Compendium Saxonis (also known as ''Abbreviatio Saxonis'') is a summary located in
Chronica Jutensis
''Chronica Jutensis'' (Danish: ''Jyske Krønike'' English: ''Jutland Chronicle'') also known as ''Continuatio compendii Saxonis'' or ''Chronica Danorum'', is a small Danish historical work from the middle of the 14th century, written in Latin. It c ...
. It contains a summary of
Saxo’s ''
Gesta Danorum
''Gesta Danorum'' ("Deeds of the Danes") is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus ("Saxo the Literate", literally "the Grammarian"). It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark and ...
'', about one-fourth the size of the original. It is written in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
.
It is thought to have been written by the same author as ''
Chronica Jutensis
''Chronica Jutensis'' (Danish: ''Jyske Krønike'' English: ''Jutland Chronicle'') also known as ''Continuatio compendii Saxonis'' or ''Chronica Danorum'', is a small Danish historical work from the middle of the 14th century, written in Latin. It c ...
''.
In this summary, the name ''Gesta Danorum'' is found. It is not known if ''Saxo'' also used this name for his original work.
As this is a summary, a large part of the original work is cut out, which some readers have found frustrating. As the author is less interested in war and battles, stories dealing with such things are often cut heavily.
The original manuscript is lost, but it survives in four different handwritten copies, about a hundred years younger. One was written by a
Monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
from
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 2 ...
in 1431.
Latin copies can be found in:
*
Danish Royal Library
The Royal Library ( da, Det Kongelige Bibliotek) in Copenhagen is the national library of Denmark and the university library of the University of Copenhagen. It is among the largest libraries in the world and the largest in the Nordic countri ...
of
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, Add.. 49 2o (1431)
* Danish Royal Library of Copenhagen, Don. Var. 139 4o (14/15th century).
*
Swedish Royal Library
The National Library of Sweden ( sv, Kungliga biblioteket, ''KB'', meaning "the Royal Library") is Sweden's national library. It collects and preserves all domestic printed and audio-visual materials in Swedish, as well as content with Swedish ...
of
Stockholm, De la Gardie 44 4o (15th century)
* Swedish Royal Library of Stockholm, Skokloster 47 4o (15th century)
References
* M.CL.Gertz, "Scriptores Minores Historiæ Danice", G.E.C.Gad, 1917-1918
Repertorium Chronicarum
Danish chronicles
14th-century history books
14th-century Latin books