Wonders in the Sky (28 page)

15 July 1385, London and Dover, England
Three lights join as one

On July 15th 1385 “at London and likewise at Dover, there appeared after sunset a kind of fire in the shape of a head in the south part of the heavens, stretching out to the northern quarter, which flew away, dividing itself into three parts, and travelled in the air like a bird of the woods in flight. At length they joined as one and suddenly disappeared.”

 

Source: C.E. Britton,
A Meteorological Chronology to A.D. 1450
(London: H.M.S.O., 1937), 149; also noted by John Malvern, a monk of Worcester, who certainly contributed to the
Polychronicon
(begun by Ranulph Higden, a monk of Chester), but continued the chronicle only as far as 1377.

133.

14 October 1387, Leicester and Derbyshire, England
Revolving wheel in the sky

“A certain appearance in the likeness of a fire was seen in many parts of the kingdom of England, now in one form, now in another, nearly on a single night, yet in various places, throughout the months of November and December (…) and some appeared in the form of a burning revolving wheel, others again in the form of a round barrel of flame emitting fire from above, yet others in the shape of a long fiery beam, and it thus appeared in one form or another through a great deal of the winter, especially in the counties of Leicester and Northants.”

 

Source: “Chronicon Henrici Knighton, vel Cnitthon, monachi Leycestrensis,” or the Chronicon of Henry Knighton (d. 1396). The book covers 1337-1396, and after Knighton's death was continued by another scribe. See also C.E. Britton,
A Meteorological Chronology to A.D. 1450
(London: H.M.S.O., 1937), 150. Note that the date might be November.

134.

1390, Bologna, Italy
Unknown creatures flying aboard a fiery object

“One tradition states that in 1390 the guardian of the Asinelli Tower saw a “ball of fire” that rotated over of the roofs, and inside were seen the faces of some devils who were trying to see outside.”

 

Source: “Quegli Ufo sopra le Due torri,”
Il Domani di Bologna
, 21 October 2006, 10.

135.

26 January 1390, Messina, Sicily, Italy
Light descending, ascending

Mongitore writes “A similar appearance was seen at two hours of the night in Messina, as you saw fall from the sky above the Cross, at the top of the dome of the Monastery of the Fathers of St. Salvadore. The monks were astonished at this view, but it was not certain how long the light was seen, so the fear was brief; as having lasted half an hour, (then it) went back up to Heaven…”

We retain this case because a “light” visible for half an hour going up in the sky is unlikely to be a meteor.

 

Source: Antonino Mongitore,
Della Sicilia ricercata nelle cose più memorabilia
(Palermo, 1742).

136.

Winter 1394, England: Another wheel-shaped object

According to Raphael Holinshed's landmark chronicle of British history, a wheel- or barrel-shaped object appeared in several areas of England:

“A certain thing appeared in the likeness of fire in many parts of England every night.
This fiery apparition, oftentimes when anybody went alone, it would go with him, and would stand still when he stood still…To some it appeared in the likeness of a turning wheel burning; to others as round in the likeness of a barrel, flashing out flames of fire at the head; to others in the likeness of a long burning lance.”

Whatever it was that caused such an impression on the people of England, it does not seem meteoritic in nature.

 

Source: Raphael Holinshed,
Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland
(London: J. Johnson, 1808) vol. II, 829. Raphael Holinshed, though not the book's sole author, is thought to have helped inspire William Shakespeare to write at least two of his plays. Both Macbeth and King Lear were based on material contained in Holinshed's book.

137.

2 September 1394, Forlì, Italy: Huge celestial object

At the second hour of the night, men walking in the main square of Forlì saw an enormous “asub” (celestial object) fly over very slowly. Duration: “the time of two Paternosters.” It left a smell like burning wood. Some witnesses described it as motionless in the sky for a while.

 

Source: F. Guarini,
I Terremoti a Forlì
(Croppi, Forlì, 1880), 142.

138.

1395, Languedoc, France: Aerial combat

“In the land of Languedoc,
a big star and five small ones were seen in the sky
. These, as it seemed, attacked and sought to fight the big one, which they followed for half an hour. Also a voice was heard in the sky, shouting. Then a man was seen, who seemed to be made of copper, holding a spear in his hand, and throwing fire. He grabbed the big star and hit it; after which, nothing more was seen.”

 

Source:
L'Histoire de Charles VI, Roy de France, et des choses mémorables advenues durant quarante-deux années de son règne, depuis 1380 jusqu'à 1422
, by Jean Juvénal des Ursins, évèque de Reims. Published by Michaud and Poujoulat in
Nouvelle Collection des Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire de France depuis le XIIIe siècle jusqu'à la fin du XVIIIe
, Tome II (1836).

139.

16 September 1408, Rome, Italy: Flying formation