The Faerie Queene (31 page)

Of old
Assaracus,
and
Inachus
diuine.

57
The yeares of
Nestor
nothing were to his,

Ne yet
Mathusalem,
though longest liu'd;

For he remembred both their infancies:

Ne wonder then, if that he were depriu'd

Of natiue strength now, that he them suruiu'd.

His chamber all was hangd about with rolles,

And old records from auncient times deriu'd,

Some made in books, some in long parchment scrolles,

That were all worme-eaten, and full of canker holes.

58
Amidst them all he in a chaire was set,

Tossing and turning them withouten end;

But for he was vnhable them to fet,

A litle boy did on him still attend,

To reach, when euer he for ought did send;

And oft when things were lost, or laid amis,

That boy them sought, and vnto him did lend.

Therefore he
Anamnestes
cleped is,

And that old man
Eumnestes,
by their propertis.

59
The knights there entring, did him reuerence dew

And wondred at his endlesse exercise,

Then as they gan his Librarie to vew,

And antique Registers for to auise,

There chaunced to the Princes hand to rize,

An auncient booke, bight
Briton moniments,

That of this lands first conquest did deuize,

And old diuision into Regiments,

Till it reduced was to one mans gouernments.

60
Sir
Guyon
chaunst eke on another booke,

That hight
Antiquitie
of
Faerie l
ond.

In which when as he greedily did looke;

Th'off-spring of Elues and Faries there he fond,

As it deliuered was from hond to hond:

Whereat they burning both with feruent fire,

Their countries auncestry to vnderstond,

Crau'd leaue
of Alma,
and that aged sire,

To read those bookes; who gladly graunted their desire.

A chronicle of Briton kings,
   from Brute to Vthers rayne.
And rolles of Elfin Emperours,
   till time of Gloriane.

1
Who now shall giue vnto me words and sound.

Equall vnto this haughtie enterprise?

Or who shal lend me wings, with which from ground

My lowly verse may loftily arise,

And lift it selfe vnto the highest skies?

More ample spirit, then hitherto was wount,

Here needes me, whiles the famous auncestries

Of my most dreaded Soueraigne I recount,

By which all earthly Princes she doth farre surmount.

2
Ne vnder Sunne, that shines so wide and faire,

Whence all that liues, does borrow life and light,

Liues ought, that to her linage may compaire,

Which though from earth it be deriued right,

Yet doth it selfe stretch forth to heauens hight,

And all the world with wonder ouerspred;

A labour huge, exceeding farre my might:

How shall fraile pen, with feare disparaged,

Conceiue such soueraine glory, and great bountihed?

3
Argument worthy
of Mœonian
quill,

Or rather worthy of great
Phœbus
rote,

Whereon the ruines of great
Ossa
hill,

And triumphes of
Phlegrœan loue
he wrote,

That all the Gods admird his loftie note.

But if some relish of that heauenly lay

His learned daughters would to me report,

To decke my song withall, I would assay,

Thy name, ô soueraine Queene, to blazon farre away.

4
Thy name ô soueraine Queene, thy realme and race,

From this renowmed Prince deriued arre,

Who mightily vpheld that royall mace,

Which now thou bearst, to thee descended farre

From mightie kings and conquerours in wane,

Thy lathers and great Grandfathers of old,

Whose noble deedes aboue the Northerne starre

Immortall fame for euer hath enrold;

As in that old mans booke they were in order told.

The land, which warlike Britons now possesse,

5
And therein haue their mightie empire raysd,

In antique times was saluage wildernesse,

Vnpeopled, vnmanurd, vnprou'd, vnpraysd,

Ne was it Island then, ne was it paysd

Amid the
Ocean
waues, ne was it sought

Of marchants farre, for profits therein praysd,

But was all desolate, and of some thought

By sea to haue bene from the
Celticke
mayn-land brought

6
Ne did it then deserue a name to haue,

Till that the venturous Mariner that way

Learning his ship from those white rocks to saue,

Which all along the Southerne sea-coast lay,

Threatning vnheedie wrecke and rash decay,

For safeties sake that same his sea-marke made,

And namd it
Albion.
But later day

7
Finding in it fit ports for fishers trade,

Gan more the same frequent, and further to inuade.

But farre in land a saluage nation dwelt,

Of hideous Giants, and halfe beastly men,

That neuer tasted grace, nor goodnesse felt,

But like wild beasts lurking in loathsome den,

And flying fast as Roebucke through the fen,

All naked without shame, or care of cold,

By hunting and by spoiling liued then;

Of stature huge, and eke of courage bold,

That sonnes of men amazd their sternnesse to behold.

8
But whence they sprong, or how they were begot,

Vneath is to assure; vneath to wene

That monstrous error, which doth some assot,

That
Dioclsians
fiftie daughters shene

Into this land by chaunce haue driuen bene,

Where companing with feends and filthy Sprights,

Through vaine illusion of their lust vndene,

They brought forth Giants and such dreadfiill wights,

As farre exceeded men in their immeasurd mights.

9
They held this land, and with their filthinesse

Polluted this same gentle soyle long time:

That their owne mother loathd their beastlinesse,

And gan abhorre her broods vnkindly crime,

All were they borne of her owne natiue slime;

Vntill that
Brutus
anciently deriu'd

From royall stocke of old
Assaracs
line,

Driuen by fatall error, here arriu'd,

And them of their vniust possession depriu'd.

10
But ere he had established his throne,

And spred his empire to the vtmost shore,

He fought great battels with his saluage fone;

In which he them defeated euermore,

And many Giants left on groning flore;

That well can witnesse yet vnto this day

The westerne Hogh, besprincled with the gore

Of mightie
Goёmot,
whom in stout fray

Corineus
conquered, and cruelly did slay.

11
And eke that ample Pit, yet farre renownd,

For the large leape, which
Debon
did compell

Coulin
to make, being eight lugs of grownd;

Into the which returning backe, he fell,

But those three monstrous stones doe most excell

Which that huge sonne of hideous
Albion,

Whose father
Hercules
in Fraunce did quell,

Great
Godmer
threw, in fierce contention,

At bold
Canutes;
but of him was slaine anon.

12
In meed of these great conquests by them got,

Corineus
had that Prouince vtmost west,

To him assigned for his worthy lot,

Which of his name and memorable gest

He called
Cornewaile,
yet so called best:

And
Debons
shayre was, that is
Deuonshyre:

But
Canute
had his portion from the rest,

The which he cald
Canutium,
for his hyre;

Now
Cantium,
which Kent we commenly inquire.

13
Thus
Brute
this Realme vnto his rule subdewd,

And raigned long in great felicitie,

Lou'd of his friends, and of his foes eschewd,

He left three sonnes, his famous progeny,

Borne of faire
Inogene of Italy,

Mongst whom he parted his imperiall state,

And
Locrine
left chiefe Lord
of Britany.

At last ripe age bad him surrender late

His life, and long good fortune vnto finall fate.

14
Locrine
was left the soueraine Lord of all;

But
Albanact
had all the Northrene part,

Which of himselfe
Albania
he did call;

And
Camber
did possesse the Westerne quart,

Which
Seuerne
now from
Logris
doth depart:

And each his portion peaceably enioyd,

Ne was there outward breach, nor grudge in hart,

That once their quiet gouernment annoyd,

But each his paines to others profit still employd.

15
Vntill a nation straung, with visage swart,

And courage fierce, that all men did affray,

Which through the world then swarmd in euery part,

And ouerflow'd all countries farre away,

Like
Noyes
great flood, with their importune sway,

This land inuaded with like violence,

And did themselues through all the North display:

Vntill that
Locrine
for his Realmes defence,

Did head against them make, and strong munifience.

16
He them encountred, a confused rout,

Foreby the Riuer, that whylome was hight

The auncient
Abus,
where with courage stout

He them defeated in victorious fight,

And chaste so fiercely after fearefull flight,

That forst their Chieftaine, for his safeties sake,

(Their Chieftaine
Humber
named was aright)

Vnto the mightie streame him to betake,

Where he an end of battell, and of life did make.

17
The king returned proud of victorie,

And insolent wox through vnwonted ease,

That shortly he forgot the ieopardie,

Which in his land he lately did appease,

And fell to vaine voluptuous disease:

He lou'd faire Ladie
Estrild,
lewdly lou'd,

Whose wanton pleasures him too much did please,

That quite his hart from
Guendolene
remou'd,

From
Guendolene
his wife, though alwaies faithfull prou'd.

18
The noble daughter of
Corineus

Would not endure to be so vile disdaind,

But gathering force, and courage valorous,

Encountred him in battell well ordaind,

In which him vanquisht she to fly constraind:

But she so fast pursewd, that him she tooke,

And threw in bands, where he till death remaind;

Als his faire Leman, flying through a brooke,

She ouerhent, nought moued with her piteous looke.

19
But both her selfe, and eke her daughter deare,

Begotten by her kingly Paramoure,

The faire
Sabrina
almost dead with feare,

She there attached, farre from all succoure;

The one she slew in that impatient stoure,

But the sad virgin innocent of all,

Adowne the rolling riuer she did poure,

Which of her name now
Seuerne
men do call:

Such was the end, that to disloyall loue did fall.

20
Then for her sonne, which she to
Locrin
bore,

Madan
was young, vnmeet the rule to sway,

In her owne hand the crowne she kept in store,

Till ryper years he raught, and stronger stay:

During which time her powre she did display

Through all this realme, the glorie of her sex,

And first taught men a woman to obay:

But when her sonne to mans estate did wex,

She it surrendred, he her selfe would lenger vex.

21
Tho
Madan
raignd, vnworthie of his race:

For with all shame that sacred throne he fild:

Next
Memprise,
as vnworthy of that place,

In which being consorted with
Manild,

For thirst of single kingdome him he kild.

But
Ebranck
salued both their infamies

With noble deedes, and warreyd on
Brunchild

In
Henault,
where yet of his victories

Braue moniments remaine, which yet that land enuies.

22
An happie man in his first dayes he was,

And happie father of faire progeny:

For all so many weekes as the yeare has,

So many children he did multiply;

Of which were twentie sonnes, which did apply,

Their minds to praise, and cheualrous desire:

Those germans did subdew all Germany,

Of whom it hight; but in the end their Sire

With foule repulse from Fraunce was forced to retire.

23
Which blot his sonne succeeding in his seat,

The second
Brute,
the second both in name,

And eke in semblance of his puissance great,

Right well recur'd, and did away that blame

With recompence of euerlasting fame.

He with his victour sword first opened,

The bowels of wide Fraunce, a forlorne Dame,

And taught her first how to be conquered;

Since which, with sundrie spoiles she hath beene ransacked.

24
Let
Scaldis
tell, and let tell
Henia,

And let the marsh of
Estham bruges
tell,

What colour were their waters that same day,

And all the moore twixt
Eluersham
and
Dell,

With bloud
of Henalois,
which therein fell

How oft that day did sad
Brunchildis
see

The greene shield dyde in dolorous vermeil?

That not
Scuith guiridh
it mote seeme to bee.

But rather
y Scuith gogh,
signe of sad crueltee.

25
His sonne king
Leill
by fathers labour long,

Enioyd an heritage of lasting peace,

And built
Cairleill,
and built
Cairleon
strong.

Next
Huddibras
his realme did not encrease,

But taught the land from wearie warres to cease.

Whose footsteps
Bladud
following, in arts

Exceld at
Athens
all the learned preace,

From whence he brought them to these saluage parts,

And with sweet science mollifide their stubbome harts.

26
Ensample of his wondrous faculty,

Behold the boyling Bathes at
Cairleon,

Which seeth with secret fire eternally,

And in their entrails, full of quicke Brimston,

Nourish the flames, which they are warm'd vpon,

That to their people wealth they forth do well,

And health to euery forreine nation:

Yet he at last contending to excell

The reach of men, through flight into fond mischief fell.

27
Next him king
Leyr
in happie peace long raind,

But had no issue male him to succeed,

But three faire daughters, which were well vptraind,

In all that seemed fit for kingly seed:

Mongst whom his realme he equally decreed

To haue diuided. Tho when feeble age