The Chaucerian Stanza or Rhyme Royal
The Chaucerian Stanza or Rhyme Royal A stanza of seven lines in iambic pentameter rhyming ab abb cc. Rhyme: a b a bb cc - The first with third. a b a bb cc - The second with fourth and fifth. ab abb cc - Couplet standing alone Rhyme Royal form was borrowed from Italy. It was first used by Chaucer. The name Rhyme Royal is first adopted by King James I of Scotland in his King's Quair. Chaucer has used rhyme Royal in his works, * Troilus and Cressida * The Parliament of Fowls * Second Nun's Tale. Rhyme Royal was adopted by Shakespeare for The Rape of Lucrece.