But so the noble _Britaynes_ playde the valiaunt men, By pollicies, and force to hurt my shippes and mee, That I was forced after my returne agen, To rigge my shippes: a wonders thing[824] to see: For in the strands and in the seas, where landing places be,[825] Sharpe postes they pight, whereon our shippes wee ron:[826] [And at our enemies shoares, that woulde haue glory won, In daunger both by land and sea were almost all vndone:[827]] 19. And hardly[828] come to land, at length we met the hoast, And sharpely fought with them, whose praises earst we herd, I haue no cause of _Britayne_ conquest for to boast, Of all the Regions first and last with whome I werd: A people stout and strong, enduring chaunces herd, And desperate, wilde and fearce, and recklesse found I then, Not soone agast with dinte, or fright with fall of men, [Nor brought to yeelde with blowes, but bent for life to strike agen.] 20. For whan our armies mette, no daungers they forsooke, But so behau’de themselues in euery place of fight, As though to Martiall feates they onely had betooke Themselues, and for the palme did all their dealinges dight: Though with my _Romaynes_ I wagde all my warlike might, I was not able there, to cause them yeelde or flee, Or for a space to take a time of truce with mee, [Thou shalt (quod they) perceiue our equall _Mars_ with thee.] 21. The toyles wee tooke to enter at the first on land, And for to saue our shattered ships and armour brought, To wey them out that else had bulgd themselves in sand, Hereon before the fielde with might and mayne we wrought, Beside at skirmish oft, vpon the shoare we fought; These labours tyred so my men and me that tyde, That we could not endure the battayles brunt t’abyde, [But sound retrayte till better Fortune might vs guyde.] 22. They followed harde the chace with scath and losse we scapt, And shipt we hoysed sayles, to _Fraunce_ we made retyre: Where for an armie newe another roade we shapt, If winterr colde were past, to come agayne another yeere:[829] And so wee did in deede, and bought our comming deere, For they prouided had so well to fight, that I With all mine armies stoute could finde no victorye, [But fayne eftsoones with losse of men for life was forc’st to flye.] 23.