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The Proheamel

Amonge suche virtues & commendable Qualities, as ought to be in all nobilitie, & gentlemen, the knowledge of honnor & armes is in mine opinion of moste necessitie & estimacion. Of wch minde was the Earle Baldessar Castilio, in his booke of the Courtier, translated into or tonnge by Sr Thomas hobbye whose labor meriteth a singular praise, and obligation of all the nobilitie of this Realme. But for so much as the Earle to advoyde tediousnes, hath not in his booke particularlie handled, the questions & doubtfull cases of honnor, daylie hapenings emonge nobilitie, sometimes in Court, sometimes in Campe, sometimes in ernest & sometimes in triumphe & sporte: I have thought meete, emonge manie workes written of that matter to chose the moste anntiente, & reduce the same into our englishe, wherby gentlemen wanting the experience of forraine nations, and knowledge of their tonnges, maye happelie find some fruite. And albeit I knowe that at this daye publique Combatte be seldome suffred, yet by consideringe of such accidente, as in those trialls have happened, we may learne wch way to behave our selues in euery question & quarrell touchinge the fame & honestie of a gentleman: when to speake & when to be silent: when to revenge, & when to rest satysfied, what is quarrell & iuste offence, and what is none at all: & finallie howe to aduoyde iniurie, or by what means to repulse it wch thinge howe necessarie they are to be knowen, I refer to your owne Iudgemente. And certeinly yf iniuries of honnor were orderly & honorablie revenged, I perswade my selfe, they wolde be seldome offred. ffor who is by kinde or custome, so spitefull & iniurious as willinglie will offende anie man, or so folish hardie as wth tonnge or hande wolde quarrell wth others, yf he knewe hym self in honnestie bounde by triall of life to mainteine his needles combat. But the cause of theis dishonnorable doinge, dooth assuredlie pr[oc]eede from ignorannce of honnor. ffor everie man wthout respecte offereth him self not as he is, but as others in courtesie are content to take him, or (to saye better) as they are pleased to name him. This humor not only of iniuringe but also of overweninge, is generall amonge all sortes of People: but emonge our gentilmen moste conninge ffor the greater parte of them be so ignorannt as notwthstandinge they are vtterlie voyde of all virtue: Doe

nevertheles thinke them selues worthie of anie title dignitie