Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden maonachi Cestrensis; together with the English translations of John Trevisa and of an unknown writer of the fifteenth century.

Capitulum vicesimum nonum.

David. Dauid, of þe lynage [lignage, Cx.] of Iuda, was þe secounde [second, Cx.] kyng of Hebrewes, and regnede fourty ȝere, first seuene ȝere in Hebron [Ebron, Cx.] vppon [apon, γ., passim.] Iuda allone, [al oon, β.] and after ward [Cx. om. ward.] þre and þritty ȝere vppon al Israel. Latinus Silvinus [Siluius, Cx.] þe fifte [fyfth, Cx.] kyng of Latyns regnede fifty ȝere. Þe secounde [second Ixyon king of Corinth regned, Cx.] kynge Ixion of Corinth reignede eiȝte and þritty ȝere. [yeres, Cx.] Andonicus bulde þe citee Ephesus, and Salamon is i-bore. Petrus. [Ysidorus libro 5^o, α., Cx., and γ.] Cartage [is] [α. and Cx.] i-bulde. [Petrus.] [From α. and Cx.] Som wol mene þat Carthedon Tyrius bulde Cartage, and oþere wil [wryte, Cx.] mene þat his douȝter Dido [buylded it, Cx.] bulde þat citee Carthage. ℞. But [bote, γ., passim.] ȝif þere were but

þre skore [score, Cx.] [yere] [From Cx.] and ten bytwene þe bildynge [buldinge, β., passim.] of Cartage and of Rome, as Trogus and Papias telleþ, [acorden, Cx.] þanne it semeþ þat Cartage was i-bulde aboute þe firste ȝere of Ozias, kyng of Iuda, as it is i-seide in þe firste book, of þe prouince of Affrica, capitulo Numidia. Gaufridus et Alfridus. Mempricius [Menpricius the fifth, Cx.] þe fifte kyng of Britouns reignede twenty ȝere, þis [þes, γ., ut passim.] cleped his broþer [Maulus] [From γ.] for acorde, and slow [slough, Cx.] hym stan deed, [Cx. om. stan deed.] and took þe kyngdom wiþ strengþe, and vsed tyrauntise [used tyrannye, Cx.; tirauntre, β.] in þe peple, and gat [bigate, Cx.] on his wif a noble ȝonge man þat [called, Cx., ut passim.] heet Eb|ranctus, [Ebrancus, Cx.] and forsook his wyf at þe laste, and vsede [uside, β., passim.] sodomye [zodomye, Cx.] as a schrewe schulde, but at þe last at hontynge he [he] γ. has α, ut passim.] was i-ete [eten of, Cx. and β.] wiþ wolues. David þe kyng deide þe nyne and twenty day of Decembre at þe tour of Syon in Ierusalem, [Iherusalem, ut sæpe, Cx.] and was i-buried þere wiþ grete richesse, [of þe whiche richesse] [From α. and Cx.] afterward Hircanus þe bisshop ȝaf Anthiochus, [Antiochus, Cx.] Demetrius his sone, þre þowsand talentis for to goo from Ierusalem. Trevisa. A talent is agrete wiȝte, [weyght, Cx.] and þere beeþ [be, Cx., ut semper; buþ, γ.] þre manere talentes; þe leste is of fifty pound, þe myddel of þre score [lx score pound, Cx., a mis|take.] pound and twelue, þe moste of an hondred pounde and twenty. Sequitur

[in] [From α., β., Cx., and γ.] historia. Þis Dauid while he hadde pees [pes, γ.] made songes and ympnes, som of þre metres and som of fyue, and made also organs of dyuerse manere and oþere instrumentis of musik, in whiche [whuch, γ.] þe dekenes schulde seie [say, Cx.; segge, γ.] ympnes and songes, and foure men maistres ouer oþere, Eman in þe myddel, Asaph in þe riȝt side, Ethan in þe lift side, and Idithym [Edythim, Cx.] to ouer see symbalys. [cimbels, α.; the symbals, Cx.] Also þere were foure and twenty bisshoppes, and hadde vnder hem [ham, γ., semper.] foure and twenty preostes, foure and twenty dekenes, and foure and twenty porteres: þe þridde parte of hem seruede in þe temple [fro Saturday to Saturday, and come nouȝt nere [nyȝ, γ.] hir wifes, and sleep [sleop, γ.] in þe porches of þe temple], [Omitted in Cx.; evidently from the same words ending the two clauses.] and þe mene tyme þe oþere tweie deles [two partes, Cx.] ordeyned for hir owne hous. Salamon reignede in Israel somwhat of ȝeres while his fader Dauid was on lyue, [alyve, Cx. and γ.] the whiche ȝeres beeþ [buþ, γ.] acounted to Dauid, and nouȝt to Salamon. And after þat his fader was deed he regnede fourty ȝere. Also Ierom in Epistola ad Vi|talem Presbiterum seiþ þat Salamon whan he was enleuene ȝere olde [gate a sone on Pharoes doughter. Also me redeth of

Achaz the kyng þat [þat a gat, γ.] gate a child whan he was xi. yer old]. [Cx.; om. in MS.; cf. note [wallys, Cx.] , p. 7.] Also þis Salomon, whan he hadde i-slawe [whan þat he had slayne, Cx] Ioab, Semeþ, [Semey, Cx. and γ.] and Adonias, and whanne he hadde i-fonge wit and wisdom of God in þe [hul, γ.] hille, and [From γ.; MS., he.] ȝeue dome [zyve doom, α. and yeven dom, Cx.] of þe hoores, [two strompettes, Cx.] he caste in his herte to doo þre þinges, for [fyrst, Cx.] to bulde atemple to God alle myȝty, and a kynges paleys to hym selue and to walle Ierusalem wiþ þre walles: [wallys, Cx.] wiþ ynne þe firste wal wonede preostes and clerkes þat seruede in þe temple, and þe kyng and his meyny; wiþ [meyne, α.; houshold, Cx.] ynne þe secounde walle wonede stalworþe men and prophetes; and wiþ ynne þe þridde wal wonede [were inhabyte with, Cx.] the comoun [comyn, γ.] peple and craftes men. Salomon his [Salamon's, Cx.] mete was euery [euerych, γ.] day þritty corues [chorus, Cx. and γ.] of clene [ter, Cx.; tere, β.; teer, γ.] floure and foure score corues of mele, ten fat oxen, and an hondred weþeres wiþ oute venisoun, [veneson, γ.] pultrie, and wylde foul. [Chorus conteyneth the mesure of 30 busshels.] [Inserted in Cx.] He [Salamon, Cx.] wroot also þre bookes: þat oon hatte Parabole Salamonis and Proverbia also; þat oþer [the second, Cx.] hatte

Ecclesiastes; þe þridde hatte Cantica Canticorum. He des|putede also of kynde of treen [kunde of tren, γ.] and of herbes, from þe ceder þat groweþ in þe wode Libanus, anon [unto, Cx.] to þe ysope þat groweþ out of þe walles. Also he tolde moche philosofie of þe kynde of bestes; he fonde up also halsynge [halsyng and conjurisons, Cx.] coniuresouns forto slake wiþ [wiþ] om. in Cx.] siknesse, and oþere for to caste fendes out of men þat þey [hy, γ.] combre. [combrede, α. and γ.; combred, Cx.] Also he [From Cx.; þey, α.; MS., þe fend.] fond [a fond, γ.] vp figures and prentis [printes, α. and Cx.; preentes, γ.] to be graue in precious stones þat schulde wiþ rootes of som herbes be i-holde [y-holte, β.] to þe nostrelle [nose hrylles, Cx.; nosterls, γ.] of men þat hadde fendes wiþ yn hem, and put out the fendes. Þis craft was moche i-vsed among þe Hebrewes tofore [bifore, Cx.] þe comynge of Crist. Þerfore Iosephus, libro viij^o, seiþ þat he seiȝ [þat he seiȝ] om. γ.] Eliȝarus [Elyazarus, Cx.] þe coniuroure in presens of Vaspacian þe prince heled men þat hadde fendes wiþ ynne ham [hem, Cx.] in þis manere: apot [he put, Cx., α.; put, γ.] a vessel [fessel, γ.] wiþ water to the men [mannes, Cx.] nose, and heet þe fend þat he schulde ouercome [overtorne, α. and Cx.; ouer|turne, γ.] þe vessel [fessel, γ.] whan he wente out, and so it was i-doo. Also Salomon to fynde þe spedeful craft for to clense and cleue stones, he closede [enclosed a struction bird, Cx.] Astructio [a struclo, α.; structions bryd, γ.] his bryd in a glas, and þe struccon brouȝte a worme þat hatte Thamir out of wildernesse, and touchede þe glas al [al] om. in Cx.] aboute wiþ þe blood of þat worme, and so brak þe glas

and delyuerede his brid. Þan þe firste ȝere of Salamon was þe out passynge [outgoing, Cx.] of þat nacioun Ionica of Lacedemonia. Homerus [Omerus, Cx.] was in þat passynge. Ionica is a nacioun of Grees. [Grekes, Cx.] Þe fourþe ȝere of Salomon, þe secounde monþe, þat was foure hondred ȝere and foure score after þe goynge out of Egipt, Salomon bygan to bilde the temple, and was seuene [seue, γ.] ȝere in bildynge, and bodede [signefyed, Cx.] holy chirche, and þe eiȝteþe [viii., Cx.] ȝere þe temple was i-halowed, [yhalwed, γ.] and hadde in lengþe an hondred cubyte and twenty, in brede þre score, and in heiþe [heiȝþe, α.; heyght, Cx.] þritty. In þis temple was so moche golde þat whanne þe Romanys sette hit a fuyre [on fyre, Cx.] þerfrom ran a streem of gold of nayles i-melt [molten, Cx.; ymelt, γ.] in to þe brook þat hatte Torrens Cedron. Also þat ȝere þe quene of Saba come for to hire [huyre, α.; here, Cx.] þe wisdom of Salomon. [Petrus]. [In Cx.] Me seiþ þat þis [þeos, γ.] queene seiȝ atree in þe temple, on þe whiche tree oon schulde be an honged, and by cause of his deth þe kyngdom of lewes schulde be destroyed. Þe quene warned Salomon, and anon þe tree was þrowe in to adeep pitte [deop put, γ.] vnder erþe; and how it fleet afterward aboute Cristes tyme in a pond þat hatte Probatica Piscina, hit is vncerteyn. Me troweþ þat þis tree was þe rode [rood, Cx.] tree. Gaufridus. Ebranc, Mem|pricius

his sone [Nempricius sone, Cx.] was þe sixte kyng of Britouns, and regnede sixty ȝere. Þis man was boþe faire and strong, and on twenty [one and twenty, Cx.] wifes he gat [bigat, Cx.] twenty sones and þritty douȝtres. Þe fairest [fayrste, γ.] douȝter of alle was Gwalaes. Ebranc [Hebranc, Cx.] sente þese [þeos, γ.] douȝters to Alba [Albia, Cx.] Siluius kyng, for he wolde haue hem i-maryed to þe blood of Troye, by cause þat þe wommen Sabynes fliȝe [fledde, Cx.] þe beddes of þe Latyns. Also Ebrank by ledynge of Assaracus occupied a party of Germania. Ebrank by-ȝonde Humber bulde þe citee of York in þe Marche of Norþhumberlond and of Scotlond; he ordeyned þe citee Alcluit, and he bulde wiþ ynne Scotlond þe castel of Maydons þat now hatte Eden|burgh; afterward he seilled [sayled, Cx.] in to Fraunce wiþ a grete nauey, and come aȝen wonderliche riche. Alba Siluius þe sixte kyng [of] [Cx. and γ.] Latyns regnede nyne and þritty ȝere. Roboam. [Cx. has the division of the chapter, which is not in MS.]