Prophecy of Merlin

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Bibliographic InformationX

Anonymous

Original Source:

Diplomatic editions of this text are based on transcriptions created by James M Dean for The Camelot Project at the University of Rochester. http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/..

Versions are from: Trinity College Dublin MS 516 fol. 115r; Oxford University, Bodleian Library MS 6943 fol. 78r; Magdalene College. Cambridge MS 1236 fol. 91r.

Witness dublin: The Prophecy of Merlin
Witness oxford: The Prophecy of Merlin
Witness cambridge: The Prophecy of Merlin

Textual Notes: There are three MS versions of this poem transcribed by James M. Dean and made publicly available through http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/. This version is based on his transcriptions.

Electronic Edition Information
Text Encoding by Susan Schreibman
Transcription by James M Dean

Published by Susan Schreibman

This poem is being made available for demonstration purposes only. It may not be reproduced without. For further information, please contact Susan Schreibman at sschreib[at]umd.edu

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Test document for versioning machine project. Marked-up collation of The Prophecy of Merlin.

DTD constructed from TEI poetry base with tagsets for linking, figures, analysis, transcr, textcrit.

X Version

The Prophecy of Merlin
The Prophecy of Merlin
The Prophecy of Merlin

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1
1 When feythe fayleth in prestys sawys, g With sharpened swords, and men ready to terrorize c

sayings; When feythe fayleth. Versions of this lyric - identified as "Chaucer's Proverbs" - were regularly printed in earlier editions of Chaucer. Richard Morris's edition contains the following lyric:

Qwan prestis faylin in her sawes,
And Lordis turnin Goddis lawes
Ageynis ryght;
And lecherie is holdin as privy solas,
And robberie as fre purchas,
Bewar than of ille!
Than schall the Lond of Albion Turnin to confusion,
As sumtyme it befelle.

As printed in The Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, rev. ed. (London: Bell, 1875), vol. 6, p. 307. Skeat prints a similar version of this poem from Caxton's edition of Chaucer, as the first one of the "Sayings" (or proverbs) of Chaucer:

Whan feyth failleth in prestes sawes,
And lordes hestes ar holden for lawes,
And robbery is holden purchas,
And lechery is holden solas,
Then shal the lond of Albyon
Be brought to grete confusioun.

See Skeat's Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, vol. 7 (Oxford: Clarendon, 1897), p. 450.

2 When lordes wille is londes law, g the law of the land
2 Whane lordis wol leefe theire olde lawes, g abandon c leefe. So Skeat and Gray. Robbins, Index and Supplement, § 3986 transcribes leefe as leese. The MS can sustain either reading.
2 And lordys wyll be londys lawys, g law of the land
3 Prestes wylle trechery, and gyle hold soth saw, c Priests intend treachery, and guile turns into figures of speech
3 And preestis beon varyinge in theire sawes, g teachings; c beon. So MS; Skeat, Gray been.
3
4 Lechery callyd pryvé solace, g is called secret pleasure
4 And leccherie is holden solace, g lechery is considered to be
4 And lechery is prevy solas, g secret comfort
5 And robbery is hold no trespace - g held to be no crime
5 And oppressyon for truwe purchace;
5 And robbery ys goode purchas: g booty n purchas. Skeat glosses purchas as "bargain." It is that which is acquired.
6
6 And whan the moon is on David stall, g David's stable n David stall. David's stable, a reference to Christ's birth in Bethlehem (city of David). Of the apocalyptic element in this poem Gray comments: "On the more intellectual prophetic tradition, reflected in the Joachimite dream of a renovatio mundi, compare M. Reeves, The Influence of Prophecy in the Later Middle Ages (Oxford, 1969)."
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7
7 And the kynge passe Arthures hall, g by-passes
7
8 Then schal the lond of Albyon torne into confusioun! c Albyon. The legendary, antique name for Britain, as in Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain. The fool in King Lear quotes this or a related poem when he says: "Then shall the realm of Albion / Come to great confusion" (III.ii.85-86).
8 Than is the lande of Albyoun
Nexst to his confusyoun g Near; its c Than is the. Skeat's correction of MS Þat is is.
8 Than shall the londe of Albeon
Be turned into confusion. n Britain
9 A M CCCC lx and on, few lordes or ellys noone. g In 1461 [there are]; c A M CCCC lx and on. RHR does not print this part of the poem, nor does he include the material I have here numbered 7-10 as if it were subjoined to the above six lines. The lyrics are separate poems, yet the thought seems to be related. The dating 1461 should be compared with "When Rome Is Removed" lines 60-63.
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9

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