Editing Julian of Norwich (section)

== ''Revelations of Divine Love'' ==
{{Main|Revelations of Divine Love}}
[[File:XVI Revelations of Divine Love (title page, 1670 edition).jpg|thumb|upright|alt=frontispiece of 1670 edition of Revelations of Divine Love |First edition of ''[[Revelations of Divine Love|XVI Revelations of Divine Love]]'' (1670)]]
Both the ''Long Text'' and ''Short Text'' of Julian's ''Revelations of Divine Love'' contain an account of each of her revelations.{{sfn|Windeatt|2015|p=lii}} Her writings are unique, as they are the earliest surviving English language works by a woman, although it is possible that some anonymous works may have had female authors. They are also the only surviving writings by an English anchoress.{{sfn|Windeatt|2015|p=ix}}{{sfn|Leyser|2002|p=208}} The ''Long Text'' consists of 86 chapters and about 63,500 words, and is about six times longer than the ''Short Text''.{{sfn|Leyser|2002|p=219}}{{sfn|Jantzen|2011|pp=4{{ndash}}5}}

In 14th century England, when women were generally barred from high status positions, their knowledge of Latin would have been limited, and it is more likely that they read and wrote in English.{{sfn|Leyser|2002|p=211}} The historian [[Janina Ramirez]] has suggested that by choosing to write in her [[vernacular]] language, a precedent set by other medieval writers, Julian was "attempting to express the inexpressible" in the best way possible.{{sfn|Ramirez|2016|p=7}} Nothing written by Julian was ever mentioned in any bequests, nor written for a specific readership, or influenced other medieval authors,{{sfn|Rolf|2013|p=8}} and almost no references were made to her writings from the time they were written until the beginning of the 20th century.{{sfn|Leech|Ward|1995|p=12}}

Julian's writings were largely unknown until 1670, when they were published under the title ''XVI Revelations of Divine Love, shewed to a devout servant of Our Lord, called Mother Juliana, an Anchorete of Norwich: Who lived in the Dayes of King Edward the Third'' by [[Serenus de Cressy]], a [[Confession (religion)|confessor]] for the English nuns at [[Cambrai]].{{sfn|Crampton|1994|p=11}}<ref name="BL1">{{cite archive |author=Julian of Norwich |item=Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love |item-url=https://searcharchives.bl.uk/primo_library/libweb/action/dlDisplay.do?vid=IAMS_VU2&search_scope=default_scope&docId=IAMS040-001952820&fn=permalink |type=book |item-id=Stowe MS 42 |date={{circa}}1675 |page= |pages= |fonds= |series= |file= |box= |collection=Western Manuscripts |collection-url= |repository= |institution=[[British Library]] |location=London |oclc= |access-date=9 December 2021 |archive-date=9 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209134503/https://searcharchives.bl.uk/primo_library/libweb/action/dlDisplay.do?vid=IAMS_VU2&search_scope=default_scope&docId=IAMS040-001952820&fn=permalink|}}</ref> Cressy based his book on the ''Long Text'',{{sfn|Ramirez|2016|p=78}} probably written by Julian in the 1410s or 1420s.{{sfn|McGinn|2012|p=425}} Three manuscript copies of the ''Long Text'' have survived.{{sfn|Windeatt|2015|p=xx}} One copy of the complete ''Long Text'', known as the Paris Manuscript, resides in the [[Bibliothèque nationale de France]] in Paris, and two other manuscripts are now in the [[British Library]] in London.{{sfn|Crampton|1994|pp=20{{ndash}}21}} One of the manuscripts was perhaps copied out by Dame Clementina Cary, who founded the English Benedictine monastery in Paris.{{sfn|Leech|Ward|1995|p=12}} Cressy's edition was reprinted in 1843 and 1864, and again in 1902.{{sfn|Crampton|1994|p=18}}

A new version of the book was produced by Henry Collins in 1877. It became still better known after the publication of [[Grace Harriet Warrack|Grace Warrack]]'s 1901 edition, which included modernised language, as well as, according to the author Georgia Ronan Crampton, a "sympathetic informed introduction". The book introduced most early 20th century readers to Julian's writings;{{sfn|Crampton|1994|p=18}} according to the historian [[Henrietta Leyser]], Julian was "beloved in the 20th century by theologians and poets alike".{{sfn|Leyser|2002|pp=218{{ndash}}219}}

Julian's shorter work, now known as the ''Short Text'', was probably written not long after her visions in May 1373.{{sfn|Windeatt|2015|pp=xx{{ndash}}xxi}} As with the ''Long Text'', the original manuscript was lost, but not before at least one copy was made by a scribe.{{sfn|Ramirez|2016|pp=74{{ndash}}75}} It was in the possession of an English Catholic family at one point.{{sfn|Leech|Ward|1995|p=12}} The copy was seen and described by the [[antiquarian]] [[Francis Blomefield]] in 1745.{{sfn|Rolf|2013|p=9}}{{sfn|Blomefield|Parkin|1805|p=81}} After disappearing from view for 150 years, it was found in 1910, in a collection of contemplative medieval texts bought by the [[British Museum]],{{sfn|Rolf|2013|p=6}} and was published by the Reverend Dundas Harford in 1911.{{sfn|Rolf|2013|p=9}} Now part of British Library Add MS 37790, the manuscript—with Julian's ''Short Text'' of 33 pages ([[folios]] 97[[Recto and verso|r]] to 115r)—is held in the British Library.{{sfn|Windeatt|2015|pp=li{{ndash}}lii}}<ref name="BL37790">{{cite archive |first= |last= |item=A Carthusian anthology of theological works in English (the 'Amherst Manuscript') |item-url=https://searcharchives.bl.uk/primo_library/libweb/action/dlDisplay.do?vid=IAMS_VU2&search_scope=default_scope&docId=IAMS040-002054226&fn=permalink |type=A parchment codex, 238 folios |item-id=Add MS 37790 |date=Middle of the 15th century |page= |pages= |fonds= |series= |file= |box= |collection=Western Manuscripts |collection-url= |repository= |institution=[[British Library]] |location=London |oclc= |accession= |access-date=12 October 2021}}</ref>