Manuscripts : Chaucer's Canterbury Tales and other works

Geoffrey Chaucer, -1400

Manuscripts

<p style='text-align: justify;'>A late fifteenth-century manuscript of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, along with other verse texts written on the flyleaves and in blank spaces of quire 8, including a poem on the death of Edward IV, 'The Prentise unto Woe' by Henry Baradoun, and memoranda of the deaths of English kings from Edward I to Edward V.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>(1) Folios <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(13);return false;'>6r-194r</a>, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, described by J.M. Manly and E. Rickert, The text of the Canterbury Tales (1940), vol. 1, pp. 349-55 (see Bibliography). They assign this 'Ma' manuscript to the A group of Canterbury Tales manuscripts, and they note that the text is closely related to 'Cn', the Cardigan MS, formerly the property of the Brudenell estate, now Austin, University of Texas, HRC Pre-1700 MS 143, and that the hand is like that of Oxford, Bodleian Library, Digby 181, folios 1-39, which ends with the words 'Explicit Edorb quod'.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>(2) (a) Folios <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(7);return false;'>3r-3v</a>, 'King Edward the iiiith. Wher is this Prynce that conquered his right... for hym to pray Explicit.' Index of Middle English Verse, no. 4062. Printed from here by F.J. Furnivall in Political, religious, and love poems (see Bibliography below), pp. xlvi-xlviii. (b) Folios <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(9);return false;'>4r-4v</a>, 'The Prentise unto Woe' by Henry Baradoun: 'Musyng alone voide of consolacion... and wo. Baradoun Henricus transtulit istud opus per semetipsum.' IMEV, no. 2227. Printed from here by Furnivall, op. cit, p. 289. (c) Folios <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(10);return false;'>4v-5v</a>, 'Articuli passionis cristi. Cristus imminente passione... custoditus est.' Sixty-three heads.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>(3) (a) Folio <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(390);return false;'>194v</a>, 'Periculum animarum periuratorum secundum diuersos autores.' Twelve lines, each beginning 'Cristus Qui iurat voluntarie': swearing on Book, putting hand on Book, kissing Book. (b) Folio <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(391);return false;'>195r</a>, Dates of death or cessation of English kings, Edward I-Edward V: 'Memorandum quod Rex E' primus post conquestum filius Regis Henrici tercii obiit die translacionis sancti Thome Martiris anno regni sui xxxvto sicut continetur in Rotulo xxxvo dicti Regis E primi in Surr' et Sussex' in titulo Vic'... Memorandum quod E vtus cessauit a regimine xxvito die Iunii anno regni sui primo Et Rex Ricardus tercius incepit regnare.' (c) Folio <a dir='auto' href='' onclick='store.loadPage(395);return false;'>197r</a>, 'Qui cepit vxorem cepit absque quiete laborem...' (4 lines).</p>