Manuscript: Faustina B. IX

Rex Scottorum Hed frater eiusHedus i annum1Rex Scottorum Grig filius Doue
naldi :/rex fit & octo. In
Dunduren5 probus morte retentus
erat. Qui dedit ecclesie libertates
Scoticane Que sub Pictorum lege
redacta fuit. Huius ad imperium
fuit Anglia tota peracta
Quod non leua dedit sors sibi bel
la terens.
dicitur Ethandun, & pugnans uicit, qui metuentes obsidibus datis iurauerunt se a regno exituros, &
rex eorum Godrun futurum se Christianum promisit.
A[nno] dcccolxxoviiio Godrun baptizatus est quem rex Alueredus de sacro fonte suscepit, & dedit ei postea
Estangliam in qua Sanctus Ædmundus regnauerat, & uocauit eum Athelstan. Karolus Caluus rex Francorum2obiit.
A[nno] dcccolxxoixo nouus paganorum exercitus in Angliam ueniens mansit in ¶Occiditur Constantius3 rex Scottorum
Fulenham iuxta fluuium Tamesię. Rex Scotorum Het occiditur, post quem Grig sua iura gerens annis deca :/
A[nno] dcccolxxxo Godrun cum suis inhabitare cępit Estangliam. Exercitus qui uenerat in Fulenham
mare transiit, & apud Gant uno anno permansit. Ludouicus rex Francorum filius Karoli Calui obiit.
A[nno] dcccolxxxoio idem exercitus ueniens in Franciam bellum intulit & inuenit. Hiis diebus mul
ta Francorum monasteria desolata sunt. Nam & fratres cenobii Sancti Benedicti ossa ipsius de tumulo
eruentes huc illucque discurrebant.
A[nno] dcccolxxxoiio idem exercitus uenit per fluuium Mese in Franciam, & ibidem hyemauit. Rex
Alueredus nauali prelio naues paganorum uicit, duabus comprehensis.
A[nno] dcccolxxxoiiio predictus exercitus occupans Cundoth ibidem grassatur per annum unum. Rex
Alueredus ut supradictum est occisis Iwar & Haldene uastatas Norhumbrię partes cępit incolere.
Tunc Sanctus Cuthbertus abbati Edredo per uisionem assistens precepit ut episcopo & toti Anglorum & Danorum gen
ti diceret, quatinus Guthredum filium Ardecnut quem Dani uendiderant in seruum cuidam uiduę apud Wi
tingeham - dato redemptionis precio redimerent, & in regem super Northumbros leuarent quod & factum est
& regnauit super Eboracum, Egbertus uero ultra Tinam. Tunc instaurata est sedes in Cuncacestre
quę prius fuerat in Lindisfarnia.
A[nno] dcccolxxxoiiiio Marinus papa dona multa inter quę & particulam ligni crucis Domini Alueredo regi
Anglorum misit, & pro eius amore scolam Saxonum ab omni tributo & thelone liberauit.
A[nno] dcccolxxxovo supradictus paganorum exercitus diuisus est in duas partes, quarum una in orientalem seces
sit Franciam, altera in Angliam rediens Rouecestriam obsedit, quam rex Alueredus ab obsidione deie
cit. Misit rex Alueredus naualem exercitum ad defensionem Estanglię, ubi naues pyraticę xvi inuentę
sunt & comprehensę in Sturemutha. Redeuntes uero magno exercitui paganorum obuiarunt, & cum eis con
gressi uicti sunt. Eodem anno Karolus rex Francorum in uenatione apri dentibus laceratur, qui Ludouico
fratri suo succederat. Erat autem pater eorum Ludouicus frater Iudithę reginę, quam rex Aðelwlfus duxerat. Obiit Marinus p.6
A[nno] dcccolxxxovio paganorum exercitus de orientali Francia in occidentalem rediit, & per flumen Secanum \Sequanam/ perue
nit Parisius, & obsidens ciuitatem anno uno nichil preualuit. Rex Alueredus Lundoniam obsidens cepit,
uenientibus ad eum Anglis & fugientibus Dacis, qui Eðelredo Merciorum comiti restauratam com
A[nno] dcccolxxxoviio paganorum exercitus Parisius deserens iuit per Secanum ¶mendauit ciuitatem.
usque ad Marnam, inde ad Caedzi ubi per annum grassantes ostium fluminis Iorna intrauerunt,
ibique per annum magno regionis dampno morati sunt. Karolus rex Francorum ab Ernulfo filio fratris
sui de regno expulsus post xl dies obiit. Tunc diuisum est regnum Francorum in partes v. Idem
Ernulfus obtinuit regiones ad orientem Rheni fluminis, Rodulfus mediterraneum regnum,
Odo occidentale, Brengar & Wido omnes Longobardiam, & omnes regiones ex illa parte montium.
A[nno] dcccolxxxoviiio rex Alueredus construxit duo monasteria, unum monachorum in loco qui dicitur
Eaðelingeie, alteram sanctimonialium iuxta orientalem portam Sca\f/tesbiri, in quo filiam suam Eðel
giuam7 abbatiss\a/m8 constituit.
A[nno] dcccolxxxoixo Eðelredus Cant’ archiepiscopus obiit, cui successit Plegmundus.
Eiusdem frater regnauerat albipes Edhus, qui Grig Dofnalide saucius ense perit
Hic postquam primum regni compeuerat4 annum, in Stratalun uitam wlnere finierat.

Notes

1 JT: The Andersons (The Chronicle of Melrose, pp. xxviii–xxix) note: ‘…connected with year 879, there is an earlier note, apparently: Hedus unum a[nnum]. Part of an earlier note underlay the Verse Chronicle; but only xvii. a[nnos] remains visible. The numbers indicate the reign-lengths of the kings called Hed and Grig, and since the number eighteen agrees with the account given in the Verse Chronicle, and with very few other Chronicles of the Kings, it seems probable that these earlier notes also were derived from the Verse Chronicle, before the time when that chronicle was entered in the Chronicle of Melrose.’
2 DB: The original ending of this entry, which spilled into the next line, has been erased to make room for Occiditur Constantius rex etc. (obiit has been substituted at the end of the line). The Andersons (The Chronicle of Melrose, p. xxvii) suggested that the erased words were probably filius Ludouici obiit.
3 DB: Read Constantinus.
4 DB: Read compleuerat.
5 DB: Read Dundurne.
6 DB: Read Papa. Either there was only space in the inner margin for a p, or most of the word was cut away in the cropping process.
7 DB: The u was evidently begun as another letter and changed to a u in the process of writing.
8 DB: Originally written abbatissim.
Áed king of Scots, his brotherÁed 1 yearGrig son of Domnall, king of
Scots :/ king for eighteen years. The worthy
man was taken by death at Dundurn. He
gave freedoms to the Scottish Church
which had been degraded by the law
of the Picts. All England was added
to his realm, which a not unlucky
chance gave him: a crushing
battle.
is called Edington, and fighting, was victorious. They, anxious about the hostages which had been given, swore that they would withdraw from the kingdom; and their king, Guthrum, promised that he would become a Christian.
In the 878th year Guthrum was baptized, whom King Ælfred adopted from the holy font, and afterwards gave him East Anglia in which the holy Eadmund had reigned, and called him Æthelstan. Charles the Bald, king of the Franks, died.
In the 879th year a new army of pagans, coming into England, stayed in ¶Custantín king of Scots is slain. Áed whitefoot,
Fulham on the Thames. Áed king of Scots is slain, after whom: Giric, exercising his right, became :/

In the 880th year Guthrum with his people began to inhabit East Anglia. The army which had come to Fulham crossed by sea, and stayed on for one year at Ghent. Louis, king of the Franks, son of Charles the Bald, died.
In the 881st year the same army, coming into France, made and met with battle. During these days many Frankish monasteries were abandoned: certainly the brothers of the house of St Benedict, digging up his bones from the grave, ran about hither and thither.
In the 882nd year the same army came into France by the River Meuse, and wintered there. King Ælfred vanquished ships of the pagans in a naval battle, and two were captured.
In the 883rd year the aforesaid army, taking possession of Condé, goes on the riot there for one year. King Ælfred, after Ívarr and Hálfdan had been slain, as has been said above, began to settle the devastated parts of Northumbria. Then St Cuthberht, coming forward through a vision to abbot Eadred, directed that he should say to the bishop and to all the English and to the Danish people how they should buy back Guthfrith son of Harthacnut, who the Danes had sold as a slave to a certain widow at Whittingham, once the price for his redemption had been offered; and they should raise him up as king over the Northumbrians. And this was done, and he ruled over York, and Ecgberht, moreover, beyond the Tyne. Then the see which had earlier been in Lindisfarne was re-established in Chester-le-Street.
In the 884th year Pope Marinus sent many gifts to Ælfred, king of the English, among which was a small piece of wood from the cross of the Lord; and out of his love he freed the English school from all tribute and toll.
In the 885th year the aforesaid army of pagans was divided into two parts, of which one withdrew to eastern Francia, and the other, returning to England, besieged Rochester; and King Ælfred dislodged them from the siege. King Ælfred sent a naval force for the defence of East Anglia, where 16 pirate ships were found and captured, in the mouth of the Stour. On the way back they met a great army of pagans and, after they had engaged with them, were overcome. In the same year Charles, king of the Franks, was mangled by the tusks of a boar while hunting; he had succeeded his brother Louis. Now, their father, Louis, was the brother of Queen Judith, who King Æthelwulf married. P[ope] Marinus died.
In the 886th year the army of pagans returned from East Francia to the west, and reached Paris by the River Seine \Seine/ ; and, beseiging the city for one year, gained nothing. King Ælfred, beseiging London, took it, with the English coming to him and the Danes fleeing; he entrusted ¶the restored city to Æthelred, ealdorman of the Mercians.
In the 887th year the army of pagans, abandoning Paris, went by the Seine as far as the Marne, and from there to Chézy where, loitering for a year, they entered the mouth of the River Yonne, and they stayed there for a year, to the great harm of the region. Charles, king of the Franks, expelled from the kingship by Arnulf, his brother’s son, died 40 days later. Then the kingdom of the Franks was divided into 5 parts: the same Arnulf took the regions to the east of the River Rhine, Rudolf the inland realm, Odo the western, Berengar and Guido all Lombardy, and all regions on the other side of the mountains.
In the 888th year King Ælfred built two monasteries, one for monks in the place which is called Athelney, the other for nuns next the east gate at Shaftsbury, in which he appointed his daughter Æthelgifu abbess.
In the 889th year Æthelred, archbishop of Canterbury, died; Plegmund succeeded him.  
brother of the same, reigned, who perished, injured by the sword of Grig son of Domnall,
after he had completed the first year of kingship, he ended life by a wound at Strathallan.

Notes