Royal MS 18 D IV

JOHN LYDGATE, Fall of Princes (cf. 18 B. XXXI). In nine books. Imperfect, wanting one leaf after f. 32 (bk. i, ch. xiv, ll. 337-504), six after f. 41 (bk. i, ch. xxiii in ed. printed by J. Wayland [1558 ?] or xxii in ed. 1554, beg. 'After this Pirrhus' to bk. ii, ch. ii, l. 126), two quires (presumably, but the missing stanzas would only fill 22 pages ?) after f. 50 (bk. ii, ch. xiv, 1. 36-ch. xxviii, misnumbered xv in ed. 1558, 1. 140), eight leaves after f. 90 (bk. iv, ch. vi, l. 78-ch. xiii, l. 70), four after f. 100 (bk. iv, ch. xxiv, 1. 141-bk. v, ch. vii, 1. 63), three quires (? enough for 36 pages) after f. 118 (bk. vi, ch. i, 1. 253- ch. xv, 1. 322), and four leaves after f. 167 (bk. ix, ch. xxiv, 1. 92-end of Bochas' 'rehearsal', i.e. five stanzas from the end of the book). The text includes, after bk. ii, ch. v, 1. 56, six stanzas (f. 43 b), beg. 'My dere Lucresse, tempest not at all', which are not in the 1554 or 1558 edition or in most of the MSS. except Harley MS. 1766. On the other hand it agrees with Harley MS. 4203 and the 1558 ed. in omitting four stanzas after bk. i, ch. xi, 1. 63, and with Harley 4203 only in a transposition of eight stanzas after bk i, ch. xv, 1. 14 with eight stanzas (here seven) at the end of the same chapter. At the end of bk. ii (f. 53 b) is wrongly written 'Explicit liber tercius'. Prologue begins.-

'He that whilom dede his diligence The book of Bochas in Frensch to translate.' Poem begins:-

'Whan John Bochas considred had and souht The woful fall of myht (sic) conquerours.' Vellum; ff. 168. 163/4 in. x 113/4 in. Circ. 1446-1470. In two hands (second begins at f. 18); double columns containing 42 lines of text. Gatherings of 8 leaves (xxix⁶, viii, ix, xv, xx-xxii missing, iv wants one, vi wants six, xvii wants four, xxix wants four), with catchwords. Sec. fol. 'As thei hade'. Illuminated borders to ff. 1, 55, 87, 112, 121 b, 133, marking as a rule (except f. 112) the beginning of the text (not prologue) of each book, but books vi and ix have no border and books ii, v have lost the beginning. In the border of f. 1 are the arms of John Tiptoft, Earl of Worcester (d. 1470), or of his first wife (m. circ. 1446, d. 1450) Cecily, Duchess of Warwick, daughter of Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, and widow of Henry Beauchamp, Duke of Warwick. The arms are in triple impalement: dexter the Earl's arms, quarterly, 1st and 4th arg., a saltire engrailed gu., for Tiptoft, 2nd and 3rd gu., a lion rampant or, for Powys; centre, the arms of the Duke, quarterly, 1st gu. a fess between six cross crosslets or, for Beauchamp, 2nd (much rubbed) or, three chevrons gu., for Clare, 3rd quarterly arg. and gu., in the 2nd and 3rd quarters a fret or, for Despenser, 4th chequy or and az., a chevron ermine, for Newburgh; sinister the lady's own arms, quarterly, 1st and 4th quarterly Montagu (arg.

3 lozenges in fess gu.) and Monthermer (or, an eagle displayed vert), 2nd and 3rd gu., a saltire arg., with a label, for Neville. Illuminated initials to chapters, &c., flourished initials to stanzas in gold or red and blue. Among 16th cent. scribbling on ff. 1, 168 is the erased note (f. 168 b) 'Marmadvke Ellerker . . aw thys bouke who þt so euer on yt dothe lovke quod Julyan Musgraue', and another 'Julyane Musgraue, wythowt fanyng my hart yow haue, yow know my menyng'. Julian, daughter of William Ellerker, was the wife of Sir Simon Musgrave of Edenhall, sheriff of Cumberland in 11 Eliz. and distantly connected with the Cliffords (see Jefferson's History of Leath Ward, 1840, pp. 414, 415), and the name of Marmaduke Ellerker occurs in the 1564 visitation of Yorkshire, Harleian Soc., xvi, p. 109. In another hand are eight verses beg. 'Whar fayth is frend ther resone is a tresuer'. Verses in Latin, Italian, and English (ib.) are in the hand of [Henry, Lord] Strange [1531-1572, 4th Earl of Derby 1579-1593], who has also written the name of his wife 'Margaret Clifforte', daughter of George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland. Her brother, George, 4th Earl, is referred to in the note on f. 2, 'This boke was geven me by George, Erle of Comerland, anno 1599', signed by [John, Lord] Lumley. Other names occurring are Brograue, f. 1. Franses Perse, f. 168 b. Notes in which the text is compared with that of 'th' other booke' (sc. 18 D. V) at ff. 139 b, 166 b were probably of written while the MS. was in Lumley's possession. Lumley cat. f. 202; cat. of 1666, f. 12; not in CMA.