woman, fair and honourable and of good station, whom I know, the which
did give herself to an honourable gentleman,—and that more for the
jealousy she bare toward an honourable lady whom this same gentleman
did love and keep as his paramour than for love. Wherefore, even as
he was enjoying her favour, the lady said to him: “Now at last, to my
great contentment, do I triumph over you and over the love you bear
to such an one.” The gentleman made answer to her: “A person that
is beat down, brought under and trampled on, can scarce be said to
triumph greatly.” The lady taketh umbrage at this reply, as touching
her honour, and straightway makes answer, “You are very right,” and
instantly puts herself of a sudden to unseat the man, and slip away
from him. Never of yore was Roman knight or warrior so quick and
dexterous to mount and remount his horses at the gallop as was the lady
this bout with her gallant. Then doth she handle him in this mode,
saying the while, “Well then, at present I can declare truly and in
good conscience I triumph over you, forasmuch as I hold you subdued
under me.” Verily a dame of a gay and wanton ambition, and very strange
the way in which she did satisfy the same!
I have heard speak of a very fair and honourable lady of the great
world, much given over to love, who yet was so arrogant and proud, and
so high of heart, that when it came to it, never would she suffer her
man to put her under him and humble her. For by so doing she deemed
she wrought a great wrong to the nobility of her spirit, and held it
a great piece of cowardice to be thus humbled and subdued, as in a
triumphant conquest and enslavement; but was fain ever to guard the
upper hand and pre-eminence. And one thing that did greatly help her
herein was that she would never have dealings with one greater in rank
than herself, for fear that, using his authority and puissance, he
might succeed in giving the law to her, and so turn, twist about and
trample her, just as he pleased. Rather for this work would she choose
her equals and inferiors, to the which she could dictate their place
and station, their order and procedure in the amorous combat, neither
more nor less than doth a sergeant major to his men-at-arms on the day
of battle. These orders would she in no wise have them overpass, under
pain of losing what they most desire and value, in some cases her love,
in others their own life. In such wise that never, standing or sitting
or lying, could they prevail to return back and put upon her the
smallest humiliation, submission or subservience, which she had done
them. Hereanent I refer me to the words and judgement of such, men and
women, as have dealt with such loves, stations and modes.
Anyway the lady we speak of could so order it, that no hurt should be
done to the dignity she did affect, and no offence to her proud heart;
for by what I have heard from sundry that have been familiar with her,
she had powers enough to make such ordinances and regulations.
In good sooth a formidable and diverting woman’s caprice, and a right
curious scruple of a proud spirit. Yet was she in the right after all;
for in truth is it a humiliating and painful thing to be so brought
under and bent to another’s will, and trod down, when one thinks of it
quickly and alone, and saith to oneself, “Such an one hath put me under
him and trod me underfoot,”—for underfoot it is, if not literally, at
any rate in a manner of speaking, and doth amount to the same thing.
The same lady moreover would never suffer her inferiors to kiss her
on the mouth, “seeing it is so,” she would say, “that the touch and
contact of mouth to mouth is the most delicate and precious of all
contacts, whether of the hand or other members.” For this reason would
she not be so approached, nor feel on her own a foul, unclean mouth,
and one not meet for hers.
Now hereanent is yet another question I have known some debate: what
advantage and overplus of glory hath the one, whether man or woman,
over his companion, whenas they are at these amorous skirmishes and
conquests?
The man on his side doth set forth the reasons given above, to wit,
that the victory is much greater when as one holdeth his sweet enemy
laid low beneath him, and doth subjugate, put underfoot and tame her at
his ease and how he best pleaseth. For there is no Princess or great
lady so high, but doth, when she is in that case, even though it were
with an inferior or subordinate, suffer the law and domination which
Venus hath ordained in her statutes; and for this cause glory and
honour do redound therefrom to the man in very high measure.
The woman on the other hand saith: “Yes! I do confess you may well
feel triumphant when you do hold me under you and put me underfoot.
But if it be only a question of keeping the upper station, I likewise
do sometimes take that in mere sportiveness and of a pretty caprice
that assaileth me, and not of any constraint. Further, when this
upperhand position doth not like me, I do make you work for me like
a very serf or galley-slave, or to put it better, make you pull at
the collar like a veritable waggon-horse, and there you are toiling,
striving, sweating, panting, straining to perform the task and labour
I choose to exact from you. Meanwhile, for me, lo! I am at my ease,
and watch your efforts. Sometimes do I make merry at your expense, and
take my pleasure in seeing you in such sore labour, sometimes too I
compassionate you, just as pleaseth me and according as I am inclined
to merriment or pity. Then after having well fulfilled my pleasure and
caprice herein, I do leave my gallant there, tired, worn out, weakened
and enervate, so he can do no more, and hath need of naught so much
as of a good sleep and a good meal, a strong broth, a restorative, or
some good soup to hearten him up. For me, for all such labours and
efforts, I feel no whit the worse, but only that I have been right
well served at your expense, sir gallant, and do experience no hurt;
but only wish for some other to give me as much again, and to make him
as much exhausted as you. And after this wise, never surrendering,
but making my sweet foe surrender to me, ’tis I bear away the true
victory and true glory, seeing that in a duello he that doth give in is
dishonoured, and not he that doth fight on to the last dire extremity.”
So have I heard this tale following told of a fair and honourable lady.
One time, her husband having wakened her from a sound sleep and good
rest she was enjoying, for to do the thing, when he was done, she said
to him, “Well! ’tis you did it, not I.” And she did clip him exceeding
tight with arms, hands, feet and legs crossed over each other, saying,
“I will teach you to wake me up another time,” and so with might and
main and right good will, pulling, pushing and shaking her husband,
and who could in no wise get loose, but who lay there sweating and
stewing and aweary, and was fain to cry her mercy, she did make him so
exhausted, and so foredone and feeble, that he grew altogether out of
breath and did swear her a sound oath how another time he would have
her only at his own time, humour and desire. The tale is one better to
imagine and picture to oneself than to describe in words.
Such then are the woman’s arguments, with sundry other she might very
well have adduced to boot. And note how the humblest strumpet can do
as much to a great King or Prince, if he have gone with her,—and this
is a great scorn, seeing that the blood royal is held to be the most
precious can ever be. At any rate is it right carefully guarded and
very expensively and preciously accommodated far more than any other
man’s!
This then is what the women do or say. Yet truly is it great pity a
blood so precious should be polluted and contaminated so foully and
unworthily. And indeed it was forbid by the law of Moses to waste
the same in any wise on the ground; but it is much worse done to
intermingle it in a most foul and unworthy fashion. Still ’twere too
much to have them do as did a certain great Lord, of whom I have heard
tell, who having in his dreams at night polluted himself among his
sheets, had these buried, so scrupulous-minded was he, saying it was a
babe issuing therefrom that was dead, and how that it was pity and a
very great loss that this blood had not been put into his wife’s womb,
for then it might well be the child would have lived.
Herein might he very like have been deceived, seeing that of a thousand
cohabitations the husband hath with the wife in the year, ’tis very
possible, as I have above said, she will not become pregnant thereby,
not once in all her life, in fact never in the case of some women
which be eunuch and barren, and can never conceive. Whence hath come
the error of certain misbelievers, which say that marriage was not
ordained so much for the procreation of children as for pleasure. Now
this is ill thought and ill said, for albeit a woman doth not grow
pregnant every time a man have her, ’tis so for some purpose of God to
us mysterious, and that he wills to punish in this wise both man and
wife, seeing how the greatest blessing God can give us in marriage is a
good offspring, and that not in mere concubinage. And many women there
be that take a great delight in having it, but others not. These latter
will in no wise suffer aught to enter into them, as well to avoid
foisting on their husbands children that are not theirs, as to avoid
the semblance of doing them wrong and making them cuckolds.
For by this name of cuckoos (or cuckolds), properly appertaining to
those birds of Springtide that are so called because they do lay
their eggs in other birds’ nests, are men also known by antinomy,[37]
when others come to lay eggs in their nest, that is in their wives’
article,—which is the same thing as saying, cast their seed into them
and make them children.
And this is how many wives think they are doing no wrong to their
husbands in taking their fill of pleasure, provided only they do not
become pregnant. Such their fine scruples of conscience! So a great
lady of whom I have heard speak, was used to say to her gallant: “Take
your pastime as much as ever you will, and give me pleasure; but on
your life, take heed to let naught bedew me, else is it a question of
life and death for you.”
A like story have I heard told by the Chevalier de Sanzay of Brittany,
a very honourable and gallant gentleman, who, had not death overtaken
him at an early age, would have been a great seaman, having made a very
good beginning of his career. And indeed he did bear the marks and
signs thereof, for he had had an arm carried off by a cannon shot at a
sea-fight he did engage in. As his ill luck would have it, he was taken
prisoner of the Corsairs and carried off to Algiers. His master who
had him as his slave, was the head Priest of the Mosque in that part,
and had a very beauteous wife. This lady did fall so deep in love with
the said Sanzay that she bade him come to have amorous dalliance and
delight with her, saying how she would treat him very well, better than
any of her other slaves. But above all else did she charge him very
straitly, and on his life, or on pain of most rigorous imprisonment,
not to emit in her body a single drop of his seed, forasmuch as, so
she declared, she must in no wise be polluted and contaminated with
Christian blood, whereby she thought she would sorely offend against
the law of her people and their great Prophet Mahomet. And further
she bade him, that albeit she should even order him an hundred times
over to do the whole thing outright, he should do nothing of the sort,
for that it would be but the exceeding pleasure wherewith she was
enraptured that made her say so to him, and in no wise the will of her
heart and soul.
The aforesaid Sanzay, in order to get good treatment and greater
liberty, Christian as he was, did shut his eyes this once to his law.
For a poor slave, hardly entreated and cruelly chained, may well forget
his principles now and again. So he did obey the lady, and was so
prudent and so submissive to her order, as that he did minister right
well to her pleasure. Wherefore the lady did love him the better,
because he was so submissive to her strait and difficult command. Even
when she would cry to him: “Let go, I say; I give you full permission!”
yet would he never once do so, for he was sore afraid of being beaten
as the Turks use (bastinadoed), as he did often see his comrades beaten
before his eyes.
Verily a strange and sore caprice; and herein it would seem she did
well prevail, both for her own soul’s sake which was Turk and for the
other who was Christian. But he swore to me how that never in all his
life had he been in so sore a strait!
He did tell me yet another tale, the most heartsome and amusing
possible, of a trick she once put upon him. But forasmuch as it is not
pleasant, I will repeat it not, for dread of doing offence to modest
ears.
Later was the same Sanzay ransomed by his friends, the which are folk
of honour and good estate in Brittany, and related to many great
persons, as to the Connétable de Sanzay,[38*] who was greatly attached
to his elder brother, and did help him much toward his deliverance.
Having won this, the Chevalier did come to Court, and held much
discourse to M. d’Estrozze and to me of his adventures and of divers
matters, and amongst other such he told us these stories.
6.
What are we to say now of some husbands which be not content only to
procure themselves entertainment and wanton pleasure with their wives,
but do give the desire therefor to others also, their companions,
friends and the like? For so have I known several which do praise their
wives to these, detail to them their beauties, picture to them their
members and various bodily parts, recount the pleasure that they have
with them, and the caresses their wives do use towards them, make them
kiss, touch and try them, and even behold them naked.
What do such deserve? Why! that they be cuckolded right off, as
did Gyges, by the means of his ring, to Candaules,[39] King of the
Lydians. For the latter, fool that he was, having bepraised to Gyges
the rare beauty of his wife, and at the last having shown her to him
stark naked, he fell so madly in love with her that he did what seemed
him good and brought Candaules to his death and made himself master
of his Kingdom. ’Tis said the wife was in such despite and despair
at having been so shown by her husband to another man, that she did
herself constrain Gyges to play this traitorous part, saying thus to
him: “Either must he that hath constrained and counselled you to such
a thing die by your hand, or else you, who have looked on me in my
nakedness, must die by the hand of another.” Of a surety was the said
King very ill advised so to rouse desire for a fresh dainty, so good
and sweet, which it rather behoved him to hold very specially dear and
precious.
Louis, Duke or Orleans,[39] killed at the Barbette Gate of Paris, did
the exact opposite. An arrant debaucher was he of the ladies of the
Court, and that even of the greatest among them all. For, having once a
very fair and noble lady to bed with him, so soon as her husband came
into his bedchamber to wish him good-morrow, he did promptly cover up
the lady’s head, the other’s wife’s that is, with the sheet, but did
uncover all the rest of her body, letting him see her all naked and
touch her at his pleasure, only with express prohibition on his life
not to take away the linen from off the face, nor to uncover it in any
wise,—a charge he durst not contravene. Then did the Duke ask him
several times over what he thought of this fair, naked body, whereat
the other was all astonished and exceeding content. At the last he did
get his leave to quit the chamber, and this he did without having ever
had the chance to recognize the woman for his own wife.
If only he had carefully looked over her body and examined the same,
as several that I have known, he would mayhap have recognized her by
sundry blemishes. Thus is it a good thing for men to go over sometimes
and observe their wives’ bodies.
She, after her husband was well gone, was questioned of M.
d’Orléans,[40*] if she had felt any alarm or fear. I leave you to
imagine what she said thereto, and all the trouble and anguish she was
in by the space of a quarter of an hour, seeing all that lacked for her
undoing was some little indiscretion, or the smallest disobedience her
husband might have committed in lifting the sheet. ’Twas doubtless M.
d’Orléans’ orders, but still he would surely, on his making discovery,
have straightway slain him to stay him of the vengeance he would have
wrought on his wife.
And the best of it was that, being the next night to bed with his wife,
he did tell her how M. d’Orléans had let him see the fairest naked
woman he had ever beheld, but as to her face, that he could give no
news thereof, seeing the sight of it had been forbid him. I leave you
to imagine what the lady must have thought within her heart. Now of
this same lady and M. d’Orléans ’tis said did spring that brave and
valiant soldier, the Bastard of Orleans, the mainstay of France and
scourge of England, from whom is descended the noble and generous race
of the Comtes de Dunois.
However to return to our tales of husband too ready to give others
sight of their wives naked, I know one who, on a morning, a comrade
of his having gone to see him in his chamber as he was dressing, did
show him his wife quite naked, lying all her length fast asleep, having
herself thrown her bed-clothes off her, it being very hot weather. So
he did draw aside the curtain half way, in such wise that the rising
sun shining upon her, he had leisure to contemplate well and thoroughly
at his ease, which doing he beheld naught but what was right fair and
perfect. On all this beauty then he did feast his eyes, not indeed as
long as he would, but as long as he could; and after, the husband and
he went forth to the Palace.
The next day, the gentleman who was an ardent lover of this same
honourable lady, did report to her the sight he had seen, and even
described many things he had noted. He said further it was the husband
which did urge him thereto, and he and no other had drawn the curtain
for him to see. The lady, out of the despite she then conceived against
her husband, did let herself go, and so gave herself to his friend on
this only account,—a thing which all his service and devotion had not
before been able to win.
I knew once a very great Lord, who, one morning, wishing to go
an-hunting, and his gentlemen having come to find him at his rising,
even as they were booting him, and he had his wife lying by him and
holding him right close to her, he did so suddenly lift the coverlet
she had no time to move away from where she rested, in such wise that
they all saw her as much as they pleased even to the half of her body.
Then with a loud laugh did the Lord cry to these gentlemen there
present: “Well, well! sirs, have not I let you see enough and to spare
of my good wife?” But so vexed and chagrined was she at it all that she
did conceive a great grudge against him therefor, and above all for the
way she had been surprised. And it may well be, she did pay it back to
him with interest later on.
I know yet another of these great Lords, who learning that a friend
and kinsman of his was in love with his wife, whether to make him the
more envious or to make him taste all the despite and despair he might
conceive at the thought of the other possessing so fair a woman, and he
having never so much as a chance of touching her, did show her him one
morning, when he had come to see him, the pair being a-bed together.
Yea! he did even worse, for he did set about to embrace her before
his eyes, as though she had been altogether in a privy place. Further
he kept begging of his friend to see, saying he was doing it all to
gratify him. I leave you to imagine whether the lady did not find in
such conduct of her husband excuse to do likewise in all ways with
the friend, and of good conscience, and whether he was not right well
punished by being made to bear the horns.
I have heard speak of yet another, likewise a great Lord, who did the
same with his wife before a great Prince, his master, but, ’twas by
his prayer and commandment, for he was one that took delight in this
form of gratification. Now are not such like persons blameworthy, for
that after being pandars to their own wives, they will after be their
executioners too?
It is never expedient for a man to expose his wife, any more than his
lands, countries or places. And I may cite an example hereof which I
did learn from a great Captain. It concerns the late M. de Savoye, who
did dissuade the late King of France,[41] when on his return from
Poland he was passing through Lombardy, and counselled him not to go
to Milan or enter therein, alleging that the King of Spain might take
umbrage thereat. But this was not the real cause at all; rather was
he afraid lest the King being once there and visiting all quarters of
the city, and beholding its beauty and riches and grandeur, might be
assailed by an overwhelming desire to have it again and reconquer it
by fair and honest right, as had done his predecessors. Now this was
the true reason, as a great Prince said who knew the fact from our
late King, who for his part quite well understood what the restriction
meant. However, to be complaisant to M. de Savoye, and to cause no
offence on the part of the King of Spain, he took his march so as
to pass by the city, albeit he had all the wish in the world to go
thither, by what he did me the honour to tell me after his return to
Lyons. In this transaction we cannot but deem M. de Savoye to have been
more of a Spaniard than a Frenchman.
I deem those husbands likewise very much to blame who after having
received their life by favour of their wives, are so little grateful
therefor, as that for any suspicion they have of their intriguing with
other men, do treat them exceeding harshly, to the extent of making
attempt upon their lives. I have heard speak of a Lord against whose
life sundry conspirators having conspired and plotted, his wife by dint
of her prayers did turn them from their purpose, and saved her husband
from being assassinated. But nevertheless later on was she very ill
rewarded by him and entreated most cruelly.
I have seen likewise a gentleman who, having been accused and brought
to trial for very bad performance of his duty in succouring his
General in a battle,[42*] so much so that he had left him to be killed
without any help or succour at all, was nigh to be sentenced and
condemned to have his head cut off, and this notwithstanding 20,000
crowns the which he did give to save his life. Thereupon his wife
spake to a great Lord holding high place in the world, and lay with
him by permission and at the supplication of the said husband; and so
what money had not been able to do, this did her beauty and fair body
effect, and she did save him his life and liberty. Yet after he did
treat her so ill as that nothing could be worse. Of a surety husbands
of the sort, so cruel and savage, are very pitiful creatures.
Others again have I known who did quite otherwise, for that they have
known how to show gratitude to those that helped them, and have all
their life long honoured the good dame that had saved them from death.
There is yet another sort of cuckolds, those who are not content to
have been suspicious and difficult all their life, but when going to
leave this world and on the point of death, are so still. Of this sort
knew I one who had a very fair and honourable lady to wife, but yet had
not always given her all to him alone. When now he was like to die, he
said to her repeatedly: “Ah! wife mine, I am going to die! And would
to God you could have kept me company, and you and I could have gone
together into the other world! My death had not then been so hateful
to me, and I should have taken it in better part.” But the lady, who
was still very fair and not more than thirty-seven years old, was by
no means fain to follow him, nor agree with him in this. Nor yet was
she willing to play the madwoman for his sake, as we read did Evadné,
daughter of Mars and Thebé and wife of Capaneus,[43] the which did
love her husband so ardently that, he having died, so soon as ever his
body was cast on the fire, she threw herself thereon all alive as she
was, and was burned and consumed along with him, in her great constancy
and strength of purpose, and so did accompany him in his death.
Alcestis[43] did far better yet, for having learned by an oracle that
her husband Admetus, King of Thessaly, was to die presently, unless his
life were redeemed by the death of some other of his friends, she did
straightway devote herself to a sudden death, and so saved her husband
alive.
Nowadays are no women of this kindly sort left, who are fain to go
of their own pleasure into the grave before their husbands, and not
survive them. No! such are no more to be found; the dams that bare them
are dead, as say the horse-dealers of Paris of horses, when no more
good ones are to be got.
And this is why I did account the husband, whose case I but now
adduced, ill-advised to make such proposals to his wife and odious
so to invite her to death, as though it had been some merry feast to
invite her to. It was an arrant piece of jealousy that did make him so
speak, and the despite he did feel within himself, he would presently
experience yonder in the lower world, when he should see his wife, whom
he had so excellently trained, in the arms of some lover of hers or
some new husband.