Unavailable
Unavailable
Unavailable
Ebook613 pages8 hours
A History Book for Scots: Selections from the Scotichronicon
By Walter Bower and D.E.R. Watt
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
Unavailable in your country
Unavailable in your country
About this ebook
Writing on a small island in the Firth of Forth in the 1440s, Walter Bower set out to tell the whole story of the Scottish nation in a single huge book, the Scotichronicon - 'a history book for Scots'. It begins with the mythical voyage of Scota, the Pharaoh's daughter, from Egypt with the Stone of Destiny. The land that her sons discovered in the Western Ocean was named after her: Scotland. It goes on to describe the turbulent events that followed, among them the wars of the Scots and the Picts (begun by a quarrel over a dog); the poisoning of King Fergus by his wife; Macbeth's usurpation and uneasy reign; the good deeds of Margaret, queen and saint; Bruce's murder of the Red Comyn; the founding of Scotland's first university at St Andrews; the 'Burnt Candlemas'; and the endless troubles between Scotland and England.
Weaving in and out of the events of Bower's factual history, like a wonderful pageant, are other subjects that fascinated him: harrowing visions of hell and purgatory, extraordinary miracles; the exploits of knights and beggars, merchants and monks; the ravages of flood and fire; the terrors of the plague; and the answers to such puzzling questions as what makes a good king, and why Englishmen have tails. In 1998 Donald Watt and his team of scholars completed the first modern edition and translation of Scotichronicon in nine volumes. It has been described as 'a massive achievement for Scottish cultural history' (Sally Mapstone) and 'an open invitation to join a voyage of discovery' (Books in Scotland). This selection from the whole of Scotichronicon puts Bower's epic of Scotland into the hands of the general reader. It is a marvellous and unforgettable story. Perhaps its importance is best summed up by Bower himself, who wrote at the end of it: Non Scotus est Christe cui liber non placet iste - Christ! He is not a Scot who is not pleased with this book!
A History Book for Scots is selected from the complete edition of Scotichronicon by Walter Bower, edited by D E R Watt and a team of scholars, in nine volumes. This monumental work of scholarship, in which the original Latin text appears side by side with a translation in modern English, was completed in 1998. Extensive introductory material and notes guide the reader through the complexities of Bower's history and its background.
Weaving in and out of the events of Bower's factual history, like a wonderful pageant, are other subjects that fascinated him: harrowing visions of hell and purgatory, extraordinary miracles; the exploits of knights and beggars, merchants and monks; the ravages of flood and fire; the terrors of the plague; and the answers to such puzzling questions as what makes a good king, and why Englishmen have tails. In 1998 Donald Watt and his team of scholars completed the first modern edition and translation of Scotichronicon in nine volumes. It has been described as 'a massive achievement for Scottish cultural history' (Sally Mapstone) and 'an open invitation to join a voyage of discovery' (Books in Scotland). This selection from the whole of Scotichronicon puts Bower's epic of Scotland into the hands of the general reader. It is a marvellous and unforgettable story. Perhaps its importance is best summed up by Bower himself, who wrote at the end of it: Non Scotus est Christe cui liber non placet iste - Christ! He is not a Scot who is not pleased with this book!
A History Book for Scots is selected from the complete edition of Scotichronicon by Walter Bower, edited by D E R Watt and a team of scholars, in nine volumes. This monumental work of scholarship, in which the original Latin text appears side by side with a translation in modern English, was completed in 1998. Extensive introductory material and notes guide the reader through the complexities of Bower's history and its background.
Unavailable
Author
Walter Bower
Walter Bower was born in Haddington, Scotland in 1385. He had occupations including author, religious leader, historian and abbot. He died in December 1449 at the age of 64 years old.
Read more from Walter Bower
A History Book for Scots: Selections from the Scotichronicon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Scotichronicon: Volume 6 Books XI-XII: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScotichronicon: Volume 5 Books IX-X: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScotichronicon: Volume 2 Books III-IV: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Scotichronicon: Volume 4 Books VII-VIII: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Scotichronicon: Volume 1 Books I-II: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScotichronicon: Volume 3 Books V-VI: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScotichronicon: Volume 8 Books XV-XVI: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScotichronicon: Volume 9 Critical Studies and General Indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScotichronicon: Volume 7 Books XIII-XIV: New edition in Latin and English with notes and indexes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to A History Book for Scots
Related ebooks
Mary and Philip: The marriage of Tudor England and Habsburg Spain Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCathedrals of Britain: Central and East Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Century of Remembrance: One Hundred Outstanding British War Memorials Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsManchester Cathedral: A history of the Collegiate Church and Cathedral, 1421 to the present Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBritain's lost revolution?: Jacobite Scotland and French grand strategy, 1701–8 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Paston Letters, Volume V (of 6) New Complete Library Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScottish Cathedrals Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStanding on Holy Ground in the Middle Ages Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDavid Joris and Dutch Anabaptism, 1524-1543 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Great Musicians: Purcell Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPerkin Warbeck: And yet, for all this glorious work of peace, Ourselves is scarce secure Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMagdalen College School Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEoin MacNeill: The pen and the sword Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSir Walter Ralegh: A Biography Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAccrington's Pals: The Full Story: The 11th Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment and the 158th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRails through Barnsley: A Photographic Journey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFra Angelico Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSir Christopher Wren Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEdinburgh and the Reformation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIrish Railways in the 1950s and 1960s: A Journey Through Two Decades Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Selected Chronicles of Froissart Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsField Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19: The Poems of Alick Lewis Ellis Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA History of the 9th (Highlanders) Royal Scots: The Dandy Ninth Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Future of Brexit Britain: Anglican Reflections on National Identity and European Solidarity Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIsle of Wight in the Great War Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsItalian Journeys Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Architecture of Sunderland: 1700-1914 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKing Edward III: A Retelling Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCambridge in the Great War Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Road to Derry: A Brief History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
European History For You
Mein Kampf: The Original, Accurate, and Complete English Translation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Forgotten Slave Trade: The White European Slaves of Islam Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Very Secret Sex Lives of Medieval Women Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Greek Mythology: Captivating Stories of the Ancient Olympians and Titans: Heroes and Gods, Ancient Myths Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Short History of the World: The Story of Mankind From Prehistory to the Modern Day Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Celtic Mythology: A Concise Guide to the Gods, Sagas and Beliefs Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mein Kampf: English Translation of Mein Kamphf - Mein Kampt - Mein Kamphf Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Quite Nice and Fairly Accurate Good Omens Script Book: The Script Book Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Violent Abuse of Women: In 17th and 18th Century Britain Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Victorian Lady's Guide to Fashion and Beauty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Anglo-Saxons: A History of the Beginnings of England: 400 – 1066 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of English Magic Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKilling England: The Brutal Struggle for American Independence Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Putin's People: How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took On the West Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gulag Archipelago [Volume 1]: An Experiment in Literary Investigation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Forever Changed British History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJane Austen: The Complete Novels Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Psychedelic Gospels: The Secret History of Hallucinogens in Christianity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dark Queens: The Bloody Rivalry That Forged the Medieval World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Witch: A History of Fear, from Ancient Times to the Present Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Forgotten Highlander: An Incredible WWII Story of Survival in the Pacific Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Gulag Archipelago [Volume 2]: An Experiment in Literary Investigation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for A History Book for Scots
Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars
4/5
2 ratings1 review
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Scotichronicon was written by Walter Bower in 1440 AD. It was his attempt to tell the whole history of Scotland and its people in one single book. Starting with the legendary voyage of Scota, the Pharoh's daughter, from Egypt, bringing with her the Stone of Destiny, he covers all the kings, queens, battles with England and other turbulent events which shaped the nation. Along the way he writes about the church, founding of the great Universities, plagues, attitudes to Jews, laws and taxes.This book is a selection of pieces taken from Bowers master work with brief commentaries setting each piece in context. A wonderful and fascinating read for anyone interested in Scotland, or in medieaval history.