Royal MS 16 E XII

THEOLOGICAL TRACTS and Life of S. Francis, in French, viz.:-

1. Sermon on Cant. iv. 9. Beg. 'Vulnerasti cor meum, &c.: Ces paroles sont escriptes hu liure damours. Si les dit nostre sire'; ends 'diex la taigne en ce point. Amen'. f. 1.

2. Another sermon on the same text. Beg. 'Nous trouuons en liure de cantiques qui est apele un autre non '; ends 'uueille otrier li douz Jhesu qui uit', &c. f. 6 b.

3. Tract or sermon on Ps. cl. Beg. 'Laudate dominum in sanctis eius, &c.: Le tiexte de ce seaume est alleluya'; ends 'a cele gloire nous maint le pere', &c. f. 9.

4. Five flowers of paradise: a devotional tract, without title. Beg. 'Biaus dous amis, je uous enuoie des fleurs qui cressent en nostre pays'; ends 'les ames et les cors. amen'. f. 38.

5. Four tracts or sermons, chiefly consisting of extracts from the Fathers, viz.:-(a) Beg. 'Oez que nostre seigneur dit en lesuangille Soiez entendis et ueilliez en oroisons'. f. 43;-(b) Beg. 'Qui est de dieu il ot uolentiers la parole de dieu'. f. 59 b;-(c) Beg. 'Nous deuon nostre seigneur amer pour iiii. choses'. f. 68 b -(d) Mainly extracts from [S. Augustine, or rather] Hugo de S. Victore, Soliloquia de Arrha Animae. Beg. 'Mesire saint Augustin parole a same et li demande quel chose ce est que ele doiue amer'; ends 'nai pas encore trouue'. f. 72.

6. De la sainte ame : treatise, without title, of which there is a copy in a Paris MS. Bibl. Nat. fonds franc.

444, f. 254, probably also in Paris Arsenal MS. 2111, f. 44 b. Beg. 'La sainte ame qui a dieu uueut uenir doit penser et amer et desirer et auoir dieu si con fist Helye '; ends 'quant il fu raui '. f. 78 b.

7. Anonymous translation of the Tractatus de tribulatione sometimes attributed (very doubtfully) to Peter of Blois (cf. Migne, Patr. Lat. ccvii. 989, and Hauréau's Not. el Extr. iv, p. 125). Another copy of the French is in Mr. H. Yates Thompson's library (Fifty MSS., 1898, no. 40). Two English versions are printed by Horstmann, Richard Rolle, ii, pp. 45, 391. Beg. 'Da nobis, domine, auxilium de tribulatione: A toi ame liuree as temptations'; ends 'Or di donques a ton dieu Da nobis', &c. f. 84.

8. Short tract on prayer. Beg. 'Ou il couuient que nous sormonton lanemi par oroison'; ends 'amour y crest ades'. f. 127.

9. Short tract on the Beatitudes. Beg. 'Benoet soient li poure desperit'; ends 'compaignie des vierges'. f. 129.

10. Short tract on the Passion. Beg. 'Mesire saint Bernart reprent ceus qui nont compassion'; ends 'il en ont mestier. Pater noster'. f. 129 b.

11. 'Labaye du saint esperit'; no title, but colophon (sic), 'Ci faut le sermon de labaye', &c. A French text which is much nearer to the English Abbey of the Holy Ghost than La sainte Abbaye (Add. MS. 20697, f. 29, and Mr. Yates Thompson's MS., l. c., no. 40), which has generally been supposed to be its original. Yet another French form is in the Paris Arsenal MS. 3167. For the English (often wrongly ascribed to John Alcock) see the editions by G. G. Perry, Religious Pieces (E. E. Text Soc., 1867), and Horstmann, Richard Rolle, i, p. 321. The latter mentions the existence of a Latin tract of this name. Beg. 'Mout de gent uoudroient entrer en religion et ne pueent'; ends 'miex ordenee que deuant'. f. 132 b.

12. Sermon du paumier: a tract on contemplation, without title. Apparently the same as in the Paris MSS. Bibl. Nat. fonds fran. 940, f. 123, and Arsenal 2058, f. 67, 2111, f. 41 b, 3167, f. 52. Beg. 'Ascendam in palmam ei aprehendam fructum et li prophete dist ces paroles. . En sainte escripture entent on aucune foiz'; ends 'cors defer'. f. 139 b.

13. Cloistre espirituel : a curious short moralization, without title. Beg. 'Qui uueut auoir charite ordenee tiegne la en cloistre espirituel'; ends 'li angre en paradis'. f. 148.

14. 'La uie saint Francois en roumanz' (so colophon): translation of the legenda of S. Francis of Assisi by S. Bonaventura (Opera, Quaracchi ed., viii, p. 504, and Acta Sanctorum, 4 Oct., p. 742). Another copy in French is in Paris MS. Bibl. Nat. fonds franç. 430. Appended at the end is the miracle of the calumniated man whose eyes grew again (Acta SS., p. 793), which was ordered to be added to the legenda by Geronimo d'Ascoli, General of the Order 1274-1279. Beg. 'La grace diex nostre seigneur'; ends 'auec les miracles saint Françoiz'. f. 152.

15. 'Ci commence la riule et lordenance des finz amanz': tract beg. 'En lenneur du roy et de la royne des angres tout ainsi con la riule fait'; ends 'nous est mestiers. Amen'. At the end is a note 'Virginite concoit lesucrist', &c., ending 'Pacience le norrist'. f. 295.

16. Heures de la passion Ihseu Crist. Beg. 'A pour dieu ie uous pri que nul ior ne uous passe'. f. 306.

17. 'Ce sont ci les meditations S. Bernart': the translation of the latter part of the work variously termed Meditationes S. Bernardi and Liber Hugonis de Sancto Victore de anima (cf. B. XI, art. 9, &c.). Beg. in ch. vi (Migne, Patr. Lat. clxxxiv. 496 B) 'Nous deuon mettre poine a aler u doz pais de paradis'. At the end (f. 329) is appended without rubric the second of the Meditations commonly ascribed to S. Anselm (Patr. Lat. clviii. 722), beg. 'Mame mespoente, car quant je lai bien encerchie'. Colophon, 'Ci finent les meditations saint Bernart'. f. 313.

18. Epistle containing twelve reasons for the love of God; without title. Beg. 'A homme gracieus, de nation plus gracieus, de non tres gracieus, de conuersation passe glacieus (sic) de desir et de affection'; ends 'pourrons parler a uous suffisamment'. f. 331 b.

19. Le priuilege et le miroer de parfete amour; without title. A tract somewhat similar to the last. Beg. 'Je uous salu en loial desir en sauourcuse douceur'; ends 'li biaus douz Jhesucriz. amen'. f. 334 b.

Vellum; ff. 339. 6³/₄ in.x 5 in. XIV cent. Gatherings of 12 leaves, Double columns. Sec. fol. 'doit amer'. Two small illuminated initials, one (f. 152) with miniature of S. Francis. joined initials H. R. of Henry VII or VIII ?]; cf. 4 C. XI, &c. A large numbering (as in 15 E. II, &c.), 64. Old Royal press-mark 'no. 517' (Westm. invent. of 1542, Add. MS. 25469, f. 31; cat. of 1666, f. 14 not in CMA.

includes:

• f. 132b Abbey of the Holy Ghost: L'abaye du Saint Esperit: 14th cent.: Fr.