Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, MS 191: Enlarged Rule of Chrodegang in Latin and Old English
Abstract/Contents
- Summary
- CCCC MS 191 is a copy of the bilingual version of the Rule for Canons of Chrodegang of Metz (d. 766). It was written in the third quarter of the eleventh century at Exeter, and is probably identifiable as one of the manuscripts given to Exeter by Bishop Leofric (1050-72). Leofric, who was probably from Cornwall although he has an English name, was brought up in Lotharingia, where he encountered Chrodegang's Rule, which sought to encourage communal life among the secular, rather than monastic, clergy. Leofric introduced this rule to Exeter, which he reconstituted as a community of clerics rather than monks when he moved his see there from Crediton in 1050. This manuscript was used by the Parkerian circle for its Old English vocabulary and was annotated by Parker when he was preparing his defence of priests' marriage.
- Contents
- Enlarged Rule of Chrodegang in Latin and Old English
Description
| Alternative title | Regula Chrodegangi |
|---|---|
| Type of resource | mixed material |
| Extent | ff. 85 + 2 |
| Date created | [ca. 1000 - 1025] |
| Language | Latin; English, Old (ca. 450-1100) |
| Material | Vellum |
| Layout | 27 lines to a page |
| Height (mm) | 290 |
| Width (mm) | 175 |
| Collation | a(2) 1(8) (2 replaced by blank) 2(8)-11(8) (wants 6-8). |
| Writing | in two very good round upright hands |
| Foliation | ff. a-l + i-iii + pp. 1-4 + 4a-b + 5-6 + 6a-d + 7-8 + 8a-b + 9-170 + ff. m-x |
| Research | Miss Bateson (Eng. Hist. Rev. 1894, p. 699) has pointed out that this work is the Rule of Chrodegang of Metz as enlarged after the Council of Aix-la-Chapelle in 817. Lord Selborne (Ancient Facts and Fictions concerning Tithes, edn 2, pp. 264-70) had also rightly identified the work, which previous writers had mistaken for the Benedictine Rule. A copy said to be by Whelock is in Harl. MS. 440. It contains the capitula complete (doubtless excerpted from the text, as they are in Wanley, p. 130). Another (Latin only) is in Vitellius D. VII, much burnt. This last was a volume of Collectanea of Laurence Nowell, and this text is described by him as copied from a book belonging to Exeter Cathedral. On this account the present MS. is identified (rightly, as it seems) with one of Leofric's gifts to Exeter: probably no. 21 in his list (Regula Canonicorum) but possibly no. 23 (Canon on Leden). There was also a copy at Christ Church, Canterbury, Regula Canonicorum Anglice (Ancient Libraries, p. 51, no. 317). The text is to be edited by Professor Napier for the Early English Text Society. |
| Additions | On the flyleaf (iiv) a Parkerian note attributing the work to Theodore. |
Bibliographic information
| M.R. James Date | xi early |
|---|---|
| Downloadable James Catalogue Record | |
| Superseded Interim Catalogue Record | |
| Contains |
|
| TJames | 268 |
| Stanley | S. 12 |
| Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/rs890dd0432 |
| Location | MS 191 |
| Repository | UK, Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, Parker Library |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- Images courtesy of The Parker Library, Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. For higher resolution images suitable for scholarly or commercial publication, either in print or in an electronic format, please contact the Parker Library directly at parker-library@corpus.cam.ac.uk
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC).
Collection
Parker Manuscripts
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