reciâ—e vnto him by smal pieces that thou knoweâ— and hast sone and the necessitie wherein thou didst leaue vs and that notwithstanding thou shalt yet assure him that I feare no power hauing so good right with me and so many knightes and that I had not made so greate an enterprise 〈◊〉 it had not bene that since God would call me to the order of cheualrie I haue thought nor minded no other thing but to kepe the estate of a knight defeÌ„ding to my power the wrong that men did to many and specially to ladies and Damsels the which ought
to giue him leysure to come finde vs here I haue bene euer of this minde if the rest of you my Lordes and good friendes will the same for by this meanes he perceiuing that we aproche so nigh vnto him will chaunge pâ—raduenture his opinion and shall require vs to doe the thing that we in times past most humbly desired him The Oration of Guillan the pensife to the Emperor of Rome in the name of King Lisuard declaring vnto him the taking of his meÌ„ and of the lady Oriane that therâ—ore he is purposed to make warre against the knights of the Isle inclosed and that it would please him therefore to ayde him In the fourth booke the .13 Chapter SYr sayde Guillan King Lisuard my maister doth sende yâ—a word that for to haue your amitie and perpetuall aliance he was well content following the request that ye caused to be made vnto him by your Ambassadors to marrie the lady Oriane his eldest daughter and principall inherit or vnto you and in déede after many difficulties auoyded among the princes Lordes and subiectes of his Realme he deliuered her into the hands of those that haue power by you to receiue hirâ— but it chaunced that Amadis of Fraunce and other his mates with a certaine number of shippes spied them and in suche sort assailed theÌ„ in a straite that after they had â—ought a lonâ— space the Prince Salust Quide was slaine and all the rest of your men were ledde as prisoners into the inclosed Ilande where that as yet my lady Oriane is detained the Quéene Sardamire and other that were in this company But yet afteewardes thinking to pacifiâ— the faulte that they had done they sent Ambassadours to his Maiesâ—ie offering him many good partes and offers the which he woulde not receiue before he vnderstoode your wil and pleasure for as much as the iniurie that they haue done him doth touche you as much or more than him And therefore he hath commaunded me to shewe you that if ye be minded to take vengeance on them that he will bring a great armie into the fielde if ye of your part will doe the like being assured that if your strength be once ioyned you and he shall easely bring them to suche a point and reason as ye shall thinke good The Oration of King Lisuard to the Romanes setting before theyr eyes the great wrong done vnto theyr companions and that they shoulde therefore seeke to be reuenged against their enimyes and not to lease theyr courage in so iust a quarrell In the .4 booke the .19 Chapter MY masters and great friends ye haue sene and proued in these two méetings how that fortune hath shewed hir selfe our enimie in suche wise that in giuing vs the worsâ— shée hath triumphed by the death of my good brother the Emperour your maister and of many other valiant knightes the woyche in effect reuenging them vpon theyr â—nimyes woulde haue come to the thing that they become vnto â— bycause that this was the fayrest experience that they coulde doe by their vertue and strength to obtayne the glory whervnto they breathed And to come therevnto they thought it lesse than nothing to put their lyues in ioperdie and that it â—â—s muche better to dye valianâ—ly defending themselues than goyng backe to escape And bycause they woulde fall into no suche dishonour and shame they had rathâ—r throughe great magnanimitie of courage to endure and suffer fortune than to obey feare not bicause I wyll in alâ—â— thing reâ—â—ke those that scaped knowing the great diligence that they puâ— themselues to but to pray you â—ll that preferring your honour aboue the heauinesse that ye maye haue of the losse of your companions yâ— will assaye the truce fayling to reauenge them fighting strongly with them that are too prouide of their viâ—orie I am of this mynd that we shall put our selues in lâ—sse daungers and lesse â—azaâ—de our selues tyll wâ— may haue vpon themâ— that they haue had vpon vs nor that to haue lesse courage to assayle them or to defende vs if fortune doe continue to diffaine â—s consideryng that if we all die that it shall be vnto vs an immortall glorie and one Sepulchre the most honorable that wée can wyshe for or desire for all the earth in generall is the verye place where the bodyes of noble and couragious men shoulâ—e bée layde whose memorie is not conserued and kepte onely by Epitaphes and inscriptions but by the renoume of those that publishe themselues among strange nations that consider more in theyr mindes the greatnesse and heygth of courages than the thing that fortuned vnto them considering that cowardnesse accompanyed wyth shame is more grieuous and diâ—pleasant to a man that hath a good and an entire harte than the death that chauncâ—th by manfulnesse with the hope of publike glorie That thing my great friends maketh me beleue that ye not degeneratyng from your predecessors shall doe that â—hâ— worldâ— may knowe the great vertue and constancie that is in you and that in tho deathe of your Prince all yours â— not ioyned and contained Therefore I pray you to tell â—e the deliberation where to ye intrude to the intent that I following your resolution may take counsell on my part to set in order the thing that shal be necessarie assuring you by tâ—â— worde of a King that if I should die a thousande deathesâ— I will not departe from hence vntill I haue an ende of my enimyes or they of me Nascian the hermites Oration to King Lisuard aduertising him that he is not so nyghe him without a great cause and occasion and furthermore he sheweth him that he shoulde not goe aboute to marie his daughter Oriane to the Emperour bycause she is ioyned to another and giueth him the reason why And by this meanes he entendeth to turne him from the enterprise of warre In the .4 booke the .19 Chapter SYr ye haue good cause and reason so to thinke for certainly my great age and estate where vnto it hath pleased the Lorde to haue called me long since doth well excuse me to be among this bloudy people yet considering the euill that myghte haue happened if I had deferred my enterprise I haue not feared to trauell my body trusting to doe agreable seruice to God and healthfull to your soule Understande syrâ— that beyng a fewe dayes since in the hermitage wheâ—e by chaunce I wayted for you and when you and I communed togethen of the strange nouriture of Esplandian I then knewe the occasion of the warre that ye haue begonne agaynst Amadis and hys and neuerthelesse I am sure that ye can not doe nor perfourme the thyng that ye haue enterprised that is to marrie my Ladie your daughter to the Emperour of Rome for the whyche too manye yll chances are alreadie chaunced not onely bycause they are not agréeable as well to the greatest as to the leaste of your Realme as oftentymes they haue caused it to
and mine and with what weapon thou wilt choose the campe being before the palace of the right puisant Emperour of Trebisond And to the intent thou despise not this combat bicause thou art presented by a woman I do open vnto thée that the custome of Sarmate hath gotten and procured me the possession of cheualrie and the name of a knight and in such sort that the victorie that thou shalt obtayne vpon me if thou obtayne it shall be very noble bicause of diuers other that I haue won vpon many as valiant as thou art the whiche haue proued the force and strengthe of my armes And thy auncient glory shall be nothing the lesse notwithstanding the good countenance that fortune hath born thée and shewed thée hitherto but greatly aduanunced hauing the vpper hande of suche a Quéene and so mightie as I am and that desireth to extinguish to hir power this cruelnesse wherewith the beautie of thy eye can ouercome as men say and conquer the high Ladies and damsells that sée and behold thée A letter from Lisuard to Abra the Empresse of Babilon wherin he sheweth the causes of his comming to Zairs countrâ—y and the good cause why he slew him and he declareth the good affection that he beareth to the foresayd Abra. In the 8. booke the .36 Chapter SOueraygne Empresse of Babilon and of the Parthes Lisuard of Greece Infant of Constantinople and Trebisonde and the seruant of Iesu Christe doth gréete you and honor you as your highnesse doth merite Ye shall vnderstand right honorable Lady that the imperiall bloud of Greece ioyned wyth the glorious and inuincible Englande hathe broughte me to the place where truely I haue founde the meane to reuenge the iniurie that I receiued by the prince Zair In doing whereof and with so good and so iust a cause I thynke that I haue not offended the great obligation wherein verily I am for the loue that ye say ye beare me greatly bounde vnto you Also the desire to do you humble seruice is not as concerning me diminished in me but as long as I shall liue I will be yours as I am without altering the fidelitie that I haue born to my Ladie Onoloria my deare sister and wife Nowe madame somwhat to answere the letter that it pleased you to write vnto me and specâ—ally vppon that ye complayne you of the sea that may glorie in it selfe hauing in it the bodie and the bloud of the Prince Zair I thinke sauyng the better aduice he coulde not haue receyued a more glorious sepulchre being honoured as ye doe publishe it with so great a multitude of waters whiche after your iudgement should estéem him more than their own Neptunes And if heauen will rauishe him out of the abysines to place him more higher who can wishe him better Certes the one and other are more méete to lodge him than the earth whereof he â—ath lost the possession yea he should thinke it too little to containe in it selfe the bodie of him whose vertues and valiantnesses are inenarrable and innumerable Thus madame I besech you most â—umbly to diminishe your passions whiche thyng reason shoulde sooner doe than the tyme knowing you to be as sage and as vertuous a Princesse as any in all the world By the occasion wherof I haue considering the latter lynes of youre letter conceiued more pitie of your euil than of any feare of the thretning that ye threaten me withall to purchase and to séeke my death the whiche chauncing to me by your meanes ye shall be but easily satisfyed and shall léese if ye léese me the best and the moste affectionate seruant that euer ye shall haue and so ye shall fynde me where and when it shall please you to employe me or commaunde me without sparyng of lyfe and a doseyn if I had thâ—â— in obeying of you The answere of the Infant Lisuard to the Queene of Caucasus letters by the whiche he dothe aduertise hir of the receyte of hir letters and that he accepteth the combat and remitteth to hir the choyce of armes In the eight booke the .36 Chapter RIght highe and myghtie Quéene of Caucasus I haue perceyued and knowne by the brief and letter which it hath pleased you to sende me that the occasion of your commyng to Babylon was vpon the hope of the marriage that shoulde haue bene betwéene you and prince Zair whome I caused to passe by the file and edge of my sworde saying that through his death ye wyll lyue a widow at all pointes bicause there is no man liuing worthie to haue you Truly madame the highnesse of your estate and the beautie that doth accompanie you with this valiantnesse whereof ye are renoumed doth right well merite that men shuld estéeme you such a one as ye are But I wil neuer easely consent that ther are not other Princes Lords and knightes ynough and as good or better than Zair to ioyne with you in mariage and to satisfie and supply his defaulte As concerning the rest I promise you that I am sore displeased for the combat and fight that ye wil enterprise at al vtteraÌ„ce assayes against me For ye being but a womaÌ„ are more to be feared for your great beautie thaÌ„ for the force of your armes considering that I am more accustomed to put my life in hazard to serue you other lyke vnto you than to defend me to fight against them But yet seing that in regard of this ye woulde be rather taken for a valiant a hardy knight than for a swéete a gracious damsell defying me as concerning your own person and mine I accept it And to reserue apart the obligation that I owe vnto your seruice I remitte vnto you the election and choyce of armes For I trust so much in your natural goodnesse that you your self shal be wonne of your self without séeking the victorie vpon you wherby I may rather defend my self against those that haue occasion to enterprise to assaile me As concerning the campe and other things required by this prudent Lady they shal be graunted you as she hath of your parte demaunded them The time shall be fiftie dayes hence to the entent that with the solemnitie of so glorious an enterprise my mariage may the better be celebrated and honored Niquea the Princesse of Thebes letter to the knight of the Burning sworde by the which she praiseth him and doth labour to insinuate hir self in hys loue and to come thervnto she sendeth him the portraiture of faire Ladyes In the eyght booke the .40 Chapter NIquea the Princesse of Thebes giueth and sendeth salutatioÌ„ to the knight of the Burningsword more valiant than anye other that euer bare armes Your excellencie shall vnderstand that I haue receiued the letter that ye haue written vnto me and I haue heard at length the credence of this my faithful Busando the newes of his high chiualries that hath so often enuironed and compassed the world so that my
Damselles the good subtiltie that ye haue vsed to finde â— mâ—â—nes for the deliueraÌ„ce of Doâ— Floâ—isâ—lâ— the which is fallen into the handes of the Princesse Arlande of Thrace a thing that ought to make you immortall for euer seeing the danger that ye put your selfe in to shewe so perfect amitie And to shewe you truly what we doe thinke we fynd the acts that ye haue done and doe so excellente and noble that by good reason all the worlde shoulde wishe for suche a personage as was the Grecian Homere to describe your high and heroicall actes to giue an ensample to the posteritie and to intiâ—e them to ensue the lyke Great Alexander néedeth not to goe before you nor Anniball nor yet the Scipions for if they haue had great victories it hath hene with the multitude of men but you alone haue wonne so muche that yée ought to holde and kéepe the hyghest roome not onely among the wyse and valiant men but also among the women more noble All the hygh acts of armes that the noble Quéen Gradafilea did ought in nothing to be compared to yours for al that she euer did was through the force of loue whiche is inuincible and to conserue hir integritie but ye were only moued by a certaine naturall and natiue vertue to doe him good whom ye in no maner of wise knowe not and not to him onely but to all those vnto whom ye perceyued iniurie and extortion to be doone the glorie and the laude whereof redoundeth vnto you Certainly the faire and chaste Iudith that cut cruell Holofâ—rneâ— head off to obserue and kéepe hir chastitie nor Cleopatra that ouercame hir brother Ptolome nor Quéene Fantasâ—lea with many other ought in no wyse to be compared or made equall wyth you which dothe not onely excell all menne and women in vertue and valiantnesse but also in excellence and perfecte beautie exceptyng none nor thys fayre Syluia the whyche as wée haue vnderstanded ye preserued from cruell death when shée woulde haue slayne hir selfe nyghe vnto the Fountayn of loues of Anasterax â— for the absence of Dom Florisell the whyche is bounde vnto you all hys lyfe long and I also for the goodnesse that ye haue doone for me in sauyng of him Notwithstandyng truely as I thynke hée shoulde not séeing the promise that he made me at his departing from hence to be in Apolonia at the aduenture of the contention of the foure brethren haue strayed nor haue cast himselfe into so many ieopardous aduentures without sending mée newes of him yet I will not wryte vnto him least that presenting my fynger vnto him hée take the whole hands considering that his comming hyther shall certifie vs of his béeing so farre off and of his so grieuous absence so that it please you of your goodnesse to suffer him to returne vnto whome you and I are so much bounde for the goodnesse that we haue receyued of him that it is impossible for vs to satisfie him nor you to giue him condigne thankes But Madame we shall pray the Creator to giue you such and so good peace as we desire for the warre that doth torment vs presenting our most humble recommendations to your good Grace Your great friendes and readie to obey you Helen of Apoloniâ— and Tymbria of Boetia The defence of Raison vpon the difference of honour and loue In the .9 booke the .53 Chapter HOnour and you loue it greatly displeaseth me that yée cannot agrée as touching the health of these two armies yet forasmuche as the poynte and the truth of your rightes cannot be knowne but by the effusion of humaine bloude or by the victorie of one of these two armies the issue wherof â—oth depend of the will of God I can giue you no other counsel but to let your men ioyne to the ende that the vengeance and iudgement of God maye be vmpere and arbiter of your difference and debates A propheticall letter of Anaxenes a Philosopher and a calker to Dom Florisel of Niquea In the .9 booke the .54 Chapter MY Lorde the king Arpilion and the Quéene Galathea his verie deare companion and spouse haue charged me to present with a verie good heart their recommendations vnto your good grace and I of my part do no lesse which am theyr Philosopher and a master of arte Magicke Understand my Lordâ— that the goodnesse and valiantnesse which I know to be in you haue prouoked me to aduertise you oâ— certaine great adueâ—tures that shal chaunce vnto you the which I haue foreséene and knowne by my science learning and by the high secrets of arte Magicke and to the intent ye may auoyde and escape them with your honour I send you the helmet that yâ— lost in the sea when that by tempest ye were separated from Siluia the which shall doe you good seruice in a combat that two braue Lions shall make yea for the price of your bloud and there shall come forth of those that fight a light that now is hidden in déepe darknesse the which shall giue light to all those that thought to haue lost it and so well that your â—ead being deliuered from the perill the whiche ye shall sée before your eyes men shall sée an olde wounde renued in you the which shall put you to extreme paine and yet cannot be eased vntill this soueraine remedie shal be multiplied in you and in all those that shall sustaine your part shal be newe woundes whereout shall come a bloud that shall moyst all the lande of Grece by the meanes whereof your body shall be deliuered by a general effusion vntil the payment be perfit Nor the prince the Author of this warre nor his friendes nor confederates shall haue it no better cheape than you aduertising you that the tyme of moste greatest daunger wherein ye maye hée shall be euen then when that the Lion whiche ingendereth the lawfull and legitimate Lions shall finde him selfe in more perill than you And a little whyle after there shall come euen sodainly a Bastarde the which shall beat downe with his brighte and shining armes the glorie not hoped for Then shall arise the sixe bastards and little Lyons the which shall awake their fathers by a more strange fashion than the Lyons progenitours haue giuen lyfe to their little ones and all that with encreasement of your great honour and the inestimable effusion of bloud on the one syde and other Therfore take good héede at the beginning of this euill whereof ye shall haue cause to laude him continually that is laudable aboue all things by whose permission and sufferance all this shall be doone and ye shall daylye holde his diuine hande in your defence Therefore doubte not at all for all thing shall chaunce as I haue tolde you praying you not to be curious to knowe more vntill the soueraigne iudge shall haue executed his determination and will to shewe you a warre whereof peace shall procéede And in this behalf I shal pray
diuines may be as well taken as I. This Infant whome I pray you receiue as hys highnesse doth merit may shew you by mouth the torment and anoyance that I am in Thus I pray you not to denie me your comfort the which I aske not but with an honest intention the which is of one true and perpetuall alliance of vs two And in thys hope I will pray the Almightie to gyue you his grace presenting my most humble recommendations to yours He that cannot be long without your succour the diuine Anaxartes Letters from prince Anaxartes to the Infant Oriana coÌ„tinuing notwithstanding hir answer the burning affection that he doth beare hir and aduertising hir of the daunger into the which he may fall if she refuse him In the .9 booke the .65 Chapter RIght vertuous Princesse I perceyuing the answer that ye haue made to the Infant Artimire by whome I sente you my letters I know that ye find it nother good nor decent that I haue apointed my selfe to come to you for the reason meÌ„tioned in them that is bicause ye are vnder the power of your father and mother vnto whome ye will obey and do nothing but their pleasure the which thing I agrée with you to be reasonable and honest to all persons be they neuer so high and noble but if ye knew what power this little God of loue hath vpoÌ„ men I wil say also vpon the diuines I am assured ye shuld not haue found my humble request so strange for your highnes would haue coÌ„sidered that he doth so blinde men that who so it pleaseth him to smite with his golden dart he for the most part and most often taketh froÌ„ them all discretion as we haue infinite examples by the histories the which at the present I will not recite fearing to trouble you with â—oo long letters but onely pray you to beléeue that your excellent beautie hath brought me to suche a statâ— that if it please you not shortly to shew me some beningne fauour I â—eare me very sore that ye shall sée me fall into the greatest misfortune that may chaunce to any knighte presenting in this behalfe my righte humble commendation to your good grace of the which I desire to be participant considering the meane how that I may demaunde you of the King your father seing that ye wil promise me nothing vntill ye knowâ— his will. The very same that is more yours than his owne the diuine Anaxartes Letters of the Infant Helen to the King of Apolonia hir father by the which she dothe praye him to excuse hir that she is maried without his leaue seyng that the destination woulde so haue it and that the Prince that she hath taken hath deserued much more In the .9 booke the .70 Chapter SYr your most humble daughter Helen doth pray you or euer ye reade these letters at length to consider what power loue hath evpon men otherwise ye woulde Iudge the fault that I haue committed against your goodnesse greater than it isâ— if ye measure the obligation of obedience that all children ought to haue to fathers and mothers Well syr to the end that I disguise nor hide nothing from you I thinke that ye do it for the best to kéepe me farre off from amorous affections separating me from your court and to set mée in this solitarie place with my Aunte and my cousin Tymbria of Boetia but I ensure you that loue hath so assayled me representing to me in fansâ—e the beautie good grace valiantnesse and magnanimitie of Prince Florisel of Niquea that fortune so fauouring me that I haue séene him and knowen the singular vertues that are in him and the vnspeakable loue that he heareth me I haue bene inforced afterwardes that I had promised him mariage by present words to folow him and hereof is witnesse my cousin Tymbria the which hath kepte me companie fearing that ye would haue giuen hir some euill countenance she presenteth hir humble recommendations vnto your good grace prayeth you I also asmuche as I may possible to excuse hir vnto my Lorde hir father assuring you that she is not the cause of the thing that I haue done but contrariwise resisted it with all hir power but ye know syr that no wisedome nor yet no humaine force nor strength can resiste the fatals destinies Thorefore syr ye ought to beléeue suerly that it was the will of God nor ye can not say that I haue offended my honour nor yet yours taking an husbande not agreable vnto my highnesse for he whome I haue chosen doth merite one of a greater stocke than I am for the goodnesse that he doth possesse aswell of fortune as of the spirite yea a great deale more than the Prince Lucidor vnto whom I pray you to excuse me and to consider that I neuer promised him any thing so that he néede not be greatly gréeued with me nor offended with the thing that I haue done in as muche truely as this hath not béene to disdaine his aliance for I acknowledge that he did me much honour willing to take me for such a one as I am nowe to Dom Florisel of Niquea the which hath conducted me to Constantinople accoÌ„panied with Prince Falanges of Astre a Prince as wise and as valiant as he is vertuous and of good grace praying in this behalfe the soueraine creator of al things to giue you health good fortune and long life Your most humble daughter Helen of Apolinia Prince Lucidor of Vengeances letter to the Infant Alastraxeree giuing hir knowledge of the iust occasion that he hathe to reuenge him of Dom Florisel and praying hir not to let him to do it In the .9 booke the .72 Chapter MAdame were it not that I thinke that ye haue bene misinformed of the great wrong that Prince Florisel of Niquea hathe done mée I estéeme that your diuine excellence would not haue béene in battaile against me to haue lefted the effect of the iust execution of the vengeance that I oughte to take vpon him as well in my owne name as vpon the occasion of the iniurie that Amadis of Greece his father hathe done to my sister Lucelle the which is here with me But to the ende Madam that ye may knowe what hath moued me to assaile him in such order as ye haue séene ye shall vnderstande that he rauished and ledde away Helen the Infant of Apollonia the which hath beene promised me of long time to be my wife and for such I haue accepted hir and will haue hir I pray you then to consider how much that thing should gréeue me and shewe not your selfe to be so great an enimie of your owne highnesse and good renoume as to let so iust a vengeance but rather to shewe fauour and ayde to him that foloweth it thus doyng ye shall obserue and keepe the integritie of your iustice Thus Madame presenting my humble recommendations to your good grace I shall pray the soueraine to gyue
you the accomplishemente of your desyres Your cousin and intier good friend Lucidor of Vengeances Alastraxeree dothe answere the letters of Prince Lucidor of Vengeances and dothe shewe him that she hath done hir duetie in helping Dom Florisel and doth praye him to be at one with him In the .9 booke the .72 Chapter EXcellent Prince Lucidor the diuine Alastraxaree the daughter of the mightie Mars the God of battells and of the triumphant Zahara Quéene of the Mount Caucase and of the mountaines of the Orient dothe sende you salutation and amitie Ye shall vnderstande that I haue receiued and read your letter by the whiche ye complaine greatly that I haue holpen Dom Florisel of Niquea by whoÌ„ ye maintaine that ye haue been greatly and sore offended For an answere thereof I pray you to consider how much I am bounde as all other Princes ought to be to fauour and minister iustice to those that haue good right so it is that I am no lesse bounde also to acknowledge a good déede and seruice for I am as muche bound to Dom Florisel as any person may be to any other that for many causes the which to make you vnderstande at this present time I haue no leysure And it séemeth to me that ye should put me in no fault nor be miscontent with the thing that I haue done in his right and if I had or this knowen perceiued your difference yet my highnesse doth binde me to succour him in suche necessitie as I founde him in so that ye ought not to procure your vengeance and iustice by inequalitie of force as I haue séene by experience but to summon him aduertise him to repaire the iniurie that ye maintaine he hath done you and if he refuse to content you and to make you amendes then ye should procéede by good counsell and moderate deliberation Thinke estéeme therfore that I haue not done but my dutie to Dom Florisel nor I will not leaue of to satisfie you and to maintaine your right euen against him the thing being well knowen and examined Yet in the meane space I pray you that ye will enforce your selfe to agrée and accord your differeÌ„ce without sheading of bloud iâ— it he possible and not to folow the impotuositie and hastinesse of your choler that hath caused you to take and to haue the surname of vngeances not coÌ„uenient truly for a Prince for the gods would that we should leaue vnto them all vengeance bicause we cannot kéepe a meane in the executing punishing of those that haue offended vs As touching me I will take paine and praie him for peace betwene you assuring my selfe that he will not denie it me And in this hope I will make an ende at this time wherin you and all my lords of your companie shall finde my recommendations to your good graces beséeching the Gods to maintayne you all in health Wholy yours and readie to doe you pleasure the diuine Alastraxeree A letter from Dom Florisell of Niquea to the Princesse Arland excusing him of this that he cannot beare hir the amitie that he desireth being in loue in another place In the .10 booke the .4 Chapter MAdame the prayses of the warlike victories published in euery place by the cleare trumpet séeme to me of little valure in comparison of him that doth deserue it the which by wisedome is an ouercommer of himselfe For of the first the great part is done to fortune the which is commoÌ„ among vs our Lieutenants and souldiours on the other no man may haue any right but he alone vnto whom all the honour doth perteyne The déed alreadie past betwéene you and me doth summon and inuite you to this conquest of glorie that hath no péere considering the assaultes that your owne will doth both day and night deliuer you the whâ—ch you ought vertuously to susteyne and by your great wisdome to quiet for ye know that on my syde and part I may not obey the law of your true loue hauing lost my entire liberty of the which there remayneth no part that I maye bestowe in your seruice I woulde although I may not I confesse and knowledge the deite but I haue not wherewithall to satisâ—ie bicause of a former obligation and band that doth binde and ingage both the bodie and soule therefore ye must néedes take my good will in payment without complayning vpon me as touching the fault of loue to you wardes in as much as my vnablenesse doth excuse me séeing I had placed it before in another stead nor vnfaythfulnesse considering that my fayth and promise was alreadie set and arested in another place from whence I coulde not retire it Considering therefore that loue no lesse than other naturall things doth continually retaine his propertie the which is to exercise tyrannie agaynst his vassals as he did agaynst Quéene Dido and diuerse great Ladies the which did sacrifice to this cruell God with their pure bloud and at last with theyr lyfe Take an example and looke vpon me to obey his force as ye sée that I could not resist him and ye shall winne aboue me that doth liue in continuall warre this vauntage to remaine in peace and quitnesse of spirite the which I wish you with the encrease of glorie prosperitie with as good an heart as I doe present these most humble recommendations to your good Grace The selfe same which is wholy yours euen as he is his owne Florisell of Niquea Prince of two Empyres The Oration of Prince Lucidor desiring ayde of the King and Princes Apolloniens to reuenge him of the Princes of Grece In the .10 booke the .5 Chapter SIr and you Princes Barons Captaines and Souldiours Apolloniens if our sage auncetours which the worldes that are past did beare had left vs in the succession of so many good documents the certaine knowledge of the traine and gouernment of fortune hir inconstancie shoulde not giue me at this time occasion to blame hir nor hir certaintie a lawe to saye this that I say but forasmuch as she hir selfe hath prescribed the authoritie to execute hir owne minde the Princes of this worlde shall winne much lesse to will to resist hir might than to obey and acquite themselues of the obligation that she often tymes doth lay and intangle them withall Not sir that I will vnder this colour denie in any poynt that I owe vnto your honour nor likewise leaue of to exacte of you in iustice that ye owe vnto mine being disposed to make of two lyke things one or other in the case of the rauishment and rape of your daughter Helen and my spouse In whome no lesse force hath béene done to you than to me the which thing induceth me presently to require that your will conforme it self to mine for our mutuall satisfaction in the enterprise of this iust vengeance Not that I doubt Lorde Birmates or haue any mistrust in this case of your franke and noble courage but feare
this daye are a nation of the best warriers of all the world the which haue always discomfited those that would assayle and inuade them praying you furthermore to do better than I can say to consider that this victory vpon those that ouercome al other people doth prepare you an inestimable triumph of glory defacing or dusking at once the most noble of our auncetors elders Prince Anaxaries OratioÌ„ to the Paganes assuring them of the victorie as well for their good right as for the presence of the Infants of the Gods. In the .10 booke the .18 Chapter LOrds quoth he Captaynes and Souldiers we sée ofteÌ„times that the Gods do so shewe their might in the déede of battells that oftentimes the great number of people are broken by the lesse But how much should your courages be assured of all such hazard and danger knowing for a suretie that the right is on your side Also they haue sent you hither their sonne and their daughter to execute their victorie of the which no man should make any doubt séeing the multitude of our aliesâ— and knowing the valiantnesse of the conductore of the armie Now I will hold my peace being well assured that ye are more prompt and ready to the effect of the déede than to hearken to any such words The Oration of Lucidor to the Christians In the .10 booke the .18 Chapter MY Lords I will not vse great nor many wordes wyth you to encrease the boldnesse that is naturally in you and greatly experimented among all your enimies I wyll only reduce vnto your memorie that ye must set your assurance in the diuine maiestie the which doth certenly know to hardeÌ„ your sinnowes and to double your breath to execute his iustice by our hands vpon the vniust vsurpers of other mens Yet that notwithstanding good right hath néede of aid therefore consider all thing to maintain the order of warre that shall be apointed you by your captaynes and the Sergeants of your â—ands being certayne that this one point might depriue and take from vs the victorie whiche we holde as it were euen now betwéene our hands Consider also besides the common right of this enterprise the obligation that euery man hath to assist his natural prince to aid him to maintaine the honor that they haue of long time obtained ioyning thereto your owne so greatly celebrated and honored the which by the losse of this iourney shoulde be abolished and brought to nothing Furthermore aduise you that we hazard our selues much lesse in this battell than our enimies do for if it were so that God forbid that by them we should be broken the losse could not be so greate of our parte fighting in this champioÌ„ countrey for why our wiues infants pareÌ„ts and friends shall remaine entier and whole without léesing of one foote of land but if our enimies chance to be ouerthrowen as I trust all we shall be enriched occupying theyr lands and Lordships with a glorious satisfaction of oure iniurie The king of Scitbes and Dom Florisell of Portingale do defye by a letter Amadis of Greece and Florisell of Niquea vpon the quarell of Lucidor In the .10 booke the .18 Chapter BEing come into this campe to fauor iustice againste the wrong that by you hath bene done to the royall bloude of France specially by Florisell the vsurper of the true bed of prince Lucidor we being for this cause in the battell that is paste it séemeth to vs a thing enorme that so many good men are slayne and other redy to folow them and all for the cause of a woman This considered we iudge it reasonable that ye two whiche are the spring and the begynning of the déede should also beare the whole déede and effecte of the enterprise Therfore Dom Fryse of Portingale I haue apoynted to fighte with you two with eyghteene knyghtes of ours against as many of yours trusting that God will giue vs veÌ„geance vpon you with the fruite of all your glorie redounding with like meane vnto oures And that with this condition that they which winne may driue and cast out of the campe all that be ouercommed and those that be vnder their charge as long as the warre indureth Offering you of oure part such suretie of the camp as we shall desire of you parting the sunne by egall aduantage as well to the chalengers as to the defendaÌ„ts the iudges of our side are the prince Anaxartes and the princesse Alastraxeree and they of your part shall be such as ye shall name within the thirtéene of the date of these present letters of the which we make an end as we trust to make of the whole warre Amadis of Greece and Florisell answer to the kinâ— of Soites letter In the .10 booke the .20 Chapter THe soueraigne God hath in such wise reserued the ouersight of all things by him created that fortune hath no other power but asmuch as it pleaseth him to suffer he is the only stay of his holy faith the which he wil sustayne against all the inuasions of infidelles and false Christians taking their aliance not suffering his laude to be transported to whome it perteineth not And to answer to your letter Amadis of Greece and Florisell of Niquea do accept the combat with eyghtéene gentlemen the whiche they haue chosen against your eyghtéene with such suretie of the campe departing of the sunne winde or dust and other conditions as ye haue capitulated and rehersed In the which we do name for our iudges the high and excellent princes king Amadis of Fraunce and the Emperoures Esplandian and Lisuard of Greece Wherevpon we make an end remitting the end of our combat to the disposition of God. A letter of defyance from the princesse Alastraxeree to prince palanges of Astre In the .10 booke the .22 Chapter THe humayne iustice doth condemne in a great amendes the vassall committing felonie against his liege Lord but they that runne or fall into the crime of the diuine maiestie defyled are cruelly both they and al their posteritie punished This I say for thée PhalaÌ„ges which art ataint of these two enorme vices for thou canst not denye but that thou hast not presented me thy seruiceâ— with fayth and homage and agaynste all right and duetie thou dost rebell and euen nowe doest take armes agaynst me and mine To what ende dothe it tende that thou didst publish the ceremonie and adoration of my Image making to me diuine and godly honoure if thou labor and go about to destroy and to bring me to ruine in open warre Thys proude boldnesse doth constrayne me to denounce vnto thée by this letter mortall combat of my owne person to thine to make and cause thée to knowledge him whome thou haste not well knowen for the day I assigne thée the same vpon the whiche our knightes shall fight against yours that the memory of thy temerariousnesse and pride may be celebrated and shewed in the Theatre of so many
neuer thinke such a fault and féeblenesse of heart to bée in you that any one of you shoulde not desire to reuenge himselfe vpon his enimie and to sell his skinne dearly Wel it is conuenient for vs a little to dissemble our heauinesse and take pacience perforce and not to discourage the other Yée may beléeue mée that the greatest parte of the annoyance doth rest in my brayne but I inclose it to open and manifestly to open it doubled perforce when tyme and season shall giue me occasion Therefore I commaunde you all to go and to rest your selues a whyle that as soone as the fayre Diana or Moone shall arise setting you in traine and order to go and to inuade our enimies euerye man taking a white shirt vpon his harnesse for euery one of vs to knowe eche other assuring you that the ioy which they had through oure losse may cause them to be negligent by the meanes whereof we maye giue them so strayte a hande that they shall thinke thereof And this shall be a demonstration that oure little companie hath not a faynte heart agaynst so greate an hoste séeing that oure execution of vengeance hath no care for the trauell and payne receyued As touching me my friends although I haue bin hurt like as other I féele not these woundes so much as that the which I haue in my hart of despite and euill will beléeuing asmuch of other and that diuers of you which are not deadly wounded shall not leaue to come to this camisado the which I woulde should be two houres after midnight and as secretly as may be for feare of waking of our enimies but to rocke them so well that they shall sléepe for euer The which thing I estéeme to be easie considering the great chéere that ye made yester euen and the small watch that they shall make trusting in your misfortune A complaynt of Amadis of Greece being in the desert of Lions lamenting his Lucell whom he had forsaken to take Niquea In the .10 booke the .37 Chapter O Force that dost force me against my owne wil to breake the fayth and fidelitie that I should rather kéepe but yet thou hast made me in changing of my selfe to change it Truly my payne is greatly redoubted for the good thing that doth me so much euill O gentle Lucell what is this to say that when your beautie was wont to torment my hearte through a mortall desire I enticed of good hope did beare it paciently but now that I haue it no more alas I suffer an euill not to be borne Alas hope was wont to maintaine my life in thy absence what doth now sustayne it it must néedes be that there be some hope against hope to deliuer me a more gréeuous punishment for my vnfaithfulnesse the which doth banish me from the presence of hir whose inestimable vertue did promis me some pitie but I my selfe am contrary to my selfâ— so that I cannot haue repentance to require your pardon for my falsed fayth when I remember my déere Nequea of whome I haue receiued so great glory and contentation O death now make an end of my life to finish my trauell and thou life entertayne me no more to cause my lanlonger to endure O ye waues of the Sea why haue ye not swallowed me now of late into your déepe bottomes to exempt and to take me from this soo horrible tormeÌ„t O fountaine beholding that of his cauerne thou art fortunate making thy ordinarie course and my eyes vnfortunate distilling continually by vnnaturall constraint Thy fresh licor doth take from me the heate that is come from the common sunne but the fier that Lucell my very sunne doth cause no water can quench but one pitifull teare by hir sprinkled vppon me Niquea Niquea thou dost owe me the pardon of this offence whereof thou hast forgotten the obligation of my â—irst loues Lucelle Lucelle reioice your self now that the time is come that ye shall haue vengeance of youre vnfaithfull knight of the burning sword with satisfaction of the faulte that his sonne might haue done against your brother Anaxartes doth pitifully shew princesse Oriana that the fier of loue whiche hath inflamed him through hir beautie will reduce him to ashes if she take no pitie In the .10 booke the 41. Chapter I Besech you madame to excuse my boldnesse that I take to discouer vnto you the martirdome that I suffer for your excellence and so muche the more it gréeueth me that I kepe it close and couert for what soeuer reuerence I beare to your highnes the strength of loue is so vehement that my reason can no longer resiste and to cause you to perceiue it well it is suche that I for the extremitie of the violence thereof cannot tell it but that I through it do féele in me as it were in a litle world after the saying of auncient wise men all the diuers passions of the elements Alas my poore eyes do well shewe and declare the running waters of the sea in my continuall teares and my déepe sighes do flie as the winds in the ayre and are moued by the heate of fier hidden in my hearte the which without your pitie shal turne all my body into drye earth and ashes A sweete and an honest answer of princesse Oriana to Anaxartes In the .10 booke the .41 Chapter MY Lord the place that ye hold such as we know dothe gyue you a law to speake priuily vnto me but of the affection the which ye would declare vnto me ye shall pardon me if I be purposed to beleeue the thing that I may iudge by effect more than by wordes the which may easily be disguised notwithstanding I shall iudge that princesse fortunate vnto whome God shall giue a knyght that aboundeth with great vertue whome I estéeme and honoure in you after his merite The Quene Sidonia doeth declare to Phalanges of Astre the cause of the lawe that she hathe established and she requireth him to marie hir In the .10 booke the .44 Chapter IF the excellente Ladies of Rome and Greece haue in tymes pasâ—e offered themselues in sacrifice to conserue and keepe their virginitie and to obtayne by suche deathe immortall glorie there is no lesse reason in the lawe as by me in thys Isle constituted and established for the conseruation of my daughters chastitie and myne preseruing them from diuers abuses that men threaten them withall to drawe them to theyr vncleane affections by efficace promises and perswasions by the meanes whereof the fyre of loue by semblable and lyke nature dothe embrace the heartes of them Therefore I haue onely reserued libertie to maidens to choose their husbands and to knyghts to choose them wiues and I haue submitted my selfe to the Law and to vse it after my desire and for the wealth of my realme the whiche is in my power to giue to whom it shall please mee as husbande and wyfe The which thing I doe to you knight taking