A Chronicle of the Kings of England from the Time of the Roman Government, Frontispiece – To the reader
VERA EFFIGIES EXCELLENTISSIMI PRINCIPIS CAROLI MAG. BRITAN: FRAN. & HIBERNIAE. HAEREDIS.
Viuat ô Viuat Princeps CAROLINUS, et Orbi.
Imperet, in̄umeris decorans sua sêcla Triumphis.
Flourish braue Prince, out shine thy Glorious Name.
Triumphant Laurels ever Crowne thy Fame.
CAROLUS inter Reges ut Lilium inter Flores
VEROLAM.
LINCO…
LONDON.
YORK.
A ROMAN
A SAXON
A DANE
A NO…
CHRONICLE OF THE KINGS OF ENGLAND From the Time of the ROMANS Goverment unto the Raigne of our Soveraigne LORD KING CHARLES.
Containing all Passages of State & Church, With all other Observations proper for a CHRONICLE.
Faithfully Collected out of Authours Ancient and Moderne; & digested into a new Method.
By Sr R. Baker, Knight.
LONDON, Printed for Daniel Frere, and are to be sold at his Shop, at the Red Bull in Little Brittaine. 1643.
To the High and Mighty Prince CHARLES, Prince of Wales, and Duke of Cornewall: Eldest Sonne of our Soveraigne Lord, CHARLES, King of Great Britaine, France, and IRELAND.
SIR,
THE Dedication of Chronicles hath in all times been thought worthy of the greatest Princes: Gulielmus Gemiticensis writ a Chronicle of the Dukes of Normandy, and Dedicated it to William the Conquerour. Thomas Walsingham writ a Chronicle of the Kings of England, and Dedicated it to King Henry the sixth: And of late time, Sir Francis Bacon, Viscount Saint Albans, and Lord Chancellour of England, writ a History of the Reigne of King Henry the seventh, and Dedicated it to Your Royall Grand-Father of blessed memory, King Iames: For indeed, as nothing makes Princes more Illustrious then Learning; So no Learning makes them more Judicious then History; Other Learning may fill their mindes with knowledge; This onelyonly with Judgement: And seeing it is Judgement that must sit as President over all their Actions, it is fit that History should sit as President over all their Studies. History gives an Antedate to Time; and brings Experience without gray haires: Other Knowledges make You but see Quod antepedes est; History is the true perspective Glasse, that will make You see things afarre off: And though it make not men to become Prophets, yet it makes their conjectures to be little lesse then Oracles… But most Illustrious Prince, there accrues to your Highnesse, by this Chronicle, a greater benefit then all this; For if it were an Excitation of great force to vertue, to have it said, Et Pater Aeneas & Avunculus excitet Hector; of how great Force must it needes be, when You shall reade the Noble Acts of so many your worthy Progenitors; Some Eternized for their valourous Atchievements in Warre: Some for their prudent government in Peace: Some Renowned for Mercy, some for Justice: And although the Example of your Royall Father be not amongst them, yet it may be sufficient that while you have the Acts of others upon Record, you have his under View, by which he seemes to say unto you, Disce Puer virtutem exme, verumque laborem; Fortunam ex aliis. And if in any of your Progenitors, there appeare, as it were Maculae in Orbe Lunae, will it not invite you to a higher Orbe, that Your Actions may shine with the clearer Beames? and then how happy will the eyes be, that shall see you sitting in your Throne? For my selfe, I should account it happinesse enough, that I have lived to see the dayes of your Illustrious Father; if it were not a great unhappines to see them overcast with clouds; & yet when these clouds shal be dispel'd, will it not make him shine with the greater Splendor? And this as old as I am, I doubt not to live my selfe to see, and having once seene it, shal then willingly say my Nunc Dimittis, and l…ave the joy of your glorious times for another Age: In the meane time prostrating my self humbly at your feet; and wishing to your Highnesse, as D…iphobus did to Aeneas;—I Decus, I Nostrum, Melioribus utere Fatis.
Your most humble and most devoted Servant, RICHARD BAKER.
An Epistle to the READER.
THis Booke, I suppose will no sooner come abroad; but the question will be asked, why any man would take so superfluous a Labour, to write that which hath been written by so many; by some so copiously, by some so elegantly, that nothing can be added: To which Objection, I confesse my selfe unable to make a better Answer then by President: For when many excellent men had written the Story of the Roman Emperours, both accurately and eloquently; yet Suetonius Tranquillus comming after them, wanted not his part of Commendation. For though he added nothing in the matter or substance, yet be altered much in the forme and disposition, distinguishing that into Classes and Chapters, which the former had delivered in one continued Narration: as being both lesse tedious to the Reader, like a way marked out by Miles; and more plainly Informing, where Distinction tooke away confusion. Besides, many have Written the Reignes of our English Kings, copiously indeed, but so superfluously, that much may justly be pared away; Some againe Elegantly indeed, but so succinctly, that much as justly may be added: And this, if I have endevoured to doe, I cannot be blamed; If done it, I deserve acceptance. Againe, where many have written the Reignes of some of our Kings, excellently as in the way of History, yet I may say they have not done it so well in the way of Chronicle; For whilst they insist wholly upon matters of State, they wholly omit meaner Accidents, which yet are Materials as proper for a Chronicle, as the other. For my selfe, if in some places I be found to set downe whole passages, as they are already set downe by others, and may seeme rather to transcribe then to write; yet this I suppose may be excused, as being all of one common stocke; and no matter from whence the water comes, so it come cleane to the Readers use. Lastly, for the Worke it selfe; I dare be bold to say, that it hath beene Collected out of Authours both Ancient and Moderne, with so great care and diligence, that if all other Chronicles should be lost, yet this onelyonly would be sufficient to informe Posterity of all passages memorable or worthy to be knowne; which of any other generall Chronicle, cannot perhaps be said.
RICHARD BAKER.