Gesta Romanorum, a Latin collection of anecdotes and tales, was probably compiled about the end of the 13th century or the beginning of the 14th. It still possesses a two-fold literary interest, first as one of the most popular books of the time, and secondly as the source, directly or indirectly, of later literature, in Chaucer, Gower, Shakespeare and others. Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... This 14th-century statue from south India depicts the gods Shiva (on the left) and Uma (on the right). ... Chaucer: Illustration from Cassells History of England, circa 1902. ... The tomb of John Gower in Southwark Cathedral. ... William Shakespeare—born April 1564; baptised April 26, 1564; died April 23, 1616 (O.S.), May 3, 1616 (N.S.)—has a reputation as the greatest of all writers in English. ...

Of its authorship nothing certain is known; and there is little but gratuitous conjecture to associate it either with the name of Helinandus or with that of Petrus Berchorius (Pierre Bercheure). It is even a matter of debate whether it took its rise in England, Germany or France. The work was evidently intended as a manual for preachers, and was probably written by one who himself belonged to the clerical profession. The name, Deeds of the Romans, is only partially appropriate to the collection in its present form, since, besides the titles from Greek and Latin history and legend, it comprises fragments of very various origin, oriental and European. The unifying element of the book is its moral purpose.

The style is barbarous, and the narrative ability of the compiler seems to vary with his source; but he has managed to bring together a considerable variety of excellent material. He gives us, for example, the germ of the romance of Guy of Warwick; the story of Darius and his Three Sons, versified by Occleve; part of Chaucer's Man of Lawes Tale; a tale of the emperor Theodosius, the same in its main features as that of Shakespeare's Lear; the story of the Three Black Crows; the Hermit and the Angel, well known from Parnell's version, and a story identical with the Fridolin of Schiller. Guy of Warwick is a legendary English romantic hero popular in England and France from the 13th to the 17th century. ... Thomas Occleve (or Hoccleve) (1368 - 1450?), English poet, was born probably in 1368/9, for, writing in 1421/2 he says he was fifty-three years old (). He ranks, like his more voluminous and better known contemporary Lydgate, among those poets who have a historical rather than intrinsic importance in... The Man of Laws Tale is the fifth of the Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer (1387). ... King Lear and the Fool in the Storm by William Dyce (1806-1864) King Lear is generally regarded as one of William Shakespeares greatest tragedies. ... Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (November 10, 1759 - May 9, 1805), usually known as Friedrich Schiller, was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and dramatist. ...

Owing to the loose structure of the book, it was easy for a transcriber to insert any additional story into his own copy, and consequently the manuscripts of the Gesta Romanorum exhibit considerable variety. Oesterley recognizes an English group of manuscripts (written always in Latin), a German group (sometimes in Latin and sometimes in German), and a group which is represented by the vulgate or common printed text. The earliest editions are those of Ketelaer and de Lecompt at Utrecht, of Arnold Ter Hoenen at Cologne, and of Ulrich Zell at Cologne; but the exact date is in all three cases uncertain. This article needs to be updated. ...

An English translation, probably based directly on the manuscript Harl. 5369, was published by Wynkyn de Worde about 1510-1515, the only copy of which now known to exist is preserved in the library of St John's College, Cambridge. In 1577 Richard Robinson published a revised edition of Wynkyn de Worde, and the book proved highly popular. Between 1648 and 1703 at least eight impressions were issued. In 1703 appeared the first vol. of a translation by BP, probably Bartholomew Pratt, from the Latin edition of 1514. A translation by the Rev. C Swan, first published in 2 vols in 1824, forms part of Bohn's antiquarian library, and was re-edited by Wynnard Hooper in 1877 (see also the latters edition in 1894). Wynkyn de Worde, born in Alsace, was the successor to William Caxton in his English printing business, taking over and running Caxtons press after his death. ... Full name The College of Saint John the Evangelist of the University of Cambridge Motto Named after The Hospital of Saint John the Evangelist, Cambridge, named after John the Evangelist Previous names Incorporates part of what was Merton Hall which no longer exists Established 1511 Sister College(s) Balliol College... Events March 17 - formation of the Cathay Company to send Martin Frobisher back to the New World for more gold May 28 - Publication of the Bergen Book, better known as the Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord, one of the Lutheran confessional writings. ...

The German translation was first printed at Augsburg, 1489. A French version, under the title of Le Violer des histoires romaines moralse, appeared in the early part of the 16th century, and went through a number of editions; it has been reprinted by G Brunet (Paris, 1858). Critical editions of the Latin text have been produced by A Keller (Stuttgart, 1842) and Oesterley (Berlin, 1872). See also Warton, "On the Gesta Romanorum", dissertation iii., prefixed to the History of English Poetry; Douce, Illustrations of Shakespeare, vol. ii.; Frederic Madden, Introduction to the Roxburghe Club edition of The Old English Versions of the Gesta Romanorum (1838). Joseph Warton (April, 1722 - February 23, 1800) was an English academic and literary critic. ... Francis Douce (1757 - 1834), antiquary, born in London, was for some time employed at the British Museum. ... Sir Frederic Madden (February 16, 1801 - March 8, 1873), was an English palaeographer. ...

See also

• Matter of Rome

According to the mediæval poet Jean Bodel, the Matter of Rome was the literary cycle made up of Greek and Roman mythology, together with episodes from the history of classical antiquity, focusing on military heroes like Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. ...

References

This article incorporates text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, a publication in the public domain. Encyclopædia Britannica, the 11th edition The 11th edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...