Kings MS 396

GENEALOGICAL TREE, showing descent of Queen Elizabeth from-, Rollo, Duke of Normandy. Geoffrey, Count of Anjou. William, Duke of Aquitaine. Robert, Count of Mortain. Sancho, King of Spain. Arnold IV, Count of Angoulême. Charles the Great. Luderic, Forester of Flanders. Theoderic, Count of Holland. Hermann, Count of Hainault. Albert, Count of Namur. Geoffrey, Duke of Ardenne. William, Count of Warenne. Godfrey, 'Erle of Array' [Comte d'Eu], ancestor of the Clares. Eric, Count of Bigorre (ancestor of the Kings of Navarre). Eustace, Count of Boulogne. Robert, Earl of Gloucester (natural son of Henry I). Robert FitzHaimon. Macmurrough, King of Leinster. John the Marshal (ancestor of the Earls of Pembroke). Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath. William de Braose. Edmund, Earl of Lancaster (son of Henry II). Thomas [Wake], Lord Wake. Bartholomew de Badesmere. Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln. Patrick Chaworth of Kidwelly. Blondel of Luxemburg. Emperor Lewis IV.

Each of the above-named (and also William the Conqueror) is represented by an imaginary portrait, and almost every person shown in the tables is given imaginary or real arms in gold, silver, and colours. There are also introduced drawings of the Great Seals of William I (f. 6 b), Henry I and Stephen (f. 7), arms of the twelve peers of France (f. 14) and of the original knights of the Garter (f. 19 b) and twelve shields (f. 27 b) of (mainly fictitious) arms, which the compiler has also marshalled in a fantastic coat assigned to Henry VIII. This is as follows:-

Quarterly, enté en point, with an escutcheon surtout:-

1st and 4th grand quarters, quarterly:-

(1) quarterly, France and England.

(2) quarterly, 1 and 4 gu., an escarbuncle or, over all a chief arg.; 2 and 3 gu., a lion rampant arg. These are said to be for the ' erldoms of Aniou and Mayne'.

(3) quarterly, 1 and 4 gu., a lion passant or,'dukedom of Aquitayne', 2 and 3 gu., a cross cléchée pommettée voided or, Toulouse.

(4) France ancient with a label of 3 Points gu. charged with 3 hearts or, 'Erldom of Angulesme', impaling or, 4 bars gu.,'Erldom of Provence'.

2nd grand quarter, quarterly:-

(1) az., a cross flory between 4 martlets or.

(2) az., 3 crowns, two and one, or.

(3) az., a cross patty fitchy or.

(4) az., a cross fleur-de-lisée between 4 crowns or. These for 'the Saxon kinges'. Over all gu., a lion rampant or, holding a battle-axe arg., 'the Danish kinges'.

3rd grand quarter quarterly (1) gu., a lion passant or.

(2) az., 3 crowns in bend or (3) az., 3 crowns in pale or (4) arg., cross gu These for the Britayn Kinges' Over all gu. the letters S.P.Q.R. in bend or, doubly coticed arg.,'the Romane kinges en point az a harp or 'the kingdom of Ireland'. escutcheon surtout quarterly:-

(1) and (4) arg, three lions passant gu.

(2) and (3) quarterly 1 and 4 or a lion passant gu; 2 and 3 the same counterchanged These for 'the principalite of Wales'

The arms of Anne Boleyn differ slightly from those given by Woodward (Heraldry Brit. and For., 1896, ii, P. 151), the label in the 1st quarter (Lancaster) being az., fleur de-lisé, instead of arg. ; and in the 2nd quarter (Angoulême) the label is arg. instead of gu. (in Royal MS. 16 E. xiii ermine). At the beginning, after the anonymous dedicatory letter to the Queen (f. 1 b) is an introduction (f. 2) devoted to showing what English and foreign dignities have become merged in the English crown, and at the end (f. 28 b) is a historical sketch, from Brute downwards, to show 'How your Maiestie is chief souereigne of the realme of Scotland . . . by the seuerall homages don by the kinges of Scottes to the kinges of England'. There is no evidence of authorship, but many of the heraldic fancies occur in Robert Cooke's Baronage (e. g. Add. MS. 5504), though not exactly in the same form. A closer resemblance is seen in a fragment in Harley MS. 2021, f. 128, copied from an unnamed source. Cooke, who was Clarencieux King-of-Arms, died in 1593, and in the inventory of his goods (Lansdowne MS. 75, f. 68) is ' a bundell conteyninge discentes of Englande, the copie of the Quenes boke', &c. The style of painting is not unlike that of pedigrees executed by him or under his superintendence. Vellum; ff. 29. 17³/₄ in. x 13 in. Temp. Elizabeth (early). Belonged to Elias Ashmole (Windsor Herald, d. 1692), but not in his sale-catalogue. Ashmole's arms are on the old sprinkled calf sides, let into the modern tooled binding (with doublures).