The Fall of King Bladud, Who Took on Him to Fly

I pray thee Higgins take in hand thy pen
And write my life and fall, among’st the rest
A warning set mee downe for curious men,
Whose wittes the worke of nature seeke to wrest:
I was Prince Bladud, pregnant as the best
Of wisedome, and of wealth, and learning I had store,
Of regall race I came what neede I craued more?

But this in all the sortes of men wee see,
An vncontented minde when much they haue;
The learned yet would more profounder bee,
The richest most t’encrease their wealth do craue;
The finest Dames doe slike their faces braue;
The noblest yet would higher clime, and all to skies
Immortall they to make their names on earth deuise.

In Britayne though I learned had full well
The artes, and could among’st the wise conferre,
Yet when of Athens I the fame heard tell,
(Though it in Greece so far hence distant were)
I trauayl’d thither, writers witnesse are
I studied there, and thence of learned men I brought
That learning might from Britayne land no more so far bee sought.

But after hee was dead that was my stay,
My father graue, I meane the worthy King
Then all the Britaynes shortly by a day
To royall seat elected mee did bring.
Where I to place in order euery thing,
Did both receiue the crowne and scepter in my hand,
With glory and renowned fame to gouerne all the land.

Then, for because the sway of all the Ile
Depended on my gouernement to rest
I did consult with all the peeres a while,
And of my father’s counsaylers the best,
I order tooke for matters vnredrest,
Appoynting vnto each such place of iustice fit,
As serued to their birth, their persons, wealth and wit.

The learned Greekes, whom I from Athens brought,
Conferring with the British learned men:
A place, as I commaunded them, had sought
Amid’st the Realme, and brought mee word agen.
At Staneford there I built a colledge then,
And made prouision for the same perdy,
To maynetayne them a famous Vniuersity.

By this, of skilfull men the land had store,
And all the arts were read in Britayne well:
No countrey was for learning praysed more.
Abroad, the world began of vs tell.
From other nations hither came to dwell
The wisest wits, commending vs, extolling vs to skies:
They sayd wee were a people stout, and learned, graue, and wise.

And for that time of Gods wee honour’d all,
Apollo high for wisedome, arte, and skill:
At Troynouant a Temple speciall
I built to him, for sacrifices still.
Whereon I fell, as after speake I will.
Such was our vse and superstition [wholy] then,
To deeme as Gods the statures tall of noble worthy men.

Some saye I made the holesome Baths at Bathe,
And made therefore two Tunnes of burning brasse:
And other twayne seauen kindes of salts that haue
In them inclos’d, but these bee made of glasse,
With sulphur fild, wilde fire emixt there was,
And in foure welles these Tunnes so placed heate for aye
The water springing vp, before it passe away.

Which waters heate and clensing perfect powre,
With vapours of the sulphur, salts, and fire,
Hath vertue great, to heale, and washe, and scowre
The bathed sores therein that health desire.
If of the vertues, moe thou dost require
[To knowe,] I will resite what old experience tells
In causes cold the noble vertues of these welles.

The bathes to soften sinewes vertue haue,
And also for to clense and scowre the skin
From Morphewes white and blacke, to heale and saue
The bodyes freckled, faynt, are bathed therein:
Scabs, lepry, sores are old and festered in,
The scurfe, botch, itche, goute, poxe, [sweld ioynts] and humores fell,
The milt and liuer hard it heales, and palsey well.

I must confesse by learned skill I found
Those natiue welles whence springs that helpe for men:
But well thou know’st there runnes from vnder ground
Springes sweete, salt, cold, and hote euen now as then,
From rocke, salt petre, alume, grauell, fen,
From sulphur, iron, leade, gold, siluer, brasse and tinne:
Ech fountayne takes the force of vayne it coucheth in.

Then who so knowes by nature’s worke in these,
Of metalles or of mynes the force to heale,
May sooner giue his iudgement in disease,
For curing by the bath, and surer deale
With sickly people of the publique weale,
And also finde of fountaynes salt, or hote, or cold,
And for to heale by them the sicke with honour bee bold.

The Citie eke of Bathe I founded there,
Renouned far by reason of the welles:
And many monuments that auncient were
I placed there, thou know’st the story tells.
I sought renowne and fame and nothing elze.
But when our actes extoll our prayse aboue the skie,
W’are blinded so, wee looke not downe from whence wee flye.

There are but fewe, whom Fortune bathes in blesse,
But blinded are, and dazelingly they looke:
They see nought else but worldly happinesse,
At that they only fish with Fortune’s hooke.
Beneath on earth pompe, pelfe, and prayse they pooke,
On that depending frayle, that fayles, and flits, and flyes,
Forsaking vertue sole, that bides for aye aboue the skies.

Mens vayne delightes are wondrous to behold,
For that that reason nills, nor nature sowes
They take in hand, on science far to bold,
Deceiu’d by suttle snares of diuelish showes.
From which attemptes a floud of mischiefe flowes,
An heape of hurtes, [a swarme of smartes] a fry of foule decayes,
A flocke of feares, [a droue of deathes,] and thrales a thousand wayes.

If that the water fish forsake the streame
Agaynst his kinde, feeles hee no hurt ensues?
Or if the broeke would learne to play the breame,
And leaue the lambes at land, were this no newes?
A fethered fowle in th’earth a den to chuse,
Or flounder say to flye [and soare aloft] the larke to catch,
Would not you maruell then, what monsters now doth nature hatch?

But sith wee see that nature hath assign’d
The fowle to fly the ayre, as seemeth well,
The fish to swim the sea, as fits his kinde,
The earth for men and beastes to breede and dwell:
Of right a man, which doth the rest excell,
Should euen so far surpasse the rest in ech degree,
As all the rest to him in wit and reason weaker bee.

All this I speake to warne the rest that heare,
And eke to shew the blindnesse of delites.
Herein my foly vayne may playne appeare,
What hap they heape which try out cunning slightes,
What hurt there hits, at such vayne shewes and sightes,
Where men for pleasure only take much [toyle and] payne,
To alter nature’s gifts for [pompe, and pride, and] pleasure vayne.

Were not it straunge, thinke you, a King to fly,
To play the tombler, or some iugling cast?
To dresse him selfe in plumes, as erst did I,
And vnder armes to knit on winges full fast?
A sport you thinke that might the wise agaste.
But Magicke Mathematicall had taught mee poynts of scill,
Whereby when first I practis’d then, I lern’d my selfe to kill.

I deckte my corps with plumes (I say) and winges,
And had them set, thou seest, in scilfull wise,
With many feats, fine poyseing equall thinges,
To ayde my selfe in flight to fall or rise,
An arte men seldome vse mine enterprise:
[Somwhat] gaynst store of winde, by practise rise I could,
And try’d which way to turne, and mount, and lyght I should.

But er the perfect scill I learned had,
(And yet mee thought I could doe passing well)
My subiects’ hearts with pleasaunt toyes to glad,
From Temple’s top, where did Apollo dwell,
I 'sayd to flye, but on the Church I fell,
And broysed all to peeces lost my life withall.
This was my race, mine exercise and fatall fall.

What vayner thing could any Prince deuise,
Than so himselfe a foolish fowle to showe:
Learne you by mee, that count your selues so wise,
The worst to doubt of thinges, what ere you know,
Fly not so high for feare you fall so lowe:
The massy wight is far to great for fethery downe to beare:
Below y^e happy man knowes when tis well, & can content him there.

These curious artes alurementes haue alone,
They profer much in recompence of payne:
But yet among’st a thousand scarce is one
In practise, ought by them can saue or gayne.
You see perdy they are but false and vayne
Sophisticall, deceiptfull, [endlesse] and vntrue,
That nothing haue them selues, and promise all to you.

I speake not of the rest that are in vse
Amongst the wiser sort, Philosophy,
Nor of the partes thereof, but of th’abuse
That comes by magicke arts of imagery,
By vile inchauntments, charmes, and pampestry,
All which I deeme (and they shall finde in proofe) as euill
That practise them, as is (by whom they deale) the diuell.

To make an end: you noble Kinges content
Your selues with studies seruing for the state:
You Lordes also with all your wits inuent
What way t’eschewe the Prynce and people’s hate.
Yee subiects loue your Prynce, eschewe debate.
I wish you all beware to clime, or flee, or soare to hie,
For feare you tomble downe, or slip, or fall, as erst did I.

Lenvoy.

Who so that takes in hand the aire to scale,
As Bladud here did take on him to flie:
Or Dedal’s sonne (as Poets tell the tale)
Yong Icarus, that flew (they say) so hie:
Or else as Simon Magus flew perdy:
Though nere so well his plumes and winges hee decke,
By sea h’is droun’d, by land hee breakes his necke.

On ground is surest place for men to goe,
But yet take heede and let your ground bee good:
The surest footing is perdy beloe,
Who styes the aire I count his dealing wood:
The slender buildings hauty, feoble stoode,
On high the tempests haue much powre to wrecke:
Then best to bide beneath, and surest for the necke.

King Bladud yet might here commended bee,
For that hee loued learning all his daies:
Eke for hee built an Vniuersity
At Staneford first, hee well deserued praise,
But now his nice Cordila here assaies,
From bleeding breast, to tell her woefull wrecke,
With knife in hand her desperate death to decke.