Viking invasions and marginal annotations in Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 162

Abstract

In the margins of Ӕlfric's ‘Ash-Wednesday’ homily in Cambridge Corpus Christi College 162, an early-eleventh-century annotator adds a remark specifying ‘invasions’ among various misfortunes afflicting the English on a daily basis. This article argues that this marginal annotation constitutes a contemporary reference to the viking raids of King Ӕthelred the Unready's reign. The article examines this marginal text in the context of Ӕlfric's homily and in relation to other marginalia possibly written by the same scribe, including a second comment on the viking incursions. Based on this evidence, it is suggested that the annotator is revising homilies in this manuscript for preaching, possibly at St Augustine's, Canterbury, in the years 1009–12.