Such is the title in Thynne's edition (1532). In MS. F. (Fairfax 16), it is entitled--'Complaynte of a Loveres Lyfe'; and there is a printed edition with the title--'The Complaynte of a Louers Lyfe. Imprynted at London in the flete strete at the sygne of the Sonne, by Wynkyn de Worde'; no date, 4to. on twelve leaves. In MS. S. (Arch. Selden, B. 24), there is an erroneous colophon--'Here endith the Maying and disporte of Chaucere'; which gives the wrong title, and assigns it to the wrong author. In accordance with the last MS., it was printed, with the erroneous title--'Here begynnys the mayng or disport of chaucer'--in a volume 'Imprentit in the south gait of Edinburgh be Walter chepman and Androw myllar the fourth day of ap_er_ile the yhere of god . M.CCCCC. and viii yheris' [1508]; and this scarce copy was reprinted as piece no. 8 in The Knightly Tale of Golagrus and Gawane, &c., as reprinted by Laing in 1827. But the fullest title is that in MS. Ad. (Addit. 16165), written out by John Shirley, who says: 'And here filowyng begynnethe a Right lusty amorous balade, made in wyse of a complaynt of a Right worshipfull_e_ Knyght that truly euer serued his lady, enduryng grete disese by fals envye and malebouche; made by Lydegate' (fol. 190, back). Some of the pages have the heading, 'The compleynte of a Knight made by Lidegate[17].' This attribution of the poem to Lydgate, by so good a judge as Shirley, renders the authorship certain; and the ascription is fully confirmed by strong internal evidence. Much of it is in Lydgate's best manner, and his imitation of Chaucer is, in places, very close; while, at the same time, it is easy to point out non-Chaucerian rimes, such as _whyte_, _brighte_, 2; _pitously_, _malady_ (Ch. _maladyë_), 137; _felyngly_, _malady_, 188; _mente_, _diligent_, 246; _grace_, _alas_, 529; _seyn_, _payn_ (Ch. _peynë_), 568; _diurnal_, _fal_, (Ch. _falle_), 590; _payn_, _agayn_, 650; _queen_ (Ch. _quene_), _seen_, 674. Besides which, there are two mere assonances in two consecutive stanzas, viz. _forjuged_, _excused_, 274; and _wreke_, _clepe_, 284. The occurrence of this pair of assonances is quite enough to settle the question. If we apply a more delicate test, we may observe that, in ll. 218-220, the word _s[=o]re_ (with long _o_) rimes with _tore_, in which the _o_ was originally short; on this point, see vol. vi. p. xxxii.