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1Embrouded was he, as it were a meede
2Al ful of fresshe floures, whyte and reede.
3Syngynge he was, or floytynge, al the day;
4He was as fressh as is the month of May.

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5Short was his gowne, with sleves longe and wyde.
6Wel koude he sitte on hors and faire ryde.
7He koude songes make and wel endite,
8Juste and eek daunce, and weel purtreye and write.
9So hoote he lovede that by nyghtertale
10He sleep namoore than dooth a nyghtyngale.
11Curteis he was, lowely, and servysable,
12And carf biforn his fader at the table.

13A YEMAN hadde he and servantz namo
14At that tyme, for hym liste ride so,
15And he was clad in cote and hood of grene.
16A sheef of pecok arwes, bright and kene,
17Under his belt he bar ful thriftily
18(Wel koude he dresse his takel yemanly;
19His arwes drouped noght with fetheres lowe),
20And in his hand he baar a myghty bowe.
21A not heed hadde he, with a broun visage.
22Of wodecraft wel koude he al the usage.
23Upon his arm he baar a gay bracer,
24And by his syde a swerd and a bokeler,
25And on that oother syde a gay daggere
26Harneised wel and sharp as point of spere;
27A Cristopher on his brest of silver sheene.
28An horn he bar, the bawdryk was of grene;
29A forster was he, soothly, as I gesse.

30Ther was also a Nonne, a PRIORESSE,
31That of hir smylyng was ful symple and coy;
32Hire gretteste ooth was but by Seinte Loy;
33And she was cleped madame Eglentyne.
34Ful weel she soong the service dyvyne,
35Entuned in hir nose ful semely;

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36And Frenssh she spak ful faire and fetisly,
37After the scole of Stratford atte Bowe,
38For Frenssh of Parys was to hire unknowe.
39At mete wel ytaught was she with alle;
40She leet no morsel from hir lippes falle,
41Ne wette hir fyngres in hir sauce depe;
42Wel koude she carie a morsel and wel kepe
43That no drope ne fille upon hire brest.
44In curteisie was set ful muchel hir lest.
45Hir over-lippe wyped she so clene
46That in hir coppe ther was no ferthyng sene
47Of grece, whan she dronken hadde hir draughte.
48Ful semely after hir mete she raughte.
49And sikerly she was of greet desport,
50And ful plesaunt, and amyable of port,
51And peyned hire to countrefete cheere
52Of court, and to been estatlich of manere,
53And to ben holden digne of reverence.
54But for to speken of hire conscience,
55She was so charitable and so pitous
56She wolde wepe, if that she saugh a mous
57Kaught in a trappe, if it were deed or bledde.
58Of smale houndes hadde she that she fedde
59With rosted flessh, or milk and wastel-breed.
60But soore wepte she if oon of hem were deed,
61Or if men smoot it with a yerde smerte;
62And al was conscience and tendre herte.
63Ful semyly hir wympul pynched was,
64Hir nose tretys, hir eyen greye as glas,
65Hir mouth ful smal, and therto softe and reed.

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66But sikerly she hadde a fair forheed;
67It was almoost a spanne brood, I trowe;
68For, hardily, she was nat undergrowe.
69Ful fetys was hir cloke, as I was war.
70Of smal coral aboute hire arm she bar
71A peire of bedes, gauded al with grene,
72And theron heng a brooch of gold ful sheene,
73On which ther was first write a crowned A,
74And after Amor vincit omnia.

75Another NONNE with hire hadde she,
76That was hir chapeleyne, and preestes thre.

77A MONK ther was, a fair for the maistrie,
78An outridere, that lovede venerie,
79A manly man, to been an abbot able.
80Ful many a deyntee hors hadde he in stable,
81And whan he rood, men myghte his brydel heere
82Gynglen in a whistlynge wynd als cleere
83And eek as loude as dooth the chapel belle
84Ther as this lord was kepere of the celle.
85The reule of Seint Maure or of Seint Beneit -
86By cause that it was old and somdel streit
87This ilke Monk leet olde thynges pace,
88And heeld after the newe world the space.
89He yaf nat of that text a pulled hen,
90That seith that hunters ben nat hooly men,
91Ne that a monk, whan he is recchelees,
92Is likned til a fissh that is waterlees -
93This is to seyn, a monk out of his cloystre.
94But thilke text heeld he nat worth an oystre;

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95And I seyde his opinion was good.
96What sholde he studie and make hymselven wood,
97Upon a book in cloystre alwey to poure,
98Or swynken with his handes, and laboure,
99As Austyn bit? How shal the world be served?
100Lat Austyn have his swynk to hym reserved!
101Therfore he was a prikasour aright:
102Grehoundes he hadde as swift as fowel in flight;
103Of prikyng and of huntyng for the hare
104Was al his lust, for no cost wolde he spare.
105I seigh his sleves purfiled at the hond
106With grys, and that the fyneste of a lond;
107And, for to festne his hood under his chyn,
108He hadde of gold ywroght a ful curious pyn;
109A love-knotte in the gretter ende ther was.
110His heed was balled, that shoon as any glas,
111And eek his face, as he hadde been enoynt.
112He was a lord ful fat and in good poynt;
113His eyen stepe, and rollynge in his heed,
114That stemed as a forneys of a leed;
115His bootes souple, his hors in greet estaat.
116Now certeinly he was a fair prelaat;
117He was nat pale as a forpyned goost.
118A fat swan loved he best of any roost.
119His palfrey was as broun as is a berye.

120A FRERE ther was, a wantowne and a merye,
121A lymytour, a ful solempne man.
122In alle the ordres foure is noon that kan
123So muchel of daliaunce and fair langage.
124He hadde maad ful many a mariage
125Of yonge wommen at his owene cost.
126Unto his ordre he was a noble post.

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127Ful wel biloved and famulier was he
128With frankeleyns over al in his contree,
129And eek with worthy wommen of the toun;
130For he hadde power of confessioun,
131As seyde hymself, moore than a curat,
132For of his ordre he was licenciat.
133Ful swetely herde he confessioun,
134And plesaunt was his absolucioun:
135He was an esy man to yeve penaunce,
136Ther as he wiste to have a good pitaunce.
137For unto a povre ordre for to yive
138Is signe that a man is wel yshryve;
139For if he yaf, he dorste make avaunt,
140He wiste that a man was repentaunt;
141For many a man so hard is of his herte,
142He may nat wepe, althogh hym soore smerte.
143Therfore in stede of wepynge and preyeres
144Men moote yeve silver to the povre freres.
145His typet was ay farsed ful of knyves
146And pynnes, for to yeven faire wyves.
147And certeinly he hadde a murye note:
148Wel koude he synge and pleyen on a rote;
149Of yeddynges he baar outrely the pris.
150His nekke whit was as the flour-de-lys;
151Therto he strong was as a champioun.
152He knew the tavernes wel in every toun
153And everich hostiler and tappestere
154Bet than a lazar or a beggestere,
155For unto swich a worthy man as he
156Acorded nat, as by his facultee,
157To have with sike lazars aqueyntaunce.
158It is nat honest; it may nat avaunce,
159For to deelen with no swich poraille,
160But al with riche and selleres of vitaille.

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161And over al, ther as profit sholde arise,
162Curteis he was and lowely of servyse;
163Ther nas no man nowher so vertuous.
164He was the beste beggere in his hous;
165And yaf a certeyn ferme for the graunt;
166Noon of his bretheren cam ther in his haunt;
167For thogh a wydwe hadde noght a sho,
168So plesaunt was his "In principio,"
169Yet wolde he have a ferthyng, er he wente.
170His purchas was wel bettre than his rente.
171And rage he koude, as it were right a whelp.
172In love-dayes ther koude he muchel help,
173For ther he was nat lyk a cloysterer
174With a thredbare cope, as is a povre scoler,
175But he was lyk a maister or a pope.
176Of double worstede was his semycope,
177That rounded as a belle out of the presse.
178Somwhat he lipsed, for his wantownesse,
179To make his Englissh sweete upon his tonge;
180And in his harpyng, whan that he hadde songe,
181His eyen twynkled in his heed aryght
182As doon the sterres in the frosty nyght.
183This worthy lymytour was cleped Huberd.

184A MARCHANT was ther with a forked berd,
185In mottelee, and hye on horse he sat;
186Upon his heed a Flaundryssh bever hat,
187His bootes clasped faire and fetisly.
188His resons he spak ful solempnely,
189Sownynge alwey th'encrees of his wynnyng.
190He wolde the see were kept for any thyng
191Bitwixe Middelburgh and Orewelle.

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192Wel koude he in eschaunge sheeldes selle.
193This worthy man ful wel his wit bisette:
194Ther wiste no wight that he was in dette,
195So estatly was he of his governaunce
196With his bargaynes and with his chevyssaunce.
197For sothe he was a worthy man with alle,
198But, sooth to seyn, I noot how men hym calle.

199A CLERK ther was of Oxenford also,
200That unto logyk hadde longe ygo.
201As leene was his hors as is a rake,
202And he nas nat right fat, I undertake,
203But looked holwe, and therto sobrely.
204Ful thredbare was his overeste courtepy,
205For he hadde geten hym yet no benefice,
206Ne was so worldly for to have office.
207For hym was levere have at his beddes heed
208Twenty bookes, clad in blak or reed,
209Of Aristotle and his philosophie
210Than robes riche, or fithele, or gay sautrie.
211But al be that he was a philosophre,
212Yet hadde he but litel gold in cofre;
213But al that he myghte of his freendes hente,
214On bookes and on lernynge he it spente,
215And bisily gan for the soules preye
216Of hem that yaf hym wherwith to scoleye.
217Of studie took he moost cure and moost heede.
218Noght o word spak he moore than was neede,
219And that was seyd in forme and reverence,
220And short and quyk and ful of hy sentence;
221Sownynge in moral vertu was his speche,
222And gladly wolde he lerne and gladly teche.

223A SERGEANT OF THE LAWE, war and wys,
224That often hadde been at the Parvys,
225Ther was also, ful riche of excellence.
226Discreet he was and of greet reverence -
227He semed swich, his wordes weren so wise.
228Justice he was ful often in assise,
229By patente and by pleyn commissioun.
230For his science and for his heigh renoun,
231Of fees and robes hadde he many oon.
232So greet a purchasour was nowher noon:
233Al was fee symple to hym in effect;
234His purchasyng myghte nat been infect.
235Nowher so bisy a man as he ther nas,
236And yet he semed bisier than he was.
237In termes hadde he caas and doomes alle
238That from the tyme of kyng William were falle.
239Therto he koude endite and make a thyng,
240Ther koude no wight pynche at his writyng;
241And every statut koude he pleyn by rote.
242He rood but hoomly in a medlee cote,
243Girt with a ceint of silk, with barres smale;
244Of his array telle I no lenger tale.
245117 LINES OMITTED

246A good WIF was ther OF biside BATHE,
247But she was somdel deef, and that was scathe.
248Of clooth-makyng she hadde swich an haunt
249She passed hem of Ypres and of Gaunt.
250In al the parisshe wif ne was ther noon
251That to the offrynge bifore hire sholde goon;
252And if ther dide, certeyn so wrooth was she
253That she was out of alle charitee.
254Hir coverchiefs ful fyne weren of ground;
255I dorste swere they weyeden ten pound
256That on a Sonday weren upon hir heed.
257Hir hosen weren of fyn scarlet reed,
258Ful streite yteyd, and shoes ful moyste and newe.
259Boold was hir face, and fair, and reed of hewe.
260She was a worthy womman al hir lyve:
261Housbondes at chirche dore she hadde fyve,
262Withouten oother compaignye in youthe -

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263But therof nedeth nat to speke as nowthe.
264And thries hadde she been at Jerusalem;
265She hadde passed many a straunge strem;
266At Rome she hadde been, and at Boloigne,
267In Galice at Seint-Jame, and at Coloigne.
268She koude muchel of wandrynge by the weye.
269Gat-tothed was she, soothly for to seye.
270Upon an amblere esily she sat,
271Ywympled wel, and on hir heed an hat
272As brood as is a bokeler or a targe;
273A foot-mantel aboute hir hipes large,
274And on hir feet a paire of spores sharpe.
275In felaweshipe wel koude she laughe and carpe.
276Of remedies of love she knew per chaunce,
277For she koude of that art the olde daunce.

278A good man was ther of religioun,
279And was a povre PERSOUN OF A TOUN,
280But riche he was of hooly thoght and werk.
281He was also a lerned man, a clerk,
282That Cristes gospel trewely wolde preche;
283His parisshens devoutly wolde he teche.
284Benygne he was, and wonder diligent,
285And in adversitee ful pacient,
286And swich he was ypreved ofte sithes.
287Ful looth were hym to cursen for his tithes,
288But rather wolde he yeven, out of doute,
289Unto his povre parisshens aboute
290Of his offryng and eek of his substaunce.
291He koude in litel thyng have suffisaunce.
292Wyd was his parisshe, and houses fer asonder,
293But he ne lefte nat, for reyn ne thonder,
294In siknesse nor in meschief to visite

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295The ferreste in his parisshe, muche and lite,
296Upon his feet, and in his hand a staf.
297This noble ensample to his sheep he yaf,
298That first he wroghte, and afterward he taughte.
299Out of the gospel he tho wordes caughte,
300And this figure he added eek therto,
301That if gold ruste, what shal iren do?
302For if a preest be foul, on whom we truste,
303No wonder is a lewed man to ruste;
304And shame it is, if a prest take keep,
305A shiten shepherde and a clene sheep.
306Wel oghte a preest ensample for to yive,
307By his clennesse, how that his sheep sholde lyve.
308He sette nat his benefice to hyre
309And leet his sheep encombred in the myre
310And ran to Londoun unto Seinte Poules
311To seken hym a chaunterie for soules,
312Or with a bretherhed to been withholde;
313But dwelte at hoom, and kepte wel his folde,
314So that the wolf ne made it nat myscarie;
315He was a shepherde and noght a mercenarie.
316And though he hooly were and vertuous,
317He was to synful men nat despitous,
318Ne of his speche daungerous ne digne,
319But in his techyng discreet and benygne.
320To drawen folk to hevene by fairnesse,
321By good ensample, this was his bisynesse.
322But it were any persone obstinat,
323What so he were, of heigh or lough estat,
324Hym wolde he snybben sharply for the nonys.
325A bettre preest i trowe that nowher noon ys.
326He waited after no pompe and reverence,
327Ne maked him a spiced conscience,

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328But Cristes loore and his apostles twelve
329He taughte; but first he folwed it hymselve.

330With hym ther was a PLOWMAN, was his brother,
331That hadde ylad of dong ful many a fother;
332A trewe swynkere and a good was he,
333Lyvynge in pees and parfit charitee.
334God loved he best with al his hoole herte
335At alle tymes, thogh him gamed or smerte,
336And thanne his neighebor right as hymselve.
337He wolde thresshe, and therto dyke and delve,
338For Cristes sake, for every povre wight,
339Withouten hire, if it lay in his myght.
340His tithes payde he ful faire and wel,
341Bothe of his propre swynk and his catel.
342In a tabard he rood upon a mere.

343Ther was also a REVE, and a MILLERE,
344A SOMNOUR, and a PARDONER also,
345A MAUNCIPLE, and myself - ther were namo.

346The MILLERE was a stout carl for the nones;
347Ful byg he was of brawn, and eek of bones.
348That proved wel, for over al ther he cam,
349At wrastlynge he wolde have alwey the ram.
350He was short-sholdred, brood, a thikke knarre;
351Ther was no dore that he nolde heve of harre,
352Or breke it at a rennyng with his heed.
353His berd as any sowe or fox was reed,
354And therto brood, as though it were a spade.
355Upon the cop right of his nose he hade
356A werte, and theron stood a toft of herys,
357Reed as the brustles of a sowes erys;
358His nosethirles blake were and wyde.
359A swerd and bokeler bar he by his syde.

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360His mouth as greet was as a greet forneys.
361He was a janglere and a goliardeys,
362And that was moost of synne and harlotries.
363Wel koude he stelen corn and tollen thries;
364And yet he hadde a thombe of gold, pardee.
365A whit cote and a blew hood wered he.
366A baggepipe wel koude he blowe and sowne,
367And therwithal he broghte us out of towne.

368A gentil MAUNCIPLE was ther of a temple,
369Of which achatours myghte take exemple
370For to be wise in byynge of vitaille;
371For wheither that he payde or took by taille,
372Algate he wayted so in his achaat
373That he was ay biforn and in good staat.
374Now is nat that of God a ful fair grace
375That swich a lewed mannes wit shal pace
376The wisdom of an heep of lerned men?
377Of maistres hadde he mo than thries ten,
378That weren of lawe expert and curious,
379Of which ther were a duszeyne in that hous
380Worthy to been stywardes of rente and lond
381Of any lord that is in Engelond,
382To make hym lyve by his propre good
383In honour dettelees (but if he were wood),
384Or lyve as scarsly as hym list desire;
385And able for to helpen al a shire
386In any caas that myghte falle or happe.
387And yet this Manciple sette hir aller cappe.

389With hym ther rood a gentil PARDONER
390Of Rouncivale, his freend and his compeer,
391That streight was comen fro the court of Rome.
392Ful loude he soong "Com hider, love, to me!"
393This Somonour bar to hym a stif burdoun;
394Was nevere trompe of half so greet a soun.
395This Pardoner hadde heer as yelow as wex,
396But smothe it heeng as dooth a strike of flex;
397By ounces henge his lokkes that he hadde,
398And therwith he his shuldres overspradde;
399But thynne it lay, by colpons oon and oon.
400But hood, for jolitee, wered he noon,
401For it was trussed up in his walet.
402Hym thoughte he rood al of the newe jet;
403Dischevelee, save his cappe, he rood al bare.

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404Swiche glarynge eyen hadde he as an hare.
405A vernycle hadde he sowed upon his cappe.
406His walet, biforn hym in his lappe,
407Bretful of pardoun, comen from Rome al hoot.
408A voys he hadde as smal as hath a goot.
409No berd hadde he, ne nevere sholde have;
410As smothe it was as it were late shave.
411I trowe he were a geldyng or a mare.
412But of his craft, fro Berwyk into Ware
413Ne was ther swich another pardoner.
414For in his male he hadde a pilwe-beer,
415Which that he seyde was Oure Lady veyl;
416He seyde he hadde a gobet of the seyl
417That Seint Peter hadde, whan that he wente
418Upon the see, til Jhesu Crist hym hente.
419He hadde a croys of latoun ful of stones,
420And in a glas he hadde pigges bones.
421But with thise relikes, whan that he fond
422A povre person dwellynge upon lond,
423Upon a day he gat hym moore moneye
424Than that the person gat in monthes tweye;
425And thus, with feyned flaterye and japes,
426He made the person and the peple his apes.
427But trewely to tellen atte laste,
428He was in chirche a noble ecclesiaste.
429Wel koude he rede a lessoun or a storie,
430But alderbest he song an offertorie;
431For wel he wiste, whan that song was songe,
432He moste preche and wel affile his tonge
433To wynne silver, as he ful wel koude;
434Therefore he song the murierly and loude.

435Now have I toold you soothly, in a clause,
436Th'estaat, th'array, the nombre, and eek the cause

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437Why that assembled was this compaignye
438In Southwerk at this gentil hostelrye
439That highte the Tabard, faste by the Belle.
440But now is tyme to yow for to telle
441How that we baren us that ilke nyght,
442Whan we were in that hostelrie alyght;
443And after wol I telle of our viage
444And al the remenaunt of oure pilgrimage.
445But first I pray yow, of youre curteisye,
446That ye n'arette it nat my vileynye,
447Thogh that I pleynly speke in this mateere,
448To telle yow hir wordes and hir cheere,
449Ne thogh I speke hir wordes proprely.
450For this ye knowen al so wel as I:
451Whoso shal telle a tale after a man,
452He moot reherce as ny as evere he kan
453Everich a word, if it be in his charge,
454Al speke he never so rudeliche and large,
455Or ellis he moot telle his tale untrewe,
456Or feyne thyng, or fynde wordes newe.
457He may nat spare, althogh he were his brother;
458He moot as wel seye o word as another.
459Crist spak hymself ful brode in hooly writ,
460And wel ye woot no vileynye is it.
461Eek Plato seith, whoso that kan hym rede,
462The wordes moote be cosyn to the dede.
463Also I prey yow to foryeve it me,
464Al have I nat set folk in hir degree
465Heere in this tale, as that they sholde stonde.
466My wit is short, ye may wel understonde.

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Chaucer, Geoffrey: The General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales (3 639 words)

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