THE CHRONICLES.
Of the historical writings that remain from the Anglian period--namely,
those of Æddi and Bede, we have already spoken; the subject of the
present chapter will be the Saxon Chronicles and the Latin histories
which are more or less related to these Chronicles.
The habit of putting together annals began to be formed very early. In
our Chronicles there are some entries that may perhaps be older than the
conversion of our people. The contributors to Bede's "History" would
appear to have sent in their parts more or less in the annalistic form.
That form is even now but slightly veiled in the grouped arrangement
into which the venerable historian has, with little reconstruction but
considerable skill, cast his materials. Annal-writing, we may venture to
say, had by his time become a recognised habit in literature, and there
is extant a brief Northumbrian Chronicle which ends soon after Bede's
death.[103] Continuous with this we have a series of annals which were
produced in the north, and which are now imbedded in the West Saxon
Chronicles; but the traces of their birth are not obliterated. Such
vernacular annals were probably at first designed as little more than
notes and memoranda to serve for a Latin history to be written another
day; but the Danish wars broke the tradition of Latin learning, and made
a wide opening which gave opportunity for the elevation of a vernacular
literature. There is no part of Anglo-Saxon literature more
characterised by spontaneity than are the Saxon Chronicles. Nowhere can
we better see how the mother-tongue received the devolution of the
literary office in an unexpected way when the learned literature was
suddenly and violently displaced.
One of the strong features of these Chronicles is the genealogies of the
kings, ascending mostly to Woden as their mythical ancestor. The most
complete of these is that of the West Saxon kings, which is prefixed to
the Parker manuscript in manner of a preface. This genealogy was
originally made for Ecgbryht, who reigned from 800 to 836,--it was made
at his death, and it comprised the accession of his son, Æthelwulf.
Subsequently an addition was made, which continued the line of kings
down to Alfred, and closed with the date of his accession. This, when
combined with the fact that the first hand in this book ends with 891,
seems to fix the date of the Winchester Chronicle. This interesting
appendix is as follows:--
Ond tha feng Æthelbald his sunu to rice and heold v gear.
Tha feng Æthelbryht his brother to and heold v gear. Tha
feng Æthered hiera brothur to rice and heold v gear. Tha
feng Ælfred hiera brothur to rice and tha wæs agan his
ielde xxiii wintra, and ccc and xcvi wintra thæs the his
cyn ærest Wessexana lond on Wealum geodon.
And then Æthelbald his son took to the realm and held it 5
years. Then succeeded Æthelbryht his brother, and held 5
years. Then Æthered their brother took to the realm, and
held 5 years. Then took Alfred their brother to the realm,
and then was agone of his age 23 years; and 396 years from
that his race erst took Wessex from the Welsh.
These Chronicles are remarkable for a certain unconscious ease and
homeliness. Even when, in the course of their progress, they grow more
copious and mature, they hardly discover any consciousness of literary
dignity. Of the Latin writings of the Anglo-Saxon period this could not
be said. This _naïveté_ is naturally more observable in the earlier
parts, which seem like rescued antiquities, which might have been built
into their place when, in the latter end of the eighth or beginning of
the ninth century, the importance of the national and vernacular
chronicle began to be realised.
Some of the brief entries concerning the various settlements on the
coasts and the early contests with the Britons have the appearance of
traditional reminiscences that had been preserved in popular songs. Such
is that of 473, that the Welsh flew the English like fire; 491, that
Ælle and Cissa besieged Andredescester, and slew all those that therein
dwelt--there was not so much as one Bret left; 584, how that Ceawlin,
in his expedition up the Vale of Severn, where his brother fell, took
many towns and untold spoils, and, angry, he turned away to his own.
Mingled with these are entries which, though ingenious, are hardly less
spontaneous. Such are those in which there is a manifest rationalising
upon the names of historical sites, and a fanciful discovery of their
heroes or founders. Thus, in 501, we read that Port landed in Britain at
the place called Portsmouth. Now, we know that the first syllable in
Portsmouth is the Latin _portus_, a harbour, and it seems plain that
here we have a name made into a personage. In 534 we read how Cynric
gave the Isle of Wight to Stuf and Wihtgar, and how Wihtgar died in 544,
and was buried at Wihtgaraburg, also called Wihtgaræsburh. Here the
person of Wihtgar has been made out of the name of the place, because
that name was understood as meaning Castle of Wihtgar. But it meant the
Burgh "of" Wihtgar only in the sense of the Burgh which was called
Wihtgar. The last syllable, _gar_, is the British word for burg,
fortress, castle, which the Welsh call _Caer_ to this day. And the
Saxons, having often to use the word _gar_ in this sense--much as our
reporters of New Zealand affairs have to speak of a _pa_--distinguished
the _gar_ that was in Wiht, as Wihtgar, and then they added their own
word, _burh_, as the interpretation of _gar_, and after a time the
historian, finding the name of Wihtgarburh, took Wihtgar for a man, and
called it Wihtgar's Burg, Wihtgaresburh, a genitive form which still
lives in "Carisbrooke."
The originals of the Chronicles are preserved in seven different books.
They are known by the signatures A, B, C, D, E, F, G.
A, the famous book in Archbishop Parker's library, preserved in Corpus
Christi College, Cambridge. The structure of this book indicates that it
was made in 891, and, indeed, the penmanship of this copy--at least, of
the compilation--may possibly be as old as the lifetime of King Alfred.
It bears the local impress of Winchester, except in the latest
continuation, 1005-1070, which appears to belong to Canterbury. It seems
to have passed from Canterbury to the place where it is now deposited;
but that it was a Winchester book in its basis seems indicated by the
regular notices of the bishops of Wessex from 634 to 754, by the diction
of the compilation to 891, and especially by that of the remarkable
continuation, 893-897.
B, British Museum, Cotton Library, Tiberius A. vi. Closes with the year
977, and was probably written at St. Augustine's, Canterbury.
C, British Museum, Cotton Library, Tiberius B. i. The first handwriting
stops at 1046, and is probably of that date. Closes with 1066.
Apparently a work of the monks of Abingdon.
D, British Museum, Cotton Library, Tiberius B. iv. The first hand, which
stops at 1016, may well be of that date. Closes with 1079. This book
contains strong internal evidence of being a product of Worcester Abbey.
E, Bodleian Library, Laud, 636. This is the fullest of all extant
Chronicles; it embodies most of the contents of the others, and it adds
the largest quantity of new and original history. It gives seventy-five
years' history beyond any of the others, and closes with the death of
Stephen in 1154. The local relations of this book are unmistakable. The
first hand ends with 1121, and all the evidence goes to prove that this
book was prepared at that date in the abbey of Peterborough. On Friday,
August 3, 1116, a great fire had occurred at Peterborough which had
destroyed the town and a large part of the abbey, and this book was
apparently undertaken among the acts of restoration. The varying shades
of Saxon which this book contains, both in the compilation and in the
several continuations, render it of great value for the history of the
English language, especially in the obscure period of the twelfth
century.
F, British Museum, Cotton Library, Domitian A. viij. A bilingual
Chronicle, Latin and Saxon, which, by internal evidence, is assigned to
Christ Church, Canterbury. The abrupt ending at 1058 is no indication of
the book's date: it was written late in the twelfth century.
G, British Museum, Cotton Library, Otho B. xi. A late copy of A, made
probably in the twelfth century. It nearly perished in the fire of 1731,
and only three leaves have been rescued; but happily the book had,
before this disaster, been published entire and without intermixture by
Wheloc; and, consequently, his edition is now the chief representative
of this authority.
Of these books there are three which are distinguished above the rest
by individuality of character. These are the Parker book (A); the
Worcester book (D); and the Peterborough book (E). A Chronicle may have
a marked individuality in two ways--that is to say, either in its
compilation or in its continuation. I will give an example of each kind.
The first shall be from the Worcester Chronicle, which combines with the
former stock of southern history a valuable body of northern history
between the years 737 and 806. The following are selected as being
annals which, either wholly or in part, are derived from a northern
source. The new matter is indicated by inverted commas:--
737. Her Forthhere biscop . and Freothogith cwen ferdon to
Rome . "and Ceolwulf cyning feng to Petres scære . and
sealde his rice Eadberhte his fæderan sunu . se ricsade xxi
wintra . And Æthelwold biscop . and Acca forthferdon . and
Cynwulf man gehalgode to biscop . And thy ilcan gære
Æthelbald cyning hergode Northhymbra land."
737. Here Forthere bishop (of Sherborne) and Freothogith
queen (of Wessex) went to Rome; "and Ceolwulf, king (of
Northumbria) received St. Peter's tonsure, and gave his
realm to Eadberht, his father's brother's son; who reigned
21 years. And Æthelwold, bishop (of Lindisfarne) and Acca
died, and Cynwulf was consecrated bishop. And that same
year Æthelbald, king (of Mercia) ravaged the Northumbrians'
land."
757. "Her Eadberht Northhymbra cyning feng to scære . and
Oswulf his sunu feng to tham rice, and ricsade an gær . and
hine ofslogon his hiwan . on viii Kl. Augustus."
757. "Here Eadberht, king of the Northumbrians, became a
monk; and Oswulf, his son, took to the realm, and reigned
one year, and him his domestics slew, on July 25."
762. Her Ianbryht was gehadod to arcebiscop . on thone
XL dæg ofer midne winter . "and Frithuweald biscop
æt Hwiterne forthferde . on Nonas Maius. se wæs gehalgod on
Ceastre on xviii Kl. September . tham vi Ceolwulfes rices .
and he wæs biscop xxix wintra. Tha man halgode Pehtwine to
biscop æt Ælfet ee on xvi Kl. Agustus . to Hwiterne."
762. Here Ianbryht was ordained archbishop (of Canterbury)
on the fortieth day after Midwinter (Christmas). "And
Frithuweald, bishop of Whitehorne, died on May 7th. He was
consecrated at York, on the 15th of August, in the sixth
year of Ceolwulf's reign; and he was bishop 29 years. Then
was Pehtwine consecrated to be bishop of Whitehorne at
Ælfet Island on the 17th of July."
777. Her Cynewulf and Offa gefliton ymb Benesingtun . and
Offa genom thone tun . "and tha ilcan geare man gehalgode
Æthelberht to biscop to Hwiterne in Eoforwic . on xvii Kl.
Jul'."
777. Here Cynewulf and Offa fought about Bensington
(Benson, Oxf.), and Offa took the town. "And that same year
was Æthelberht hallowed for bishop of Whitehorne, at York
on the 15th of June."
779. Her Ealdseaxe and Francan gefuhton. "and Northhymbra
heahgerefan forbærndon Beorn ealdorman on Seletune . on
viii Kl. Janr. and Æthelberht arcebiscop forthferde in
Cæstre . in thæs steal Eanbald wæs ær gehalgod . and
Cynewulf biscop gesæt in Lindisfarna ee."
779. Here the Old Saxons and the Franks fought. "And
Northumbrian high-reeves burned Beorn the alderman at
Silton on the 25th of December. And Æthelberht, the
archbishop, died at York, into whose place Eanbald had been
previously consecrated; and bishop Cynewulf sate on
Lindisfarne island."
782. "Her forthferde Werburh . Ceolredes cwen . and
Cynewulf biscop on Lindisfarna ee . and seonoth wæs æt
Aclæ."
782. "Here died Werburh, queen of Ceolred (king of Mercia):
and Cynewulf, bishop of Lindisfarne Island. And synod was
at Aclea."
788. "Her wæs sinoth gegaderad on Northhymbra lande æt
Pincanheale . on iiii Non. Septemb. and Aldberht abb .
forthferde in Hripum."
788. "Here was a synod gathered in the land of the
Northumbrians at Finchale, on 2nd September. And abbot
Aldberht died at Ripon."
793. "Her wæron rethe forebecna cumene ofer Northhymbra
land . and thæt folc earmlice bregdon . thæt wæron ormete
thodenas . and ligræscas . and fyrenne dracan wæron
gesewene on tham lifte fleogende. Tham tacnum sona fyligde
mycel hunger . and litel æfter tham . thæs ilcan geares .
on vi Id. Janv. earmlice hæthenra manna hergung adilegode
Godes cyrican in Lindisfarna ee . thurh hreaflac and
mansliht . and Sicga forthferde on viii Kl. Martius."
793. "Here came dire portents over the land of the
Northumbrians, and miserably terrified the people; these
were tremendous whirlwinds, and lightning-strokes; and
fiery dragons were seen flying in the air. Upon these
tokens quickly followed a great famine:--and a little
thereafter, in that same year, on January 8, pitifully did
the invasion of heathen men devastate God's church in
Lindisfarne Island, with plundering and manslaughter. And
Sicga died on Feb. 22."
806. "Her se mona athystrode on Kl. Septemb. and Eardwulf
Northhymbra cyning wæs of his rice adrifen . and Eanberht
Hagestaldes biscop forthferde."
806. "Here the moon eclipsed on Sept. 1; and Eardwulf, king
of the Northumbrians, was driven from his realm: and
Eanberht, bishop of Hexham, died."
In these few selections the orthography shows occasional relics of the
northern dialect; and an expression here and there, such as "Ceaster"
for York, indicates the writer's locality. Apart, however, from such
traces, the contents and the domestic interest would sufficiently
declare the home of these annals. They are specimens of the vernacular
annals of the north, which are now best seen in bulk in Simeon of
Durham's Latin Chronicle.
Our next example will serve to illustrate the free writing of an
original continuation. It is taken from the Winchester Chronicle (A).
This Chronicle exhibits, in the annals of 893-897, the first
considerable piece of original historical composition that we have in
the vernacular. Indeed, we may say that these pages, on the whole,
contain the finest effort of early prose writing that we possess. The
quotation relates how Alfred set to work to construct a navy:--
Thy ilcan geare drehton tha hergas on East Englum and on
Northhymbrum West Seaxna lond swithe be thæm suth stæthe .
mid stæl hergum . ealra swithust mid thæm æscum the hie
fela geara ær timbredon. Tha het Alfred cyng timbran lang
scipu ongen tha æscas[104] . tha wæron fulneah tu swa lange
swa tha othru . sume hæfdon lx ara . sume ma. Tha wæron
ægther ge swiftran ge unwealtran . ge eac hieran thonne tha
othru. Næron nawther ne on Fresisc gescæpene . ne on Denisc
. bute swa him selfum thuhte thæt hie nytwyrthoste beon
meahten.
That same year the armies in East Anglia and in
Northhymbria distressed the land of the West Saxons very
much about the south coast with marauding invasions; most
of all with the "æscas" that they had built many years
before. Then king Alfred gave orders to build long ships
against the "æscas;" those were well-nigh twice as long as
the others; some had 60 oars, some more. Those were both
swifter and steadier, and also higher than the others. They
were not shaped either on the Frisic or on the Danish
model, but as he himself considered that they might be most
serviceable.
The most extensive original continuations are in the Peterborough
Chronicle (E). From one of these I quote the character of the Conqueror,
which accompanies the record of his death in 1086. The passage is
remarkable as containing the nearest approach to a discovery of
authorship that anywhere occurs in these Chronicles:--
Gif hwa gewilnigeth to gewitane hu gedon mann he wæs .
oththe hwilcne wurthscipe he hæfde . oththe hu fela lande
he wære hlaford . Thonne wille we be him awritan swa swa we
hine ageaton . the him onlocodan . and othre hwile on his
hirede wunedon. Se cyng Willelm the we embe specath wæs
swithe wis man . and swithe rice . and wurthfulre and
strengere thonne ænig his foregengra wære . He wæs milde
tham godum mannum the God lufedon . and ofer eall gemett
stearc tham mannum the withcwædon his willan . On tham
ilcan steode the God him geuthe thæt he moste Engleland
gegan . he arerde mære mynster . and munecas thær gesætte .
and hit wæll gegodade . On his dagan wæs thæt mære mynster
on Cantwarbyrig getymbrad . and eac swithe manig other ofer
eall Englaland . Eac this land wæs swithe afylled mid
munecan . and tha leofodan heora lif æfter sc̃s Benedictus
regule . and se Cristendom wæs swilc on his dæge thæt ælc
man hwæt his hade to belumpe . folgade se the wolde. Eac he
wæs swythe wurthful . thriwa he bær his cyne helm ælce
geare . swa oft swa he wæs on Englelande . on Eastron he
hine bær on Winceastre . on Pentecosten on Westmynstre . on
mide wintre on Gleaweceastre . And thænne wæron mid him
ealle tha rice men ofer call Englaland . arcebiscopas . and
leodbiscopas . abbodas and eorlas . thegnas and cnihtas .
Swilce he wæs eac swythe stearc man and ræthe . swa thæt
man ne dorste nan thing ongean his willan don . He hæfde
eorlas on his bendum the dydan ongean his willan. Biscopas
he sætte of heora biscoprice . and abbodas of heora
abbodrice . and thægnas on cweartern . and æt nextan he ne
sparode his agenne brothor Odo het . he wæs swithe rice
biscop on Normandige . on Baius wæs his biscopstol . and
wæs manna fyrmest to eacan tham cynge.
If any one wishes to know what manner of man he was, or
what dignity he had, or how many lands he was lord of; then
will we write of him as we apprehended him, who were wont
to behold him, and at one time were resident at his court.
The king William about whom we speak was a very wise man,
and very powerful; and more dignified and more
authoritative than any one of his predecessors was. He was
gentle to those good men who loved God; and beyond all
description stern to those men who contradicted his will.
On that selfsame spot where God granted him that he might
conquer England, he reared a noble monastery, and monks he
there enstalled, and well endowed the place. In his days
was the splendid minster in Canterbury built, and also a
great many others over all England. Also this land was
abundantly supplied with monks; and they lived their life
after St. Benedict's rule; and the state of Christianity
was such in his time, that each man who was so disposed
might follow that which appertained to his order. Likewise
he was very ceremonious:--three times he wore his crown
every year (as often as he was in England); at Easter he
wore it in Winchester, at Pentecost in Westminster, at
Christmas in Gloucester. And then there were with him all
the mighty men over all England; archbishops and suffragan
bishops, abbots and earls, thanes and knights. Withal he
was moreover a very severe man and a violent; so that any
one dared not to do anything against his will. He had earls
in his chains who acted against his will. Bishops he put
out of their bishoprick, and abbots from their abbacy, and
thanes into prison; and at last he spared not his own
brother, who was named Odo; who was a very mighty bishop in
Normandy; at Baieux was his see, and he was the first of
men next to the king.
These annals being all anonymous, every indication of the date of
writing excites interest. Under 643 the chronicler of B added a single
word to what he had before him (as we may presume) in his copy. That
copy said that the church at Winchester was built by order of King
Cenwalh. The chronicler of B says that the "old" church was built by
Cenwalh. This harmonises excellently with other indications of this
Chronicle, by which it is made probable that it was compiled in or about
977, when Bishop Æthelwold had built a new church at Winchester.
In the Peterborough Chronicle, under 1041, the accession of Eadward is
accompanied by a benediction which indicates that the writer wrote near
the time, or at least before 1065. He says:--Healde tha hwile the him
God unne = May he continue so long as God may be pleased to grant to
him! And the half legible closing sentence of this Chronicle, in 1154,
is a prayer of the same kind for a new abbot of Peterborough, of whom it
is said that "he hath made a fair beginning."
The Saxon Chronicles offer one of the best examples of history which has
grown proximately near to the events, of history written while the
impression made by the events was still fresh. It would be difficult to
point to any texts through which the taste for living history--history
in immediate contact with the events--can better be cultivated.
The Chronicles stretch over a long period of time. As to their contents,
they extend as a body of history from A.D. 449 to 1154--that is,
exclusive of the book-made annals that form a long avenue at the
beginning, and start from Julius Cæsar. The period covered by the age of
the extant manuscripts is hardly less than 300 years, from about A.D.
900 to about A.D. 1200. A large number of hands must have wrought from
time to time at their production, and, as the work is wholly anonymous
and void of all external marks of authorship, the various and several
contributions can only be determined by internal evidence, and this
offers a fine arena for the exercise and culture of the critical
faculty.
It is no small addition to the charm and value of these Chronicles that
they are in the mother tongue at several stages of its growth, and for
the most part in the best Anglo-Saxon diction. We have, moreover, the
very soil of the history under our feet, and this study would tend to
invest our native land with all the charm of classic ground.
The Chronicle form is the foundation of the structure of historical
literature. We are no longer content to study history now in one or two
admirable specimens of mature perfection, but rather we seek to know
history as a subject. All who have this aim must study Chronicles, and
nowhere can this kind of documentary record be found in a form
preferable to that of the Saxon Chronicles.
The Saxon Chronicles are sometimes said to be meagre; indeed, it has
almost become usual to speak of them as meagre. When such a term is
used, it makes all the difference whether it is made vaguely and at
random, or with meaning and discrimination. The Saxon Chronicles stretch
over seven centuries, from the middle of the fifth to the middle of the
twelfth; and it would indeed be wonderful if in such a series of annals
there were not some arid tracts. Certainly, there are meagre places, and
it makes all the difference whether a writer uses this epithet wisely or
as a mere echo. In the following quotation it is justly used:--"For the
history of England in the latter half of the tenth century we have,
except the very meagre notices of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, no
contemporary materials, unless we admit the Lives of the Saints of the
Benedictine revival."[105] In the latter half of the tenth century the
Chronicles really are meagre, and it is a remarkable fact, seeing that
the period was one of revived literary activity.
This account of the Chronicles would be incomplete without the mention
of a small number of Latin histories which are naturally linked with
them. The Latin book of most mark in this connexion is Asser's "Life of
Alfred"--a book that has long lain under a cloud of doubt, from which,
however, it seems to be gradually emerging. (A foolish interpolation
about Oxford which marred the second edition--that by Camden--has left a
stigma on the name.) It is not easy to answer all the adverse criticism
of Mr. T. Wright; but still I venture to think that the internal
evidence corresponds to the author's name, that it was written at the
time of, and by such a person as, Alfred's Welsh bishop. The evident
acquaintance with people and with localities, the bits of Welsh, the
calling of the English uniformly "Saxons," all mark the Welshman who was
at home in England. In the course of this biography, which seems to have
been left in an unfinished state, there is a considerable extract from
the Winchester Chronicles translated into Latin.
But the earliest Latin Chronicle which was founded on the Saxon
Chronicles is that of Æthelweard. He is apparently the "ealdorman
Æthelwerd," to whom Ælfric addressed certain of his works; and he may
be the "Æthelwerd Dux" who signs charters, 976-998. His Chronicle closes
with the last year of Eadgar's reign. He took much of his material from
a Saxon Chronicle, like that of Winchester, but he has also matter
peculiar to himself; and this raises a question whether he took such
matter from a Saxon Chronicle now lost. He is grandiloquent and turgid
to an extent which often obscures his meaning. In him we perceive all
the word-eloquence of Saxon poetry, striving to utter itself through the
medium of a Latinity at once crude and ambitious.[106]
The Chronicle of Florence of Worcester terminates with 1117; but a
continuator carried it on to 1141, making use of the Peterborough
Chronicle (E). The work of Florence is often identifiable with the Saxon
Chronicles, especially with that of Worcester (D). But he has good
original insertions of his own, as in his description of the election
and coronation of Harold, on which Mr. Freeman has dwelt, as a record
intended to correct Norman misrepresentation.
Simeon of Durham made large use of Florence, and he incorporated the
Northumbrian eighth-century Chronicle, of which a specimen has been
given above.
Henry of Huntingdon closed his annals at the same date as the latest of
the Saxon Chronicles, A.D. 1154. He is a historian of secondary
rank, with antiquarian tastes, a fondness for the Saxon Chronicles, and
a special fancy for the genealogies and the ballads. To him we owe the
earliest known mention of Stonehenge.
All these, except Asser and Æthelweard, are, as regards our Chronicles,
subsequent and derivative rather than collateral. They used the
chronicles as translators and compilers merely. The first who attempted
something more was William of Malmesbury. This remarkable writer (who in
1140 came near to being elected Abbot of Malmesbury) was the first after
Beda who left the annal form, and aimed at a more comprehensive
treatment of the national history. He recognised the value of traditions
from the Saxon times, which in his day were still to be gathered, and it
is by the incorporation of such elements that his book has in some
respects the character of a supplement to the Saxon Chronicles.
We cannot but be struck with the isolation of the Saxon Chronicles.
Great literary products do not grow up alone; but they have, doubtless,
a tendency to create a solitude around them. Professor Stubbs apprehends
such may have been the case with these Chronicles. He has surmised that
probably the Chronicles had the same effect upon the previous schemes of
history that Higden's "Polychronicon" had in the fourteenth century,
that is to say, it would have prevented the writing of new histories,
and caused the neglect or destruction of the old.[107]
FOOTNOTES:
[103] Lappenberg, "Geschichte," Introduction, p. xlviii.; referring to
Hickes' "Thesaurus," iii., 288; and the preface to Smith's edition of
Bede. That lover of English history, Dr. Reinhold Pauli, in the
Göttingen "Gelehrt. Anzeig." for 1866, p. 1407, suggested that the whole
mediæval institution of annal-writing came from Northumbria, and was
carried on the mission-path of the Saxons into Frankland and Germany,
and there produced the fine Carlovingian series.
[104] The "æscas" were the light and speedy galleys of the Danes.
[105] Professor Stubbs, "Memorials of Saint Dunstan," Rolls Series, p.
ix.
[106] Reinhold Pauli, "Life of Alfred," anno 877, note.
[107] Preface to "Chronica Rogeri de Hoveden," Rolls Series, p. xi.