Fioretti

The "Fioretti" have been described as "the most exquite expression of the religious life of the Middle Ages".

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913

"Fioretti", as we now have it, form no part of the original collection and were probably added by later compilers.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913

There has been some doubt as to whether the "Fioretti" were written in Italian in the first instance, as Sbaralea thought, or were translated from a Latin original, as Wadding maintained.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913

In Italy the "Fioretti" have always enjoyed an extraordinary popularity; indeed, this liber aureus is said to have been more widely read there than any book, not excepting even the Bible or the Divine Comedy.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913

A striking difference is noticeable between the earlier chapters of the "Fioretti", which refer to St. Francis and his companions, and the later ones which deal with the friars in the province of the March of Ancina.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913

The earliest known MS of the "Fioretti", now preserved at Berlin, is dated 1390; the work was first printed at Vicenza in 1476.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913

Most scholars are now agreed on fixing upon Ugolino as the author of the "Fioretti" or "Little Flowers of St. Francis" in their original form.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 3: Brownson-Clairvaux 1840-1916 1913

Although this Latin original has not come down to us, we have in the "Actus B. Francisci et Sociorum Ejus", edited by Paul Sabatier in "Collection d'Etudes" (Paris, 1902, IV), an approximation to it which may be considered on the whole as representing the original of the "Fioretti".

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 3: Brownson-Clairvaux 1840-1916 1913

For recent research has revealed that this classic collection of narratives, which forms one of the most delightful productions of the Middle Ages, or rather the fifty-three chapters which form the true text of the "Fioretti" (for the four appendixes are additions of later compilers) were translated into

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 3: Brownson-Clairvaux 1840-1916 1913

"Fioretti" have exercised an immense influence forming in the popular conception of St. Francis and his companions.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 6: Fathers of the Church-Gregory XI 1840-1916 1913