[Page]wyfe / but cruelly and fyersly answere vnto her. False strompet dyshordynate of as moche as thou arte with chylde I ought lytell to reioyse me / for I am so moche enformed of thy gouernement yt I haue nothyng / and that dysloyally thou haste habandoned thyselfe vnto other than me. Whan they sawe that ye Emperour wolde not refrayne hym nor appese his Ire for nothynge / by a comyn accorde they toke her and ledde her in to a chambre. And the moost amyably that they myght helde her with wordes in shewȳge vnto her her grete faute / and the sorowful lady was dysorned in the chambre that hadde her face dysteyned with bloode. The ladyes that were next her persone brought her fayre water to wasshe her withall. And at that houre entred in to her chambre her squyer named Blandymayn. And whan he sawe her in suche estate / he wepte for pyte / and sayd vnto her. Ha madame I se well that you are falsly betrayed. I beseche god that cursed be ye persone that hathe purchased you this euyll. For god my ryght dere lady take a lytell comforte vnto you. And yf you wyll by leue me I shall lede you in to Fraunce agayne towarde the kynge Pepyn your broder / the whiche gaue me vnto you for to serue you in your necessytees / the whiche thynge I wolde do after my puyssaūce. Byleue my counsayll and we shall retorne in to Fraunce agayne. / For you maye be sure that the Emperoure shall make you dye shortly with grete shame and dishonour. Then answered the dolorous lady. Ha Blandymain my frende it sholde be to me to shamefull and dyshonest for to go in suche maner without other delyberacyon. And it myght be byleued lyghtly that ye Emperour had goode cause / and that I were culpable of the dede. Wherfore [Page] I had leuer deye an euyll dethe / than for to recouer blame for a thynge that I am innocent of / & accused with out cause. After these thynges thus sayd / ye Emperour that was with the barons a lytell moderate and satysfyed of his Ire / he sente for his wyfe Bellyssant / ye whiche was brought before hym quyckely. Whan he sawe her his herte trembled for sorowe for this that he durst not put her to dethe / bycause of her broder kynge Pepyn / and his puyssaunce. With tude wordes he sayd to her. False and cursed woman by the is myn honour vyturped Wherfore I swere god that and it were not for thy broders sake / the valyaunt kynge Pepyn / I sholde make the to be brente in a fyre / out for his sake thy lyfe shall be prolonged at this present tyme. Now I do the to wyte that from this houre I banysshe the / & expulse the from my countree and Empyre / in commaundynge the expresly that to morowe thou departe out of this cyte / for yf I se the ony more / thou shall neuer haue respyte tyll thou haue suffred dethe. And yet I commaū de all them of my countre / that there be none so hardy of them to accōpany you / or conueye / saue alonely your squyer Blandymayn that you brought out of Fraunce with you. Go where as you wyll goo at your auenture / for thou shall neuer slepe by my syde / nor in my bedde / Soone after the commaundement of the Emperoure that was shorte and sodayne / without soiourne or delacyon / the Empresse Bellyssant / and her squyer Blandymayn mounted on horsbacke and came in to the Cyte. Where as was shedde ful many a tere / bothe of lordes and ladyes / knyghtes / and squyers / with all the comin people / ye whiche cryed and sorowed out of mesure / for they made suche lamentacyons that there was neuer [Page] sene / nor herde so pyteous a thynge. Euery body ranne vnto the gate / for to cōmaunde the good lady vnto god that by the false Archebysshoppe was so pyteously banysshed. And at the yssue of the gate they made the pytefullest crye yt euer was herde. Nowe gothe Blandymayn that conduyteth the sorowfull lady Bellyssant / And hathe taken the way to go towarde the realme of Fraunce. Whan the lady was oute of the walles of the cyte / and that she sawe herselfe in the feldes pyteously aourned / lyke a woman shamed and dyshonoured / she wayled bytterly. For she consydered the lygnage / and ye bloode ryall that she was yssued out of / the ryght hyghe magnyfycence imperyall that she had ben put in. And after thought on the myserable and dolorous fortune yt was torned vpon her so sodaynly / she sayd. Alas alas wherfore taryeth dethe that he wyll not come & abredge my lyfe / and fynisshe my dolours and anguysshes / Alas I was borne in an vnhappy houre for to suffre suche payne / and for to fall from so hye estate vnto suche pouerte / for of all the vnhappyes I am the moost vnhappyest. Now is al my ioyes transmued in to dystres my laughynges chaunged in to wepynges / my songes conuerted in to syghes. In the stede of the clothe of golde that I was wonte for to were / I am as a woman publyke ful of iniuryes and vytupere cōmytted & aourned. And of precyous stones of inestymable valour / on all sydes I must the remenaunt of my myserable lyfe arouse my vesture with bytter teeres / that shall make my lyfe and my dayes to fynysshe. O you pastorelles of ye feldes consyder my grete dolours / and wepe myn exyle. Now pleased it god and the vyrgyn Mary that I were descended of as poore estate as the poorest of ye [Page] worlde / at the leest I sholde haue doloure to se me in suche pouerte. Alas wherfore lyghteth me the sonne / and wherfore dothe the erthe susteyne me / for I haue no nede that the daungerous fountayne of dystresse oppresse me so sore. For it is not in myne humayne puyssaunce / to bewayle the profounde sorowe that my poore herte endureth. O false enuye and treason / I ought well for to curse the with my herte / for by the to daye I am the moost sorowfullest creature lyuynge vpon the erthe. A my broder the kynge Pepyn / what shal ye do with this poore dyscomforted. It were better for you that I had neuer ben borne of my moder / or that from the wombe of my moder I hadde ben put vnder the erthe. In makynge this aspre complaynt the lady abode in a swowne vpon the horsbacke / & she was almoost fallen downe or that Blandymayn myght come vnto her / then he dressed her vp and sayd vnto her. Alas madame take vnto you some comforte / and entre not so in to dyspayre / haue stedfast truste in god / for euen soo as you are innocente he shall kepe you and defende you alwayes / Then he espyed a ryght fayre fountayne / towarde the whiche he ledde the lady. And also nere it as he myght he set her downe for to repose her and refresshe her. Here I wyll leue to speke of them / and wyll speke of the Archebysshop that perseuered in his malyce dampnable and dyabolyke.
¶How the Archebysshop put hym in the habyte of a knyght / and mounted on horsbacke for to folowe ye Empresse Bellyssant yt was banysshed. Ca. iiij.
Archebys.
WHan the Archebysshop sawe that the lady was departed / he thought in hymselfe that he wolde go after her / and that with her he wolde do his pleasure. He lefte rochet and other vesture / and as irreguler and apostate / gyrde his swerde aboute hym / and mounted vpon a swyfte courser / and folowed fast after / for he had one of the best courser of all Constantynoble. He rode so faste that within short tyme he had ryden a grete waye. And of all them that he mette he asked tydynges of the noble lady Bellyssant. And they shewed vnto hym the waye that she helde. So longe rode the false traytour Archebysshoppe that he entred in [Page] to a myghty grete forest and a longe / he toke the hyghe waye and enforced hym to ryde a paas. He had not ryden longe whan he apperceyued the lady with Blandymayn / the whiche were besyde the fountayne where as the lady was discended for to refresshe her / and rest her for she was wery and heuy full of sorowe and doloure / so that she myght not susteyne her. Whyles that Blandymayn comforted the sorowfull lady / ye Archebysshop drewe nere them / and knewe the fayre Bellyssant / but she knewe hym not a ferre bycause that he was dysgysed / but whan he approched she knewe hym well ynoughe. Alas sayd she Blandymayn / I se nowe come towarde vs the false Archebysshop that is cause of myn exyle. Alas I am to sore aferde that he do me not some vyllanye. Lady sayd Blandymayn / haue of hym neyther fere nor doubte. For yf he come for to doo you euyl or displeasure I shal put my body for to defende yours vnto the dethe. At these wordes was arryued the archebysshop that lyght of his hors / and salued the lady in ye best maner that he myght and sayd. Ryght dere and honoured lady / yf so be that ye Emperour hathe dechaced you / yf you wyll accepte me for to be your loue / and accomplysshe my desyre / I shall do so moche towarde the Emperour that he shall put you in your fyrste estate / & be exalted more hygher than euer you were / wherfore auyse you / for I do it for your grete honoure and prouf fyte. Ha sayd the lady / dysloyall and cruell aduersary of all honoure imperyall / I ought well to haue cause to loue the / and holde the dere / whan that by thy false malyce thou haste made the Emperour vnderstonde that I haue myserably borne me towarde his maieste / and made me be deiecte from all honoure and prosperyte. / [Page] Thou hast put me in the waye of extremyte and myserye / and is the causer that I shal fynysshe my dayes in dolorous dystresse / for there is not a more dyscomforted lady in the worlde than I am. Lady leue suche wordes / for by me there can nothyng come to you but good For I am puyssaunt ynoughe for to chaunge your doloure and dyscomforte in to Ioye & solace / more than euer you had. In sayenge these wordes he enclyned hȳ towarde the lady / and wende to haue kyssed her. But Blandymayn sterte bytwene them and gaue the Archebysshop so grete a stroke that he felled hym vnto the erthe / and brake twayne of his tethe. The Archebysshop gate hym vp and drewe his swerde quyckly. And Blandymayn toke a glayue that he had broughte with hym and assaylled hym ryght asprely / and the Archebisshop hym. They fought soo longe that they were bothe sore wounded. And as they were thus fyghtynge / there arryued on them a notable marchaunt / that ascryed vnto them also ferre as he myght se them saynge. Lordes lordes leue your debate / and tell me fro whens it procedeth / & I shall tell you who hathe ryght or wronge. syr sayd Blādymayn let vs fynysshe our enterpryse. Alas sayd the lady socoure vs / for here is the fals preest that wyll take myn honour from me by force / whiche is the cursed Archebysshop / that hathe separed me by treasō from my lorde and husbande the Emperoure. Whan ye marchaunt vnderstode her / he had grete pyte on her / & sayd to the Archebysshop. Syr leue your enterpryse / & touche not the lady / for and the Emperoure knewe of this dede / he wolde make you deye an euyll dethe before all the worlde. Also soone as the Archebisshoppe vnder stode the marchaunt speke / he lefte the batayll quyckly [Page] and began for to fle thorughe the wodde. He was ryght sorowfull that he was knowen / for he thoughte well to haue had his pleasure of ye lady. But he enterprysed suche a thynge / wherby his treason was knowen afterwarde / and dysclosed as it shall be recounted to you afterwarde. After the departynge of the Archebysshop ye lady abode in the wodde besyde the fountayne tryste & sorowfull / with Blandymayne yt was wounded. The marchaunt that was abyden sayd. Alas lady I se that by the Archebisshop ye are falsly betrayed / and haue bē expulsed from the Emperoure. Now god gyue me grace to lyue so longe that I maye accuse hym of this mys dede / and to purchase his dethe. Lady to god I commaunde you the whiche gyue you pacyence & comforte Soo the marchaunte toke his leue / and Blandymayn thanked hym many tymes. Then Blandymayn mounted the lady vpon her hors / and after moūted vpon his owne / and wente vnto a lodgynge that was there besyde / where as they abode by the space of .viij. days for to hele Blandymayn. Whan he had rested hym / & that he myght ryde they put them vpon the waye towarde Fraunce. And the sorowfull lady complayned her by ye waye and sayd. Alas Blandymayn my frende / what may my broder & all the lordes saye of my pyteous case / whan they shall knowe that for a vyllaynous dede I am so shamefully deiecte from the Emperoure / and as a comon woman banysshed the Empyre of Constā tynoble. Alas I am ryght certayne that my broder wyl byleue lyghtly that I am culpable of the dede / & make me dye shamefully / for he is ryght fyerse of courage / lady sayd blandymayn be of good chere / & put your trust in god. In spekynge thus Blandymayn that the lady [...]