This good king shortly without issew dide, liv
Whereof great trouble in the kingdome grew,
That did her selfe in sundry parts diuide,
And with her powre her owne selfe ouerthrew,
Whilest Romanes dayly did the weake subdew:
Which seeing stout Bunduca, vp arose,
And taking armes, the Britons to her drew;
With whom she marched streight against her foes,
And them vnwares besides the Seuerne did enclose.
There she with them a cruell battell tride, lv
Not with so good successe, as she deseru’d;
By reason that the Captaines on her side,
Corrupted by Paulinus, from her sweru’d:
Yet such, as were through former flight preseru’d[798],
Gathering againe, her Host she did renew,
And with fresh courage on the victour seru’d:
But being all defeated, saue a few,
Rather then fly, or be captiu’d her selfe she slew.
O famous moniment of womens prayse, lvi
Matchable either to Semiramis,
Whom antique history so high doth raise,
Or to Hypsiphil’ or to Thomiris:
Her Host two hundred thousand numbred is;
Who whiles good fortune fauoured her might,
Triumphed oft against her enimis;
And yet though ouercome in haplesse fight,
She triumphed on death, in enemies despight.
Her reliques Fulgent hauing gathered, lvii
Fought with Seuerus, and him ouerthrew;
Yet in the chace was slaine of them, that fled:
So made them victours, whom he did subdew.
Then gan Carausius tirannize anew,
And gainst the Romanes bent their proper powre,
But him Allectus treacherously slew,
And took on him the robe of Emperoure:
Nath’lesse the same enioyed but short happy howre:

For Asclepiodate him ouercame, lviii
And left inglorious on the vanquisht playne,
Without or robe, or rag, to hide his shame.
Then afterwards he in his stead did rayne;
But shortly was by Coyll in battell slaine:
Who after long debate, since Lucies time,
Was of the Britons first crownd Soueraine:
Then gan this Realme renewe her passed prime:
He of his name Coylchester built of stone and lime.
Which when the Romanes heard, they hither sent lix
Constantius, a man of mickle might,
With whom king Coyll made an agreement,
And to him gaue for wife his daughter bright,
Faire Helena, the fairest liuing wight;
Who in all godly thewes, and goodly prayse
Did far excell, but was most famous hight
For skill in Musicke of all in her dayes,
Aswell in curious instruments, as cunning layes.
Of whom he did great Constantine beget, lx
Who afterward was Emperour of Rome;
To which whiles absent he his mind did set,
Octauius here lept into his roome,
And it vsurped by vnrighteous doome:
But he his title iustifide by might,
Slaying Traherne, and hauing ouercome
The Romane legion in dreadfull fight:
So settled he his kingdome, and confirmd his right.
But wanting issew male, his daughter deare[799] lxi
He gaue in wedlocke to Maximian,
And him with her made of his kingdome heyre,
Who soone by meanes thereof the Empire wan,
Till murdred by the friends of Gratian;
Then gan the Hunnes and Picts inuade this land,
During the raigne of Maximinian;
Who dying left none heire them to withstand,
But that they ouerran all parts with easie hand.

The weary Britons, whose war-hable youth lxii
Was by Maximian lately led away,
With wretched miseries, and woefull ruth,
Were to those Pagans made an open pray,
And dayly spectacle of sad decay:
Whom Romane warres, which now foure hundred yeares,
And more had wasted, could no whit dismay;
Till by consent of Commons and of Peares,
They crownd the second Constantine with ioyous teares,
Who hauing oft in battell vanquished lxiii
Those spoilefull Picts, and swarming Easterlings,
Long time in peace his Realme established,
Yet oft annoyd with sundry bordragings
Of neighbour Scots, and forrein Scatterlings,
With which the world did in those dayes abound:
Which to outbarre, with painefull pyonings
From sea to sea he heapt a mightie mound,
Which from Alcluid to Panwelt did that border bound.
Three sonnes he dying left, all vnder age; lxiv
By meanes whereof, their vncle Vortigere
Vsurpt the crowne, during their pupillage;
Which th’Infants tutors gathering to feare,
Them closely into Armorick did beare:
For dread of whom, and for those Picts annoyes,
He sent to Germanie, straunge aid to reare,
From whence eftsoones arriued here three hoyes
Of Saxons, whom he for his safetie imployes.
Two brethren were their Capitains[800], which hight lxv
Hengist and Horsus, well approu’d in warre,
And both of them men of renowmed might;
Who making vantage of their ciuill iarre,
And of those forreiners, which came from farre,
Grew great, and got large portions of land,
That in the Realme ere long they stronger arre,
Then they which sought at first their helping hand,
And Vortiger enforst[801] the kingdome to aband.

But by the helpe of Vortimere his sonne, lxvi
He is againe vnto his rule restord,
And Hengist seeming sad, for that was donne,
Receiued is to grace and new accord,
Through his faire daughters face, and flattring word;
Soone after which, three hundred Lordes he slew
Of British bloud, all sitting at his bord;
Whose dolefull moniments who list to rew,
Th’eternall markes of treason may at Stonheng vew.
By this the sonnes of Constantine, which fled, lxvii
Ambrose[802] and Vther did ripe years attaine,
And here arriuing, strongly challenged
The crowne, which Vortiger did long detaine:
Who flying from his guilt, by them was slaine,
And Hengist eke soone brought to shamefull death.
Thenceforth Aurelius peaceably did rayne,
Till that through poyson stopped was his breath;
So now entombed lyes at Stoneheng by the heath.
After him Vther, which Pendragon hight, lxviii
Succeding There abruptly it did end,
Without full point, or other Cesure right,
As if the rest some wicked hand did rend,
Or th’Authour selfe could not at least attend
To finish it: that so vntimely breach
The Prince him selfe halfe seemeth[803] to offend,
Yet secret pleasure did offence empeach,
And wonder of antiquitie long stopt his speach.
At last quite rauisht with delight, to heare lxix
The royall Ofspring of his natiue land,
Cryde out, Deare countrey, O how dearely deare
Ought thy remembraunce, and perpetuall band
Be to thy foster Childe, that from thy hand
Did commun breath and nouriture receaue?
How brutish is it not to vnderstand,
How much to her we owe, that all vs gaue,
That gaue vnto vs all, what euer good we haue.

But Guyon all this while his booke did read, lxx
Ne yet has ended: for it was a great
And ample volume, that doth far excead
My leasure, so long leaues here to repeat:
It told, how first Prometheus did create
A man, of many partes from beasts deriued,
And then stole fire from heauen, to animate
His worke, for which he was by Ioue depriued
Of life him selfe, and hart-strings of an Ægle riued.
That man so made, he called Elfe, to weet lxxi
Quick, the first authour of all Elfin kind:
Who wandring through the world with wearie feet,
Did in the gardins of Adonis find
A goodly creature, whom he deemd in mind
To be no earthly wight, but either Spright,
Or Angell, th’authour of all woman kind;
Therefore a Fay he her according hight,
Of whom all Faeryes spring, and fetch their lignage right.
Of these a mightie people shortly grew, lxxii
And puissaunt kings, which all the world warrayd,
And to them selues all Nations did subdew:
The first and eldest, which that scepter swayd,
Was Elfin; him all India obayd,
And all that now America men call:
Next him was noble Elfinan, who layd
Cleopolis foundation first of all:
But Elfiline enclosd it with a golden wall.
His sonne was Elfinell, who ouercame lxxiii
The wicked Gobbelines in bloudy field:
But Elfant was of most renowmed fame,
Who all of Christall did Panthea build:
Then Elfar, who two brethren gyants kild,
The one of which had two heads, th’other three:
Then Elfinor, who was in Magick skild;
He built by art vpon the glassy See
A bridge of bras, whose sound heauens thunder seem’d to bee.

He left three sonnes, the which in order raynd, lxiv
And all their Ofspring, in their dew descents,
Euen seuen hundred Princes, which maintaynd
With mightie deedes their sundry gouernments;
That were too long their infinite contents
Here to record, ne much materiall:
Yet should they be most famous moniments,
And braue ensample, both of martiall,
And ciuill rule to kings and states imperiall.
After all these Elficleos did rayne, lxxv
The wise Elficleos in great Maiestie,
Who mightily that scepter did sustayne,
And with rich spoiles and famous victorie,
Did high aduaunce the crowne of Faery:
He left two sonnes, of which faire Elferon
The eldest brother did vntimely dy;
Whose emptie place the mightie Oberon
Doubly supplide, in spousall, and dominion.
Great was his power and glorie ouer all, lxxvi
Which him before, that sacred seate did fill,
That yet remaines his wide memoriall:
He dying left the fairest Tanaquill,
Him to succeede therein, by his last will:
Fairer and nobler liueth none this howre,
Ne like in grace, ne like in learned skill;
Therefore they Glorian call that glorious flowre,
Long mayst thou Glorian liue, in glory and great powre.
Beguild thus with delight of nouelties, lxxvii
And naturall desire of countreys state,
So long they red in those antiquities,
That how the time was fled, they quite forgate,
Till gentle Alma seeing it so late,
Perforce their studies broke, and them besought
To thinke, how supper did them long awaite.
So halfe vnwilling from their bookes them brought,
And fairely feasted, as so noble knights she ought.

FOOTNOTES:

[760] lx 2 lond. 1596

[761] 3 looke; 1596, 1609

[762] iv 3 Whom 1590, 1596: corr. F. E.

[763] 6 and thy great 1590: corr. F. E.

[764] old] gold 1590: corr. F. E.

[765] v 7 Marchants 1609

[766] vi 6 safeties sake] safety 1590

[767] vii 7 liued then] liueden 1590

[768] ix 7 Assaraos 1596

[769] xii 2 that] the 1609

[770] xv 9 munificence 1590, 1609

[771] xix 5 in that impatient stoure] vpon the present floure 1590

[772] xx 2 of sway 1596, 1609

[773] xxii 5 apply, 1590, 1596

[774] xxiii 6 opened, 1590, 1596

[775] xxiv 8 Scuith guiridh om. 1590

[776] it] he 1590

[777] 9 rather y Scuith gogh, signe of sad crueltee om. 1590. But Seuith Scuith F. E.

[778] xxvi 6 their] her 1590 &c.: corr. F. E.

[779] xxviii 1 Gonerill 1590

[780] xxix 4 Cordelia, 1590, 1596

[781] xxx 2 weeke] wike 1609

[782] 5 waxe] wox 1609

[783] 6 Rigan 1596, 1609

[784] xxxiv 1 Riuall’ 1590: Rivall’ 1609

[785] 7 Then] Till 1596: When 1609

[786] xxxvi 3 felicitie? 1596

[787] xxxvii 3 with] vp 1596

[788] xxxviii 2 of] or 1596, 1609

[789] xli 1 Gurgiunt 1590

[790] 3 Denmarke 1590

[791] xliii 1 sonnes 1596, 1609

[792] Sifillus 1590 &c.

[793] xliv 1 sonne 1596

[794] xlix 8 did defray 1596, 1609

[795] l 8 wrrayd 1596

[796] li 7 his om. 1596: In armes, and eke in crowne 1609

[797] liii 2 in] with 1609

[798] lv 5 perseru’d 1596

[799] lxi 1 deare, 1590, 1596

[800] lxv 1 Capitayns 1590: Captains 1596

[801] 9 enforst] haue forst 1590

[802] lxvii 2 Ambrise 1596, 1609

[803] lxviii 7 seemed 1590