f. 1. recto.

a

XXI

The Book of the Knyght of the Towre

[1484] PROLOGUE

Lle vertuouse doctryne J techynge had lerned of suche as haue endeuoured them to leue for a remembraunce after theyr dethe to vs / by whiche we ben enfourmed in scyence / wysedom and understandyng of knowleche / hou we ought to rewle our self in this present lyf haue caused vs to know many good reules / J vertuouse maners to be gouerned by / Emonge al other this book is a special doctryne J techyng by which al yong gentyl wymen specially may lerne to bihaue them self vertuously / as wel in their vyrgynyte as in their wedlok ៗ wedowhede / as al along shal be more playnly said in the same / which boke is comen to my handes by the request ។ de syre of a noble lady which hath broust forth many noble J fayr douzters which ben vertuously nourisshed J lerned / And for very ziele and loue that she hath alway had to her fayr children Jyet hath for to haue more knouleche in vertue to thende pt they may alwey perseuere in pt same hath desired required me to trans late reduce this said book out of frenssh in to our vulgar en glissh / to thende that it may the better be vnderstonde of al suche as shal rede or here it / wherfor atte contemplacion of her good grace after the lytel connyng that god hath sent me / I have endeuoy ryd me to obeye her noble desyre J request / In whiche werk I fynd many vertuous good enseygnementis J lernynges by euy dent histories of auctorite ។ good ensamples for al maner peple in generally / but in especial for ladyes J gentilwymen douzters to lordes gentilmen / For whiche book al the gentilwymen now lyuyng y herafter to come or shal be arn bounde to gyue laude praysyng J thankynges to the auctor of this book ។ also to the lady that caused me to translate it to pray for her long lyf welfare / ៗ when god wil calle her fro this transitory lyf that she may regne in heuen sempiternally where as is Joye J blysse without ende / Thenne for as moche as this book is neces sary to euery gentilwoman of what estate she be I aduyse eue ry gentilman or woman hauyng such children / desyryng them

De vertuously brouzt forth to gete J haue this book to thende they may lerne / hou they oust to gouerne them vertuously his present lyf / by whiche they may the better hastlyer co to worship and good renommee / And J desyre all them shall lerne or see ony thynge in this sayd book / by whiche shal ben the wyser better / that they gyue laude J thankyng || ne sayd ladyes good grace / and also to praye for her / And f. 1. verso. re as ony defaulte shalle be founde in the reducynge and slatynge in to our Englysshe tongue / that it be arrettid to whiche am Jgnoraunt and not expert in the werke thouz e that J haue emprysed here to fore to smatre me in suche slacions whiche J confesse and knowleche me ignoraunt therin to be Jmperfect / wherfore J humbly requyre and che my sayd good lady to pardonne me of my symple and reducynge / And yf ony thynge be sayd or made vnto her syre/ than J thynke my labour wel employed / whome I bly byseche to receyue this lytel book in gree thanke / J alle pray to almyghty god for her longe and good lyf/ to send to her after this shorte and transytory lyf euerng lyf in heuen Amen / And alle other that be understan J fyndyng ony defaute / I requyre J pray them of theyre te to correcte and amende hit / and so doyng they shal dethanke and meryte of god / to whome J shalle pray for /

PHON.

fynysshed the booke / whiche the knyght of the Toure mathe enseygnement and techyng of his doughters transla bute of Frenssh in to our maternall Englysshe tongue by Villiam Caxton / whiche book was ended J fynysshed the day of Juyn / the yere of oure lord MCCCC lxxxiij enprynted at westmynstre the last day of Janyuer the yere of the regne of kynge Rychard the thyrd

Sig. n 4,

verso.

[Sig. 8 6.]
1. 25, recto.

N

XXII

The Fables of Esope

[1484]

[EPILOGUE]

Ow thenne J wylle fynysshe alle these fables wyt this tale that foloweth whiche a worshipful preest and

a parsone told me late / he sayd / that there were duellynge in Oxenford two prestes bothe maystres of arte / of who me that one was quyck and coude putte hym self forth / And that other was a good symple preest / And soo it happed that the mayster that was perte and quyck was anone promoted to a benefyce or tweyne / and after to prebendys / and for to be a Dene of a grete prynces chappel / supposynge and wenynge that his felaw the symple preest shold neuer haue be promoted but be alwey an Annuel / or at the most a parysshe preest / So after longe tyme that this worshipful man this dene came rydynge in to a good paryssh with a x or xij horses / lyke a prelate / and came in to the chirche of the sayd parysshe / and fond || there this good symple man somtyme his felawe / whiche cam and welcomed hym lowely / And that other badde hym good morowe mayster Johan / and toke hym sleyghtly by the hand and axyd hym where he dwellyd / And the good man sayd / in this paryssh / how sayd he / are ye here a sowle preest or a paryssh preste / nay syr said he / for lack of a better though I be not able ne worthy Jam parson and curate of this parysshe / and thenne that other aualed his bonet and said mayster parson I praye you to be not displeasyd / J had supposed ye had not be benefyced / But mayster sayd he / J pray you what is this benefyce worth to yow a yere / Forsothe sayd the good symple man / I wote neuer / for I make neuer accomptes therof/ how wel J haue had hit four or fyue yere / And knowe ye not sa id he what it is worth / it shold seme a good benefyce / No forsothe sayd he / but J wote wel what it shalle be worth to me / why sayd he / what shalle hit be worth / Forsothe sayd he / yf J doo my trewe dylygence in the cure of my parysshens in prechyng and techynge / and doo my parte longynge to my cure / I shalle haue heuen therfore / And yf theyre sowles ben lost or ony of

m by my defawte / J shall be punysshed therfore / And herof J sure / And with that word the ryche dene was abasshed d thought he shold be the better / and take more hede to his es and benefyces than he had done / This was a good anere of a good preest and an honest / And here with J fyshe this book / translated J emprynted by me William Caxat westmynstre in thabbey / And fynysshed the xxvj daye Marche the yere of oure lord MCCCC lxxxiiij / And the st yere of the regne of kyng Rychard the thyrdde

XXIII

Curial

[1484]

PROLOGUE

Here foloweth the copye of a letter whyche maistre Alayn sig. j. re: to. aretier wrote to hys brother / whyche desired to come dwelle in art / in whyche he reherseth many myseryes J wretchydnesses rin vsed / For taduyse hym not to entre in to it / leste he afrepente / like as hier after folowe / and late translated out of asshe into englysshe / whyche Copye was delyuerid to me by a le and vertuous Erle / At whos Instance J requeste I haue uced it in to Englyssh

ophon.

Thus endeth the Curial made by maystre Alain Charretier
Translated thus in Englyssh by Wylliam Caxton

Sig. a ij. recto.

Simple illuminated capital.

g

XXIV

Canterbury Tales

Second Edition [1484]
PROHEMYE

Rete thankes laude and honour / ought to be gyuen vnto the clerkes / poetes / and historiographs that haue wreton many noble bokes of wysedom of the lyues / passions / J myracles of holy sayntes of hystoryes / of noble and famous Actes / and

faittes / And of the cronycles sith the begynnyng of the creacion of the world / vnto thys present tyme, by whyche we ben dayly enformed / and have knowleche of many thynges / of whom we shold not haue knowen / yf they had not left to vs theyr monumentis wreton / Emong whom and inespecial to fore alle other we ought to gyue a synguler laude vnto that noble J grete philosopher Gefferey chaucer the whiche for his ornate wrytyng in our tongue may wel haue the name of a laureate poete / For to fore that he by hys labour enbelysshyd / ornated / and made faire our englisshe / in thys Royame was had rude speche ៗ Incongrue / as yet it appiereth by olde bookes / whyche at thys day ought not to haue place ne be compared emong ne to hys beauteuous volumes / and aournate writynges / of whom he made many bokes and treatyces of many a noble historye as wel in metre as in ryme and prose / and them so craftyly made / that he comprehended hys maters in short / quyck and hye sentences / eschewyng prolyxyte / castyng away the chaf of superfluyte / and shewyng the pyked grayn of sentence / vtteryd by crafty and sugred eloquence / of whom emonge all other of hys bokes / I purpose temprynte by the grace of god the book of the tales of caun tyrburye / in whiche I fynde many a noble hystorye / of every asta te and degre / Fyrst rehercyng the condicions / and tharraye of eche of them as properly as possyble is to be sayd / And after theyr tales whyche ben of noblesse / wysedom / gentylesse / Myrthe / and also of veray holynesse and vertue / wherin he fynysshyth thys sayd booke / whyche book I haue dylygently ouersen and duly examyned to thende that it be made acordyng vnto his owen ma kyng / For I fynde many of the sayd bookes / whyche wry