Travel Writers Online

The Making of the Queen's Manuscript The AHRC-funded proect 'The Making of the Queen's Manuscript' focused on London, British Library, Harley MS 4431, the largest surviving collected manuscript of the works of Christine de Pizan (1365-ca1431). Commissioned by Queen Isabel of France, the collection was planned, copied, decorated and corrected under Christine's direct supervision, before being presented to Queen Isabel early in 1414. This research programme has been funded by an Arts and Humanities Research Council grant of £199,716 over the five years from 1 October 2004 to 31 October 2009, and was carried out in partnership with the British Library. The BL contributed a complete set of high-resolution digital images of Harley MS 4431. The Research Programme The planned outcomes of the research programme were a study of Christine de Pizan's language. In that connexion the University of Edinburgh signed a collaboration agreement with ATILF (Analyse et Traitement I...

"O sleep, O gentle sleep, Nature's soft nurse, how have I frighted thee, That thou no more wilt weigh my eyelids down, And steep my senses in forgetfulness?"               Shakespeare (c.1596) Henry IV Part 2, Act III, Scene 1, ll.1709-1712. This is Henry IV of England, speaking these lines, (1367-1413) with all the worries of how he will make good his grandfather’s claim to the throne of France.   Shakespeare was writing these lines a couple of hundred years later, around 1596, when Elizabeth I was on the throne, still styling herself as the Queen of England and of France.   Meanwhile, across the Channel, Continue reading on Toureme  for Henri IV of France (1553-1610), known as Good King Henry, Nature’s soft nurse is kinder:   "Sleep hears his voice, and slow to Henry's bower, On lazy pinions moves the drowsy power. The zephyrs scarcely breathe as he goes by, Hope's children, airy Dreams, around him fly." ...