Index
Aage, Danish ballad, related to Helgi and Sigrun, 144;
cf. York Powell, C.P.B. i. 502, and Grimm Centenary Papers (1886), p. 47
Achilles, 12, 13, 19, 35, 39, 67
Aeneid, 18, 22, 334, 349
Alboin the Lombard (O.E. Ælfwine, see Davenant), 23, 66, 69, 82 n, 189
Alexander the Great, in old French poetry, 27;
his Epistle; (Anglo-Saxon version), 329
Aliscans, chanson de geste of the cycle of William of Orange, 296
Alvíssmál, in 'Elder Edda,' 112
Amadis of Gaul, a formal hero, 175, 203, 222
Ammius (O.N. Hamðer): see Hamðismál
Andreas, old English poem on the legend of St. Andrew, 28, 50, 90, 329
Andvari, 115
Angantyr, the Waking of, poem in Hervarar Saga, 48, 70, 73, 78, 112, 129 n
Apollonius of Tyre, in Anglo-Saxon, 329
Ari Thorgilsson, called the Wise (Ari Fróði, a.d. 1067-1148),
his Landnámabók and Konunga Æfi, 248;
Ynglinga Saga, 279
Ariosto, 30, 31, 40, 323
Aristotle on the dramatic element in epic, 17 sq.;
his summary of the Odyssey, 36, 74, 120, 139, 159 sq.
Arnaldos, romance del Conde, Spanish ballad, 327
Arni, Bishop of Skalholt (ob. 1298), his Life (Arna Saga), 268
Arni Beiskr (the Bitter), murderer of Snorri Sturluson, his death at Flugumyri, 263
Aron Hjörleifsson (Arons Saga), a friend of Bishop Gudmund, 225, 257, 381 sq.
Asbjörnsen, P. Chr., 170 n
Asdis, Grettir's mother, 216 n
Askel: see Reykdæla Saga
Atlakviða, the Lay of Attila, 146 sq.: see Attila
Atlamál, the Greenland Poem of Attila, 92, 137, 146-156: see Attila
Atli and Rimgerd, Contention of, in 'Elder Edda,' 113 sq.
Atli in Grettis Saga, his dying speech, 218
in Hávarðar Saga, 227
Attila (O.E. Ætla, O.N. Atli), the Hun, adopted as a German hero in epic tradition, 22;
different views of him in epic, 24;
in Waltharius, 84;
in Waldere, 86;
in the 'Elder Edda,' 80, 83, 105 sq., 110, 137, 149 sq.
Aucassin et Nicolette, 312, 327
Audoin the Lombard (O.E. Eadwine), father of Alboin, 67
Aymon, Four Sons of, i.e. Renaus de Montauban (chanson de geste), 313, 387
Balder, death of, 43, 78, 112
Bandamanna Saga, 'The Confederates,' 187, 226, 229-234
Beatrice the Duchess, wife of Begon de Belin, mother of Gerin and Hernaudin, 307 sq.
Begon de Belin, brother of Garin le Loherain, q.v.
Benoit de Sainte More, his Roman de Troie, 330 sq., 334
Beowulf, 69, 88 sq., 110, 136, 145, 158-175, 290
and the Odyssey, 10
Beowulf and the Hêliand, 28
Bergthora, Njal's wife, 190, 220 sq.
Bernier: see Raoul de Cambrai
Béroul: see Tristram
Bevis, Sir, 388
Biarkamál, 78
Bjargey: see Hávarðar Saga
Bjorn, in Njála, and his wife, 228-229
Blethericus, a Welsh author, 348
Boccaccio, his relation to the French Romantic School, and to Chaucer, 363-370
Bodvild, 95
Boethius On the Consolation of Philosophy, a favourite book, 46
Bolli, Gudrun's husband (Laxdæla Saga), 191, 207, 223, 376 sq.;
kills Kjartan, 242
Bolli the younger, son of Bolli and Gudrun, 223-224
Bossu, on the Epic Poem, his opinion of Phaeacia, 32, 40 n
Bradley, Mr. Henry, on the first Riddle in the Exeter Book, 135 (Academy, March 24, 1888, p. 198)
Bréri, cited by Thomas as his authority for the story of Tristram: see Blethericus
Brink, Dr. Bernhard Ten, some time Professor at Strassburg, 145, 290
Broceliande visited by Wace, 26, 171
Brunanburh, poem of the battle of, 76
Brynhild, sister of Attila, wife of Gunnar the Niblung, passim
long Lay of, in the 'Elder Edda' (al. Sigurðarkviða in Skamma), 83, 100 sq.
Hell-ride of, 102
short Lay of (fragment), 103, 256
lost poem concerning, paraphrased in Volsunga Saga, 71
Danish ballad of: see Sivard
Bugge, Dr. Sophus, sometime Professor in Christiania, 77 n, 87 n, 137 n
Byrhtnoth: see Maldon
C.P.B., i.e. Corpus Poeticum Boreale, q.v.
Campbell, J.F., of Islay, 170 n, 340
Casket of whalebone (the Franks casket), in the British Museum, subjects represented on it, 48;
runic inscriptions, 49 (cf. Napier, in An English Miscellany, Oxford 1901)
Charles the Great, Roman Emperor (Charlemagne), different views of him in French Epic, 24;
in Huon de Bordeaux 314 sq.;
history of, in Norwegian (Karlamagnus Saga), 278;
in Spanish (chap-book), 297 n: see Pèlerinage de Charlemagne
Charlot: see Huon de Bordeaux
Charroi de Nismes, chanson de geste of the cycle of William of Orange, quoted, 312
Chaucer, 328, 332 n;
his relation to the French Romantic School, and to Boccaccio, 363-370
Chrestien de Troyes, 323, 344
his works,
Tristan (lost), 344;
Erec (Geraint and Enid), 6, 332, 355 sq.;
Conte du Graal (Perceval), 327;
Cliges, 333, 357 sq., 387;
Chevalier de la Charrette (Lancelot), 341, 357, 387;
Yvain (Chevalier au Lion), 352 sq., 386 sq.
his influence on the author of Flamenca, 359 sq.
Codex Regius (2365, 4to), in the King's Library, Copenhagen: see Edda, 'the Elder'
Comédie Humaine, la, 188
Connla (the story of the fairy-bride): see Guingamor
Contract, Social, in Iceland, 59
Coronemenz Looïs, chanson de geste of the cycle of William of Orange, quoted, 311
Corpus Poeticum Boreale, ed. G. Vigfusson and F. York Powell, Oxford, 1883, passim
Corsolt, a pagan, 311
Cressida, in Roman de Troie, 330;
the story treated in different ways by Boccaccio and Chaucer, q.v.
Cynewulf, the poet, 51
Cynewulf and Cyneheard (English Chronicle, a.d. 755), 5, 82 n
Dag, brother of Sigrun, 72
Dandie Dinmont, 201
Dante, 31;
his reference to William of Orange, 296
Dart, Song of the (Darraðarlióð, Gray's 'Fatal Sisters'), 78
Davenant, Sir William, on the heroic poem (Preface to Gondibert), quoted, 30;
author of a tragedy, 'Albovine King of the Lombards,' 67
Deor's Lament, old English poem, 76, 115, 134
Drangey, island in Eyjafirth, north of Iceland, Grettir's refuge, 196
Dryden and the heroic ideal, 30
Du Bartas, 31
Edda, a handbook of the Art of Poetry, by Snorri Sturluson, 42, 138, 181
'Edda,' 'the Elder,' 'the Poetic,' 'of Sæmund the Wise' (Codex Regius), 77, 93, 156 passim
Egil the Bowman, Weland's brother, represented on the Franks casket (Ægili), 48
Egil Skallagrimsson, 192, 215, 220
Einar Thorgilsson: see Sturla of Hvamm
Ekkehard, Dean of St. Gall, author of Waltharius, 84
Elene, by Cynewulf, an old English poem on the legend of St. Helen (the Invention of the Cross), 50, 90, 329
Eneas, Roman d', 386
Enid: see Chrestien de Troyes
Erec: see Chrestien de Troyes
Eric the Red, his Saga in Hauk's book, 47
Ermanaric (O.E. Eormenríc, O.N. Jörmunrekr), 22;
killed by the brothers of Suanihilda, 66: see Hamðismál
Erp: see Hamðismál
Exodus, old English poem of, 28, 90
Eyjolf Karsson, a friend of Bishop Gudmund, 257, 381, sq.
Eyjolf Thorsteinsson: see Gizur
Eyrbyggja Saga, the story of the men of Eyre, 187 sq., 201, 227, 253
Færeyinga Saga, the story of the men of the Faroes (Thrond of Gata and Sigmund Brestisson), 206, 245
Faroese ballads, 181, 283
Fielding, Henry, 266
Fierabras, 388
Finn: see Finnesburh
Finnesburh, old English poem (fragment), published by Hickes from a Lambeth MS., now mislaid, 81 sq., 265
episode in Beowulf, giving more of the story, 81 sq.
Fiölsvinnsmál see Svipdag
Flamenca, a Provençal romance, by a follower of Chrestien de Troyes, in the spirit of Ovid, 359-362;
romances named in, 360, 384-387
Flóamanna Saga, the story of the people of Floi, 259
Flores et Blanchefleur, romance, referred to in Flamenca, 361;
translated by Boccaccio (Filocolo), 364
Flosi the Burner, in Njála, 218, 219, 190, 191, 219 sq.
Flugumyri, a homestead in Northern Iceland (Skagafjord), Earl Gizur's house, burned October 1253, the story as given by Sturla, 259-264
Fóstbræðra Saga (the story of the two sworn brethren, Thorgeir and Thormod) 38 n, 47;
in Hauk's book, 187, 194, 196;
euphuistic interpolations in, 275 sq.
Frey, poem of his wooing of Gerd (Skirnismál), in the 'Poetic Edda,' 77, 94, 114
Frithiof the Bold, a romantic Saga, 247, 277, 280 sq.
Froda (Fróðá), homestead in Olafsvík, near the end of Snæfellsnes, Western Iceland, a haunted house, Eyrbyggja Saga, 208
Froda (Frotho in Saxo Grammaticus), his story alluded to in Beowulf, 69, 72, 82 n, 163, 373 sq.
Froissart and the courteous ideal, 328
Fromont, the adversary in the story of Garin le Loherain, q.v.
Galopin the Prodigal, in the story of Garin le Loherain, 310
Gareth, in Malory's Morte d'Arthur, original of the Red Cross Knight in the Faery Queene, 343
Garin le Loherain (chanson de geste), 53 n, 300-309
Gawain killed dragons, 168: see Walewein
Gawain and the Green Knight, alliterative poem, 180
Gay Goshawk, ballad of the, 357
Genesis, old English poem of, 90, 136
Geraint, Welsh story, 355
Gerd: see Frey
Germania of Tacitus, 46
Gísla Saga, the story of Gisli the Outlaw, 187, 196 sq., 207, 225;
its relations to the heroic poetry, 210
Giuki (Lat. Gibicho, O.E. Gifica), father of Gunnar, Hogni, Gothorm, and Gudrun, q.v.
Gizur Thorvaldsson, the earl, at Flugumyri, 258, 259-264
Glam (Grettis Saga), 172, 196
Glum (Víga-Glúms Saga), 193 sq., 225
and Raoul de Cambrai, 299
Gollancz, Mr., 135 (see Academy, Dec. 23, 1893, p. 572)
Gothorm, 101
Gray, his translations from the Icelandic, 78, 157 n
Gregory (St.) the Great, de Cura Pastorali, studied in Iceland, 59
Grendel, 165: see Beowulf
Grettis Saga, the story of Grettir the Strong, 172, 187, 195 sq., 216 n, 218, 226
Grimhild, mother of Gudrun, 110
Grimild's Revenge, Danish ballad (Grimilds Hævn), 105, 149
Grimm, 136 n;
story of the Golden Bird, 340
Wilhelm, Deutsche Heldensage, 79
Grímnismál, in 'Elder Edda,' 112
Gripir, Prophecy of (Grípisspá) in the 'Elder Edda,' a summary of the Volsung story, 94
Groa, wife of Earl Gizur, q.v.
Grógaldr: see Svipdag
Grottasöngr (Song of the Magic Mill), 90
Gudmund Arason, Bishop of Hólar, 170, 256, 381
Gudmund, son of Granmar: see Sinfiotli
Gudmund the Mighty (Guðmundr inn Riki), in Ljósvetninga and other Sagas, 188, 225
Gudny, wife of Sturla of Hvamm, q.v.
Gudrun (O.N. Guðrún), daughter of Giuki, sister of Gunnar and Hogni, wife of Sigurd, 23, 71, 101, 149 sq.
and Theodoric, the Old Lay of Gudrun (Guðrúnarkviða in forna), 103, 109
Lay of (Guðrúnarkviða), 111
Lament of, or Chain of Woe (Tregrof Guðrúnar), 111, 215
Ordeal of, 111
daughter of Osvifr (Laxdæla Saga), 191, 209, 222-224
Guingamor, Lay of, by Marie de France, 337-340
Guinglain, romance, by Renaud de Beaujeu: see Libeaux Desconus
Gundaharius (Gundicarius), the Burgundian (O.E. Gúðhere, O.N. Gunnarr; Gunther in the Nibelungenlied, etc.), 22: see Gunnar, Gunther
Gunnar of Lithend (Hlíðarendi), in Njáls Saga, 190;
his death, 214
Gunnar, son of Giuki, brother of Gudrun, 101 sq., 168 sq.: see Gundaharius, Gunther
Gunnlaug the Poet, called Wormtongue, his story (Gunnlaugs Saga Ormstungu), 207, 281
Gunther (Guntharius, son of Gibicho) in Waltharius, 84 sq.;
in Waldere, 100: see Gundaharius, Gunnar
Hacon, King of Norway (a.d. 1217-1263): see Hákonar Saga;
his taste for French romances, 278
Hadubrand, son of Hildebrand, 81
Hagen (Hagano), in Waltharius, 84 sq.
Hagen, in Waldere (Hagena), 86, 239
in Sivard, q.v.: see Hogni
Hákonar Saga, the Life of Hacon, Hacon's son, King of Norway (ob. 1263), written by Sturla, contrasted with his history of Iceland, 267 sq.
Halfs Saga, 280
Hall, son of Earl Gizur, 259
Hama, 163
Hamlet in Saxo, 70
Hamðismál ('Poetic Edda'), Lay of the death of Ermanaric, 66, 70-71, 109, 140
Harald, king of Norway (Fairhair), 58;
in Egils Saga, 192
king of Norway (Hardrada), killed dragons, 168;
his Saga referred to (story of Hreidar the Simple), 310;
(Varangian custom), 329 n
Harbarzlióð: see Thor
Harðar Saga ok Holmverja, the story of Hord and the men of the island, 212 n
Hauk's Book, an Icelandic gentleman's select library in the fourteenth century, 47 sq. (Hauksbók, ed. Finnur Jónsson, 1892-1896)
Hávamál in 'Poetic Edda,' a gnomic miscellany, 77
Hávarðar Saga Isfirðings, the story of Howard of Icefirth, 199, 216 sq., 227
Hearne, Thomas, 78
Hedin, brother of Helgi, Hiorvard's son, 99
Heiðarvíga Saga, the story of the battle on the Heath (connected with Eyrbyggja Saga), 209: see Víga-Styrr
Heiðreks Saga: see Hervarar Saga
Heimskringla, Snorri's Lives of the Kings of Norway, abridged, 248
Helgi and Kara, 98
Helgi, Hiorvard's son, and Swava, 97 sq., 113
Helgi Hundingsbane and Sigrun, 72, 93 n, 95 sq., 239
Hêliand, old Saxon poem on the Gospel history, using the forms of German heroic poetry, 27, 90, 204
Hengest: see Finnesburh
Heremod,
162
Herkja, 111
Hermes, in the Homeric hymn, 43
Hervarar Saga ok Heiðreks Konungs (Heiðreks Saga), one of the romantic mythical Sagas in Hauk's book, 48;
contains the poems of the cycle of Angantyr, 78, 280
Hervor, daughter of Angantyr, 70, 73, 112, 208
Heusler, Dr. Andreas, Professor in Berlin, 100 n
Hialli, 151
Hickes, George, D.D., 73 n, 78
Hildebrand, Lay of, 76, 79, 81, 87 n, 91
Hildeburg: see Finnesburh
Hildegund (Hildegyth), 84 sq.: see Walter
Hnæf: see Finnesburh
Hobs, Mr. (i.e. Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury), 31
Hodbrodd, in story of Helgi and Sigrun, 72, 96
Hogni, father of Sigrun, 72, 96
Hogni, son of Giuki, brother of Gunnar, Gothorm, and Gudrun, 101, 151 sq.: see Hagen
Homeric analogies in medieval literature, 9 sq.
Hrafn Sveinbjarnarson, a friend of Bishop Gudmund, 257;
Hrafns Saga quoted, 38 n
Hrafn: see Gunnlaug
Hrafnkels Saga Freysgoða, the story of Hrafnkel, Frey's Priest, 187, 198
Hrefna, Kjartan's wife, 223
Hreidar the Simple, an unpromising hero, in Haralds Saga Harðráða, 310
Hrolf Kraki (Hroðulf in Beowulf), 166, 280
Hromund Greipsson, Saga of, 99
Hrothgar, 10, 166.
Hunding, 95
Hunferth, 10, 166
Huon de Bordeaux (chanson de geste), epic and romance combined inartistically in, 37, 53, 314-317
Hurd's Letters on Chivalry and Romance, 30
Hygelac, 161 sq.: see Beowulf
Hymiskviða: see Thor
Ibsen, Henrik, his Hærmændene paa Helgeland (Warriors in Helgeland), a drama founded on the Volsung story, its relation to Laxdæla Saga, 209
his Kongsemnerne (Rival Kings, Hacon and Skule), 268
Ider, romance, 331 sq., 347 n
Iliad, 11 sq., 18, 38 sq., 52, 162 sq., 348, 352 n
Ingeld: see Froda
Ingibjorg, daughter of Sturla, her wedding at Flugumyri, 259 sq.
Intelligenza, L', 386 n
Jehoram, son of Ahab, in the famine of Samaria, 239
Johnson, Dr., 9, 244
Joinville, Jean de, Seneschal of Champagne, his Life of St. Louis compared with Icelandic prose history, 269 sq.
Jón Arason the poet, Bishop of Hólar, the last Catholic Bishop in Iceland, beheaded by Reformers, 7th November 1550, a notable character, 268
Jordanes, historian of the Goths, his version of the story of Ermanaric, its relation to Hamðismál, 65
Judith, old English poem of, 28, 29, 90
Julian, the Emperor, his opinion of German songs, 65
Kara, 98 sq.
Kari, in Njála, 206
and Bjorn, 228-229
Karl Jónsson, Abbot of Thingeyri in Iceland, author of Sverris Saga, 249
Kjartan, son of Olaf the Peacock (Laxdæla Saga), 13, 191, 204, 207, 375
his death, 240 sq.
Königskinder, die, German ballad, 327
Kormaks Saga, 129 n, 281
Lancelot, the French prose romance, 335
Landnámabók, in Hauk's book, 47
Laurence, Bishop of Hólar (ob. 1331), his Life (Laurentius Saga), 268
Laxdæla Saga, the story of Laxdale (the Lovers of the Gudrun), 185, 190, 240 sq., 375;
a new version of the Niblung story, 209 sq., 222 sq., 281
Leconte de Lisle, L'Epée d'Angantyr, 73 n
Lessing's Laocoon, 237
Libeaux Desconus, romance in different versions—French, by Renaud de Beaujeu (Guinglain), 337, 343 sq., 387;
English, 337, 343;
Italian (Carduino), 337, 343
Ljósvetninga Saga, story of the House of Ljósavatn, 188 sq.
Lokasenna (the Railing of Loki), 41, 77, 113
Longnon, Auguste, 314 n
Louis IX., king of France (St. Louis): see Joinville
Lusiad, the, a patriotic epic, unlike the poetry of the 'heroic age,' 22
Macrobius, 47, 333
Maldon, poem of the battle of (a.d. 991), 69, 88, 95 n, 134, 205, 244;
compared with the Iliad, 11;
compared with Roland, 51, 54 sq., 294
Malory, Sir Thomas, his Morte d'Arthur, 215, 307
Mantrible, Bridge of the, 388
Marie de France, her Lays translated into Norwegian (Strengleikar), 278;
Guingamor criticised, 337-340
Marino, 31
Martianus Capella, de Nuptiis Philologiae, studied in the Middle Ages, 47
Medea, 334, 347 sq.
Menglad, Rescue of, 78, 114: see Svipdag
Mephistopheles in Thessaly, 10
Meyer, Paul, 290 n, 359 n, 386
Milan, Siege of, 388
Mimming, the sword of Weland, 86
Morris, William, 205, 282, 334
Mort Arthure, alliterative poem, 180
Mort Artus, French prose romance, 335
Morte d'Arthur: see Malory
Nibelungenlied, 105, 120, 149, 179
Niblung story, its relation to historical fact, 22 sq.: see Gunnar, Hogni, Gudrun, Laxdæla Saga
Nidad, 95
Njal, story of (Njála), 8, 13, 60, 185, 207, 219-221
Oberon; see Huon de Bordeaux
Odd, Arrow (Örvar-Oddr), 73
Oddrun, sister of Brynhild and Attila, 102
Lament of (Oddrúnargrátr), in the 'Elder Edda,' 103, 107 sq., 151 sq.
Odd Ufeigsson: see Bandamanna Saga
Odoacer, referred to in Lay of Hildebrand, 81
Odysseus, 7, 9, 32 sq., 35, 71
Odyssey, the, 10, 163, 171;
Aristotle's summary of, 18;
romance in, 32 sq.
Olaf Tryggvason, king of Norway, 205, 375 sq.
Olkofra Þáttr, the story of Alecap, related to Bandamanna Saga, 226
Ossian, in the land of youth: see Guingamor
Ovid in the Middle Ages, 47, 346, 412;
Ovidius Epistolarum studied in Iceland, 59
Ovid's story of Medea, translated in the Roman de Troie, 334 sq., 348 sq.;
Heroides became the 'Saints' Legend of Cupid,' 347
Paris, Gaston, 290, 291, 331, 337, 343, 345, 348 n, 387
Paulus Diaconus, heroic stories in the Lombard history, 66 sq.
Peer Gynt, 170
Pèlerinage de Charlemagne (chanson de geste), 24, 53, 329
Percy, Thomas, D.D., Five Pieces of Runic Poetry, 73 n, 141 n
Phaeacia, Odysseus in, Bossu's criticism, 31
Pindar, his treatment of myths, 43
Poitiers, William IX., Count of, his poem on setting out for the Crusade, 317
Powell, F. York, 66: see Aage
Prise d'Orange, chanson de geste of the cycle of William of Orange, in substance a romance of adventure, 313
Queste del St. Graal, French prose romance, a contrast to the style of Chrestien de Troyes, 327, 335
Ragnar Lodbrok, his Death-Song (Krákumál), 140, 217, 295
Rainouart, the gigantic ally of William of Orange, 296, 311;
their names associated by Dante (Par. xviii. 46), ibid.
Raoul de Cambrai (chanson de geste), 291 n, 298-300, 309
Rastignac, Eugène de, 188
Reykdæla Saga, the story of Vemund, Askel, and Skuta son of Askel, connected with the story of Glum, 194, 201
Rigaut, son of Hervi the Villain, in the story of Garin le Loherain, 310
Rimgerd the Giantess: see Atli
Rímur, Icelandic rhyming romances, 181, 283
Roland, Chanson de, 9, 24, 83, 287, 293-295, 308;
compared with Byrhtnoth (Maldon), 54 sq.;
with an incident in Njála, 265
Roman de la Rose, of Guillaume de Lorris, 345, 348, 352, 359
Rood, Dream of the, old English poem, 134
Rosamund and Alboin in the Lombard history, 23, 67
Rosmunda, a tragedy, by Rucellai, 67
Rou, Roman de, the author's visit to Broceliande, 26
Sam (Sámr), Gunnar's dog, 214
Sarpedon's address to Glaucus, 9, 11
Sarus and Ammius (Sorli and Hamther), brothers of Suanihilda (Jordanes), 66: see Hamðismál
Saxo Grammaticus, 69, 79, 105, 149, 181, 374
Scotland, Complaynt of, romances named in, 387-389
Scottish Field, alliterative poem on Flodden, 179 sq.
Shakespeare, his treatment of popular tales, 36 sq.
Sibyl's Prophecy: see Volospá
Sidney, Sir Philip, 99, 368
Sievers, Dr. Eduard, Professor in Leipzig, 136 n, 169 n
Sigmund Brestisson, in Færeyinga Saga, 206, 245, 283
Sigmund, father of Sinfiotli, Helgi, and Sigurd, 95, 110
Signild: see Sivard
Sigrdrifa, 115
Sigrun: see Helgi
Sigurd, the Volsung (O.N. Sigurðr), 22, 71, 100 sq., 129, 133
fragmentary Lay of (Brot af Sigurðarkviðu), 103
Lay of: see Brynhild
Sinfiotli, debate of, and Gudmund, 96
Sivard og Brynild, Danish ballad, translated, 127-129
Skallagrim, how he told the truth to King Harald, 192
Skarphedinn, son of Njal, 190, 220 sq., 244, 265
Skirnir: see Frey
Skule, Duke, the rival of Hacon, 267
Skuta: see Reykdæla Saga
Snorri Sturluson (a.d. 1178-1241), author of the Edda, 42;
and of the Lives of the Kings of Norway, 248;
his murder avenged at Flugumyri, 263
Snorri the Priest (Snorri Goði), in Eyrbyggja and other Sagas, 188, 213, 253
Sonatorrek (the Sons' Loss), poem by Egil Skallagrimsson, 215
Sorli: see Hamðismál
Spenser, 343
Starkad, 166, 374
Stephens, George, sometime Professor in Copenhagen, 78
Stevenson, R.L., Catriona, 170 n
Sturla of Hvamm (Hvamm-Sturla), founder of the house of the Sturlungs, his life (Sturlu Saga) 253-256
Sturla (c. a.d. 1214-1284), son of Thord, and grandson of Hvamm-Sturla, nephew of Snorri, author of Sturlunga Saga (q.v.) and of Hákonar Saga (q.v.) 61, 251, 259
Sturlunga Saga (more accurately Islendinga Saga), of Sturla, Thord's son, a history of the author's own times, using the forms of the heroic Sagas, 61, 246 sq., 249 sq.
Suanihilda: see Swanhild
Svarfdæla Saga, the story of the men of Swarfdale (Svarfaðardalr), 219
Sveidal, Ungen, Danish ballad, on the story of Svipdag and Menglad, 114, 126
Sverre, king of Norway (ob. 1202), his Life (Sverris Saga) written by Abbot Karl Jónsson at the king's dictation, 249;
quotes a Volsung poem, 278
Svipdag and Menglad, old Northern poems of, 78, 114 sq.: see Sveidal
Swanhild (O.N. Svanhildr), daughter of Sigurd and Gudrun, her cruel death; the vengeance on Ermanaric known to Jordanes in the sixth century, 65: see Hamðismál
Tasso, 18, 21;
his critical essays on heroic poetry, 30
Tegnér, Esaias, 141;
his Frithiofs Saga, 277
Tennyson, Enid, 355
Theodoric (O.N. Þióðrekr), a hero of Teutonic epic in different dialects, 22, 81, 87;
fragment of Swedish poem on, inscription on stone at Rök, 78: see Gudrun
Thersites, 243
Thidrandi, whom the goddesses slew, 208
Þidreks Saga (thirteenth century), a Norwegian compilation from North German ballads on heroic subjects, 79, 121
Thomas: see Tristram
Thor, in old Northern literature, his Fishing for the World Serpent (Hymiskviða), 43, 77, 95;
the Winning of the Hammer (Þrymskviða), 43, 77, 81, 95
Danish ballad of, 125
the contention of, and Odin (Harbarzlióð), 77, 113
Thorarin, in Eyrbyggja, the quiet man, 227
Thorgils and Haflidi (Þorgils Saga ok Hafliða), 226, 238, 252 sq.
Thorkell Hake, in Ljósvetinga Saga, 225
Thorolf Bægifot: see Eyrbyggja
Thorolf, Kveldulf's son: see Skallagrim
Þorsteins Saga Hvíta, the story of Thorstein the White, points of resemblance to Laxdæla and Gunnlaugs Saga, 281
Þorsteins Saga Stangarhöggs (Thorstein Staffsmitten), a short story, 282
Thrond of Gata (Færeyinga Saga), 245
Þrymskviða: see Thor
Thrytho, 162
Thurismund, son of Thurisvend, king of the Gepidae, killed by Alboin, 67
Tirant lo Blanch (Tirant the White, Romance of), 38 n;
a moral work, 222
Trissino, author of Italia liberata dai Goti, a correct epic poem, 30
Tristram and Iseult, 336, Anglo-Norman poems, by Béroul and Thomas, 344;
of Chrestien (lost), ibid.
Troilus, 368 sq.
Troy, Destruction of, alliterative poem, 180
Ufeig: see Bandamanna Saga
Uistean Mor mac Ghille Phadrig, 170
Uspak: see Bandamanna Saga
Vafþrúðnismál, mythological poem in 'Elder Edda,' 77, 112, 115
Vali: see Bandamanna Saga
Vápnfirðinga Saga, the story of Vopnafjord, 193, 226
Vatnsdæla Saga, story of the House of Vatnsdal, 189
Vemund: see Reykdæla Saga
Vergi, la Chastelaine de, a short tragic story, 362 sq.
Víga-Glúms Saga, 193: see Glum
Víga-Styrr: see Heiðarvíga Saga
N.B.—The story referred to in the text is preserved in Jón Olafsson's recollection of the leaves of the MS. which were lost in the fire of 1728 (Islendinga Sögur, 1847, ii. p. 296). It is not given in Mr. William Morris's translation of the extant portion of the Saga, appended to his Eyrbyggja.
Vigfusson, Gudbrand, 77, 280 n, 283 n
Viglund, Story of, a romantic Saga, 278 sq.
Villehardouin, a contemporary of Snorri, 269
Volospá (the Sibyl's Song of the Doom of the Gods), in the 'Poetic Edda,' 43, 77, 139;
another copy in Hauk's book, 47, 93
Volsunga Saga, a prose paraphrase of old Northern poems, 71, 77, 79, 280
Volsungs, Old Lay of the, 96
Wade, Song of, fragment recently discovered, 180 (see Academy, Feb. 15, 1896)
Waldere, old English poem (fragment), 78, 86 sq., 116, 163: see Walter of Aquitaine
Walewein, Roman van, Dutch romance of Sir Gawain; the plot compared with the Gaelic story of Mac Iain Direach, 337, 340-343
Walter of Aquitaine, 5, 78, 84 sq., 206
Waltharius, Latin poem by Ekkehard, on the story of Walter of Aquitaine, q.v.
Wanderer, the, old English poem, 134
Ward, H.L.D., his Catalogue of MS. Romances in the British Museum, 282
Wealhtheo, 166
Weland, 338
represented on the Franks casket in the British Museum, 48
mentioned in Waldere, 87, 163
Lay of, in 'Poetic Edda,' 77, 94
Well at the World's End, 387
Widia, Weland's son, 87, 163
Widsith (the Traveller's Song), old English poem, 76, 115, 134
Wiglaf, the 'loyal servitor' in Beowulf, 166
William of Orange, old French epic hero, 296: see Coronemenz Looïs, Charroi de Nismes, Prise d'Orange, Aliscans, Rainouart; cf. J. Bédier, Les Légendes épiques (1908)
Footnotes
[1] Johnson on the Epic Poem (Life of Milton).
[2] Il. xii. 328.
[3] Il. xi. 462.
[4] Od. viii. 165.
[5] Il. xix. 420.
[6] Ομηρος δε αλλα τε πολλα αξιος επαινεισθαι και δη και οτι μονος των ποιητων ουκ αγνοει ο δει ποιειν αυτον. αυτον γαρ δει τον ποιητην ελαχιστα λεγειν: ου γαρ εστι κατα ταυτα μιμητης. οι μεν ουν αλλοι αυτοι μεν δι' ολου αγωνιζονται, μιμουνται δε ολιγα και ολιγακις: ο δε ολιγα φροιμιασαμενος ευθυς εισαγει ανδρα η γυναικα η αλλο τι ηθος και ουδεν' αηθη αλλ' εχοντα ηθη.—Arist. Poet. 1460 a 5.
[Transliteration: Homêros de alla te polla axios epaineisthai kai dê kai hoti monos tôn poiêtôn ouk agnoei ho dei poiein auton. auton gar dei ton poiêtên elachista legein: ou gar esti kata tauta mimêtês. hoi men oun alloi autoi men di' holou agônizontai, mimountai de oliga kai oligakis: ho de oliga phroimiasamenos euthys eisagei andra ê gynaika ê allo ti êthos kai ouden' aêthê all' echonta êthê.]
[7] Traité du Poëme Épique, par le R.P. Le Bossu, Chanoine Régulier de Sainte Geneviève; MDCLXXV (t. ii. p. 166).
[8]
αυταρ' Οδυσσευς
θυμωι μεν γοοωσαν εην ελεαιρε γυναικα,
οφθαλμοι δ' ως ει κερα εστασαν ηε σιδηρος
ατρεμας εν βλεφαροισι; δολωι δ' ο γε δακρυα κευθεν.
Od. xix. 209.
[Transliteration:
autar' Odysseus
thymôi men gooôsan heên eleaire gynaika,
ophthalmoi d' hôs ei kera hestasan êe sidêros
atremas en blepharoisi; dolôi d' ho ge dakrya keuthen.]
[9]
νυν δε τοις αλλοις αγαθοις αφανιζει ηδυνων το ατοπον.
Aristot. Poet. 1460 b.
[10] "In the events of this history may be proved the great long-suffering of God Almighty towards us every day; and the freedom of will which He has given to every man, that each may do what he will, good or evil."—Hrafns Saga, Prologue (Sturlunga Saga Oxford, 1878, II. p. 275).
"As all good things are the work of God, so valour is made by Him and placed in the heart of stout champions, and freedom therewithal to use it as they will, for good or evil."—Fóstbræðra Saga (1852), p. 12: one of the sophistical additions to the story: see below p. 275.
The moral is different in the following passage:—
"And inasmuch as the Providence of God hath ordained, and it is His pleasure, that the seven planets should have influence on the world, and bear dominion over man's nature, giving him divers inclinations to sin and naughtiness of life: nevertheless the Universal Creator has not taken from him the free will, which, as it is well governed, may subdue and abolish these temptations by virtuous living, if men will use discretion."—Tirant lo Blanch (1460), c. i.
[11] Il. xii. 241.
[12] Il. xvii. 227.
[13] The censure is not wanting:—
"L'on doit considérer que ce n'est ni le Poëte, ni son Héros, ni un honnête homme qui fait ce récit: mais que les Phéaques, peuples mols et effeminez, se le font chanter pendant leur festin."—Bossu, op. cit. p. 152.
[14] Od. vi. 151.
[15]
Lor autres mors ont toz en terre mis:
Crois font sor aus, qu'il erent droit martir:
Por lor seignor orent esté ocis.
Garin le Loherain, tom. ii. p. 88.
[16] C.P.B., Introduction, p. lii.
[17] This poem has been followed by M. Leconte de Lisle in L'Épée d'Angantyr (Poèmes Barbares). It was among the first of the Northern poems to be translated into English, in Hickes's Thesaurus (1705), i. p. 193. It is also included in Percy's Five Pieces of Runic Poetry (1763).
[18] Cf. G. Vigfusson, Prolegomena to Sturlunga (Oxford, 1878); (Corpus Poeticum Boreale (ibid. 1883); Grimm Centenary Papers 1886); Sophus Bugge, Helgedigtene (1896; trans. Schofield, 1899).
[19] Compare Cynewulf and Cyneheard in the Chronicle (a.d. 755); also the outbreak of enmity, through recollection of old wrongs, in the stories of Alboin, and of the vengeance for Froda (supra, pp. 68-70).
[20] Hildegyth, her English name, is unfortunately not preserved in either of the fragmentary leaves. It is found (Hildigið) in the Liber Vitae (Sweet, Oldest English Texts, p. 155).
[21] The resemblance to Hildebrand, l. 58, is pointed out by Sophus Bugge: "Doh maht du nu aodlihho, ibu dir din ellen taoc, In sus heremo man hrusti giwinnan." (Hildebrand speaks): "Easily now mayest thou win the spoils of so old a man, if thy strength avail thee." It is remarkable as evidence of the strong conventional character of the Teutonic poetry, and of the community of the different nations in the poetical convention, that two short passages like Hildebrand and Waldere should present so many points of likeness to other poems, in details of style. Thus the two lines quoted from Hildebrand as a parallel to Waldere contain also the equivalent of the Anglo-Saxon phrase, Þonne his ellen deah, a familiar part of the Teutonic Gradus.
[22] Cf. C.P.B., i. p. 375, for double versions of part of Hamðismál, and of the Lay of Helgi. On pp. 377-379, parts of the two texts of Volospá—R and H—are printed side by side for comparison.
[23] Cf. Maldon, l. 45 sq., "Hearest thou what this people answer? They will pay you, for tribute, spears, the deadly point, the old swords, the weapons of war that profit you not," etc.
[24] C.P.B., i. p. 130.
[25] C.P.B., Introduction, p. lxxviii.
[26] The "Long Lay of Sigurd" has disappeared. Cf. Heusler, Die Lieder der Lücke im Codex Regius der Edda, 1902.
[27] From C.P.B., i. pp. 293, 294, with some modifications.
[28] From C.P.B., i. p. 307, with some changes.
[29] See pp. 150-156 below.
[30] Grundtvig, Danmarks gamle Folkeviser, No. 70. See above, p. 114.
[31] Compare the warning of Angantyr to Hervor when he gives her the sword Tyrfing—"Keep the sword sheathed, the slayer of Hialmar; touch not the edges, there is venom upon them"—and the magic sword Skofnung in Kormaks Saga.
[32] Examples in Appendix, Note A.
[33] Compare the index to Sievers's edition of the Hêliand for illustrations of this community of poetical diction in old Saxon, English, Norse, and High German; and J. Grimm, Andreas und Elene (1840), pp. xxv.-xliv.
[34] See Bidrag til den ældste Skaldedigtnings Historie, by Dr. Sophus Bugge (1894).
[35] Compare C.P.B., ii. 447, Excursus on the Figures and Metaphors of old Northern Poetry.
[36] These may be found in the second volume of the Corpus Poeticum Boreale.
[37] C.P.B., ii. 339.
[38] Translated in Percy's Runic Poetry (1763), p. 27, and often since.
[39] There is a natural affinity to Gray's poetry in the Icelandic poetry that he translated—compressed, emphatic, incapable of laxity.
[40] Poet. 1451 a.
[41] τοιγαρουν εκ μεν Ιλιαδος και Οδυσσειας μια τραγωιδια ποιειται εκατερας η δυο μοναι, εκ δε Κυπριων πολλαι και της μικρας Ιλιαδος πλεον οκτω, οιον οπλων κρισις, Φιλοκτητης, Νεοπτολεμος, Ευρυπυλος, πτωχεια, Λακαιναι, Ιλιου περσις, και αποπλους και Σινων και Τρωιαδες (1459 b).
[Transliteration: toigaroun ek men Iliados kai Odysseias mia tragôidia poieitai hekateras ê duo monai, ek de Kypriôn pollai kai tês mikras Iliados pleon oktô, hoion hoplôn krisis, Philoktêtês, Neoptolemos, Eurypylos, ptôcheia, Lakainai, Iliou persis, kai apoplous kai Sinôn kai Trôiades.]
[42] It has been shown recently by Dr. Edward Sievers that Beowulf's dragon corresponds in many points to the dragon killed by Frotho, father of Haldanus, in Saxo, Book II. The dragon is not wholly commonplace, but has some particular distinctive traits. See Berichte der Königl. Sächs. Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften, 6 Juli 1895.
[43] Asbjörnsen, Norske Huldre-Eventyr og Folkesagn. At renske Huset is the phrase—"to cleanse the house." Cf. Heorot is gefælsod, "Heorot is cleansed," in Beowulf.
[44] J.F. Campbell, Tales of the West Highlands, ii. p. 99. The reference to this story in Catriona (p. 174) will be remembered.
[45] Biskupa Sögur, i. p. 604.
[46] Ed. Robson, Chetham Society, 1855, from the Lyme MS.; ed. Furnivall and Hales, Percy Folio Manuscript, 1867.
[47] See below, p. 283.
[48] "Is it true, Thorgils, that you have entertained those three men this winter, that are held to be the most regardless and overbearing, and all of them outlaws, and you have handled them so that none has hurt another?" Yes, it was true, said Thorgils. Skapti said: "That is something for a man to be proud of; but what do you think of the three, and how are they each of them in courage?" Thorgils said: "They are all three bold men to the full; yet two of them, I think, may tell what fear is like. It is not in the same way with both; for Thormod fears God, and Grettir is so afraid of the dark that after dark he would never stir, if he had his own way; but I do not know that Thorgeir, my kinsman, is afraid of anything."—"You have read them well," says Skapti; and so their talk ended (Grettis Saga, c. 51).
[49] See below, pp. 229 sqq.
[50] p. 216.
[51] Skapraun, lit. test of condition.
[52] Translated in Appendix, Note B.
[53] "Tell me what faith you are of," said the earl. "I believe in my own strength," said Sigmund (Færeyinga Saga).
[54] It is summarised in Dasent's Njal, i. p. xx., and translated in Sephton's Olaf Tryggvason (1895), pp. 339-341.
[55] Harðar Saga, c. xi.
[56] The pathos of Asdis, Grettir's mother, comes nearest to the tone of the old English laments, or of the Northern elegiac poetry, and may be taken as a contrast to the demeanour of Bjargey in Hávarðar Saga, and an exception to the general rule of the Sagas in this respect.
[57] Vide supra, p. 140, and infra, p. 295.
[58] Pp. 96, 113, above.
[59] Then Brynhild laughed till the walls rang again: "Good luck to your hands and swords that have felled the goodly prince" (Brot Sgkv. 10; cf. p. 103 above).
[60] Vide supra, p. 193 (the want of tragedy in Víga-Glúms Saga).
[61] Translated in Appendix, Note C.
[62] Arni Beiskr (the Bitter) in company with Gizur murdered Snorri Sturluson the historian at his house of Reykholt, 22nd September 1241.
[63] Fóstbr. (1852) p. 8: "Því at ekki var hjarta hans seen fóarn í fugli: ekki var þat blóðfullt svá at þat skylfi af hræzlu, heldr var þat herdt af enum hæsta höfuðsmið í öllum hvatleik." ("His heart was not fashioned like the crop in a fowl: it was not gorged with blood that it should flutter with fear, but was tempered by the High Headsmith in all alacrity.")
[64] "The first romantic Sagas"—i.e. Sagas derived from French romance—"date from the reign of King Hakon Hakonsson (1217-1263), when the longest and best were composed, and they appear to cease at the death of King Hakon the Fifth (1319), who, we are expressly told, commanded many translations to be made" (G. Vigfusson, Prol. § 25).
[65] The Mythical Sagas are described and discussed by Vigfusson, Prol. § 34.
[66] Ibid. § 11, "Spurious Icelandic Sagas" (Skrök-Sögur). For Frithiof, see § 34.
[67] Translated by Mr. William Morris and Mr. E. Magnússon, in the same volume as Gunnlaug, Frithiof, and Viglund (Three Northern Love Stories, etc., 1875).
[68] Vigfusson, Prol. p. cxxxviii. C.P.B., ii. 392. The forms of verse used in the Rímur are analysed in the preface to Riddara Rímur, by Theodor Wisén (1881).
[69] G. Paris, Preface to Histoire de la littérature française, edited by L. Petit de Julleville.
[70] See the preface to Raoul de Cambrai, ed. Paul Meyer (Anc. Textes), for examples of such chevilles; and also Aimeri de Narbonne, p. civ.
[71] Historia Verdadera de Carlo Magno y los doce Pares de Francia: Madrid, 4to (1891), a chap-book of thirty-two pages.
[72] Glum, like Raoul, is a widow's son deprived of his rights.
[73] Garin le Loherain, ed. Paulin Paris (1833-35), vol. ii. pp. 217-272.
[74] One of the frequent morals of French epic (repeated also by French romance) is the vanity of overmuch sorrow for the dead.
αλλα χρη τον μεν καταθαπτειν ος κε θανησιν
νηλεα θυμον εχοντας, επ' ηματι δακρυσαντας.
(Odysseus speaking) Il. xix. 228.
[Transliteration:
alla chrê ton men katathaptein hos ke thanêsin
nêlea thymon echontas, ep' êmati dakrysantas.]
"Laissiez ester," li quens Guillaumes dit;
"Tout avenra ce que doit avenir;
Li mort as mors, li vif voissent as vis;
Duel sor dolor et joie sor joïr
Ja nus frans hons nel devroit maintenir."
Les cors enportent, les out en terre mis.
Garin, i. p. 262.
[75]
Respont li reis: "N'iés pas bien enseigniez,
Qui devant mei oses de Deu plaidier;
C'est l'om el mont qui plus m'a fait irier:
Mon pere ocist une foldre del ciel:
Tot i fu ars, ne li pot l'en aidier.
Quant Deus l'ot mort, si fist que enseigniez;
El ciel monta, ça ne voit repairier;
Ge nel poeie sivre ne enchalcier,
Mais de ses omes me sui ge puis vengiez;
De cels qui furent levé et baptisié
Ai fait destruire plus de trente miliers,
Ardeir en feu et en eve neier;
Quant ge la sus ne puis Deu guerreier,
Nul de ses omes ne vueil ça jus laissier,
Et mei et Deu n'avons mais que plaidier:
Meie est la terre et siens sera li ciels."
l.c., l. 522.
The last verse expresses the same sentiment as the answer of the Emperor Henry when he was told to beware of God's vengeance: "Celum celi Domino, terram autem dedit filiis hominum" (Otton. Frising. Gesta Frid. i. 11).
[76]
Li cuens Guillaumes li comença à dire:
—Diva, vilain, par la loi dont tu vives
Fus-tu a Nymes, la fort cité garnie?
—Oïl, voir, sire, le paaige me quistrent;
Ge fui trop poures, si nel poi baillier mie.
Il me lessèrent por mes enfanz qu'il virent.
—Di moi, vilain, des estres de la vile.
Et cil respont:—Ce vos sai-ge bien dire
Por un denier.ii. granz pains i véismes;
La denerée vaut.iii. en autre vile:
Moult par est bone, se puis n'est empirie.
—Fox, dist Guillaume, ce ne demant-je mie,
Mès des paiens chevaliers de la vile,
Del rei Otrant et de sa compaignie.
l.c., ll. 903-916.
[77] Cf. Auguste Longnon, "L'élément historique de Huon de Bordeaux," Romania, viii.
[78] "Pos de chantar m'es pres talens:"—Raynouard, Choix des poésies des Troubadours, iv. p. 83; Bartsch, Chrestomathie provençale.
[79] See the account of the custom in the Saga of Harald Hardrada, c. 16. "Harald entrusted to Jarizleif all the gold that he had sent from Micklegarth, and all sorts of precious things: so much wealth all together, as no man of the North Lands had ever seen before in one man's hands. Harald had thrice come in for the palace-sweeping (Polotasvarf) while he was in Micklegarth. It is the law there that when the Greek king dies, the Varangians shall have a sweep of the palace; they go over all the king's palaces where his treasures are, and every man shall have for his own what falls to his hand" (Fornmanna Sögur, vi. p. 171).
[80]
Il ot o lui un saietaire
Qui molt fu fels et deputaire:
Des le nombril tot contreval
Ot cors en forme de cheval:
Il n'est riens nule s'il volsist
Que d'isnelece n'ateinsist:
Cors, chiere, braz, a noz semblanz
Avoit, mes n'ert pas avenanz.
l. 12,207.
[81] Chaucer, who often yields to the temptations of "Hyperbole" in this sense of the word, lays down the law against impertinent decorations, in the rhetorical instruction of Pandarus to Troilus, about Troilus's letter to Cressida (B. ii. l. 1037):—
Ne jompre eek no discordaunt thing yfere
As thus, to usen termes of phisyk;
In loves termes hold of thy matere
The forme alwey, and do that it be lyk;
For if a peyntour wolde peynte a pyk
With asses feet, and hede it as an ape,
It cordeth naught; so nere it but a jape.
[82] Not included in the editions of her works (Roquefort, Warnke); edited by M. Gaston Paris in the eighth volume of Romania along with the lays of Doon, Tidorel, and Tiolet.
[83] Britomart in the House of Busirane has some resemblance to the conclusion of Libius Disconius.
[84] Fr. Michel: Tristan. London, 1835. Le Roman de Tristan (Thomas) ed. Bédier; (Béroul) ed. Muret, Anc. Textes, 1902-1905. Cf. Gaston Paris, Poëmes et Légendes.
[85] A fine passage is quoted from the romance of Ider in the essay cited above, where Guenloïe the queen finds Ider near death and thinks of killing herself, like Phyllis and other ladies of the old time, who will welcome her. It is the "Saints' Legend of Cupid," many generations before Chaucer, in the form of an invocation to Love, the tyrant:—
Bel semblant ço quit me feront
Les cheitives qui a toi sont
Qui s'ocistrent par druerie
D'amor; mout voil lor compainie:
D'amor me recomfortera
La lasse Deïanira,
Qui s'encroast, et Canacé,
Eco, Scilla, Fillis, Pronné,
Ero, Biblis, Dido, Mirra,
Tisbé, la bele Hypermnestra,
Et des autres mil et cinc cenz.
Amor! por quoi ne te repenz
De ces simples lasses destruire?
Trop cruelment te voi deduire:
Pechié feiz que n'en as pitié;
Nuls deus fors toi ne fait pechié!
De ço est Tisbé al dessus,
Que por lié s'ocist Piramus;
Amors, de ço te puet loer
Car a ta cort siet o son per;
Ero i est o Leander:
Si jo i fusse avec Ider,
Aise fusse, ço m'est avis,
Com alme qu'est en paraïs.
[86] Blethericus, or Bréri, is the Welsh authority cited by Thomas in his Tristan. Cf. Gaston Paris, Romania, viii. p. 427.
[87] The Welsh version has the advantage here in noting more fully than Chrestien the beauty of age in Enid's mother: "And he thought that there could be no woman fairer than she must have been in the prime of her youth." Chrestien says merely (at the end of his story, l. 6621):—
Bele est Enide et bele doit
Estre par reison et par droit,
Que bele dame est mout sa mere
Bel chevalier a an son pere.
[88] Ed. Paul Meyer, 1865, and, again, 1901.
[89] Ed. G. Raynaud, Romania, xxi. p. 145.
[90] i.e. Diomede.
[91] In a somewhat similar list of romances, in the Italian poem of L'Intelligenza, ascribed to Dino Compagni (st. 75), Luneta is named Analida; possibly the origin of Chaucer's Anelida, a name which has not been clearly traced.
The End
Printed in Great Britain by R. & R. Clark, Limited, Edinburgh.