XI.

Having her thus difarmed of her fhield,
Upon her helmet he again her ftrook
That down fhe fell upon the graffie field,
In fenfelefs fwoun, as if her life forfook,
And pangs of death her fpirit overtook.
Whom when he faw before his foot proftrated,
He to her lept, with deadly dreadful look,
And her funfhiny helmet soon unlac'd,
Thinking at once both head and helmet to have rac'd.
XII.

But whenas he difcov'red had her face,
He saw his fenfes ftrange aftonishment,
A miracle of natures goodly grace,
In her fair visage void of ornament,

But bath'd in blood and fweat together ment;
Which in the rudeness of that evil plight,
Bewrayd the figns of feature excellent:
Like as the Moon in foggy winters night,

Doth feem to be her felf, though darkned be her light.
XIII.

At fight thereof his cruel minded heart

Empierced was with pitiful regard,

That his fharp fword he threw from him apart,
Curfing his hand that had that vifage mar'd:
No hand fo cruel, nor no heart fo hard,
But ruth of beauty will it mollify.

By this upftarting from her fwoun, fhe ftar'd
A while about her with confused eye;

Like one that from his dream is waked fuddenly.
XIV.

Soon as the Knight the there by her did fpy,
Standing with empty hands all weaponlefs,
With fresh affault upon him fhe did fly,
And 'gan renew her former cruelness:
And though he ftill retir'd, yet natheless
With huge redoubled ftrokes fhe on him layd;
And more encreaft her outrage merciless,
The more that he with meek intreaty prayd,
Her wrathful hand from greedy vengeance to have stayd.

XV.

Like as a Puttock having fpide in fight,

A gentle Falcon fitting on a hill,

Whose other wing now made unmeet for flight,
Was lately broken by fome fortune ill;
The foolish Kite led with licentious will,
Doth beat upon the gentle bird in vain,
With many idle ftoops her troubling ftill:
Even fo did Radigund with bootlefs pain
Annoy this noble Knight, and forely him conftrain.
XVI.

Nought could he do, but fhun the dread defpight
Of her fierce wrath, and backward ftill retire,
And with his fingle fhield, well as he might,
Bear off the burden of her raging ire;

And evermore he gently did defire,

To stay her strokes, and he himself would yield:
Yet nould fhe heark, ne let him once refpire,
Till he to her deliv'red had his fhield,

And to her mercy him fubmitted in plain field:
XVII.

So was he overcome, not overcome,

But to her yielded of his own accord :
Yet was he justly damned by the doom
Of his own mouth, that spake fo wareless word,
To be her thrall, and fervice her afford.
For though that he first victory obtain'd,
Yet after by abandoning his fword,
He wilful loft, that he before attain'd.

No fairer conqueft, than that with good will is gain'd.
XVIII.

Tho with her fword on him fhe flatling ftrook,
In fign of true fubjection to her powre,
And as her vaffal him to thraldom took.
But Terpine born to more unhappy houre,
As he on whom the lucklefs Stars did loure,
She caus'd to be attacht, and forthwith led
Unto the crook, t'abide the baleful ftowre,
From which he lately had through rescue fied:
Where he full fhamefully was hanged by the head.

XIX.

But when they thought on Talus, hands to lay,
He with his iron flail amongst them thundred,
That they were fain to let him 'fcape away,
Glad from his company to be fo fundred;
Whose presence all their troops fo much encumbred,
That th'heaps of those which he did wound and flay,
Befides the reft difmay'd, might not be numbred:
Yet all that while he would not once affay

To rescue his own Lord, but thought it just t'obey.

XX.

fame :

Then took the Amazon this noble Knight,
Left to her will by his own wilful blame,
And caufed him to be difarmed quight
Of all the ornaments of knightly name,
With which whylome he gotten had great
Inftead whereof the made him to be dight
In womans weeds, that is to manhood fhame,
And put before his lap an apron white,
Inftead of curiets and bases fit for fight.

XXI.

So being clad fhe brought him from the field,
In which he had been trained many a day,
Into a long large chamber, which was ciel'd
With monuments of many Knights decay,
By her fubdued in victorious fray :

Amongst the which fhe caus'd his warlike arms
Be hang'd on high, that mote his fhame bewray;
And broke his fword for fear of further harms,
With which he wont to ftir up battailous alarms.

XXII.

There entred in, he round about him faw

Many brave Knights, whofe names right well he knew,
There bound t'obey that Amazons proud law,

Spinning and carding all in comely rew,

That his big heart loath'd fo uncomely view. But they were forc'd through penury and pine, To do those works to them appointed due: For nought was given them to fup or dine, But what their hands could earn by twisting linnen twine.

XXIII.

Amongst them all, fhe placed him most low,
And in his hand a diftaff to him gave,

That he thereon should spin both flax and tow;
A fordid office for a mind fo brave.
So hard it is to be a womans slave,
Yet he it took in his own felfs defpight,
And thereto did himself right well behave,
Her to obey, fith he his faith had plight,
Her vaffal to become, if fhe him won in fight.
XXIV.

Who had him feen, imagine mote thereby,
That whylome hath of Hercules been told,
How for Iolas fake he did apply

His mighty hands, the diftaff vile to hold, For his huge club, which had fubdu'd of old So many monsters, which the world annoy'd : His Lions fkin chang'd to a pall of gold, In which forgetting wars, he only joy'd In combats of Iweet Love, and with his miftrefs toy'd.

XXV.

Such is the cruelty of womenkind.

When they have shaken off the shamefac'd band,
With which wife nature did them ftrongly bind
T'obey the hearts of mans well-ruling hand,
That then all rule and reason they withstand,
To purchase a licentious liberty:

But vertuous women wifely understand,
That they were born to base humility,

Unless the heavens them lift to lawful foverainty.
XXVI.

Thus there long while continu'd Arthegall,
Serving proud Radigund with true fubjection;
However it his noble heart did gall,
T'obey a womans tyrannous direction,
That might have had of life or death election :
But having chofen, now he might not change.
During which time, the warlike Amazon,
Whose wandring fancy after luft did range,
'Gan caft a fecret liking to this captive strange.

XXVII.

Which long concealing in her covert breast,
She chaw'd the cud of lovers careful plight:
Yet could it not fo thoroughly digeft,
Being faft fixed in her wounded fpright,
But it tormented her both day and night:
Yet would fhe not thereto yield free accord,
To ferve the lowly vaffal of her might,

And of her fervant make her foveraine Lord:
So great her pride, that fhe fuch bafenefs much abhor'd.
XXVIII.

So much the greater ftill her anguish grew,

Through ftubborn handling of her love-fick heart;
And ftill the more fhe ftrove it to fubdue,
The more fhe ftill augmented her own fmart,
And wider made the wound of th'hidden dart.
At laft when long fhe ftruggled had in vain,
She 'gan to ftoop, and her proud mind convert
To meek obeyfance of Loves mighty rein,

And him intreat for grace, that had procur'd her pain.
XXIX.

Unto her felf in fecret fhe did call

Her nearest handmaid whom the moft did truft,
And to her faid; Clarinda, whom of all

I truft alive, fith I thee foftred first;
Now is the time, that I untimely muft
Thereof make trial in my greatest need:
It is fo hapned, that the heavens unjust,
Spighting my happy freedom, have agreed,
To thrall my loofer life, or my laft bale to breed.
XXX.

With that the turn'd her head as half abafh'd,
To hide the blush which in her vifage rofe,
And through her eyes like fudden lightning flash'd,
Decking her cheek with a vermilion rofe:
But foon fhe did her countenance compofe,
And to her turning, thus began again;

This griefs deep wound I would to thee disclose, Thereto compelled through heart-murdring pain, But dread of fhame my doubtful lips doth still restrain.