English literature -- Middle English, 1100-1500; Great Britain -- Social life and customs -- 1066-1485 -- Sources
more in this work, and was fully in will to have left it, till on a time
it fortuned that the right high, excellent, and right virtuous princess,
my right redoubted Lady, my Lady Margaret, by the grace of God sister
unto the King of England and of France, my sovereign lord, Duchess of
Burgundy, of Lotryk, of Brabant, of Limburg, and of Luxembourg, Countess
of Flanders, of Artois, and of Burgundy, Palatine of Hainault, of
Holland, of Zealand and of Namur, Marquesse of the Holy Empire, Lady of
Frisia, of Salins and of Mechlin, sent for me to speak with her good
Grace of divers matters, among the which I let her Highness have
knowledge of the foresaid beginning of this work, which anon commanded
me to show the said five or six quires to her said Grace; and when she
had seen them anon she found a default in my English, which she
commanded me to amend, and moreover commanded me straitly to continue
and make an end of the residue then not translated; whose dreadful
commandment I durst in no wise disobey, because I am a servant unto her
said Grace and receive of her yearly fee and other many good and great
benefits, (and also hope many more to receive of her Highness), but
forthwith went and laboured in the said translation after my simple and
poor cunning, also nigh as I can following my author, meekly beseeching
the bounteous Highness of my said Lady that of her benevolence list to
accept and take in gree this simple and rude work here following; and if
there be anything written or said to her pleasure, I shall think my
labour well employed, and whereas there is default that she arette it to
the simpleness of my cunning which is full small in this behalf; and
require and pray all them that shall read this said work to correct it,
and to hold me excused of the rude and simple translation.
And thus I end my prologue.
Epilogue to Book II.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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