Britain, or a chorographicall description of the most flourishing kingdomes, England, Scotland, and Ireland, and the Ilands adioyning, out of the depth of antiqvitie : beavtified with mappes of the severall Shires of England / written first in Latine by William Camden ; Translated newly into English by Philémon Holland.

William Camden

Date:: 1610

Credit: Britain, or a chorographicall description of the most flourishing kingdomes, England, Scotland, and Ireland, and the Ilands adioyning, out of the depth of antiqvitie : beavtified with mappes of the severall Shires of England / written first in Latine by William Camden ; Translated newly into English by Philémon Holland. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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a> M — A itbefomewhat againft my will ; whoin many things have alwaies for his learning —Asalíofor honored and admired the man. For,this conte&ure arifeth not from the divers rea- | e sume: dingsin books,but out of his own braine : and the fenfe may beare,cither [Caruleos | nes upon “Senta Brigantes | asitisin all books, or [Carulcos cute Brigantes] thatis,the Drigan- * mir. tes with blue died skins,as that moft learned Hadrian Iuniusreadethit. ButBucha- sequ nan,who had rather difport himfelfe fweetly in his own conceit and the witty inven- tion ofone other,than to iudge aright with the ufuall and approovedreading of that place, giveth a marvellous applauíeto this coniecture. Firlt,becaufe authors do not record that the Britans painted their fhields then;for that Seneca called them Scots B Brigantes tor difference fake, to diftinguifh them from the Brigantes of Spaine and Ireland: Laft of all,becaufe in thefe verfeshe makes a diftinGion between the Bri- tans and Brigantes,as though they were, divers nations. But if one would narrowlie fift and examine thefe matters what letteth but that they might paint their fhiclds as well asthemfelves and theirchariots? Why fhould hee for diftingtion fake, coine thi new word, Scoto-Brigantes? when he calleth them blew, and faith they were fubdu- ed by Claudius, doth he not fufficiently diftinguifh them from the other Brigantes ? But that obfervation of his touching Britans and Brigantes, as if they were divers na- tions, doth fcarfe favour of a Poetshead, which couldnot be ignorant of that poeti- call figure, and maner of fpe aking, wherein a part is ufedfor the whole , and. contra- C riwife. Wherefore, feeing thefe thingsmake nothing to his caufe, I will fecond Bus chanan by way, as it were;of a fre(h fupply with the aid of Egefippus, (who is com- monly reputed a verie ancient writer:) For, thus writeth he, where he treateth of the. Romans power: bey make* Scotland to quake which is beholden to no land for ary thing : »3 before them, Saxony trembleth,thet for Marifhes is inacce(able. Butheare youme, this au | thor fhal ftand behind in the rereward,for he lived afterConftantines daies,asmay be — Seem trelana gathered out of hisowne writings : neither can itbee prooved out of him, thatthe Scots dwelt in Britain,no more than out of that verfe of Sidonius which erewhile I a1 leaged. Y ea mary,but there is anotherreafon of more weight and moment indeed, which M.lohn Crag,a right famous and learned man, found by moft exquifit and cu- D tious fearch in Iofeph Ben-Gorion,writing of the deftru&ion of Ierufalem,to wit, that inan Hebrew copie, the Scotsare exprefly named, where Munfter in his Latine tran- flation hath untruely put downe Bricans for Scots. But in what age that Ben-Gori- onlived, I cannot find for certaine: fure lam, that he was after Flavius Iofephus, be- caufeh : maketh mention of tlie Franks, whofc name long after began to be knowen. - , Butfurely;if Imay be foboldas to interpofe my felfe in this queftion, among fo 'great Scholars : fo farre as Ihave beene able to obferve, the firft time that ever the Scotith nationbécame named.in authors , was whiles Aurelianus was Emperour. For Porphyric, whothen wrote. againft the Chriftians as *SaintIerome informeth *Unte et us, mentioned them in thefe words: Weither Britaine, a fertile Province of tyrants mor ? phon seainft E the Scotifhiations, tozether with the barbarovspeople round about as farre as tothe Ocean, ? Pelagians. bad any knowledge of Mofes and the Prophets. At which time verily, or fomewhat be-” fore, thofe that are well feene in-Antiquities have noted, that the namesof the moft potent nations of French ànd Almanes, werenotheard of before the time of Galli- enus the Empetour. | ; . 10 Ttisno affured truth therefore, which fome write, That the name andKingdome 5. of the Scotsflourifhed in Britainemany hundred yeeres before the birth of Chrift. But hearken to Girald, who will tell you the juft time :. When Great O-Nel (faith hee) held the Monartbie of Ireland, fix fonnes of Mured King of Viftersfeized upon the Norih? parts.of Britaines Hereupon frovat! em was thereanation propagated, which by a peculiar ?? T samecelled Scoticaythatis Scoti[Dymbabiteth that parteventothis days Andthatthisbe-?? - feartheverie timewhentheRoman Empire in everie mans fight grew to decay,it is ” collectedthus. VVhiles Lageriusthe fonne of that 0-N/Z xaigned over thelrifh; Pa- trick (the Apoftle of the Irifh-imen) came iato Ireland, much about the yeere after Chriftsnativitie 430. So as itmay fceme,this hapned ncere the daies of Honorius d'usul 25 -esifmaas vir L. * Augu[Ius, = 33 Jar

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