THE ANNAL-NUMBERS

The annal-numbers in E generally conform to those found in other manuscripts of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. There are, however, a number of errors in the annal-numbers, leading in some cases to considerable distortion in their relation to the events they record.

(i) Various errors were subsequently corrected by the first (main) scribe. The following annal-numbers have been subject to scribal correction: 22 (corrected from .xiii. by insertion of x and erasure of the third i); 140 (corrected by an erasure between the c and x of .cxl.); 411 (corrected from .cccxi. by insertion of c); 434 (corrected from .cccxxxiiii. by insertion of c); 570 (the final x of .dlxx. is written over an erasure); 612–19 (corrected from .dxii.-.dxix. by insertion of c in each annal-number); 706 (corrected by an erasure after the i of .dccvi.); 712–13 (corrected from .dccii. and .dcciii. by insertion of x in each case); 750 (corrected by an erasure after the l of .dccl.); 785 (corrected by alteration of, and an erasure after, the v of .dcclxxxv.); 800 (the final c of .dccc. is written over an erasure); 964 (corrected by an erasure between the fourth c and the l of .dcccclxiiii.); 1055 (corrected by an erasure after the v of .lv.); 1056 (corrected by an erasure after the i of .lvi.); 1126 (corrected by alteration of the last two numerals of .coxxvi. and an erasure after them). The annal-number 439 is followed by the erasure of a whole annal-number. In the section written by the second scribe, 1132 has been corrected (by erasure).

(ii) Other errors were subsequently rectified by a later annotator (probably William L’Isle). The annal-number 63 is formed by adding a third i to the repeat of .lxii., and the original annal-number 63 is crossed out. The annalnumber 491 is corrected, probably from .ccccxi. (by alteration of xi to xci).

(iii) A considerable number of uncorrected errors in annal-numbers affect E. Some of these pertain to individual annal-numbers: 288 appears as 278; 379 is repeated (as the result of the insertion of a Latin annal), so that the annal for 381 appears in E under 380; 639 is repeated so that the annal for 640 appears in E under 639; 647 (a blank annal) is omitted.