The Fall of Princes

E279205

The Fall of Princes is a lengthy 15th-century Middle English poem by John Lydgate that recounts the tragic downfalls of historical and legendary figures as moral exempla on the instability of fortune.

All labels observed (2)

Label Occurrences
The Fall of Princes canonical 3
The Parlement of the Thre Ages 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (46)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Middle English poem
didactic literature
narrative poem
adaptedVia Laurent de Premierfait’s French translation of De casibus virorum illustrium
audience courtly readers
nobility
author John Lydgate
basedOn De casibus virorum illustrium
basedOnAuthor Giovanni Boccaccio
circulation widely copied in manuscript in the 15th century
commissionedBy Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
countryOfOrigin England
dateWritten c. 1431–1439
didacticPurpose to illustrate the workings of Fortune
to warn rulers against pride and vice
form verse
genre mirror for princes
moral poem
tragedy
includesFiguresFrom biblical history
classical antiquity
medieval history
influence later English de casibus works
language Middle English
length over 36,000 lines
literaryMovement Late Middle Ages
literaryPeriod 15th century
literaryTradition De casibus tragedy tradition
manuscriptTradition survives in multiple Middle English manuscripts
meter iambic pentameter
moralStance didactic and admonitory
narrativeDevice narrator instructed by a guide figure
narrativeFocus downfall of princes and great men
primaryConcern ethical conduct of rulers
relatedWork De casibus virorum illustrium
surface form: Boccaccio’s De casibus virorum illustrium

Laurent de Premierfait’s French De casibus translation
settingOfNarrative various historical and legendary courts
structure series of exempla
subjectMatter historical and legendary tragedies
theme divine justice
instability of fortune
moral exempla
mutability of worldly prosperity
political morality
vanity of earthly power
verseForm rhyme royal

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (4)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

John Lydgate notableWork The Fall of Princes
John Lydgate wroteText The Fall of Princes
Alliterative Revival producedWork The Fall of Princes
this entity surface form: The Parlement of the Thre Ages
De casibus virorum illustrium influenceOn The Fall of Princes