Part 24

(2) TESTIMONIAL LETTER FOR MR. JOHN KING OF OXFORD

To all the children of Holy Church, our Mother, to whom this letter may come, the Chancellor of the University of Oxford and the whole assembly of masters ruling in the same send greeting in the arms of our Saviour. We believe that we present an offering in the sight of the highest truth, as often as we furnish a testimony of high praise to one excellent in virtue and in knowledge. Therefore we,--wishing all whom it may concern to know of the commendable life and the fragrance of honest conversation of our beloved brother, Master John King, M.A. and student in Sacred Theology, a prudent Procurator of our University who has filled his office most efficiently; we therefore, as we have said, wishing all to know, as we are bound to do,--and to prevent so bright a light from being hid beneath the bushel of silence,--do bear witness by this letter that, through the commendable merits of our aforesaid brother and his study, he has attained such proficiency that the fragrant fame of his name--which the praise of his excellent action has exalted to the pinnacle of glory with us--could not be concealed: but from the height of its exalted pedestal it has furnished a living example to all scholars for emulation, and a great light to all people for profitable instruction. And so, while adorning our University with his presence and outshining all in the maturity and dignity of his character, he won the love of all by his spotless name. We commend him therefore to your worshipful reverences, earnestly praying that you will show yourselves favorable and kind to him, both out of regard for our University and for his deserts. In witness of which, and that all may know more fully about his laudable character, we have caused this letter to be sealed for said Master John with the seal of our University.

Given at Oxford in the Congregation-house, February 9th, 1434.

FOOTNOTES:

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

=1. Additional Readings from the Sources.=

MUNRO, D.C. The Mediaeval Student. (Translations and Reprints from the Original Sources of European History, Vol. II, No. 3.) The student should not fail to procure this little pamphlet, which is a necessary supplement to several of the readings in the present collection. It contains useful explanatory notes as well as important documents. Price, ten cents. Longmans, Green & Co., New York City.

ROBINSON, J.H. Readings in European History. Vol. I, chap. xix, and especially pp. 446-461. Readings on Abelard, Aristotle in the Universities, Roger Bacon.

HENDERSON, E.F. Select Historical Documents of the Middle Ages, pp. 262-266. Charter of the University of Heidelberg, 1386.

=2. General References on the History of Mediaeval Universities.=

RASHDALL, HASTINGS. The Universities of Europe in the Middle Ages. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1895. 1273 pages, 2 vols. in three parts. Much the best work on the subject; based on the sources. Indispensable for reference.

MULLINGER, J.B. Encyclopedia Britannica, Art. Universities. "The first tolerably correct (though very brief) account which has appeared in English." Includes university history to 1882.

Encyclopedia Britannica and other encyclopedias. The student who may not have access to works mentioned in this list is reminded that brief accounts of the men and the subjects here considered are often to be found in good encyclopedias.

=3. Bibliographies.=

The best single collection of references to the extensive literature of the subject is in Rashdall's work, though this does not include books and articles published since 1895. Compayré (see below) includes a brief list. References to sources and secondary works on the Seven Liberal Arts are published by Abelson; references relating to university text-books of Greek origin by Loomis (see below).

=4. Text-books.=

COMPAYRÉ, G. Abelard and the Origin and Early History of Universities. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1892. Still the best single text-book for class use. Contains numerous errors, which should be corrected by comparison with Rashdall.

WOODWARD, W.H., editor. Mediaeval Schools and Universities. Cambridge Contributions to Modern History, I. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. This work, which is still in preparation, will probably supersede Compayré.

5. References to Special Topics.

All of the topics treated in this collection of readings are discussed by Rashdall and Compayré. Page references may be found by use of the indexes appended to their books.

=Introduction=. On the historical point of view see J.H. ROBINSON, Readings in European History, Vol. I, Chap. I; on the place and use of documents, and other questions relating to the study of history, LANGLOIS and SEIGNOBOS, Introduction to the Study of History.

=Abelard=. MCCABE, JOSEPH. Abelard. A scholarly study, in brilliant style. Chaps. I-IV deal with Abelard as a teacher. The best biography in English.

=John of Salisbury=. POOLE, R.L. Illustrations of the History of Mediaeval Thought, passim. National Dictionary of Biography, Art. John of Salisbury.

=University Studies=. ABELSON, PAUL. The Seven Liberal Arts. The best study in English. Contains much information regarding university text-books in these subjects. LOOMIS, LOUISE R. Mediaeval Hellenism. Valuable information concerning the history and the translations of the works of Aristotle, Galen, Hippocrates, and other Greek writers. ZELLER, E. Aristotle and the Earlier Peripatetics. The standard treatise on the works of Aristotle, and their history.

The student is earnestly advised to spend a few hours in examining such copies of the mediaeval text-books as he may find in his college library. The time thus spent will do far more to clarify his ideas as to their character and extent than much talk about them. Old editions, often with the commentaries, may be available; some libraries possess MS. copies. Translations of the more important works of Aristotle may be found by reference to the library catalogue; among these may be mentioned the Rhetoric, by J.E.C. Welldon; the Politics, by B. Jowett; the Ethics (Nicomachean), by F.H. Peters; the Poetics, by S.H. Butcher. Of the Corpus Juris Civilis, the Institutes have been translated by T.C. Sandars; the first part of the Digest by C.H. Monro. The Corpus Juris Canonici as it was known in the middle ages has not been translated. This is true also of most books on the Seven Liberal Arts. Some works of Galen and Hippocrates have been done into English; but these translations are old, and probably inaccurate.

=Academic Letters=. HASKINS, C.H. The Life of Mediaeval Students as Illustrated by their Letters. American Historical Review, 1897-1898. A brief but important study, from the sources; refers to several of the letters here printed.