employed in the service of the king." That he originally wrote in Latin, appears from the antient title verfificator: and may be moreover collected from the two Latin poems, which Bafton and Gulielmus, who appear to have respectively acted in the capacity of royal poets to Richard the first and Edward the fecond, officially compofed on Richard's crufade, and Edward's fiege of Striveling castle'. Andrew Bernard, fucceffively poet laureate of Henry the feventh and the eighth, affords a ftill ftronger proof that this officer was a Latin fcholar. He was a native of Tholouse, and an Auguftine monk. He was not only the king's poet laureate, as it is fuppofed, but his hiftoriographer ', and preceptor in grammar to prince Arthur. He obtained many ecclefiaftical preferments in England'. All the pieces now to be found, which he wrote in the character of poet laureate, are in Latin. Thefe are, an ADDRESS to Henry the See fapr. vol. i. p. 232. By the way, Bafton is called by Bale" laureatus apud "Oxonienfes." Cent. iv. cap. 92. See an inftrument PRO POETA LAUREATO. dat. 1486. Rymer's Fo■D. tom. xii. p. 317. But, by the way, in this inArument there is no fpecification of any thing to be done officially by Bernard. The king only grants to Andrew Bernard, Poeta laureate, which we may conftrue either THE laureated poet, or A poet laureate, a falary of ten marcs, till he can obtain fome equivalent appointment. This, however, is only a precept to the treasurer and chamberlains to disburse the falary, and refers to letters patent, not printed by Rymer. It is certain that Gower and Chaucer were never appointed to this office, notwithstanding this is commonly fuppofed. Skelton, in his CROWNE OF LAWRELL, fees Gower, Chaucer, and Lydgate approach: he defcribes their whole apparel as glittering with the richest precious ftones, and then immediately adds, They wanted nothing but the LAURELL. Afterwards, however, there is the rubric Maifter Chaucer LAUREATE poete to Skelton. Works, p. 21. 22. edit. 1736. Apoftolo Zeno was both poet and hiftoriographer to his imperial majefty. So was Dryden to James the fecond. It is obfervable that Petrarch was laureated as poet and historian. One of thefe, the maftership of faint Leonard's hofpital at Bedford, was given him by bishop Smith, one of the founders of Brafe-nofe college, Oxford, in the year 1498. Regiftr. SMITH, epifc. Lincoln. fub. ann. 'Some of Skelton's Latin poems feem to be written in the character of the Royal laureate, particularly one, entitled " Hæc Laureatus "Skeltonus, orator reginæ, fuper trium phali, &c. It is fubfcribed "Per Skelto"nida Laureatum, oratorem regium." Works, p. 110. edit. ut fupr. Hardly any of his English pieces, which are numerous, appear to belong to that character. With regard to the ORATOR REGIUS, I find one John Mallard in that office to Henry the eighth, and his epiftolary secretary. He has left a Latin elegiac paraphrafe on the lord's prayer, MSS. Bibl. Reg. 7 D. eighth for the most auspicious beginning of the tenth year of his reign, with an EPITHALAMIUM on the marriage of Francis the Dauphin of France with the king's daughter". A NEW YEAR'S GIFT for the year 1515". And verfes wishing prosperity to his majesty's thirteenth year *. He has left fome Latin hymns' and many of his Latin profe pieces, which he wrote in the quality of historiographer to both monarchs, are remaining. I am of opinion, that it was not customary for the royal laureate to write in English, till the reformation of religion had begun to diminish the veneration for the Latin language: or rather, till the love of novelty, and a better sense of things, had banished the narrow pedantries of monaftic erudition, and taught us to cultivate our native tongue. In the mean time it is to be wished, that another change might at least be suffered to take place in the execution of this inftitution, which is confeffedly Gothic, and unaccommodated to modern manners. I mean, that the more than annual return of a compofition on a trite argument would be no longer required. I am confcious I say this at a time, when the best of kings affords the most just and copious theme for panegyric: but I fpeak it at a time, when the department is honourably filled by a poet of taste and genius, which are idly wasted on the moft fplendid fubjects, when impofed by constraint, and perpetually repeated. To what is here incidentally collected on an article more xiii. Dedicated to that king. Le premier livre de la cofmographie, in verse, ibid. 20 B. xii. And a Pfalter, beautifully written by himself, for the ufe of the king. In the margin, are short notes in the handwriting, and two exquifite miniatures, of Henry the eighth. Ibid. 2 A. xvi. "MS. olim penes Thom. Martin de Palgrave. w MSS. Coll. Nov. Oxon. 287. * Brit. Muf. MSS. Reg. 12 A. x. The copy prefented. In paper. There is a wretched falfe quantity in the first line, Indue, honor, cultus, et adole munera flammis. y And a Latin life of saint Andrew. MSS. Cotton. DOMITIAN. A. xviii. 15. z A chronicle of the life and atchievements of Henry the feventh to the taking of Perkin Warbeck, MSS. Cotton. DoMITIAN. A. xviii. 15. Other historical commentaries on the reign of that king, Ibid. JUL. A. 4. JUL. A. 3. curious curious than important, I add an observation, which shews that the practice of other nations in this refpect altogether correfponded with that of our own. When we read of the laureated poets of Italy and Germany, we are to remember, that they most commonly received this honour from the ftate, or some univerfity; feldom, at least not immediately, from the prince: and if we find any of these profeffedly employed in the department of a court-poet, that they were not, in confequence of that peculiar fituation, styled poets laureate. The distinction, at least in general, was previously conferred'. John Scogan is commonly fuppofed to have been a cotemporary of Chaucer, but this is a mistake'. He was educated at Oriel college in Oxford: and being an excellent mimic, and of great pleafantry in converfation, became the favourite buffoon of the court of Edward the fourth, in which he passed the greatest part of his life. Bale inaccurately calls Scogan, the JoCULATOR of Edward the fourth: by which word he feems fimply to understand the king's JOKER, for he certainly could not mean that Scogan was his majefty's MINSTREL. Andrew Borde, a mad physician and The reader who requires a full and particular information concerning the first origin of the laureation of poets, and the folemnities with which this ceremony was performed in Italy and Germany, is referred to Selden's TIT. HON. Op. tom. P. 457. feq. VIE DE PETRARQUE, tom." iii. Notes, &c. p. 1. Not. quat. And to a memoir of M. l'Abbè du Refnel, MEM. LIT. x. 507. 4to. I will only add, the form of the creation of three poets laureate by the chancellor of the university of Strafburgh, in the year 1621. "I create you, being placed in a chair of state, crowned with laurel and ivy, and wearing a ring of gold, and the fame do pronounce and "conftitute, POETS LAUREATE, in the "name of the holy Trinity, the father, "fon, and holy ghoft. Amen." See Hollinfh. Chron. iii. f. 710. It is uncertain whether the poem addressed by Chaucer to Scogan, was really written by the former, MSS. Fairfax. xvi. с < Script. xi. 70. By the way, the SERJEANT of the King's Minstrels occurs under this reign: and in a manner, which fhews the confidential character of this officer, and his facility of accefs to the king at all hours and on all occafions. "And as he [k. Edw. iv.] was in the north contray in the moneth of Septembre, as "he laye in his bedde, one namid Alex"ander Carlisle, that was fariaunt of the "mynftrallis, cam to him in grete hafte, "and bade hym aryfe, for he hadde ene mys_cummyng, &c." A REMARKABLE FRAGMENT, etc. [an. ix. Edw. iv.] ad calc. SPORTTI CHRON. edit. Hearne. Oxon. 1729. 8vo. Compare Percy's Ess. MINSTR. p. 56. Anftis, ORD. GART. ii. 303. a dull a dull poet in the reign of Henry the eighth, published his JESTS, under the title of ScoGIN'S JESTS', which are without humour or invention; and give us no very favourable idea of the delicacy of the king and courtiers, who could be exhilarated by the merriments of fuch a writer. A MORAL BALADE, printed in Chaucer's works, addressed to the dukes of Clarence, Bedford, and Gloucester, and fent from a tavern in the Vintry at London, is attributed to Scogan. But our jocular bard evidently mistakes his talents when he attempts to give advice. This piece is the dulleft fermon that ever was written in the octave ftanza. Bale mentions his CoMEDIES', which certainly mean nothing dramatic, and are perhaps only his JESTS above-mentioned. He feems to have flourished about the year 1480. Two didactic poets on chemistry appeared in this reign, John Norton and George Ripley. Norton was a native of Bristol, and the most skillful alchemift of his age". His poem is called the ORDINAL, or a manual of the chemical art'. It was presented to Nevil archbishop of York, who was a great patron of the hermetic philofophers; which were lately grown fo numerous in England, as to occafion d It is from thefe pieces we learn that he was of Oriel college: for he speaks of retiring, with that fociety, to the hospital of faint Bartholomew, while the plague was at Oxford. Thefe JESTS are fixty in number. Pr. Pref. "There is nothing be"fides." Pr. On a time in Lent." They were reprinted about the restoration. 4to. e It may yet be doubted whether it belongs to Scogan; as it must have been written before the year 1447, and the writer complains of the approach of old age. col. i. v. 10. It was first printed, under Scogan's name, by Caxton, in the CoLLECTION OF CHAUCER's and LYDGATE'S POEMS. The little piece, printed as Chaucer's, [Urr. ed. p. 548.] called FLEE FROM THE PRESSE, is exprefsly given to Scogan, and called PROVERBIUM JOANNIS SKOGAN, MSS. C. C. C. Oxon. 203. f xi. 70. He fpeaks of the wife of William Canning, who will occur again below, five times mayor of Bristol, and the founder of faint Mary of Radcliffe church there. ORDINAL, P: 34: h Printed by Afhmole, in his THEATRUM CHEMICUM Lond. 1652. 8vo. p. 6. It was finished A. D. 1477. ORDIN. p. 106. It was tranflated into Latin by Michael Maier, M. D. Francof. 1618. 4to. Norton wrote other chemical pieces. i See ORDIN. p. 9. 10. Norton declares, that he learned his art in forty days, at twenty-eight years of age. Ibid. p. 33.88. Afhmole, ubi fupr. p. 455. Notes. an an act of parliament against the tranfmutation of metals. Norton's reason for treating his fubject in English rhyme, was to circulate the principles of a fcience of the most confummate utility among the unlearned'. This poem is totally void of every poetical elegance. The only wonder which it relates, belonging to an art, fo fertile in ftriking inventions, and contributing to enrich the ftore-house of Arabian romance with so many magnificent imageries, is that of an alchemist, who projected a bridge of gold over the river Thames near London, crowned with pinnacles of gold, which being studded with carbuncles, diffused a blaze of light in the dark". I will add a few lines only, as a specimen of his verfification. Wherefore he would fet up in higth Then all the londe of him would speake, &c". Norton's heroes in the occult fciences are Bacon, Albertus Magnus, and Raymond Lully, to whofe fpecious promifes of fupplying the coinage of England with inexhaustible mines of philofophical gold, king Edward the third became an illuftrious dupe. |