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Paul Halsall, ORB sources editor
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NOTES:
- copyrighted means the text is not available for free distribution. In some cases alternate versions are available, and are working through the pipeline.
- pub.dom means texts are public domain, or a I know public domain version exists, but I do not yet have an etext copy [feel free to send me a copy]
- Availability date used to be given for each text as an aid to those wanting to see what was new in the Sourcebook. This feature has been discontinued. To see new material in order of addition to the Sourcebook see the New Accessions list.
- WEB indicates a link to one of small number of high quality web sites which provide either more texts or an especially valuable overview.
CHURCH COUNCILS
For texts in the Ante-Nicene, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers series, see below
NOTE: The texts at this site here are public domain English translations from the Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers series for the first Seven ecumenical councils and from H.J. Schroeder, Disciplinary Decrees of the General Councils, (St. Louis: B. Herder, 1937) [US Copyright expired - confirmed by TAN books, current owner of B. Herder's list]. These are not necessarily the best available sources for the various council texts, although they are quite serviceable, and the notes in the NPNF series are very useful. More recent editions and translations should be consulted for serious academic publication purposes. I have prepared a Guide to Documentary Sources for Catholic Teaching which lists, in some detail, what I take to be the current standard editions.See also Ecumenical Councils - a useful, if denominationally partisan, article from the Catholic Encyclopedia.
- First Ecumenical: Nicea I. 325. Canons and commentary on the First Council of Nicea from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Homoousion
- Second Ecumenical: Constantinople I, 381. Canons and commentary on the First Council of Constantinople from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: First Council of Constantinople
- Third Ecumenical: Ephesus, 431. Canons and commentary on the Council of Ephesus from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Council of Ephesus
NOTE: Only the first three councils would be accepted as ecumenical by the so-called "monophysite" churches, e.g. the Coptic and Armenian Orthodox Churches.- Fourth Ecumenical: Chalcedon, 451. Canons and commentary on the Council of Chalcedon from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers.
- Council of Orange 529, or Version [At EWTN]
- Fifth Ecumenical: Constantinople II, 553. canons and commentary on the Second Council of Constantinople from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers or text of canons alone. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Second Council of Constantinople
- Sixth Ecumenical: Constantinople III, 680-681. Canons and commentary on the Second Council of Constantinople from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Third Council of Constantinople
- The Quinisext Council: or Council in Trullo, 692. Canons and commentary on the Council in Trullo from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Council in Trullo
- Seventh Ecumenical: Nicea II, 787. Canons and commentary on the Second Council of Nicea from Volume XIV of Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Nicaea, Second Council of
NOTE: The following councils, although some of them had the support and participation of Orthodox bishops at the time [e.g. Constantinople IV, Lyons II, Florence] are generally not regarded as "ecumenical" by Eastern Orthodox or Anglican churches.- Eighth Ecumenical: Constantinople IV, 869-870. Canons from Schroeder, Disciplinary Decrees of the General Councils See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Fourth Council of Constantinople
- Ninth Ecumenical: Council: Lateran I, 1123. Canons from Schroeder, Disciplinary Decrees of the General Councils See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Lateran Council, First
- Tenth Ecumenical: Council: Lateran II, 1139. Canons from Schroeder, Disciplinary Decrees of the General Councils See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Lateran Council, Second
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Lateran Council, Third
- Twelfth Ecumenical: Lateran IV, 1215. Canons from Schroeder, Disciplinary Decrees of the General Councils See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Lateran Council, Fourth
- Council of Trent, 1545-63. [at Hanover College - public domain]
There are also online etexts of council decrees from Norman Tanner, ed., Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils, (London: Sheed and Ward; Washington. D.C: Georgetown University Press. 1990).
I have made these off-site links (at http://www.ewtn.com) available, but note that there is no indication that copy permission has been obtained. EWTN is a very conservative Catholic web site, but it does have a lot of files [over 9000].
- Council of Nicaea I : 325 A.D., with Catholic Encyclopedia article
- Council of Constantinople I : 381 A.D.
- Council of Ephesus : 431 A.D.
- Council of Chalcedon : 451 A.D.
- Council of Constantinople II : 553 AD
- Council of Constantinople III : 680-681 A.D.
- Council of Nicaea II : 787 A.D. , - with Catholic Encylopedia article
Cf. Nicea II 753 (Iconcolast Synod)- Council of Constantinople IV : 869-870 A.D.
- Lateran Council I : 1123 A.D.
- Lateran Council II : 1139 A.D.
- Lateran Council III : 1179 A.D.
- Lateran Council IV : 1215 A.D.
- Council of Lyons 1 : 1245 A.D.
- Council of Lyons 2 : 1274 A.D.
- Council of Vienne : 1311-12 A.D.
- Council of Constance 1414-18 A.D.
- Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence : 1431-1435 A.D. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Council of Basel
- Lateran Council V : 1512-17 A.D. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Fifth Lateran Council
- Council of Trent : 1545-63 A.D. [at Hanover College - this is public domain]. Also a Zipped version [At EWTN]
- Vatican Council I : 1869 AD
- Vatican Council 2: Index [Text version - at RCNET]
Vatican Council 2: Index [HTML versions - at EWTN]FATHERS
The first six items are links to more extended collections and indexes.
- WEB Writings of Church Fathers/Doctors/Saints (index at American University)
- WEB Guide to Early Church Documents (index with brief descriptions; from ICLnet)
- WEB EWTN. [At EWTN]. EWTN is a conservative Catholic web site, but it has a huge file library of over 9000 items, with good search facilities. Many are useless files from modern journals, but there are also very extensive selections from the fathers and medieval writers.
- WEB FATHERS OF THE CHURCH [At New Advent] New Advent has taken the entire Father so the Church series, as at the Wheaton College site, and broken the files down to the size of individual works.
The following works by various fathers are in rough chronological order. Most are off site links to documents or indexes.
ANTE-NICENE FATHERS
- The Didache, or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles [At Spurgeon.org]
- Clement of Rome: First Epistle to the Corinthians c. 96 [At CCEL] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Clement I, Saint and Pope
- Attributed to Clement: Second Epistle, c.150; [At Early Christian Writings]
- Ignatius of Antioch (d.c.107): Index [At Early Christian Writings]. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Ignatius of Antioch
- Epistle of Barnabas, c.130 [At CCEL] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Epistle of Barnabus
- Polycarp of Smyrna (c.69- c.155): Epistle, c. 130 [At Early Christian Writings]
- The Martyrdom of Polycarp, 2nd century, [At CCEL]
- The Shepherd of Hermas [At Early Christian Writings]
- Justin Martyr: Second Apology [Dialogue with Trypho] , complete - but a very large file.
- Tertullian (c.155-c.220): Index [At Tertullian.org]
- Cyprian (c.200-258): Index [At CCEL] (Scroll down to find Cyprian's works). See also Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Cyprian or Catholic Encylopedia: Cyprian of Carthage, Saint
- John Cassian: Institutes at the Benedictine page.
This is an HTML file in parts. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: John Cassian- John Cassian: Conferences
POST NICENE: NON-GREEK/NON LATIN FATHERS
- Tatian: The Diatessaron, [At New Advent].
A combination of the four Gospels into one account. It was the dominant text used in some parts of the Eastern Church for many centuries.- Ephraim of Syria: The Pearl [At CCEL]. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Syriac Hymnody
- The Book of Enoch, [At Sacred Texts]
POST NICENE: GREEK FATHERS
- Athanasius (c.295-373): On the Incarnation, c. 318 [At CCEL]. See Encyclopeadia Britannica (9th ed.): Athanasius
- Cyril of Jerusalem (c.315-c.386): The Procatechesis or Prologue to the Catechetical Lectures [At New Advent]
- Cyril of Jerusalem (c.315-c.386): First Chatechetical Lecture [At New Advent]
- Cyril of Jerusalem (c.315-c.386): Second Chatechetical Lecture [At New Advent]
- Gregory of Nyssa (c.335 -c.394): Homepage [At BHSU]. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Saint Gregory of Nyssa
- Cyril of Alexandria (Bishop, 412-444): Index [At Geocities]
Collected translations of writings by Cyril.- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Homilies on the Gospel of St. Matthew [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Homilies on Acts and Romans [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Homilies on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colessians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, and Philemon [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and Hebrews [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c.347-407): Homilies Against the Jews
Full text of six of the eight sermons.- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Treatise on the Priesthood, full text [At Fish Eaters]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Letters to Olympias [At St. Michael]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Letter to certain Presbyters of Antioch [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Correspondence with the Bishop of Rome [At St. CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Homilies on Saint Ignatius and Saint Babylas [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Concerning the Power of Demons - Three Homilies [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): On Eutropius the Eunuch, Patrician and Consul - Homil 1 [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): On Eutropius the Eunuch, Patrician and Consul - Homily 2 [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Concerning Lowliness (Humility) of Mind [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Homily on the Paralytic Let Down Through the Roof [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Against Publishing the Errors of the Brethren [At CCEL]
- A Treatise to Prove that No One Can Harm the Man Who Does Not Injure Himself [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c. 346-407): Against Marcionists and Manichaeans [At CCEL]
- John Chrysostom (c.347-407): Homilies on the Statues [At CCEL]
- Zosimus: Concerning the Life of the Blessed from Vol X of Ante-Nicene Fathers series
- John of Damascus: Apologia Against Those Who Decry Holy Images, full text
- John of Damascus: Three Sermons on the Dormition (koimhsiV) of the Virgin, full text
POST NICENE: LATIN FATHERS
- Jerome (c. 347-420) [and Paula?]: Vulgate Bible [At Sacred Texts]
- Jerome (c. 347-420): Letters and Selected Works [At CCEL]
- Jerome (c. 347-420): Against Helvidius: On the Perpetual Virginity of the Virgin Mary, [At CCEL]
- Jerome (c. 347-420): Letter to Eustochium
- Jerome (c. 347-420): Letter to Magnus, an Orator of Rome
- WEB As well as the following texts, see the page of Augustine texts, in English and Latin, maintained by James O'Donnell at U Penn.
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Against the Epistle of Manichaeus Called Fundamental [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Answer to the Letters of Petilian, the Donatist [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Concerning the Nature of Good, Against the Manichaean [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Confessions [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Confessions, in modern translation [At UPenn]. The Latin Text is also online [At Upenn].
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): De Dialectica [At Penn]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Enchiridion (Handbook on Faith, Hope, and Love) [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Letters [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): On Baptism, Against the Donatists [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): On Christian Doctrine [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Of the Morals of the Catholic Church [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): On The Morals of the Manichaeans [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Reply to Faustus the Manichaean [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): A Treatise Concerning the Correction of the Donatists [At CCEL]
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): Two Souls, Against the Manichaeans (391; from CCEL)
- Augustine of Hippo (354-430): The City of God, complete in HTML from Nicene And Post-Nicene Fathers
- St. Vincent of Lerins: Commonitory on the Catholic Faith, c. 495, [at CCEL]
- Pope Gregory I (d.604): Moralia in Iob, draft translation by James O'Donnell, [At U Penn]
- Pope Nicholas I: Responses to the Questions of the Bulgars A.D. 866 (Letter 99), trans. W. North, full text.
LATE ANTIQUITY
- WEB List of Late Antique Primary Sources on the Web maintained at the Society for Late Antqiuity Web Site.
- Flavius Josephus: Complete Works [At CCEL]
- St. Jerome: De Viris Illustribus [At New Advent][From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
St. Jerome's short entries in On Illustrious Men concern both pagan and Christian illustrius men of the period from Christ until his own time. He gives biographical information which is clearly distinct from hagiographic genres.- Eusebius Pamphlius of Caesarea (260-340): Life of the Blessed Emperor Constantine [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Eusebius Pamphlius of Caesarea (260-340): Oration in Praise of Constantine [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Eusebius Pamphlius of Caesarea (260-340): Church History. [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series] [Covers church history from beginning to Constantine I]
- Socrates Scholasticus (c.379-440): Ecclesiastical History [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series] [Covers 305-446]
- Sozomen Hermias (5th Century): Ecclesiastical History [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series][Covers 324-440 CE]
- Sulpitius Severus (c.363-c.420): Sacred History [At New Advent] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Theodoret of Cyrrhus (d.c. 457): Ecclesiastical History [At CCEL] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series] [Covers 322-427 CE]
- Egeria (4th Century): Journal of the Jerusalem Liturgical Year [Latin and English][At Oxford]
- Agnellus of Ravenna: Liber pontificalis ecclesiae Ravennatis (c. 830 - 846). Full Latin Text [At Upenn]
- Boethius: Consolation of Philosophy, Latin and English, See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Boethius
- Prudentius: Peristephanon [At Montclair]
- Psychomachia, [At Upenn]
BYZANTIUM
- See Greek Fathers above
- Cosmas Indicopleustes: Christian Topography
- Procopius of Caesarea: Secret History
- Liutprand of Cremona: Report on Mission to Constantinople, 963
- Corpus Cyrillo-Methodianum Helsingiense, An Electronic Corpus of Old Church Slavonic Texts, [At Helsinki.fi]
- Armenian/Georgian Historical Resources Site, various full text translations by Robert Bedrosian.
- P'awstos Buzandac'i'. History of the Armenians, 5th century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources]
- Ghazar P'arbec'i'. History of the Armenians, 5th century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, At [Arm. Hist. Resources]
- Sebeos: History, 7th century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources] [this is the first of a series of files].
- John Mamikonean: History of Taron, 10th century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources] [this is the first of a series of files].
- Aristakes Lastivertc'i': History, 11th-century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources]
- The Georgian Chronicle, 12-13th century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources][this is the first of a series of files].
- Kirakos Gandzakets'i': History of the Armenians, 13th-century, full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources] [this is the first of a series of files].
- T'ovma Metsobets'i': History of Tamerlane and His Successors , full text, trans. Robert Bedrosian, [At Arm. Hist. Resources] [this is the first of a series of files].
- Michael Psellus (1018-after 1078): Chronographia, full text.
The history of the Roman Empire 976-1078 by one of the liveliest writers of the middle ages.- Anna Comnena (1093-after 1148): The Alexiad. full text
The account of her father, the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I, by Princess Anna Comnena is perhaps the most important historical work by a woman writer written before the modern period.- Byzantine Monastic Foundation Documents [At DO]
A Complete Translation of the Surviving Founder's Typika and Testaments. Edited by John Thomas and Angela Constantinides Hero with the assistance of Giles Constable.
The texts are all in PDF form [for which you need the free Acrobat reader, downloadable from the index page]. Although it is possible to read these within the browser with Acrobat as a plugin, that often seems to destabilize a system. I recommend downloading the files onto a hard disk, and then opening them with Acrobat running independantly of the Browser.- Byzantine Commonwealth
- Daniel (1106-1107): The Pilgrimage of the Russian Abbot Daniel in the Holy Land, 1106-1107 A.D., annotated by Sir C. W.Wislon (London, 1895) [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Bar Sauma (c. 1278-1313): The Monk of Kublai Khan, Emperor of China; or The History of the Life and Travels of Rabban Sawma, Envoy and Plenipotentiary of the Mongol Khans to the Kings of Europe and Markos who as Yahbh-Allaha III Became Patriarch of the Nestorian Church. Translated by E.A. Wallis Budge, London: The Religious Track Society, 1928. [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
ISLAM
Religious Texts
- Qu'ran, Part I, and Part II, translated by E.H. Palmer, Full text [At Sacred Texts]
- The Holy Qur'an, trans. M.H. Shakir, Full text [At CMU]
- The Qu'ran, trans. Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al-Hilali, [At The Noble Qu'ran]. This is an English translation endorsed by the Saudi government. Includes Arabic commentary by Ibn Katheer, Tabari, and Qurtubi. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: KORAN
- The Qu'ran, translated Maulvi Sher Ali, Full Text [At Al Islam]
- The Qu'ran in Arabic script with audio recitation, Full Text, [At IslamiCity]
- The Quran: Three Versions Side By Side [At USC-MSA]
Contains Yusuf Ali, Pickthall and Shakir's versions side by side for each sura.- See also the Sunnah and Hadith page with links to texts of various Hadith Collections.
- Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (1058-1111 CE): Munkidh min al-Dalal (Confessions, or Deliverance from Error), c. 1100 CE
Literary and Historiographical Texts
- Al Hariri of Basrah (446-516 A.H./1054-1122 CE): Maqamat, (The Assemblies), c. 1100 CE, 12 of the 50 "assemblies".
- The 1001 Nights- Burton Translation
- Omar Khayyam (d. 1123 CE): The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (first edition), trans. by Edward FitzGerald (page images [At Virginia]
- Omar Khayyam: The Rubiayat, c. 1120 CE, trans. Edward Fitgerald.
- Omar Khayyam (d. 1123 CE): The Rubaiyat, c. 1120
This is not the famous translation by Edward Fitgerald, but a more complete version by E. H. Whinfield.- Sa'di (1184-1292 CE): Gulistan, 1258 CE, Full text, in short sections. [At MIT]
- Sa'di (1184-1292 CE): Gulistan, 1258 CE, Full text of Persian prose/poetry text with significant homoerotic content
- Sa'di (1184-1292): The Gulistan, c. 1256 CE. another translation.
- Sa'di (1184-1292 CE): The Bustan
- Sheikh Nefzaoui: The Perfumed Garden, 11th century CE/c. A.H 925, translated by Sir Richard Burton , in chapter files, full text, [At Bibliomania]
A guide to sex by a Tunisian writer of the 16th century. Does not discuss male homosexuality, but does discuss Lesbianism (in chap. 20).- Alpamysh, a Central Asian, Turkic epic, [At ukc.ac.uk] and here [At Kansas]
Full text of H.B. Paksoy, ALPAMYSH Central Asian Identity under Russian Rule (Hartford, Connecticut: AACAR, 1989), including translation- Nasir-i-Khusraw (1046-1052): Book of Travels (Safarnama) [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
MONASTICISM
- Rule of St. Augustine [c.400] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Rule of St. Augustine
- Rule of St. Benedict- and Latin Version.
- Byzantine Monastic Foundation Documents [At DO]
A Complete Translation of the Surviving Founder's Typika and Testaments. Edited by John Thomas and Angela Constantinides Hero with the assistance of Giles Constable.
The texts are all in PDF form [for which you need the free Acrobat reader, downloadable from the index page]. Although it is possible to read these within the browser with Acrobat as a plugin, that often seems to destabilize a system. I recommend downloading the files onto a hard disk, and then opening them with Acrobat running independantly of the Browser.HISTORIOGRAPHY
- Tacitus: Germania. full text, trans. J. Church and W. J. Brodribb.
- Tacitus: Germania, trans. Thomas Gordon, full text, Also available in Latin.
- Eusebius Pamphlius of Caesarea (260-340): Church History [At New Advent site] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series] [Covers church history from beginning to Constantine I]
- Socrates Scholasticus (c.379-440): Ecclesiastical History [At New Advent site] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series] [Covers 305-446 CE]
- Sozomen Hermias (5th Century): Ecclesiastical History [At New Advent site] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series][Covers 324-440 CE]
- Sulpitius Severus: Sacred History [At New Advent site] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series]
- Theodoret of Cyrrhus (d.c.457): Ecclesiastical History [At New Advent site] [From Ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers Series] [Covers 322-427 CE]
- Jordanes: History of the Goths. See also J.J. O'Donnell: The Aims of Jordanes [At UPenn]
- Procopius of Caesarea: Secret History, (6th century)
- Gregory of Tours: History of the Franks, (6th century)
Complete text of Earnest Brehaut's 1916 abridged translation.- Gildas (c.504-570): Works, full text
- Bede (673-735)
- See Catholic Encyclopedia: The Venerable Bede
- Ecclesiastical History of England: Book I
- Ecclesiastical History of England: Book I
- Ecclesistical History of England: Book III
- Ecclesiastical History of England: Book IV
- Ecclesistical History of England: Book V
- Nennius: Historia Brittonum, 8th century, full text
- Agnellus of Ravenna: Liber pontificalis ecclesiae Ravennatis (c. 830 - 846). Full Latin Text [At Upenn]
- Einhard: The Life of Charlemagne (c. 817-830), Full text. The Latin text of the Vita Karoli Magni is also available [At Latin Library]; See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Einhard and Catholic Encyclopedia: Charlemagne
- The Monk of Saint Gall (Notker the Stammerer): The Life of Charlemagne, c. 883/4, Full text
- Liutprand of Cremona: Report on Mission to Constantinople, 963
- Asser: Life of King Alfred Translation: J.A. Giles [At OMACL]
- The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle Translation: J. Ingram, [At OMACL] 17.
- The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle [in Anglo-Saxon] [At Labyrinth]
- Saxo Grammaticus (d. ca. 1220): Danish History (Books I-IX) Translation: Oliver Elton
- Saxo Grammaticus (d. ca. 1220): Gesta Danorum in the original Latin text Kobenhavn: Levin & Munksgaard, 1957. [At www.kb.dk].
- Sturlson, Snorri: Heimskringla or The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway [At OMACL]
- Dudo of St. Quentin: Gesta Normannorum, ed. and trans. Felice Lifshitz, [ORB Library]
- Chronicle of the Counts of Anjou (c.1100) trans. Steve Lane
- Michael Psellus (1018-after 1078): Chronographia, full text.
The history of the Roman Empire 976-1078 by one of the liveliest writers of the middle ages.- William of Newburgh: History, full text
- Abbot Suger: Life of King Louis the Fat, full text, trans. Jean Dunbabin.
- Rigord (1145/50-1209): Deeds of Philip II Augustus, trans Paul Hyams, full text? [At Cornell]
- Jocelin of Brakelond (c.1156-d.1202?): Chronicle of the Abbey of St. Edmunds (1173-1202)
- Guillame de Tyr (William of Tyre) (c.1130- 1190): Historia rerum in partibus transmarinis gestarum [History of Deeds Done Beyond the Sea], full text of Old French version (13th century) available 9/3/98
- Books 1-9 the Old French translation from the edition of Paulin.
- Books 10-16 ditto
- Books 17-22 ditto
- Books 23-34, the continuation, from the Recueil des historiens des croisades
- Chronique du Templier de Tyr, from Les gestes des Chiprois as edited by Gaston Raynaud.
- Geoffry de Villehardouin: Chronicle of the Fourth Crusade and The Conquest of Constantinople
- Jean de Joinville: Memoirs [At Virginia] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Louis IX, Saint
- Jean Froissart: Chronicles, full [or at least very extensive] text see also The Chronicles of Froissart
- John Mandeville: The Travels of Sir John Mandeville [At Project Gutenberg],
- Giorgio Vasari: Lives of the Artists, [At UM-Baltimore]
MODERN HISTORIOGRAPHY
- Medieval Sourcebook: Secondary Sources for an extensive listing of chapter and article length scholarly writing.
- Edward Gibbon: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire [At CCEL}
- Arthur Koestler: The Thirteenth Tribe: The Khazar Empire and its Heritage, full text, 1976 [At SMOM-ZA.ORG]
- Matthew Hale: The History of the Common Law of England, 1713 [At McMaster]
- Jacob Burckhardt: The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy - a classic text scanned in by Skip Knox at Boise State University, Idaho.
- The History of England in the Encyclopeadia Britannica, 11th Edition [At 1911 Encyclopedia]
- F.W. Maitland: Domesday Book and Beyond: Three Essays in the Early History of England [At McMaster] [Complete]
One of the fundamental books of medieval English history.- Evelyn Underhill: Mysticism: A Study in the Nature and Development of Spritual Consciousness [At CCEL]
LITERARY TEXTS
Latin
- Hrotsvitha of Gandersheim (c.930/40-c.1002): The Plays of Roswitha,
Including Full texts of Gallicanus and DulcitiusFrench
- The Song of Roland, c. 11th Century, full texts, trans. John O'Hagan [Here]
In rhyming couplets!- The Song of Roland, c. 11th Century, full texts, trans. Charles Scott Moncrief. [At OMACL]
- Chretien de Troyes: Cliges, Translation: W.W. Comfort [At OMACL]
- Chretien de Troyes: Erec et Enide, Translation: W.W. Comfort [At OMACL]
- Chretien de Troyes: Lancelot or, The Knight of the Cart, Translation: W.W. Comfort [At OMACL]
- Chretien de Troyes: Yvain, or The Knight With the Lion,Translation: W.W. Comfort [At OMACL]
- Chretien de Troyes: Four Arthurian Romances, [At Project Gutenberg].
These are the same texts as above, but here in one file.- High History of the Holy Graal, 13th century. Translation: Sebastian Evans [At OMACL].
- Ballads Lyrics and Poems of Old France [At Project Gutenberg]
- Geste Francor An anonymous 14th century Franco-Italian Epic, trans. Leslie Z. Morgan [ORB Library]
Italian
- See under Renaissance Texts below for texts by Dante, Boccaccio, and Petrarch.
Spanish/Portuguese
- Robert Southey: The Chronicle of the Cid, 1637, full text, but not entirely a translation of any one Spanish text [At Project Gutenberg]. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: EL Cid
- The Lay of the Cid (Translation: R.Selden Rose& L. Bacon) [OMACL 30] [At OMACL]
- Os Lusiadas, The Portuguese national epic, in Portuguese, [At BU]
Celtic
- The Destruction of Da Derga's Hostel, c 1100 full text
German
- The Nibelungenlied c. 1200 [At OMACL]
Nordic
- See the Swedish Index page at P-ktet Källtext in Sweden.
- The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald ("Kormak's Saga") [At OMACL]
- The Saga of Grettir the Strong ("Grettir's Saga") [At OMACL]
- The Story of Burnt Njal ("Njal's Saga") [At OMACL]
- Sturlson, Snorri: Heimskringla or The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway [At OMACL]
- The Story of the Volsungs (Volsungasaga)(Translation: William Morris & Eirikr Magnusson) [At OMACL]
- Laxdaela Saga [At OMACL],
- The Story of the Ere-Dwellers ("Eyrbyggja Saga") [At OMACL]
- The Story of the Heath Slayings ("Heitharviga Saga") [At OMACL]
English
- WEB Arthurian texts, for those not collected here, see the Camelot Project, and especially the Camelot Project Author Menu for beautifully presented, introduced, and annotated texts of:
- The Alliterative Morte Arthure
- Annales Cambriae (Annals of Wales), Arthurian References in (c. 960-980)
- The Avowyng of Arthur
- The Awntyrs off Arthur
- The Carle of Carlisle
- Culwch and Olwen (translated by Lady Charlotte Guest as Kilhwch and Olwen)
- The Greene Knight
- The Jeaste of Sir Gawain
- King Arthur and King Cornwall
- The Knightly Tale of Gologras and Gawain
- Lancelot of the Laik
- The Marriage of Sir Gawain
- Sir Gawain and the Carle of Carlisle
- Sir Perceval of Galles
- Sir Tristrem
- Stanzaic Morte Arthur
- The Turke and Sir Gawain ((c) TEAMS)
- The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle
- A selection of post medieval Arthurian literature [Tennyson, Emerson, Swinbourne and so on.]
- WEB The Robin Hood Text Archive [At Rochester]
With both medieval and post-medieval texts.
- Robin Hood and the Monk, after 1450, [At Sacred Texts]
The earliest Robin Hood Ballad.ANGLO-SAXON
- Codex Junius 11 [At OMACL] - Anglo-Saxon poems
- Apollonius of Tyre Version in Old English and translation into modern English
- Beowulf (in Old English), Klaeber edition
- Beowulf, 8th century, trans Francis Gummere
- Beowulf, trans Francis Gummere [At Adelaide]
- Beowulf, c. 1100 [At Lone Star] modern verse translation by Davidn Breeden.
Beowulf is the oldest surviving epic in English literature, and it survives in only one manuscript. This copy survived both the wholesale destruction of religious artifacts during the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII and a disastrous fire which destroyed the library of Sir Robert Bruce Cotton (1571-1631). The poem still bears the scars of the fire, visible at the upper left corner of the manuscript.MIDDLE ENGLISH
- See the Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse [At U Mich]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The Book of the Duchess [At OMACL]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The House of Fame [At OMACL]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The Parliament of Fowles [At OMACL]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): Troilus and Criseyde [At OMACL]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): Legend of Good Women [At OMACL]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The Canterbury Tales [original language in one text file] useful for word searches.
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The Canterbury Tales [original language][At UVA]
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The Canterbury Tales [Modernized version] Skip Knox, of Boise State University, Idaho - collection of modernized tales.
- Geoffrey Chaucer (d. 1400): The Canterbury Tales [Modernized version] The entire Canterbury Tales is now available on line at Virginia Tech via HTML. [These are all ascii files. The site is no longer up at Virginia Tech, so all of the links below will take you to the Internet Archive version, which may load slowly.]
[GROUP A]
- Canterbury Tales: Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Knight's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Miller's Tale Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Miller's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Reeeve's Tale Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Reeeve's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Cook's Tale Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Cook's Tale
[GROUP B]- Canterbury Tales: Man of Law's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Man of Law's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Sailor's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Sailor's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Prioress's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Prioress's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Sir Thopas Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Tale of Sir Tophas
- Canterbury Tales: Melibeus Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Tale of Melibeus
- Canterbury Tales: Monk's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Monks Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Nun's Priest's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Nun's Priest's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Nun's Priest's Epilogue
[GROUP C]- Canterbury Tales: The Physician's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Host to Physician and Pardoner
- Canterbury Tales: Pardoner's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Pardoner's Tale
[GROUP D]- Canterbury Tales: Wife of Bath's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Wife of Bath's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Friar's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Friar's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Summoner's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Summoner's Tale
[GROUP E]- Canterbury Tales: Clerks Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Clerk's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Merchant's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Merchant's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Merchant's Epilogue [GROUP F]
- Canterbury Tales: Squire's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Squire's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Words of the Franklin to Squire and Host to the Franklin
- Canterbury Tales: Franklin's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Franklin's Tale
[Group G]- Canterbury Tales: Second Nun's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Second Nun's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Canon Yeoman's Tale
[GROUP H]- Canterbury Tales: Manciple's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Manciple's Tale
[GROUP I]- Canterbury Tales: Parson's Prologue
- Canterbury Tales: Parson's Tale
- Canterbury Tales: Epilogue
- Sir Gawain and the Green Knight [At UVA] or here [U Mich]
- John Gower (1330-1408): Confessio Amantis or Tales of the Seven Deadly Sins [At OMACL]
- Robert Henryson: The Testament of Cresseid [At OMACL]
- William Langland (1330?-1400?): The Vision of Piers Plowman [Original Language]
- Everyman, 15th century, full text
- The Towneley plays [At UVA]
- The York plays [At UVA]
MEDIEVAL THOUGHT
- Boethius: Consolation of Philosophy
- Rabanus Maurus: De rerum natura [ORB Libary] In Latin. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Blessed Maurus Magnentius Rabanus
- Anselm (1033-1109): Proslogium, full text
- Gaunilo: In Behalf of the Fool, with Anselm's: Reply
Gaunilo's attack on the argument in the Proslogium, and Anselm's reformulation.- Anselm (1033-1109): Monologium, full text
- Anselm (1033-1109): Cur Deus Homo (Why God Became Man)
- Anselm (1033-1109): Introduction to His Writings
- Anselm (1033-1109): Philosophers' Criticisms of Anselm's Ontological Argument for the Being of God
- Guibert of Nogent (1053-1124): Autobiography, trans. C.C. Swinton Bland.
- Peter Abelard (1079?-1144?): History of My Calamities - English translation by Henry Adams Bellows
- Abelard and Heloise: Letters [including "History of my Calamities"]. - In Latin
- Alain of Lille (d. 1203): The Plaint of Nature
- Thomas Aquinas (1225/7-1274): Summa Theologica [At New Advent].
See also Walter Farrell: A Companion to the Summa, and Catholic Encyclopedia: Thomas Aquinas or Encyclopedia Britannica (9th ed): Aquinas, Thomas.- Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274): Summa Contra Gentiles, with some abridgement, trans. Joseph Rickaby 1905, full text, [At Maritian Center]
<- Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274): Catena Aurea: Patristic Commentary on the Gospels: Matthew and Mark, full text, [At CCEL]
- Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274): On The Principles of Nature, trans Stephen Loughlin. [At Desales]
- Thomas Aquinas (1225/7-1274): On the Eternity of the World, trans. Robert T. Miller.
- Thomas Aquinas (1225/7-1274): On Being and Essence (De Ente et Essentia), trans. Robert T. Miller.
- John Duns Scotus (1266?-1308): A Treatise on God as First Principle [At EWTN] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: BLESSED JOHN DUNS SCOTUS
- Nicholas Cusanus: Where is he that is born king of the Jews?, 1456, a new translation of Ubi est qui natus est rex Iudaeorum?" by Clyde Lee Miller [At Internet Archive, from Stonybrook],
- Richard de Bury (1281-1345): The Love of Books (The Philobiblon), trans. E.C.Thomas 1888, [At Project Gutenberg]
Richard de Bury was an English bishop and politician. He was also a book lover. This text was completed on the 24th of January, 1345, as he lay ill. The treatise contains his rules for the library of the new College at Oxford--Durham College (where Trinity College now stands).- Michael de Leone: Introduction to Ein Buch von guter spise
Cookery book in German with English translation. MS. dated between 1345 and 1354.MEDIEVAL SPIRITUAL WRITING
- Sepher Yetzirah, translated from the Hebrew by Wm. Wynn Westcott, [At Wolf's Den]
The Sepher Yetzirah is one of the most famous of the ancient Qabalistic texts. It was first put into writing around 200 C.E. Westcott's Translation was first published in 1887.- Tridentine Rite Mass in Latin and English - [making use of HTML tables for better presentation] A Parallel text readable by all browsers is also available Tridentine Rite Mass in Latin and English [no tables].
- The Divine Liturgy of John Chrysostom as used in Orthodox Churches
- The Liturgy of the Assyrian Rite See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Assyrian Rite
- Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom in form used by Eastern Catholic churches
- Hours of the Virgin in Latin and English
- Peter Moghila of Kiev: Orthodox Confession of the Faith. Perhaps the most Western "Orthodox" confession ever written
- Orthodox Prayers
- Ancrene Wisse, In Middle English, with some Latin, [At Google Books]. A collection of rules and advice for English nuns.
- Guibert of Nogent (1053-1124): Autobiography, full text, trans. C.C. Swinton Bland
- Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153): The Love of God [At CCEL].
- Conrad of Saxony: Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary, often ascribed to St. Bonaventure, but now considered the work of Conrad by many scholars., [At Intratext]
- Jordan of Saxony : Handbook on the Origins of the Order of Preachers, a machine translation of Livret sur les orignes de l'Ordre des Prêcheurs d'après la traduction du frère Marie-Humbert Vicaire, o.p., parue dans l'ouvrage Saint Dominique et ses frères. Évangile ou croisade, coll. Chrétiens de tous les temps, n° 19, (Paris : éditions du Cerf, 1967).
- Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) : Dialogue 1370 [At CCEL]. See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Catherine of Siena, Saint
- Julian of Norwich (1342-1443): Revelations of Divine Love, 1371 in Modern English, [At CCEL] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Juliana of Norwich
- The Cloud of Unknowing, 15th century, trans Evelyn Underhill, [At CCEL]
- John of Ruysbroeck (1293-1381): The Adornment of Spiritual Marriage [At CCEL].
- Thomas à Kempis (c.1380-1471): The Imitation of Christ [modern translation] [At CCEL].
- Thomas à Kempis (c.1380-1471): The Imitation of Christ, translated by William Benham [Project Gutenberg Release #1653]
- The Cell of Self-Knowledge Seven Early English Mystical Treatises, [At CCEL]
- Walter Hilton (d.1396): Treatise Written to A Devout Man[At CCEL]
- Johannes Tauler: The Inner Way [At CCEL]
See also John Burke: Johannes Tauler, O.P.: Mystic, Pastor, and Preacher, [At EWTN]- Erasmus (ca. 1469-1536): In Praise of Folly, trans. John Wilson, 1688 [Full text] [At University of the South] [More Erasmus texts are at the Erasmus Text Project.
- Travel and Pilgrimage Texts
- Benjamin of Tudela (1160-1173): The Itinerary of Benjamin of Tudela Critical Text, Translation and Commentary by Marcus Nathan Adler. [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Anonymous: Guide-book to Palestine. (c. 1350). Translated by. J. H. Barnard. London: Palestine Pilgrims Text Society, 1894. [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- John Poloner (1422): Description of the Holy Land (c. 1421), based on the translation of Aubrey Stewart from the Tobler text. London, 1894. [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Felix Fabri (1480 & 1483-84): The Book of the Wanderings of Felix Fabri (Circa 1480-1483 A.D.) trans. Aubrey Stewart. 2 vols. London: Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society, 1896 [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- Pietro Casola (1494): Canon Pietro Casola's Pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the Year 1494. trans. Mary Margaret Newett. Manchester: The University Press, 1907. [At Traveling to Jerusalem/U Sth Colorado]
- GOVERNMENTAL, ADMINISTRATIVE AND LEGAL DOCUMENTS
- See the specific Medieval Sourcebook: Medieval Legal History page
- Laws of Alfred and Ine [In Anglo Saxon] [At Labryinth]
- Anglo Saxon Dooms, 560-975, In English. These include:
- The Laws of Æthelberht, King of Kent 560-616 A.D.
- The Laws of Kings Hlothhære and Eadric 673-686 A.D.
- The Laws of King Wihtræd 690-725 A.D.
- The Laws of King Alfred 871-901 A.D.
- The Laws of King Edward the Elder, 901-924 A.D.
- The Laws of Alfred, Guthrum, and Edward the Elder
- The North People's Law
- Mercian Law
- The Laws of King Athelstan 924-939 A.D.
- The Laws of King Edmund I 939-946 A.D.
- The Laws of King Edgar 959-975 A.D.
- The Visigothic Code (Forum iudicum) ed. and trans. by S.P. Scott (Print edition: Boston Book Company, 1910)[At Libro]
- Dialogue of the Exchequer, 1180s, [Full text of Book First, titles of Book Second]
- Bracton: De Legibus Et Consuetudinibus Angliæ (On the Laws and Customs of England), in English and Latin, attributed to Henry of Bratton, (c.1210-1268), Full Text, [At Harvard]
- Anthology of Chancery English [At UVA]
- René of Anjou: Tournament Book, 1406. [At Princeton]
Old French and English text of instructions on how to hold a tournement by King Rene of Anjou.- Transcript of Trial of Joan of Arc, 1431
- Paston Family Letters and Papers [At UVA]
RENAISSANCE TEXTS
- WEB I classici italiani in HTML [At Nuovo Rinascimento] [Many Full texts - all in Italian]
- Dante Alighieri (1265-1321): The Digital Dante project [At Columbia]
See also Guide to E-Texts of Dante's Works, by Otto Lieberknecht [At Great Dante.net]; and Catholic Encyclopedia: Dante Alighieri- Dante Alighieri (1165-1321): Letter to Cangrande. [At U. Penn]
Dante's letter explaining the Divine Comedy- Dante Alighieri (1265-1321): La Divina Commedia, [Complete, In Italian], [At La Dante]
- Dante Alighieri (1265-1321): Divine Comedy [In English]
The following etexts are available from Project Gutenberg
Divine Comedy, H. F. Cary's Translation
Entire Comedy
Hell
Paradise
PurgatoryDivine Comedy, Longfellow's Translation
Entire Comedy
Hell
Paradise
Purgatory- Dante Alighieri (1265-1321): La Divina Commedia in Italian
La Divina Commedia di Dante in 8-bit text (with accents)
Entire Text
Inferno
Paradiso
Purgatorio- Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375):
- The Decameron Full text of English translation [Used to be at Virginia Tech, now in one vert large ascii file at this Site]
- The Decameron, in Italian and English [At Brown]
- Bartolus of Sassoferrato: On the Tyrant (ca.1330); trans. Steve Lane [slane@tezcat.com]
- Nicolo Machiavelli (1469-1527): The Prince, 1513, full text in HTML.
- Nicolo Machiavelli (1469-1527): The Prince, in chapter files, full text, [At Bibliomania]
- Giovanni Pico della Mirandola: Oration on the Dignity of Man, full text, [At Santa Fe]
- Baldesar Castiglione (1478-1529): The Book of the Courtier, translated by Sir Thomas Hoby (1561), full text [At Oregon]
[The English is too archaic for classroom use.]- Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533): Orlando Furioso ("Orlando Enraged") [At OMACL]
- Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574): Lives of the Artists, Complete in English [Were at UM Baltimore, now here]
- Torquato Tasso (1544-1595): Gerusalemme Liberata ("Jerusalem Delivered") [At OMACL]
REFORMATION TEXTS
- WEB Project Wittenberg
A collection of Lutheran historical texts - by Luther and other leading early figures such as Melanchthon.- WEB Modern History Sourcebook for more texts.
- Martin Luther: Theologia Germanica [At CCEL] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: MARTIN LUTHER
- Martin Luther: The German Mass and Order of Divine Service [At Hanover]
- Martin Luther: The Larger Cathechism" [At CCEL]
- Martin Luther: Preface to Romans [At CCEL]
- Martin Luther: Von der Freiheit eines Christenmenschen The Freedom of A Christian Man, [In German] [At Heilengenlexikon]
- Martin Luther: On the Freedom of a Christian, full text
- Martin Luther: A Christian sermon over the body and at the funeral of the venerable Dr. Martin Luther, preached by Mr. Johann Bugenhagen Pomeranus, doctor and pastor of the churches in Wittenberg. Printed in Wittenberg by Georg Rhau,in the year 1546. [At Emory.edu]
- "On The Jews and Their Lies", a treatise by Martin Luther (translated by Martin H. Bertram, Luther's Works, Vol. 47: The Christian In Society IV, ed. by Franklin Sherman (c) 1971 Fortress Press, pages 121-306) has been removed because of copyright objections. We will attempt to provide a new translation of the German text at some point, but meanwhile welcome a translation any scholar wishes to supply.
- John Calvin (1509-64) [Information, At CCEL] See also Catholic Encyclopedia: Calvin, John
- John Calvin (1509-1564): The Institutes [At CCEL]
- John Calvin (1509-1564): Biblical Commentaries [At CCEL]
- John Foxe (1516-1587): Book of Martyrs [At CCEL]