Page 40 - THE DECAMERON: 100 Days on 100 Etchings by Petru Rusu

“Alessandro and the Abbot“
Three young men Lamberto, Tebaldo and Agolante inherit
the enormous fortune of their father and proceed to
burn through it pretty quickly by extravagant living. When
they realize their situation, they sell what’s left and
leave Florence to seek their fortune in England. They do
pretty well lending money at interest and they build up
a huge fortune. They return to Florence and buy back
their possessions, find wives to marry and send their
nephew Alessandro off to England to manage the family
business. But the brothers once again spend money like
water, borrowing and piling up debt. Alessandro supports
his uncles with the proceeds of their English business
until a civil war breaks out and their clientele dries up.
Alessandro sweats it out in England while his uncles
continue to live it up in Florence. But after several years,
things aren’t looking up and the uncles and their families
are thrown into debtor’s prison. Alessandro eventually has
to flee England for safety reasons. On his way to Florence,
he joins up with the entourage of a newly appointed
Abbot. As they ride along, bromance blossoms between
Alessandro and the Abbot. Pretty soon, the Abbot offers
him a position in his household. Alessandro proves to
be a good hand at this, arranging lodging for them in the
most inhospitable of places. But one night, everyone but
Alessandro gets a bed. In the end, he has to sleep in a
tiny closet in the Abbot’s room. The Abbot, meanwhile,
DECAMERON 40
is not asleep. He’s entertaining some serious feelings for
Alessandro. He invites Alessandro to share the bed with
him you know, so he can be more comfortable. Pretty
soon, the Abbot is caressing Alessandro’s chest and
Alessandro’s getting a bit suspicious. But the Abbot’s got
a little secret that he’s hiding. He’s got breasts. It turns
out that he’s a she a noblewoman on her way to the Pope
to seek permission to marry. And now, she’s proposing
marriage to Alessandro as they lie in bed. He quickly
agrees. In Rome, the “Abbot” reveals herself to the Pope.
She’s a daughter of the King of England and destined to
marry the elderly King of Scotland. She tells the Pope
that she’s already married to Alessandro and asks for his
blessing. This is an awkward situation, to say the least.
The two knights accompanying the lady are ready to kill
them both. The Pope realizes that the deed’s already
done, so he reconciles the knights to the couple and
gives them a grand wedding celebration before they leave
for Florence. Alessandro’s new bride springs the uncles
from prison and settles their debts. Then the new couple
heads off to England via Paris to face Daddy. Alessandro
turns out to be quite a peacemaker. He convinces the King
of England not to kill him for stealing his princess and
reconciles the warring factions in the country. Alessandro
and his bride live happily in England until he conquers
Scotland with the help of his father-in-law.
“Alessandro and the Abbot” Retrieved from publicly source: shmoop
<https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/decameron/summary/second-day-third-story>