Minot

LAURENCE MINOT (fl. 1333 - 1352)

Eleven battle-songs exist by Minot, first published by Joseph Ritson (q.v.) as Poems on Interesting Events in the Reign of King Edward III. They are written in a vigorous and idiomatic English in the Northumbrian dialect, with an admixture of Midland forms. These spirited verses were evidently written at the time of the events they describe, and are animated by ardent personal admiration for Edward III and a fervent joy in the victories of the English, with plenty of satisfying insults to the enemy. The first poem celebrates the English triumph in 1333 at Halidon Hill, just north of Berwick, where the longbow gave the Scots a foretaste of what it was to achieve in France. Other songs describe the sieges of Berwick and Calais, the naval battle of Sluys (1340), Crecy (1346) in France , and the defeat of the Scots at Neville's Cross near Durham, also in 1346. The defeat of the Spanish fleet off Winchelsea (1350) is included, while the last poem describes the capture of Guines (1352).

The technical difficulty of the metres, rhymes and alliteration employed, and the relatively even quality of the work imply that Minot had written other songs, but none have come to light. Nothing whatever is known of Minot's life, but the minuteness of his information suggests that he accompanied Edward III on some of his campaigns.

Myers Literary Guide:	The North-East
LAURENCE MINOT (fl. 1333 - 1352) Eleven battle-songs exist by Minot, first published by Joseph Ritson (q.v.) as Poems on Interesting Events in the Reign of King Edward III. They are written in a vigorous and idiomatic English in the Northumbrian dialect, with an admixture of Midland forms. These spirited verses were evidently written at the time of the events they describe, and are animated by ardent personal admiration for Edward III and a fervent joy in the victories of the English, with plenty of satisfying insults to the enemy. The first poem celebrates the English triumph in 1333 at Halidon Hill, just north of Berwick, where the longbow gave the Scots a foretaste of what it was to achieve in France. Other songs describe the sieges of Berwick and Calais, the naval battle of Sluys (1340), Crecy (1346) in France , and the defeat of the Scots at Neville's Cross near Durham, also in 1346. The defeat of the Spanish fleet off Winchelsea (1350) is included, while the last poem describes the capture of Guines (1352). The technical difficulty of the metres, rhymes and alliteration employed, and the relatively even quality of the work imply that Minot had written other songs, but none have come to light. Nothing whatever is known of Minot's life, but the minuteness of his information suggests that he accompanied Edward III on some of his campaigns.
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