The Romaunce of the Sowdone of Babylone and of Ferumbras His Sone Who Conquerede Rome

by Unknown

With strokes grete and eke sure,	1332	They begin again.
Eche of hem donge othir o,
Alle the while thai myghte endu.
Ferumbras brake his swerde		Ferumbras breaks his
On Olyueris helme on hye.	1336	sword on Oliver’s
Tho wexe he ful sore a-ferde;		helmet.
He ranne for an othir redyly		He runs for another
And saide “Olyuere, yelde the to me		and asks Oliver to
And leve thy Criste laye,	1340	surrender.
Thou shalte have alle[131] my kingdome free
And alle aftir my daye.”
“Fye, Saresyne” quod Olyuere tha,
“Trowest thou, that I were wode,	1344
To forsake him, þat made me ma
And boght me with his hert blode.”
He raught a stroke to Ferumbras,		But Oliver aims at
On his helme it gan dow glyde,	1348	Ferumbras a blow
It brast his hawberke at þat ras		which cuts his
And carfe hym throughe-oute his syde,		hauberk, so
His bare guttis men mygħt see;		that his bowels are
The blode faste dow ranne.	[1352]	laid bare.
“Hoo, Olyvere, I yelde me to the,		Ferumbras implores
And here I become thy man.		his mercy, and
I am so hurte, I may not stonde,
I put me alle in thy grace.	1356
My goddis ben false by water and londe,		consents to be
I reneye hem alle here in this place,[132]		christened, his gods
Baptised nowe wole I be.		having proved false.
To Ihesu Crist I wole me take,	1360
That Charles the kinge shal sene,[133]
And alle my goddes for-sake.
Take myn hawberke and do it on the,		He requested him to
Thou shalte haue fu grete nede.	1364	take his hauberk, to

[‹p040›] THE SARACENS RUSH OUT OF THE WOOD.

X thousande Saresyns waiten vppo me,
And therfore go take my stede.		fetch his horse,
Lay me to-fore the, I the praye,		and to carry him
And lede me to thy tente.	1368	to his own tent.
Hye the faste forth in thy way,		[leaf 34]
That the Saresyns the not hente.”
A-noo it was done, as he ordeynede,
And faste forth thai ryden.[134]	1372
The Saresyns anone assembled,		But the Saracens,
For to haue with hem foghten.		who lay concealed
Ferumbras saugħ the feelde thore		in the wood, rush
Of Sarsynes fully filled;	1376	out. Oliver, being
Of Olyvere dradde he ful sore,		surrounded, sets
That Saresyns shulde him haue killed.
He praide, that he wolde let him dow
“Vndir yonde Olyfe tree,	1380
For if ye cast me dow here, with hors shoo[135]
Alle to-trede shalle I be.”		down Ferumbras under
He priked forth and layde him tha,†		an olive-tree, and
Out of the horses trase,	1384	defends himself with
And with his swerde by-gan him we,		his sword,
For amonge hem alle he was.
A Saresy smote him witħ a spere,
That it brake on pecis thre;	[1388]
His hauberke mygħt he not de,
So stronge and welle I-wroght was he.
He hit þat Saresyns with his swerde		dealing the Saracens
Througħ the helme in-to the brayne.	1392	many a hard blow.
He made an other as sore aferde,
He smote of his Arme with mayne.		Then Roland rushed
But tha come Roulande witħ Durnedale		into the throng of
And made way him a-bowte.	1396	the enemy and slew
He slowe hem dow in the vale,		many;
Of him hade thai grete dowte.
The prees of Saresyns was so stronge

[‹p041›] ROLAND AND OLIVER ARE MADE CAPTIVES.

A-boute Roulande that tyde.	1400
Thai sloughe his horsys with thronge,		his horse being
And dartis throwe on every syde.		killed by arrows and
Whan Roulande was on his Fete,		darts,
Tha was he woo witħ-alle.	1404	he fights on foot,
Many of hem he felte yete
And dede to grounde made hem falle.
At the last his swerde brake,
Tha hadde he wepynoo,	1408	but his sword
As he smote a Saresyns bake		breaking, [leaf 35]
A-sundre dow to the Arso.
Tho was he caught, he mygħt not flee,		he is taken
His hondes thai bounde faste	1412
And lad him forth to here Cite,		and led away.
And in depe priso they hem caste.
Olyuesawe, howe he was ladde,
A sorye matha was he;	1416
Him hadde leuer to haue bene dede
Than suffren that myschief to be.
Smertly aftire he pursued tho,		Oliver rides to
To reskue his dere brother.	1420	rescue him,
The prees was so grete, he myghte not so,
It myghte be no othir,
Be he was cowþe[136] by verforce
With LX of Astopartes.[137]	[1424]
Thai hurte him foule and slougħ his hors		but his horse being
With gauylokes and wyth dartis.		also killed,
Yet on foote, ere he were foolde,
He slough of hem fiftene.	1428
He was not slay, as god woolde,		he is overpowered
But taken and bounded[138] with tene.		and bound. Both were
Tho were take to Lucafe,		conducted to Lukafer
The proude kinge of Baldas,	1432	of Baldas.
Both Roulande and Olyue.

[‹p042›] CHARLES FINDS FERUMBRAS.

Gladde was he of that cas.
Kinge Charles was in herte woo,
When he saughe his neuewes so ladde,	1436	Charles sees them,
He cried to the Frenshme tho:		and calls for a
“Reskue we these knyghtes at nede.”		rescue. Many enemies
The kynge himselfe slough many one,		were slain, but the
So dede the Barons bolde.	1440	Saracens had fled
It wolde not bene, thai were ago,		with their prisoners,
Magre who so woolde.		and Charles is
The Saresyns drewe hem to here Cite,		obliged to turn back.
Kinge Charles turned agayne.	1444	Under a holm tree
He saugħ under an holme tre,		they find Ferumbras.
Where a knight him semed lay slay.
Thederward he rode witħ swerde in honde.
Tho he saugħ, he was alyve;	1448
He lay walowynge vppon the sonde
With blody woundes fyve.		[leaf 36]
“What arte thow?” quod Charlemayne,
“Who hath the hurte so sore?”	1452
“I am Ferumbras” he saide certay,
“That am of hethe lore.”
“O fals Saresy” quod the kinge,
“Thou shalte have sorowe astyte;	1456	whom he is going to
By the I haue lost my two Cosynes,		put to death.
Thy hede shalle I of-smyte.”
“O gentil kinge” quod Ferumbrase,
“Olyuere my maister me hight	[1460]	But on his requesting
To be Baptised by goddis grace,		to be baptized,
And to dye a Criste knighte.
Honuwere it noon to the
A discoumfite ma to slo,	1464
That is conuerted and Baptized wolde be
And thy man bycome also.”
The kinge hade pite of him tha,		Charles took pity
He toke him to his grace	1468	with him,
And assyned anoo a man

[‹p043›] ROLAND AND OLIVER ARE BROUGHT TO THE SOUDAN.

To lede him to his place.		led him to his tent,
He sende to him his surgyne		and ordered a surgeon
To hele his woundes wyde.	1472	to attend him.
He ordeyned to him such medycy,
That sone myght he go and ryde.		He soon recovered,
The kinge commaunded bishopeTurpy
To make a fonte redye,	1476
To Baptise Ferumbras þerin
In the name of god Almygħtye.
He was Cristened in þat welle,		and bishop Turpin
Floreyne the kinge alle him calle,	1480	baptised him, by the
He forsoke the foule feende of helle		name of Floreyn.
And his fals goddis alle.		But he continued to
Nought for tha Ferumbras		be called Ferumbras
Alle his life cleped was he,	1484	all his life.
And aftirwarde in somme place,		Afterwards he was
Floreyne of Rome Cite.		known as Floreyn of
God for him many myracles shewe,		Rome
So holy a man he by-came,	1488	on account of his
That witnessitħ both lerned and lewde,		holiness.
The fame of him so ranne.

Owe for to telle of Roulande Roland and Oliver And of Olyuere, that worthy wos,[139] 1492 being brought to Howe thai were brougħt to þeSowda the Soudan, Laban