William of Newburgh or Newbury (, ''Wilhelmus Neubrigensis'', or ''Willelmus de Novoburgo''. 1136 – 1198), also known as William Parvus, was a 12th-century English historian and

Augustinian canon The Canons Regular of St. Augustine are Catholic priests who live in community under a rule ( and κανών, ''kanon'', in Greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious ...

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

descent from

Bridlington Bridlington (previously known as Burlington) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is on the Holderness part (Flamborough Head to the Humber estuary) of the Yorkshire Coast by the North Sea. The town is ...

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, often abbreviated to the East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, S ...

. William experienced the Jewish pogroms in York in the late 12th century mentioning, "the slaughter was less the work of religious zeal than of bold and covetous men who wrought the business of their own greed". William also composed a lengthy Marian exposition on the

Song of Songs The Song of Songs (), also called the Canticle of Canticles or the Song of Solomon, is a Biblical poetry, biblical poem, one of the five ("scrolls") in the ('writings'), the last section of the Tanakh. Unlike other books in the Hebrew Bible, i ...

and three sermons on liturgical texts and

Saint Alban Saint Alban (; ) is venerated as the first-recorded British Christian martyr, for which reason he is considered to be the British protomartyr. Along with fellow Saints Julius and Aaron, Alban is one of three named martyrs recorded at an ea ...

History of English Affairs

William's major work was ''Historia rerum Anglicarum'' or ''Historia de rebus anglicis'' ("History of English Affairs"), a history of England from 1066 to 1198, written in Latin. The work is valued by historians for detailing

The Anarchy The Anarchy was a civil war in England and Duchy of Normandy, Normandy between 1138 and 1153, which resulted in a widespread breakdown in law and order. The conflict was a war of succession precipitated by the accidental death of William Adel ...

under

Stephen of England Stephen (1092 or 1096 – 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. He was Count of Boulogne '' jure uxoris'' from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 113 ...

. It is written in an engaging fashion and still readable to this day, containing many fascinating stories and glimpses into 12th-century life. He is a major source for stories of

medieval revenants In folklore, a revenant is a spirit or animated corpse that is believed to have been revived from death to haunt the living. The word ''revenant'' is derived from the Old French word (see also the related French verb ). Revenants are part of ...

, animated corpses that returned from their graves, with close parallels to

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

beliefs, and the only source for the bishop-pirate

Wimund Wimund was a bishop who became a seafaring warlord adventurer in the years after 1147. His story is passed down to us by 12th-century English historian William of Newburgh in his ''Historia rerum anglicarum'', Book I, Chapter 24 entitled "Of bis ...

. The 19th-century historian

Edward Augustus Freeman Edward Augustus Freeman (2 August 182316 March 1892) was an English historian, architectural artist, and Liberal politician, a one-time candidate for Parliament. He held the position of Regius Professor of Modern History at Oxford, where he tut ...

expressed the now outdated opinion that William was "the father of historical criticism." Indeed, he was very critical of King

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, whom he describes as "nature's enemy", and in general his discussion of English kings is "loyal but critical and cool". William saw his own work as being based on reliable sources, unlike

Geoffrey of Monmouth Geoffrey of Monmouth (; ; ) was a Catholic cleric from Monmouth, Wales, and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur. He is best known for his chronicle '' The History of ...

's ''

Historia Regum Britanniae (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a fictitious account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the List of legendary kings o ...

'', of which Newburgh was highly critical, saying "only a person ignorant of ancient history would have any doubt about how shamelessly and impudently he lies in almost everything." He criticised Geoffrey for writing a history that conflicted with the accounts found in the writings of

Bede Bede (; ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Bede of Jarrow, the Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (), was an English monk, author and scholar. He was one of the most known writers during the Early Middle Ages, and his most f ...

and the church. Because belief in souls returning from the dead was common in the 12th century, William's ''Historia'' briefly recounts stories he heard about revenants, as does the work of

Walter Map Walter Map (; 1130 – 1209/1210) was a medieval writer. He wrote '' De nugis curialium'', which takes the form of a series of anecdotes of people and places, offering insights into the history of his time. Map was a courtier of King He ...

, his Welsh contemporary. Although they form a minor part in each work, these folklore accounts have attracted attention within

occultism The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mystic ...

. He also described the arrival of green children from "St. Martin's Land" and other mysterious, wondrous occurrences. While he says that these have an apparent signification, he does not explain what that meaning might be: "he offers these prodigious events to his readers with questions, hesitations, and doubt – with, in short, all the confessions of a critical and honest mind".Partner 115.

"The latest complete edition of William's history is still that found in Chronicles of the Reigns of Stephen, Henry II and Richard I. Edited by Richard Howlett. Rolls Series no. 82. London, 1884-9. Books 1-4 of William's history appear in volume 1, book 5 in volume 2."

References

Sources

* * ''The History of 'William of Newburgh' (1066–1198)'', Joseph Stevenson (Translator), LLanerch Press, 1996, , This is believed to be the Seeley's 1861 version as seen above, without Scott McLetchie's spelling updates. * ''Chronicles of the Reigns of Stephen, Henry II and Richard I.'' Edited by Richard Howlett. Rolls Series no. 82. London, 1884–9. Books 1–4 of William's history appear in volume 1, book 5 in volume 2. Most recent complete source. * ''The History of English Affairs, Book I (Medieval Latin Texts)'', by William, P. G. Walsh, M. J. Kennedy, 1988, , Book I only.
''The Sermons of William of Newburgh''
(Latin Edition), ed. A.B. Kraebel. * ''The History of English Affairs'', Book I. Ed. and trans. P. G. Walsh and M. J. Kennedy. Warminster: Aris and Phillips, 1988. * ''The History of English Affairs'', Book II. Ed. and trans. P. G. Walsh and M. J. Kennedy. Oxford: Aris and Phillips, 2007.

External links

*

from ''

The Cambridge History of English and American Literature ''The Cambridge History of English and American Literature'' is an encyclopedia of literary criticism that was published by Cambridge University Press between 1907 and 1921. Edited and written by an international panel of 171 leading scholars and ...

'', Volume I, 1907–21. * {{Authority control 1130s births 1190s deaths Augustinian canons 12th-century English historians People from Bridlington