Breve chronicon Northmannicum
Encyclopedia
The Breve chronicon Northmannicum or Little Norman Chronicle is a short, anonymous Latin
chronicle
of the Norman conquest of southern Italy
, supposed to have been written in Apulia
in the early twelfth-century. It covers the years from the first Norman "invasion" of Apulia in 1041 to the death of Robert Guiscard
in 1085. Though once treated as an important source, its reliability and authenticity have been called into question by André Jacob, who showed that it is probably an eigtheenth century forgery by Pietro Polidori. According to John France, who seems unaware of Jacob's argument, it was based mainly on an oral tradition
and was subsequently used as a source for both the Chronicon Amalfitanum and Romuald Guarna.
The first edition of the Chronicon was published by Ludovico Antonio Muratori
in the fifth volume of his Rerum italicarum scriptores (1724) under the long title Breve chronicon Northmannicum de rebus in Iapygia et Apulia gestis contra Graecos. The text he used was preserved in a twelfth- or thirteenth-century codex borrowed from Pietro Polidori, as well as a copy of c.1530, both now lost. Only one authentic copy remains, though a forgery of G. Guerrieri also exists. In 1971 a new edition was published by Errico Cuozzo in the Bollettino dell'Istituto storico italiano per il Medioevo, volume 83.
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. Despite the clerical origin of many of its authors,...
chronicle
Chronicle
Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the...
of the Norman conquest of southern Italy
Norman conquest of southern Italy
The Norman conquest of southern Italy spanned the late eleventh and much of the twelfth centuries, involving many battles and many independent players conquering territories of their own...
, supposed to have been written in Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
in the early twelfth-century. It covers the years from the first Norman "invasion" of Apulia in 1041 to the death of Robert Guiscard
Robert Guiscard
Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
in 1085. Though once treated as an important source, its reliability and authenticity have been called into question by André Jacob, who showed that it is probably an eigtheenth century forgery by Pietro Polidori. According to John France, who seems unaware of Jacob's argument, it was based mainly on an oral tradition
Oral tradition
Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
and was subsequently used as a source for both the Chronicon Amalfitanum and Romuald Guarna.
The first edition of the Chronicon was published by Ludovico Antonio Muratori
Ludovico Antonio Muratori
Ludovico Antonio Muratori was an Italian historian, notable as a leading scholar of his age, and for his discovery of the Muratorian fragment, the earliest known list of New Testament books....
in the fifth volume of his Rerum italicarum scriptores (1724) under the long title Breve chronicon Northmannicum de rebus in Iapygia et Apulia gestis contra Graecos. The text he used was preserved in a twelfth- or thirteenth-century codex borrowed from Pietro Polidori, as well as a copy of c.1530, both now lost. Only one authentic copy remains, though a forgery of G. Guerrieri also exists. In 1971 a new edition was published by Errico Cuozzo in the Bollettino dell'Istituto storico italiano per il Medioevo, volume 83.