The sorwe that this Alla nyght and day Maketh for his wyf, and for his child also, Ther is no tonge that it telle may. But now wol I unto Custance go, That fleteth in the see, in peyne and wo, Fyve yeer and moore, as liked Cristes sonde, Er that hir ship approched unto londe.

The sorwe that this Alla nyght and day
Maketh for his wyf, and for his child also,
Ther is no tonge that it telle may.
But now wol I unto Custance go,
That fleteth in the see, in peyne and wo,
Fyve yeer and moore, as liked Cristes sonde,
Er that hir ship approched unto londe.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Man of Law’s Tale. Separated by the seas, King Alla and his wife Constance live their separate sorrows and woes. Alla in Northumberland mourning the loss of his wife and child, Constance and her son floating in pain on the sea for over five years before their ship approaches land.

Geoffrey Chaucer Quotes