u by villages and townships shall have letters patents, as I have
promised you.'

With those words Wat Tyler cast his eyen on a squire that was there
with the king bearing the king's sword, and Wat Tyler hated greatly
the same squire, for the same squire had displeased him before for
words between them. 'What,' said Tyler, 'art thou there? Give me thy
dagger.' 'Nay,' said the squire, 'that will I not do: wherefore should
I give it thee?' The king beheld the squire and said: 'Give it him;
let him have it.' And so the squire took it him sore against his will.
And when this Wat Tyler had it, he began to play therewith and turned
it in his hand, and said again to the squire: 'Give me also that
sword.' 'Nay,' said the squire, 'it is the king's sword: thou art not
worthy to have it, for thou art but a knave; and if there were no more
here but thou and I, thou durst not speak those words for as much gold
in quantity as all yonder abbey.'[2] 'By my faith,' said Wat Tyler, 'I
shall never eat meat till I have thy head': and with those words the
mayor of London came to the king with a twelve horses well armed under
their coats, and so he brake the press and saw and heard how Wat Tyler
demeaned himself, and said to him: 'Ha, thou knave, how art thou so
hardy in the king's presence to speak such words? It is too much for
thee so to do.' Then the king began to chafe and said to the mayor:
'Set hands on him.' And while the king said so, Tyler said to the
mayor: 'A God's name what have I said to displease thee?' 'Yes truly,'
quoth the mayor, 'thou false stinking knave, shalt thou speak thus in
the presence of the king my natural lord? I commit never to live,
without thou shalt dearly abye it.'[3] And with those words the mayor
drew out his sword and strake Tyler so great a stroke on the head,
that he fell down at the feet of his horse, and as soon as he was
fallen, they environed him all about, whereby he was not seen of his
company. Then a squire of the king's alighted, called John Standish,
and he drew out his sword and put it into Wat Tyler's belly, and so he
died.

[2] The full text has, 'for as much gold as that minster of
Saint Paul is great.'

[3] 'Jamais je veux vivre, si tu ne le compares.'

Then the ungracious people there assembled, perceiving their captain
slain, began to murmur among themselves and said: 'Ah, our captain is
slain, let us go and slay them all': and therewith they arranged
themselves o