The Praise Sonnets
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1.
The fairest He that ever stepped on land,
The noblest Prince that ever throne was owed,
The sweetest face and laugh, the gentlest hand
That ever did belie what strength bestowed.
A man so nobly born, and nobly borne
When on his charger swift he easy rides.
There never was so fierce a fighter sworn:
Thus war and beauty strive to rule his eyes.
To shield his life this guardsman is assigned,
And sure I shall my duty strive to do,
Yet his sweet look can make all eyes else blind
To all but beauty, goodness, light and truth.
If duty were by me left unfulfilled,
He'd yet be safe, for who'd wish these things killed?
2.
I serve my Lord whose virtues shine so bright
That darkness never shall his presence touch,
For wheresoe'er he deigns to shed his light
E'en mortal eyes cannot endure so much.
Can it be trait'rous thus to place the Prince
So far above all others, e'en the King?
Can I already, so few daytimes since
I was assigned, have thought a trait'rous thing?
It cannot be, for I would die for both
Or either, as my orders bid me do,
The King because I will not break my oath,
My Prince because it is his beauty's due.
So, true to both, my Liege and my fair Lord,
I keep my reasons as I keep my word.
3.
If injury can my devotion prove,
If pain is all the payment I can give,
If blood that royal, beauteous brow may move
Then let me hurt as long as I may live.
If I could but believe, that lying here
(These wounds obtained his dear life to defend)
The Prince would note my faith, and keep me near
When I recovered am, my wish would end.
For all my wish in life, if wish I had,
Would be to live to serve him till I died.
And if for him I died, then truly glad
Would be my heart when in the dust it lies.
For though life lived for duty brings me strife,
Yet living on without it is no life.
