CENTURYIV.

French.Sera du reste de sang non espandu,Venicequiert secours estre donné,Apres avoir bien lon temps attendu,Cité livrée au premier Cor sonné.English.There shall be a remnant of blood unspilt,Veniceshall seek for succours,After having long waited for it,The City shall be surrendred at the first sound of the Trumpet.

Sera du reste de sang non espandu,Venicequiert secours estre donné,Apres avoir bien lon temps attendu,Cité livrée au premier Cor sonné.

Sera du reste de sang non espandu,

Venicequiert secours estre donné,

Apres avoir bien lon temps attendu,

Cité livrée au premier Cor sonné.

There shall be a remnant of blood unspilt,Veniceshall seek for succours,After having long waited for it,The City shall be surrendred at the first sound of the Trumpet.

There shall be a remnant of blood unspilt,

Veniceshall seek for succours,

After having long waited for it,

The City shall be surrendred at the first sound of the Trumpet.

This to my judgement is concerning the Siege ofCandia, in which theVenetiansfor the space of about twenty years desired and expected succours from the Christian Princes, which came so slowly, that the City was fained to surrender upon honorable terms, which is the meaning of the first Verse,There shall be a remnant of blood unspilt.

French.Par mort laFranceprendra voiage a faire,Classe par Mer, marcher MontsPyrenées,Espagneen trouble marcher gent militaire,Des plus grands Dames enFranceemmenées.English.By reason of a death,Franceshall undertake a Journey,They shall have a Fleet at Sea, and march towards thePyrenes,Spainshall be in trouble by an Army,Some of the greatest Ladies inFrancecarried away

Par mort laFranceprendra voiage a faire,Classe par Mer, marcher MontsPyrenées,Espagneen trouble marcher gent militaire,Des plus grands Dames enFranceemmenées.

Par mort laFranceprendra voiage a faire,

Classe par Mer, marcher MontsPyrenées,

Espagneen trouble marcher gent militaire,

Des plus grands Dames enFranceemmenées.

By reason of a death,Franceshall undertake a Journey,They shall have a Fleet at Sea, and march towards thePyrenes,Spainshall be in trouble by an Army,Some of the greatest Ladies inFrancecarried away

By reason of a death,Franceshall undertake a Journey,

They shall have a Fleet at Sea, and march towards thePyrenes,

Spainshall be in trouble by an Army,

Some of the greatest Ladies inFrancecarried away

The whole sense of this is, that by reason of some bodies death,Franceshall make war againstSpainby Sea and Land, and putSpainin great trouble.

The fourth Verse saith, that some of the greatest Ladies inFranceshall be carried away, but the question is, whether by theSpaniards, or (which is more probable) by their own Husbands going to war againstSpain.

French.D’Arras&Bourgesde Brodes grands enseignes,Un plus grand nombre deGasconsbattre a pied,Ceux long duRhosnesaigneront lesEspagnes,Proche du Mont ouSaguntesassied.English.FromArrasandBourgesmany colours of black men shall come,A greater number ofGasconsshall go on foot,Those along theRhosneshall letSpainblood,Near the Mountain whereSaguntusis seated.

D’Arras&Bourgesde Brodes grands enseignes,Un plus grand nombre deGasconsbattre a pied,Ceux long duRhosnesaigneront lesEspagnes,Proche du Mont ouSaguntesassied.

D’Arras&Bourgesde Brodes grands enseignes,

Un plus grand nombre deGasconsbattre a pied,

Ceux long duRhosnesaigneront lesEspagnes,

Proche du Mont ouSaguntesassied.

FromArrasandBourgesmany colours of black men shall come,A greater number ofGasconsshall go on foot,Those along theRhosneshall letSpainblood,Near the Mountain whereSaguntusis seated.

FromArrasandBourgesmany colours of black men shall come,

A greater number ofGasconsshall go on foot,

Those along theRhosneshall letSpainblood,

Near the Mountain whereSaguntusis seated.

ArrasandBourgesare Cities ofFrance. As forbrodes, we have said before that it signifie brown men, such as are theGascoins, inhabiting the Province ofAquitanianearSpain.

Saguntusis a City inSpain, that was destroyed by theRomans.

French.L’Important Prince fasché, plaint & querelle,De rapts & pillé par Coqs & par Libiques,Grand & par Terre, par Mer infinis Voiles,SeuleItaliesera chassantCeltiques.English.The considerable Prince vexed, complaineth and quarelleth,Concerning rapes and plunderings done by the Cocks and LibiquesGreat trouble by Land, by Sea infinite Sails,Italyalone shall drive away theFrench.

L’Important Prince fasché, plaint & querelle,De rapts & pillé par Coqs & par Libiques,Grand & par Terre, par Mer infinis Voiles,SeuleItaliesera chassantCeltiques.

L’Important Prince fasché, plaint & querelle,

De rapts & pillé par Coqs & par Libiques,

Grand & par Terre, par Mer infinis Voiles,

SeuleItaliesera chassantCeltiques.

The considerable Prince vexed, complaineth and quarelleth,Concerning rapes and plunderings done by the Cocks and LibiquesGreat trouble by Land, by Sea infinite Sails,Italyalone shall drive away theFrench.

The considerable Prince vexed, complaineth and quarelleth,

Concerning rapes and plunderings done by the Cocks and Libiques

Great trouble by Land, by Sea infinite Sails,

Italyalone shall drive away theFrench.

This considerable Prince wasPhilipthe II. King ofSpain, who was vexed to see the Cocks, that is theFrench, and Libiques that is theTurksjoyned together, underBarbarossato commit so many Rapes and violences upon his Subjects.

French.Croix Paix, soubs un accomply Divin Verbe,L’Espagne&Gaulesseront unis ensemble,Grand clade proche & combat tresacerbe,Cœur si hardy ne sera qui ne tremble.English.The Cross shall have peace, under an accomplished Divine Word,SpainandFranceshall be united together,A great Battle near hand, and a most sharp fight,No heart so stout but shall tremble.

Croix Paix, soubs un accomply Divin Verbe,L’Espagne&Gaulesseront unis ensemble,Grand clade proche & combat tresacerbe,Cœur si hardy ne sera qui ne tremble.

Croix Paix, soubs un accomply Divin Verbe,

L’Espagne&Gaulesseront unis ensemble,

Grand clade proche & combat tresacerbe,

Cœur si hardy ne sera qui ne tremble.

The Cross shall have peace, under an accomplished Divine Word,SpainandFranceshall be united together,A great Battle near hand, and a most sharp fight,No heart so stout but shall tremble.

The Cross shall have peace, under an accomplished Divine Word,

SpainandFranceshall be united together,

A great Battle near hand, and a most sharp fight,

No heart so stout but shall tremble.

We have said before that byDivine Word, we must not understand the second person of the Trinity, but a Divine or Theologian, called in Greek θεόλογος, which also signifiethDivine Word. Therefore the meaning of the first Verse is, that under the Goverment of some eminent Divine, (be like a good Pope) the Cross shall have peace, that is, the Christian Religion shall be in Peace, and persecution shall cease. The last three Verses are plain.

French.D’Habits nouveaux apres faite la treuve,Malice, trame, & machination,Premier mourra qui en fera la preuve,CouleurVenise, insidiation.English.After the new Cloaths shall be found out,There shall be malice, plotting and machination,He shall die the first that shall make trial of it,Under colour ofVenice, shall be a conspiracy.

D’Habits nouveaux apres faite la treuve,Malice, trame, & machination,Premier mourra qui en fera la preuve,CouleurVenise, insidiation.

D’Habits nouveaux apres faite la treuve,

Malice, trame, & machination,

Premier mourra qui en fera la preuve,

CouleurVenise, insidiation.

After the new Cloaths shall be found out,There shall be malice, plotting and machination,He shall die the first that shall make trial of it,Under colour ofVenice, shall be a conspiracy.

After the new Cloaths shall be found out,

There shall be malice, plotting and machination,

He shall die the first that shall make trial of it,

Under colour ofVenice, shall be a conspiracy.

Everybody may be as wise as I in the interpretation of this.

French.Le fils mineur du grand & hay Prince,De Lepre aura a vingt ans grande tache,De dueil mourra triste & mince,Et il mourra la ou tombe chair lache.English.The younger Son of the great and hated Prince,Being twenty years, old shall have a great touch of Leprosie,His mother shall die for grief, very sad and lean,And he shall die of the disease loose flesh.

Le fils mineur du grand & hay Prince,De Lepre aura a vingt ans grande tache,De dueil mourra triste & mince,Et il mourra la ou tombe chair lache.

Le fils mineur du grand & hay Prince,

De Lepre aura a vingt ans grande tache,

De dueil mourra triste & mince,

Et il mourra la ou tombe chair lache.

The younger Son of the great and hated Prince,Being twenty years, old shall have a great touch of Leprosie,His mother shall die for grief, very sad and lean,And he shall die of the disease loose flesh.

The younger Son of the great and hated Prince,

Being twenty years, old shall have a great touch of Leprosie,

His mother shall die for grief, very sad and lean,

And he shall die of the disease loose flesh.

This is easie to be understood, if we remember thatCharlesIX. King ofFrance, younger son toHenryII. died of a foul disease, and his MotherCatharineofMedicisdied of grief.

French.La grand Cité dassaut prompt repentinSurpris de nuit, gardes interrompus,Les Excubies & veilles SaintQuentin,Trucidez gardes, & les Portails rompus.English.The great City shall be taken by a sudden assault,Being surprised by night, the Watch being beaten,The Court of Guard and Watch of SaintQuentinShall be killed, and the Gates broken.

La grand Cité dassaut prompt repentinSurpris de nuit, gardes interrompus,Les Excubies & veilles SaintQuentin,Trucidez gardes, & les Portails rompus.

La grand Cité dassaut prompt repentin

Surpris de nuit, gardes interrompus,

Les Excubies & veilles SaintQuentin,

Trucidez gardes, & les Portails rompus.

The great City shall be taken by a sudden assault,Being surprised by night, the Watch being beaten,The Court of Guard and Watch of SaintQuentinShall be killed, and the Gates broken.

The great City shall be taken by a sudden assault,

Being surprised by night, the Watch being beaten,

The Court of Guard and Watch of SaintQuentin

Shall be killed, and the Gates broken.

This great City was the City of St.QuentininPicardy, taken by assault byPhilipthe II.Anno1557.

French.Le Chef du Camp au milieu de la presse,D’un coup de flesche sera blessé aux cuisses,Lors queGeneveen larmes & destresse,Sera trahie parLozanne&Souisses.English.The Chief of the Camp in the middle of the crowd,Shall be wounded with an Arrow through both his thighs,WhenGenevabeing in tears and distress,Shall be betrayed byLozaneand theSwitzers.

Le Chef du Camp au milieu de la presse,D’un coup de flesche sera blessé aux cuisses,Lors queGeneveen larmes & destresse,Sera trahie parLozanne&Souisses.

Le Chef du Camp au milieu de la presse,

D’un coup de flesche sera blessé aux cuisses,

Lors queGeneveen larmes & destresse,

Sera trahie parLozanne&Souisses.

The Chief of the Camp in the middle of the crowd,Shall be wounded with an Arrow through both his thighs,WhenGenevabeing in tears and distress,Shall be betrayed byLozaneand theSwitzers.

The Chief of the Camp in the middle of the crowd,

Shall be wounded with an Arrow through both his thighs,

WhenGenevabeing in tears and distress,

Shall be betrayed byLozaneand theSwitzers.

The words and sense are plain.

French.Le jeune Prince accusé faucement,Mettra le camp en trouble & en querelles,Meurtry le chef par le souslevement,Sceptre appaiser, puis guerir escroüelles.English.The young Prince being falsely accused,Shall put the Camp in trouble, and in quarrele,The chief shall be murdered by the tumult,The Scepter shall be appeased, and after cure the Kings-evil.

Le jeune Prince accusé faucement,Mettra le camp en trouble & en querelles,Meurtry le chef par le souslevement,Sceptre appaiser, puis guerir escroüelles.

Le jeune Prince accusé faucement,

Mettra le camp en trouble & en querelles,

Meurtry le chef par le souslevement,

Sceptre appaiser, puis guerir escroüelles.

The young Prince being falsely accused,Shall put the Camp in trouble, and in quarrele,The chief shall be murdered by the tumult,The Scepter shall be appeased, and after cure the Kings-evil.

The young Prince being falsely accused,

Shall put the Camp in trouble, and in quarrele,

The chief shall be murdered by the tumult,

The Scepter shall be appeased, and after cure the Kings-evil.

This Prophecie must needs be concerningEnglandorFrance; for there is but those two Kings that challenge the cure of the Kings-evil.

French.Celuy quaura couvert de la grand Cappe,Sera induit a quelque cas patrer,Les douze rouges viendront soüiller la nappe,Soubs meurtre, meurtre se viendra perpetrer.English.He that shall be covered with a great Cloak,Shall be induced to commit some great fact,The twelve red ones shall Soil the Table-cloth,Under murder, murder shall be committed.

Celuy quaura couvert de la grand Cappe,Sera induit a quelque cas patrer,Les douze rouges viendront soüiller la nappe,Soubs meurtre, meurtre se viendra perpetrer.

Celuy quaura couvert de la grand Cappe,

Sera induit a quelque cas patrer,

Les douze rouges viendront soüiller la nappe,

Soubs meurtre, meurtre se viendra perpetrer.

He that shall be covered with a great Cloak,Shall be induced to commit some great fact,The twelve red ones shall Soil the Table-cloth,Under murder, murder shall be committed.

He that shall be covered with a great Cloak,

Shall be induced to commit some great fact,

The twelve red ones shall Soil the Table-cloth,

Under murder, murder shall be committed.

Every one may interpret this as well as I, provided that by thetwelve red ones, he understandeth twelve Cardinals.

French.Le Camp plus grand de route mis ensuite,Gueres plus outre ne sera pourchassé,Ost recampé & legion reduite,Puis hors, desGaulesdu tout sera chassé.English.The greatest Camp being in disorder, shall be routed,And shall be pursued not much after,The Army shall incamp again, and the Troops set in order,Then afterwards, they shall be wholly driven out ofFrance.

Le Camp plus grand de route mis ensuite,Gueres plus outre ne sera pourchassé,Ost recampé & legion reduite,Puis hors, desGaulesdu tout sera chassé.

Le Camp plus grand de route mis ensuite,

Gueres plus outre ne sera pourchassé,

Ost recampé & legion reduite,

Puis hors, desGaulesdu tout sera chassé.

The greatest Camp being in disorder, shall be routed,And shall be pursued not much after,The Army shall incamp again, and the Troops set in order,Then afterwards, they shall be wholly driven out ofFrance.

The greatest Camp being in disorder, shall be routed,

And shall be pursued not much after,

The Army shall incamp again, and the Troops set in order,

Then afterwards, they shall be wholly driven out ofFrance.

This Prophecie is concerning an out-landish Army that shall invadeFrance, and though numerous, yet shall be put to flight, and shall not be much pursued: therefore it shall incamp again, and collect and gather again its Troops, and afterwards shall be wholly driven out ofFrance.

I am much mistaken if this Prophecie came not to pass, when the Duke ofParmaat the head of aSpanishnumerous Army came intoFrancein favour of the League; forHenryIV. met him at the siege ofRoven, beat him off, and suffered him to retire quietly, and as the common saying is, made him a Golden Bridge, to retreat into the Low-Countries again.

French.De plus grand perte nouvelles rapportées,Le rapport fait le camp festonnera,Bandes unies encontre revoltées,DoublePhalange, grand abandonnera.English.News being brought of a great loss,The report divulged, the Camp shall be astonished,Troops being united and revolted,The doublePhalangeshall forsake the great one.

De plus grand perte nouvelles rapportées,Le rapport fait le camp festonnera,Bandes unies encontre revoltées,DoublePhalange, grand abandonnera.

De plus grand perte nouvelles rapportées,

Le rapport fait le camp festonnera,

Bandes unies encontre revoltées,

DoublePhalange, grand abandonnera.

News being brought of a great loss,The report divulged, the Camp shall be astonished,Troops being united and revolted,The doublePhalangeshall forsake the great one.

News being brought of a great loss,

The report divulged, the Camp shall be astonished,

Troops being united and revolted,

The doublePhalangeshall forsake the great one.

This hath a connexion with the precedent; for while the Prince ofParmawas busied inFrance, news was brought to his Camp, that theHollandershad takenAntwerp, which discouraged his whole Host, and made him retire with all speed.

The WordPhalangesignifieth a Battailion or part of an Army, which being expressed here by the worddouble Phalange, signifieth, that both Horse and Foot deserted the Duke ofParmaupon the hearing of this news.

French.La mort subite du premier personage,Aura changé & mis un autre au Regne,Tost, tard venu a si haut & basage,Que Terre & mer faudra que lon le craigne.English.The sudden death of the chief man,Shall cause a change, and put another in the Raign,Soon, late come to so high a degree, in a low age,So that by Land and Sea he must be feared.

La mort subite du premier personage,Aura changé & mis un autre au Regne,Tost, tard venu a si haut & basage,Que Terre & mer faudra que lon le craigne.

La mort subite du premier personage,

Aura changé & mis un autre au Regne,

Tost, tard venu a si haut & basage,

Que Terre & mer faudra que lon le craigne.

The sudden death of the chief man,Shall cause a change, and put another in the Raign,Soon, late come to so high a degree, in a low age,So that by Land and Sea he must be feared.

The sudden death of the chief man,

Shall cause a change, and put another in the Raign,

Soon, late come to so high a degree, in a low age,

So that by Land and Sea he must be feared.

The two first Verses are plain.

The two last signifie, that a youth shall come to the Kingdom,soon, that is, by reason of the sudden death of thechief man, andlate; because being but young, he shall Reign so long, that he shall be famous, and feared by Sea and Land.

French.D’ou pensera faire venir famine,De la viendra le rassasiement,L’œil de la Mer par avare canine,Pour de l’un lautre donra Huile, Froment.English.Whence one thought to make famine to come,Thence shall come the fulness,The eye of the Sea through a doggish covetousness,Shall give to both Oyl and Wheat.

D’ou pensera faire venir famine,De la viendra le rassasiement,L’œil de la Mer par avare canine,Pour de l’un lautre donra Huile, Froment.

D’ou pensera faire venir famine,

De la viendra le rassasiement,

L’œil de la Mer par avare canine,

Pour de l’un lautre donra Huile, Froment.

Whence one thought to make famine to come,Thence shall come the fulness,The eye of the Sea through a doggish covetousness,Shall give to both Oyl and Wheat.

Whence one thought to make famine to come,

Thence shall come the fulness,

The eye of the Sea through a doggish covetousness,

Shall give to both Oyl and Wheat.

This Prophecie was fulfilled at the famous Siege ofOstend, which lasted three years and three Months; for theHollandersthat brought relief to the Town, did for covetousness sell the ammunition to theSpaniardsthat besieged it, for which complaint being made by the States to the Prince ofOrenge,MauriceofNassaw, as also that they did the like toNewport, which he had besieged; he replyed smartly, do you not know that your Countrey men would Sail into Hell, were it not for fear to have their Sails burnt.

French.La Cité franche de liberté fait serue,Des profligés & resueurs fait azyle,Le Roy changé a eux non si proterue,De cent seront devenus plus de Mille.English.The free City from a free one shall become slave,And of the banished and dreamers shall be a retreat,The King changed in mind, shall not be so froward to them.Of one hundred they shall become more than a thousand.

La Cité franche de liberté fait serue,Des profligés & resueurs fait azyle,Le Roy changé a eux non si proterue,De cent seront devenus plus de Mille.

La Cité franche de liberté fait serue,

Des profligés & resueurs fait azyle,

Le Roy changé a eux non si proterue,

De cent seront devenus plus de Mille.

The free City from a free one shall become slave,And of the banished and dreamers shall be a retreat,The King changed in mind, shall not be so froward to them.Of one hundred they shall become more than a thousand.

The free City from a free one shall become slave,

And of the banished and dreamers shall be a retreat,

The King changed in mind, shall not be so froward to them.

Of one hundred they shall become more than a thousand.

Here you must observe that the Author being a Papist, speaketh this concerning the City ofGeneva, which he saith from a free City became a slave, when it shook off the Duke ofSavoy’s domination, and became a retreat to the Protestants, whom he called thebanishedanddreamers.

In the third Verse, bythe King changed in his mind that shall not be so froward to them, he meaneth,HenryIV. who having changed the Protestant Religion, to be aRomanCatholick, did undertake their protection against the Duke ofSavoytheir Prince.

Hence followeth the explication of the fourth Verse, when he saith, thatof one hundred they shall become more than a thousand; for in few years the Protestants became so numerous, that they drove theRomanCatholicks wholly out of the Town, and so have remained to this day Masters of it.

French.Changer aBeaune,Nuis,Chalons, &Dijon,Le Duc voulant amender la barrée,Marchant pres Fleuve, Poisson, bec de plongeon,Verra la queüe: Porte sera serrée.English.There shall be a change atBeaune,Nuis,Chalons,Dijon,The Duke going about to raise Taxes,The Merchant near the River shall see the tailOf a Fish, having the Bill of a Cormorant: the door shall be shut.

Changer aBeaune,Nuis,Chalons, &Dijon,Le Duc voulant amender la barrée,Marchant pres Fleuve, Poisson, bec de plongeon,Verra la queüe: Porte sera serrée.

Changer aBeaune,Nuis,Chalons, &Dijon,

Le Duc voulant amender la barrée,

Marchant pres Fleuve, Poisson, bec de plongeon,

Verra la queüe: Porte sera serrée.

There shall be a change atBeaune,Nuis,Chalons,Dijon,The Duke going about to raise Taxes,The Merchant near the River shall see the tailOf a Fish, having the Bill of a Cormorant: the door shall be shut.

There shall be a change atBeaune,Nuis,Chalons,Dijon,

The Duke going about to raise Taxes,

The Merchant near the River shall see the tail

Of a Fish, having the Bill of a Cormorant: the door shall be shut.

Beaune,Chalons, andDijon, are Cities inFrance,Nuisis a Town inGermanynear theRhyne, three or four Leagues belowColen.

For the rest, every one may make his own interpretation, for it is hard to guess who this Duke should be, or that Fish either, that shall have a Cormorants Bill after whom the door shall be shut.

French.Les plus Lettrez dessus les faits Cœlestes,Seront par Princes ignorans reprouvez,Punis d’Edict, chassez comme scelestes,Et mis a mort la ou seront trouvez.English.The most Learned in the Celestial sciences,Shall be found fault with, by ignorant Princes.Punished by proclamation, chased away as wicked,And put to death where they shall be found.

Les plus Lettrez dessus les faits Cœlestes,Seront par Princes ignorans reprouvez,Punis d’Edict, chassez comme scelestes,Et mis a mort la ou seront trouvez.

Les plus Lettrez dessus les faits Cœlestes,

Seront par Princes ignorans reprouvez,

Punis d’Edict, chassez comme scelestes,

Et mis a mort la ou seront trouvez.

The most Learned in the Celestial sciences,Shall be found fault with, by ignorant Princes.Punished by proclamation, chased away as wicked,And put to death where they shall be found.

The most Learned in the Celestial sciences,

Shall be found fault with, by ignorant Princes.

Punished by proclamation, chased away as wicked,

And put to death where they shall be found.

This is plain, and signifieth no more then a persecution against the Professors of Heavenly sciences, such as are Astrologers, Astronomers,&c.

French.DevantRouand’Insubresmis le Siege,Par Terre & Mer enfermez les passages,D’Hainaut, deFlandresdeGand& ceux deLiege,Par leurs levées raviront les Rivages.English.BeforeRouana Siege shall be laid by theInsubrians.By Sea and Land the passages shall be shut up,Those ofHainaut,Flanders,Ghent, andLiege,With their Troops shall plunder the Sea-shore.

DevantRouand’Insubresmis le Siege,Par Terre & Mer enfermez les passages,D’Hainaut, deFlandresdeGand& ceux deLiege,Par leurs levées raviront les Rivages.

DevantRouand’Insubresmis le Siege,

Par Terre & Mer enfermez les passages,

D’Hainaut, deFlandresdeGand& ceux deLiege,

Par leurs levées raviront les Rivages.

BeforeRouana Siege shall be laid by theInsubrians.By Sea and Land the passages shall be shut up,Those ofHainaut,Flanders,Ghent, andLiege,With their Troops shall plunder the Sea-shore.

BeforeRouana Siege shall be laid by theInsubrians.

By Sea and Land the passages shall be shut up,

Those ofHainaut,Flanders,Ghent, andLiege,

With their Troops shall plunder the Sea-shore.

This is still concerning the Duke ofParma’s Army, when he came intoFranceagainstHenrythe IV. in favour of the League, for his Army wherewith he BesiegedRouen, was compounded of all those Nations; the greatest part of which wereItalians, called hereInsubrians, from the Latin wordInsubria, which signifieth the Countreys ofSavoyandPiemont.

French.Paix uberté long temps on ne loüera,Part tout son Regne desert la fleur de Lis,Corps mort d’Eau, Terre on apportera,Sperants vain heur d’estre la ensevelis.English.Peace and plenty shall not be long praised,All the time of his Reign the Flower de Luce shall be deserted,Bodies shall die by water, Earth shall be brought,Hoping vainly to be there Buried.

Paix uberté long temps on ne loüera,Part tout son Regne desert la fleur de Lis,Corps mort d’Eau, Terre on apportera,Sperants vain heur d’estre la ensevelis.

Paix uberté long temps on ne loüera,

Part tout son Regne desert la fleur de Lis,

Corps mort d’Eau, Terre on apportera,

Sperants vain heur d’estre la ensevelis.

Peace and plenty shall not be long praised,All the time of his Reign the Flower de Luce shall be deserted,Bodies shall die by water, Earth shall be brought,Hoping vainly to be there Buried.

Peace and plenty shall not be long praised,

All the time of his Reign the Flower de Luce shall be deserted,

Bodies shall die by water, Earth shall be brought,

Hoping vainly to be there Buried.

This only foretelleth a great Famine and Inundation inFrance, signified here by theFlower de Luce.

French.Le changement sera fort difficile,Cité Province au change gain fera,Cœur haut, prudent mis, chassé l’Inhabile,Mer, Terre, Peuple, son estat changera.English.The change shall be very hard,The City and Countrey shall gain by the change,A high prudent heart shall be put in, the unworthy expelled,Sea, Land, People shall change its condition.

Le changement sera fort difficile,Cité Province au change gain fera,Cœur haut, prudent mis, chassé l’Inhabile,Mer, Terre, Peuple, son estat changera.

Le changement sera fort difficile,

Cité Province au change gain fera,

Cœur haut, prudent mis, chassé l’Inhabile,

Mer, Terre, Peuple, son estat changera.

The change shall be very hard,The City and Countrey shall gain by the change,A high prudent heart shall be put in, the unworthy expelled,Sea, Land, People shall change its condition.

The change shall be very hard,

The City and Countrey shall gain by the change,

A high prudent heart shall be put in, the unworthy expelled,

Sea, Land, People shall change its condition.

This needeth no Interpretation.

French.La grand Copie qui sera dechassée,Dans un moment fera besoing au Roy,La Foy promise de loing sera faucée,Nud se verra en piteux defarroy.English.The great Army that shall be rejected,In a moment shall be wanted by the King.The faith promised a far off shall be broken,So that he shall be left naked in a pitiful case.

La grand Copie qui sera dechassée,Dans un moment fera besoing au Roy,La Foy promise de loing sera faucée,Nud se verra en piteux defarroy.

La grand Copie qui sera dechassée,

Dans un moment fera besoing au Roy,

La Foy promise de loing sera faucée,

Nud se verra en piteux defarroy.

The great Army that shall be rejected,In a moment shall be wanted by the King.The faith promised a far off shall be broken,So that he shall be left naked in a pitiful case.

The great Army that shall be rejected,

In a moment shall be wanted by the King.

The faith promised a far off shall be broken,

So that he shall be left naked in a pitiful case.

This is plain.

French.La Legion dans la Marine classe,Calcine Magnes, Souphre & Poix bruslera,Le long repos de l’asseurée place,Port Selinchercher, feu les consumera.English.The Legion in the Maritine Fleet,Calcineth Magnes, shall burn Brimstone and Pitch,The long rest of the secure place,They shall seekPort Selyn, but fire shall consume them.

La Legion dans la Marine classe,Calcine Magnes, Souphre & Poix bruslera,Le long repos de l’asseurée place,Port Selinchercher, feu les consumera.

La Legion dans la Marine classe,

Calcine Magnes, Souphre & Poix bruslera,

Le long repos de l’asseurée place,

Port Selinchercher, feu les consumera.

The Legion in the Maritine Fleet,Calcineth Magnes, shall burn Brimstone and Pitch,The long rest of the secure place,They shall seekPort Selyn, but fire shall consume them.

The Legion in the Maritine Fleet,

Calcineth Magnes, shall burn Brimstone and Pitch,

The long rest of the secure place,

They shall seekPort Selyn, but fire shall consume them.

Here we must observe four things, the first is, thatCalaisis called by the Author,The long rest of the secure place. Because thenviz.in the year 1555. it was yet in the power of the King ofEngland, and had been quietly before, for the space of 287. years, that is, from the year 1347. till the year 1555. and was so still, till the year 1557. when the Duke ofGuisetook it, whence we gather that it was a secure place that had enjoyed so long a rest.

The second is, that those ofDiepedid watch for theSpaniards, in the passage betweenDoverandCalais, therefore the Author saith,They shall seek Port Selyn,SelynPort or Harbour is always taken by the Author for an Harbour in theOcean.

The third is, that the great fight between theFrenchand theSpaniardswas by fire, so that most part of the Ships on each side were burnt, and theSpanishandFrenchSouldiers did cast themselves into the Sea, to save their lives in their enemies Ships, where they were slain.

The fourth is, that those ofDiepebeing extraordinary skilful in Sea-fights had made great quantity of artificial fires, to cast into theSpanishShips, but the Ships grapling one with another, they were burnt on both sides.

Upon those four circumstances the two first Verses say, thatthe Legion in the Fleet Calcineth magnes, that is Loadstone burnt, and shallburn Pitch and Brimstone, to make Artificial fires.

The third and fourth Verse say, that thisSea Legionshall seek an Harbour in the Ocean, which shall bea secure place, by a long rest, that isCalais. She will seek thatSelynHarbour to shelter her self, becauseCalaisdid then belong to theEnglish, but by reason of the narrowness of theSea, theFrenchwatched for theSpaniardsthere, and to shew that they sought onely forCalaisto meet theSpaniards, they carried theSpanishShips which they took intoDiepe, and not intoCalais.

TheFrenchImpression hath a fault here, puttingPort Hercleinstead ofPort Selyn, which is a manifest error, for the taking ofPort Hercleby theFlorentinesthe 14. ofJune1555. was by a Land Army, besides, thatPort Selynis always taken by the Author for a Port in the Ocean.

French.Ouy soubs Terre Sainte Dame voix feinte,Humaine flamme pour Divine voir luire,Fera des sœurs de leur sang Terre tainte,Et les Saints Temples par les impurs destruire.English.Under ground shall be heard the fained voice of a Holy Dame,An humane flame to see a Divine one,Shall cause the ground to be died with the sisters blood,And the Holy Temples to be destroyed by the wicked.

Ouy soubs Terre Sainte Dame voix feinte,Humaine flamme pour Divine voir luire,Fera des sœurs de leur sang Terre tainte,Et les Saints Temples par les impurs destruire.

Ouy soubs Terre Sainte Dame voix feinte,

Humaine flamme pour Divine voir luire,

Fera des sœurs de leur sang Terre tainte,

Et les Saints Temples par les impurs destruire.

Under ground shall be heard the fained voice of a Holy Dame,An humane flame to see a Divine one,Shall cause the ground to be died with the sisters blood,And the Holy Temples to be destroyed by the wicked.

Under ground shall be heard the fained voice of a Holy Dame,

An humane flame to see a Divine one,

Shall cause the ground to be died with the sisters blood,

And the Holy Temples to be destroyed by the wicked.

Every one may understand this as well as I.

French.Corps sublimes sans fin a l’œil visibles,Obnubiler viendront par ces raisons,Corps, front compris, sens & chef invisibles,Diminuant les Sacrées Oraisons.English.The Celestial bodies that are always visible to the eye,Shall be darkened for these reasons,The body with the forehead sense and head invincible.Diminishing the Sacred Prayers.

Corps sublimes sans fin a l’œil visibles,Obnubiler viendront par ces raisons,Corps, front compris, sens & chef invisibles,Diminuant les Sacrées Oraisons.

Corps sublimes sans fin a l’œil visibles,

Obnubiler viendront par ces raisons,

Corps, front compris, sens & chef invisibles,

Diminuant les Sacrées Oraisons.

The Celestial bodies that are always visible to the eye,Shall be darkened for these reasons,The body with the forehead sense and head invincible.Diminishing the Sacred Prayers.

The Celestial bodies that are always visible to the eye,

Shall be darkened for these reasons,

The body with the forehead sense and head invincible.

Diminishing the Sacred Prayers.

This is of the same nature as the foregoing.

French.Lou grand Cyssame se levera d’abelhos,Que non lauran don te siegen venguddos,Denuech lenbousq, lun gach dessous las treilhos,Ciutad trahido per cinq lengos non nudos.English.The great swarm of Bees shall rise,And it shall not be known whence they come,Towards the Ambush so the Jay shall be under a Vine,A City shall be betray’d by five tongues not naked.

Lou grand Cyssame se levera d’abelhos,Que non lauran don te siegen venguddos,Denuech lenbousq, lun gach dessous las treilhos,Ciutad trahido per cinq lengos non nudos.

Lou grand Cyssame se levera d’abelhos,

Que non lauran don te siegen venguddos,

Denuech lenbousq, lun gach dessous las treilhos,

Ciutad trahido per cinq lengos non nudos.

The great swarm of Bees shall rise,And it shall not be known whence they come,Towards the Ambush so the Jay shall be under a Vine,A City shall be betray’d by five tongues not naked.

The great swarm of Bees shall rise,

And it shall not be known whence they come,

Towards the Ambush so the Jay shall be under a Vine,

A City shall be betray’d by five tongues not naked.

The Author having made this Stanza in theProvencalLanguage, that was his Mother Tongue, which hath very little relation to the rest of theFrenchtongue, hath put me to some trouble to understand it; at last I found the meaning to be this, that when agreat swarm of Bees shall light on some place, and it shall not be known whence they came, then shall be seen a Jay under a Vine, and a City shall be betrayed by five several Nations.

French.Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,de Sex, Larc,Ou est debout encor laPyramide,Viendront livrer le PrinceDenemark,Rachat honny au Temple d’Artemide.English.Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,Desex, the arche,Where to this day standeth thePyramis,Shall come to deliver the Prince ofDenmark,A shameful ransom shall be paid in the Temple ofArtemis.

Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,de Sex, Larc,Ou est debout encor laPyramide,Viendront livrer le PrinceDenemark,Rachat honny au Temple d’Artemide.

Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,de Sex, Larc,

Ou est debout encor laPyramide,

Viendront livrer le PrinceDenemark,

Rachat honny au Temple d’Artemide.

Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,Desex, the arche,Where to this day standeth thePyramis,Shall come to deliver the Prince ofDenmark,A shameful ransom shall be paid in the Temple ofArtemis.

Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,Desex, the arche,

Where to this day standeth thePyramis,

Shall come to deliver the Prince ofDenmark,

A shameful ransom shall be paid in the Temple ofArtemis.

Salon,Mansol,Tarascon,Desex, are Towns inProvenceandLanguedo.

By theArch, here is meant the Triumphal Arch ofCaius Marius, which he erected after the defeat of theCimbresandTeutons, and remaineth to this day in that Province, within two or three Leagues off the Town ofOrenge.

Artemisis an Epethete ofDiana, so called ’πο τοῦ ἀερὰ τεμνειν,a secando aerem.

French.Lors queVenusdu Sol sera couvert,Soubs la splendeur sera la forme occulte,Mercureau feu les aura descouvert,Par bruit Bellique sera mis a l’Insulte.English.WhenVenusshall be covered by the Sun,Under the splendor of it shall be an occult form,Mercuryin the fire shall discover them,And by a Warlike rumor shall be provoked.

Lors queVenusdu Sol sera couvert,Soubs la splendeur sera la forme occulte,Mercureau feu les aura descouvert,Par bruit Bellique sera mis a l’Insulte.

Lors queVenusdu Sol sera couvert,

Soubs la splendeur sera la forme occulte,

Mercureau feu les aura descouvert,

Par bruit Bellique sera mis a l’Insulte.

WhenVenusshall be covered by the Sun,Under the splendor of it shall be an occult form,Mercuryin the fire shall discover them,And by a Warlike rumor shall be provoked.

WhenVenusshall be covered by the Sun,

Under the splendor of it shall be an occult form,

Mercuryin the fire shall discover them,

And by a Warlike rumor shall be provoked.

If this Book cometh ever into the hands ofHermes’s Disciples, I shall desire they would consider diligently this Stanza, and the three following; for they are all concerning theElixirof the Philosophers, or the making of the Philosophers stone. To begin with this:

WhenVenusshall be covered by the Sun.

This is the Astral point, so much sought after by the Philosophers, for the beginning of their work, without the knowledge of which they cannot begin their work, or come to any good.

Under the splendor of it shall be an occult form, that is, under that conjunction lyeth a great mystery.

Mercuryin the fire shall discover them,viz.Mercury of the Philosophers, made by Cœlestial fire.

And by a Warlike rumor shall be provoked; that is, the Planet ofMercuryshall be provoked to mix his variable and changable disposition with theirs, by his Aspects, Oppositions, Conjunctions, &c. It is not possible to speak more plainly.

French.Le Sol caché, eclipsé parMercure,Ne sera mis que pour le Ciel second,DeVulcanHermessera faite Pasture,Sol sera veu pur, rutilant & blond.English.The Sun shall be hid and eclipsed byMercury,And shall not be set but for the second Heaven,Hermesshall be made a prey toVulcan,And after that the Sun shall be seen pure, shining and yellow.

Le Sol caché, eclipsé parMercure,Ne sera mis que pour le Ciel second,DeVulcanHermessera faite Pasture,Sol sera veu pur, rutilant & blond.

Le Sol caché, eclipsé parMercure,

Ne sera mis que pour le Ciel second,

DeVulcanHermessera faite Pasture,

Sol sera veu pur, rutilant & blond.

The Sun shall be hid and eclipsed byMercury,And shall not be set but for the second Heaven,Hermesshall be made a prey toVulcan,And after that the Sun shall be seen pure, shining and yellow.

The Sun shall be hid and eclipsed byMercury,

And shall not be set but for the second Heaven,

Hermesshall be made a prey toVulcan,

And after that the Sun shall be seen pure, shining and yellow.

Here I must lead the Reader withAriadnesThread, that he may extrecate himself out of this Labyrinth.

The Sun shall be hid and Eclipsed byMercury; that is, Gold shall be Eclipsed and dissolved by the Philosophers Mercury, which is the Key and foundation of all the work.

And shall not be set but for the second Heaven; that is, shall not be used till you come to the second part of the work, which is that of the Furnace.

Hermesshall be made a prey toVulcan; that is, the matter and composition of theElixir, shall be put upon the fire in a Furnace.

And after that the Sun shall be seen pure, shining, yellow; that is, in conclusion after projection made, thou shalt see pure, shining, and Yellow Gold.

French.Plus d’unze fois Luna Sol ne voudra,Tous augmentes & baissez de degre,Et si bas mis que peu d’Or on coudra,Qu’apres faim, peste, descouvert le secret.English.The Moon will not have the Sun above eleven times,Then both shall be encreased and lessened in degree,And put so low, that a little Gold shall be sowed up,So that after hunger and plague, the secret shall be discovered.

Plus d’unze fois Luna Sol ne voudra,Tous augmentes & baissez de degre,Et si bas mis que peu d’Or on coudra,Qu’apres faim, peste, descouvert le secret.

Plus d’unze fois Luna Sol ne voudra,

Tous augmentes & baissez de degre,

Et si bas mis que peu d’Or on coudra,

Qu’apres faim, peste, descouvert le secret.

The Moon will not have the Sun above eleven times,Then both shall be encreased and lessened in degree,And put so low, that a little Gold shall be sowed up,So that after hunger and plague, the secret shall be discovered.

The Moon will not have the Sun above eleven times,

Then both shall be encreased and lessened in degree,

And put so low, that a little Gold shall be sowed up,

So that after hunger and plague, the secret shall be discovered.

The Moon will not have the Sun above eleven times; that is, the Moon of the Philosophers will not imbibe their Sun above Eleven times.

Then both shall be encreased and lessened in degree; that is, both shall be encreased in quality, and lessened in quantity.

And put so low that a little Gold shall be sowed up; that is, the powder of projection, or Philosophers stone shall be so small in Bulk, that one may sow it about him, and hide it in his Cloths.

After famine and plague the secret shall be discovered; that is, somebody shall die, with famine or plague, about which the secret shall be found and discovered.

French.La Lune au plain de nuit sur le haut Mont,Le nouveauSophed’Un seul cerveau la veu,Par ses Disciples estre immortel semond,Yeux au Midy, enfin, mains corps au feu.English.The Moon at full by night upon the high Mount,The newSophewith one onely Brain hath seen it,Invited by his Disciples to become immortal,His eyes to the South, conclusion, his hands and body to the fire.

La Lune au plain de nuit sur le haut Mont,Le nouveauSophed’Un seul cerveau la veu,Par ses Disciples estre immortel semond,Yeux au Midy, enfin, mains corps au feu.

La Lune au plain de nuit sur le haut Mont,

Le nouveauSophed’Un seul cerveau la veu,

Par ses Disciples estre immortel semond,

Yeux au Midy, enfin, mains corps au feu.

The Moon at full by night upon the high Mount,The newSophewith one onely Brain hath seen it,Invited by his Disciples to become immortal,His eyes to the South, conclusion, his hands and body to the fire.

The Moon at full by night upon the high Mount,

The newSophewith one onely Brain hath seen it,

Invited by his Disciples to become immortal,

His eyes to the South, conclusion, his hands and body to the fire.

Sophein Greek signifieth a wise man or Philosopher, who shall find the Philosophers stone, when the Moon shall come to the full in the night upon a high Mount. His Disciples shall perswade him to make himself immortal, they being perswaded that theElixircureth all diseases.

The last Verse saith,His eyes to the South, his hands and body to the fire; that is, this Chymist orAdeptus, shall retire into some Southern Countrey to work.

I cannot omit here that a conceited Chymist inParis, whose name wasHaumont, inEnglish,Highmount, could not be disswaded but our Author spake of him in this Stanza, and that he could not die till he had got the Philosophers stone, but to other matters.

French.Es lieux & temps chair au poisson donra lieu,La loy commune sera faite au contraire,Vieux tiendra fort puis osté du milieu,LePanta,Choina,Philonmis fort arriere.English.In places and times, flesh shall give place to fish,The common Law shall be made against it,The old man shall stand fast, then being taken awayThePanta,Choina,Philon, shall be set aside.

Es lieux & temps chair au poisson donra lieu,La loy commune sera faite au contraire,Vieux tiendra fort puis osté du milieu,LePanta,Choina,Philonmis fort arriere.

Es lieux & temps chair au poisson donra lieu,

La loy commune sera faite au contraire,

Vieux tiendra fort puis osté du milieu,

LePanta,Choina,Philonmis fort arriere.

In places and times, flesh shall give place to fish,The common Law shall be made against it,The old man shall stand fast, then being taken awayThePanta,Choina,Philon, shall be set aside.

In places and times, flesh shall give place to fish,

The common Law shall be made against it,

The old man shall stand fast, then being taken away

ThePanta,Choina,Philon, shall be set aside.

Panta,Choina,Philon, are three Greek words, παντὰ χοινα φιλῶν, which signifie in Latine,omnia inter amicos communia, and inEnglish, all things are common among friends. The rest is easie.

French.Jupiterjoint plusVenusqu’a la Lune,Apparoissant de plenitude blanche,Venuscachée soubs la blancheurNeptune,DeMarsfrappée par la gravée branche.English.Jupiterbeing more joyned toVenusthen to the Moon,Appearing in a full whiteness,Venusbeing hid under the whiteness ofNeptune,Stricken byMarsthrough the ingraved branch.

Jupiterjoint plusVenusqu’a la Lune,Apparoissant de plenitude blanche,Venuscachée soubs la blancheurNeptune,DeMarsfrappée par la gravée branche.

Jupiterjoint plusVenusqu’a la Lune,

Apparoissant de plenitude blanche,

Venuscachée soubs la blancheurNeptune,

DeMarsfrappée par la gravée branche.

Jupiterbeing more joyned toVenusthen to the Moon,Appearing in a full whiteness,Venusbeing hid under the whiteness ofNeptune,Stricken byMarsthrough the ingraved branch.

Jupiterbeing more joyned toVenusthen to the Moon,

Appearing in a full whiteness,

Venusbeing hid under the whiteness ofNeptune,

Stricken byMarsthrough the ingraved branch.

These terms beingAstronomicalandAstrological, it is hard to guess at the Authors mind.

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