that his design had always been to reach Cipangu, this was a post hoc story, the idea of searching for Cipangu having probably come from his partner, Martin Pinzon.  It is a pity that we do not know when he made his notes in the edition (the probable date of publication of which was 1485) of Marco Polo’s book, which might settle the matter.  On the whole question see Henry Vignaud, Etudes critiques sur la vie de Colomb avant ses decouvertes (Paris, 1905) and Histoire de la Grande Enterprise de 1492, 2 vols. (Paris, 1910), and the summary and discussion of his conclusions by Professor A.P.  Newton in History, VII (1922), pp. 38-42 (Historical Revisions XX.—­’Christopher Columbus and his Great Enterprise.’) The idea that a new road to the East was being sought at this time, primarily because the Turks were blocking the old trade routes, has also been exploded.  See A.H.  Lybyer, The Ottoman Turks and the Routes of Oriental Trade in Eng.  Hist.  Review, XXX (1915), pp.577-88.

CHAPTER IV

MADAME EGLENTYNE

A.  Raw Material

1.  Chaucer’s description of the Prioress in the Prologue to the Canterbury Tales.

2.  Miscellaneous visitation reports in episcopal registers.  On these registers, and in particular the visitation documents therein, see R.C.  Fowler, Episcopal Registers of England and Wales (S.P.C.K.  Helps for Students of History, No. 1), G.G.  Coulton, The Interpretation of Visitation Documents (Eng.  Hist.  Review, 1914), and c.  XII of my book, cited below.  A great many registers have been, or are being, published by learned societies, notably by the Canterbury and York Society, which exists for this purpose.  The most important are the Lincoln visitations, now in the course of publication, by Dr A. Hamilton Thompson, Visitations of Religious Houses in the Diocese of Lincoln, ed.  A. Hamilton Thompson (Lincoln Rec.  Soc. and Canterbury and York Soc., 1915 ff.); two volumes have appeared so far, of which see especially vol.  II, which contains part of Bishop Alnwick’s visitations (1436-49); each volume contains text, translation, and an admirable introduction.  See also the extracts from Winchester visitations trans. in H.G.D.  Liveing, Records of Romsey Abbey (1912).  Full extracts from visitation reports and injunctions are given under the accounts of religious houses in the different volumes of the Victoria County Histories (cited as V.C.H.).

3.  The monastic rules.  See The Rule of St Benedict, ed.  F.A.  Gasquet (Kings Classics, 1909), and F.A.  Gasquet, English Monastic Life (4th ed., 1910).

4.  For a very full study of the whole subject of English convent life at this period see Eileen Power, Medieval English Nunneries c. 1275 to 1535(1922).

B.  Notes to the Text