Geoffrey Chaucer

“ And then had God of him compassion,
And him restor'd his regne and his figure.
"Eke thou, that art his son, art proud also,
And knowest all these thinges verily;
And art rebel to God, and art his foe. ”

“ What for his strength, and for his high bounte;
And every realme went he for to see;
He was so strong that no man might him let;
At both the worlde's ends, as saith Trophee,
Instead of boundes he a pillar set. ”

“ Fortune out of her regne made her fall
To wretchedness and to misadventure.
Aurelian, when that the governance
Of Rome came into his handes tway,
He shope upon this queen to do vengeance;
And with his legions he took his way
Toward Zenobie, and, shortly for to say,
He made her flee, and at the last her hent,
And fetter'd her, and eke her children tway,
And won the land, and home to Rome he went.
Amonges other thinges that he wan,
Her car, that was with gold wrought and pierrie,
This greate Roman, this Aurelian
Hath with him led, for that men should it see. ”

“ Tragedy is to say a certain story,
As olde bookes maken us memory,
Of him that stood in great prosperity,
And is y-fallen out of high degree
In misery, and endeth wretchedly.
And they be versified commonly
Of six feet, which men call hexametron;
In prose eke be indited many a one,
And eke in metre, in many a sundry wise. ”

“ In this mischief he wailed and eke wept,
And knew God Lord of every creature.
To all his host, and to himself also,
Full wlatsem was the stink of his carrain;
No manne might him beare to and fro. ”

“ Therewith the teares fell from his eyen.
His youngest son, that three years was of age,
Unto him said, "Father, why do ye weep?
When will the jailor bringen our pottage?
Is there no morsel bread that ye do keep?
I am so hungry, that I may not sleep.
Now woulde God that I might sleepen ever!
Then should not hunger in my wombe creep;
There is no thing, save bread, that one were lever." ”

“ And sleep under a bush; and she could eke
Wrestle by very force and very might
With any young man, were he ne'er so wight;
There mighte nothing in her armes stond.
She kept her maidenhood from every wight,
To no man deigned she for to be bond. ”

“ Through which he slew himself for wretchedness.
Sampson, this noble and mighty champion,
Withoute weapon, save his handes tway,
He slew and all to-rente the lion,
Toward his wedding walking by the way. ”

“ She thoughte thus; "By God, I am too nice
To set a man, that is full fill'd of vice,
In high degree, and emperor him call!
By God, out of his seat I will him trice!
When he least weeneth, soonest shall he fall."
The people rose upon him on a night,
For his default; and when he it espied,
Out of his doors anon he hath him dight
Alone, and where he ween'd t'have been allied,
He knocked fast, and aye the more he cried
The faster shutte they their doores all ”

“ To heare how that men would weep and cry;
And slew his brother, and by his sister lay.
His mother made he in piteous array;
For he her wombe slitte, to behold
Where he conceived was; so well-away!
That he so little of his mother told.
No tear out of his eyen for that sight
Came; but he said, a fair woman was she.
Great wonder is, how that he could or might
Be doomesman of her deade beauty:
The wine to bringe him commanded he,
And drank anon; none other woe he made,
When might is joined unto cruelty,
Alas! too deepe will the venom wade. ”

“ For he in every tail had knit a brand,
And they burnt all the combs of that lend,
And all their oliveres and vines eke.
A thousand men he slew eke with his hand,
And had no weapon but an ass's cheek. ”

“ For when that Fortune will a man forsake,
She bears away his regne and his richess,
And eke his friendes bothe more and less,
For what man that hath friendes through fortune,
Mishap will make them enemies, I guess ”

“ And eke she lefte not, for no hunting,
To have of sundry tongues full knowing,
When that she leisure had, and for t'intend
To learne bookes was all her liking,
How she in virtue might her life dispend.
And, shortly of this story for to treat,
So doughty was her husband and eke she,
That they conquered many regnes great
In th'Orient, with many a fair city
Appertinent unto the majesty
Of Rome, and with strong hande held them fast,
Nor ever might their foemen do them flee,
Aye while that Odenatus' dayes last'. ”

“ Discreetly, as by word, and not by deed;
"Sir," he would say, "an emperor must need
Be virtuous, and hate tyranny."
For which he made him in a bath to bleed
On both his armes, till he muste die.
This Nero had eke of a custumance
In youth against his master for to rise ”