The Literary History of the Middle Ages: Comprehending an Account of the State of Learning, from ...

Front matter

It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one that was never subject to copyright or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often difficult to discover.

Marks, notations and other marginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the publisher to a library and finally to you.

Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order to keep providing this resource, we have taken steps to prevent abuse by commercial parties, including placing technical restrictions on automated querying.

Book I

VIEW OP THE DECLINE OF LITERATURE AND THE ARTS, FROM THE CLOSE OP THE REIGN OP AUGUSTUS, TO THE FALL OP THE WESTERN EMPIRE, IN 476.

Sketch of the state of letters in the Augustan age — The causes of their rise briefly examined — First period of their decline — Second period — Third period — ^Decline of eloquence — of poetry — of history — of philo sophy, &c. — The state of the libraries — Decline of the polite arts— The state of literature in Italy and in the distant provinces — The causes of the decline of literature and the arts — Was literature affected by the establishment of Christianity ? — The state of Grecian literature during the same period p. 1

BOOK IL

VIEW OP THE FALLEN STATE OF LITERATURE AND THE ARTS, FROM THE PALL OP THE WESTERN EMPIRE, IN 476, TO THE BEGINNING OP THE REIGN OF CHARLE- MAGNE, IN 774,

Settlements of the barbarous nations — in Italy — in Spain — in Gaul — in Africa — in Germany — in Britain — the Huns— Reflections on the character of the Goths — General outline of the times — State of learning in Italy during the Gothic reign — Disastrous state of Italy — Reign of the Lombards — State of learning — The end of the Lombard government — French writers— Spanish writers — Germany — The state of England — Bede — The works principally read in the schools p. CI

Vm CONTENTS.

Book III

STATE OP LEARNING FROM THE REIGN OF CHARLEMAGNE, A.D. 774, TO THE END OF THE TENTH CENTURY.

Dispositions of Charlemagne in regard to letters — ^Flatt€ring prospect at ' the opening of the ninth century — ^Why no success followed — The last years of Charlemagne — ^Alcuin, Paul Wamefrid and Eginhard — The successors of Charlemagne — State of -learning in Bome, and in other parts of the empke — General licentiousness — Conversion of barbarous nations — Kabanus Maurus — John Erigena — The use of theological controversies — ^Alfred — Flattering statement of Muratori — Ireland — The tenth century : a general view — The monks not assiduously employed — The reigns of the Othos — Literature of England — St. Dunstan — Gerbert, afterwards Sylvester II. - p. 100

Book IV. State Of Learning And The Arts In The Eleventh And Twelfth Centuries

The eleventh century — The Roman church : Leo IX.— The Norman settlers in Italy — Its language affected by them — Gregory VII. — The fictitious donation of Constantine — No change in the state of learning — Peter Damianus — The character of the poets and historians — Bologna and Salerno — State of France — The Normans: their character — Lanfranc — Political state of England — The Norman Conquest — Ingulph, abbot of Croyland — ^Anselm — ^Eadmer : his credulity, and that of the age — The Crusades — Twelfth century — Increased intercourse with Bome : its effects — ^New monastic orders — St. Bernard — Scholasticism introduced — Peter Abailard — ^Peter the Lombard — ^England — Oxford — Cambridge — ^English historians — John of Salisbury — Peter de Blois — Architecture and other arts p. 145

Book V. State Of Learning In The Thirteenth Century

Thirteenth century — Formation of modem languages — The romane or rofnance language — Trouyenis and troubadoura^The state of other

CONTENTS. XX

eountries — ^Italy — Conduct of the Roman bishops — Universities — Other crusades— And other monastic institutions — ^Diirines and philosophers : Thomas Aquinas — St. Bonayenture — ^Albertus Magnus — Boger Bacon — Bobert Grosteste — The various fortunes of Aristotle — Historians — Italian — Matthew Paris — Poetry — Saxon and English language — Its poetry — Latin poetry — Introduction of rhymes — Grammar and rhetoric p. 224

Book VI

STATE OF LEARNING FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE FOUR- TEENTH CENTURY, TO THE INVENTION OF THE ART OF PRINTING, ABOUT THE TEAR 1450.

The Fourteenth century — The poet Dante — State of Italy — Petrarca — Hi» researches after the works of the ancients — Character of his writings — Boccaccio— Coluccio Salutato — The learning of other countries — Duns Scotus— ^ohn Wickliflf — Geofirey Chaucer — His acquirements compai*ed with those of others, and his success with that of Petrarca and Boccaccio—French literature — Froissard — Spanish and German : why stationary — Fifteenth century — General view of Italy — Council of Constance — Martin V.— Councils of Basil and Florence— Nicholas V. — The enthusiasm of many Italians in quest of Latin authors— -Progress of the Greek language — Cardinal Bessorion — ^Various professors — Greek works — Gianozzi Monetti — Cultivated state of the Latin longuage — State of other countries — Oxford and Cambridge — Antiquarian researches — What obstacles still remained — The art of printing discovered - p. 227

APPENDIX.— No. I.

ON THE LEARNING OF THE GREEKS, FROM THE SIXTH CEN- TURY, TO THE FALL OF THE EASTERN EMPIRE, IN 1453.

Sixth century — The reign of Justinian — The effects of theological controversies — Tribonian and Procopius, &c. — The learning of Justinian — His taste for building — Saint Sophia — The Seventh Centurj' — State of things under Heraclius — ^A new controversy — Few writers of aify note — Eighth century — Iconoclasm — Low state of learning — St. John Damascene — The ninth century more auf.picious to learning — The P atriarch Nicephorus — Attempts of Michael the Stammerer — Bardas favours the cause of letters — ^Photius — His principal works — The Emperora Basil and Leo

A

CONTENTS.

— Tenth century — Constantine Porphyrogenitns — Simeon Metaphrastes — Suidas — The embassy of Liutprand — ^Eleventh century — State of the empire— Michael Psellus — Alexias Gonmenus — The first crusade — Twelfth century — John Comnenus — John Zonaras — Nicephorus Bryennius — Anna Comnena — Manuel Comnenus — Second crusade — Manuel fond of controTcrsy — ^Eustathius, the commentator of Homer— Athenseus — John Tzetzes — The closing events of the century — Thirteenth century — Constantinople taken by the Latins — Monuments of art destroyed — The eflfects of the capture on learning — Good conduct of the expelled princes — Nicetas and other writers — State of the Greek empire after its restoration — Fourteenth century — Literary character of Andronicus — TheodoruB Metochita — John Cantacuzenus — Nicephorus Gregorus — ^A curious controversy — ^Progress of the Turks — Greek anthologies — Fifteenth century — The question of union between the churches — Council of Ferrara and Florence — The Greeks return from Florence — Fall of the Eastern empire — Its three last historians — State of the Greek language p. 348

APPENDIX.— No. n.

ON THE ARABIAN OB SARACENIC LEARNING.

General view — The Saracens establish themselves in Africa and Spain — They encourage letters — Their grammar — ^Eloquence — ^Poetry— Philology— Lexicographers — ^Philosophy — ^Ethics and asceticism — Medicine —Natural history — ^Mathematics — Geography — ^History — The fall of Granada, the last Moorish settlement — And of the caliphate — The three Arabian historians — Conclusion ---p. 412

LITERARY HISTORY

THE MIDDLE AGES.