Tell them to raunge the battel to the grore,
And waiten tyll I sende the hest for fyghte.
He saide; the loieaul broders lefte the place,
Success and cheerfulness depicted on ech face. 30
Slowelie brave Gyrthe and
Eilwarde dyd advaunce,
And markd wyth care the armies
dystant syde.
When the dyre clatterynge
of the shielde and launce
Made them to be by Hugh Fitzhugh
espyd.
He lyfted up his voice, and
lowdlie cryd; 35
Like wolfs in wintere did
the Normanne yell;
Girthe drew hys swerde, and
cutte hys burled hyde;
The proto-slene manne of the
fielde he felle;
Out streemd the bloude, and
ran in smokynge curles,
Reflected bie the moone seemd rubies mixt
wyth pearles. 40
A troope of Normannes from
the mass-songe came,
Rousd from their praiers by
the flotting crie;
Thoughe Girthe and Ailwardus
perceevd the same,
Not once theie stoode abashd,
or thoghte to flie.
He seizd a bill, to conquer
or to die; 45
Fierce as a clevis from a
rocke ytorne,
That makes a vallie wheresoe’re
it lie;
[1]Fierce as a ryver burstynge
from the borne;
So fiercelie Gyrthe hitte
Fitz du Gore a blowe.
And on the verdaunt playne he layde the
champyone lowe. 50
Tancarville thus; alle peace
in Williams name;
Let none edraw his arcublaster
bowe.
Girthe cas’d his weppone
as he hearde the same,
And vengynge Normannes staid
the flyinge floe.
The sire wente onne; ye menne,
what mean ye so 55
Thus unprovokd to courte a
bloudie fyghte?
Quod Gyrthe; oure meanynge
we ne care to showe,
Nor dread thy duke wyth all
his men of myghte;
Here single onlie these to
all thie crewe
Shall shewe what Englysh handes and heartes
can doe. 60
Seek not for bloude, Tancarville
calme replyd,
Nor joie in dethe, lyke madmen
most distraught;
In peace and mercy is a Chrystians
pryde;
He that dothe contestes pryze
is in a faulte.
And now the news was to Duke
William brought, 65
That men of Haroldes armie
taken were;
For theyre good cheere all
caties were enthoughte,
And Gyrthe and Eilwardus enjoi’d
goode cheere.
Quod Willyam; thus shall Willyam
be founde
A friend to everie manne that treades
on English ground. 70
Erie Leofwinus throwghe the
campe ypass’d,
And sawe bothe men and erlies
on the grounde;
They slepte, as thoughe they
woulde have slepte theyr last,
And hadd alreadie felte theyr
fatale wounde.
He started backe, and was
wyth shame astownd; 75
Loked wanne wyth anger, and