[P. 132], l. 5, Accon respirat.—Acre was besieged by Bondocar, Sultan of Babylon, who was preparing to take the place by assault, at the moment when Edward arrived to raise the siege.
—— l. 9, Assessinus Veteris de Monte.—On the Old Man of the Mountain, and the Assassins, or Assessins, much information will be found in a popular form, in the Marquis of Villeneuve-Trans, Histoire de St. Louis.
—— l. 16.—This seems to be a new testimony against the truth of the story which makes Edward’s Queen suck the poison from his wound. A song made on the occasion would hardly have failed to mention such a circumstance, if it had been known.
—— l. 17, Thomam de Wyta.—This writer’s name is not found in Tanner.
[P. 135], l. 13, comencent.—Probably an error of the scribe for comencement.
[P. 136], l. 4, vironum.—The MS. has virronum. Viro is given by Ducange as synonymous with baro, and is supposed to be derived from vir.
[P. 137], ll. 15, 16, sonme ... prodhonme.—In old manuscripts it is quite impossible to say whether the scribe meant n or u, unless we know otherwise which it ought to be, and the n in words of the form of those just quoted may perhaps be intended for u. But I am rather inclined to think such was not the case.
[P. 138], l. 34, Sympringham.—The order of Sempringham, commonly called Gilbertine canons, was founded by Sir Gilbert de Sempringham, in the first half of the twelfth century. One of its peculiarities was the establishment of monks and nuns in the same house, though their different habitations were carefully separated, and all intercourse between them strictly forbidden.
Nigellus Wireker speaks of this as a newly established order, and satirizes the near collocation of nuns and monks in a spirit similar to that of our song:—