A History of English Versification

The technical nature of this text required the extensive use of characters and typographical features that are not supported in Kindle and ePub formats. The html version, available from Project Gutenberg, will provide the most useful reading experience.
There are also a number of printer’s errors that were detected and corrected, which are also annotated using mouseover text .
This is a translation from a German original. Where there are apparent printing anomalies, an edition of the original was consulted and corrections made here. Cited materials were also occasionally consulted.
The characters used for metrical notation include a 'metrical breve', which is not widely supported. However, the Cardo TrueType font set has been found to provide good results. Also, there are numerous instances of multiple diacritical marks for most of the verse examples, which indicate rhythms and stresses. These may not display consistently for all letters in all browsers.
The cover image has been fabricated and is placed in the public domain.
JAKOB SCHIPPER, Ph.D.
PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH PHILOLOGY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA MEMBER OF THE KAISERLICHE AKADEMIE DER WISSENSCHAFTEN, VIENNA HON. D.LITT. OXON.; HON. LITT.D. CANTAB. HON. LL.D. EDINBURGH AND ABERDEEN HONORARY MEMBER OF THE MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
OXFORD AT THE CLARENDON PRESS 1910
HENRY FROWDE, M.A.
PUBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD LONDON, EDINBURGH, NEW YORK TORONTO AND MELBOURNE

It is now more than twenty years since a reviewer of the author’s Englische Metrik , in three volumes, expressed the opinion that ‘an English translation of it would do a service to English philology’. At that time, however, it seemed doubtful whether such a voluminous work, which probably would have interested only a comparatively small circle of English scholars, would have found a market. Even in Germany, although the work was favourably reviewed, and although at the time when it appeared great interest was felt in metrical research, the sale was comparatively slow.