But who was woful, if I shal nat lye, Of this weddyng but Donegild, and namo, The kynges mooder, ful of tirannye? Hir thoughte hir cursed herte brast atwo. She wolde noght hir sone had do so; Hir thoughte a despit that he sholde take So strange a creature unto his make.

But who was woful, if I shal nat lye,
Of this weddyng but Donegild, and namo,
The kynges mooder, ful of tirannye?
Hir thoughte hir cursed herte brast atwo.
She wolde noght hir sone had do so;
Hir thoughte a despit that he sholde take
So strange a creature unto his make.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Man of Law’s Tale. King Alla and Constance decide to wed, but not everyone is happy with the happy couple, the King’s mother Donegild is strongly opposed to the match. She believes that it is an insult for her son to take so foreign a creature for his wife and queen.

Geoffrey Chaucer Quotes