View source for The Book of the White Earl

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox manuscript
<!----------Name---------->
| name                  = The Book of the White Earl
| location              = [[Bodleian Library]]
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| Also known as         =The Laud Genealogies and Tribal Histories
| Type                  =
| Date                  = c. 1404&ndash;52
| Place of origin       = Ireland: [[Pottlerath]] and elsewhere
| Language(s)           = [[Old Irish|Old]] and [[Middle Irish]], [[Early Modern Irish|Early Modern]]
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| Patron                =[[James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond]]
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{{Location map | Island of Ireland
| relief   = yes
| width    = 250
| caption  = Location of [[Pottlerath]] (''Ráth an Photaire'') in Ireland
| lat_deg = 52.616427
| lon_deg = -7.441166
| label   = Pottlerath
}}
'''The Book of the White Earl''' is an [[Ireland|Irish]] religious and literary [[miscellany]] created c. 1404&ndash;1452.
''The Book of the White Earl'', now '''Bodleian Laud Misc. MS 610''', consists of twelve folios inserted into [[Leabhar na Rátha]], aka [[The Book of Pottlerath]]. It was created by [[Irish language|Gaelic]] [[scribes]] under the patronage of [[James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond]] (1392–1452). Henry and Marsh-Michel describe it as follows:
{{blockquote|The sumptuous initials of this book are not more or less servile repetition of twelfth-century work ... the work of the scribe also is dazzling. He plays like a virtuoso with various sizes of script, the larger size having a majestic decorative quality. The contents are no less remarkable; the "[[Martyrology of Óengus]]", the "[[Acallam na Senórach]]" and a dindsenchus. The foliage pattern is probably inspired by foreign models, but is so completely integrated that the borrowing is only realised on second thoughts. The initials are large, bold, and drawn in firm lines and bright colours.}}
Butler is admired for having been strongly [[Gaelicisation|Gaelicised]]. He was an Irish-speaker and seems to have been the very first of the [[Anglo-Irish]] lords to appoint a [[brehon]], Domhnall Mac Flannachadha, for his service. Butler granted Mac Flannchadha lands in [[County Tipperary|Tipperary]].
==Sources==
*''Manuscripts and illuminations 1169-1603'', by Francoise Henry and Genevieve Louise Marsh-Micheli, in ''A New History of Ireland'', pp.&nbsp;801–803, volume two.
*''Laud 610. [http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/G105005/text001.html The Laud Genealogies and Tribal Histories.]'' UCC CELT project.
**''[http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/G105018/text001.html The Laud Synchronisms]'' at UCC CELT project - primitive version of the [[List of High Kings of Ireland]] included in the MS.
{{Ancient Irish manuscripts}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Book Of The White Earl, The}}
[[Category:15th-century books]]
[[Category:Early Irish literature]]
[[Category:Texts in Irish]]
[[Category:Irish-language literature]]
[[Category:Fenian Cycle]]
[[Category:Irish-language manuscripts]]
[[Category:Literary illuminated manuscripts]]
[[Category:Bodleian Library collection]]
[[Category:Butler dynasty]]