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

Capitulum quartumdecimum.

ADRIANUS Helius, Traianus his cosyn, was emperour oon and twenty ȝere and ten monþes; þis was connynge [kunnying, β.] in þe longages of Grew [Gru, α.; langage of Grue, Cx.] and of Latyn, and made in Athene a librarie of a wondre manere werk; he was konnynge of musik [musique, Cx.] and of phisik, of peynting, of gravinge, of ȝetynge, [ȝeotyng, γ.; meltyng, Cx.] and of castynge of bras and oþer metal. Whanne bookes of oure by|leve were y-wrete [wreton, Cx.] by oon Quadratus, þe desciple of þe apostles, [thappostlis, Cx.] and by oon Aristides of Etenyeus, [Atheniens, β.; Etenyens, γ.; Athenes, Cx.] Adrianus heet [bad, Cx.] and com|maunded by his lettres þat Cristene men schulde nouȝt be dampned wiþ oute trespas i-put aȝenst hem, and i-preved. [ypreoved, γ.] Þis [He, Cx.] made meny lawes; but he hadde greet envie to þe noble loos [and renomme, added in Cx.] of Traianus, [so þat he forsook þe provynce [prouynces, Cx.] þat Traianus] [From α., β., γ., and Cx.] hadde i-wonne, [as, added in Cx.] Siria, Mesopotamia, and Armenia, and caste also to forsake and leve Dacia, [and purposed to have left Dacia, Cx.] bote his frendes forbed, [fered, α.; ferede, β.; ferede hym, γ.; caused him to chaunge his thought, Cx.] and made

hym chaunge his þouȝt. Also þis [Adrianus, added in Cx.] overcome þe Iewes, þat were rebel eftsones [eftsones yet rebell, Cx.] and chasede hem [ham, γ.] out of Ierusalem, and dede [dude, γ.] þere [put therinne, Cx.] men of oþer naciouns, and siþþe [seþþe, α.; seþthe, γ.] hiderward it is doo þat þe place of Cristes passioun [and sith that time the place where Crist suffred his passioun, Cx.] is wiþ ynne þe north walles of the citee of Ierusalem, þat was raþer [of the citee . . . walles] om. γ.] wiþ oute þe walles. [to fore that tyme, Cx.] In þis Adrianus his tyme, þe philosofer Secundus was in his floures; he helde [huld, γ.] scilence [was flouryng whiche put hym self to silence, Cx.] and wolde nouȝt speke to his lyves ende, and writeþ þat [writeþ þat] om. Cx.] þe cause of his scilence was þis. He hadde i-be [ben and studyed, Cx.] in scole in Athene, and i-herde [y-hurd, γ.] ofte [ofte] om. Cx.] of þe unstedfastnesse of wommen, and þerfore in a tyme whanne he [α, γ.] com home, and was unknowe of his frendes, he wolde assaie þe stedfastnesse [he thought tassaye and prove the unstydfastnes, Cx.] of his owne moder, and ȝaf a wenche [to a wenche her seruaunt, Cx.] ȝiftes, and sche [heo, β. and γ.] brouȝte hym by nyȝte priveliche [preveylych, γ.] to his modir bed. Þanne his moder bygan to excite [exyte, Cx.] and conforte hym forto ligge by here. "Nay, moder," quod he, "it is nouȝt semeliche [fitting to me to defowle, Cx.] þat I

defoule þe place þat I [ich, β. (bis); y, γ. (bis).] com of." ["Why," said she, "who art thou?" "I am," sayd he, "Secundus thy sonne."] [From Cx.] Whan his moder herde þat sche deide anon [forthwith, Cx.] for schame and sorwe; þan he sigh [and understode, added in Cx.] þat his modir was deed by his sotel speche, and maad greet deel [deol, β. and γ.] and sorwe, and forheet to speke, and spak nevere aftir, but [by his defaulte in spekynge and tellynge what he was unto her, and made grete doole and sorowe and avowed never to speke after, and soo he never spak after, but, Cx.] lyvede as a dombe man to his lyves ende, and hilde [heuld, γ.] his avow [unto his lyues ende, added in Cx.] so þat he wolde not speke for manas, noþer [ne, Cx.] for faire byhestes; and ȝit he was i-brouȝt to fore Adrianus þe emperour, but speke wolde he nevere, as it is i-write [wreton, Cx.] in þe questiouns þat he wroot in his scilence tyme. Thelefforus [Thelesforus, β. and γ.] þe pope was a Greek, after Sixtus his passioun he was pope elevene [enleve, γ.] ȝere; he ordeyned þe Lente [Leynte, γ.] fastinge [to be fastede to fore Eester, Cx.] to forne Esterne, and þat no man schulde synge a masse tofore þe hour of underne, [undarn, γ.] and þat me [enleve, γ.] schulde synge þre masses wiþ Gloria in excelsis a myd|wynter day. [on Crystemas day, Cx.] Þat ȝere Eustas, [Eustace, Cx.] þat heet Placidas also, [tofore, Cx.] was y-martired, and his wif and his [his] om. Cx.] children; þat tyme [the, added in Cx.] þre may|dens,

Fides, Spes, and Caritas, and here moder Sapiencia, were y-martired [martred, Cx., et supra.] at Rome. Adrianus þe emperour deyde in Cam|panya [Champania, γ.] in þe dropesye. Þat tyme Aquila of þe ilond Pontus was in his floures [flourysshynge, Cx.] ; he was þe secounde after þe [þe] om. Cx.] seventy þat tornede holy writte out of Hebrewe [Hebrue, β.] into Grewe. After þe passioun of Thelefforus, Igynus, a Greek philosofre of Athene, was pope foure ȝere; he ordeynede þe clergie to be ruled [rewled, Cx.] in ordre and in degree. Also he ordeyned þat non erchebisshop [archebischop, γ.; archibisshop, Cx.] schulde condempne his suffragan [suffrigan, β.; suffrygan, Cx.] but in sight and hyringe [heringe, β.; heeryng, Cx.] of oþere suffragans and bisshoppis of þe [same] [From β.] provinces. [province, α. and Cx.] Antonius.