Portal:Anglo-Saxon England/Selected article/2

The Liber Eliensis (sometimes Historia Eliensis or Book of Ely) is a 12th-century English chronicle and history, written in Latin. Composed in three books, it was written at Ely Abbey on the island of Ely in the fenlands of eastern Cambridgeshire. Ely Abbey became the cathedral of a newly formed bishopric in 1109. Traditionally the author of the anonymous work has been given as Richard or Thomas, two monks at Ely, one of whom, Richard, has been identified with an official of the monastery, but some historians hold that neither Richard nor Thomas was the author.

The Liber covers the period from the founding of the abbey in 673 until the middle of the 12th century, building on a number of earlier historical works. It incorporates documents and stories of saints' lives and is a typical example of a kind of local history produced during the latter part of the 12th century, similar to a number of books written at other English monasteries. The longest of the contemporary local histories, it describes the devastation caused by the disorders during the reign of King Stephen as well an account of the career of Nigel, the Bishop of Ely from 1133 to 1169, and his disputes with King Stephen. Other themes are the miracles worked by the monastery's patron saint, Æthelthryth, and the gifts of land to Ely.

The two surviving complete manuscripts of the work are complemented by a number of partial manuscripts. A printed version of the Latin text appeared in 1963 and an English translation was published in 2005, although extracts had appeared in print earlier. The Liber Eliensis is an important source of historical information for the region and period it covers, and particularly for the abbey and bishopric of Ely. (more...)