The variations of
importance
(exclusive of many in the spelling)
are set down below [2].
are set down below [2].
Thomas Chatterton - Rowley Poems
Stockings were not knitted in the fifteenth century (_AElla_).
MSS.
are referred to as if they were rarities and printed books common.
11. Metres and imitation of Pindar absurdly modern.
12. Mistakes cited which are derived from modern dictionaries
(Tyrwhitt).
13. Existence of undoubted plagiarisms from Shakespeare, Gray, &c.
_For Rowley_.
1. Chatterton's assertion that they were Rowley's, his sister having
represented him as a 'lover of truth from the earliest dawn of
reason. '
2. Catcott's assertion that Chatterton on their first acquaintance had
mentioned by name almost all the poems which have since appeared in
print (Bryant).
3. Smith had seen parchments in the possession of Chatterton, some as
broad as the bottom of a large-sized chair. (Bryant. )
4. Even Mr. Clayfield and Rudhall believed Chatterton incapable of
composing Rowley's poems.
5. Undoubtedly there were ancient MSS. in the 'cofre'.
6. Chatterton would never have had time to write so much. He did not
neglect his work in the attorney's office and he read enormously.
7. Chatterton made many mistakes in his transcription of Rowley and in
his notes to the poems. (Bryant's main contention. )
8. If Leland never mentioned Rowley it is equally true he says nothing
of Canynge, Lydgate, or Occleve.
_For Rowley_.
1. The poems contain much historical allusion at once true and
inaccessible to Chatterton.
2. The admitted poems are much below the standard of Rowley.
3. The old octave stanza is not far removed from the usual stanza of
Rowley.
4. If Rowley's language differs from that of other fifteenth
century writers, the difference lies in provincialisms natural to an
inhabitant of Bristol.
5. Plagiarisms from modern authors may in some cases have been
introduced by Chatterton but in others they are the commonplaces of
poetry.
_Against Rowley_.
1. No writings or chest deposited in Redcliffe Church are mentioned in
Canynge's Will.
2. The Bristol library was in Chatterton's time of general access, and
Chatterton was introduced to it by Rev. A. Catcott (Warton).
3. Facts about Canynge may be found in his epitaph in Redcliffe
Church; and the account of Redcliffe steeple--(which had been
destroyed by fire before Chatterton's time) came from the bottom of an
old print published in 1746.
4. The parchments were taken from the bottom of old deeds where a
small blank space was usually left--hence their small size.
POEMS,
SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN WRITTEN AT BRISTOL,
BY THOMAS ROWLEY, AND OTHERS, IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.
POEMS,
SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN WRITTEN AT BRISTOL, BY THOMAS ROWLEY,
AND OTHERS, IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. THE THIRD EDITION; TO
WHICH IS ADDED AN APPENDIX, CONTAINING SOME OBSERVATIONS UPON
THE LANGUAGE OF THESE POEMS; TENDING TO PROVE, THAT THEY WERE
WRITTEN, NOT BY ANY ANCIENT AUTHOR, BUT ENTIRELY BY THOMAS
CHATTERTON.
THE CONTENTS OF THIS VOLUME.
The Preface
Introductory Account of the Several Pieces
Advertisement
Eclogue the First
Eclogue the Second
Eclogue the Third
Elinoure and Juga
Verses to Lydgate
Songe to AElla
Lydgate's Answer
The Tournament
The Dethe of Syr Charles Bawdin
Epistle to Mastre Canynge on AElla
Letter to the dygne M. Canynge
Entroductionne
AElla; a Tragycal Enterlude
Goddwyn; a Tragedie. (A Fragment. )
Englysh Metamorphosis, B. I.
Balade of Charitie
Battle of Hastings, No. 1.
Battle of Hastings, No. 2.
Onn oure Ladies Chyrche
On the same
Epitaph on Robert Canynge
The Storie of William Canynge
On Happienesse, by William Canynge
Onn Johne a Dalbenie, by the same
The Gouler's Requiem, by the same
The Accounte of W. Canynge's Feast
GLOSSARY
PREFACE.
The Poems, which make the principal part of this Collection, have
for some time excited much curiosity, as the supposed productions of
THOMAS ROWLEY, a priest of Bristol, in the reigns of Henry VI. and
Edward IV. They are here faithfully printed from the most authentic
MSS that could be procured; of which a particular description is given
in the _Introductory account of the several pieces contained in this
volume_, subjoined to this Preface. Nothing more therefore seems
necessary at present, than to inform the Reader shortly of the manner
in which these Poems were first brought to light, and of the authority
upon which they are ascribed to the persons whose names they bear.
This cannot be done so satisfactorily as in the words of Mr. George
Catcott of Bristol, to whose very laudable zeal the Publick is
indebted for the most considerable part of the following collection.
His account of the matter is this: "The first discovery of certain MSS
having been deposited in Redclift church, above three centuries ago,
was made in the year 1768, at the time of opening the new bridge at
Bristol, and was owing to a publication in _Farley's Weekly Journal_,
1 October 1768, containing an _Account of the ceremonies observed at
the opening of the old bridge_, taken, as it was said, from a very
antient MS. This excited the curiosity of some persons to enquire
after the original. The printer, Mr. Farley, could give no account of
it, or of the person who brought the copy; but after much enquiry
it was discovered, that the person who brought the copy was a youth,
between 15 and 16 years of age, whose name was Thomas Chatterton, and
whose family had been sextons of Redclift church for near 150 years.
His father, who was now dead, had also been master of the free-school
in Pile-street. The young man was at first very unwilling to discover
from whence he had the original; but, after many promises made to him,
he was at last prevailed on to acknowledge, that he had received this,
_together with many other MSS_, from his father, who had found them
in a large chest in an upper room over the chapel on the north side of
Redclift church. "
Soon after this Mr. Catcott commenced his acquaintance with young
Chatterton[1], and, partly as presents partly as purchases, procured
from him copies of many of his MSS. in in prose and verse. Other
copies were disposed of, in the same way, to Mr. William Barrett, an
eminent surgeon at Bristol, who has long been engaged in writing
the history of that city. Mr. Barrett also procured from him several
fragments, some of a considerable length, written upon vellum[2],
which he asserted to be part of his original MSS. In short, in the
space of about eighteen months, from October 1768 to April 1770,
besides the Poems now published, he produced as many compositions,
in prose and verse, under the names of Rowley, Canynge, &c. as would
nearly fill such another volume.
In April 1770 Chatterton went to London, and died there in the August
following; so that the whole history of this very extraordinary
transaction cannot now probably be known with any certainty. Whatever
may have been his part in it; whether he was the author, or only
the copier (as he constantly asserted) of all these productions; he
appears to have kept the secret entirely to himself, and not to have
put it in the power of any other person, to bear certain testimony
either to his fraud or to his veracity.
The question therefore concerning the authenticity of these Poems must
now be decided by an examination of the fragments upon vellum, which
Mr. Barrett received from Chatterton as part of his original MSS. ,
and by the internal evidence which the several pieces afford. If the
Fragments shall be judged to be genuine, it will still remain to be
determined, how far their genuineness should serve to authenticate the
rest of the collection, of which no copies, older than those made by
Chatterton, have ever been produced. On the other hand, if the writing
of the Fragments shall be judged to be counterfeit and forged by
Chatterton, it will not of necessity follow, that the matter of
them was also forged by him, and still less, that all the other
compositions, which he professed to have copied from antient MSS. ,
were merely inventions of his own. In either case, the decision must
finally depend upon the internal evidence.
It may be expected perhaps, that the Editor should give an opinion
upon this important question; but he rather chooses, for many reasons,
to leave it to the determination of the unprejudiced and intelligent
Reader. He had long been desirous that these Poems should be printed;
and therefore readily undertook the charge of superintending the
edition. This he has executed in the manner, which seemed to him best
suited to such a publication; and here he means that his task should
end. Whether the Poems be really antient, or modern; the compositions
of Rowley, or the forgeries of Chatterton; they must always be
considered as a most singular literary curiosity.
[Footnote 1: The history of this youth is so intimately connected with
that of the poems now published, that the Reader cannot be too early
apprized of the principal circumstances of his short life. He was born
on the 20th of November 1752, and educated at a charity-school on St.
Augustin's Back, where nothing more was taught than reading, writing,
and accounts. At the age of fourteen, he was articled clerk to an
attorney, with whom he continued till he left Bristol in April 1770.
Though his education was thus confined, he discovered an early turn
towards poetry and English antiquities, particularly heraldry. How
soon he began to be an author is not known. In the _Town and Country
Magazine_ for March 1769, are two letters, probably, from him, as they
are dated at Bristol, and subscribed with his usual signature, D. B.
The first contains short extracts from two MSS. , "_written three
hundred years ago by one Rowley, a Monk_" concerning dress in the age
of Henry II; the other, "ETHELGAR, _a Saxon poem_" in bombast prose.
In the same Magazine for May 1769, are three communications from
Bristol, with the same signature, D. B. _viz_. CERDICK, _translated
from the Saxon_ (in the same style with ETHELGAR), p.
233. --_Observations upon Saxon heraldry_, with drawings of _Saxon
atchievements_, &c. p. 245. --ELINOURE and JUGA, _written three hundred
years ago by_ T. ROWLEY, _a secular priest_, p. 273. This last poem is
reprinted in this volume, p. 19. In the subsequent months of 1769 and
1770 there are several other pieces in the same Magazine, which are
undoubtedly of his composition.
In April 1770, he left Bristol and came to London, in hopes of
advancing his fortune by his talents for writing, of which, by this
time, he had conceived a very high opinion. In the prosecution of this
scheme, he appears to have almost entirely depended upon the patronage
of a set of gentlemen, whom an eminent author long ago pointed out, as
_not the very worst judges or rewarders of merit_, the booksellers of
this great city. At his first arrival indeed he was so unlucky as to
find two of his expected Maecenases, the one in the King's Bench, and
the other in Newgate. But this little disappointment was alleviated
by the encouragement which he received from other quarters; and on the
14th of May he writes to his mother, in high spirits upon the change
in his situation, with the following sarcastic reflection upon his
former patrons at Bristol. "_As to Mr. ----, Mr. ----, Mr. ----, &c. &c.
they rate literary lumber so low, that I believe an author, in their
estimation, must be poor indeed! But here matters are otherwise. Had_
Rowley _been a_ Londoner _instead of a_ Bristowyan, _I could have
lived by_ copying _his works_. "
In a letter to his sister, dated 30 May, he informs her, that he is to
be employed "_in writing a voluminous history of_ London, _to appear
in numbers the beginning of next winter_. " In the mean time, he had
written something in praise of the Lord Mayor (Beckford), which had
procured him the honour of being presented to his lordship. In the
letter just mentioned he gives the following account of his reception,
with some curious observations upon political writing: "The Lord
Mayor received me as politely as a citizen could. But the devil of
the matter is, there is no money to be got of this side of the
question. --But he is a poor author who cannot write on both
sides. --Essays on the patriotic side will fetch no more than what
the copy is sold for. As the patriots themselves are searching for a
place, they have no gratuity to spare. --On the other hand, unpopular
essays will not even be accepted; and you must pay to have them
printed: but then you seldom lose by it, as courtiers are so sensible
of their deficiency in merit, that they generously reward all who know
how to dawb them with the appearance of it. "
Notwithstanding his employment on the History of London, he continued
to write incessantly in various periodical publications. On the 11th
of July he tells his sister that he had pieces last month in the
_Gospel Magazine_; the _Town and Country, viz. _ Maria Friendless;
False Step; Hunter of Oddities; To Miss Bush, &c. _Court and City;
London; Political Register &c. _ But all these exertions of his
genius brought in so little profit, that he was soon reduced to real
indigence; from which he was relieved by death (in what manner is not
certainly known), on the 24th of August, or thereabout, when he wanted
near three months to complete his eighteenth year. The floor of his
chamber was covered with written papers, which he had torn into small
pieces; but there was no appearance (as the Editor has been credibly
informed) of any writings on parchment or vellum. ]
[Footnote 2: One of these fragments, by Mr. Barrett's permission, has
been copied in the manner of a _Fac simile_, by that ingenious artist
Mr. Strutt, and an engraving of it is inserted at p. 288. Two other
small fragments of Poetry are printed in p. 277, 8, 9. See the
_Introductory Account_. The fragments in prose, which are considerably
larger, Mr. Barrett intends to publish in his History of Bristol,
which, the Editor has the satisfaction to inform the Publick, is
very far advanced. In the same work will be inserted _A Discorse on
Bristowe_, and the other historical pieces in prose, which Chatterton
at different times delivered out, as copied from Rowley's MSS. ; with
such remarks by Mr. Barrett, as he of all men living is best qualified
to make, from his accurate researches into the Antiquities of
Bristol. ]
INTRODUCTORY ACCOUNT
OF THE
SEVERAL PIECES
CONTAINED IN THIS VOLUME.
ECLOGUE THE FIRST. p. 1
ECLOGUE THE SECOND. 6
ECLOGUE THE THIRD. 12
These three Eclogues are printed from a MS. furnished by Mr. Catcott,
in the hand-writing of Thomas Chatterton. It is a thin copy-book in
4to. with the following title in the first page. "_Eclogues and other
Poems by_ Thomas Rowley, _with a Glossary and Annotations by_ Thomas
Chatterton. "
There is only one other Poem in this book, viz. the fragment of
"_Goddwyn, a Tragedie_," which see below, p. 173.
ELINOURE AND JUGA.
This Poem is reprinted from the _Town and Country Magazine_ for May
1769, p. 273. It is there entitled, "_Elinoure and Juga. Written three
hundred years ago by T. Rowley, a secular priest_. " And it has the
following subscription; "D. B. Bristol, May, 1769. " Chatterton soon
after told Mr. Catcott, that he (Chatterton) inserted it in the
Magazine.
The present Editor has taken the liberty to supply [between books][1]
the names of the speakers, at ver. 22 and 29, which had probably been
omitted by some accident in the first publication; as the nature of
the composition seems to require, that the dialogue should proceed by
alternate stanzas.
VERSES TO LYDGATE. p. 23
SONGE TO AELLA. Ibid.
LYDGATE'S ANSWER. 26
These three small Poems are printed from a copy in Mr. Catcott's
hand-writing. Since they were printed off, the Editor has had an
opportunity of comparing them with a copy made by Mr. Barrett from the
piece of vellum, which Chatterton formerly gave to him as the original
MS.
The variations of importance (exclusive of many in the spelling)
are set down below [2].
[Footnote 1: Misspelled as hooks in the original. --PG editor]
[Footnote 2: _Verses to Lydgate_.
In the title for _Ladgate_, r. _Lydgate_.
ver. 2. r. _Thatt I and thee_.
3. for _bee_, r. _goe_.
7. for _fyghte_, r. _wryte_. ]
THE TOURNAMENT. p. 28
This Poem is printed from a copy made by Mr. Catcott, from one in
Chatterton's hand-writing.
_Songe to AElla_.
The title in the vellum MS. was simply "_Songe toe AElle_," with a
small mark of reference to a note below, containing the following
words--"_Lorde of the castelle of Brystowe ynne daies of yore_. "
It may be proper also to take notice, that the whole song was there
written like prose, without any breaks, or divisions into verses.
ver. 6. for _brastynge_, r. _burslynge_.
11. for _valyante_, r. _burlie_.
23. for _dysmall_, r. _honore_.
_Lydgate's answer_.
No title in the vellum MS.
ver. 3. for _varses_, r. _pene_.
antep. for _Lendes_, r. _Sendes_.
ult. for _lyne_, r. _thynge_.
Mr. Barrett had also a copy of these Poems by Chatterton, which
differed from that, which Chatterton afterwards produced as the
original, in the following particulars, among others.
In the title of the _Verses to Lydgate_.
Orig. _Lydgate_ Chat. _Ladgate_.
ver. 3. Orig, _goe_. Chat. _doe_.
7. Orig. _wryte_. Chat. _fyghte_.
_Songe to AElla_. ver. 5. Orig. _Dacyane_. Chat. _Dacya's_.
Orig. _whose lockes_ Chat. _whose hayres_.
11. Orig. _burlie_. Chat. _bronded_.
22. Orig. _kennst_. Chat. _hearst_.
23. Orig. _honore_. Chat. _dysmall_.
26. Orig. _Yprauncynge_ Chat. _Ifrayning_,
30. Orig. _gloue_. Chat. _glare_.
Sir Simon de Bourton, the hero of this poem, is supposed to have been
the first founder of a church dedicated to _oure Ladie_, in the place
where the church of St. Mary Ratcliffe now stands. Mr. Barrett has a
small leaf of vellum (given to him by Chatterton as one of Rowley's
original MSS. ), entitled, "_Vita de Simon de Bourton_," in which
Sir Simon is said, as in the poem, to have begun his foundation in
consequence of a vow made at a tournament.
THE DETHE OF SYR CHARLES BAWDIN. p. 44
This Poem is reprinted from the copy printed at London in 1772, with
a few corrections from a copy made by Mr. Catcott, from one in
Chatterton's hand-writing.
The person here celebrated, under the name of _Syr Charles Bawdin_,
was probably _Sir Baldewyn Fulford_, Knt. a zealous Lancastrian, who
was executed at Bristol in the latter end of 1461, the first year of
Edward the Fourth. He was attainted, with many others, in the general
act of Attainder, 1 Edw. IV. but he seems to have been executed under
a special commission for the trial of treasons, &c. within the town of
Bristol. The fragment of the old chronicle, published by Hearne at the
end of _Sprotti Chronica_, p. 289, says only; "Item _the same yere_ (1
Edw. IV. ) _was takin Sir Baldewine Fulford and behedid att Bristow_. "
But the matter is more fully stated in the act which passed in 7 Edw.
IV. for the restitution in blood and estate of Thomas Fulford, Knt.
eldest son of Baldewyn Fulford, late of Fulford, in the county of
Devonshire, Knt. _Rot. Pat. _ 8 Edw. IV. p. 1, m. 13. The preamble of
this act, after stating the attainder by the act 1 Edw. IV. goes on
thus: "And also the said Baldewyn, the said first yere of your noble
reign, at Bristowe in the shere of Bristowe, before Henry Erle of
Essex William Hastyngs of Hastyngs Knt. Richard Chock William Canyng
Maire of the said towne of Bristowe and Thomas Yong, by force of your
letters patentes to theym and other directe to here and determine all
treesons &c. doon withyn the said towne of Bristowe before the vth day
of September the first yere of your said reign, was atteynt of dyvers
tresons by him doon ayenst your Highnes &c. " If the commission sate
soon after the vth of September, as is most probable, King Edward
might very possibly be at Bristol at the time of Sir Baldewyn's
execution; for, in the interval between his coronation and the
parliament which met in November, he made a progress (as the
Continuator of Stowe informs us, p. 416. ) by the South coast into
the West, and was (among other places) at Bristol. Indeed there is a
circumstance which might lead us to believe, that he was actually a
spectator of the execution from the minster-window, as described in
the poem. In an old accompt of the Procurators of St. Ewin's church,
which was then the minster, from xx March in the 1 Edward IV. to 1
April in the year next ensuing, is the following article, according to
a copy made by Mr. Catcott from the original book.
Item _for washynge the church payven ageyns } iiij d. ob.
Kynge Edward 4th is comynge. _ }
AELLA, a tragycal enterlude. p. 65
This Poem, with the _Epistle, Letter_, and _Entroductionne_, is
printed from a folio MS. furnished by Mr. Catcott, in the beginning
of which he has written, "Chatterton's transcript. 1769. " The whole
transcript is of Chatterton's hand-writing.
GODDWYN, a Tragedie. p. 173
This Fragment is printed from the MS. mentioned above, p. xv. in
Chatterton's hand-writing.
ENGLYSH METAMORPHOSIS. p. 196
This Poem is printed from a single sheet in Chatterton's hand-writing,
communicated by Mr. Barrett, who received it from Chatterton.
BALADE OF CHARITIE. p. 203
This Poem is also printed from a single sheet in Chatterton's
hand-writing. It was sent to the Printer of the _Town and Country
Magazine_, with the following letter prefixed:
"To the Printer of the Town and Country Magazine.
SIR,
If the Glossary annexed to the following piece will make the language
intelligible; the Sentiment, Description, and Versification, are
highly deserving the attention of the literati.
July 4, 1770. D. B. "
BATTLE OF HASTINGS, No. 1. p. 210
BATTLE OF HASTINGS, No. 2. 237
In printing the first of these poems two copies have been made use of,
both taken from copies of Chatterton's hand-writing, the one by
Mr. Catcott, and the other by Mr. Barrett. The principal difference
between them is at the end, where the latter has fourteen lines from
ver. 550, which are wanting in the former. The second poem is printed
from a single copy, made by Mr. Barrett from one in Chatterton's
hand-writing.
It should be observed, that the Poem marked No. 1, was given to Mr.
Barrett by Chatterton with the following title; "_Battle of Hastings,
wrote by Turgot the Monk, a Saxon, in the tenth century, and
translated by Thomas Rowlie, parish preeste of St. Johns in the city
of Bristol, in the year 1465. --The remainder of the poem I have
not been happy enough to meet with. _" Being afterwards prest by Mr.
Barrett to produce any part of this poem in the original hand-writing,
he at last said, that he wrote this poem himself for a friend; but
that he had another, the copy of an original by Rowley: and being then
desired to produce that other poem, he, after a considerable interval
of time, brought to Mr. Barrett the poem marked No. 2, as far as ver.
530 incl. with the following title; "_Battle of Hastyngs by Turgotus,
translated by Roulie for W. Canynge Esq. _" The lines from ver. 531
incl. were brought some time after, in consequence of Mr. Barrett's
repeated sollicitations for the conclusion of the poem.
ONN OURE LADIES CHYRCHE. p. 275
ON THE SAME. 276
The first of these Poems is printed from a copy made by Mr. Catcott,
from one in Chatterton's hand-writing.
The other is taken from a MS. in Chatterton's hand-writing, furnished
by Mr. Catcott, entitled, "_A Discorse on Bristowe, by Thomas
Rowlie_.
are referred to as if they were rarities and printed books common.
11. Metres and imitation of Pindar absurdly modern.
12. Mistakes cited which are derived from modern dictionaries
(Tyrwhitt).
13. Existence of undoubted plagiarisms from Shakespeare, Gray, &c.
_For Rowley_.
1. Chatterton's assertion that they were Rowley's, his sister having
represented him as a 'lover of truth from the earliest dawn of
reason. '
2. Catcott's assertion that Chatterton on their first acquaintance had
mentioned by name almost all the poems which have since appeared in
print (Bryant).
3. Smith had seen parchments in the possession of Chatterton, some as
broad as the bottom of a large-sized chair. (Bryant. )
4. Even Mr. Clayfield and Rudhall believed Chatterton incapable of
composing Rowley's poems.
5. Undoubtedly there were ancient MSS. in the 'cofre'.
6. Chatterton would never have had time to write so much. He did not
neglect his work in the attorney's office and he read enormously.
7. Chatterton made many mistakes in his transcription of Rowley and in
his notes to the poems. (Bryant's main contention. )
8. If Leland never mentioned Rowley it is equally true he says nothing
of Canynge, Lydgate, or Occleve.
_For Rowley_.
1. The poems contain much historical allusion at once true and
inaccessible to Chatterton.
2. The admitted poems are much below the standard of Rowley.
3. The old octave stanza is not far removed from the usual stanza of
Rowley.
4. If Rowley's language differs from that of other fifteenth
century writers, the difference lies in provincialisms natural to an
inhabitant of Bristol.
5. Plagiarisms from modern authors may in some cases have been
introduced by Chatterton but in others they are the commonplaces of
poetry.
_Against Rowley_.
1. No writings or chest deposited in Redcliffe Church are mentioned in
Canynge's Will.
2. The Bristol library was in Chatterton's time of general access, and
Chatterton was introduced to it by Rev. A. Catcott (Warton).
3. Facts about Canynge may be found in his epitaph in Redcliffe
Church; and the account of Redcliffe steeple--(which had been
destroyed by fire before Chatterton's time) came from the bottom of an
old print published in 1746.
4. The parchments were taken from the bottom of old deeds where a
small blank space was usually left--hence their small size.
POEMS,
SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN WRITTEN AT BRISTOL,
BY THOMAS ROWLEY, AND OTHERS, IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.
POEMS,
SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN WRITTEN AT BRISTOL, BY THOMAS ROWLEY,
AND OTHERS, IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. THE THIRD EDITION; TO
WHICH IS ADDED AN APPENDIX, CONTAINING SOME OBSERVATIONS UPON
THE LANGUAGE OF THESE POEMS; TENDING TO PROVE, THAT THEY WERE
WRITTEN, NOT BY ANY ANCIENT AUTHOR, BUT ENTIRELY BY THOMAS
CHATTERTON.
THE CONTENTS OF THIS VOLUME.
The Preface
Introductory Account of the Several Pieces
Advertisement
Eclogue the First
Eclogue the Second
Eclogue the Third
Elinoure and Juga
Verses to Lydgate
Songe to AElla
Lydgate's Answer
The Tournament
The Dethe of Syr Charles Bawdin
Epistle to Mastre Canynge on AElla
Letter to the dygne M. Canynge
Entroductionne
AElla; a Tragycal Enterlude
Goddwyn; a Tragedie. (A Fragment. )
Englysh Metamorphosis, B. I.
Balade of Charitie
Battle of Hastings, No. 1.
Battle of Hastings, No. 2.
Onn oure Ladies Chyrche
On the same
Epitaph on Robert Canynge
The Storie of William Canynge
On Happienesse, by William Canynge
Onn Johne a Dalbenie, by the same
The Gouler's Requiem, by the same
The Accounte of W. Canynge's Feast
GLOSSARY
PREFACE.
The Poems, which make the principal part of this Collection, have
for some time excited much curiosity, as the supposed productions of
THOMAS ROWLEY, a priest of Bristol, in the reigns of Henry VI. and
Edward IV. They are here faithfully printed from the most authentic
MSS that could be procured; of which a particular description is given
in the _Introductory account of the several pieces contained in this
volume_, subjoined to this Preface. Nothing more therefore seems
necessary at present, than to inform the Reader shortly of the manner
in which these Poems were first brought to light, and of the authority
upon which they are ascribed to the persons whose names they bear.
This cannot be done so satisfactorily as in the words of Mr. George
Catcott of Bristol, to whose very laudable zeal the Publick is
indebted for the most considerable part of the following collection.
His account of the matter is this: "The first discovery of certain MSS
having been deposited in Redclift church, above three centuries ago,
was made in the year 1768, at the time of opening the new bridge at
Bristol, and was owing to a publication in _Farley's Weekly Journal_,
1 October 1768, containing an _Account of the ceremonies observed at
the opening of the old bridge_, taken, as it was said, from a very
antient MS. This excited the curiosity of some persons to enquire
after the original. The printer, Mr. Farley, could give no account of
it, or of the person who brought the copy; but after much enquiry
it was discovered, that the person who brought the copy was a youth,
between 15 and 16 years of age, whose name was Thomas Chatterton, and
whose family had been sextons of Redclift church for near 150 years.
His father, who was now dead, had also been master of the free-school
in Pile-street. The young man was at first very unwilling to discover
from whence he had the original; but, after many promises made to him,
he was at last prevailed on to acknowledge, that he had received this,
_together with many other MSS_, from his father, who had found them
in a large chest in an upper room over the chapel on the north side of
Redclift church. "
Soon after this Mr. Catcott commenced his acquaintance with young
Chatterton[1], and, partly as presents partly as purchases, procured
from him copies of many of his MSS. in in prose and verse. Other
copies were disposed of, in the same way, to Mr. William Barrett, an
eminent surgeon at Bristol, who has long been engaged in writing
the history of that city. Mr. Barrett also procured from him several
fragments, some of a considerable length, written upon vellum[2],
which he asserted to be part of his original MSS. In short, in the
space of about eighteen months, from October 1768 to April 1770,
besides the Poems now published, he produced as many compositions,
in prose and verse, under the names of Rowley, Canynge, &c. as would
nearly fill such another volume.
In April 1770 Chatterton went to London, and died there in the August
following; so that the whole history of this very extraordinary
transaction cannot now probably be known with any certainty. Whatever
may have been his part in it; whether he was the author, or only
the copier (as he constantly asserted) of all these productions; he
appears to have kept the secret entirely to himself, and not to have
put it in the power of any other person, to bear certain testimony
either to his fraud or to his veracity.
The question therefore concerning the authenticity of these Poems must
now be decided by an examination of the fragments upon vellum, which
Mr. Barrett received from Chatterton as part of his original MSS. ,
and by the internal evidence which the several pieces afford. If the
Fragments shall be judged to be genuine, it will still remain to be
determined, how far their genuineness should serve to authenticate the
rest of the collection, of which no copies, older than those made by
Chatterton, have ever been produced. On the other hand, if the writing
of the Fragments shall be judged to be counterfeit and forged by
Chatterton, it will not of necessity follow, that the matter of
them was also forged by him, and still less, that all the other
compositions, which he professed to have copied from antient MSS. ,
were merely inventions of his own. In either case, the decision must
finally depend upon the internal evidence.
It may be expected perhaps, that the Editor should give an opinion
upon this important question; but he rather chooses, for many reasons,
to leave it to the determination of the unprejudiced and intelligent
Reader. He had long been desirous that these Poems should be printed;
and therefore readily undertook the charge of superintending the
edition. This he has executed in the manner, which seemed to him best
suited to such a publication; and here he means that his task should
end. Whether the Poems be really antient, or modern; the compositions
of Rowley, or the forgeries of Chatterton; they must always be
considered as a most singular literary curiosity.
[Footnote 1: The history of this youth is so intimately connected with
that of the poems now published, that the Reader cannot be too early
apprized of the principal circumstances of his short life. He was born
on the 20th of November 1752, and educated at a charity-school on St.
Augustin's Back, where nothing more was taught than reading, writing,
and accounts. At the age of fourteen, he was articled clerk to an
attorney, with whom he continued till he left Bristol in April 1770.
Though his education was thus confined, he discovered an early turn
towards poetry and English antiquities, particularly heraldry. How
soon he began to be an author is not known. In the _Town and Country
Magazine_ for March 1769, are two letters, probably, from him, as they
are dated at Bristol, and subscribed with his usual signature, D. B.
The first contains short extracts from two MSS. , "_written three
hundred years ago by one Rowley, a Monk_" concerning dress in the age
of Henry II; the other, "ETHELGAR, _a Saxon poem_" in bombast prose.
In the same Magazine for May 1769, are three communications from
Bristol, with the same signature, D. B. _viz_. CERDICK, _translated
from the Saxon_ (in the same style with ETHELGAR), p.
233. --_Observations upon Saxon heraldry_, with drawings of _Saxon
atchievements_, &c. p. 245. --ELINOURE and JUGA, _written three hundred
years ago by_ T. ROWLEY, _a secular priest_, p. 273. This last poem is
reprinted in this volume, p. 19. In the subsequent months of 1769 and
1770 there are several other pieces in the same Magazine, which are
undoubtedly of his composition.
In April 1770, he left Bristol and came to London, in hopes of
advancing his fortune by his talents for writing, of which, by this
time, he had conceived a very high opinion. In the prosecution of this
scheme, he appears to have almost entirely depended upon the patronage
of a set of gentlemen, whom an eminent author long ago pointed out, as
_not the very worst judges or rewarders of merit_, the booksellers of
this great city. At his first arrival indeed he was so unlucky as to
find two of his expected Maecenases, the one in the King's Bench, and
the other in Newgate. But this little disappointment was alleviated
by the encouragement which he received from other quarters; and on the
14th of May he writes to his mother, in high spirits upon the change
in his situation, with the following sarcastic reflection upon his
former patrons at Bristol. "_As to Mr. ----, Mr. ----, Mr. ----, &c. &c.
they rate literary lumber so low, that I believe an author, in their
estimation, must be poor indeed! But here matters are otherwise. Had_
Rowley _been a_ Londoner _instead of a_ Bristowyan, _I could have
lived by_ copying _his works_. "
In a letter to his sister, dated 30 May, he informs her, that he is to
be employed "_in writing a voluminous history of_ London, _to appear
in numbers the beginning of next winter_. " In the mean time, he had
written something in praise of the Lord Mayor (Beckford), which had
procured him the honour of being presented to his lordship. In the
letter just mentioned he gives the following account of his reception,
with some curious observations upon political writing: "The Lord
Mayor received me as politely as a citizen could. But the devil of
the matter is, there is no money to be got of this side of the
question. --But he is a poor author who cannot write on both
sides. --Essays on the patriotic side will fetch no more than what
the copy is sold for. As the patriots themselves are searching for a
place, they have no gratuity to spare. --On the other hand, unpopular
essays will not even be accepted; and you must pay to have them
printed: but then you seldom lose by it, as courtiers are so sensible
of their deficiency in merit, that they generously reward all who know
how to dawb them with the appearance of it. "
Notwithstanding his employment on the History of London, he continued
to write incessantly in various periodical publications. On the 11th
of July he tells his sister that he had pieces last month in the
_Gospel Magazine_; the _Town and Country, viz. _ Maria Friendless;
False Step; Hunter of Oddities; To Miss Bush, &c. _Court and City;
London; Political Register &c. _ But all these exertions of his
genius brought in so little profit, that he was soon reduced to real
indigence; from which he was relieved by death (in what manner is not
certainly known), on the 24th of August, or thereabout, when he wanted
near three months to complete his eighteenth year. The floor of his
chamber was covered with written papers, which he had torn into small
pieces; but there was no appearance (as the Editor has been credibly
informed) of any writings on parchment or vellum. ]
[Footnote 2: One of these fragments, by Mr. Barrett's permission, has
been copied in the manner of a _Fac simile_, by that ingenious artist
Mr. Strutt, and an engraving of it is inserted at p. 288. Two other
small fragments of Poetry are printed in p. 277, 8, 9. See the
_Introductory Account_. The fragments in prose, which are considerably
larger, Mr. Barrett intends to publish in his History of Bristol,
which, the Editor has the satisfaction to inform the Publick, is
very far advanced. In the same work will be inserted _A Discorse on
Bristowe_, and the other historical pieces in prose, which Chatterton
at different times delivered out, as copied from Rowley's MSS. ; with
such remarks by Mr. Barrett, as he of all men living is best qualified
to make, from his accurate researches into the Antiquities of
Bristol. ]
INTRODUCTORY ACCOUNT
OF THE
SEVERAL PIECES
CONTAINED IN THIS VOLUME.
ECLOGUE THE FIRST. p. 1
ECLOGUE THE SECOND. 6
ECLOGUE THE THIRD. 12
These three Eclogues are printed from a MS. furnished by Mr. Catcott,
in the hand-writing of Thomas Chatterton. It is a thin copy-book in
4to. with the following title in the first page. "_Eclogues and other
Poems by_ Thomas Rowley, _with a Glossary and Annotations by_ Thomas
Chatterton. "
There is only one other Poem in this book, viz. the fragment of
"_Goddwyn, a Tragedie_," which see below, p. 173.
ELINOURE AND JUGA.
This Poem is reprinted from the _Town and Country Magazine_ for May
1769, p. 273. It is there entitled, "_Elinoure and Juga. Written three
hundred years ago by T. Rowley, a secular priest_. " And it has the
following subscription; "D. B. Bristol, May, 1769. " Chatterton soon
after told Mr. Catcott, that he (Chatterton) inserted it in the
Magazine.
The present Editor has taken the liberty to supply [between books][1]
the names of the speakers, at ver. 22 and 29, which had probably been
omitted by some accident in the first publication; as the nature of
the composition seems to require, that the dialogue should proceed by
alternate stanzas.
VERSES TO LYDGATE. p. 23
SONGE TO AELLA. Ibid.
LYDGATE'S ANSWER. 26
These three small Poems are printed from a copy in Mr. Catcott's
hand-writing. Since they were printed off, the Editor has had an
opportunity of comparing them with a copy made by Mr. Barrett from the
piece of vellum, which Chatterton formerly gave to him as the original
MS.
The variations of importance (exclusive of many in the spelling)
are set down below [2].
[Footnote 1: Misspelled as hooks in the original. --PG editor]
[Footnote 2: _Verses to Lydgate_.
In the title for _Ladgate_, r. _Lydgate_.
ver. 2. r. _Thatt I and thee_.
3. for _bee_, r. _goe_.
7. for _fyghte_, r. _wryte_. ]
THE TOURNAMENT. p. 28
This Poem is printed from a copy made by Mr. Catcott, from one in
Chatterton's hand-writing.
_Songe to AElla_.
The title in the vellum MS. was simply "_Songe toe AElle_," with a
small mark of reference to a note below, containing the following
words--"_Lorde of the castelle of Brystowe ynne daies of yore_. "
It may be proper also to take notice, that the whole song was there
written like prose, without any breaks, or divisions into verses.
ver. 6. for _brastynge_, r. _burslynge_.
11. for _valyante_, r. _burlie_.
23. for _dysmall_, r. _honore_.
_Lydgate's answer_.
No title in the vellum MS.
ver. 3. for _varses_, r. _pene_.
antep. for _Lendes_, r. _Sendes_.
ult. for _lyne_, r. _thynge_.
Mr. Barrett had also a copy of these Poems by Chatterton, which
differed from that, which Chatterton afterwards produced as the
original, in the following particulars, among others.
In the title of the _Verses to Lydgate_.
Orig. _Lydgate_ Chat. _Ladgate_.
ver. 3. Orig, _goe_. Chat. _doe_.
7. Orig. _wryte_. Chat. _fyghte_.
_Songe to AElla_. ver. 5. Orig. _Dacyane_. Chat. _Dacya's_.
Orig. _whose lockes_ Chat. _whose hayres_.
11. Orig. _burlie_. Chat. _bronded_.
22. Orig. _kennst_. Chat. _hearst_.
23. Orig. _honore_. Chat. _dysmall_.
26. Orig. _Yprauncynge_ Chat. _Ifrayning_,
30. Orig. _gloue_. Chat. _glare_.
Sir Simon de Bourton, the hero of this poem, is supposed to have been
the first founder of a church dedicated to _oure Ladie_, in the place
where the church of St. Mary Ratcliffe now stands. Mr. Barrett has a
small leaf of vellum (given to him by Chatterton as one of Rowley's
original MSS. ), entitled, "_Vita de Simon de Bourton_," in which
Sir Simon is said, as in the poem, to have begun his foundation in
consequence of a vow made at a tournament.
THE DETHE OF SYR CHARLES BAWDIN. p. 44
This Poem is reprinted from the copy printed at London in 1772, with
a few corrections from a copy made by Mr. Catcott, from one in
Chatterton's hand-writing.
The person here celebrated, under the name of _Syr Charles Bawdin_,
was probably _Sir Baldewyn Fulford_, Knt. a zealous Lancastrian, who
was executed at Bristol in the latter end of 1461, the first year of
Edward the Fourth. He was attainted, with many others, in the general
act of Attainder, 1 Edw. IV. but he seems to have been executed under
a special commission for the trial of treasons, &c. within the town of
Bristol. The fragment of the old chronicle, published by Hearne at the
end of _Sprotti Chronica_, p. 289, says only; "Item _the same yere_ (1
Edw. IV. ) _was takin Sir Baldewine Fulford and behedid att Bristow_. "
But the matter is more fully stated in the act which passed in 7 Edw.
IV. for the restitution in blood and estate of Thomas Fulford, Knt.
eldest son of Baldewyn Fulford, late of Fulford, in the county of
Devonshire, Knt. _Rot. Pat. _ 8 Edw. IV. p. 1, m. 13. The preamble of
this act, after stating the attainder by the act 1 Edw. IV. goes on
thus: "And also the said Baldewyn, the said first yere of your noble
reign, at Bristowe in the shere of Bristowe, before Henry Erle of
Essex William Hastyngs of Hastyngs Knt. Richard Chock William Canyng
Maire of the said towne of Bristowe and Thomas Yong, by force of your
letters patentes to theym and other directe to here and determine all
treesons &c. doon withyn the said towne of Bristowe before the vth day
of September the first yere of your said reign, was atteynt of dyvers
tresons by him doon ayenst your Highnes &c. " If the commission sate
soon after the vth of September, as is most probable, King Edward
might very possibly be at Bristol at the time of Sir Baldewyn's
execution; for, in the interval between his coronation and the
parliament which met in November, he made a progress (as the
Continuator of Stowe informs us, p. 416. ) by the South coast into
the West, and was (among other places) at Bristol. Indeed there is a
circumstance which might lead us to believe, that he was actually a
spectator of the execution from the minster-window, as described in
the poem. In an old accompt of the Procurators of St. Ewin's church,
which was then the minster, from xx March in the 1 Edward IV. to 1
April in the year next ensuing, is the following article, according to
a copy made by Mr. Catcott from the original book.
Item _for washynge the church payven ageyns } iiij d. ob.
Kynge Edward 4th is comynge. _ }
AELLA, a tragycal enterlude. p. 65
This Poem, with the _Epistle, Letter_, and _Entroductionne_, is
printed from a folio MS. furnished by Mr. Catcott, in the beginning
of which he has written, "Chatterton's transcript. 1769. " The whole
transcript is of Chatterton's hand-writing.
GODDWYN, a Tragedie. p. 173
This Fragment is printed from the MS. mentioned above, p. xv. in
Chatterton's hand-writing.
ENGLYSH METAMORPHOSIS. p. 196
This Poem is printed from a single sheet in Chatterton's hand-writing,
communicated by Mr. Barrett, who received it from Chatterton.
BALADE OF CHARITIE. p. 203
This Poem is also printed from a single sheet in Chatterton's
hand-writing. It was sent to the Printer of the _Town and Country
Magazine_, with the following letter prefixed:
"To the Printer of the Town and Country Magazine.
SIR,
If the Glossary annexed to the following piece will make the language
intelligible; the Sentiment, Description, and Versification, are
highly deserving the attention of the literati.
July 4, 1770. D. B. "
BATTLE OF HASTINGS, No. 1. p. 210
BATTLE OF HASTINGS, No. 2. 237
In printing the first of these poems two copies have been made use of,
both taken from copies of Chatterton's hand-writing, the one by
Mr. Catcott, and the other by Mr. Barrett. The principal difference
between them is at the end, where the latter has fourteen lines from
ver. 550, which are wanting in the former. The second poem is printed
from a single copy, made by Mr. Barrett from one in Chatterton's
hand-writing.
It should be observed, that the Poem marked No. 1, was given to Mr.
Barrett by Chatterton with the following title; "_Battle of Hastings,
wrote by Turgot the Monk, a Saxon, in the tenth century, and
translated by Thomas Rowlie, parish preeste of St. Johns in the city
of Bristol, in the year 1465. --The remainder of the poem I have
not been happy enough to meet with. _" Being afterwards prest by Mr.
Barrett to produce any part of this poem in the original hand-writing,
he at last said, that he wrote this poem himself for a friend; but
that he had another, the copy of an original by Rowley: and being then
desired to produce that other poem, he, after a considerable interval
of time, brought to Mr. Barrett the poem marked No. 2, as far as ver.
530 incl. with the following title; "_Battle of Hastyngs by Turgotus,
translated by Roulie for W. Canynge Esq. _" The lines from ver. 531
incl. were brought some time after, in consequence of Mr. Barrett's
repeated sollicitations for the conclusion of the poem.
ONN OURE LADIES CHYRCHE. p. 275
ON THE SAME. 276
The first of these Poems is printed from a copy made by Mr. Catcott,
from one in Chatterton's hand-writing.
The other is taken from a MS. in Chatterton's hand-writing, furnished
by Mr. Catcott, entitled, "_A Discorse on Bristowe, by Thomas
Rowlie_.
