Dedicatory Sonnets
To the right honourable Sir
Christopher Hatton,
Lord high Chauncelor of
England.
&c.
T
H
h
ose prudent heads, that with theire counsels
wise
Whylom the Pillours of th’ earth did sustaine,
And taught ambitious Rome to
tyrannise,
And in the neck of all the world to rayne,
Oft from those graue grave affaires were wont abstaine,
With the sweet Lady Muses for to play:
So Ennius the elder Africane,
So Maro oft did Cæsars cares allay.
So you great Lord, that with your counsell sway
he burdeine of this kingdom mightily,
With like delightes sometimes may eke delay,
The rugged brow of carefull Policy:
And to these ydle rymes lend litle space,
Which for their titles sake may find more grace.
To the right honourable the Lo. Burleigh Lo. high
Threasurer of England.
T
O
o
you right noble Lord, whose carefull brest
To menage of most graue grave affaires is bent,
And on whose mightie shoulders most doth rest
The burdein of this kingdomes gouernement governement ,
As the wide compasse of the firmament,
On Atlas mighty shoulders is vpstayd upstayd ;
Vnfitly Unfitly I these ydle rimes present,
The labor of lost time, and wit vnstayd unstayd :
Yet if their deeper sence be inly wayd,
And the dim vele, with which from comune vew
Their fairer parts are hid, aside be layd.
Perhaps not vaine they may appeare to you.
Such as they be, vouchsafe them to receaue receave ,
And wipe their faults out of your censure graue grave
.
E. S.
To the right Honourable the Earle of Oxenford,
Lord high Chamberlayne of England. &c.
R
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e
ceiue most Noble Lord in gentle gree,
The vnripe unripe fruit of an vnready unready wit:
Which by thy countenaunce doth craue crave
to bee
Defended from foule Enuies Envies poisnous bit.
Which so to doe may thee right well
befit,
Sith th’antique glory of thine auncestry
Vnder Under a shady vele is therein writ,
And eke thine owne long liuing living memory,
Succeeding them in true nobility:
And also for the loue love , which thou doest beare
To th’Heliconian ymps, and they to
thee,
They vnto unto thee, and thou to them most deare:
Deare as thou art vnto unto thy selfe, so loue love
That loues loves & honours thee, as doth behoue behove .
To the right honourable the Earle of
Northumberland.
T
H
h
e sacred Muses haue have made alwaies clame
To be the Nourses of nobility,
And Registres of euerlasting everlasting fame,
To all that armes professe and cheualry chevalry .
Then by like right the noble Progeny,
Which them succeed in fame and worth, are tyde
T’embrace the seruice service of sweete Poetry,
By whose endeuours they are glorifide,
And eke from all, of whom it is enuide envide ,
To patronize the authour of their praise,
Which giues gives
them life, that els would soone haue have dide,
And crownes their ashes with immortall baies.
To thee therefore right noble Lord I send
This present of my paines, it to defend.
Qq2
To the right honourable the Earle of Cumberland.
R
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doubted Lord, in whose corageous mind
The flowre of cheualry chevalry now bloosming faire,
Doth promise fruite worthy the noble kind,
Which of their praises haue have left you the haire;
To you this humble present I prepare,
For loue love of vertue and of Martiall praise,
To which though nobly ye inclined are,
As goodlie well ye shew’d in late assaies,
Yet braue brave ensample of long passed daies,
In which trew honor yee may fashiond see,
To like desire of honor may ye raise,
And fill your mind with magnanimitee.
Receiue Receive it Lord therefore as it was ment,
For honor of your name and high descent.
E. S.
To the most honourable and excellent Lo. the Earle
of Essex. Great Maister of the Horse to her Highnesse,
and knight of the Noble order of the Garter. &c.
M
A
a
gnificke Lord, whose vertues
excellent
exellent
Doe merit a most famous Poets witt,
To be thy liuing living praises instrument,
Yet doe not sdeigne, to let thy name be writt
In this base Poeme, for thee far vnfitt unfitt .
Nought is thy worth disparaged thereby,
But when my Muse, whose fethers nothing flitt
Doe yet but flagg, and lowly learne to fly
With bolder wing shall dare alofte to sty
To the last praises of this Faery Queene,
Then shall it make more famous memory
Of thine Heroicke parts, such as they beene:
Till then vouchsafe thy noble countenaunc,,
To these first labours needed furtheraunce,
To the right Honourable the Earle of
Ormond and Ossory.
R
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ceiue most noble Lord a simple taste
Of the wilde fruit, which saluage salvage soyl hath bred,
Which being through long wars left almost waste,
With brutish barbarisme is ouerspredd overspredd :
And in so faire a land, as may be redd,
Not one Parnassus, nor one Helicone
Left for sweete Muses to be harboured,
But where thy selfe hast thy braue brave mansione,
There in deede dwel
faire Graces many one.
And gentle Nymphes, delights of learned wits,
And in thy person without Paragone
All goodly bountie and true honour sits,
Such therefore, as that wasted soyl doth yield,
Receiue Receive dear Lord in worth, the fruit of barren field.
To the right honourable the Lo. Ch. Howard, Lo. high Admi-
ral
of England, knight of the noble order of the Garter,
and one of her Maiesties Majesties
priuie privie Counsel. &c.
A
N
n
d ye, braue brave Lord, whose goodly personage,
And noble deeds each other garnishing,
Make you ensample to the present age,
Of th’old Heroes, whose famous
ofspring
The antique Poets wont so much to sing,
In this same Pageaunt haue have a worthy place,
Sith those huge castles of Castilian king,
That vainly threatned kingdomes to displace,
Like flying doues doves ye did before you chace;
And that proud people woxen insolent
Through many victories, didst first
deface:
Thy praises euerlasting everlasting monument
Is in this verse engrauen engraven semblably,
That it may liue live to all posterity.
Qq3
To the right honourable the Lord of Hunsdon, high
Chamberlaine
to her Maiesty Majesty .
R
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e
nowmed Lord, that for your worthinesse
And noble deeds haue have your deserued deserved place,
High in the fauour favour of that Emperesse.
The worlds sole glory and her sexes grace,
Here eke of right haue have you a worthie place,
Both for your nearnes to that Faerie Queene,
And for your owne high merit in like cace,
Of which, apparaunt proofe was to be seene,
When that tumultuous rage and fearfull deene
Of Northerne rebels ye did pacify,
And their disloiall powre defaced clene,
The record of enduring memory.
Liue Live Lord for euer ever in this lasting verse,
That all posteritie thy honor may reherse.
E. S.
To the most renowmed and valiant
Lord, the
Lord Grey of Wilton, knight of the Noble order
of the
Garter, &c.
M
O
o
st Noble Lord the pillor of my life,
And Patrone of my Muses pupillage,
Through whose large bountie poured on me rife,
In the first season of my feeble age,
I now doe liue live , bound yours by vassalage:
Sith nothing euer ever may redeeme, nor reaue reave
Out of your endlesse debt so sure a gage,
Vouchsafe in worth this small guift to receaue receave ,
Which in your noble hands for pledge I leaue leave ,
Of all the rest, that I am tyde t’account:
Rude rymes, the which a rustick Muse did weaue weave
In fauadge soyle, far from Parnasso mount,
And roughly wrought in an vnlearned unlearned Loome:
The which vouchsafe dear Lord your fauorable favorable doome
To the right honourable the Lord of Buckhurst, one
of her Maiesties Majesties
priuie privie Counsell.
I
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vain I thinke right honourable Lord,
By this rude rime to memorize thy name;
Whose learned Muse hath writ her owne record,
In golden verse, worthy immortal fame:
Thou much more fit (were leasure to the same)
Thy gracious Souerain praises to compile.
And her imperiall Maiestie Majestie to frame,
In loftie numbers and heroicke stile.
But sith thou maist not so, giue give
leaue leave a while
To baser wit his power therein to spend,
Whose grosse defaults thy daintie pen may file,
And vnaduised unadvised
ouersights oversights amend.
But euermore evermore vouchsafe it to maintaine
Against vile Zoilus backbitings vaine.
To the right honourable Sir Fr. Walsingham knight,
principall Secretary to her Maiesty Majesty , and of her
honourable priuy privy Counsell.
T
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h
at Mantuane Poetes incompared spirit,
Whose girland now is set in highest place,
Had not Mecœnas for his worthy merit,
It first aduaunst advaunst to great Augustus grace,
Might long perhaps haue have lien in silence bace,
Ne bene so much admir’d of later age.
This lowly Muse, that learns like steps to trace,
Flies for like aide vnto unto your Patronage;
That are the great Mecenas of this age,
As wel to al that ciuil civil artes professe
As those that are inspird with Martial rage,
And craues craves protection of her feeblenesse:
Which if ye yield, perhaps ye may her rayse
In bigger tunes to sound your liuing living prayse.
E. S.
To the right noble Lord and most valiaunt Captaine,
Sir Iohn John Norris knight, Lord president of Mounster,
VV
H
h
o euer ever
gaue gave more honourable prize
To the sweet Muse, then did the Martiall crew;
That their braue brave deeds she might immortalize
In her shril tromp, and sound their praises dew?
Who then ought more to fauour favour her, then you
Moste noble Lord, the honor of this age,
And Precedent of all that armes ensue?
Whose warlike prowesse and manly courage,
Tempred with reason and aduizement advizement sage
Hath fild sad Belgicke with victorious spoile,
In Fraunce and Ireland left a famous gage,
And lately shakt the Lusitanian soile.
Sith then each where thou hast dispredd thy fame,
Loue Love him, that hath eternized your name.
E. S.
To the right noble and valorous knight, Sir Walter Raleigh,
Lo. Wardein of the Stanneryes, and lieftenaunt
of Cornewaile.
T
O
o
thee that art the sommers Nightingale,
Thy soueraine soveraine Goddesses most deare delight,
Why doe I send this rusticke Madrigale,
That may thy tunefull eare vnseason unseason quite?
Thou onely fit this Argument to write,
In whose high thoughts Pleasure hath built her bowre,
And dainty loue love learnd sweetly to endite.
My rimes I know vnsauory unsavory and sowre,
To tast the streames, that like a golden showre
Flow from thy fruitfull bead, of thy loues loves praise,
Fitter perhaps to thonder Martiall stowre,
When so thee list thy lofty Muse to raise:
Yet till that thou thy Poeme wilt make knowne,
Let thy faire Cinthias praises bee thus rudely showne.
E. S.
To the right honourable and most vertuous Lady, the
Countesse of Penbroke.
R
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membraunce of that most Heroicke spirit,
The heuens hevens pride, the flory of our daies,
Which now triumpheth through immortall merit
Of his braue brave vertues, crownd with lasting baies,
Of heuenlie blis and euerlasting everlasting praies;
Who first my Muse did lift out of the flore,
To sing his sweet delights in lowlie laies;
Bids me most noble Lady to adore
His goodly image liuing living
euermore evermore ,
In the diuine divine resemblaunce of your face;
Which with your vertues ye embellish more,
And natiue native beauty deck with heuenlie grace:
For his, and for your owne especial sake,
Vouchsafe from him this tokẽtoken in good worth to take.
E. S.