Transcriber’s Note: Biblical references in the sidenotes are not always possible to make out, due to the quality of the print. Where this is the case it has been noted with [unclear] or [unreadable], as appropriate. A Godly Medytacyon of the christen sowle, concerninge a loue towardes God and hys Christe, compyled in frenche by lady Margarete quene of Nauerre, and aptely translated into Englysh by the ryght vertuouse lady Elyzabeth doughter to our late souerayne Kynge Henri the .viij. [Illustration] Inclita filia, serenissimi olim Anglorum Regis Henrici octaui Elizabeta, tam Græcæ quam latine fœliciter in Christo erudita. To the ryght vertuouse and christenly lerned yonge lady Elizabeth, the noble doughter of our late souerayne Kynge Henry the .viij. Iohan Bale wysheth helth with dayly increace of Godly knowledge. [Sidenote: Nobylyse.] [Sidenote: Albion.] Diuerse and many (most gracyouse lady) haue the opynyons bene amonge the prophane philosophers and christen dyuynes, concernynge ryght Nobylyte, and no fewar stryues and contencyons for the same. Some autours haue vaynely boasted it to take orygynall of the olde Goddes of the Gentyles, as euery lāde hath had hys peculyar Saturne, Iupiter, & Hercules, yea our Englāde here and all. Some hath fatt it from the foure generall monarchyes of the Assyrianes, Perseanes, Grekes, and Romanes. Some haue attrybuted it, to the bolde battayles and bloudshedynges, in Ninus of Babylon the first inuētour of polycyes in warre, in our great Albion the Chamesene, whych first in thys regyon suppressed the posterite of Iaphet, vsurpynge therin the first monarchy, in Brute that more than six hondred yeares after defaced of hym the tyrannouse yssue, in Ebrāck and Dunwallo, in Brenne and Belyne, in great Constantyne, Artoure, Cadwalader, Engist, Egbert, Alphrede wyllyam cōquerour & soch other, for lyke cōquestes of the Romanes, Grekes, Galles, pyctes, Brytaynes, Saxons, Danes, Iryshens and Englyshens. [Sidenote: Brute.] [Sidenote: Romani.] [Sidenote: Gwalli.] [Sidenote: Iaphet.] [Sidenote: Kyndes of Nobylyte.]