Late Medieval Books, Camden Society 1856 Preface

The Early English manuscript Chronicle, from which the following pages are printed, is a version of the English Chronicle called the Brute. Attention was first invited to it through the medium of Notes and Queries, and by the courtesy of William J. Thorns, esq. the editor of that publication, an opinion was obtained from sir Frederick Madden, which resulted in the issue of the present volume by the Camden Society. The manuscript itself is still deposited in a private library, as it has been for more than two hundred years, and therefore cannot be generally accessible¹.

Note 1. It is in the possession of John Speed Davies, esq. the Editor's father, to whom it has descended through the Speeds, from its last user John Speed the chronologer.

Sir Frederick Madden discovered in the margins of the manuscript, particularly towards the close, several notes in the hand-writing of Stowe, who has freely used this history in his Annals, though without specifying it. Perhaps, therefore, our manuscript was one of those "dangerous books of superstition," the fame of which brought upon Stowe a commission of inquiry in 1568.¹

Note 1. Life of Stowe, iv. xiv.; Strype's Stowe's Survey, vol. i.

At Stowe's death, in April 1605, his valuable library was dispersed, and the manuscript of the following Chronicle no doubt at that time fell into the hands of John Speed the chronologer, already for some few years known to the literary world, under the patronage of sir Fulk Greville afterwards lord Brooke, fortified too with the friendship of Cam den, Cotton, Spelman, and others, his immediate contemporaries, and with the countenance of John Stowe. Speed's Theatre of Great Britain had appeared in 1596; the first edition of his History was issued in 1614.

Speed has used this Chronicle in the earlier part of his History, apparently contented with Stowe's copious extracts in the latter part. Occasionally he has quoted the language, and has also left some marginal notes in his handwriting, as appears by comparing them with "David's harp tuned unto Teares," a manuscript of the historian's, presented, as a note on the fly-leaf states, to his son John Speed the anatomist, of St. John's College, Oxford, on April 19th, 1628.

Unfortunately neither Stowe nor Speed help us to discover who the writer of the Chronicle was. or where it was written. Stowe, while transcribing pages, has never acknowledged his obligation; Speed was ignorant of its history, and quotes it as " Antiq. MS.," " an old MS.,1' " an ancient MS.," " a namelesse old MS." No internal evidence enables us to assign it to any particular monastery: perhaps the ballad set upon the gates of Canterbury (see p. 91-94) is most like an indication of the locality of the writer.

The date however of this compilation is determined by an expression in the text (see p. 99, 1. 30), where the writer alludes to Henry VI. as king, or at least as still alive. This will confine it between the limits, March 4th, 1461, the accession of Edward IV. (see p. 110), and May 22nd, 1471, the death of Henry VI. Henry regained the royal power and assumed the royal style on Oct. 9th, 1470, and at the battle of Barnet, April 14th, 1471, was finally driven from the throne.

Much has been lost from the reign of Kichard II. The leaves of the MS. at this part appear to have been designedly cut; but I have been fortunate enough to discover the source from which the compiler borrowed the matter he has introduced into the reigns of Kichard II. and Henry IV., and have therefore been able to restore in the Appendix the greater part of what has been destroyed. The continuation of the history called Eulogium, Cott, MS. Galba, E. vii., is the basis of the new matter in the first two reigns of the English text. From this valuable history our compiler translated very largely; frequently, it will be seen, changing the arrangement of the history, and occasionally making corrections and additions. For instance (pp. 16, 17) he has altered the locality of Richard's resignation, before the duke of Lancaster and archbishop Arundel, from Conway to Flint; and (p. 23) has added, in common with the Brute Chronicles, the fact of the marriage of lord Grey of Ruthyn with one of the daughters of Owen Glyndwr.

Besides filling up what has been lost from the English text, I have added sections omitted by the compiler of the Chronicle, on account of their interrupting the course of the narrative (see Supplem. Add. xvni. p. 140), with one or two other additions which appeared interesting. I by no means pretend, however, to have exhausted all that is useful from this portion of the valuable Eulogium. I felt that I ought to place a limit on my extracts, and trust I may not even now be thought to have extended this volume to too great a length. Probably this apology may be more needed for the notes, which seemed to accumulate even while I was endeavouring to repress them, and I feel that they do not possess that air of novelty which I could have wished for them. Indeed this volume is offered to the Society with considerable diffidence, yet with the hope that it may not have been a useless labour.

With regard to the history of the Chronicle called the Brute, I cannot do better than refer the reader to an interesting article by sir Frederick Madden on that compilation, which will be found in Notes and Queries, new series, vol. i. p. 1-4. The copy in question begins with the heading, "How this land was first called Albion, and of whom it hadde that name, and how the geaunte~) were ygote ye shal here as foloweth afterward. Capitulum primum. In tuo yeer fro the begynnyng of the worlde M1' M¹> M¹ ixc. Ixxxx. ther was in the noble lond of Grece a worthi kyng and a my3ti and a man of gret renoun that was callid Dioclician," &c. It may be useful to note its variation from the common text in the first three reigns here published.

The MSS. used for this purpose are the following Oxford MSS. — Bodleian, Eawl. B. 190, 4to. vellum, imperfect at beginning, which is supplied, as a note in his hand states, by the hand of Thomas Baker¹, the non-juror, of St. John's College, from a MS. in the public library at Cambridge. The MS. ends in the usual way with the siege of Rouen, "rewle and governaunce," 6 Hen. V. It has been much used by Hearne, who has supplied many leaves which had been lost, and we learn from a note at the end of the volume, that his sources were MSS. Ashmole, 791, 793.

Note 1. I am indebted for this information to the Rev. W. D. Macray, M.A. of New College, Oxford.

Rawl. B. 173, small folio, vellum. Heading illegible. Text begins, "In the noble londe of Surre ther was a noble kynge of myght," &c. This Chronicle goes down to the Armagnac alliance with England, 13 Hen. IV. and resumes after the marriage of Henry V., giving an account of the coronation banquet, rather different from that of Fabyan. After the death of Henry V. follows a list of mayors and sheriffs for a few years in Henry VI.

Eawl. B. 196, folio, paper. Heading, "Here may a man here how Engelonde was first called Albyone, and affterwarde whanne hit had first name" (sic.) " In the noble lond of Surrye" &c. It ends " rewle and governaunce," 6 Hen. V.

Rawl. B. 216, folio, vellum, in double columns. Imperfect in the beginning: immediately after "rewle and governaunce," 6 Hen. V., follows, "And aftir this folowith the appointments, tretes, and accordements of pees perpetuelle bytwene kyng Charles ... and Henry V. ... and of the marriage of Katerine the doughter of the said kyng Charles, in manner and forme," &c., occupying two leaves and one column. In the same volume, by the same scribe, is "the booke of Johan Maundeville, knyght, (which) techith the weyes to Jerusalem," &c.

Rawl. B. 205, folio, vellum. Heading, "Here men may hiren how Englonde first was called Albione, and thrughe whome it hadde the name" "In the noble lande of Sirrie ther was a noble kyng and myghti, and a man of gret renoun," &c. It ends with the "great parliament," 21 Ric. II. Hearne considered this a good MS.; on the fly-leaf he has written, "See MS. Ashmole 791, but chiefly 793."

Ashmole MS. 793, folio, paper and vellum. "Here begynnethe a booke in Englishe tong, callid Brute of Englond, or the Cronycles of Englond, comipilyng and tretyng of the seid land" "How it was firste a wildrenesse, and alle for lette, and no thyng therynne, but wylde bestes and fowles" It ends at the siege of Rouen (6 Hen. V.), with the words, "and atte every gate ij. or iij. M¹ of goode mennys bodies armed: and manfully countred withe our Englishe men. Heere endethe the Booke of Cronycules."

A Chronicle of the Reigns of Richard II, Henry OV, Henry V and Henry VI.