Izvorni znanstveni članak

Marko Marulić and England

Charles Béné

Sažetak

The fact that Marulić's editions have never appeared in England could lead us into the erroneous belief that in this country the oeuvre of the great Croatian humanist passed more-or-Iess unobserved. Yet, such an assumption would run counter to the facts: The investigations carried out in the last few years show that the boldness and the pa ins with which Marulić's De institutione bene vivendi per exempla sanctorum was spread in England had absolutely no parallel in the contemporary Europe. We must bear in mind that the persecution of the Catholics who remained loyal to Rome during the reigns of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and James I aimed also at the suppression and destruction of all books of »Roman inspiration«.
This explains the dramatic circumstances in which the first English translation of Marulić's poem Carmen de doctrina domini nostri Iesu Christi pendentis in cruce came into existence. It was translated by Philip Howard, Earl of Arundel, in the Tower of London, where Howard was confined for ten years (1585-1595) after he had been converted to Roman Catholicism. The poem served as an introduction to An Epistle of Jesus Christ to the Soule that is devoutly affected to him by J. J. Lanspergius, printed secretly in England, in 1595. On the other hand, the poem entitled Earl of Arundel' s Verses, published 10 the Syddenham prayer book and dedlcated to the crucified Christ, was directly inspired by Marulić’s Carmen de doctrina. As we can see, Marulić's first English translator was a peer (which, however, could not save him from imprisonment and death) and a martyr of the faith.
Yet, this solitary example should not induce us to overlook the fact that behind the Antwerpen edition of De institutione of 1571 stands also an Englishman, John Fowler (Fouler), Oxford University professor, who went into exile because of his lifelong adherence to Roman Catholicism. Eager to furnish the expatriates and the Roman Catholics who had remained in England with pious literature, he produced an edition which, for the enthusiasm of its editor, its beauty and the richness of scientific apparatus, surpassed its predecessors. It was this edition that, despite the editor's death, was destined to be reproduced in Paris (Marnef, 1585) and to serve as the model for the editions of Steelsi (Antwerpen, 1584), Martin Nutius (Antwerpen, 1593) and for the first edition of Marulić's Opera Omnia carried through by the same Nutius (Antwerpen, 1601).
All of these editions are characterized by great richness of scientific apparatus (they literally reproduce references to patristic and medieval quotations marked by Fowler), elegant types and beautiful wood-prints illustrating the Carmen de doctrina which always appears on one of the front pages.
I do not doubt that future investigations will bring to light fresh evidence of other tributes which England, - for one thing the persecuted England - paid to one its spiritual teachers, Marko Marulić.
P.S: Indeed, as I have learnt from Mr. Freankel, Honorary Director of the Reformation Institute in Geneva, the British Museum seems to be in possession of an edition of Marulić’s De institutione completely annotated with the hand of Henry VIII himself; I am looking forward to having this interesting piece of information confirmed.

Ključne riječi

Hrčak ID:

9871

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/9871

Datum izdavanja:

22.4.1992.

Podaci na drugim jezicima: hrvatski

Posjeta: 1.461 *