The Hengwrt Chaucer manuscript is an early-15th-century

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

of the ''

Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' () is a collection of 24 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. The book presents the tales, which are mostly written in verse (poetry), verse, as part of a fictional storytellin ...

'', held in the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales (, ) in Aberystwyth is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals, and the l ...

, in

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

. It is an important source for Chaucer's text, and was possibly written by someone with access to an original authorial

holograph An autograph or holograph is a manuscript or document written in its author's or composer's hand. The meaning of " autograph" as a document penned entirely by the author of its content (as opposed to a typeset document or one written by a copy ...

, now lost. The ''Hengwrt Chaucer'' is part of a collection called the

Peniarth Manuscripts The Peniarth Manuscripts, also known as the Hengwrt–Peniarth Manuscripts, are a collection of medieval Welsh manuscripts now held by the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth. The collection was originally assembled by Robert Vaughan (c. 159 ...

which is included by UNESCO in its UK

Memory of the World Register UNESCO's Memory of the World (MoW) Programme is an international initiative to safeguard the documentary heritage of humanity against collective amnesia, neglect, decay over time and climatic conditions, as well as deliberate destruction. It ca ...

, a list of documentary heritage which holds cultural significance specific to the UK. It is catalogued as National Library of Wales MS Peniarth 392D. Following the terminology developed by John M. Manly and

Edith Rickert Edith Rickert (1871–1938) was a medieval scholar at the University of Chicago. Her work includes the ''Chaucer Life-Records'' and the eight-volume ''Text of the Canterbury Tales'' (1940). Life and career Rickert was born in Dover, Ohio, to Fra ...

, the manuscript is conventionally referred to as Hg in most editions giving variant readings.See Manly and Rickert, ''The Text of the Canterbury Tales, I: Descriptions of the Manuscripts'', 1940, p.266

History of the manuscript

The Hengwrt Chaucer has been in Wales for at least 400 years. This was one of the collection of manuscripts amassed at the mansion of

Hengwrt was a mansion near Dolgellau in Meirionnydd, Gwynedd. It lay in the parish of Llanelltyd near the confluence of the Afon Mawddach, River Mawddach and :cy:Afon Wnion, River Wnion, near Cymer Abbey. With medieval origins, it was rebuilt or remodel ...

, near

Dolgellau Dolgellau (; ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the traditional county town of the Historic counties of Wales, historic county of Merion ...

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

, by Welsh

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

Robert Vaughan (c.1592–1667); the collection later passed to the newly established National Library of Wales. The Hengwrt manuscript's very early ownership is unknown, but recent research suggests that Chaucer himself may have partly supervised the making of the manuscript, before his death in October 1400, according to the Welsh newspaper '' The Western Mail''. By the 16th century it can be identified as belonging to Fouke Dutton, a

draper Draper was originally a term for a retailer or wholesaler of cloth that was mainly for clothing. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. History Drapers were an important trade guild during the medieval period ...

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

who died in 1558. It then seems to have passed into the ownership of the Bannester family of Chester and

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a List of place names with royal patronage in the United Kingdom, royal town, Community (Wales), community and port in Gwynedd, Wales. It has a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the easter ...

, and through them was in the possession of an Andrew Brereton by 1625; by the middle of the 17th century it had been acquired by Vaughan.

Description

Peniarth MS 392 D contains 250 folios with a page size of around 29 x 20.5 centimetres (11½" x 8"). It is written on heavily stained and rather damaged

parchment Parchment is a writing material made from specially prepared Tanning (leather), untanned skins of animals—primarily sheep, calves and goats. It has been used as a writing medium in West Asia and Europe for more than two millennia. By AD 400 ...

. Vermin have eaten around nine centimeters (3½") from the outer corners of the leaves. It is less complete than the Ellesmere manuscript, and the tales are in an order that is unique to itself. The main textual hand has been identified with one found in several other manuscripts of the period (see below); there are a number of other hands in the manuscript, including one of a person who attempted to fill in several gaps in the text. This has been tentatively identified as the hand of the poet

Thomas Hoccleve Thomas Hoccleve or Occleve (1368/69–1426) was a key figure in 15th-century Middle English literature, significant for promoting Chaucer as "the father of English literature", and as a poet in his own right. His poetry, especially his longest w ...

. There is some illumination in blue, gold and pink, used on the border and on initial letters at the opening of individual tales and prologues, but the manuscript contains no illustrations.

Scribe and relationship to other manuscripts

The Hengwrt manuscript was written by the same scribe as the lavishly illustrated Ellesmere manuscript, which, following the examples of the editors

Frederick Furnivall Frederick James Furnivall (4 February 1825 – 2 July 1910) was an English philologist, best known as one of the co-creators of the '' New English Dictionary''. He founded a number of learned societies on early English literature and made pion ...

and

W. W. Skeat Walter William Skeat, (21 November 18356 October 1912) was a British philologist and Anglican deacon. The pre-eminent British philologist of his time, he was instrumental in developing the English language as a higher education subject in th ...

, was thought to be superior to Hengwrt and used as the base text for many modern editions of the ''Canterbury Tales.'' Since the work of John M. Manly and

in compiling their ''Text of the Canterbury Tales'' (1940), however, the Hengwrt manuscript has had a much higher degree of prominence in attempts to reconstruct Chaucer's text, displacing the previously prominent Ellesmere and

Harley MS. 7334 Harley MS 7334, sometimes known as the Harley Manuscript, is a mediaeval manuscript of Chaucer's ''Canterbury Tales'' held in the Harleian Collection of the British Library. It was formerly used as a base text for modern editions of the ''Tales'', ...

. Recent scholarship has shown that the variant spellings given in the Hengwrt manuscript likely reflect Chaucer's own spelling practices in his East Midlands / London dialect of

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English pe ...

, while the Ellesmere text shows evidence of a later attempt to regularise spelling; Hengwrt is therefore probably very close to the original authorial

.Horobin, S
The Language of the Hengwrt Chaucer
, Canterbury Tales Project The scribe of the Hengwrt and Ellesmere manuscripts has been identified by Linne Mooney, a palaeographer at the

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public Collegiate university, collegiate research university in York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thir ...

, as Adam Pinkhurst, a documented member of the

Worshipful Company of Scriveners The Worshipful Company of Scriveners is an ancient Livery Company of the City of London. Originally known as the ''Mysterie of the Writers of the Court Letter'' and, since its incorporation, as the ''Master Wardens and Assistants of the Company ...

. The attribution has been widely accepted, and other manuscripts have since been added to Pinkhurst's scribal canon. However, other scholars, including

Jane Roberts Dorothy Jane Roberts (May 8, 1929 – September 5, 1984) was an American author and poet, who claimed to be psychic and a spirit medium channeling a personality who called himself "Seth." Her publication of the Seth texts, known as the '' Set ...

, who drew Mooney's attention to Pinkhurst in the first place, have expressed skepticism about the identification on various palaeographical, literary, and historical grounds.

Order

The tales are presented in the following order: #

General Prologue The "General Prologue" is the first part of '' The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. It introduces the frame story, in which a group of pilgrims travelling to the shrine of Thomas Becket in Canterbury agree to take part in a storytelling ...

The Knight's Tale "The Knight's Tale" () is the first tale from Geoffrey Chaucer's '' The Canterbury Tales''. The Knight is described by Chaucer in the " General Prologue" as the person of highest social standing amongst the pilgrims, though his manners and c ...

The Miller's Tale "The Miller's Tale" () is the second of Geoffrey Chaucer's ''Canterbury Tales'' (1380s–1390s), told by the drunken miller Robin toquite (a Middle English term meaning requite or pay back, in both good and negative ways) "The Knight's Tale". ...

The Reeve's Tale "The Reeve's Tale" is the third story told in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales''. The reeve, named Oswald in the text, is the manager of a large estate who reaped incredible profits for his master and himself. He is described in the ...

The Cook's Tale "The Cook's Tale" is one of the ''Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. It breaks off after 58 lines and was presumably never finished, although some scholars argue that Chaucer deliberately left the tale unfinished. Prologue The Cook (Roger) ...

# The Wife of Bath’s Tale #

The Friar's Tale "The Friar's Tale" () is a story in ''The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer, told by Huberd the Friar. The story centers on a corrupt summoner and his interactions with the Devil. It is preceded by The Wife of Bath's Tale and followed by ...

# The Summoner's Tale #

The Monk's Tale "The Monk's Tale" is one of the ''Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. The Monk's tale to the other pilgrims is a collection of 17 short stories, exempla, on the theme of tragedy. The tragic endings of these historical figures are recounted: ...

The Nun's Priest's Tale "The Nun's Priest's Tale" (Middle English: ''The Nonnes Preestes Tale of the Cok and Hen, Chauntecleer and Pertelote'') is one of ''The Canterbury Tales'' by the Middle English poet Geoffrey Chaucer. Composed in the 1390s, it is a beast fabl ...

The Manciple's Tale "The Manciple's Tale" is part of Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales''. It tends to appear near the end of most manuscripts of the poem, and the prologue to the final tale, "The Parson's Tale", makes it clear that it was intended to be the ...

The Man of Law's Tale "The Man of Law's Tale" is the fifth of the ''Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer, written around 1387. John Gower's "Tale of Constance" in ''Confessio Amantis'' tells the same story and may have been a source for Chaucer. Nicholas Trivet's ...

The Squire's Tale "The Squire's Tale" is a tale in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales''. It is unfinished, because it is interrupted by the next story-teller, the Franklin, who then continues with his own prologue and tale. The Squire is the Knight's son, ...

The Merchant's Tale "The Merchant's Tale" () is one of Geoffrey Chaucer's ''Canterbury Tales''. Summary of the tale After a prologue where the Merchant laments the cruelty of his spouse, he begins the story in Pavia, where Januarie, a sixty year old knight, is ...

The Franklin's Tale "The Franklin's Tale" () is one of ''The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. It focuses on issues of providence, truth, generosity and ''gentillesse'' in human relationships. Synopsis A medieval franklin was free, non-serf yet did not hav ...

# The Second Nun's Prologue and Tale #

The Clerk's Tale "The Clerk's Tale" is one of Geoffrey Chaucer, Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales, Canterbury Tales'', told by the Clerk of University of Oxford, Oxford, a student of what would nowadays be considered philosophy or theology. He tells the tale of ...

The Physician's Tale "The Physician's Tale" is one of ''The Canterbury Tales'', written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century. It is a domestic drama about the relationship between a daughter and her father, based on a tale from the Histories of Titus Livius and ...

The Pardoner's Tale "The Pardoner's Tale" is one of '' The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. In the order of the Tales, it comes after The Physician's Tale and before The Shipman's Tale; it is prompted by the Host's desire to hear something positive aft ...

The Shipman's Tale "The Shipman's Tale" (also called "The Sailor's Tale") is one of ''The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. It is in the form of a fabliau and tells the story of a merchant, his wife and her lover, a monk. Although similar stories can be f ...

# The Prioress' Tale #

Sir Thopas "Sir Thopas" is one of ''The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer, published in 1387. The tale is one of two—together with The Tale of Melibee—told by the fictive Geoffrey Chaucer as he travels with the pilgrims on the journey to Canterbury ...

The Tale of Melibee "The Tale of Melibee" (also called "The Tale of Melibeus") is one of ''The Canterbury Tales'' by Geoffrey Chaucer. This is the second tale in the collection told by Chaucer himself. After being interrupted by the host Harry Bailly and reprimand ...

The Parson's Tale "The Parson's Tale" is the final tale of Geoffrey Chaucer's fourteenth-century poetic cycle '' The Canterbury Tales''. Its teller, the Parson, is a virtuous priest who takes his role as spiritual caretaker of his parish seriously. Instead of t ...

References

External links