Magister Jacobus de Ispania, Author of the Speculum musicae (Royal Musical Association Monographs)

The Speculum musicae of the early fourteenth century, with nearly half a million words, is by a long way the largest medieval treatise on music, and probably the most learned. Only the final two books are about music as commonly understood: the other five invite further work by students of scholastic philosophy, theology and mathematics. For nearly a century, its author has been known as Jacques de Liège or Jacobus Leodiensis. ’Jacobus’ is certain, fixed by an acrostic declared within the text; Liège is hypothetical, based on evidence shown here to be less than secure. The one complete manuscript, Paris BnF lat. 7207, thought by its editor to be Florentine, can now be shown on the basis of its miniatures by Cristoforo Cortese to be from the Veneto, datable c. 1434-40. New documentary evidence in an Italian inventory, also from the Veneto, describes a lost copy of the treatise dating from before 1419, older than the surviving manuscript, and identifies its author as ’Magister Jacobus de Ispania’. If this had been known eighty years ago, the Liège hypothesis would never have taken root. It invites a new look at the geography and influences that played into this central document of medieval music theory. The two new attributes of ’Magister’ and ’de Ispania’ (i.e. a foreigner) prompted an extensive search in published indexes for possible identities. Surprisingly few candidates of this name emerged, and only one in the right date range. It is here suggested that the author of the Speculum is either someone who left no paper trail or James of Spain, a nephew of Eleanor of Castile, wife of King Edward I, whose career is documented mostly in England. He was an illegitimate son of Eleanor’s older half-brother, the Infante Enrique of Castile. Documentary evidence shows that he was a wealthy and well-travelled royal prince who was also an Oxford magister. The book traces his career and the likelihood of his authorship of the Speculum musicae. Series Page 3 Title Page 4 Copyright 5 Table of Contents 6 List of Figures 8 List of Tables 10 Preface and Acknowledgements 12 Manuscript Sigla and Abbreviations 16 Editorial Note 18 1 In Search of Jacobus 20 2 Motet Citations in the Speculum, and Petrus de Cruce 40 3 Hitherto Proposed Authorial Candidates, and Dating the Speculum 64 4 A New Candidate for Authorship of the Speculum 82 5 Ispania: Other Theorists 88 6 Another Magister Jacobus de Ispania: James of Spain 100 7 The Infante Enrique of Castile, Father of Jacobus 112 8 James of Spain, Prince and Pluralist 128 9 The Author of the Speculum 158 Appendix of Poetic Texts 176 Bibliography 208 Index 224 In Search Of Jacobus -- Motet Citations In The Speculum, And Petrus De Cruce -- Hitherto Proposed Authorial Candidates, And Dating The Speculum -- A New Candidate For Authorship Of The Speculum -- Ispania : Other Theorists -- The Other Magister Jacobus De Ispania : James Of Spain -- The Infante Enrique Of Castile, Father Of James -- James Of Spain, Prince And Pluralist -- The Author Of The Speculum. By Margaret Bent. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.