Whan that Aprille with his schowrës swoote The drought of Marche had perced to the roote, And bathed every veyne in swich licour, Of which vertue engendred is the flour; Whan Zephirus eek with his swetë breethe Enspired hath in every holte and heethe The tendre croppës, and the yongë sonne Hath in the Ram{1} his halfë cours i-ronne,{2} And smalë fowlës maken melodie, That slepen al the night with open eye, So priketh hem nature in here corages:-- Than longen folk to gon on pilgrimages, And palmers for to seeken{3} straungë strondes, To fernë halwes, kouthe in sondry londes; And specially, from every schirës ende Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende, The holy blisful martir{4} for to seeke, That hem hath holpen whan that they were seeke.{5} Byfel that, in that sesoun on a day, In Southwerk at the Tabard{6} as I lay, Redy to wenden on my pilgrimage To Caunterbury with ful devout corage, At night was come into that hostelrye Wel nyne and twenty in a compainye, Of sondry folk, by aventure i-falle In felaweschipe, and pilgryms were thei alle, That toward Caunterbury wolden ryde; The chambres and the stables{7} weren wyde, And wel we werën esed attë beste. And schortly, whan the sonnë was to reste, So hadde I spoken with hem everychon, That I was of here felaweschipe anon, And madë forward erly for to ryse, To take our wey ther as I yow devyse. But nathëles, whil I have tyme and space, Or{8} that I forther in this talë pace, Me thinketh it acordaunt to resoun, To tellë yow al the condicioun{9} Of eche of hem, so as it semede me, And whiche they weren, and of what degre; And eek in what array that they were inne: And at a knight than wol I first bygynne. A KNIGHT ther was, and that a worthy man, That from the tymë that he first bigan To ryden out, he lovede chyvalrye,{10} Trouthe and honour, fredom and curteisye. Ful worthy was he in his lordës werre, And therto hadde he riden, noman ferre, As wel in Cristendom as in hethënesse,{11} And evere honoured for his worthinesse. At Alisaundre{12} he was whan it was wonne, Ful oftë tyme he hadde the bord bygonne{13} Aboven allë naciouns in Pruce.{14} In Lettowe hadde he reysed and in Ruce, No cristen man so ofte of his degre. In Gernade{15} attë siegë hadde he be Of Algesir, and riden in Belmarie. At Lieys was he, and at Satalie, Whan they were wonne; and in the Greetë see{16} At many a noble arive hadde he be. At mortal batailles hadde he ben fiftene, And foughten for our feith at Tramassene In lystës thriës, and ay slayn his foo. This ilkë worthy knight hadde ben also Somtymë with the lord of Palatye,{17} Ageyn another hethen in Turkye: