Birgitta of Sweden

Birgitta of Sweden: Life and Selected Revelations by St Birgitta of Sweden and others, translated by Albert Ryle Kezel, 235 pages

St Birgitta (often referred to as St Bridget but here given the more Teutonic variant in order to distinguish her from her more popular Irish namesake) was born in Sweden around 1303 and died in Rome in 1373.  Such was her reputation that she was canonized less than two decades later.  Beginning in early girlhood, she experienced a series of mystical visions of varying nature and subject matter, all drawing her into an ever more passionate love for God, a consuming flame that demanded to be spread to others. 

The core of St Birgitta's visions, as they are presented here, are of a dissolute monk (unnamed but known to the visionary) who interrogates God as to His nature and the nature of His creation.  This runs through an impressive catalogue of objections to God's existence, not only general questions about the existence of evil but also more specific inquiries into the cruelty of beasts, the economy of salvation, and the purpose of pleasure, all resolved with holy clarity and simplicity.  The collection of texts is rounded off with the rather dry Life prepared for her canonization and a selection of moving prayers to Christ and His Mother.

Three Purgatory Poems

Three Purgatory Poems: The Gast of Gy, Sir Owain, The Vision of Tundale, edited by Edward E Foster, 254 pages

This book collects three fourteenth century poems involving Purgatory and the bonds of love which connect the living and the dead.  In "The Gast of Gy" the titular gast (ghost) haunts his wife until she seeks help from the local Dominicans, who interrogate the spirit about his place in the afterlife and provide him with their prayers of assistance.  "Sir Owain" is a romance about a 12th century English knight who travels through a mystical Irish cave to Purgatory.  "The Vision of Tundale" tells the story of a crooked merchant who has what moderns would call a near-death experience in which his guardian angel gives him a tour of the afterlife, a tale the Latin original of which may have helped inspire Dante.

The texts are presented in Middle English (although some are themselves translations of older poems), with marginal notes when the language is sufficiently different from Modern English that such help is likely to be necessary and longer notes at the end of each work to more fully explain difficult passages.  The result is a text which maximizes both readability and clarity, making the original works accessible without burying them in commentary or rewriting them entirely.

The Bruce

The Bruce by John Barbour, translated by Archibald AH Douglas, 476 pages

John Barbour is the Homer of Scottish poetry, and his masterpiece is this epic retelling of the adventures of Robert the Bruce during his fight for Scottish independence and succeeding reign as King.  Unlike Homer, Barbour was only a generation removed from the events he chronicled, and his work is apparently considered a valuable historical resource.  It is as poetry, however, that it stands or falls, and its excellence makes its relative obscurity difficult to understand.  In his introduction, translator Douglas suggests that the lack of a verse translation into modern English is largely to blame, and if this is the case hopefully another half century will see its rediscovery.

Black Prince

The Black Prince: England's Greatest Medieval Warrior by Michael Jones, 408 pages

He was three years old when he was named an earl.  He became a duke at six.  He was first placed in charge of the kingdom at the age of eight, while his father was overseas.  He fought in his first tournament at fourteen.  At sixteen he led men into battle, distinguishing himself commanding a division in the dramatic English victory at Crecy.  At twenty-six, he led the army that crushed the French at Poitiers.  At thirty-two, he ruled as Prince of Aquitaine.  After a long, debilitating illness, he died a week before his forty-sixth birthday, leaving behind his elderly father and nine-year-old son, the future Richard II.

Edward, the eldest son of England's Edward III, was not known as "the Black Prince" during his lifetime - indeed, the origins and meaning of the name are somewhat obscure.  In that lifetime, he was celebrated as the flower of European chivalry, combining bravery and piety, humility and magnificence.  Michael Jones recaptures these qualities in his lively portrait of Edward's life and world.