An Edition of the Ipomedon B and C Texts

The aim of this dissertation is to create a student friendly edition of two Middle English romances: the late fifteenth-century The Lyfe of Ipomydon (henceforth referred to as the B text), and the fifteenth-century prose Ipomedon (henceforth known as the C text). Both texts are independently derived from the 10,580 line late twelfth-century Anglo-Norman Ipomedon by Hue de Rotelande.

The B text is a 2,346 line popular romance found in BL MS Harley 2252, which is a commonplace book mostly written and compiled by sixteenth-century merchant John Colyn. The language and spelling indicate that the author was from the North-East Midlands, and the phonological features suggest the text was composed probably in the second half of the fifteenth century.

The C text is a 16 folio prose romance found in the fifteenth-century Longleat House MS 257, a manuscript that was possibly owned by the future King Richard III, whose autograph appears on one of the pages of the C text. The ending of the text is missing but it can be conjectured from the other versions of the story.

The critical apparatus of this edition includes textual and explanatory notes, as well as glossing. The textual notes deal largely with changes between the manuscripts and the texts as they are presented in the edition. The explanatory notes contain literary and historical information that sheds light on the texts. The introduction deals with the background of the B and C texts, as well as their relation to each other and their source. A plot summary highlights some of the changes between the different versions. Also included is a stylistic analysis of the texts; a discussion of the critical reception of the texts, both medieval and modern; a discussion of some of the key themes; and a description of both manuscripts and their contents.