The ''Barnwell Chronicle'' is a thirteenth-century Latin

chronicle A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...

named after

Barnwell Priory Barnwell Priory was an Augustinian priory at Barnwell in Cambridgeshire, founded as a house of Canons Regular. The only surviving parts are 13th-century claustral building, which is a Grade II* listed, and remnants found in the walls, cellar and ...

, near

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, where the manuscript was kept. Its anonymous author is well-regarded by historians.

J. C. Holt Sir James Clarke Holt (26 April 1922 – 9 April 2014), also known as J. C. Holt and Jim Holt, was an English medieval historian, known particularly for his work on Magna Carta. He was the third Master of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, ser ...

described the Chronicler as "The most intelligent and valuable" and "perceptive" writer of his time. The Chronicler gives the fairest account of the reign of

King John of England King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

of any contemporaries describing him as a "great prince". He indicates that John's reforms of 1213 were worthy of being remembered. The Chronicler disliked foreigners and regrets John's use of foreign mercenaries, blaming them for the initial failures against the French invasion in 1215. The Chronicle implies John's failure was due to bad luck. The Chronicler also wrote of the reign of Henry III, regarding the struggle against the rebel barons as a crusade against infidels, and comments upon the increasing French acculturation in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

References

{{authority control English chronicles English chroniclers 13th-century Latin books

See also

References