VEXILLA REGLS PRODEUNT (°Be hold the banners of the King*), the first line of a °world-famous hymn,° written by Vanantius Fortunatns at the time when he was living at Poitiers. Radeguncia, queen of the Franks, who was living in the monastery which she had founded at that place, had obtained from Emperor Justin I a fragment of the Trtte CTOS9 for her monastery, and the relic was forwarded' to lser ,by way of Tours in charge of the bishop of that place. Fortunatus headed Radegtmdes. deputation to meet the bishop's procession and chanted this hymn to salute the relic's arrival. (19, Nov. 569). The word *vexilla° has re ceived smany symbolical interpretations, the hest of which is- perhaps that of ICayser, namely, that the eade of the old Roman cavalry stand ard. has been supplanted by the cross and cor rasponding•changes made in the banner. The• hamn originally contained eight stanzas, but the correctors of the Breviary under VIII revised it entirely, making changes and sub stitutions which in general arc not liked by hymnologists. The Vatican Graduale (1908), however, preserves the original text, although the Antiphonary (1912) gives only the revised text. The hymn is sting in the procession on
Good Friday when the Blessed Sacrament is carried from the Repository to the High Altar, but its principal use is in the Divine Office, the Roman Breviary assigning it to Vespers from Saturday before Passion Sunday daily to Maundy Thursday, and to Vespers on the feasts of the Holy Cross. There are at least 40 Eng lish translations (consult the 'Dictionary of Hymnology)) of the 'Vexilla Regis,) notably. by Blount, by. Bagshawe, by Donahoe and by Neale, the latter's being one of the hest known. A fine translation, preserving the metre of the original, was puhlished with the Latin text and historical and.exegetical comments by Hugh T. Henry in the American Ecclesiastical Review (March 1.891). The text with critical and theo logical notes is also to be found in S. G. Pimont, 'Les Hyrmnes du Breviaire Romain) (Paris 1884).