Apocalyptic Expectations Among the Followers of Pope Benedict XIII (R. 1394—1423): Ms 940 of the Trivulziana Library in Milan, Italy [thesis]

220 Pages·2014·2.17 MB·English

by  Aaron C. Taylor

Aaron C. Taylor
Candidate

Spanish and Portuguese
Department

This dissertation is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication:

Approved by the Dissertation Committee:

Anthony J. Cárdenas-Rotunno , Chairperson

Mary B. Quinn

Rachele Duke

Michael A. Ryan

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APOCALYPTIC EXPECTATIONS AMONG THE
FOLLOWERS OF POPE BENEDICT XIII (R. 1394—1423): MS
940 OF THE TRIVULZIANA LIBRARY IN MILAN, ITALY.

by

AARON C. TAYLOR

B.A., Anthropology and History, University of New Mexico, 2000
M.A. Hispanic Literature, University of New Mexico, 2008

DISSERTATION

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree of

Doctor of Philosophy
Spanish and Portuguese

The University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico

July, 2014

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UMI Number: 3641168
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DEDICATION
A mi querida hija, Éowyn. Al ver esta tesis doctoral me pediste que te escribiera
un libro infantil con dibujos porque éste se ve aburrido. Espero que mi próximo trabajo
sea más interesante para ti, pero gracias por recordarme de las verdaderas bendiciones en
esta vida.
To my grandmother, Ilene Jones. I miss you greatly and wish you could have been
here to celebrate.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to express my gratitude to Dr. Anthony J. Cárdenas-Rutonno, my
committee chair, for his many years of support in the Spanish and Portuguese
Department. His encouragement and guidance during writing of this dissertation, as well
as throughout my time at UNM, has been invaluable.
I also wish to acknowledge with much appreciation the members of my
committee, Dr. Rachele Duke, Dr. Mary B. Quinn, and Dr. Michael A. Ryan, for their
professional advice and assistance during the research and writing stages of this work.
To the staff at the Spanish and Portuguese Department, especially Martha Hurd,
thank you for the support with deadlines and paperwork.
I also express my gratitude to the GPSA and the SPGPSA for their financial
support during my research.
Finally, I wish to thank my parents, grandparents, and other family members for
showing me the value of education and encouraging me to continue my studies in the
face of various obstacles.

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APOCALYPTIC EXPECTATIONS AMONG THE FOLLOWERS OF POPE
BENEDICT XIII (R. 1394—1423): MS 940 OF THE TRIVULZIANA LIBRARY IN
MILAN, ITALY.

by
Aaron C. Taylor
B.A., Anthropology and History, University of New Mexico, 2000
M.A., Hispanic Literature, University of New Mexico, 2008
PhD, Spanish and Portuguese, University of New Mexico, 2014

ABSTRACT

In 1420 an anonymous follower of Pope Benedict XIII (r. 1394—1423) compiled
a group of forty prophecies regarding his belief in the imminent arrival of the Antichrist
entitled Las señales que serán quando el Anticristo verná a reynar. Although most
scholars of apocalyptic literature during the Great Western Schism (1378—1417)
conclude their studies with the Council of Constance and the election of Pope Martin V
in 1417, this study demonstrates that apocalyptic thought evolved quickly among the
dwindling supporters of Pope Benedict XIII. By examining the social, historical and
literary context of Las señales, this dissertation sheds light on the previously unexplored
connection between apocalyptic thought, the persecutions suffered by Benedict and his
followers following Constance, and their continued resistance to Martin V. This study
demonstrates that Benedict’s followers not only modified contemporary apocalyptic
traditions, but they also adapted contemporary literary texts, such as Vida de Jesucrist
written by the Francesc Eiximenis. This seminal research opens up a new understanding
in the development of apocalyptic literature of the Great Western Schism and provides
scholars the opportunity to examine the text through the various editions provided here.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1 - Apocalyptic Literature in Medieval Iberia ................................................ 1 
Apocalyptic Thought among Early Christians until the 12th Century ............................ 2 
Iberian Apocalyptic Texts until the 12th Century ....................................................... 8 
Apocalyptic Developments through the 14th Century ................................................... 12 
Iberian Apocalyptic Texts through the Fourteenth Century ..................................... 17 
The Great Western Schism (1378—1429) .................................................................... 20 
Apocalyptic Literature of the Great Western Schism ................................................... 31 
Iberian Apocalyptic Literature during the Great Western Schism ............................ 33 
Conclusions ................................................................................................................... 50 
Chapter 2 - The Cancionero de la Trivulziana (MS 940) ............................................. 52 
Previous Studies of the CT ........................................................................................... 52 
Date of Composition ..................................................................................................... 57 
Literary Content and Chronology ............................................................................. 57 
Political and Historical Content of CT ...................................................................... 62 
Place of Composition – Rome ...................................................................................... 66 
The Cancionero de la Trivulziana – Arrival to Milan ................................................... 71 
The Composition of the CT and Spanish Imperialism .................................................. 72 
Conclusions ................................................................................................................... 76 
Chapter 3 – The Structure and Sources of Las señales ............................................... 77 
Structure of LS .............................................................................................................. 77 
The Legend of the Fifteen Signs before Doomsday and LS ......................................... 78 
Sources of LS Mentioned in the Text ........................................................................... 79 
Saint Methodius Martyr ............................................................................................ 79 
El Maestro de las Sentencias – Peter Lombard ......................................................... 80 
Beda - Bede ............................................................................................................... 80 
Hugo .......................................................................................................................... 81 
Antidorense ............................................................................................................... 81 
Nicolao de Lira ......................................................................................................... 82 
Yohachín ................................................................................................................... 82 
Augustino .................................................................................................................. 83 
Abralio ...................................................................................................................... 83 
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Eusebio ...................................................................................................................... 83 
Damaceno ................................................................................................................. 84 
Fray Edon .................................................................................................................. 84 
Cassiodorus ............................................................................................................... 84 
Petrus de Taransía ..................................................................................................... 85 
Rabbi Moisen ............................................................................................................ 85 
Francesc Eiximenis and LS ........................................................................................... 86 
Textual Witnesses in Catalan .................................................................................... 87 
Textual Witnesses in Spanish ................................................................................... 87 
Stemma Codicum .......................................................................................................... 89 
Stemma Codicum of Catalan Witnesses .................................................................... 90 
Stemma Codicum of Spanish Witnesses – S1, S2, S3 and S4................................... 91 
Stemma Codicum of Spanish Witnesses – LS and LC .............................................. 94 
Conclusions ................................................................................................................... 99 
Chapter 4: Semi-diplomatic edition of Las señales .................................................... 101 
Introduction ................................................................................................................. 101 
Critical Apparatus for the Semi-diplomatic Edition ................................................... 101 
Transcription of Las señales ....................................................................................... 104 
Chapter 5: Normalized edition of Las señales ............................................................ 142 
Introduction ................................................................................................................. 142 
Normalized Edition ..................................................................................................... 144 
Chapter 6: Tentative English Translation of Las señales ......................................... 159 
Introduction ................................................................................................................. 159 
English Translation of Las señales ............................................................................. 159 
Appendix A – Normalized editions of Francesc Eiximenis’s Vida de Jesucrist ...... 175 
Catalan Witnesses ....................................................................................................... 175 
(C1) Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, ms. 2801 .......................................................... 175 
(C2) Madrid, Biblioteca del Palacio Real, ms. II-552 ............................................ 178 
Spanish Witnesses ....................................................................................................... 175 
(S1) Paris, Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal, ms. 8321 ..................................................... 182 
(S2) Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, ms. 5626 .......................................................... 183 
(S3) Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, Inc. 1126 .......................................................... 186 
(S4) Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, ms. 6176 .......................................................... 190 
(LC) Madrid, Real Academia de la Historia, ms. 2176 .......................................... 194 
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Appendix B – Textual Witnesses of Vida de Jesucrist .............................................. 198 
Witnesses in Catalan ................................................................................................... 198 
Textual Witnesses in Spanish ..................................................................................... 199 
Textual Witness in French .......................................................................................... 199 
References ...................................................................................................................... 200 

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