Where good knights thronged to the contest: was many a valiant man
Whose young heart with glad courage was thrilled and filled to the height:
Ha! there under shield beheld they many a gallant knight.
Adown from the casements gazing in fair adornings arrayed
Were many a noble lady and many a lovely maid:
They watched while the throngs of brave men played that knightly play.
Yea, the King himself with his kinsmen rode the lists that day.
So fleeted the summer morning, and the hours seemed all too short
Ere the chiming bells of the minster summoned them from the sport.
Palfreys they brought for the ladies, and a river of splendour flowed