The Faerie Queene (82 page)

And forced me to so infamous deed,

That yet my loue may from their hands be freed.

Sir
Artegall
albe he earst did wyte

His wauering mind, yet to his aide agreed,

And buckling him eftsoones vnto the fight,

Did set vpon those troupes with all his powre and might.

58
Who flocking round about them, as a swarme

Of flyes vpon a birchen bough doth cluster,

Did them assault with terrible allarme,

And ouer all the fields themselues did muster,

With bils and glayues making a dreadfull luster;

That forst at first those knights backe to retyre:

As when the wrathfull
Boreas
doth bluster,

Nought may abide the tempest of his yre,

Both man and beast doe fly, and succour doe inquyre.

59
But when as ouerblowen was that brunt,

Those knights began a fresh them to assayle,

And all about the fields like Squirrels hunt;

But chiefly
Talus
with his yron flayle,

Gainst which no flight nor rescue mote auayle,

Made cruell hauocke of the baser crew,

And chaced them both ouer hill and dale:

The raskall manie soone they ouerthrew,

But the two knights themselues their captains did subdew.

60
At last they came whereas that Ladie bode,

Whom now her keepers had forsaken quight,

To saue themselues, and scattered were abrode:

Her halfe dismayd they found in doubtfull plight,

As neither glad nor sorie for their-sight;

Yet wondrous faire she was, and richly clad

In roiall robes, and. many Iewels dight,

But that those villens through their vsage bad

Them fouly rent, and shamefully defaced had.

61
But
Burbon
straight dismounting from his steed,

Vnto her ran with greedie great desyre,

And catching her fast by her ragged weed,

Would haue embraced her with hart entyre.

But she backstarting with disdainefull yre,

Bad him auaunt, ne would vnto his lore

Allured be, for prayer nor for meed.

Whom when those knights so forward and forlore

Beheld, they her rebuked and vpbrayded sore.

62
Sayd
Artegall;
what foule disgrace is this,

To so faire Ladie, as ye seeme in sight,

To blot your beautie, that vnblemisht is,

With so foule blame, as breach of faith once plight,

Or change of loue for any worlds delight?

Is ought on earth so pretdous or deare,

As prayse and honour? Or is ought so bright

And beautifull, as glories beames appeare,

Whose goodly light then
Phebus
lampe doth shine more cleare?

63
Why then will ye, fond Dame, attempted bee

Vnto a strangers loue, so lightly placed,

For guiftes of gold, or any worldly glee,

To leaue the loue, that ye before embraced,

And let your fame with falshood be defaced.

Fie on the pelfe, for which good name is sold,

And honour with indignitie debased:

Dearer is loue then life, and fame then gold;

But dearer then them both, your faith once plighted hold.

64
Much was the Ladie in her gentle mind

Abasht at his rebuke, that bit her neare,

Ne ought to answere thereunto did find;

But hanging downe her head with heauie cheare,

Stood long amaz'd, as she amated weare.

Which
Burbon
seeing, her againe assayd,

And clasping twixt his armes, her vp did reare

Vpon his steede, whiles she no whit gainesayd,

So bore her quite away, nor well nor ill apayd.

65
Nathlesse the yron man did still pursew

That raskall many with vnpittied spoyle,

Ne ceassed not, till all their scattred crew

Into the sea he droue quite from that soyle,

The which they troubled had with great turmoyle.

But
Artegall
seeing his cruell deed,

Commaunded him from slaughter to recoyle,

And to his voyage gan againe proceed:

For that the terme approching fast, required speed.

Artegall doth Sir Burbon aide,
   And blames for changing shield:
He with the great Grantorto fights,
   And slaieth him infield.

1
O sacred hunger of ambitious mindes.

And impotent desire of men to raine,

Whom neither dread of God, that deuils bindes,

Nor lawes of men, that common weales containe,

Nor bands of nature, that wilde beastes restraine,

Can keepe from outrage, and from doing wrong,

Where they may hope a kingdome to obtaine.

No faith so firme, no trust can be so strong,

No loue so lasting then, that may enduren long.

2
Witnesse may
Burbon
be, whom all the bands,

Which may a Knight assure, had surely bound,

Vntill the loue of Lordship and of lands

Made him become most faithlesse and vnsound:

And witnesse be
Gerioneo
found,

Who for like cause faire
Belge
did oppresse,

And right and wrong most cruelly confound:

And so be now
Grantorto,
who no lesse

Then all the rest burst out to all outragiousnesse.

3
Gainst whom Sir
Artegall,
long hauing since

Taken in hand th'exploit, being theretoo

Appointed by that mightie Faerie Prince,

Great
Gloriane,
that Tyrant to fordoo,

Through other great aduentures hethertoo

Had it forslackt. But now time drawing ny,

To him assynd, her high beheast to doo,

To the sea shore he gan his way apply,

To weete if shipping readie he mote there descry.

4
Tho when they came to the sea coast, they found

A ship all readie (as good fortune fell)

To put to sea, with whom they did compound,

To passe them ouer, where them list to tell:

The winde and weather serued them so well,

That in one day they with the coast did fall;

Whereas they readie found them to repell,

Great hostes of men in order martiall,

Which them forbad to land, and footing did forstall.

5
But nathemore would they from land refraine,

But when as nigh vnto the shore they drew,

That foot of man might sound the bottome plaine,

Talus
into the sea did forth issew,

Though darts from shore & stones they at him threw;

And wading through the waues with stedfast sway,

Maugre the might of all those troupes in vew,

Did win the shore, whence he them chast away,

And made to fly, like doues, whom the Eagle doth affray.

6
The whyles Sir
Artegall,
with that old knight

Did forth descend, there being none them neare,

And forward marched to a towne in sight.

By this came tydings to the Tyrants eare,

By those, which earst did fly away for feare

Of their arriuall: wherewith troubled sore,

He all his forces streight to him did reare,

And forth issuing with his scouts afore,

Meant them to haue incountred, ere they left the shore.

7
But ere he marched farre, he with them met,

And fiercely charged them with all his force;

But
Talus
sternely did vpon them set,

And brusht, and battred them without remorse,

That on the ground he left full many a corse;

Ne any able was him to withstand,

But he them ouerthrew both man and horse,

That they lay scattred ouer all the land,

As thicke as doth the seede after the sowers hand.

8
Till
Artegall
him seeing so to rage,

Willd him to stay, and signe of truce did make:

To which all harkning, did a while asswage

Their forces furie, and their terror slake;

Till he an Herauld cald, and to him spake,

Willing him wend vnto the Tyrant streight,

And tell him that not for such slaughters sake

He thether came, but for to trie the right

Of fayre
Irenaes
cause with him in single fight.

9
And willed him for to reclayme with speed

His scattred people, ere they all were slaine,

And time and place conuenient to areed,

In which they two the combat might darraine.

Which message when
Grantorto
heard, full fayne

And glad he was the slaughter so to stay,

And pointed for the combat twixt them twayne

The morrow next, ne gaue him longer day.

So sounded the retraite, and drew his folke away.

10
That night Sir
Artegall
did cause his tent

There to be pitched on the open plaine;

For he had giuen streight commaundement,

That none should dare him once to entertaine:

Which none durst breake, though many would right faine

For fayre
Irena,
whom they loued deare.

But yet old
Sergis
did so well him paine,

That from close friends, that dar'd not to appeare,

He all things did puruay, which for them needfull weare.

11
The morrow next, that was the dismall day,

Appointed for
Irenas
death before,

So soone as it did to the world display

His chearefull face, and light to men restore,

The heauy Mayd, to whom none tydings bore

Of
Artegals
arryuall, her to free,

Lookt vp with eyes full sad and hart full sore;

Weening her lifes last howre then neare to bee,

Sith no redemption nigh she did nor heare nor see.

12
Then vp she rose, and on her selfe did dight

Most squalid garments, fit for such a day,

And with dull countenance, and with doleful spright,

She forth was brought in sorrowfull dismay,

For to receiue the doome of her decay.

But comming to the place, and finding there

Sir
Artegall,
in battailous array

Wayting his foe, it did her dead hart cheare,

And new life to her lent, in midst of deadly feare.

13
Like as a tender Rose in open plaine,

That with vntimely drought nigh withered was,

And hung the head, soone as few drops of raine

Thereon distill, and deaw her daintie face,

Gins to looke vp, and with fresh wonted grace

Dispreds the glorie of her leaues gay;

Such was
Irenas
countenance, such her case,

When
Artegall
she saw in that array,

There wayting for the Tyrant, till it was farre day.

14
Who came at length, with proud presumpteous gate,

Into the field, as if he fearelesse were,

All armed in a cote of yron plate,

Of great defence to ward the deadly feare,

And on his head a steele cap he did weare

Of colour rustie browne, but sure and strong;

And in his hand an huge Polaxe did beare,

Whose steale was yron studded, but not long,

With which he wont to fight, to iustifie his wrong.

15
Of stature huge and hideous he was,

Like to a Giant for his monstrous hight,

And did in strength most sorts of men surpas,

Ne euer any found his match in might;

Thereto he had great skill in single fight:

His face was vgly, and his countenance sterne,

That could haue frayd one with the very sight,

And gaped like a gulfe, when he did gerne,

That whether man or monster one could scarce discerne.

16
Soone as he did within the listes appeare,

With dreadfull looke he
Artegall
beheld,

As if he would haue daunted him with feare,

And grinning griesly, did against him weld

His deadly weapon, which in hand he held.

But th'Elfin swayne, that oft had seene like sight,

Was with his ghastly count'nance nothing queld,

But gan him streight to buckle to the fight,

And cast his shield about, to be in readie plight

17
The trompets sound, and they together goe,

With dreadfull terror, and with fell intent;

And their huge strokes full daungerously bestow,

To doe most dammage, where as most they ment.

But with such force and furie violent,

The tyrant thundred his thicke blowes so fast,

That through the yron walles their way they rent,

And euen to the vitall parts they past,

Ne ought could them endure, but all they cleft or brast.

18
Which cruell outrage when as
Artegall

Did well auize, thenceforth with warie heed

He shund his strokes, where euer they did fall,

And way did giue vnto their gracelesse speed:

As when a skilfull Marriner doth reed

A storme approching, that doth perill threat,

He will not bide the daunger of such dread,

But strikes his sayles, and vereth his mainsheat,

And lends vnto it leaue die emptie ayre to beat.

19
So did die Faerie knight himselfe abeare,

And stouped oft his head from shame to shield;

No shame to stoupe, ones head more high to reare,

And much to gaine, a litle for to yield;

So stoutest knights doen oftentimes in field.

But still the tyrant sternely at him layd,

And did his yron axe so nimbly wield,

That many wounds into his flesh it made,

And with his burdenous blowes him sore did ouerlade.

20
Yet when as fit aduantage he did spy,

The whiles the cursed felon high did reare

His cruell hand, to smite him mortally,

Vnder his stroke he to him stepping neare,

Right in the flanke him strooke with deadly dreare,

That the gore bloud thence gushing grieuously,

Did vnderneath him like a pond appeare,

And all his armour did with purple dye;

Thereat he brayed loud, and yelled dreadfully.

21
Yet the huge stroke, which he before intended,

Kept on his course, as he did it direct,

And with such monstrous poise adowne descended,

That seemed nought could him from death protect:

But he it well did ward with wise respect,

And twixt him and the blow his shield did cast,

Which thereon seizing, tooke no great effect,

But byting deepe therein did sticke so fast,

That by no meanes it backe againe he forth could wrast.

22
Long while he tug'd and stroue, to get it out,

And all his powre applyed thereunto,

That he therewith the knight drew all about:

Nathlesse, for all that euer he could doe,

His axe he could not from his shield vndoe,

Which
Artegall
perceiuing, strooke no more,

But loosing soone his shield, did it forgoe,

And whiles he combred was therewith so sore,

He gan at him let driue more fiercely then afore.

23
So well he him pursew'd, that at the last,

He stroke him with
Chrysaor
on the hed,

That with the souse thereof full sore aghast,

He staggered to and fro in doubtfull sted.

Againe whiles he him saw so ill bested,

He did him smite with all his might and maine,

That falling on his mother earth he fed:

Whom when he saw prostrated on the plaine,

He lightly reft his head, to ease him of his paine.

24
Which when the people round about him saw,

They shouted all for ioy of his successe,

Glad to be quit from that proud Tyrants awe,

Which with strong powre did them long time oppresse;

And running all with greedie ioyfulnesse

To faire
Irena,
at her feet did fall,

And her adored with due humblenesse,

As their true Liege and Princesse naturall;

And eke her champions glorie sounded ouer all.

25
Who streight her leading with meete maiestie

Vnto the pallace, where their kings did rayne,

Did her therein establish peaceablie,

And to her kingdomes seat restore agayne;

And all such persons, as did late maintayne

That Tyrants part, with close or open ayde,

He sorely punished with heauie payne;

That in short space, whiles there with her he stayd,

Not one was left, that durst her once haue disobayd.

26
During which time, that he did there remaine,

His studie was true Iustice how to deale,

And day and night employ'd his busie paine

How to reforme that ragged common-weale:

And that same yron man which could reueale

All hidden crimes, through all that realme he sent,

To search out those, that vsd to rob and steale,

Or did rebell gainst lawfull gouernment;

On whom he did inflict most grieuous punishment.

27
But ere he could reforme it thoroughly,

He through occasion called was away,

To Faerie Court, that of necessity

His course of Iustice he was forst to stay,

And
Talus
to reuoke from the right way,

In which he was that Realme for to redresse.

But enuies cloud still dimmeth vertues ray.

So hauing freed
Irena
from distresse,

He tooke his leaue of her, there left in heauinesse.

28
Tho as he backe returned from that land,

And there arriu'd againe, whence forth he set,

He had not passed farre vpon the strand,

When as two old ill fauour'd Hags he met,

By the way side being together set,

Two griesly creatures; and, to that their faces