The Boke of Noblesse / Addressed to King Edward the Fourth on His Invasion of France in 1475

ADDITIONAL NOTES.

Page liv. De Regimine Principum.—Sir John Paston (temp. Edw. IV.) had a copy of this work, which formed part of a volume which he thus described in the catalogue of his library:—

"M^d. my Boke of Knyghthode and the maner off makyng off knyghts, off justs, off tornaments, ffyghtyng in lystys, paces holden by soldiers and chalenges, statutes off weere, and de Regimine Principum." (Paston Letters, vol. iii p. 302.)

It is more fully described by William Ebesham, the scribe who had written the book, in his bill of accompt, which is also preserved in the same volume, p. 14:—

"Item as to the Grete Booke.
"First for wrytyng of the Coronacion and other tretys of Knyghthode in that quaire, which conteyneth a xiij. levis and more, ij^d. a lefe	ij^s. ij^d.
"Item for the Tretys of Werre in iiij. books, which conteyneth lx. levis, after ij^d. a leaff	x^s.
"Item for Othea pistill, which conteyneth xliij. levis	vij^s. ij^d.
"Item for the Chalenges and the Acts of Armes, which is xxviij^ti. lefs	iiij^s. viij^d.
"Item for de Regimine Principum, which conteyneth xlv^ti. leves, after a peny a leef, which is right wele worth	iij^s. ix^d.
"Item for rubriesheyng of all the booke	iij^s. iiij^d.

The "Treatise of Knighthood" here mentioned, may probably have resembled The Booke of the Ordre of Chyvalrye or Knyghthode printed by Caxton (see p. liv.); and the "Treatise of War" may have been a version of The Boke of Fayttes of Armes and of Chyvallrye, which Caxton also published from the Arbre de Batailes, &c. as before noticed in p. vi.

The "Othea pistill" was certainly the same book which passes under the name of Christine de Pisan, and which was printed at Paris by Philippe Pigouchet, in 4to, under the title of "Les cent Histoires de troye. Lepistre de Othea deesse de prudence enuoyee a lesperit cheualereux Hector de troye, auec cent hystoires." In every page of this book there is a Texte in French verse, and a Glose in prose, which agrees exactly with sir John Paston's description in his catalogue (where it appears as distinct from Ebesham's "Great Book,") in this entry,—"Item, a Book de Othea, text and glose, in quayers."

Page 15. Matheu Gournay de comitatu Somerset. This personage, whose name has been inserted by the second hand, was a very distinguished warrior in the French wars, and has been supposed to have been the model of the Knight in Chaucer's Canterbury Pilgrims. His epitaph at Stoke upon Hampden in Somersetshire, which has been preserved by Leland, describes him as "le noble et vaillant chivaler Maheu de Gurney, iadys seneschal de Landes et capitain du chastel Daques por nostre seignor le Roy en la duche de Guyene, qui en sa vie fu a la batail de Beaumarin, et ala apres a la siege Dalgezire sur les Sarazines, et auxi a les batailles de Lescluse, de Cressy, de Yngenesse, de Peyteres, de Nazara, Dozrey, et a plusiurs autres batailles et asseges, en les quex il gaina noblement graund los et honour per lespece de xxxxiiij et xvj ans, et morust le xxvj jour de Septembre, l'an nostre Seignor Jesu Christ Mccccvj, que de salme Dieux eit mercy. Amen." (See Records of the House of Gournay, by Daniel Gurney, esq. F.S.A. p. 681.)

Page 68. Sir John Fastolfe's victualling of the Bastille. This anecdote is illustrated by the following passage of one of sir John's books of accompt:—

"Item, in like wise is owing to the said Fastolfe for the keeping and victualling of the

Bastile of St. Anthony in Paris, as it appeareth by writing sufficient, and by the creditors

of sir John Tyrel knight, late treasurer of the King's house, remaining in the exchequer

of Westminster of record, the sum of xlij li.

(Paston Letters, iii. 269.)

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