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A Mumming at Windsor:
Trinity R.3.20 Verses

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f.36 verso
Folio 36 Recto (Page 71)Folio 36 Verso (Page 72)Folio 37 Recto (Page 73)Folio 37 Verso (Page 74)

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Folio 36 Verso (Page 72)
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ɲ
Of Þe Ampoułł •
Stynt in ffraunce of Mawmetrye þe stryff •
Causing þe lawe / moost souereign of vertue •
To sprede a broode / of oure lord Ihesu •
ɲ
Hir meryte caused / and hir parfit entent •
Þat Crystes feyth / aboute þer did sprede •
Whane þat an Aungel / was frome heven sent •
Vn to an hermyte / of parfyt lyf in deed •
Presented it / whoo so can take heed •
A shelde of Azure / moost souerein by devys •
And in þe feelde of golde three floure delys •
ɲ
At Ioye en Vale / witħ oute more obstacle •
ffol al þis cas / where þaungel doune aligħt •
A place notable / chosen by myracle •
Whicħ thorugħe / al ffraunce shadde his bemys ligħt •
God of his grace / caste on þat place a sigħt •
ffor to þat Realme1 / is passing avauntage •
In þilke vale was sette þat hermytage •
ɲ
Al þis came In / whoo so list to seen •
I dare afferme it / witħ oute any dreed •
By parfytnesse / of þe hooly qweene •
Saynte Cloote / floure of wommanheed •
What euer she spake / acordant was þe deed •
I mene it þus / þat worde and worke was oon •
It is no wonder / for wymen soo beon echoon •
A daun Iohan est yvray •
ɲ
Hir hoolynesse / ffraunce did enlumyne •
And Crystes fayth / gretly magnefye •
Loo what grace / dooþe in wymmen shyne •
Whas assuraunce / noman may denye •
To seye pleyne troutħ / nys no flaterye •
But stabulnesse / In wymmen for to fynde •
Deemeþe youre selff / wher it komeþe hem of kynde •
ɲ
ffor thorugħe meeknesse / yif it beo2 adverted •
Of saynte Cloote / and thorugħ hir hyegħe prudence •
Kyng Cloudovee was to oure feytħ converted •
Notes
  1. The EETS edition has "reavme" here, but other words in the witness suggest that it is likely to be "realme," here capitalized. The mistake on MacCraken's part is understandable, however, as the bow of the "l" is larger than in most other examples and it is very similar to the v in "avauntage" in the same line as well as "vale" in the line following. Additional 29729 has "realme," which provides another example of how both witnesses are likely taken from a now-missing exemplar. ↩
  2. The EETS edition has "be" here, which may be a decision on MacCraken's part that the "o" terminating this word is in fact part of the "e" prior. However, it is similar enough to "beo" elsewhere in the poem -- see -- that it is more likely to be "beo." ↩

The work on this manuscript witness was generously sponsored by a ZKS-Lendrum Fellowship in the Scientific Study of Manuscripts and Inscriptions at the Institute for Medieval and Early Modern Studies at Durham University. The transcription of this work is owned by the editor and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. The images are owned by the Wren Library at Trinity College, Cambridge and are provided under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.