Initially, the word "knight" did not have any romantic halo and in translation from German meant "horseman". But in the XII century in France a new expression "courtesy" appeared, according to which a knight had to be not only strong, but also handsome, educated and courteous - in a word, impeccable. And glory to the knight, in addition to military victories, now brought behavior in battle and manners.
Limousin is a southwestern region of central France that was part of the Duchy of Aquitaine. A beautiful and rich place that attracts a sea of pilgrims. At the end of the 11th century, new abbeys arose in Limousin, which were then the center of medieval culture. After the Crusades, the monasteries received excellent libraries, consisting not only of the biographies of the saints, but also of literary
In the XXVIII song "Hell" in the "Divine Comedy" Bertrand appears, holding his own head in his hands, and bitterly repents for the fact that "he raised a fight between the son and the father" of the monuments of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. In one of these monasteries, Bertrand de Born, born in 1140, was educated.
Among the kings
From 1152, as a result of the marriage of Alienora of Aquitaine and Henry Plantagenet, Limousin was under English influence. Plantagenet soon became King Henry II, the most powerful king of the 12th century. His possessions stretched from the Pyrenees to Scotland. But when the time came to the division of territory between the heirs, conflicts arose between the father and the brothers. The eldest of the sons, Henry the Young King, was crowned in 1170 and was called the ruler of Normandy, Brittany, Anjou, Manet, but did not really own anything. Richard the Lionheart had the County of Poitou, but he wanted more.
Bertrand served young Heinrich. De Born was an intelligent, educated knight and dreamed of raising an ideal king. Knowing from his own experience what it means to “have” but not “to own” (Bertrand and his brother Constantine inherited the castle of Otfor - one for two), he advised Henry the Young King to fight for his rights. And in
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In 1173, he demanded from the king a complete transfer of power over at least one of his lands. The other son also wanted a larger share. A conflict broke out. Henry II tried to reconcile his sons, but he did not succeed. The brothers were too different.
Henry the Young King gave everything he had to his vassals, and Richard the Lionheart, not spoiling his mercenaries too much, robbed his brother. De Born openly and widely condemned the actions of the Lionheart. Perhaps it was this that partly led to the revolt of Richard's vassals. Henry the Young King supported the rebels. But Constantine de Born served Richard and took his side, for which Bertrand expelled him from the castle.
In 1183, Henry the Young King died of a sudden illness, and Bertrand was left without a patron. Henry II and Richard decided to take over the castle in order to make Constantine the sole ruler. They with an army approached Otfor. The Limousin lands were burned and the castle destroyed. This happened due to the betrayal of King Alfonso II of Aragon, whom Bertrand considered his friend. He received him at the castle, supplied him with provisions, while he was already serving the English king.
Entering the fortress, Henry II said that now Bertrand will need all of his immense brain. Looking at the treacherous Alfonso, the knight replied that the bitterness over the death of Henry the Young King had completely destroyed his mind. This struck the king-father to the very heart. To Richard, Bertrand said that he was defeated, but they would not be pressed against the wall. The result of the battle was quite unexpected: Henry II ordered the return of his castle to Bertrand and compensation for material losses. Richard kissed de Born and offered to go to his service. Bertrand agreed that he had reconciled him with Constantine forever.
According to Bertrand de Born himself, all his life he did nothing but fight. How de Born was a good warrior can be judged by the fact that Richard passed him the rule when he went on campaigns.
A tiff with a lady
The economic upsurge at the end of the 11th century changed people's attitudes. The nobles began to unite around a powerful person with power and gold. The courtier had not only to have merit, he had to show them. Tournament competitions were the main way. But small talk and poetry were no less appreciated. Of course, someone needed to be able to appreciate all this - for this a cult of a beautiful lady appeared. The argument between the knights was to win the favor of the best woman in society.
At the court of Henry II, it was Talleyrand's wife, Donna Maheut de Montagnac. She was looked after by the most noble people of her time: the sons of the English king Richard and Joffroy, King Alfonso of Aragon, Count Raimund of Toulouse and others. She preferred Bertrand de Born, to which he replied: "She sees the highest valor of the edge in her heart, and not in dignity … she sees meanness in the folds of rich fabric - and nobility in rags."
However, it was not enough for the knights to simply praise their lady. Contrary to the church, they wanted to love not an angelic woman, but Eve, who ate the sinful fruit. Where there are no injuring arrows and fire, it is not love at all - it was considered then. Men excited and excited women with tournaments, poetry and secret meetings. The days were counted not with the rising of the sun, but with the onset of night …
In one of the songs, Bertrand emphasized an intimate relationship with the damsel de Montagnac. Of course, this could not but cause the envy of other admirers of the lady. Someone spread a rumor that Bertrand loved another - Guiscard, the wife of the Viscount of Comborne. The knight had known her for a long time. Overjoyed at the arrival of Guiscard, he wrote a song about her beauty. Angry and believing the rumors, Maeuth drove him away. De Born sent many letters of excuse, but this did not help. Believing that he would never return his beloved, Bertrand created a song about a miracle lady, collected from the merits of women of his circle. From one he took the color of a cheek, from the other - the intoxication of sweet speech, from the third - a white satin of hands, and so on. But he emphasized that even this perfection cannot compete in his heart with love for Maeut.
Bertrand suffered a lot, asked his lady to end the quarrel, but Maheuth was adamant. Taking pity on the knight, Donna Tibor de Montosieu, who was considered one of the best ladies in society, offered to reconcile them, which she did.
Unfortunately, it is not known about further relations with Donna de Montagnac.
Honest lines
Bertrand de Born was not only a glorious warrior, but also one of the most famous troubadours (from the French trobar - "to compose songs"). Then the poets were treated with all respect, since they could not only compose a work with any content, but also spread it everywhere. For this, each troubadour had its own professional singers - jugglers.
De Born was a master at writing canzone love songs. In them, he praised not only Donna Maeut. The poet could appreciate the dignity of any lady, noticing who has the best education, and who has the most beautiful legs. His songs about magnificent beauties became a model for many contemporaries.
But de Born was especially famous for his syventy - songs on the topic of the day. In them, he considered questions of morality and politics. His style was very different from that of other poets of the Middle Ages. He had no purpose to express himself just like that, "for a catchphrase." He was interested in the truth, which is why they were very afraid of his verbal blows. After the betrayal of the king of Aragon, de Born immediately described from which lower classes this royal family came, and commented on the actions of Alfonso, incomparable with knightly honor.
Although Bertrand faithfully served the Young King, he did not turn into a court flatterer. In songs, the poet praised his courage and care for his subjects. But at the same time, the knight reprimanded the king for having fun at tournaments when his people were robbed and killed. He also reproached the king for dissolving his vassals too much (there were cases of robbery). But with all this, Bertrand loved Henry and sincerely grieved about his death.
In European literature, Bertrand became the first poet to glorify war. The attitude of the descendants to this fact was different: Dante placed him in hell, and Denis Davydov learned to write praise of abuse in the spirit of de Born. In his work, Pushkin sang the chivalrous love of feats of arms.
Bertrand de Born is one of the most legendary poets of the Middle Ages. He attracted the attention of many writers who made him the hero of their works. Among them are Heinrich Heine, Lyon Feuchtwanger, Alexander Blok and others.
Yulia KRAVCHENKO
