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II George Rainsford's ‘Ritratto d'Ingliterra’ (1556)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 December 2009

Extract

George Rainsford's Ritratto d'Ingliterra appears, in the two manuscripts in which it has come down to us, as an appendix to Stephen Gardiner's Ragionamento dell'advenimento delli inglesi et normanni in Britannia. Apart from catalogue references and one brief note in J. A. Muller's introduction to The Letters of Stephen Gardiner (Cambridge, 1933), neither the Gardiner work nor that by Rainsford has been mentioned by scholars. Professors Paul Oskar Kristeller and William Nelson directed my attention to these texts some years ago, and suggested the project which has resulted in the publication of Gardiner's treatise under the title A Machiavellian Treatise by Stephen Gardiner (Cambridge, 1975) and in the edition of Rainsford's appendix presented here. Though it has proved necessary to publish the two texts separately, they are very closely connected works, and should be studied together. Rainsford was Gardiner's translator; it was he who was responsible for the Italian version in which Gardiner's last work survives, and to which his own composition was appended. The Rainsford text was, therefore, explicitly offered as a supplement to what Gardiner had done. In his dedication of the composite volume to Philip II he gave this as the reason for his own work:

So that nothing might be lacking in this little book that might contribute to an understanding of the laws, procedures, customs, nature and humour of the people of Britain, I have composed and here appended a portrait of the realm, (fo. IVr)

Thus his own work was composed expressly to supplement what Gardiner has written.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Historical Society 1979

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References

page 50 note 1 For documentation on Rainsford, see A Machiavellian Treatise, pp. 415Google Scholar. These pages also provide more extended discussion of the transmission of the text.

page 53 note 1 Catalogue général des manuscrits des bibliothèques publiques de France: Départements, vol. 32, Besarçon, ed. Castan, A. (Paris, 1897), I, 823.Google Scholar

page 53 note 2 Jenkinson, H., The Later Court Hands in England (Cambridge, 1927), p. 63Google Scholar; Fairbank, A. and Dickins, B., The Italic Hand in Tudor Cambridge (London, 1962)Google Scholar, passim.

page 54 note 1 See also below, pp. 58–64.

page 55 note 1 Polydoris Vergilii Urbinatis Anglicae Historiae Libri XXVI (Basel, 1534).Google Scholar

page 56 note 1 For descriptions of England, see the reports of the Venetian ambassadors, beginning with Trevisano, in the Calendar of State Papers, Venetian. Also A Relation … of the Island of England (1500), ed. Sneyd, C. A., Camden Soc. (London, 1847)Google Scholar; Two Italian Accounts of Tudor England: A Journey to London in 1497; A Picture of English Life under Queen Mary, trans. Malfatti, C. V. (Barcelona, 1953)Google Scholar; The Second Book of the Travels of Nicander Nucius of Corcyra, ed. Cramer, J. A., Camden Soc. (London, 1841)Google Scholar. Other sources are listed in Thirsk, Joan, The Agrarian History of England, Vol. IV: 1500–1640 (London, 1967)Google Scholar. The availability of such works for Rainsford's use is doubtful in some cases (the diplomatic material especially) but we know that the Italian Relation was available, and Polydore Vergil appears to have used it in his own work (see Mackie, J. D., The Earlier Tudors 1483–1558 (Oxford, 1952), p. 28Google Scholar). Rainsford may have known the Picture of English Life under Queen Mary (see below, pp. 57–8).

page 59 note 1 Harbison, E. H., Rival Ambassadors at the Court of Queen Mary (Princeton, 1940), p. 216.Google Scholar

page 60 note 1 ‘ogni sorti deli predetti quatro si prevaglion, et cavano utile di quelli beni, iquali dinanzi il tempo di Henrico eran in tal modo inchiuse nelli chlaustri, che nullo (eccetto il re et pochi poveri) prevalevano di quelli, dove al presente sono utile generalmente di tutti’ (fo. 162v).

page 61 note 1 See SirNichols, George, A History of the English Poor Law (London, 1854Google Scholar, rev. ed. 1898, repr. 1967), pp. 94–148; Leonard, E. M., The Early History of English Poor Relief (Cambridge, 1900), pp. 5366Google Scholar, especially p. 61; Elton, G. R., ‘An Early Tudor Poor Law’, Economic History Review, 2nd series, vi (1954), 5567.Google Scholar

page 63 note 1 See Harbison, , Rival Ambassadors, pp. 62, 216 ffGoogle Scholar; A Machiavellian Treatise, pp. 1215, 25–7, 36–7.Google Scholar

page 63 note 2 Calendar of State Papers, Spanish, XI, 347Google Scholar; Harbison, , Rival Ambassadors, ch. ixGoogle Scholar; A Machiavellian Treatise, pp. 2830.Google Scholar

page 64 note 1 Harbison, , Rival Ambassadors, p. 102.Google Scholar

page 64 note 2 Arguments concerning the coherence of Gardiner's thought throughout his career are presented in my Columbia dissertation, ‘A Machiavellian Treatise by Stephen Gardiner’ (1972)Google Scholar, and have been expanded for future publication.

page 65 note 1 Tawney, R. H. and Power, Eileen, Tudor Economic Documents (New York, 1963, first pub. 1924), III, 314–15.Google Scholar

page 66 note 1 Tawney and Power, Tudor Economic Documents, III, p. 40.Google Scholar

page 66 note 2 A Discourse of the Commonweal of this Realm of England, ed. Dewar, Mary (Charlottesville, 1969), p. 33.Google Scholar

page 66 note 3 Ibid., p. 80.

page 67 note 1 A Discourse, p. 81.Google Scholar

page 67 note 2 Tawney and Power, Tudor Economic Documents, II, 184.Google Scholar

page 67 note 3 A Discourse, p. 63Google Scholar. On the balance of trade see the remarks of C. E. Challis in Ramsey, P., The Price Revolution in Sixteenth Century England (London, 1971), pp. 128 ff.Google Scholar

page 67 note 4 On this see especially Ramsey, The Price Revolution, and Outhwaite, R. B., Inflation in Tudor and Early Stuart England (London, 1969).Google Scholar

page 68 note 1 Ramsey, , The Price Revolution, p. 39.Google Scholar

page 68 note 2 Ibid., p. 17.

page 71 note a DINGLITERRA B

page 71 note b habitanno B

page 71 note c orzi B

page 71 note d picole B

page 71 note e nulli B

page 71 note f guaranta B

page 71 note g tal che B

page 71 note h guante B

page 72 note a Yorcha B

page 72 note b Yorcha B

page 72 note c quello B

page 72 note d ne li B

page 72 note e de li B

page 72 note f Sone E

page 72 note g pagano B

page 72 note h Word interlined in E

page 72 note i quaranta B

page 72 note j quatordeci B

page 72 note k dei quali B

page 72 note l è B

page 72 note m Wal: E; Walli B

page 72 note n habita B

page 72 note o cancelling e in E

page 73 note a a cancelling i in E

page 73 note b de li B

page 73 note c Abondantie B

page 73 note d richezza B

page 73 note e Sic B and E

page 73 note f da li B

page 73 note g de le B

page 73 note h fiumi B, i cancelling e

page 73 note i L'aera B

page 73 note j longezza B

page 73 note k d'ogni B

page 73 note l Sic B and E

page 73 note m custode B

page 73 note n megliori B

page 73 note o nelle parti B

page 74 note a danni B

page 74 note b recte manzi

page 74 note c aquatice B

page 74 note d First five letters added later in E

page 74 note e nelli B

page 74 note f entrà B

page 74 note g li belli B

page 74 note h Yorcha B

page 74 note i celeberrimi B

page 75 note a huomini B

page 75 note b popoli B

page 75 note c i quali B

page 75 note d Natura plebei B and E

page 75 note e Word interlined in E

page 75 note f amano B

page 75 note g p'el B

page 75 note h mercinarii B

page 75 note i dalli B

page 75 note j tanto B

page 75 note k Possibly in another hand in E

page 76 note a Possibly in another hand in E

page 76 note b sorte B

page 76 note c à B

page 76 note d d'haver B

page 76 note e d'armature B

page 76 note f mágiare B; magiare E

page 76 note g i E

page 76 note h cercanno B

page 76 note i habità B

page 76 note j della B

page 76 note k Sic B and E

page 76 note l venghino B

page 77 note a quela B, last letter added later

page 77 note b casa B

page 77 note c nissuno B

page 77 note d libera B

page 77 note e nelli B

page 77 note f sceleratezza B

page 77 note g volta B

page 77 note h de li B

page 77 note i volta B

page 77 note j cognosciuti B

page 77 note k L'ignominisa E

page 78 note a nella B

page 78 note b Word interlined in E

page 78 note c Possibly for strizzando (stringendo)

page 78 note d guella B

page 78 note e rimagino E; rimàgino B

page 78 note f Recte gabbiate

page 78 note g nelle B

page 78 note h Word repeated in B

page 78 note i possa B

page 78 note j ricchi B

page 79 note a ai B

page 79 note b inchiusi B

page 79 note c claustri B

page 79 note d guelli B

page 79 note e acgua B

page 79 note f delli huomini B

page 79 note g bronzo B

page 79 note n per adventura B

page 79 note i care B

page 79 note j Word interlined in E

page 79 note k cio E

page 79 note l Word lacking in B

page 79 note m direte B

page 80 note a si B

page 80 note b de cancelling con; de cancelling two or three letters B

page 80 note c richezze B

page 80 note d ne anche B

page 80 note e rare B

page 80 note f rare B

page 80 note g e cancelling i in E

page 80 note h richezza B

page 80 note i alcuno B

page 80 note j questo B

page 80 note k Conclusion B

page 80 note l provincia B

page 80 note m l'azamento E

page 80 note n lo B

page 81 note a volta B

page 81 note b Questa B

page 81 note c principata B

page 81 note d in perpetuo B

page 81 note e venghino B

page 81 note f dei B

page 81 note g concedutili B

page 81 note h questa B

page 81 note i militia B

page 81 note j giogara B

page 82 note a l'anticho B

page 82 note b forza B

page 82 note c obedientcentissimi with cen cancelled B

page 82 note d a la B

page 82 note e a la B

page 82 note f zuffa B

page 82 note g della B

page 82 note h cerca B

page 82 note i parlamento B

page 82 note j lo B

page 82 note k parlamento B

page 82 note l parlamento B

page 82 note m parlamento B

page 82 note n nel cancels in in E; the sense requires something like tema di before guardare

page 83 note a costumi B

page 83 note b paghino le B

page 83 note c venghino B

page 83 note d il qual B

page 83 note e donzelle B

page 83 note f molti B

page 83 note g fabricati B

page 83 note h Briduielle B

page 83 note i neli quali, fast i added later, second i cancelling e B

page 83 note j salvatici B

page 83 note k le B

page 83 note l peschere B

page 83 note m sorte de B

page 83 note n sua B

page 84 note a al, 1 cancelling d B

page 84 note b Margarita … Margaritta B

page 84 note c Bianca B

page 84 note d Si che B

page 84 note e d'una B

page 84 note f Date underlined in E

page 84 note g rimorso B

page 84 note h li B

page 84 note i sua B

page 85 note a deli B

page 85 note b scocesi B

page 85 note c monarchia B

page 85 note d Scotia B

page 85 note e ai B

page 85 note f al'otio B

page 85 note g deli B

page 85 note h minima B

page 85 note i Scocia B

page 85 note j uccisi B

page 85 note k Date underlined in E

page 85 note l sdegnandosi B

page 85 note m Ludovico B

page 86 note a il qual B

page 86 note b de B

page 86 note c B adds guerra before qual

page 86 note d li B

page 86 note e li B

page 86 note f si B

page 86 note g Cales B

page 87 note a deli B

page 87 note b Dorphanne B

page 87 note c felicità B

page 87 note d Sic B and E

page 87 note e della B

page 87 note f m cancelling n in E

page 87 note g nelli B

page 88 note a detti B

page 88 note b ivi B

page 88 note c puoe E

page 88 note d e cancelling i in E

page 88 note e rozzi B

page 88 note f una sorte B

page 88 note g Word interlined in E

page 88 note h Possibly for insalata, mockingly

page 88 note i pettinarli B

page 88 note j horribili B

page 88 note k Tenghino B

page 88 note l tutti B

page 88 note m posto B

page 89 note a Word interlined in E

page 89 note b B adds and cancels a redundant Immanita immediately before Costume

page 89 note c delicatissimi B