The Lay of Havelok the Dane Part 19

[Headnote: G.o.dARD'S MEN ARE BEATEN.]

+Hwan his folk at sau and herde, Hwou robert with here louerd ferde, He haueden him wel ner browt of liue, 2412 Ne were{n} his two breren and ore fiue Slowen of here laddes ten, Of G.o.dardes aler-beste men.

[Sidenote: G.o.dard's men flee, but G.o.dard rallies them.]

Hwan e ore sawe{n} at, he fledde{n}, 2416 And G.o.dard swie loude gredde: "Mine knithes, hwat do ye?

Sule ye us-gate fro me fle?

Ich haue you fed, and yet shal fede, 2420 Helpe me nu in is nede, And late ye nouth mi bodi spille, Ne hauelok don of me hise wille.

Yif ye id[107] do, ye do you shame, 2424 And bringeth you-self in mikel blame."

Hwan he at herden, he wenten ageyn, And slowen a knit and[108] a sweyn Of e kinges oune men, 2428 And woundede{n} abute{n} ten.

[Footnote 107: _Qu._ it.]

[Footnote 108: MS. and and.]

[Headnote: G.o.dARD IS BOUND AND LED TO HAVELOK.]

[Sidenote: The king's men kill all G.o.dard's men.]

+The kinges men hwan he at sawe, Scute{n} on hem, heye and lowe, And euerilk fot of hem slowe, 2432 But G.o.dard one, at he flowe, So e ef men dos henge, [Sidenote: [Fol. 216b, col. 1.]]

Or hund men shole i{n} dike slenge.

He bunde{n} him ful swie faste, 2436 Hwil e bondes wolden laste, at he rorede als a bole, at he wore parred in an hole, With dogges forto bite and beite: 2440 Were e bondes nouth to leite.

[Sidenote: They bind G.o.dard, and cast him on an old mare, to take him to Havelok.]

He bounde{n} hi{m} so[109] fele sore, at he gan crien G.o.des ore, at he sholde of his hend plette, 2444 Wolde{n} he nouht er-fore lette, at he ne bounde{n} hond and fet: Daeit at on at er-fore let!

But dunte{n} him so man doth bere, 2448 And keste him on a scabbed mere, Hise nese went un-to e crice: So ledde{n} he at fule swike, Til he was biforn hauelok brouth, 2452 at he haue[de] ful wo wrowht, Boe with hungre[110] and with cold, Or he were twel winter old, And with mani heui swink, 2456 With poure mete, and feble drink, And [with] swie wikke cloes, For al hise manie grete othes.

Nu beyes he his holde blame: 2460 [Sidenote: "_Old sin makes new shame._"]

'Old sinne makes newe shame:'

Wan he was [brouht] so shamelike Biforn[111] e king, e fule swike, [Sidenote: The king summons Ubbe and the rest.]

e king dede ubbe swie calle 2464 Hise erles, and hise barouns alle, Dreng and thein, burgeis and knith,

[Headnote: HE IS CONDEMNED TO BE HUNG.]

And bad he sholde{n} demen him rith: For he kneu, e swike dam, 2468 Euerildel G.o.d was him gram.

He sette{n} hem dun bi e wawe, Riche and pouere, heye and lowe, [Sidenote: They sit in judgment.]

e helde men, and ek e grom, 2472 And made er e rithe dom, And seyde{n} unto e king anon, at stille sat [al] so e ston: [Sidenote: "He is to be flayed, drawn, and hung."]

"We deme, at he be al quic slawen,[112] 2476 And sien to e galwes drawe[{n}], At is foule mere tayl; oru is fet a ful stro{n}g nayl; [Sidenote: [Fol. 216b, col. 2.]]

And ore ben henged wit two feteres, 2480 And are be writen ise leteres: 'is is e swike at wende wel, e king haue reft e lond il del, And hise sistres with a knif 2484 Boe refte here lif.'

is writ shal henge bi him are; e dom is demd, seye we na more."

[Footnote 109: MS. fo.]

[Footnote 110: MS. hungred.]

[Footnote 111: MS. Brouht biforn; _but the word _brouht_ clearly belongs to the preceding line, in which, however, it is omitted._]

[Footnote 112: We should perhaps read _flawen_, as required by the sense. _See_ ll. 2495, 2502.]

[Headnote: G.o.dARD IS FLAYED ALIVE AND HUNG.]

[Sidenote: G.o.dard is shriven.]

+Hwan e dom was demd and giue, 2488 And he was wit e p{re}stes shriue, And it ne mouhte ben non oer, Ne for fader, ne for broer, at he sholde arne lif; 2492 [Sidenote: A lad flays him.]

Sket cam a ladde with a knif, And bigan Rith at e to For to ritte, and for to flo, And he bigan for to rore, 2496 So it were grim or gore, at men mithe een a mile [Sidenote: He roars.]

Here him rore, at fule file.

e ladde ne let no with for-i, 2500 ey he criede 'm{er}ci! m{er}ci!'

at [he] ne flow [him] eueril del With knif mad of grunde{n} stel.

[Sidenote: He is bound on an old mare, drawn over rough ground, and hung.]

ei garte bringe e mere sone, 2504 Skabbed[113] and ful iuele o bone, And bunde{n} him rith at hire tayl With a rop of an old seyl, And drowe{n} him un-to e galwes, 2508 Nouth bi e gate, But ouer e falwes; And henge [him] ore Bi e hals: Daeit hwo recke! he was fals.

[Footnote 113: MS. Skabbeb.]

[Headnote: G.o.dRICH RAISES AN ARMY AGAINST HAVELOK.]

+a{n}ne he was ded, at sathanas, 2512 Sket was seysed al at his was In e kinges hand il del, Lond and lith, and oer catel, [Sidenote: Havelok makes Ubbe his steward.]

And e king ful sone it yaf 2516 Vbbe i{n} e hond, wit a fayr staf, And seyde, "her ich sayse e In al e lo{n}d, in al e fe."

[Sidenote: He founds a priory of black monks for Grim's soul, in the town of Grimsby.]

o swor hauelok he sholde make, 2520 Al for grim, of monekes blake A p{ri}orie to s{er}uen inne ay Ih{es}u c{ri}st, til domesday, For e G.o.d he haueden him don, 2524 [Sidenote: [Fol. 217, col. 1.]]

Hwil he was pou{er}e and iuel[114] o bon.

And er-of held he wel his oth, For he it made, G.o.d it woth!

In e tun er grim was graue{n}, 2528 at of grim yet haues e name.

Of grim bidde ich na more spelle.[115]-- [Sidenote: G.o.drich, earl of Cornwall, hears that Havelok has invaded England.]

But wan G.o.drich herde telle, Of cornwayle at was erl, 2532 (at fule traytour, that mixed cherl!) at hauelok was king of denemark, And ferde with him strong and stark, Comen engelond with-inne, 2536 Engelond al for to winne, And at she, at was so fayr, at was of engelond rith eir, at was comen up at grimesbi, 2540 He was ful sorful and sori, [Sidenote: He says he will slay Havelok and his wife.]

And seyde, "Hwat shal me to rae?

G.o.ddoth! i shal do slou hem bae.

I shal don hengen hem ful heye, 2544 So mote ich brouke mi Rith eie!

But yif he of mi lond[e][116] fle; Hwat? wende{n} he to desherite me?"

[Sidenote: He raises a great army.]

He dide sone ferd ut bidde, 2548 at al at euere mouhte o stede Ride, or helm on heued bere, Brini on bac, and sheld, and sp{er}e, Or ani oer wepne bere, 2552 Hand-ax, sye, gisarm, or sp{er}e, Or aunlaz,[117] and G.o.d long knif, at als he louede leme or lif, at ey sholde{n} comen him to, 2556 With ful G.o.d wepne ye ber so, [Sidenote: The army is to meet at Lincoln on the 17th of March.]

To lincolne, er he lay, Of marz e seue{n}tene day, So at he coue he{m} G.o.d ank; 2560 And yif at ani were so rang, That he a{n}ne ne come anon, He swor bi crist, and [bi][118] seint Iohan, That he sholde maken him ral, 2564 And al his of-spring forth with-al.

[Footnote 114: The MS. has "we," which the scribe several times writes instead of "wel." But "wel" is a manifest blunder, since "iuel" is meant. Cf. l. 2505.]

[Footnote 115: The author has here omitted to tell us that Havelok, at the desire of his wife, invades England. See the note.]

[Footnote 116: Cf. l. 2599.]

[Footnote 117: Printed "alinlaz" in the former edition. The first stroke of the _u_ is longer than the second, and the tail of the _x_ in the line above converts the second downstroke of the _u_ into an apparent _i_.]

[Footnote 118: Cf. l. 1112.]

[Headnote: G.o.dRICH EXCITES THE ENGLISH AGAINST HAVELOK.]

+e englishe at herde at, Was non at euere his bode sat, For he him dredde swie sore, 2568 So Runci spore, and mikle more.

[Sidenote: [Fol. 217, col. 2.]]

At e day he come sone at he hem sette, ful wel o bone, [Sidenote: All come to Lincoln on that day.]

To lincolne, with G.o.de stedes, 2572 And al e wepne at knith ledes.

Hwa{n} he wore come, sket was e erl yare,[119]