appeared both in England and France1 were composed in metre, as a rude kind of epic songs. In both kingdoms tales in verse were usually sung by minstrels to the harp on festival occasions: and doubtless both nations derived their relish for this sort of entertainment from their Teutonic ancestors, without either of them borrowing it from the other. Among both people narrative songs on true or fictitious subjects had evidently obtained from the earliest times. But the professed romances of chivalry seem to have been first composed in France, where also they had their name. The Latin tongue, as is observed by an ingenious writer2, ceased to be spoken in France about the ninth century, and was succeeded by what was called the Romance tongue, a mixture of the language of the Franks and bad Latin. As the songs of chivalry became the most popular compositions in that language, they were emphatically called Romans, or Romants; though this name was at first given to any piece of poetry. The romances of chivalry can be traced as early as the eleventh century 3. I know not if the Roman de Brut, written in 1155, was such: but if it was, it was by no means the first poem of the kind; others more ancient are still extant4. And we have already seen, that, in the preceding century, when the Normans marched down to the battle of Hastings, they animated themselves by singing (in some po 1 The romances on the subject of Perceval, San Graal, Lancelot du Lac, Tristan, &c., were among the first that appeared in the French language in Prose, yet these were originally composed in Metre: the Editor has in his possession a very old French MS. in verse, containing L'ancien Roman de Perceval; and metrical copies of the others may be found in the libraries of the curious. See a note of Wanley's in Harl. Catalog. no. 2252, p. 49, &c. Nicolson's Eng. Hist. Library, 3d ed. p. 91, &c. - See also a curious Collection of old French Romances, with Mr. Wanley's account of this sort of pieces, in Harl. MSS. Catal. 978, 106. 2 The author of the Essay on the Genius of Pope, p. 282. 4 Voi Préface aux "Fabliaux et Contes des Poëtes François des xii. xiii. xiv. & xv. siècles, &c." Paris, 1756, 3 tom. 12mo. (A very curious work.) pular romance or ballad) the exploits of Roland and the other heroes of chivalry 5. So early as this I cannot trace the songs of chivalry in English. The most ancient I have seen is that of Hornechild, described below, which seems not older than the twelfth century. However, as this rather resembles the Saxon poetry than the French, it is not certain that the first English romances were translated from that language6. We have seen above, that a propensity to this kind of fiction prevailed among all the Gothic nations7: and though, after the Norman conquest, this country abounded with French romances, or with translations from the French, there is good reason to believe that the English had original pieces of their own. The stories of King Arthur and his Round Table may be reasonably supposed of the growth of this island; both the French and the Armoricans probably had them from Britain. The stories of Guy and Bevis, with some others, were pro 5 See the account of Taillefer in vol. i. Essay, and note. And see Rapin, Carte, &c. This song of ROLAND (whatever it was) continued for some centuries to be usually sung by the French in their marches, if we may believe a modern French writer, "Un jour qu'on chantoit la Chanson de Roland, comme c'étoit l'usage dans les marches. Il y a long temps, dit-il [John King of France, who died in 1364], qu'on ne voit plus de Rolands. parmi les Franqois. On y verroit encore des Rolands, lui répondit un vieux Capitaine, s'ils avoient un Charlemagne à leur tête." Vide tom. iii. p. 202, des Essaies Hist. sur Paris de M. de Saintefoix, who gives, as his authority, Boethius in Hist. Scotorum. This author, however, speaks of the complaint and repartee as made in an assembly of the States, (vocato senatu,) and not upon any march, &c. Vide Boeth. lib. xv. fol. 327. Ed. Paris. 1574. 6 See, on this subject, vol. 1. Notes on the Essay on the Ancient Minstrels, (S2) and (GG). 7 The first romances of chivalry among the Germans were in metre; they have some very ancient narrative songs (which they call Lieder), not only on the fabulous heroes of their own country, but also on those of France and Britain, as Tristrain, Arthur, Gawain, and the Knights von der Tafel-ronde. (Vid. Goldasti Not. in Eginhart. Vit. Car. Mag. 4to, 1711, p. 207.) 8 The Welsh have still some very old romances about King Arthur; but as these are in prose, they are not probably their first pieces that were composed on that subject. bably the invention of English Minstrels 9. On the other hand, the English procured translations of such romances as were most current in France; and in the list given at the conclusion of these remarks, many are doubtless of French original. The first prose books of chivalry that appeared in our language, were those printed by Caxton 10; at least, these are the first I have been able to discover, and these are all translations from the French. Whereas romances of this kind had been long current in metre, and were so generally admired in the time of Chaucer, that his rhyme of Sir Thopas was evidently written to ridicule and burlesque them1. He expressly mentions several of them by name in a stanza, which I shall have occasion to quote more than once in this volume: "Men speken of Romaunces of pris Of Horn-Child, and of Ipotis Of Bevis, and Sire Guy, Of Sire Libeux, and Pleindamour, Most, if not all of these, are still extant in MS. in some or other of our libraries, as I shall show in the conclusion of 9 It is most credible that these stories were originally of English invention, even if the only pieces now extant should be found to be translations from the French. What now pass for the French originals were probably only amplifications, or enlargements of the old English story. That the French Romancers borrowed some things from the English, appears from the word Termagant, which they took up from our minstrels, and corrupted into Tervagaunte. See vol. i. p. 62, and Gloss. "Termagant." 10 Recuyel of the Hystoryes of Troy, 1471. Godfroye of Boloyne, 1481. Le morte de Arthur, 1485. The life of Charlemagne, 1485, &c. As the old minstrelsy wore out, prose books of chivalry became more admired, especially after the Spanish romances began to be translated into English, towards the end of Queen Elizabeth's reign: then the most popular metrical romances began to be reduced into prose, as Sir Guy, Bevis, &c. 1 See extract from a letter, written by the Editor of these volumes, in Mr. Warton's Observations, vol. ii. p. 139. 2 Canterbury Tales (Tyrwhitt's Edit.), vol. ii. p. 238.-In all the former editions which I have seen, the name at the end of the fourth line is Blandamoure. this slight Essay, where I shall give a list of such metrical histories and romances as have fallen under my observation. As many of these contain a considerable portion of poetic merit, and throw great light on the manners and opinions of former times, it were to be wished that some of the best of them were rescued from oblivion. A judicious collection of them, accurately published, with proper illustrations, would be an important accession to our stock of ancient English literature. Many of them exhibit no mean attempts at epic poetry: and though full of the exploded fictions of chivalry, frequently display great descriptive and inventive powers in the bards who composed them. They are at least generally equal to any other poetry of the same age. They cannot indeed be put in competition with the nervous productions of so universal and commanding a genius as Chaucer; but they have a simplicity that makes them be read with less interruption, and be more easily understood: and they are far more spirited and entertaining than the tedious allegories of Gower, or the dull and prolix legends of Lydgate. Yet, while so much stress was laid upon the writings of these last, by such as treat of English poetry, the old metrical romances, though far more popular in their time, were hardly known to exist. But it has happened, unluckily, that the antiquaries, who have revived the works of our ancient writers, have been, for the most part, men void of taste and genius, and therefore have always fastidiously rejected the old poetical romances, because founded on fictitious or popular subjects, while they have been careful to grub up every petty fragment of the most dull and insipid rhymist, whose merit it was to deform morality or obscure true history. Should the public encourage the revival of some of those ancient epic songs of chivalry, they would frequently see the rich ore of an Ariosto or a Tasso, though buried, it may be, among the rubbish and dross of barbarous times. Such a publication would answer many important uses; it would throw new light on the rise and progress of English poetry, the history of which can be but imperfectly under stood if these are neglected: it would also serve to illustrate innumerable passages in our ancient classic poets, which, without their help, must be for ever obscure. For, not to mention Chaucer and Spenser, who abound with perpetual allusions to them, I shall give an instance or two from Shakspeare, by way of specimen of their use. In his play of King John, our great dramatic poet alludes to an exploit of Richard I., which the reader will in vain look for in any true history. Faulconbridge says to his mother, act i. sc. 1, "Needs must you lay your heart at his dispose... Against whose furie and unmatched force, The awlesse lion could not wage the fight, Nor keepe his princely heart from Richard's hand. May easily winne a woman's: " The fact here referred to, is to be traced to its source only in the old romance of Richard Cœur de Lyon3, in which his encounter with the lion makes a very shining figure. I shall give a large extract from this poem, as a specimen of the manner of these old rhapsodists, and to show that they did not in their fictions neglect the proper means to produce the ends, as was afterwards so childishly done in the prose books of chivalry. The poet tells us, that Richard, in his return from the Holy Land, having been discovered in the habit of "a palmer in Almayne," and apprehended as a spy, was by the king thrown into prison. Wardrewe, the king's son, hearing of Richard's great strength, desires the jailor to let him have a sight of his prisoners. Richard being the foremost, Wardrewe asks him, “if he dare stand a buffet from his hand?" and that on the morrow he shall return him another. Richard consents, and receives a blow that staggers him. On the morrow, having previously waxed his hands, he waits his 3 Dr. Grey has shown that the same story is alluded to in Rastell's Chronicle: as it was doubtless originally had from the romance, this is proof that the old metrical romances throw light on our first writers in prose: many of our ancient historians have recorded the fictions of romance. |