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

Capitulum nonumdecimum.

BASSIANUS, Antonius Severus his soone, regnede aftir his fadir as it were [as it were] om. Cx.] seven ȝere; þis was i-cleped Marcus Aurelius,

and Caracalla also for a manere cloþinge þat he ȝaf at Rome; and þerfore bathes þat he made at Rome beeþ i-cleped Cara|callane. Þis was a swiþe [right, Cx.] evel man, and scharper of maneres þan [þan] from Cx.; þat, MS.] his fader, and he was unsuffrable of leccherie, [℞.] so þat he took his owne stepdame Iulia and wedded hir to wif. Of þe place and manere of his deyenge auctours discordeth, as it is i|seide toforehonde. Gaufridus et Alfridus. While þis [Bassianus, added in Cx.] regnede, oon Carencius, [Caransius, α.; Carausius, γ. and Cx.] þat com [cometh, Cx.] of þe lowest blood of Britouns, but he [but he] om. Cx.] was a noblee [nobel, α.; noble, β.] man of counsaile and of hond, he gat of þe senatoures þe kepynge of þe see [see] om. Cx.] costes of Britayne, ffor þo [þo] that tyme, Cx.] Frensche men and Saxons werrede [werride, β.] þere uppon; but whan he hadde y-gete his axynge he dede [a dude, γ.] more harme and damage þan profit to þe comynte, ffor he beheet [byhett, α.; bihete, β.; byheet, γ.; byhete, Cx.] to þe Britouns þat he wolde destroye and chase þe Romayns out of þe ilond ȝif þey wolde make hym kyng. Þanne he slowȝ [Bassianus, and hadde þe kyngdom seven ȝere; ffor þe Pictes, þat Fulgencius þe duke,] [From α., β., γ., and Cx.] Bassianus moder broþer, [þat is wrongly inserted here in MS.] hadde i-brouȝt out of Schicia

and out of oþer londes forsook Basianus in þe bataile, ffor Caraucius hadde i-meded [hyred, Cx.] hem; and so Caraucius hadde þe victorie, and ȝaf þe Pictes a wonynge [dwellyng, Cx.] place in Albania, þat is Scotland; þere þey were i-melled [medled, Cx.] wiþ Britouns, and wonede [dwellid, Cx.] þere [afterward] [From α., γ., and Cx.] long tyme. Þe senatoures of Rome herde þerof, and sente oon Alectus [Allectus, Cx.] wiþ þre legiouns into Britayne ffor to slee þat tiraunt Caraucius, and whan [whan] om. Cx.] he was i-slawe Alectus regnede þre ȝere, and so [so] om. Cx.] he restorede Britayne aȝen to þe power of Rome. Giraldus. And for þis Alectus grevede and pursewede [poursiewed, Cx.] þe Britouns þat hadde y-holde wiþ Caraucius, oon Asclepiodotus, duke of Cornwayle, was i-made kyng, and aftir þre ȝere he slouȝ Alectus at Londoun, and meny þowsandes of Romayns. Gau|fridus. After þat Londoun was longe byseged, Venedotus [Venedotes, β., γ., and Cx.] men of Norþ Wales, fel [fille, β.] uppon Gallus, Allectus his felowe, and slouȝ hym wiþ yn Londoun, at a brook [broke, β. and Cx.; broc, γ.] þat haþ þe name of hym, þat hatte Galle-brook, [Gallebroc, γ.; or Walbrooke, added in Cx.] and Asclepiodotus regnede somwhat of

þe ȝeres in þe ilond anon to Dioclisianus his tyme. Þanne Coelus, duke of Colchestre, slouȝ Asclepiodotus [℞. Girald and Gaufred clepeþ þis Asclepiodotus] [From α. and Cx.] duke of Cornewayle; but Beda, libro primo, capitulo 6^o, folweþ Eutropius in þe storie of Rome, and clepeþ [called, Cx.] þis Asclepiodotus, duk of Corn|waile, [duk of Cornwaile] om. α.] prefectus [prefect, α. and Cx.] of þe pretorie. Eutropius. Opilius Mar|cius, [Macrinus, Cx.] prefectus [Morcinus prefect, α.] of þe pretorie, was emperour after Basianus as it were oon ȝere, and þanne at Archelaydes he was i-slawe, boþe he and his sone. [also, added in Cx.] After Zephirinus, Calixtus was pope as hit were [as it were] om. Cx.] fyve ȝere: he ordeyned þe [þat, γ.] fastynge on of [on of] of þe, α., γ., and Cx.] foure [fastyng of the foure, β.] tymes of þe ȝere for plente of þe [þe] om. α.; ol, Cx.] corne and of fruit; and made a chirchehawe [chircheȝerde, β.; churcheheyȝ, γ.; chircheyerde, Cx.] at Rome, in a place þat hatte Via Appia, for to burie [in, added in Cx.] þe bodies of holy martires; now þat place hatte [cimi|torium] [From Cx.] Calixty. [Calixli, Cx.] Marcus Aurelius Antonius, þat was i-holde þe sone of Caracalla, [Carcalla, γ.] was emperour as it were [as hit were] om. Cx.] two ȝere; he forbare [forbaar, γ.] no manere of leccherie; at þe laste he was i-slawe in a stryvynge of knyȝtes.