Chronicles of the Reigns of Stephen, Henry II, and Richard I

Abstract

The second volume of this four-volume set of Latin chronicles, edited by Richard Howlett (1841–1917) and published between 1884 and 1889, contains the fifth and final book of the Historia rerum Anglicarum by William of Newburgh (c.1136–c.1198). This book deals with the events of the years 1194–8. The work is continued in a supplement up to the year 1298, compiled by a monk of Furness Abbey. Also included is the Draco Normannicus ('The Norman Standard') of Etienne de Rouen, a monk from Bec Abbey in Normandy. Much of this poem is simply the versification of other sources, but it does possess some historical value, and notably presents King Arthur as a Breton rather than a British ruler. A glossary and index to the first two volumes is included, along with helpful English side-notes to the Latin text.