HISTORY OF THE KINGS OF BRITAIN IN THE CHRONICLE OF BALDWIN OF AVESNES, OR THE ART OF MEDIEVAL COMPILATION

An abridged adaptation of Geoffroy of Monmouth's Historia regum Britannic, overlooked by previous scholarship, is included in the so-called Chronicle ofBaldwin ofAvesnes, a universal chronicle written between 1278 and 1281. Baldwin's adaptation strategy and historiographical methods led him to incorporate the Historia in the form of multiple interpolations rather than en bloc. A detailed study of his interpolations shows how he was able to weave the Matter of Britain into his world history and his efforts to reconcile divergent sources. Another frequent and hitherto unnoticed source of the Chronicle is the Historia romana of Landolfus Sagax.