Home > Primary Sources > Library > Other Texts

The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate

This document is currently in draft. When it has been reviewed and proofed, it will be published on the site.

View the draft document.

Please note that it is not of publishable quality yet.

The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate

roseList documents mentioning The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate
Click here to view the page in facsimile.
ℂ Here begynneth the maryage of London Stone and the fayre puſell the boſſe of Byllyngeſgate.
HErken vnto me / bothe lowde and ſtyll
And to this matter / laye to your eere
And of your aduyſe & alſo your good wyll
Of this lytell proſſes / yt after doth appere.
Of.ii. yt haue dwelte ĩ londõ many a yere.
And nowe is dyſpoſed / to be man and wyfe
Helpe thẽ with your charyte / to bye theyr weddynge gere
For they be bothe naked / & not worth an halfpeny knyfe.
ℂ To you theyr names / I wyll declare
If ye knowe ony Impedymente.
The one is the boſſe at Byllyngeſgate of beaute ſo fayre.
And the other London Stone / curtes and gente
This is theyr purpoſe and hole entente
To be maryed / as ſoone as they maye
He that wolde let them I wolde he were ſhente
It wolde do you good to ſe them daunce and playe.
ℂ For now ye grete loue / yt is bytwene them twayne.
And neyther of them loked other in the face.
London Stone anſwered / full wyſely agayne.
Where is no loue / there lacketh grace
But euyll tunges is ſo vnmylde
And of late hath ſayd / in a place where they dyde mete
How the Boſſe of byllyngeſgate / hath had a chylde.
By the well with two buckettes in byſhop gate ſtrete.
ℂ It were able to make ony woman wepe
To be ſo deedly belyed as is the good Boſſe.
The man is in ſynnes depe
That robbeth her ſo of her good loſe1
Click here to view the page in facsimile.
For to his ſoule it is daungerouſe.
Thus ſayth London Stone / of prudence ſo wyſe
He that in ſclaunder / ony wyll dyſcloſe,
Of the deuylles rewarde / he ſhall not myſſe
ℂ Therfore let my wyfe and me alone.
For by my ſtudy and wakynge many a nyght
I knowe by the ſterres / that ſhone by the moone,
That fayre Boſſe / hooly was in my ſyght
And that to my nature / ſhe ſholde be coequall.
And remayne as my fere2 / euer in my ſyght.
By the purueyaunce / of the goddes Imperyall
To my comforte ſhynynge as the ſterres bryght
ℂ Wherfore I beſeche you / in humble wyſe
To reporte the beſte in euery place
And saye no worſe / than maye be to your prayſe.
Whiche Jupyter had ordeyned of his grete grace
Longe or that we came in to this towne
For our comforte / and for our ſolace.
As man and wyfe by dyuyne prouyſyowne
Therfore are we greed to remayne in this place.
ℂ Syth the goddes aboue / hath deſtyned them ſo,
Let vs be mery and thynke howe they daunce
For it is a goodly couple of them two.
For in theyr behauoure / was neuer founde varyaunce
As knoweth all that here be preſent
Whiche brynge the herers / to lyfe eternall,
Where god is regnynge permanent
Amonge his aungelles celeſtyall
ℂ Finis.

Notes

  1. reputation (OED lose, n.1.).↑
  2. companion (OED fere, n.1.).↑

Cite this page

MLA citation

Anonymous. The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate. The Map of Early Modern London, edited by Janelle Jenstad, U of Victoria, 15 Sep. 2020, mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm. Draft.

Chicago citation

Anonymous. The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate. The Map of Early Modern London. Ed. Janelle Jenstad. Victoria: University of Victoria. Accessed September 15, 2020. https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm. Draft.

APA citation

Anonymous. 2020. The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate. In J. Jenstad (Ed), The Map of Early Modern London. Victoria: University of Victoria. Retrieved from https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm. Draft.

RIS file (for RefMan, EndNote etc.)

Provider: University of Victoria
Database: The Map of Early Modern London
Content: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

TY  - ELEC
A1  - , 
ED  - Jenstad, Janelle
T1  - The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate
T2  - The Map of Early Modern London
PY  - 2020
DA  - 2020/09/15
CY  - Victoria
PB  - University of Victoria
LA  - English
UR  - https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm
UR  - https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/xml/standalone/MARR1.xml
TY  - UNP
ER  -

RefWorks

RT Unpublished Material
SR Electronic(1)
A1 , 
A6 Jenstad, Janelle
T1 The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate
T2 The Map of Early Modern London
WP 2020
FD 2020/09/15
RD 2020/09/15
PP Victoria
PB University of Victoria
LA English
OL English
LK https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm

TEI citation

<bibl type="mla"><author><name ref="#ANON2"><name ref="#ANON2">Anonymous</name></name></author>. <title level="a">The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate</title>. <title level="m">The Map of Early Modern London</title>, edited by <editor><name ref="#JENS1"><forename>Janelle</forename> <surname>Jenstad</surname></name></editor>, <publisher>U of Victoria</publisher>, <date when="2020-09-15">15 Sep. 2020</date>, <ref target="https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm">mapoflondon.uvic.ca/MARR1.htm</ref>. Draft.</bibl>

Personography

Locations