There sawe I Love upon the wall, 5 The armes, the which that Cupide bare, 10 In silver and sable to declare The stedfast love he alwayes ment. There might you se his band all drest To bring the fort to spoile and sacke. Good-wyll, the maister of the shot, Stode in the rampire brave and proude, For spence of pouder he spared not "Assault! assault! to crye aloude. There might you heare the cannons rore; And even with the trumpettes sowne 15 20 25 And Beautie walked up and downe, Then pushed souldiers with their pikes, The argabushe in fleshe it lightes, 35 And duns the ayre with misty smokes. Ver. 30, her. ed. 1557: so ed. 1585. And, as it is the souldiers use When shot and powder gins to want, And pleaded up for my livès grant. When Fancy thus had made her breche, Then Beautie bad to blow retrete, And every souldier to retire, And Mercy wyll'd with spede to fet "Madame," quoth I, " sith that this day I yeld to you without delay Here of the fortresse all the kayes. "And sith that I have ben the marke Or salve my sore, or let me die." 40 45 50 55 **Since the foregoing song was first printed off, reasons have occurred, which incline me to believe that Lord Vaux, the poet, was not the Lord Nicholas Vaux who died in 1523, but rather a successor of his in the title. For, in the first place, it is remarkable that all the old writers mention Lord Vaux, the poet, as contemporary or rather posterior to Sir Thomas Wyat and the Earl of Surrey, neither of whom made any figure till long after the death of the first Lord Nicholas Vaux. Thus Puttenham, in his Art of English Poesie, 1589, in p. 48, having named Skelton, adds, "In the latter end of the same kings raigne, [Henry VIII.] sprong up a new company of courtly Makers, [poets,] of whom Sir Thomas Wyat the elder, and Henry Earl of Surrey, where the two chieftaines, who having travailed into Italie, and there tasted the sweet and stately measures and stile of the Italian poesie greatly polished our rude and homely manner of vulgar poesie In the same time, or not long after, was the Lord Nicholas Vaux, a man of much facilitie in vulgar makings."-Webbe, in his Discourse of English Poetrie, 1586, ranges them in the following order, "The Earl of Surrey, the Lord Vaux, Norton, Bristow." And Gascoigne, in the place quoted in this work [b. ii. no. 2], mentions I ord Vaux after Surrey.-Again, the style and measure of Lord 1. e. Compositions in English. Vaux's pieces seem too refined and polished for the age of Henry VII., and rather resemble the smoothness and harmony of Surrey and Wyat, than the rude metre of Skelton and Hawes: but what puts the matter out of all doubt, in the British Museum is a copy of his poem, I lothe that I did love [vid. book ii. ubi supra], with this title, "A dyttye or sonet made by the Lord Vaus, in the time of the noble Quene Marye, representing the image of Death."-Harl. MSS. No. 1703, § 25. It is evident, then, that Lord Vaux the poet was not he that flourished in the reign of Henry VII., but either his son, or grandson; and yet, according to Dugdale's Baronage, the former was named Thomas, and the latter William: but this difficulty is not great, for none of the old writers mention the Christian name of the poetic Lord Vaux, except Puttenham; and it is more likely that he might be mistaken in that lord's name, than in the time in which he lived, who was so nearly his contemporary. Thomas, Lord Vaux, of Harrowden in Northamptonshire, was summoned to parliament in 1531. When he died does not appear; but he probably lived till the latter end of Queen Mary's reign, since his son. William was not summoned to parliament till the last year of that reign, in 1558. This lord died in 1595.-See Dugdale, vol. ii. p. 304. Upon the whole, I am inclined to believe that Lord Thomas was the poet. 2 In the Paradise of Dainty Devises, 1596, he is called simply "Lord Vaux the elder." IX. Sir Aldingar. This old fabulous legend is given from the Editor's folio MS. with conjectural emendations, and the insertion of some additional stanzas to supply and complete the story. It has been suggested to the Editor, that the author of this poem seems to have had in his eye the story of Gunhilda, who is sometimes called Eleanor, and was married to the Emperor (here called King) Henry. OUR king he kept a false stewàrde, Sir Aldingar they him call: He wolde have layne by our comelye queene, 5 Sir Aldingar was wrothe in his mind, 10 Till traiterous meanes he colde devyse, There came a lazar to the kings gate, Him on the queenes bed has layne. 66 Lye still, lazàr, wheras thou lyest, Ile make thee a whole man and a sound 15 20 Then went him forth Sir Aldingar, And hyed him to our king: "If I might have grace, as I have space, Sad tydings I could bring." "Say on, say on, Sir Aldingar, 25 Say on the soothe to mee." "Our queene hath chosen a new, new love, "If shee had chosen a right good knight, The lesse had beene her shame; 30 But she hath chose her a lazar man, A lazar both blinde and lame." "If this be true, thou Aldingar, Then will I make thee a rich, rich knight, 35 He probably insinuates that the king should heal him by his power of touching for the King's Evil. “But if it be false, Sir Aldingar, As God nowe grant it bee! Thy body, I sweare by the holye rood, Shall hang on the gallows tree." 40 He brought our king to the queenes chambèr, And opend to him the dore: "A lodlye love," King Harry says, "For our queene, Dame Elinore! "If thou were a man, as thou art none, 45 Here on my sword thoust dye; But a payre of new gallowes shall be built, And there shalt thou hang on hye." Forth then hyed our king, I wysse, And an angry man was hee, 50 And soone he found Queene Elinore, That bride so bright of blee. "Now God you save, our Queene, madame, And Christ you save and see! Here you have chosen a newe, newe love, 55 "If you had chosen a right good knight, But 60 Therfore a fyer there shall be built, And brent all shalt thou bee." "Now out alacke!" sayd our comly queene, "Sir Aldingar's false to mee. "Now out alacke!" sayd our comlye queene, "My heart with griefe will brast: 65 I had thought swevens had never been true, “I dreamt in my sweven on Thursday eve, I my bed wheras I laye, I dreamt a grype and a grimlie beast. Had carryed my crowne awaye; 70 |