Civilization, Medieval, in literature; Provençal poetry -- History and criticism; Troubadours
The troubadours as a rule stood aloof from the religious quarrels of the
age. But few seem to have joined the crusaders, as Perdigon did. Most of
their patrons were struggling for their existence: when the invaders
succeeded in establishing themselves, they had no desire for court
poetry. The troubadour's occupation was gone, and those who wished for
an audience were obliged to seek beyond the borders of France. Hence it [83]
is somewhat remarkable to find the troubadour Raimon de Miraval, of
Carcassonne, continuing to sing, as though perfect tranquillity
prevailed. His wife, Gaudairenca, was a poetess, and Paul Heyse has made
her the central figure of one of his charming _Troubadour Novellen_.
Raimon's poems betray no forebodings of the coming storm; when it broke,
he lost his estate and fled to Raimon of Toulouse for shelter. The
arrival of Pedro II. of Aragon at Toulouse in 1213 and his alliance with
the Count of Toulouse cheered the troubadour's spirits: he thought there
was a chance that he might recover his estate. He compliments Pedro on
his determination in one poem and in another tells his lady, "the king
has promised me that in a short time, I shall have Miraval again and my
Audiart shall recover his Beaucaire; then ladies and their lovers will
regain their lost delights." Such was the attitude of many troubadours
towards the crusade and they seem to represent the views of a certain
section of society. There is no trace on this side of any sense of
patriotism; they hated the crusade because it destroyed the comforts of
their happy existence. But the South of France had never as a whole
acquired any real sense of nationalism: there was consequently no
attempt at general or organised resistance and no leader to inspire such [84]
attempts was forth-coming.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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