Lisa

A fair young girl of Palermo who falls deeply and innocently in love with King Pedro, when she sees him at a tournament. Wasting away with her hopeless love, and grieving over the thought of dying while the king is still ignorant of her feeling for him, she confides her story to Minuccio, the sweet singer, and bids him sing it to the king. Touched by Minuccio's song, the king visits Lisa and bids her live, and he and his Queen take Lisa and Perdicone, whom she marries happily, under their protection. Thereafter the King always calls himself Lisa's faithful knight. The poem "How Lisa loved the King " is a poetical version of one of Boccaccio's tales. The original story is given in the Decamerone, tenth day, novel seven.

How Lisa Loved the King

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