This second of two volumes of Latin chronicles illustrating the reigns of Edward I (1272 1307) and Edward II (1307 27) was published in 1883. Included here is the Commendatio lamentabilis, a laudatory piece written by John of London very soon after the death of Edward I. This is followed by a Vita of Edward II written by an unknown monk of Malmesbury, a narration of his deeds (Gesta Edwardi de Carnarvan) by a canon of Bridlington, with another on the deeds of Edward III, and a life and death (Vita et mors) of Edward II attributed to Sir Thomas de la Moore. The often corrupt texts were...

Gervase of Canterbury (c.1145 c.1210) was professed as a member of the cathedral priory of Christ Church, Canterbury, by Thomas Becket in 1163. His observations on both church and court matters give his work breadth, ranging from the king's authority to ecclesiastical topography. A prominent player in the notorious dispute between the monks and Archbishop Baldwin, Gervase attempted to reassert the traditional role of Christ Church as the archiepiscopal church at a time when its position was under threat. This two-volume collection, edited by the scholar William Stubbs (1824 1901) and...