Produced by David Widger







INDEX OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG

WORKS OF

MARGARET OF ANGOULÊME, QUEEN OF NAVARRE

“THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON”


Compiled by David Widger




CONTENTS
Click on the ## before many of the titles to view a linked
table of contents for that volume.
Click on the title itself to open the original online file.
##  THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON, Vol. I.

##  THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON, Vol. II.

##  THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON, Vol. III.

##  THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON, Vol. IV.

##  THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON, Vol. V.







THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON
OF MARGARET, QUEEN OF NAVARRE
VOLUME THE FIRST OF FIVE VOLUMES
CONTENTS OF VOLUME ONE
PREFACE.
Explanation of the Initials appended to the Notes.
MARGARET OF ANGOULÊME, QUEEN OF NAVARRE.
I.
II.
III.
IV.
ON THE HEPTAMERON
DEDICATIONS AND PREFACE,
Peter Boaistuau, surnamed Launay, To the Reader
THE HEPTAMERON
PROLOGUE.
FIRST DAY.
TALE I.
TALE II.
TALE III.
TALE IV.
TALE V.
TALE VI.
TALE VII.
APPENDIX.
A. (Prologue, Page 31.)
B. (Tale I., Page 50.)
C. (Tale IV., Page 85.)
ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece
Titlepage
013a.jpg
039a.jpg Du Mesnil Learns his Mistress’s Infidelity from Her Maid
039.jpg Page Image
056.jpg Tailpiece
057a.jpg the Muleteer’s Servant Attacking his Mistress
057.jpg Page Image
064.jpg Tailpiece
065a.jpg the Stags Head
065.jpg Page Image
078.jpg Tailpiece
079a.jpg Hurrying to Her Mistress’s Assistance
079.jpg Page Image
094.jpg Tailpiece
095a.jpg the Boatwoman of Coulon Outwitting The Friars
095.jpg Page Image
102.jpg Tailpiece
103a.jpg the Wife’s Ruse to Secure The Escape of Her Lover
103.jpg Page Image
108.jpg Tailpiece
109.jpg the Merchant Transferring his Caresses from The Daughter to the Mother
110.jpg Page Image
113.jpg Tailpiece
CONTENTS OF TALES
Tale I. The pitiful history of a Proctor of Alençon, named St. Aignan,
and of his wife, who caused her husband to assassinate her lover, the
son of the Lieutenant-General
Tale II. The fate of the wife of a muleteer of Amboise, who suffered herself
to be killed by her servant rather than sacrifice her chastity
Tale III. The revenge taken by the Queen of Naples, wife to King Alfonso, for
her husband’s infidelity with a gentleman’s wife
Tale IV. The ill success of a Flemish gentleman who was unable to obtain,
either by persuasion or force, the love of a great Princess
Tale V. How a boatwoman of Coulon, near Nyort, contrived to escape from the
vicious designs of two Grey Friars
Tale VI. How the wife of an old valet of the Duke of Alençon’s succeeded
in saving her lover from her husband, who was blind of one eye
Tale VII. The craft of a Parisian merchant, who saved the reputation of the
daughter by offering violence to the mother





THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON
OF MARGARET, QUEEN OF NAVARRE
IN FIVE VOLUMES
VOLUME THE SECOND
CONTENTS
FIRST DAY, Continued.
TALE VIII.
TALE IX.
TALE X.
SECOND DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE XI. (A).
TALE XI. (B).
TALE XII.
TALE XIII.
TALE XIV.
TALE XV.
TALE XVI.
TALE XVII.
TALE XVIII.
APPENDIX.
A. (Tale VIII., Page i.)
B (Tale XL (B.), Page 95.)
C. (Tale XII., Page 101.)
D. (Tale XVI., Page 183.)
E. (Tale XVII., Page 195.)
ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece
Titlepage
001a.jpg Bornet’s Concern on Discovering That his Wife Is Without Her Ring
001.jpg Page Image
012.jpg Tailpiece
013a.jpg the Dying Gentleman Receiving The Embraces Of His Sweetheart
013.jpg Page Image
024.jpg Tailpiece
025a.jpg the Countess Asking an Explanation from Amadour
025.jpg Page Image
083.jpg Tailpiece
089.jpg Page Image
093.jpg Tailpiece
095a.jpg the Grey Friar Telling his Tales
095.jpg Page Image
100.jpg Tailpiece
101a.jpg the Gentleman Killing The Duke
101.jpg Page Image
117.jpg Tailpiece
119a.jpg the Sea-captain Talking to The Lady
119.jpg Page Image
140.jpg Tailpiece
141a.jpg Bonnivet and the Lady of Milan
141.jpg Page Image
155.jpg Tailpiece
157a.jpg the Lady Taking Oath As to Her Conduct
157.jpg Page Image
182.jpg Tailpiece
183a.jpg the Gentleman Discovering The Trick
183.jpg Page Image
193.jpg Tailpiece
195a.jpg the King Showing his Sword
195.jpg Page Image
203.jpg Tailpiece
205a.jpg the Student Escaping The Temptation
205.jpg Page Image
216.jpg Tailpiece
DETAILED CONTENTS OF VOLUME II.
FIRST DAY—Continued.
Tale VIII. The misadventure of Bornet, who, planning with a friend of
his that both should lie with a serving-woman, discovers too late that
they have had to do with his own wife.
Tale IX. The evil fortune of a gentleman of Dauphiné, who dies of
despair because he cannot marry a damsel nobler and richer than himself.
Tale X. The Spanish story of Florida, who, after withstanding the love
of a gentleman named Amadour for many years, eventually becomes a nun.
SECOND DAY.
Prologue
Tale XI. (A). Mishap of the Lady de Roncex in the Grey Friars’ Convent
at Thouars.
Tale XI. (B). Facetious discourse of a Friar of Touraine.
Tale XII. Story of Alexander de’ Medici, Duke of Florence, whom his
cousin, Lorenzino de’ Medici, slew in order to save his sister’s honour.
Tale XIII. Praiseworthy artifice of a lady to whom a sea Captain sent
a letter and diamond ring, and who, by forwarding them to the Captain’s
wife as though they had been intended for her, united husband and wife
once more in all affection.
Tale XIV. The Lord of Bonnivet, after furthering the love entertained
by an Italian gentleman for a lady of Milan, finds means to take
the other’s place and so supplant him with the lady who had formerly
rejected himself.
Tale XV. The troubles and evil fortune of a virtuous lady who, after
being long neglected by her husband, becomes the object of his jealousy.
Tale XVI. Story of a Milanese Countess, who, after long rejecting the
love of a French gentleman, rewards him at last for his faithfulness,
but not until she has put his courage to the proof.
Tale XVII. The noble manner in which King Francis the First shows Count
William of Furstemberg that he knows of the plans laid by him against
his life, and so compels him to do justice upon himself and to leave
France.
Tale XVIII. A young gentleman scholar at last wins a lady’s love, after
enduring successfully two trials that she had made of him.
Appendix to Vol. II





THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON
OF MARGARET, QUEEN OF NAVARRE
IN FIVE VOLUMES
VOLUME THE THIRD
CONTENTS
SECOND DAY.
TALE XIX.
TALE XX.
THIRD DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE XXI.
TALE XXII.
TALE XXIII.
TALE XXIV.
TALE XXV.
TALE XXVI.
TALE XXVII.
TALE XXVIII.
TALE XXIX.
TALE XXX.
APPENDIX.
A. (Tale XX., Page 21.)
B. (Tale XXV., Page 131.)
C. (Tale XXVI., Page 143.)
D. (Tale XXX., Page 191).
Illustrations
Frontispiece
Titlepage
001a.jpg the Parting Between Pauline and The Gentlemen
001.jpg Page Image
020.jpg Tailpiece
021a.jpg the Lord de Riant Finding The Widow With Her Groom
021.jpg Page Image
029.jpg Tailpiece
035a.jpg Rolandine Conversing With Her Husband
035.jpg Page Image
071.jpg Tailpiece
073a.jpg Sister Marie and the Prior
073.jpg Page Image
095.jpg Tailpiece
097a.jpg the Grey Friar Deceiving The Gentleman of Périgord
097.jpg Page Image
112.jpg Tailpiece
113a.jpg Elisor Showing the Queen Her Own Image
113.jpg Page Image
130.jpg Tailpiece
131a.jpg the Advocate’s Wife Attending on The Prince
131.jpg Page Image
142.jpg Tailpiece
143a.jpg the Lord of Avannes Paying his Court in Disguise
143.jpg Page Image
170.jpg Tailpiece
171a.jpg the Secretary Imploring The Lady Not to Tell of his Wickedness
171.jpg Page Image
175.jpg Tailpiece
177a.jpg the Secretary Opening The Pasty
177.jpg Page Image
183.jpg Tailpiece
185a.jpg the Husbandman Surprised by The Fall of The Winnowing Fan
185.jpg Page Image
190.jpg Tailpiece
191a.jpg the Young Gentleman Embracing his Mother
191.jpg Page Image
204.jpg Tailpiece
DETAILED CONTENTS OF VOLUME III.
SECOND DAY—Continued.
Tale XIX. The honourable love of a gentleman, who, when his sweetheart
is forbidden to speak with him, in despair becomes a monk of the
Observance, while the lady, following in his footsteps, becomes a nun of
St. Clara
Tale XX. How the Lord of Riant is cured of his love fora beautiful widow
through surprising her in the arms of a groom
THIRD DAY.
Prologue
Tale XXI. The affecting history of Rolandine, who, debarred from
marriage by her father’s greed, betrothes herself to a gentleman to
whom, despite his faithlessness, she keeps her plighted word, and does
not marry until after his death
Tale XXII. How Sister Marie Heroet virtuously escapes the attempts of
the Prior of St. Martin in-the-Fields
Tale XXIII. The undeserved confidence which a gentleman of Perigord
places in the monks of the Order of St. Francis, causes the death of
himself, his wife and their little child
Tale XXIV. Concerning the unavailing love borne to the Queen of Castile
by a gentleman named Elisor, who in the end becomes a hermit
Tale XXV. How a young Prince found means to conceal his intrigue with
the wife of a lawyer of Paris
Tale XXVI. How the counsels of a discreet lady happily withdrew the
young Lord of Avannes from the perils of his foolish love for a lady of
Pampeluna
Tale XXVII. How the wife of a man who was valet to a Princess rid
herself of the solicitations of one who was among the same Princess’s
servants, and at the same time her husband’s guest
Tale XXVIII. How a Gascon merchant, named Bernard du Ha, while
sojourning at Paris, deceived a Secretary to the Queen of Navarre who
had thought to obtain a pasty from him
Tale XXIX. How the Priest of Carrelles, in Maine, when surprised with
the wife of an old husbandman, gets out of the difficulty by pretending
to return him a winnowing fan
Tale XXX. How a gentleman marries his own daughter and sister unawares





THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON
OF MARGARET, QUEEN OF NAVARRE
IN FIVE VOLUMES
VOLUME THE FOURTH
CONTENTS
FOURTH DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE XXXI.
TALE XXXII.
TALE XXXIII.
TALE XXXIV.
TALE XXXV.
TALE XXXVI.
TALE XXXVII.
TALE XXXVIII.
TALE XXXIX.
TALE XL.
FIFTH DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE XLI.
TALE XLII.
TALE XLIII.
TALE XLIV.(A).
TALE XLIV. (B).
TALE XLV.
TALE XLVI. (A).
TALE XLVI.(B).
TALE XLVII.
TALE XLVIII.
TALE XLIX.
TALE L.
APPENDIX.
A. (Tale XXXVI., Page 63.)
ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece
Titlepage
007a.jpg the Wicked Friar Captured
007.jpg Page Image
0016.jpg Tailpiece
017a.jpg Bernage Observing the German Lady’s Strange Penance
017.jpg Page Image
028.jpg Tailpiece
029a.jpg the Execution of The Wicked Priest and his Sister
029.jpg Page Image
037.jpg Tailpiece
039a.jpg the Grey Friar Imploring The Butcher to Spare his Life
039.jpg Page Image
047.jpg Tailpiece
049a.jpg the Lady Embracing The Supposed Friar
049.jpg Page Image
062.jpg Tailpiece
063a.jpg the Clerk Entreating Forgiveness of The President
063.jpg Page Image
072.jpg Tailpiece
073a.jpg the Lady of Loué Bringing Her Husband The Basin Of Water
073.jpg Page Image
081.jpg Tailpiece
083a.jpg the Lady of Tours Questioning Her Husband’s Mistress
083.jpg Page Image
088.jpg Tailpiece
089a.jpg the Lord of Grignaulx Catching The Pretended Ghost
089.jpg Page Image
094.jpg Tailpiece
095a.jpg the Count of Jossebelin Murdering his Sister’s Husband
095.jpg Page Image
109.jpg Tailpiece
115a.jpg the Beating of The Wicked Grey Friar
115.jpg Page Image
122.jpg Tailpiece
123a.jpg the Girl Refusing The Gift of The Young Prince
123.jpg Page Image
142.jpg Tailpiece
143a.jpg Jambicque Repudiating Her Lover
143.jpg Page Image
155.jpg Tailpiece
157.jpg Page Image
162.jpg Tailpiece
163a.jpg the Lovers Returning from Their Meeting in The Garden
163.jpg Page Image
176.jpg Tailpiece
177a.jpg the Man of Tours and his Serving-maid in The Snow
177.jpg Page Image
186.jpg Tailpiece
187.jpg Page Image
193.jpg Tailpiece
195a.jpg the Young Man Beating his Wife
195.jpg Page Image
201.jpg Tailpiece
203a.jpg the Gentleman Reproaching his Friend for His Jealousy
203.jpg Page Image
211.jpg Tailpiece
213a.jpg the Grey Friars Caught and Punished
213.jpg Page Image
218.jpg Tailpiece
219a.jpg the Countess Facing Her Lovers
219.jpg Page Image
232.jpg Tailpiece
233a.jpg the Lady Killing Herself on The Death of Her Lover
233.jpg Page Image
240.jpg Tailpiece
DETAILED CONTENTS OF VOLUME IV.
FOURTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale XXXI. Punishment of the wickedness of a Friar who sought to lie
with a gentleman’s wife.
Tale XXXII. How an ambassador of Charles VIII., moved by the repentance
of a German lady, whom her husband compelled to drink out of her lover’s
skull, reconciled husband and wife together.
Tale XXXIII. The hypocrisy of a priest who, under the cloak of sanctity,
had lain with his own sister, is discovered and punished by the wisdom
of the Count of Angoulême.
Tale XXXIV. The terror of two Friars who believed that a butcher
intended to murder them, whereas the poor man was only speaking of his
Pigs.
Tale XXXV. How a husband’s prudence saves his wife from the risks she
incurred while thinking to yield to merely a spiritual love.
Tale XXXVI. The story of the President of Grenoble, who saves the honour
of his house by poisoning his wife with a salad.
Tale XXXVII. How the Lady of Loué regained her husband’s affection.
Tale XXXVIII. The kindness of a townswoman of Tours to a poor
farm-woman who is mistress to her husband, makes the latter so ashamed
of his faithlessness that he returns to his wife.
Tale XXXIX. How the Lord of Grignaulx rid one of his houses of a
pretended ghost.
Tale XL. The unhappy history of the Count de Jossebelin’s sister, who
shut herself up in a hermitage because her brother caused her husband to
be slain.
FIFTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale XLI. Just punishment of a Grey Friar for the unwonted penance that
he would have laid upon a maiden.
Tale XLII. The virtuous resistance made by a young woman of Touraine
causes a young Prince that is in love with her, to change his desire to
respect, and to bestow her honourably in marriage.
Tale XLIII. How a little chalk-mark revealed the hypocrisy of a lady
called Jambicque, who was wont to hide the pleasures she indulged in,
beneath the semblance of austerity.
Tale XLIV. (A). Through telling the truth, a Grey Friar receives as alms
from the Lord of Sedan two pigs instead of one.
Tale XLIV. (B). Honourable conduct of a young citizen of Paris, who,
after suddenly enjoying his sweetheart, at last happily marries.

Tale XLV. Cleverness of an upholsterer of Touraine, who, to hide that
he has given the Innocents to his serving-maid, contrives to give them
afterwards to his wife.
Tale XLVI. (A). Wicked acts of a Grey Friar of Angoulême called De Vale,
who fails in his purpose with the wife of the Judge of the Exempts, but
to whom a mother in blind confidence foolishly abandons her daughter.

Tale XLVI. (B). Sermons of the Grey Friar De Vallès, at first against
and afterwards on behalf of husbands that beat their wives.
Tale XLVII. The undeserved jealousy of a gentleman of Le Perche towards
another gentleman, his friend, leads the latter to deceive him.
Tale XLVIII. Wicked act of a Grey Friar of Perigord, who, while a
husband was dancing at his wedding, went and took his place with the
bride.
Tale XLIX. Story of a foreign Countess, who, not content with having
King Charles as her lover, added to him three lords, to wit, Astillon,
Durassier and Valnebon.
Tale L. Melancholy fortune of Messire John Peter, a gentleman of
Cremona, who dies just when he is winning the affection of the lady he
loves.
Appendix to Vol. IV.





THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON OF
MARGARET, QUEEN OF NAVARRE
IN FIVE VOLUMES
VOLUME THE FIFTH


CONTENTS
SIXTH DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE LI.
TALE LII.
TALE LIII.
TALE LIV.
TALE LV.
TALE LVI.
TALE LVII.
TALE LVIII.
TALE LIX.
TALE LX.
SEVENTH DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE LXI.
TALE LXII.
TALE LXIII.
TALE LXIV.
TALE LXV.
TALE LXVI.
TALE LXVII.
TALE LXVIII.
TALE LXIX.
TALE LXX.
EIGHTH DAY.
PROLOGUE.
TALE LXXI.
TALE LXXII.
APPENDIX.
THE SUPPOSED NARRATORS OF THE HEPTAMERON TALES.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece
Titlepage
005a.jpg the Duke of Urbino Sending The Maiden to Prison for Carrying Messages
005.jpg Page Image
014.jpg Tailpiece
015a.jpg the Gentleman and his Friend Annoyed by The Smell of Sugar
015.jpg Page Image
022.jpg Tailpiece
023a.jpg the Lord Des Cheriots Flying from The Prince’s Servant
023.jpg Page Image
036.jpg Tailpiece
037a.jpg the Lady Watching The Shadow Faces Kissing
037.jpg Page Image
042.jpg Tailpiece
043a.jpg the Servant Selling The Horse With The Cat
043.jpg Page Image
049.jpg Tailpiece
051a.jpg the Grey Friar Introducing his Comrade to The Lady and Her Daughter
051.jpg Page Image
061.jpg Tailpiece
063a.jpg the English Lord Seizing The Lady’s Glove
063.jpg Page Image
070.jpg Tailpiece
071a. The Gentleman Mocked by The Ladies when Returning from The False Tryst
071.jpg Page Image
078.jpg Tailpiece
079a. The Lady Discovering Her Husband With The Waiting-woman
079.jpg Page Image
090.jpg Tailpiece
091a. The Chanter of Blois Delivering his Mistress from The Grave
091.jpg Page Image
099.jpg Tailpiece
105a. The Lady Returning to Her Lover, The Canon of Autun
105.jpg Page Image
117.jpg Tailpiece
119a. The Gentleman’s Spur Catching in The Sheet
119.jpg Page Image
124.jpg Tailpiece
125a. The King Asking The Young Lord to Join his Banquet
125.jpg Page Image
132.jpg Tailpiece
133a. The Lady Swooning in The Arms of The Gentleman Of Valencia Who Had Become a Monk
133.jpg Page Image
141.jpg Tailpiece
143a. The Old Woman Startled by The Waking of The Soldier
143.jpg Page Image
147.jpg Tailpiece
149a. The Old Serving-woman Explaining Her Mistake To The Duke and Duchess of Vendôme
149.jpg Page Image
154.jpg Tailpiece
155a. The Wife Reading to Her Husband on The Desert Island
155.jpg Page Image
161.jpg Tailpiece
163a. The Apothecary’s Wife Giving The Dose of Cantharides To Her Husband
163.jpg Page Image
168.jpg Tailpiece
169a. The Wife Discovering Her Husband in The Hood Of Their Serving-maid
169.jpg Page Image
174.jpg Tailpiece
175a. The Gentleman Killing Himself on The Death of his Mistress
175.jpg Page Image
213.jpg Tailpiece
219a. The Saddler’s Wife Cured by The Sight of Her Husband Caressing the Serving-maid
219.jpg Page Image
224.jpg Tailpiece
225a. The Monk Conversing With The Nun While Shrouding A Dead Body
225.jpg Page Image
232.jpg Tailpiece
DETAILED CONTENTS OF VOLUME V.
SIXTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale LI. Cruelty of the Duke of Urbino, who, contrary to the promise he had given to the Duchess, hanged a poor lady that had consented to convey letters to his son’s sweetheart, the sister of the Abbot of Farse.
Tale LII. Merry trick played by the varlet of an apothecary at Alençon on the Lord de la Tirelière and the lawyer Anthony Bacheré, who, thinking to breakfast at his expense, find that they have stolen from him something very different to a loaf of sugar.
Tale LIII. Story of the Lady of Neufchâtel, a widow at the Court of Francis I., who, through not admitting that she has plighted her troth to the Lord des Cheriots, plays him an evil trick through the means of the Prince of Belhoste.
Tale LIV. Merry adventure of a serving-woman and a gentleman named Thogas, whereof his wife has no suspicion.
Tale LV. The widow of a merchant of Saragossa, not wishing to lose the value of a horse, the price of which her husband had ordered to be given to the poor, devises the plan of selling the horse for one ducat only, adding, however, to the bargain a cat at ninety-nine.
Tale LVI. Notable deception practised by an old Grey Friar of Padua, who, being charged by a widow to find a husband for her daughter, did, for the sake of getting the dowry, cause her to marry a young Grey Friar, his comrade, whose condition, however, was before long discovered.
Tale LVII. Singular behaviour of an English lord, who is content merely to keep and wear upon his doublet the glove of a lady whom he loves.
Tale LVIII. A lady at the Court of Francis I., wishing to prove that she has no commerce with a certain gentleman who loves her, gives him a pretended tryst and causes him to pass for a thief.
Tale LIX. Story of the same lady, who, learning that her husband is in love with her waiting-woman, contrives to surprise him and impose her own terms upon him.
Tale LX. A man of Paris, thinking his wife to be well and duly deceased, marries again, but at the end of fifteen years is forced to take his first wife back, although she has been living meantime with one of the chanters of Louis XII.
SEVENTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale LXI. Great kindness of a husband, who consents to take back his wife twice over, spite of her wanton love for a Canon of Autun.
Tale LXII. How a lady, while telling a story as of another, let her tongue trip in such a way as to show that what she related had happened to herself.
Tale LXIII. How the honourable behaviour of a young lord, who feigns sickness in order to be faithful to his wife, spoils a party in which he was to have made one with the King, and in this way saves the honour of three maidens of Paris.
Tale LXIV. Story of a gentleman of Valencia in Spain, whom a lady drove to such despair that he became a monk, and whom afterwards she strove in vain to win back to herself.
Tale LXV. Merry mistake of a worthy woman, who in the church of St. John of Lyons mistakes a sleeping soldier for one of the statues on a tomb, and sets a lighted candle on his forehead.
Tale LXVI. How an old serving-woman, thinking to surprise a Prothonotary with a lady, finds herself insulting Anthony de Bourbon and his wife Jane d’Albret.
Tale LXVII. How the Sire de Robertval, granting a traitor his life at the prayers of the man’s wife, set them both down on a desert island, and how, after the husband’s death, the wife was rescued and brought back to La Rochelle.
Tale LXVIII. The wife of an apothecary at Pau, hearing her husband give some powder of cantharides to a woman who was godmother with himself, secretly administered to him such a dose of the same drug that he nearly died.
Tale LXIX. How the wife of one of the King’s Equerries surprised her husband muffled in the hood of their servant-maid, and bolting meal in her stead.
Tale LXX. Of the love of a Duchess of Burgundy for a gentleman who rejects her advances, for which reason she accuses him to the Duke her husband, and the latter does not believe his oaths till assured by him that he loves the Lady du Vergier. Then the Duchess, having drawn knowledge of this amour from her husband, addresses to the Lady du Vergier in public, an allusion that causes the death of both lovers; and the Duke, in despair at his own lack of discretion, stabs the Duchess himself.
EIGHTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale LXXI. The wife of a saddler of Amboise is saved on her deathbed through a fit of anger at seeing her husband fondle a servant-maid.
Tale LXXII. Kindness of the Duchess of Alençon to a poor nun whom she meets at Lyons, on her way to Rome, there to confess to the Pope how a monk had wronged her, and to obtain his Holiness’s pardon.





THE TALES OF THE HEPTAMERON
OF MARGARET, QUEEN OF NAVARRE
IN FIVE VOLUMES
DETAILED CONTENTS
OF THE TALES OF ALL FIVE VOLUMES
Tale I. The pitiful history of a Proctor of Alençon, named St. Aignan,
and of his wife, who caused her husband to assassinate her lover, the
son of the Lieutenant-General
Tale II. The fate of the wife of a muleteer of Amboise, who suffered herself
to be killed by her servant rather than sacrifice her chastity
Tale III. The revenge taken by the Queen of Naples, wife to King Alfonso, for
her husband’s infidelity with a gentleman’s wife
Tale IV. The ill success of a Flemish gentleman who was unable to obtain,
either by persuasion or force, the love of a great Princess
Tale V. How a boatwoman of Coulon, near Nyort, contrived to escape from the
vicious designs of two Grey Friars
Tale VI. How the wife of an old valet of the Duke of Alençon’s succeeded
in saving her lover from her husband, who was blind of one eye
Tale VII. The craft of a Parisian merchant, who saved the reputation of the
daughter by offering violence to the mother
FIRST DAY—Continued.
Tale VIII. The misadventure of Bornet, who, planning with a friend of
his that both should lie with a serving-woman, discovers too late that
they have had to do with his own wife.
Tale IX. The evil fortune of a gentleman of Dauphiné, who dies of
despair because he cannot marry a damsel nobler and richer than himself.
Tale X. The Spanish story of Florida, who, after withstanding the love
of a gentleman named Amadour for many years, eventually becomes a nun.
SECOND DAY.
Prologue
Tale XI. (A). Mishap of the Lady de Roncex in the Grey Friars’ Convent
at Thouars.
Tale XI. (B). Facetious discourse of a Friar of Touraine.
Tale XII. Story of Alexander de’ Medici, Duke of Florence, whom his
cousin, Lorenzino de’ Medici, slew in order to save his sister’s honour.
Tale XIII. Praiseworthy artifice of a lady to whom a sea Captain sent
a letter and diamond ring, and who, by forwarding them to the Captain’s
wife as though they had been intended for her, united husband and wife
once more in all affection.
Tale XIV. The Lord of Bonnivet, after furthering the love entertained
by an Italian gentleman for a lady of Milan, finds means to take
the other’s place and so supplant him with the lady who had formerly
rejected himself.
Tale XV. The troubles and evil fortune of a virtuous lady who, after
being long neglected by her husband, becomes the object of his jealousy.
Tale XVI. Story of a Milanese Countess, who, after long rejecting the
love of a French gentleman, rewards him at last for his faithfulness,
but not until she has put his courage to the proof.
Tale XVII. The noble manner in which King Francis the First shows Count
William of Furstemberg that he knows of the plans laid by him against
his life, and so compels him to do justice upon himself and to leave
France.
Tale XVIII. A young gentleman scholar at last wins a lady’s love, after
enduring successfully two trials that she had made of him.
Appendix to Vol. II
SECOND DAY—Continued.
Tale XIX. The honourable love of a gentleman, who, when his sweetheart
is forbidden to speak with him, in despair becomes a monk of the
Observance, while the lady, following in his footsteps, becomes a nun of
St. Clara
Tale XX. How the Lord of Riant is cured of his love fora beautiful widow
through surprising her in the arms of a groom
THIRD DAY.
Prologue
Tale XXI. The affecting history of Rolandine, who, debarred from
marriage by her father’s greed, betrothes herself to a gentleman to
whom, despite his faithlessness, she keeps her plighted word, and does
not marry until after his death
Tale XXII. How Sister Marie Heroet virtuously escapes the attempts of
the Prior of St. Martin in-the-Fields
Tale XXIII. The undeserved confidence which a gentleman of Perigord
places in the monks of the Order of St. Francis, causes the death of
himself, his wife and their little child
Tale XXIV. Concerning the unavailing love borne to the Queen of Castile
by a gentleman named Elisor, who in the end becomes a hermit
Tale XXV. How a young Prince found means to conceal his intrigue with
the wife of a lawyer of Paris
Tale XXVI. How the counsels of a discreet lady happily withdrew the
young Lord of Avannes from the perils of his foolish love for a lady of
Pampeluna
Tale XXVII. How the wife of a man who was valet to a Princess rid
herself of the solicitations of one who was among the same Princess’s
servants, and at the same time her husband’s guest
Tale XXVIII. How a Gascon merchant, named Bernard du Ha, while
sojourning at Paris, deceived a Secretary to the Queen of Navarre who
had thought to obtain a pasty from him
Tale XXIX. How the Priest of Carrelles, in Maine, when surprised with
the wife of an old husbandman, gets out of the difficulty by pretending
to return him a winnowing fan
Tale XXX. How a gentleman marries his own daughter and sister unawares
FOURTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale XXXI. Punishment of the wickedness of a Friar who sought to lie
with a gentleman’s wife.
Tale XXXII. How an ambassador of Charles VIII., moved by the repentance
of a German lady, whom her husband compelled to drink out of her lover’s
skull, reconciled husband and wife together.
Tale XXXIII. The hypocrisy of a priest who, under the cloak of sanctity,
had lain with his own sister, is discovered and punished by the wisdom
of the Count of Angoulême.
Tale XXXIV. The terror of two Friars who believed that a butcher
intended to murder them, whereas the poor man was only speaking of his
Pigs.
Tale XXXV. How a husband’s prudence saves his wife from the risks she
incurred while thinking to yield to merely a spiritual love.
Tale XXXVI. The story of the President of Grenoble, who saves the honour
of his house by poisoning his wife with a salad.
Tale XXXVII. How the Lady of Loué regained her husband’s affection.
Tale XXXVIII. The kindness of a townswoman of Tours to a poor
farm-woman who is mistress to her husband, makes the latter so ashamed
of his faithlessness that he returns to his wife.
Tale XXXIX. How the Lord of Grignaulx rid one of his houses of a
pretended ghost.
Tale XL. The unhappy history of the Count de Jossebelin’s sister, who
shut herself up in a hermitage because her brother caused her husband to
be slain.
FIFTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale XLI. Just punishment of a Grey Friar for the unwonted penance that
he would have laid upon a maiden.
Tale XLII. The virtuous resistance made by a young woman of Touraine
causes a young Prince that is in love with her, to change his desire to
respect, and to bestow her honourably in marriage.
Tale XLIII. How a little chalk-mark revealed the hypocrisy of a lady
called Jambicque, who was wont to hide the pleasures she indulged in,
beneath the semblance of austerity.
Tale XLIV. (A). Through telling the truth, a Grey Friar receives as alms
from the Lord of Sedan two pigs instead of one.
Tale XLIV. (B). Honourable conduct of a young citizen of Paris, who,
after suddenly enjoying his sweetheart, at last happily marries.

Tale XLV. Cleverness of an upholsterer of Touraine, who, to hide that
he has given the Innocents to his serving-maid, contrives to give them
afterwards to his wife.
Tale XLVI. (A). Wicked acts of a Grey Friar of Angoulême called De Vale,
who fails in his purpose with the wife of the Judge of the Exempts, but
to whom a mother in blind confidence foolishly abandons her daughter.

Tale XLVI. (B). Sermons of the Grey Friar De Vallès, at first against
and afterwards on behalf of husbands that beat their wives.
Tale XLVII. The undeserved jealousy of a gentleman of Le Perche towards
another gentleman, his friend, leads the latter to deceive him.
Tale XLVIII. Wicked act of a Grey Friar of Perigord, who, while a
husband was dancing at his wedding, went and took his place with the
bride.
Tale XLIX. Story of a foreign Countess, who, not content with having
King Charles as her lover, added to him three lords, to wit, Astillon,
Durassier and Valnebon.
Tale L. Melancholy fortune of Messire John Peter, a gentleman of
Cremona, who dies just when he is winning the affection of the lady he
loves.
Appendix to Vol. IV.
SIXTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale LI. Cruelty of the Duke of Urbino, who, contrary to the promise he had given to the Duchess, hanged a poor lady that had consented to convey letters to his son’s sweetheart, the sister of the Abbot of Farse.
Tale LII. Merry trick played by the varlet of an apothecary at Alençon on the Lord de la Tirelière and the lawyer Anthony Bacheré, who, thinking to breakfast at his expense, find that they have stolen from him something very different to a loaf of sugar.
Tale LIII. Story of the Lady of Neufchâtel, a widow at the Court of Francis I., who, through not admitting that she has plighted her troth to the Lord des Cheriots, plays him an evil trick through the means of the Prince of Belhoste.
Tale LIV. Merry adventure of a serving-woman and a gentleman named Thogas, whereof his wife has no suspicion.
Tale LV. The widow of a merchant of Saragossa, not wishing to lose the value of a horse, the price of which her husband had ordered to be given to the poor, devises the plan of selling the horse for one ducat only, adding, however, to the bargain a cat at ninety-nine.
Tale LVI. Notable deception practised by an old Grey Friar of Padua, who, being charged by a widow to find a husband for her daughter, did, for the sake of getting the dowry, cause her to marry a young Grey Friar, his comrade, whose condition, however, was before long discovered.
Tale LVII. Singular behaviour of an English lord, who is content merely to keep and wear upon his doublet the glove of a lady whom he loves.
Tale LVIII. A lady at the Court of Francis I., wishing to prove that she has no commerce with a certain gentleman who loves her, gives him a pretended tryst and causes him to pass for a thief.
Tale LIX. Story of the same lady, who, learning that her husband is in love with her waiting-woman, contrives to surprise him and impose her own terms upon him.
Tale LX. A man of Paris, thinking his wife to be well and duly deceased, marries again, but at the end of fifteen years is forced to take his first wife back, although she has been living meantime with one of the chanters of Louis XII.
SEVENTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale LXI. Great kindness of a husband, who consents to take back his wife twice over, spite of her wanton love for a Canon of Autun.
Tale LXII. How a lady, while telling a story as of another, let her tongue trip in such a way as to show that what she related had happened to herself.
Tale LXIII. How the honourable behaviour of a young lord, who feigns sickness in order to be faithful to his wife, spoils a party in which he was to have made one with the King, and in this way saves the honour of three maidens of Paris.
Tale LXIV. Story of a gentleman of Valencia in Spain, whom a lady drove to such despair that he became a monk, and whom afterwards she strove in vain to win back to herself.
Tale LXV. Merry mistake of a worthy woman, who in the church of St. John of Lyons mistakes a sleeping soldier for one of the statues on a tomb, and sets a lighted candle on his forehead.
Tale LXVI. How an old serving-woman, thinking to surprise a Prothonotary with a lady, finds herself insulting Anthony de Bourbon and his wife Jane d’Albret.
Tale LXVII. How the Sire de Robertval, granting a traitor his life at the prayers of the man’s wife, set them both down on a desert island, and how, after the husband’s death, the wife was rescued and brought back to La Rochelle.
Tale LXVIII. The wife of an apothecary at Pau, hearing her husband give some powder of cantharides to a woman who was godmother with himself, secretly administered to him such a dose of the same drug that he nearly died.
Tale LXIX. How the wife of one of the King’s Equerries surprised her husband muffled in the hood of their servant-maid, and bolting meal in her stead.
Tale LXX. Of the love of a Duchess of Burgundy for a gentleman who rejects her advances, for which reason she accuses him to the Duke her husband, and the latter does not believe his oaths till assured by him that he loves the Lady du Vergier. Then the Duchess, having drawn knowledge of this amour from her husband, addresses to the Lady du Vergier in public, an allusion that causes the death of both lovers; and the Duke, in despair at his own lack of discretion, stabs the Duchess himself.
EIGHTH DAY.
Prologue
Tale LXXI. The wife of a saddler of Amboise is saved on her deathbed through a fit of anger at seeing her husband fondle a servant-maid.
Tale LXXII. Kindness of the Duchess of Alençon to a poor nun whom she meets at Lyons, on her way to Rome, there to confess to the Pope how a monk had wronged her, and to obtain his Holiness’s pardon.