ABSTRACT
In a poem entitled The Governance of Princes, which was written about 1412 by a poetic disciple of Chaucer named Thomas Hoccleve, the author in filial reverence caused to be inserted a miniature portrait of his " mayster dere." Chaucer's ideal as a poet was to make the English language the literary rival of the Italian of Petrarch and the French of Alain Chartier. Chaucer's grant of a pitcher of wine terminated his services as an inmate of court. He was one of the royal clerks and marked for promotion. Chaucer probably interpreted the conditions of his appointment with the ordinary free interpretation of the Middle Ages. The short Parliament of October, 1386, proved to be the turning-point of Chaucer's career. In 1391 Chaucer retired from the Clerkship of Works. The circumstances of his withdrawal are obscure; but certainly the mandate to hand over his office to John Gedney, dated June 17, 1391, is a friendly document.
