Edited by John Conlee - Prose Merlin - Vortiger's Demise; The Battle of Salisbury; and the d**h of Pendragon lyrics

[Summary. Vortiger leads his forces to Winchester to face the sons of Constance, and Merlin goes to Blase, who records what Merlin tells him in his book. When Pendragon and Uther arrive with their army, most of the people desert Vortiger and hold with the broth- ers. Vortiger retreats to his tower, pursued by the brothers. They set fire to the tower, k**ing Vortiger and his followers. Pendragon, having been made king, wages war against the Danish invaders. Hearing of the wondrous boy Merlin, Pendragon sends for him. Merlin amazes the messengers, who fear they have spoken with the devil. Pendragon goes himself to see Merlin, leaving Uther in command. Merlin also amazes Pendragon with his prophetic and shape-shifting abilities. Merlin informs Pendragon that Uther has just slain Aungier, the leader of the Danes. Pendragon asks Merlin to return with him, and Merlin says he will come in eleven days. Merlin then goes to see Blase. On the eleventh day Merlin appears at court, disguised as a messenger from Uther's mistress. When Merlin reveals who he really is, the brothers are delighted. They promise to follow Merlin's advice, and Merlin says he will come whenever they want him. Pendragon asks Merlin how to defeat the Danes. Merlin says to offer them safe-conduct if they will leave Britain. Ulfin and other knights carry the message to the Danes, who attempt to bargain; Merlin refuses to negotiate. The Danes finally agree, and they leave Britain. An envious baron tries to trick Merlin into making erroneous predictions. Merlin pre- dicts that the man will die by a combination of breaking his neck, hanging, and drowning. This comes about when the baron is thrown from his horse while crossing a bridge. The people say that anyone who disbelieves Merlin is a fool; they begin recording his prophe- cies in a book. Fols. 13v (line 33)-18r (line 10).] Than began Merlin to speke so mystily, wherof the Boke of Prophesyes is made. And after come Merlin to the kynge and to Uter his brother and seide to hem pitously, "I love moche yow and youre wurship. Have ye no mynde of the sarazins that ye drive oute of the londe after the deth of Aungis?" And thei seide, "Yesse, full wele. But why sey ye?" Quod Merlin, "I sey for this: that they sey thei shull never fenisshe till thei have avengid the deth of Aungis. And thei have a**embled a grete power, and wele to conquere this londe be force." When the kinge and his brother herde this, thei merveiled gretly and axed of Merlin, "Have thei so grete power to holde party ageyn oures?" And he ansuerde ageyn, "Every man that ye have defensable, they have tweyne. Therfore, but ye be wisely ruled, ye shull be distroied and lese youre reame." Quod the kynge, "We wil be ruled be youre counseile." And than he axed, "When trowe ye that they shull come?" And Merlin seide, "The eleventh day of Juyne; and noon ne shall this knowe saf ye two; and I deffende yow to speke therof, but do as I shall yow counseile. Sende after alle youre peple and make hem the grettest joye and feste that ye may, and comaunde hem to be the laste day of Juyn on the playn of Salisburye." Than seide the kynge, "Shall we suffer hem to aryve withoute deffence?" And Merlyn seide, "Ye, yef ye will do my counseile; and suffer hem to come as fer as ye may fro theire arivage. And so shall ye kepe hem two dayes, and thei shull have grete dissese for lakke of water. And the thirde day ye shull with hem fighten. And yef ye do thus, ye shull have the victorye." Than seide the two brethern, "I pray yow telle us yef eny of us shall dye in that bataile." And Merlin ansuerde, "Ther is nothynge that hath begynnynge but it moste have endynge. Ne no man ought to be dismayed of deth, to resceyve it as he oweth to do. And therfore I will that ye bringe the hiest reliques that ye have, and ye shull bothe swere to do as I shall sey yow, for yowre profite and youre wor- ship; and than shall I boldely telle yow how ye shul be governed." And thei swore as Merlin dide devise. And when they were sworn, Merlin seide unto hem, "Ye have sworne that in this bataile ye shull be gode men and true, agein God and youreself. Ne noon may be trewe to hymself but he first be trewe to God. And loke ye be trewly confessed for that ye shull fight ageyn yowre enmyes. And after, have no doute to overcome theym, for thei have no bileve in the Trinité. And wite ye wele that seth Cristendom come first into this ile, was never so grete bataile, ne never shall in youre tyme. And also, knoweth wele that ther oon of yow two moste nede pa**e in this bataile. Therfore eche man ordeyne for his moste worship that he can, ageins that he cometh before his Lorde. And [knoweth] that oon of yow moste go to Hym. And therfore goth in soche wise that ye may have His love when ye come to His presence." Thus ended the counseile of Merlyn. And the two brethern understode what he hadde seyde, and sente after alle the estates of theire londe. And when thei weren alle come, thei yaf hem grete yeftes. And the kynge hem praide to make hem garnysshed of theire armes and of horse; and also the laste weke of Juyn to be redy, in the entré of the playnes of Salisbury, upon the river of Tamyse, to diffende the reame. And thus it lefte till the day that was somowned. And the two brethern ageyn their burghes and townes made gode ordenaunce, as Merlin dide hem counseile. And at Pentecoste thei heilde courte upon the rivere, and ther were many riche festes. Ther thei were so longe till thei herden that the Danoyse weren arived. Than the kynge sente to prelates of the Churche that every man of the oste sholde be confessed, and every man to foryeven other and be in charité and clene lyf. Than seide Pendragon to Merlin that tydinges were come: the Sarazins weren arived. And Merlin seide it was trewe. Than the kynge axed what was his counseile to do. And Merlin seide, "Ye shall tomorowe sende thedir that oon half of youre peple; and when they be come from their arivage, than go betwene hem and the aryvage. And youre peple shulde holde hem so shorte that ther ne shall be noon of hem but thei wolde fayn be theras thei come fro. And thus shull ye do two dayes. And the thirde day, whan ye se a dragon all reade fleynge up in the ayre, than boldly fight with hem, for ye shall have the vyctorye." At this counseile were no mo but Pendragon and Uter. And when thei hadde herde this thei were gladde. And than seide Merlin, "I will go; and be ye right sure of this that I have yow seide. And thenke to be gode men and gode knyghtes." Thus thei departed, and Uter made redy his felishep to go betwene hem and the ryver. And Merlyn come to hym and seide, "Thenke to do wele, and have no drede, for thow shalt not dye in this bataile." When Uter herde this, he was gladde in herte. Than Merlin went to his maister Blase in Northumbirlonde and tolde hym many thinges that he wrote in his boke. Uter and his peple rode till thei come betwene the Danes and theire shippes, and kept hem two dayes that thei myght never ryde. The thirde day the kynge come so nygh that that oon myght se that other. Whan the sarazins saugh the two hostes, thei were gretly dismayed, and sye wele that thei myght not repaire to their shippes withoute grete bataile. Than shewde the sign in the ayre that Merlin hadde seide, and than the Danes hadden grete drede. And the kynge seide to his peple, "Now upon hem in all that we may." And whan Uter saugh the kynges bataile, and the Danes a**embled, he sette upon hem as vigorously or more. In that bataile was grete mortalité on bothe parties, but the hethen peple hadde moche the werse. And ther Pendragon did merveloise knyghthode amonge his enmyes, and so dide Uter, but I may not telle alle their well dedis. But Pendragon was ther deed, and many another gode baron, wherof was grete pité and losse to the Cristen partye. And as the boke witnessith, Uter venquysshed the bataile, and ther ne ascaped noon of the sarazins but that thei weren deed or taken. And thus ended the bataile of Salisbury wheras Pendragon was deed. And so all the londe [was] lefte hoill to Uter his brother. He made geder alle the Cristen that weren deed, and made hem to be beried in a place bi themself, and areised his brothers tombe moche hier than eny of the tother, and lete write upon eche beryinge place his name that lay under. But on his brother wolde he nought write, for he seide who that them beheilde myght wele undirstonde that he was chief lorde. Than Uter wente to Logres and alle the prelates of the Cherche, and ther was he sacred and crowned. And thus was Uter kynge of the londe after the deth of his brother Pendragon. And the quynsynne after that, Merlyn come to courte, and grete was the joye the kynge made to hym. And than seide Merlyn to Uter, "I will that thow have surnonn of thi brother name. And for love of the dragon that appered in the ayre, make a dragon of goolde of the same semblaunce." And the kynge dide do make this dragon in all the haste he myght, like to the dragon that sewde in the ayre. Than he lete sette it on a shafte instede of a baner, and lete it be born before hym in every bataile at alle tymes when he sholde fight. And thus was ever after he cleped Uterpendragon. And Merlyn abode with hym longe tyme after, till on a day that Merlyn hym axed, "Ne shall thow do no more to the place in the playn of Salesbury wheras thy brother is buried?" And the kynge ansuerde, "What wilt thow that I do, for I will do even as thow wilte devise?" Quod Merlin, "I will that thow ordeyne ther soche a thinge as shall endure to the worldes end." And the kynge seide, "Telle me in what wise, and I will do it with gode will." Than quod Merlin, "Sende after the grete stones that ben in Irlonde, and make hem to be brought in thy shippes, and I shall go to shewe them whiche I will have that thei shull brynge." Than Uterpendragon sente vesselles grete plenté, and Merlin hem shewde the stones that were grete and longe, and seide, "Lo, these ben the stones whiche ye ben come fore." And when they hem saugh, they it helden for a grete merveile, and seide it was a thynge impossible to charge, they were of soche gretnesse and wight. And in their vessellis they seiden sholde they not come, yef God wolde. And so thei returned to the kynge and tolde the merveile, and the kynge than seide, "Suffer till Merlyn come." And when Merlyn was come, the kynge hym tolde like as his men hadden seide, and Merlin seide, "Sith it is so that they may not hem hider bringe, I shall aquyte me of my promyse." And than Merlin made by crafte of his arte to bringe the stones that weren in Irlonde to the playn of Salesbury. And the kynge and moche peple wente to se the merveile. And when thei saugh the grete stones, thei seiden that all the worlde ne myght not hem remeve. And Merlin badde they sholde be dressed upright for thei sholde seme feyrer so than liggynge. And the kynge seide that myght no man do, saf only God. Than seide Merlyn, "Let me worthen therwith, and I shall aquyte me of the covenaunt that I made." And so all the labour [was] lefte to Merlyn. And he dressed [hem] as thei ben yet over the beryinge place of Pendragon, and ben yet cleped the Stonehenges. And than come Merlin to Uterpendragon, and hym served longe tyme and moche hym loved. And so on a tyme he toke the kynge in counseile and seide, "Sir, I moste discure to yow the hiest counseile that ye herde ever, and that thinge that I shall of speke shall be right straunge. And I requyre yow that ye it not discure to no man lyvynge." And the kynge graunted his requeste. Than seide Merlin, "I will that ye wite that the knowinge that I have cometh be the enmy by nature, and oure Lorde that is almyghty above alle thynge hath yove me witte and memorye to knowe grete partye of thynges that be to come. And by this sovereyn vertu, the enmye hath me lorn that with the plesaunce of God they shull never have power over me at her volunté. And sir, now ye knowe fro whens I have this power. And I will telle yow a thinge that God will that thow shalt do. And whan ye knowe what it is, loke ye performe it to His plesier. Sir, ye ought well to knowe that God come in to erthe to save mankynde, and also, as ye well knowe, He made a soper, and seide to Hys apposteles, 'Oon of yow shall me betrayen.' Sir, many povertees and grete suffraites suffred oure Lorde her in erthe for oure sake, and many shames that the Jues Hym diden. And after that, He suffred bitter deth for us upon the Crosse, and a knyght axed His body when He was deed upon the seide Crosse. And it was graunted hym of Pilate in lower of his servyse. "Sir, it fill after that, this knyght whiche hadde taken oure Lorde down of the Crosse, that he was in a waste contree full of diserte, and moche of his lynage. And sir, upon hem fill a grete famyne and hunger, and thei complayned to the knyght that was thier maister. And he prayde oure Lorde to shewe His mercy to hem, and to shewe some demonstraunce that they myght be conforted of their grete disese. And oure Lorde hym comaunded to make a table, in the name of that table at the whiche He was sette in the house of Symond leprouse, and bad hym take the vessell whiche that he hadde and sette it upon the table; and cover the table with white cloth, and also the vessell, all save the parte toward hym. Sir, this vessell was brought to this seide knyght by oure Lorde Jhesu Criste whyle he was in prison forty wynter, hym for to comforte. And, sir, by this holy vessell were departed the company of gode and evell. And also at this table was ever a voyde place that betokeneth the place of Judas theras he satte at the soper, whiche he lefte whan [he] herde that oure Lorde seide that worde for hym, whan He seyde that he that ete with Hym sholde Hym betrayen. Thus lefte Judas the place voyde till that oure Lorde set ther another that hight Matheu. This Matheu was sette in that place to fille up the nombre of twelve apostles. "Sir, this place that was voyde at the table of Joseph betokeneth the place that Matheu fulfilde, and sir, thus be these two tables convenable. And thus hath oure Lorde filled the werke of man. And sir, the peple that were therat cleped this vessell that thei hadden in so grete grace the Graal. And yef ye do my counseile, ye shall stablisshe the thirde table in the name of the Trinité. And I behote yow, yef ye do this, therby shall come to yow grete honour and grete profite of youre soule. And also, it shal be a thynge that moste shall be spoken of thourgh the worlde." Thus seide Merlyn to Uterpendragon, wherof he was well plesed. And [he] seide to Merlin, "I will that oure Lordes wille be performed in all that is in me, in all thynge that be to His wille. And all I putte in youre ordenaunce." And than was Merlyn gladde, and seide, "Sir, loke where ye plese beste that it be sette." "Certes," quod the kynge, "whereas thow wilte, and theras thow trowest it be moste oure Lordes wille." And Merlyn seide, "It shall be at Cardoll, in Walys, and make ther thy feest at Pentecoste. And array thee to make gode chere and to yeve grete yeftes. And I shall go before and make the table, and whan thow arte come, I shall setten them that owen therat to sitten."