of physic.
XIII. Of the death of the Priest Amilius that succeeded Florentius at
Deventer.
XIV. Of the first investiture of the Sisters of our Order in
Diepenvene near Deventer.
XV. How the monastery in Budiken was reformed.
XVI. Of the death of Gerard Kalker, a devout Priest, and Rector of
the House of Clerks.
XVII. Of the death of Henry of Gouda, a devout Priest, at Zwolle.
XVIII. How the Sisters in Bronope were invested.
XIX. The death of Wermbold the Priest.
XX. Of the death of John Cele, Rector of the School at Zwolle.
XXI. Concerning John Brinckerinck, a disciple of Master Gerard.
XXII. Of the death of Gisbert Dow, Rector of the Sisters at Amsterdam.
XXIII. As to the gaining of Indulgences at the stations in Rome.
XXIV. The letter of the Cardinal of Bologna.
A LETTER CONCERNING THE FIRST INSTITUTION OF THE MONASTERY AT WINDESEM.
TRANSLATOR'S NOTE
The Chronicle of Mount St. Agnes is the only work of Thomas a Kempis of
which no English translation has yet appeared, and even in its original
form the book is not readily accessible to readers, since the only text
is that published by Peter and John Beller of Antwerp in 1621. The
ordinary collections of the works of a Kempis do not contain the
Chronicle, although there is no doubt as to the authenticity of the book,
which is of considerable importance to students of the movement known as
"The New Devotion," and to those who are interested in the Brotherhood of
the Common Life. The last nine pages of the Latin text have been added
by an anonymous writer, and carry on the chronicle from the year 1471, in
which a Kempis died, to 1477, but since this portion of the book is
included in the first printed edition, and contains a notice of the
author written by a contemporary member of the community, I have included
the addition in the present translation of the Chronicle.
The Mother House of the Chapter to which the Monastery of Mount St. Agnes
belonged, was the Monastery at Windesheim, of which we have a full
account from the pen of John Buschius, a younger contemporary of a
Kempis. This work is too long to be included in the present volume,
although the Antwerp edition before mentioned puts the two Chronicles
together; Busch's "Chronicon Windesemense" will therefore appear
separately; but as the account of the foundation of the Mother House,
written by William Voern, or Vorniken, suppleme
|