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    ĩõũỹ [i, o, u, y with “tilde” or overline]

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  ¶ A Ioyfull medytacyon to all Englonde
  of the coronacyon of our moost naturall souerayne
  lorde kynge Henry the eyght.

    [Illustration]


  The prologue

  The prudent problems / & the noble werkes
  Of the gentyll poetes in olde antyquyte
  Vnto this day hath made famous clerkes
  For the poetes Wrote nothynge in vanyte
  But grounded them on good moralyte
  Encensynge out the fayre dulcet fume
  Our langage rude to exyle and consume

  The ryght eloquent poete and monke of bery
  Made many fayre bookes / as it is probable
  From ydle derkenes / to lyght our emyspery
  Whose vertuous pastyme / was moche cõmendable
  Presentynge his bookes / gretely prouffytable
  To your worthy predecessour the .v. kynge Henry
  whiche regystred is in the courte of memory

  Amyddes the medowe of flora the quene
  Of the goddes elycon / is the sprynge or well
  And by it groweth / a fayre laurell grene
  Of whiche the poetes do ofte wryte and tell
  Besyde this olyue / I dyde neuer dwell
  To tast the water whiche is aromatyke
  For to cause me wryte with lusty rethoryke

  Wherefore good souerayne / I beseche your hyghnes
  To pardon me whiche do rudely endyte
  As in this arte hauynge small intres
  But for to lerne is all myn appetyte
  In folowynge the monke whiche dyde nobly wryte
  Besechynge your hyghnes and grace debonayre
  For to accepte this rude and lytell quayre

  ¶ Explicit prologus.


  O God alone in heuen werynge crowne
  In whose inspecte is euery regall se
  Both to enhaũce & for to cast adowne
  Suche is [the] power of thỹ hygh magiste
  Neyther hardynes treasour nor dygnyte
  May withstande thy strength whiche is ĩ euery place
  So grete and myghty is thy dyuyne grace

  Two tytles in one thou dydest well vnyfye
  Whan the rede rose toke the whyte in maryage
  Reygnynge togyder ryght hygh and noblye
  From whose vnyd tytyls and worthy lygnage
  Descended is by ryght excellent courage
  Kynge Henry the .viii. for to reygne doutles
  Vnyuersall his fame honour and larges

  Whiche hathe spousyd a fayre floure of vertue
  Descended of kynges dame katheryn of Spayne
     *   *   *   *   *   *   *
  By grace and prudens the peace to attayne
  Wherfore Englonde thou nedes not complayne
  Syth thou hast crowned openly in syght
  This kynge and quene by good true loue and ryght

  What sholde I shewe by perambulacyon
  All this grete tryumphe of whiche reporte
  Is made aboute nowe in euery nacyon
  Vnto all this realme to be Ioy and comforte
  Wherfore you lordes I humby you exhorte
  Spyrytuall and temporall with the comyns vnyfyde
  To gyue god the prayse which dothe grace prouyde

  Englonde be gladde / the dewe of grace is spred
  The dewe of Ioy / the dewe holsome and soote
  Dystylled is nowe from the rose so red
  And of the whyte so spryngynge from the roote
  After our trouble to be refute and boote
  This ryall tree was planted as I knowe
  By god aboue the rancour to downe throwe

  Who is the floure that dothe this grace dystyll
  But onely Henry the viii.kynge of his name
  With golden droppes all Englonde to fulfyll
  To shewe his larges his honour and his fame
  His dedes therto exemplefye the fame
  Wherefore nowe Englonde with hole deuocyon
  For this yonge kynge make dayly orayson

  Our late souerayne his fader excellent
  I knowe ryght well some holde oppynyon
  That to auaryce he had entendement
  Gadrynge grete rychesse of this his regyon
  But they lytell knowe by theyr small reason
  For what hye entente he gadered doutles
  Vnto his grace suche innumerable ryches

  For I thynke well and god had sente hym lyfe
  As they haue meruaylled moche of this gadrynge
  So it to them sholde haue ben affyrmatyfe
  To haue had grete wonder of his spendynge
  It may fortune he thought to haue mouynge
  Of mortall warre our fayth to stablysshe
  Agaynst the turkes theyr power to mynysshe

  But syth that dethe by his course naturall
  Hathe hym arested / and wolde not delay
  Lyke wyse as he was so be we mortall
  How / where / or whan I cam nothynge say
  Therfore to god aboue let vs all pray
  For to graunt hym mercy whiche was our kynge
  Bryngynge his soule to Ioy euerlastinge

  A fayre Englonde mystruste the ryght nought
  Regarde ryght well / his sonnes Iustyce
  Se how that they whyche inuencyons sought
  Delytynge them in the synne of auaryce
  To oppresse the comyns by grete preiudyce
  Dothe he not punysshe them accordynge to lawe
  Suche newe promocyons to dampne and withdrawe

    [Sidenote: Saturne]

  Fy on the saturne with thy mysty fume
  Replete with fraude treason and wyckednes
  To shewe thy beames thou darest not presume
  So cursed thou arte withouten stablenes
  Deuoyde of grace fulfylled with doblenes
  Thy power to Englonde was neuer amyable
  But alwayes euyll vntrue and varyable

    [Sidenote: Iupyter.]

  Now gentyll Iupyter the lodesterre of lyghte
  Thy stedfast beames so fayre and so clere
  Cast now abrede that we may haue a syght
  To gladde vs all whan that they do appere
  Sendynge downe trouthe from thy fulgent spere
  For to make our hertes mekely to enclyne
  To serue our souerayue whiche doth nowe domyne

    [Sidenote: Mars]

  O myghty Mars o god of the warre
  O flambynge honour of euery hardy herte
  Sende downe thy power truely from so ferre
  Us to encourage that we do not sterte
  But by hardynes that we may subuerte
  Our soueraynes enemyes to hym contraryous
  By bataylles fyrse ryghtfull and rygorous

    [Sidenote: Phebus]

  And thou fayre bright / and aureate phebus
  Encreace now lyght with loue and honoure
  Amonge the lordes so gay and gloryus
  With thy radyant beames so hye of fauoure
  Deuoydynge all trechery debate and rancoure
  Any yllumyne the mynde with lyberalyte
  Of our good souerayne with welth and vnyte

    [Sidenote: Venus.]

  And lady Venus with thy sone Cupyde
  Of euery lorde do nowe the herte enspyre
  With feruent loue that he do not slyde
  And of the comyns set the hertes on fyre
  To loue our souerayne with theyr hole desyre
  Folowynge his grace with dulcet armonye
  To the ryghtfull waye withouten Ieoperdye

    [Sidenote: Mercury]

  Also thou Mercury the god of eloquence
  The gentyll sterre of grace and vertue
  Thy beames of ryght peace and conscyence
  On our kynges counsayll downe send and renue
  The trouthe of Iustyce / that they may extue
  For to do wronge by the synne of couetyce
  That here before hathe done grete preiudyce

    [Sidenote: Luna.]

  An thou watery dyane of the se the goddes
  With thy broder eolus the god of the wynde
  Encourage the hertes by in warde hardynes
  Of   .   .   .   .   .   ynde
  And enmyes ryse that they be not behynde
  Them for to chace and the se to scoure
  By grace and fortune in many a stormy stoure

  O god aboue / trononysed in heuen
  In whose wyll resteth euery thynge alone
  The skye / the erthe / with all the planettes seuen
  Without whose grace / comforte haue we none
  As thou arte thre enclusyd in one
  So saue our souerayne / from all maner wo
  And this his realme from mortall warre also

  Holy chirche reioyce / with all your lybertees
  Withouten dõmage / the kynge wyll ye encreace
  And be your shelde from all aduersytees
  No wronge shall be but he wyll it soone seace
  Knyttynge the knotte of fayth loue and peace
  Bytwene you and hym without dysturbaunce
  So for to endure by longe contynuaunce

  Ryght myghty prynce our good souerayne lorde
  To god enclynynge be hardy and gladde
  Of you and your realme he wyll se concorde
  Though other nacyons be therfore full sadde
  Agaynst you murmurynge with theyr werkes badde
  Yet drede ye nothynge for god with his myght
  Wyll be alwaye redy to defende the ryght

  Ryght noble / wyse / and excellent pryncesse
  Ryght benygne lady / lyberall and vertuous
  Dyscended lynyally of the lyne of noblenesse
  Fayre quene katheryne so swete adn precyous
  To our souerayne espoused with Ioy solacyous
  Almyghty god gyue grace to myltyplye
  From you your stoures to reyne ryght ryally

  And lady Mary prynces ryght beauteous
  Indued with honour / vertue / and prudence
  Ryght meke / goodly / gentyll and gracyous
  Syster ryght dere vnto the excellence
  Of our good souerayne / surmountynge in sapyence
  Ryght fayre younge lady / the grete lorde aboue
  He graunte you grace / hygh fame / fortune / and loue

  And all you lordes and laydes honourable
  And you noble knyghtes so hauntynge chyualry
  Unto our souerayne be meke and tendable
  Whiche wyll rewarde you well and nobly
  As to shewe his largesse vnyuersally
  Encouragynge your hertes that courage chyualrous
  In tyme of batayll for to be vyctoryous

  And all ye offycers of euery degree
  Beware extorcyon, for and it be knowen
  No doute it is but ye shall punysshed be
  Take hede of them / the whiche be ouerthrowen
  Remembre well how fortune hathe blowen
  The promoters downe / and castynge them full lowe
  In folowynge them ye shall fall as I trowe

  Englonde be true and loue well eche other
  Obey your souerayne / and god omnypotent
  Whiche is aboue / of all the worlde the rother
  Wyll sende you welth / from whome all good is sente
  He gyue vs grace to kepe his cõmaundement
  And saue our souerayne / with his semely quene
  With all theyr bloode / without trouble and tene

  ¶ Amen.


  ¶ Excusacio auctoris

  ¶ Go lytell treatyse submyt the humbly
  To our souerayne lorde / to be in his presence
  Besechynge his grace to accepte the mekely
  And to pardon thy rudenes and neclygence
     *   *   *   *   *   *   *
  To compyle those maters whiche sholde pleasure be
  Unto his hyghnes and regall maieste

  Now ye fayre laydes, wyse and vertuous
  I ryght humbly praye you for to condyscende
  To accepte my makynge nothynge facundious
  I wolde that fortune wolde connynge extende
  That myn endytynge I myght than amende
  To dyrecte my maters after your pleasaunce
  Whiche yet replete am with all ygnoraunce

    A M E N


  ¶ Thus endeth this Ioyfull medytacyon made & compyled
  by Stephen hawes somtyme grome of [the] chambre
  of our late souerayne lorde kynge Henry [the] seuenth

  ¶ Enprynted at London in [the] fletestrete at [the] sygne of
  the sonne by wynkyn de worde.


    [Illustration]


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Errors and Irregularities:

  Wherfore you lordes I humby you exhorte [error for humbly?]
  But onely Henry the viii.kynge of his name [spacing unchanged]
  How / where / or whan I cam nothynge say [“cam”: error for can?]
    _The word “cam” could be read as “cain” with missing dot, but an
    unambiguous letter “m” with the same defect appears several other
    times on this page._

Reconstructed or missing lines:

  Descended of kynges dame katheryn of Spayne
  For I thynke well and god had sente hym lyfe
  Of   .   .   .   .   .   ynde
    _The first word can be reconstructed because the page was cut or
    bound at a slight angle; the line-ending is entirely invisible but
    deducible from the rhyme scheme, as are the endings of the other
    missing lines._
  Indued with honour / vertue / and prudence