The Book of the City of Ladies

by Christine Pizan

  REBECCA: wife of the patriarch Isaac; mother of Jacob and Esau. II.39.

  RECTITUDE: second of the three Virtues who visit Christine. I.5, and Part II, passim.

  REGINA (Saint Regina): (2nd century AD) virgin and martyr from Autun in Burgundy who was the daughter of a pagan, Clement. Persecuted by the proconsul Olybrius whom she refused to marry. III.4.

  REMEDIES OF LOVE: see OVID.

  REMUS: according to legend, he and his twin brother Romulus became founders of Rome. Killed by his brother in a quarrel over power. I.48, II.33.

  RHEIMS: large town in north-east France. III.8.

  RHODES: island in the eastern Mediterranean situated close to the coast of Asia Minor. I.21.

  RIVIÈRE, BUREAU DE LA: (d. 1400) counsellor and First Chamberlain to Charles V, King of France. II.67.

  RIVIÈRE, MARGUERITE DE LA: (d. after 1405) wife of Bureau de la Rivière. According to Christine, she paid off Amanieu de Pommiers’s debt in order to release him from prison. II.67.

  ROMANCE OF THE ROSE: famous 23,000-line allegorical poem about the pursuit of love. Begun by Guillaume de Lorris c. 1240 and continued by Jean de Meun c. 1275. I.2, II.25.

  ROMULUS: twin brother of Remus and mythical founder of Rome. According to legend, he stole wives for his men from the Sabines, whom he had invited to Rome for a festival. I.48, II.33.

  RUSTICUS, SAINT: (3rd century AD) priest and companion of Saint Denis in Paris who was beheaded during the persecution of Decius. II.35.

  RUTH: Old Testament Moabite woman who looked after her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi, after her husband’s death. II.40.

  RUTULIANS: people of ancient Italy living south-west of Rome, near the modern town of Anzio. I.48.

  SABINES: people of ancient Italy who occupied the area north-east of Rome along the west side of the Tiber as far as the Apennine foothills. II.33.

  SAGURAT DA FINOLI: alias used by the wife of Bernabo the Genoese (Decameron II, ix). II.52.

  SAINT-POL, COUNTESS OF (Bonne of Bar): (d. after 1419) daughter of Robert, Duke of Bar, and Marie of France, daughter of King John II. Married to Valeran of Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol and Ligny. II.68.

  SALAMIS: island near Athens; site of the sea battle at which the Persians were defeated by the Greeks in 480 BC. I.21.

  SALERNO: town on the Mediterranean coast near Naples. I.59.

  SALUZZO: town in Piedmont, north-west Italy. II.1, II.50, II.51.

  SAMIA: see SIBYLS.

  SAMOS, SAMIANS: a large Aegean island, and its inhabitants, close to the coast of Asia Minor. II.1, II.61.

  SAMSON: one of the Old Testament Israelite judges, famed for his strength, who fought against the Philistines. I.18.

  SAPOR (Sapor I): king of Persia who reigned AD 240–72 and was defeated by Zenobia and her husband. I.20.

  SAPPHO: (born c. 612 BC) famous lyric poet from Mytilene on Lesbos, hailed in antiquity as the tenth Muse. Christine confuses her with Sophron, a fifth-century BC mime writer from Syracuse whose works Plato admired. I.30.

  SARACENS: term used in the Middle Ages to denote the Muslims against whom the Crusaders fought for control of the Holy Land. II.13, II.66.

  SARAH: strikingly beautiful wife of Abraham the patriarch, who was stolen from her husband by the Pharaoh, Abimelech. II.38, II.39.

  SATURN: Roman god of abundance and husband of Opis; father of Jupiter. I.15, I,47, I.48, II.61.

  SCIPIO AFRICANUS THE ELDER (Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Maior): (236–183 BC) Roman conqueror of Spain and victor of the Second Punic War; husband of Tertia Aemilia. II.20.

  SCOPAS: (4th century BC) sculptor who worked on the Mausoleum at Halicar-nassus. II.16.

  SCYTHIA: homeland of the Amazons. I.16.

  SECOND PUNIC WAR: war between Carthage and Rome, 218–201 BC. II.63.

  SEMIRAMIS: according to legend, famous warrior-queen who built the city of Babylon with her husband Ninus. Thought to have married her own son Ninus to ensure her control over the succession to the throne. I.15.

  SEMPRONIA: (2nd century BC) learned woman of Rome; daughter of Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, a Roman censor. Married to Scipio Aemilianus Africanus Numantinus, a Roman soldier and statesman. I.42.

  SENECA (Lucius Annaeus Seneca): (c. 4 BC–AD 65) Roman senator, orator and writer; tutor to the Emperor Nero, who later forced him to commit suicide. II.22, II.48.

  SHEBA, QUEEN OF: ruler of the Sabeans of south-west Arabia who visited Solomon to test his reputation for wisdom. II.4.

  SHINAR, PLAINS OF: area in Babylonia where, according to legend, the Tower of Babel was built. I.15.

  SIBYLS: inspired prophetesses. The name originally referred to a single person but eventually became a generic term as the number of such prophetesses multiplied. Collections of their sayings, the Sibylline Oracles, were kept in various cities and officially consulted in Rome from 496 BC to AD 363. I.4, II.1, II.2.

  CIMERIA: the Italian sibyl. II.1.

  CUMANA (ALMATHEA or DEIPHEBE): the Cumaean sibyl. In Virgil’s Aeneid, she led Aeneas into the underworld; she is traditionally thought to have presented her works for sale to Tarquin the Proud. II.1, II.3.

  DELPHICA: the Delphian sibyl. II.1.

  ERYTHREA (HEROPHILE): the Erythrean sibyl; traditionally thought in the Middle Ages to have prophesied the Last Judgement. II.1, II.2.

  HELLESPONTINA: the Hellespontine sibyl. II.1.

  LIBICA: the Libyan sibyl. II.1.

  PERSICA: the Persian sibyl. II.1.

  PHRYGICA: the Phrygian sibyl. II.1.

  SAMIA: the Samian sibyl. II.1.

  TIBURTINA (ALBUNEA): the Tiburtine sibyl. Mentioned in a passage of Virgil’s fourth Eclogue which was interpreted in the Middle Ages as her prophecy to the Emperor Augustus of the coming of Christ, though this honour was also sometimes given to the Cumaean sibyl. II.1.

  SICAMBRIANS (Cimbrians): Germanic tribe who invaded Italy in the second century BC and were defeated near Verona by Gaius Marius, a Roman consul. Those of the tribe who remained in northern Gaul were later assimilated into the Franks. II.46.

  SICILY: large island in the western Mediterranean separated from Italy by the Straits of Messina. II.67.

  SIMEON: aged prophet who recognized the infant Christ during the Presentation in the Temple. II.4.

  SINAI, MOUNT: mountain in the desert between Egypt and Palestine, tradition ally held to be sacred to God. According to legend, site of the tomb of Saint Catherine. III.3.

  SMARAGDUS, BROTHER: see EUPHROSYNA.

  SOCRATES: (469–399 BC) Greek philosopher and teacher of Plato; husband of Xanthippe. II.21.

  SODOM: city of ill repute built on the plains of Jordan and destroyed by God. II.53.

  SOLOMON: king of Israel who reigned 962–922 BC and was famed for his wisdom. Traditionally regarded as the author of the Book of Proverbs. I.43, I.44, I.45, II.4.

  SOLON: (c. 640–c. 560 BC) Athenian politician and poet. II.1.

  SOPOLIS: (1st century BC) according to Christine, who follows Boccaccio, a famous painter who was a contemporary of Marcia. I.41.

  SPARTA: city in the Peloponnese. II.61.

  SULPICIA: (1st century BC) Roman noblewoman whose husband, Lentulus Cruscellio, was proscribed by the Triumvirate. II.23.

  SULPICIA: (3rd century BC) Roman noblewoman famed for her virtue; daughter of Servius Paterculus and wife of Quintus Fulvius Flaccus, a Roman consul; elected by the Romans to consecrate a statue of Venus Verticordia, goddess of chastity. II.43.

  SUSANNA: virtuous Hebrew woman and wife of Joachim. II.37.

  SUSANNA: (3rd century AD) noblewoman of Limoges who, according to legend, sheltered Saint Martial. III.18.

  SYCHAEUS (ACERBAS SYCHAEA): husband of Dido. I.46.

  SYNOPPE: a queen of the Amazons. I.16.

  SYRACUSE: large town on the south-east coast of Sicily.

  TANCREDI: prince of Salerno and father of Ghismonda (Decameron IV, i). II.59.

  TARQUIN (Lucius Tarquinius Priscus): (616–579 BC) fifth king of
Rome and husband of Gaia Cirilla. I.45.

  TARQUIN (TARQUIN THE PROUD) (Lucius Tarquinius Superbus): (534–510 BC) traditionally, the last king of Rome and the ruler to whom the Cumaean sibyl is thought to have sold her books of prophecies. Father of Sextus. II.3, II.44.

  TARQUIN: (6th century BC) according to legend, Roman nobleman who raped Lucretia. Christine confuses him with his father, Tarquin the Proud: his correct name is Sextus. II.44, II.64.

  TARQUINIUS COLLATINUS (Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus): (6th century BC) great-nephew of Tarquinius Priscus and one of the founders of the Roman republic; husband of Lucretia. II.44.

  TELEMACHUS: son of Ulysses and Penelope. II.41.

  TERTIA AEMILIA: daughter of Lucius Aemilius Paullus, a Roman consul in 219 BC; wife of Scipio Africanus the Elder. II.20.

  THAMARIS (Timarete): (5th century BC) Greek painter and daughter of Micon. I.41.

  THAMIRIS: according to legend, a queen of the Amazons who defeated Cyrus, King of Persia. I.17.

  THEBES: ancient city in the Boeotian region of Greece; according to legend, founded by Cadmus. I.4, I.31, II.17, II.61.

  THEODORIC: son of Lilia; leader of the Ostrogoths sent by the eastern emperor Zeno to secure Italy from the barbarian king Odoacer, whom he defeated in AD 493. King of Italy who reigned AD 493–526. I.22.

  THEODOSINA (Saint Theodosina or Theodosia): (d. early 4th century AD) virgin of Tyre traditionally thought to have been martyred in Caesarea, Palestine, by the judge and prefect Urban. III.9.

  THEODOTA (Saint Theodota): (d. early 4th century AD) noblewoman of Nicaea who was martyred by the proconsul Nicetius during the persecution of Diocletian. III.15.

  THEOPHILUS: (d. early 4th century AD) lawyer from Cappadocia traditionally thought to have been converted by Saint Dorothy. III.9.

  THEOPHRASTUS: (c. 370–288 BC) Greek philosopher from Lesbos who took over from Aristotle as head of his school in Athens. Author of a lost work, the Liber de nuptiis (Book on Marriage), usually referred to as the Aureolus or ‘Golden Book’, which contained notable misogamous passages that were subsequently quoted by many medieval writers from Saint Jerome onwards. I.30, II.13, II.14, II.19. See also LETTER OF VALERIUS TO RUFFINUS.

  THERMUTIS: daughter of Pharaoh who rescued Moses. II.30.

  THESEUS: Greek hero and king of Athens; friend and companion of Hercules, and husband of Hippolyta. I.18.

  THISBE: lover of Pyramus of Babylon. II.57, II.58.

  THOAS: king of Lemnos and father of Hypsipyle. II.9.

  THOMAS, SAINT: (1st century AD) one of the Apostles; traditionally thought to have spread Christianity as far as India. I.7.

  THURINGIA, KING OF: (5th century AD) ruler of an area of eastern Germany which lay north of Bavaria and west of Saxony; first husband of Queen Basine. II.5.

  TIBER, RIVER: large, fast-flowing river in central Italy; rises in the Apennines, cuts through Rome and enters the Mediterranean at Ostia, south-west of Rome. I.26, I.33, II.5, II.63.

  TIBERIUS (Tiberius Claudius Nero Caesar): (42 BC–AD 37) adopted son of Augustus. Roman emperor whose reign ended in terror and tyranny. II.18, II.47.

  TIBURTINA: see SIBYLS.

  TIMOTHEUS: (4th century BC) sculptor who worked on the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus. II.16.

  TIRESIAS: legendary seer of Thebes and father of Manto. I.31.

  TITUS (Titus Flavius Vespasianus): Roman emperor who reigned AD 79–81. II.49.

  TRAJAN (Marcus Ulpius Traianus): Roman emperor who reigned AD 98–117. II.49.

  TRIARIA: (1st century AD) wife of Lucius Vitellius, a Roman consul. II.15.

  TRISTAN: lover of Isolde and hero of tragic legend. II.60. See ISOLDE.

  TRIUMVIRATE: Roman term for a board of three men in public office, usually elected by the people; the most famous triumvirate, established in 43 BC and comprising Mark Antony, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and Octavian, assumed supreme authority over Rome. II.36.

  TROS: king of Phrygia who founded the city of Troy. I.4.

  TROY, TROJANS: ancient city in Asia Minor and its people who were besieged by the Greeks. I.4, I.19, I.32, II.1, II.2, II.3, II.5, II.19, II.28, II.41, II.55, II.61.

  TROYES: town south-east of Paris. II.65.

  TURNUS: king of the Rutulians and Aeneas’s rival for the hand of Lavinia. I.24, I.48.

  TYNDAREOS: king of Sparta; husband of Leda and father of Helen of Troy. II.61.

  TYRE: city in Phoenicia. III.10.

  ULYS SES (Odysseus): king of Ithaca and Greek hero in the Trojan war who was renowned for his cunning; husband of Penelope and father of Telemachus. I.32, II.41.

  URANUS: according to Greek myth, father of Saturn and Opis. I.47.

  URBAN: (4th century AD) judge and prefect of Caesarea in Palestine traditionally thought to have tormented Saint Theodosina. III.9.

  URBAN: date unknown. Father of Saint Christine and governor of the city of Tyre. III.10.

  URSULA, SAINT: (?4th century AD) traditionally thought to have been a British virgin and martyr who was killed in Cologne during the persecution of the Emperor Maximian. III.10.

  VALERIAN (Publius Licinius Valerianus): Roman emperor who reigned AD 253–60; defeated by Sapor, King of Persia, in AD 260. I.20.

  VALERIUS (Valerius Maximus): (1st century AD) Roman author during the reign of Tiberius who wrote a handbook of memorable deeds and sayings, the Factorum ac Dictorum Memorabilium Libri, which became an important source for political writers in the Middle Ages. II.13, II.43, II.63. See also LETTER OF VALERIUS TO RUFFINUS.

  VANDALS: eastern Germanic barbarian race who overran the western Roman empire in the fifth to sixth century AD. II.29.

  VENUS: originally an Italian deity of beauty; later identified in mythology with Aphrodite, Greek goddess of love. According to legend, she was the mother of Aeneas. II.19.

  VERGI, CHTELAINE DE: heroine of eponymous thirteenth-century French romance, she died of a broken heart, thinking that her lover had betrayed her. II.60.

  VESPASIAN (Titus Flavius Vespasianus): Roman emperor who reigned AD 69–79. II.15.

  VESTA: Roman goddess of fire whose priestesses, the Vestal Virgins, took vows of absolute chastity. I.47, II.10, II.46.

  VETURIA: (5th century BC) Roman noblewoman and mother of Marcius. II.34.

  VIRGIL (Publius Vergilius Maro): (70–19 BC) Latin author whose works were highly influential in the Middle Ages. I.9, I.29, I.31, II.3.

  — Aeneid: twelve-book epic of Aeneas’s wanderings after the fall of Troy and up to his arrival in Italy and defeat of his rival, Turnus. I.29.

  — Bucolics (Eclogues): collection of pastoral poems. I.29.

  — Georgics: didactic poem on the agricultural life. I.29.

  VIRGINIA: (5th century BC) Roman maiden traditionally thought to have been killed by her father to save her from being raped by Claudius, although Christine states that she committed suicide. II.46.

  VITELLIUS (AULUS VITELLIUS): son of Lucius Vitellius and Triaria; the third of the three Roman emperors who reigned in AD 69. II.49.

  VOLSCIANS: people of ancient Italy who attacked Rome in the fifth century BC. I.24, II.15, II.34.

  VULCAN: Roman god of fire and thunderbolts. I.34.

  XANTHIPPE: (5th century BC) wife of Socrates. Although Christine represents her as a loving spouse, she was in fact traditionally renowned for her shrewishness. II.21.

  XERXES (Xerxes I): king of Persia who reigned 485–465 BC and attacked Greece to avenge the defeat of his father, Darius I, at the battle of Marathon in 490 BC. I.21. See also AHASUERUS.

  YTHERON: (4th century BC) architect who worked on the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus; his correct name is Satyrus. II.16.

  ZENOBIA (Septimia): second wife of Odenaethus, King of Palmyria, who ruled the eastern empire in AD 262–7. I.20.

  BIBLIOGRAPHY

  This bibliography is intended to provide the interested general reader with suggestions for further study. The specialist looking for a more exhaustive list of secondary sources on the works of Christine de Pi
zan is encouraged to consult the following excellent bibliographies: Angus J. Kennedy, Christine de Pizan: A Bibliographical Guide (London: Grant & Cutler, 1984); Edith Yenal, Christine de Pizan: A Bibliography of Writings By Her and About Her, Scarecrow Author Bibliographies, no. 63 (Metuchen, N. J. and London: Scarecrow Press, 1989), second edition; and Angus J. Kennedy, Christine de Pizan: A Bibliographical Guide: Supplement I (London: Grant & Cutler, 1994). For primary texts, I have included translations in modern English, where available.

  1. PRIMARY TEXTS BY CHRISTINE DE PIZAN

  Curnow, Maureen Cheney, ‘The Livre de la Cité des Dames of Christine de Pisan: a Critical Edition’, 2 vols (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Vanderbilt University, 1975). See also Patrizia Caraffi and Earl Jeffrey Richards, eds., La Città delle Dame (Milano: Luni Editrice, 1997). Earl Jeffrey Richards, trans., The Book of the City of Ladies (London: Pan Books, 1983).

  Fenster, Thelma S., and Erler, Mary Carpenter, eds. and trans., Poems of Cupid, God of Love; Christine de Pizan’s ‘Epistre au dieu d’Amours’ and ‘Dit de la Rose’; Thomas Hoccleve’s ‘The Letter of Cupid’; George Sewell’s ‘The Proclamation of Cupid’ (Leiden: Brill, 1990).

  Hicks, Eric, ed., Christine de Pisan, Jean Gerson, Jean de Montreuil, Gontier et Pierre Col, Le Débat sur le Roman de la Rose, Bibliothèque du XVe Siècle, 43 (Paris: Champion, 1977). Joseph L. Baird, and John R. Kane, eds. and trans., La Querelle de la Rose: Letters and Documents, University of North Carolina Studies in the Romance Languages and Literatures, 199 (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, Department of Romance Languages, 1978).

  Kennedy, Angus J., and Varty, Kenneth, eds. and trans., Ditié de Jehanne d’Arc, Medium Aevum Monographs, New Series IX (Oxford: Society for the Study of Mediaeval Languages and Literatures, 1977).

  Loukopoulos, Halina D., ‘Classical Mythology in the Works of Christine de Pisan, with an Edition of L’Epistre Othea from the Manuscript Harley 4431’ (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Wayne State University, 1977). Jane Chance, trans., Christine de Pizan’s Letter of Othea to Hector, Focus Library of Medieval Women (Newburyport: Focus Information Group, 1990).