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Latin poem (139 hexametric lines) on Merlin and his prophecies, written by John of Cornwall in the middle of the 12th century, or somewhat later, in response to Geoffrey of Monmouth’s account of the same subject. In the introduction, John dedicates his work to his patron, Robert Warelwast (d. 1155), bishop of Exeter, or his succcessor Robert of Chichester (d. 1160?), and puts forward the claim that he is drawing on an independent Cornish source for his text. The text is accompanied by a prose commentary, notably including glosses in a variety of Brittonic, possibly Cornish, the origin and nature of which has been subject to some debate.
Medieval Latin poem, probably of the late 13th or early 14th century, which relates a prophecy about the political future of Britain. Like similar prophecies of the period, it is dependent on Geoffrey of Monmouth’s account of Merlin’s prophecy for Britain (Prophetiae Merlini) and other Galfridian narratives. Its central message is that through an alliance of the Scots and the Welsh, English rule will come to end and Britain will be unified under a new king-hero. The poem, or good parts of it, circulated widely in English manuscripts, both from the north and elsewhere, frequently as a minor text in the company of historical works (to which even further prophetic texts may have been added).
