And also indite and full well read;
And that—Lord—soon shall you see,
Both English and alsoe French
And also Spanish if you had need,
The earle said, You are a proper wench.”
(Antiquary, XV.)
One little anecdote I must give to show the spirit that was then in the women of England. In the year 1404 the French effected a landing at Dartmouth, the landsmen turned against them armed; they were joined by their wives, who fought beside their husbands and drove off the invaders.
Another anecdote to show the small consideration held for women. In the year 1379 Sir John Arundel’s squadron, then at sea in the Channel, was overtaken by a storm. There were on board the ships sixty women, some of whom had gone with the sailors of their own accord, and others who had been forcibly carried off. To lighten the ship, every one of these wretched women was thrown into the sea and drowned.
The model bourgeoise is set forth in “How the Good Wyf taugte hir Dougter” (published by the E. E. Text Society in The Babees Book) beginning
“The good wife taught hir daughter