PAPERS ABOUT IRELAND

MSS 248

PAPERS ABOUT IRELAND

(1) A contemporary copy by several hands of Edmund Campion's 'Two bookes of the historie of Irelande compiled by Edmunde Campion, Felow of Saint Jhon Baptists College in Oxforde'. Dedicated to Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, from Dublin, 27 May 1571, with an address 'To the lovinge reader', from Drogheda, 9 June 1571. A marginal note by J[ohn] Dee appears on f.58. (confirmed as the autograph of John Dee by Prof. A.G. Watson, Sept. 1992.) Campion's text is printed in A.F. Vossen, Two Bokes of the histories of Ireland, 1963, but the present manuscript was not known to the editor (ff.1-97v).

(2) A contemporary copy by several hands of almost the whole of the Book of Howth (see ff.141, 197). The Book of Howth is a compilation of historical notes concerning the history of Ireland and was written over a period between the mid sixteenth century and 1579. It came into the possession of George Carew, Earl of Totnes, Master of the Ordnance in Ireland (1588-92) and President of Munster (1600-3), and is now Lambeth Palace Library MS.623. It was printed in Calendar of the Carew manuscripts, ed. J.S. Brewer and W. Bullen, 1871. The present copy collates with the printed edition as follows:

ff.101-7 : pp.2-11

107v-71 : 18-117

171v-173 : 255-9

174-7 : 219-24

179-251v : 118-218

252-4 : 224-7

255-268v : 237-55

268v-269v : 259-60

The copy was made in Ireland for the names Mr. Edmunde of the city of Limerick, alderman, James Faning, of Waterford, merchant, and William Roche appear on f.197v.

Campion quoted from the Book of Howth (e.g. f.57 in the present manuscript appears on f.153 of the Book of Howth (p.252 of the printed edition)), but there is no connection between Campion's original manuscript and the present copy of the Book of Howth since the latter contains passages referring to events after the composition of Campion's history (ff.101-269).

269 ff.

English