O myghty God, if that it be thy wille,
Sith thou art rightful juge, how may it be
That thou wolt suffren innocentz to spille,
And wikked folk regne in prosperitee?
– Geoffrey Chaucer
The Canterbury Tales, The Man of Law’s Tale. The King’s Constable wonders how God, if he is a rightful judge, can allow innocents to die and wicked folk to reign in prosperity. He is dismayed by the order, contained in Donegild’s forged letter from the King, to permanently banish Constance and her son from the land and send her away in the same ship that she arrived in.