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legal luminaries of past ages. They are also worthy of the attention of the general reader on account of the historical information and the notices of public and private persons which they contain, as well as the light which they throw on ancient manners and customs.

32. NARRATIVES OF THE EXPULSION OF THE ENGLISH FROM NORMANDY, 1449-1450.-Robertus Blondelli de Reductione Normanniæ: Le Recouvrement de Normendie, par Berry, Hérault du Roy: Conferences between the Ambassadors of France and England. Edited, from MSS. in the Imperial Library at Paris, by the Rev. JOSEPH STEVENSON, M.A., of University College, Durham. 1863.

This volume contains the narrative of an eye-witness who details with considerable power and minuteness the circumstances which attended the final expulsion of the English from Normandy in the year 1450. The history commences with the infringement of the truce by the capture of Fougères, and ends with the battle of Formigny and the embarkation of the Duke of Somerset. The whole period embraced is less than two years.

33. HISTORIA ET CARTULARIUM MONASTERII S. PETRI GLOUCESTRIÆ. Vols. I., II., and III. Edited by W. H. HART, Esq., F.S.A., Membre correspondant de la Société des Antiquaires de Normandie. 1863-1867.

This work consists of two parts, the History and the Cartulary of the Monastery of St. Peter, Gloucester. The history furnishes an account of the monastery from its foundation, in the year 681, to the early part of the reign of Richard II., together with a calendar of donations and benefactions. It treats principally of the affairs of the monastery, but occasionally matters of general history are introduced. Its authorship has generally been assigned to Walter Froucester, the twentieth abbot, but without any foundation.

34. ALEXANDRI NECKAM DE NATURIS RERUM LIBRI DUO; with NECKAM'S POEM, DE LAUDIBUS DIVINE SAPIENTIÆ. Edited by THOMAS Wright, Esq., M.A. 1863.

Neckam was a man who devoted himself to science, such as it was in the twelfth century. In the "De Naturis Rerum" are to be found what may be called the rudiments of many sciences mixed up with much error and ignorance. Neckam was not thought infallible, even by his contemporaries, for Roger Bacon remarks of him," this Alexander in many things wrote what was true and useful; "but he neither can nor ought by just title to be reckoned among authorities." Neckam, however, had sufficient independence of thought to differ from some of the schoolmen who in his time considered themselves the only judges of literature. He had his own views in morals, and in giving us a glimpse of them, as well as of his other opinions, he throws much light upon the manners, customs, and general tone of thought prevalent in the twelfth century. The poem entitled "De Laudibus Divinæ Sapientia" appears to be a metrical paraphrase or abridgment of the "De Naturis Rerum." It is written in the elegiac metre ; and though there are many lines which violate classical rules, it is, as a whole, above the ordinary standard of mediaval Latin.

35. LEECHDOMS, WORTCUNNING, AND STARCRAFT OF EARLY ENGLAND; being a Collection of Documents illustrating the History of Science in this Country before the Norman Conquest. Vols. I., II., and III. Collected and edited by the Rev. T. OSWALD COCKAYNE, M.A., of St. John's College, Cambridge. 1864-1866.

This work illustrates not only the history of science, but the history of superstition. In addition to the information bearing directly upon the medical skill and medical faith of the times, there are many passages which incidentally throw light upon the general mode of life and ordinary diet. The volumes are interesting not only in their scientific, but also in their social aspect. The manuscripts from which they have been printed are valuable to the Anglo-Saxon scholar for the illustrations they afford of Anglo-Saxon orthography.

36. ANNALES MONASTICI.

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Vol. I. Annales de Margan, 1066-1232; Annales de Theokesberia, 1066-1263; Annales de Burton, 1004-1263. Vol. II. :-Annales Monasterii de Wintonia, 519-1277; Annales Monasterii de Waverleia, 1-1291. Vol. III. :-Annales Prioratus de Dunstaplia, 1-1297; Annales Monasterii de Bermundeseia, 10421432. Vol. IV. :-Annales Monasterii de Oseneia, 1016–1347; Chronicon vulgo dictum Chronicon Thomæ Wykes, 1066-1289; Annales Prioratus de Wigornia, 1-1377. Vol. V. :-Index and Glossary. Edited by HENRY RICHARDS LUARD, M.A., Fellow and Assistant Tutor of Trinity College, and Registrary of the University, Cambridge. 1864

1869.

The present collection of Monastic Annals embraces all the more important chronicles compiled in religious houses in England during the thirteenth century. These distinct works are ten in number. The extreme period which they embrace ranges from the year 1 to 1432, although they refer more especially to the reigns of John, Henry III., and Edward I. Some of these narratives have already appeared in print, but others are printed for the first time. 37. MAGNA VITA S. HUGONIS EPISCOPI LINCOLNIENSIS. From Manuscripts in the Bodleian Library, Oxford, and the Imperial Library, Paris. Edited by the Rev. JAMES F. DIMOCK, M.A., Rector of Barnburgh, Yorkshire. 1864.

This work contains a number of very curious and interesting incidents, and being the work of a contemporary, is very valuable, not only as a truthful biography of a celebrated ecclesiastic, but as the work of a man, who, from per sonal knowledge, gives notices of passing events, as well as of individuals who were then taking active part in public affairs. The author, in all probability, was Adam Abbot of Evesham. He was domestic chaplain and private confessor of Bishop Hugh, and in these capacities was admitted to the closest intimacy. Bishop Hugh was Prior of Witham for 11 years before he became Bishop of Lincoln. His consecration took place on the 21st September 1186; he died on the 16th of November 1200; and was canonized in 1220.

38. CHRONICLES AND MEMORIALS OF THE REIGN OF RICHARD THE FIRST. Vol. I. ITINERARIUM PEREGRINORUM ET GESTA REGIS RICARDI. Vol. II. :-EPISTOLÆ CANTUARIENSES; the Letters of the Prior and Convent of Christ Church, Canterbury; 1187 to 1199. Edited by WILLIAM STUBBS, M.A., Vicar of Navestock, Essex, and Lambeth Librarian. 1864-1865.

The authorship of the Chronicle in Vol. I., hitherto ascribed to Geoffrey Vinesauf, is now more correctly ascribed to Richard, Canon of the Holy Trinity of London. The narrative extends from 1187 to 1199; but its chief interest consists in the minute and authentic narrative which it furnishes of the exploits of Richard I., from his departure from England in December 1189 to his death in 1199. The author states in his prologue that he was an eye-witness of much that he records; and various incidenta. circumstances which occur in the course of the narrative confirm this assertion.

The letters in Vol. II., written between 1187 and 1199, are of value as furnishing authentic materials for the history of the ecclesiastical condition of England during the reign of Richard I. They had their origin in a dispute which arose from the attempts of Baldwin and Hubert, archbishops of Canterbury, to found a college of secular canons, a project which gave great umbrage to the monks of Canterbury, who saw in it a design to supplant them in their function of metropolitan chapter. These letters are printed, for the first time, from a MS. belonging to the archiepiscopal library at Lambeth.

39. RECUEIL DES CRONIQUES ET ANCHIENNES ISTORIES DE LA GRANT BRETAIGNE A PRESENT NOMME ENGLETERRE, par JEHAN DE WAURIN. Vol. I. Albina to 688. Vol. II., 1399–1422. Edited by WILLIAM HARDY, Esq., F.S.A. 1864-1868.

Y 2

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40. A COLLECTION OF THE CHRONICLES AND ANCIENT HISTORIES OF GREAT BRITAIN, NOW CALLED ENGLAND, by JOHN DE WAVRIN. Albina to 688. (Translation of the preceding Vol. I.) Edited and translated by WILLIAM HARDY, Esq., F.S.A.

1864.

This curious chronicle extends from the fabulous period of history down to the return of Edward IV. to England in the year 1471, after the second deposition of Henry VI. The manuscript from which the text of the work is taken is preserved in the Imperial Library at Paris, and is believed to be the only complete and nearly contemporary copy in existence. The work, as originally bound, was comprised in six volumes, since rebound in morocco in 12 volumes, folio maximo, vellum, and is illustrated with exquisite miniatures, vignettes, and initial letters. It was written towards the end of the fifteenth century, having been expressly executed for Louis de Bruges, Seigneur de la Gruthuyse and Earl of Winchester, from whose cabinet it passed into the library of Louis XII. at Blois. 41. POLYCHRONICON RANULPHI HIGDEN, with Trevisa's Translation. Vols. I. and II. Edited by CHURCHILL BABINGTON, B.D., Senior Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge. Vols. III., IV., V., and VI. Edited by the Rev. JOSEPH RAWSON LUMBY, B.D., Vicar of St. Edward's, Cambridge, Fellow of St. Catharine's College, and late Fellow of Magdalene College, Cambridge. 1865-1876.

This is one of the many medieval chronicles which assume the character of a history of the world. It begins with the creation, and is brought down to the author's own time, the reign of Edward III. Prefixed to the historical portion, is a chapter devoted to geography, in which is given a description of every known land. To say that the Polychronicon was written in the fourteenth century is to say that it is not free from inaccuracies. It has, however, a value apart from its intrinsic merits. It enables us to form a very fair estimate of the knowledge of history and geography which well-informed readers of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries possessed, for it was then the standard work on general history.

The two English translations, which are printed with the original Latin, afford interesting illustrations of the gradual change of our language, for one was made in the fourteenth century, the other in the fifteenth. The differences between Trevisa's version and that of the unknown writer are often considerable.

42. LE LIVERE DE REIS DE BRITTANIE E LE LIVERE DE REIS DE ENGLETERE. Edited by JOHN GLOVER, M.A., Vicar of Brading, Isle of Wight, formerly Librarian of Trinity College, Cambridge. 1865.

These two treatises, though they cannot rank as independent narratives, are nevertheless valuable as careful abstracts of previous historians, especially "Le Livere de Reis de Engletere." Some various readings are given which are interesting to the philologist as instances of semi-Saxonized French.

It is supposed that Peter of Ickham must have been the author, but no certain conclusion on that point has been arrived at.

43. CHRONICA MONASTERII DE MELSA, AB ANNO 1150 USQUE AD ANNUM 1406. Vols. I., II., and III. Edited by EDWARD AUGUSTUS BOND, Esq., Assistant Keeper of the Manuscripts, and Egerton Librarian, British Museum. 1866-1868.

The Abbey of Meaux was a Cistercian house, and the work of its abbot is both curious and valuable. It is a faithful and often minute record of the establishment of a religious community, of its progress in forming an ample revenue, of its struggles to maintain its acquisitions, and of its relations to the governing institutions of the country. In addition to the private affairs of the monastery, some light is thrown upon the public events of the time, which are however kept distinct, and appear at he end of the history of each abbot's administration. The text has been printed from what is said to be the autograph of the original compiler, Thomas de Burton, the nineteenth abbot.

44. MATTHAI PARISIENSIS HISTORIA ANGLORUM, SIVE, UT VULGO DICITUR, HISTORIA MINOR. Vols. I., II, and III. 1067-1253. Edited by Sir

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FREDERIC MADDEN, K.H., Keeper of the Department of Manuscripts,
British Museum, 1866-1869.

The exact date at which this work was written is, according to the chronicler, 1250. The history is of considerable value as an illustration of the period during which the author lived, and contains a good summary of the events which followed the Conquest. This minor chronicle is, however, based on another work (also written by Matthew Paris) giving fuller details, which has been called the "Historia Major." The chronicle here published, nevertheless, gives some information not to be found in the greater history.

45. LIBER MONASTERII DE HYDA: A CHRONICLE AND CHARTULARY OF HYDE ABBEY, WINCHESTER,455-1023. Edited, from a Manuscript in the Library of the Earl of Macclesfield, by EDWARD EDWARDS, Esq. 1866.

The "Book of Hyde" is a compilation from much earlier sources which are usually indicated with considerable care and precision. In many cases, however, the Hyde chronicler appears to correct, to qualify, or to amplify-either from tradition or from sources of information not now discoverable-the statements, which, in substance, he adopts. He also mentions, and frequently quotes from writers whose works are either entirely lost or at present known only by fragments. There is to be found, in the "Book of Hyde," much information relating to the reign of King Alfred which is not known to exist elsewhere. The volume contains some curious specimens of Anglo-Saxon and Medieval English.

46. CHRONICON SCOTORUM: A CHRONICLE OF IRISH AFFAIRS, from the EARLIEST TIMES to 1135; with a SUPPLEMENT, containing the Events from 1141 to 1150 Edited, with a Translation, by WILLIAM MAUNSELL HENNESSY, Esq., M.R.I.A. 1866.

There is, in this volume, a legendary account of the peopling of Ireland and of the adventures which befell the various heroes who are said to have been connected with Irish history. The details are, however, very meagre both for this period and for the time when history becomes more authentic. The plan adopted in the chronicle gives the appearance of an accuracy to which the earlier portions of the work cannot have any claim. The succession of events is marked, year by year, from A.M. 1599 to A.D. 1150. The principal events narrated in the later portion of the work are, the invasions of foreigners, and the wars of the Irish among themselves. The text has been printed from a MS. preserved in the library of Trinity College, Dublin, written partly in Latin, partly in Irish.

47. THE CHRONICLE OF PIERRE DE LANGTOFT, IN FRENCH VERSE, FROM THE EARLIEST PERIOD TO THE DEATH OF EDWARD I. Vols. I. and II. Edited by THOMAS WRIGHT, Esq., M.A. 1866-1868.

It is probable that Pierre de Langtoft was a canon of Bridlington, in Yorkshire, and that he lived in the reign of Edward I., and during a portion of the reign of Edward II. This chronicle is divided into three parts; in the first is an abridgment of Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Historia Britonum," in the second, a history of the Anglo-Saxon and Norman kings, down to the death of Henry III., and in the third a history of the reign of Edward I. The principal object of the work was apparently to show the justice of Edward's Scottish wars. The language is singularly corrupt, and a curious specimen of the French of Yorkshire.

48. THE WAR OF THE GAEDHIL WITH THE GAILL, or, THE INVASIONS Or IRELAND BY THE DANES AND OTHER NORSEMEN. Edited, with a Translation, by JAMES HENTHORN TODD D.D., Senior Fellow of Trinity College, and Regius Professor of Hebrew in the University, Dublin. 1867.

The work in its present form, in the editor's opinion, is a comparatively modern version of an undoubtedly ancient original. That it was compiled from contemporary materials has been proved by curious incidental evidence. It is stated in the account given of the battle of Clontarf that the full tide in Dublin Bay on the day of the battle (23 April 1014) coincided with sunrise; and that the returning tide in the evening aided considerably in the defeat of the Danes. The fact has been verified by astronomical calculations, and the inference is that the author of

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the chronicle, if not himself an eye-witness, must have derived his information from those who were eye-witnesses. The contents of the work are sufficiently described in its title. The story is told after the manner of the Scandinavian Sagas, with poems and fragments of poems introduced into the prose narrative. 49. GESTA REGIS HENRICI SECUNDI BENEDICTI ABBATIS. THE CHRONICLE THE REIGNS OF HENRY II. AND RICHARD I., 1169–1192; known under the name of BENEDICT OF PETERBOROUGH. Vols. I. and II. Edited by WILLIAM STUBBS, M.A., Regius Professor of Modern History, Oxford, and Lambeth Librarian. 1867.

OF

This chronicle of the reigns of Henry II. and Richard I., known commonly under the name of Benedict of Peterborough, is one of the best existing specimens of a class of historical compositions of the first importance to the student. 50. MUNIMENTA ACADEMICA, OR, DOCUMENTS ILLUSTRATIVE OF ACADEMICAL LIFE AND STUDIES AT OXFORD (in Two Parts). Edited by the Rev. HENRY ANSTEY, M.A., Vicar of St. Wendron, Cornwall, and lately Vice-Principal of St. Mary Hall, Oxford.

1868.

This work will supply materials for a History of Academical Life and Studies in the University of Oxford during the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries.

51. CHRONICA MAGISTRI ROGERI DE HOUEDENE. Vols. I., II., III., and IV. Edited by WILLIAM STUBBS, M.A., Regius Professor of Modern History, and Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford. 1868-1871.

This work has long been justly celebrated, but not thoroughly understood until Mr. Stubbs' edition. The earlier portion, extending from 732 to 1148, appears to be a copy of a compilation made in Northumbria about 1161, to which Hoveden added little. From 1148 to 1169-a very valuable portion of this work-the matter is derived from another source, to which Hoveden appears to have supplied little, and not always judiciously. From 1170 to 1192 is the portion which corresponds with the Chronicle known under the name of Benedict of Peterborough (see No. 49); but it is not a copy, being sometimes an abridgment, at others a paraphrase; occasionally the two works entirely agree; showing that both writers had access to the same materials, but dealt with them differently. From 1192 to 1201 may be said to be wholly Hoveden's work it is extremely valuable, and an authority of the first importance.

52. WILLELMI MalmesbiriENSIS MONACHI DE GESTIS PONTIFICUM AngloRUM LIBRI QUINQUE. Edited, from William of Malmesbury's Autograph MS., by N. E. S. A. HAMILTON, Esq., of the Department of Manuscripts, British Museum. 1870.

William of Malmesbury's "Gesta Pontificum " is the principal foundation of English Ecclesiastical Biography, down to the year 1122. The manuscript which has been followed in this Edition is supposed by Mr. Hamilton to be the author's autograph, containing his latest additions and amendments.

53. HISTORIC AND MUNICIPAL DOCUMENTS OF IRELAND, FROM THE ARCHIVES OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN, &c. 1172-1320. Edited by JOHN T. Gilbert, Esq., F.S.A., Secretary of the Public Record Office of Ireland. 1870.

A collection of original documents, elucidating mainly the history and condition of the municipal, middle, and trading classes under or in relation with the rule of England in Ireland, a subject hitherto in almost total obscurity. Extending over the first hundred and fifty years of the Anglo-Norman settlement, the series includes charters, municipal laws and regulations, rolls of names of citizens and members of merchant-guilds, lists of commodities with their rates, correspondence, illustrations of relations between ecclesiastics and laity; together with many documents exhibiting the state of Ireland during the presence there of the Scots under Robert and Edward Bruce.

54. THE ANNALS OF LOCH CÉ. A CHRONICLE OF IRISH AFFAIRS, FROM 1014 to 1590. Vols. I. and II. Edited, with a Translation, by WILLIAM MAUNSELL HENNESSY, Esq., M.R.I.A. 1871.

The original of this chronicle has passed under various names. The title of "Annals of Loch Cé" was given to it by Professor O'Curry, on the ground that