familiarly of Troilus, Paris, and Jason, the notable atchievements we may suppose to have been performed by the assistance of the horse of brass, are either lost, or that this part of the story, by far the most interesting, was never written. After the strange knight has explained to Cambuscan the management of this magical courser, he vanishes on a sudden, and we hear no more of him. At after souper goth this noble king To seen this Hors of Bras, with all a route Swiche wondring was ther on this Hors of Bras", Ther as men wondred on an hors also, "Cervantes mentions a horse of wood, which, like this of Chaucer, on turning a pin in his forehead, carried his rider through the air, [A similar fiction occurs in the Arabian Nights' Entertainments, and must be in the recollection of every reader.] This horse, Cervantes adds, was made by Merlin for Peter of Provence; with which that valorous knight carried off the fair Magalona. From what romance Cervantes took this I do not recollect: but the reader sees its correspondence with the fiction of Chaucer's horse, and will refer it to the same original. See Don Quixote, B. iii. ch. 8. We have the same thing in VALENTINE AND ORSON, ch. xxxi. [The romance alluded to by Cervantes, is entitled "La Historia de la linda Maga lona hija del rey de Napoles y de Pi- Repaireth to his revel as beforne: The brydel is into the Toure, yborne*, The horse vanisht: I n'ot in what manere. By such inventions we are willing to be deceived. These are the triumphs of deception over truth. Magnanima mensogna, hor quando è al vero Si bello, che si possa à te preporre? The CLERKE OF Oxenfordes TALE, or the story of Patient Grisilde, is the next of Chaucer's Tales in the serious style which deserves mention. The Clerke declares in his Prologue, that he learned this tale of Petrarch at Padua. But it was the invention of Boccacio, and is the last in his DECAMERON'. Petrarch, although most intimately connected with Boccacio for near thirty years, never had seen the Decameron till just before his death. It accidentally fell into his hands, while he resided at Arque between Venice and Padua, in the year one thousand three hundred and seventy-four. The tale of Grisilde struck him the most of any so much, that he got it by heart to relate it to his friends at Padua. Finding that it was the most popular of all Boccacio's tales, for the benefit of those who did not understand Italian, and to spread its circulation, he translated it into Latin with some alterations. Petrarch relates this in a letter to Boccacio: and adds, that on shewing the translation to one of his Paduan friends, the latter, touched [The bridle of the enchanted horse is carried into the tower, which was the treasury of Cambuscan's castle, to be kept among the jewels. Thus when king Richard the First, in a crusade, took Cyprus, among the treasures in the castles are recited pretious stones, and golden cups, together with "Sellis aureis frenis et calcaribus.' Galfr. Vinesauf. ITER. HIEROSOL. cap. xli. p. 328. VET. SCRIPT. ANGL. tom. ii.-ADDITIONS.] Pjocalia; precious things. v. 322. seq. 355. seq. Giorn. x. Nov. 10. Dryden, in the superficial but lively Preface to his Fa bles, says, "The Tale of Grisilde was the invention of Petrarch: by him sent to Boccace, from whom it came to Chaucer." [It may be doubted whether Boccacio invented the story of Grisilde. For, as the late inquisitive and judicious editor of the CANTERBURY TALES observes, it appears by a Letter of Petrarch to Boccacio, [OPP. Petrarch. p. 540-7. edit. Basil. 1581.] sent with his Latin translation, in 1973, that Petrarch had heard the story with pleasure, many years before he saw the Decameron. vol. iv. p. 157. ADDITIONS.] with the tenderness of the story, burst into such frequent and violent fits of tears, that he could not read to the end. In the same letter he says, that a Veronese having heard of the Paduan's exquisiteness of feeling on this occasion, resolved to try the experiment. He read the whole aloud from the beginning to the end, without the least change of voice or countenance; but on returning the book to Petrarch, confessed that it was an affecting story: "I should have wept," added he, "like the Paduan, had I thought the story true. But the whole is a manifest fiction. There never was, nor ever will be, such a wife as Grisildes." Chaucer, as our Clerke's declaration in the Prologue seems to imply, received this tale from Petrarch, and not from Boccacio: and I am inclined to think, that he did not take it from Petrarch's Latin translation, but that he was one of those friends to whom Petrarch used to relate it at Padua. This too seems sufficiently pointed out in the words of the Prologue. I wol you tell a talè which that I Lerned at Padowe of a worthy clerk:- Chaucer's tale is also much longer, and more circumstantial, than Boccacio's. Petrarch's Latin translation from Boccacio was never printed. It is in the royal library at Paris, in that of Magdalene college at Oxford", and in Bennet college library, with this title: "HISTORIA sive FABULA de nobili Marchione WALTERIO domino terræ Saluciarum, quomodo duxit in uxorem GRISILDEM pauperculam,' et ejus constantiam et patien 8 Vie de Petrarch, iii. 797. tv. 1057. p. 96. Urr. Afterwards Petrarch is mentioned as dead. He died of an apoplexy, Jul. 18, 1974. See v. 2168. " Viz. "Vita Grisildis per Fr. Petrarcham de vulgari in Latinam linguam traducta." But Rawlinson cites, "Epistola Francisci Petrarchæ de insigni obe dientia et fide uxoria Griseldis in Waltherum Ulme, impress." per me R.... A.D. 18A3. MS. Not. in Mattairii Typogr. Hist. i. i. p. 104. In Bibl. Bodl. Oxon. Among the royal manuscripts, in the British Museum, there is, "Fr. Petrarchæ super Historiam Walterii Marchionis et Griseldis uxoris ejus.' 8. B. vi. 17. tiam mirabiliter et acriter comprobavit: quam de vulgari sermone Saluciarum in Latinum transtulit D. Franciscus Petrarcha*" The story soon became so popular in France, that the comedians of Paris represented a Mystery in French verse entitled LE MYSTERE DE GRISEILDIS MARQUIS DE SALUCES, in the year 1393". Lydgate, almost Chaucer's cotemporary, in his manuscript poem entitled the TEMPLE OF GLASS, among the celebrated lovers painted on the walls of the temple', mentions Dido, Medea and Jason, Penelope, Alcestis, PATIENT Grisilde, Bel Isoulde and Sir Tristram2, Pyramus and Thisbe, Theseus, Lucretia, Canace, Palamon and Emiliaa. [CLXXVII. 10. fol. 76. Again, ibid. CCLXXV. 14. fol. 163. Again, ibid. CCCCLVIII. S. with the date 1476, I suppose, from the scribe. And in Bibl. Bodl. MSS, LAUD. G. 80.-ADDITIONS.] It was many years afterwards printed at Paris, by Jean Bonnefons. This is the whole title: "Le MYSTERE de Griseldis, Marquis de Saluces, mis en rime Françoise et par personnaiges." Without date, in quarto, and in the Gothic type. In the colophon, Cy finist la vie de Griseldis, &c.-ADDITIONS.] The writers of the French stage do not mention this piece. See p. 81. Their first theatre is that of Saint Maur, and it's commencement is placed five years later, in the year 1398. Afterwards Apostolo Zeno wrote a theatrical piece on this subject in Italy. I need not mention that it is to this day represented in England, on a stage of the lowest species, and of the highest antiquity: I mean at a puppet-show. The French have this story in their PArement des damES. See Mem. Lit. Tom. ii. p. 743. 4to. * And in a Balade, translated by Lydgate from the Latin, “Grisilde's humble patience" is recorded. Urr. Ch. p. 550. v. 108. y There is a more curious mixture in Chaucer's Balade to king Henry IV. Where Alexander, Hector, Julius Cesar, Judas Maccabeus, David, Joshua, Charlemagne, Godfrey of Bulloign, and king Arthur, are all thrown together as antient heroes. v. 281. seq. [These are the nine worthics. The balade is Gow er's.-RITSON.] But it is to be observed, that the French had a metrical romance called Judas Macchabée, begun by Gualtier de Belleperche, before 1240. It was finished a few years afterwars by Pierros du Reiz. Fauch. p. 197. See also Lydgate, Urr. Chauc. p. 550. v. 89. M. de la Curne de Sainte Palaye has given us an extract of an old Provencial poem, in which, among heroes of love and gallantry, are enuinerated Paris, Sir Tristram, Ivaine the inventor of gloves and other articles of elegance in dress, Apollonius of Tyre, and king Arthur. Mein. Chev. Extr. de Poes. Prov. ii. p. 154. In a French romance, Le livre de cuer d' amour espris, written 1457, the author introduces the blasoning of the arms of several celebrated lovers: among which are king David, Nero, Mark Antony, Theseus, Hercules, Eneas, Sir Lancelot, Sir Tristram, Arthur duke of Bretagne, Gaston du Foix, many French dukes, &c. Mem. Lit. viii. p. 592. edit. 4to. The chevalier Bayard, who died about the year 1524, is compared to Scipio, Hannibal, Theseus, king David, Samson, Judas Maccabeus, Orlando, Godfrey of Bulloign, and monsieur de Palisse, marshal of France. LA VIE ET LES GESTES DU PREUX Chevalier Bayard, &c. Printed 1525. z From MORTE ARTHUR. They are mentioned in Chaucer's ASSEMBLIE OF FowLES, v. 290. See also Compl. Bl. Kn. v. 367. a MSS. Bibl. Bodl. Fairfax. 16. The pathos of this poem, which is indeed exquisite, chiefly consists in invention of incidents, and the contrivance of the story, which cannot conveniently be developed in this place: and it will be impossible to give any idea of it's essential excellence by exhibiting detached parts. The versification is equal to the rest of our author's poetry. |