VI. ancestors. It favors our idea of the intellectual con- CHAP nexion between the bardic mind of Wales and Breton, and these heroic romances, that both of these extolled TURPIN'S warriors, Garin and Aymon, were Norman chieftains, who fought and conquered in the marches of Wales.36 But to enlarge upon the romances of the peers of Charlemagne, would occasion too wide a digression from the direct course of the present History. Emulating spirits emerged in abundance during the thirteenth century to compose them," and were as fertile in fancy and feeling, and far more picturesque, and often more natural, than the founders of the new school that superseded them, Scudery and Lacalpremade, exhibited themselves to be in these endless volumes of sentimental lore and falsified history, which delighted the world four hundred years afterwards. New fashions of fiction, and new genius to narrate them, have since arisen, blazed and disappeared. But it is pleasing to observe, that some of the best, and even the oldest, aim to uphold the morals, 36 Guarinus was made the vice-comes of Shropshire, in the time of the Conqueror. 2 Hoare Giral. 177; and on the actions of himself and his family, see ib. 195. and Lel. Coll. 1. p. 231. Fitzhamon was the Norman chief and kinsman of William I. who conquered Glamorgan, and parcelled out various lordships and manors to each of the twelve knights who had accompanied him, reserving to himself the castle of Cardiff. Hoare, ib. 1. p. 126. Leland calls him, Haymo, erle of Glocester. Itin. V. 4. p. 54. He was earl of Astremeville in Normandy, and was buried 1102, in the abbey of Tewkesbury, which he had founded. Hoare, ib. 131. His eldest daughter married the earl of Gloucester, who fought against Stephen, and so greatly patronized Anglo-Noman literature. Adans, or Adenez, the poet of the duke of Brabant, who died in 1260, went into France, and wrote his Cleomades and Enfances, Ogier le Danois, Aymerì de Narbonne, and Berthe et Repin, which are still in MS. in the Royal Library at Paris. Hacon de Villeneuve, after 1200, was the author of Regnauld de Montauban, and Garnier de Nanteuil. To him are ascribed the Quatre fils d'Aimon, Maugis d'Aigremont, and Beuves. Roquef. 139, 140. But Warton's Dissertation, and his History of Poetry, and his last editor's notes, deserve our perusal and thanks on these subjects. HISTORYOF MAGNE. BOOK and to improve the manners and character of their VI. LITERARY Romances on Alexander. contemporaries. How early this noble spirit actuated the ancient romance writers, we may infer from this admirable passage in the beginning of the ancient French Turpin, which the author gives as his reason for composing his work; "Good examples teach how men should behave towards God, and how they should act honorably in this age; FOR TO LIVE WITHOUT HONOR The story of Alexander about the same time began to interest the poetical and lettered clergy, who were the prolific authors of these ancient romances. Some wrote on it impressively in Latin,39 and others in Romanz or ancient French.40 But as this has no particular connexion with Anglo-Norman poetry, it is unnecessary to pursue this branch of the inquiry." 38 Les bons ensamples enseignent cument home se deit aver ou Dieu; et se cuntenir oneurablement en siecle. Car vivre sans honeur, est morir. Harl. MS. N° 273. 39 Gualter de Castellione wrote the Alexandreis, a poem in ten books, each beginning with a letter of the name of Guillermus, to whom he addressed it, and who was archbishop of Rheims between 1176 and 1201. It was in such request in 1280, that the reading of the classical poets was neglected for it. Fabricius Bib. Med. Lat. 7. p. 328; and see Warton's Hist. V. 1. p. 132. 40 See these mentioned by Fauchet des Poet. Franc.-One of the authors, Lambert li Cors, calls himself un clers de Chasteaudun, p. 83; he, and Alexandre de Paris, are stated to have produced the roman on Alexander in 1184. Roquef. p. 158. On this subject Mr. Weber's Metrical Romances may be consulted. His first volume contains the English romance of Kyng Alisaunder. His introduction and notes deserve perusal; and his undertaking, applause and countenance. The prose romance of Alexander is one of the ancient romances, with beautiful ancient drawings, coloured gilt in the MSS. Bib. Reg. 15. E 6. Of the roman de Florimon, one of those connected with Alexander, and written by Aymon de Chatillon, the MS. in the Harleian Library, No 3983, will, when inspected by any one, be seen to be the same MS. which M. Galland inspected at Paris, in the library of M. Foucault, and which he describes as un peu effacé, 3 Mem. Ac. Ins. p. 479. He mentions the date of the composition as 1180 in another copy. I think this the true date. The Harleian MS. has 1124 in figures: this was probably the transcriber's mistaking quatre vingt for 24, when he transferred it into figures. 42 VI. HISTORYOF CHARLE Nor have we any necessity of noticing in detail the CHAP. other Trouveurs, or composers of romans, who flourished in the end of the twelfth century. It is suffi- TURPIN'S cient to remark, that the earliest romans we have, were written between the end of the reign of our MAGNE. Henry I. and the accession of our John; and that some of them were either composed by AngloNormans, or by authors who visited the court of the Anglo-Norman sovereigns. The taste for fictitious narrations, which began in the twelfth century, continued thro the next, and was cherished by Henry II. and his short-reigning son, who was called Henry III. and afterwards by his grandson, the historical Henry III. But they soon became distinguished from real history, and were pursued as a distinct species of composition. 42 As Chretien de Troyes, Raoul de Beauvais, &c. On this subject, Mr. Warton's History, v. 1. p. 114-150, last ed. should be read, and his valuable researches there and elsewhere fairly appreciated. The roman of Guy of Warwick is in French prose, in the Bib. Reg. 15. E 6. and in rhymed French verse, 8. F 9. Hearne has printed the account of Guy of Warwick, as told by Girard Cornubiensis, at the end of his Chronicon of Dunstaple. The story is also in Knyghton, 2324; and see Warton's Hist. 1. p. 146. 43 Thus Chardre declares, that in the life of his Saint he will not trover in fables, and alludes to some romans as such— Ne voil pas en fables trover― Ne ja sachez ne parlerum Ne de Renard ne de Hersente Ne voil pas mettre mentente.-MS. Calig, A 9. So Denis Piramus says of the Parthenope— Si dist il bien de cele matiere Cum de fable e de menceonge On the same ground he remarks of Marie's Lays Ke ne sunt pas de tut verais.-MS. Doin. A 11. BOOK LITERARY HISTORYOF ENGLAND. APPENDIX. On the Author of Turpin's History of Charlemagne. THE various opinions that have been entertained on this point of antiquarian and bibliographical research have been already noticed; but it has always remained so much in doubt, that Schmink, in his valuable edition of Eginhart, after all his pains to discover who was the fabulous competitor of this true historian of Charlemagne, could only express his own conviction, that it was written when the crusades had been instituted, and then leave the subject for others to draw it out of what he calls, its impenetrable obscurity. p. 8. The conclusion to which my own inquiries have led me, I have found mentioned but by one preceding author, Oudin, whose opinion has been noticed only to be discredited. I was not aware that he had entertained it, when the combination of the evidence that I found, impelled my own mind to it. But I think it is the just one; and to induce others to consider if it be not so, I will state the train of thought as it has occurred, which has inclined me to believe that this work owes its origin to pope Calixtus II. and was published and authenticated by him, and was written by him, or under his directions, to promote views that he believed to be important and beneficial to society, tho he chose to follow the bad taste of the age in advancing them by a supposititious work. Searching to ascertain whether the Turpin or Jeffry's British History was the most ancient, I saw that Mons. Roquefort had, like Ginguené, adopted Warton's assertion, that pope Calixtus had, in 1122, declared the book to be genuine; and as I was at first inclined to doubt if Turpin's book was written so early, I was desirous to look into the authorities on which Warton had grounded his fact. He quoted for it the Magnum Chronicon Belgicum, with a direction to compare Long's Bibliotheque and Lambecius. I did so, and found no mention of the circumstance in the two latter; but that the Belgic Chronicle thus states it, as I have cited in the preceding note (28),- Idem Calixtus Papa fecit libellum de miraculis S. Jacobi et statuit historiam Sancti Caroli descriptam a beato Turpino Remensi archiepiscopo esse authenticam. Hæc ex CHAP. Chronicis.' Rer. Germ. Pist. p. 150. VI. TURPIN'S HISTORY OF CHARLE This old chronicle thus asserts the fact, and refers to other preceding chronicles upon it: these earlier chronicles I have not been able to trace. I find the Speculum Historiale of Vincentius Bellovacensis referred to by others, as also ascribing it to Calixtus. MAGNE. He wrote about 1248. I have examined the ponderous folio MS. of his first seventeen books, but these do not mention it, and the British Museum does not contain his latter ones, in which must be what he has said about Pope Calixtus and Turpin. The earliest chronicle after the Belgic one that alludes to this work is that of Werner Rolvinck. This author, in his Fasciculus Temporum, written about 1490, has this passage on Calixtus; Fecit libellum de miraculis Sancti Jacobi. Statuit etiam historiam Caroli descriptam a beato Turpino.' p. 75. Schmink says that Siffredus Misnensis and Gobelinus Persona, have followed the Magnum Chronicon. p. 81. These authorities were sufficient to indispose me from hastily discrediting the asserted fact, that Calixtus had sanctioned the work; but made me curious to discover why he should meddle with it. I read over Turpin's History of Charlemagne again. It was clearly no part of his general and authentic history, nor of any other known tradition; but it was an account of his pretended exploits in Spain, added to all that before had been truly narrated or popularly circulated about him. Its greatest object appeared manifestly to be, to exalt the fame of St. James of Spain, and to recommend devotions to him there, not generally as an apostle, but specially to his asserted relics and Church at Compostella in Gallicia. I remembered how fashionable a thing it became in England to make pilgrimages to him there during the middle ages, as I have already noticed (vol. 4. p. 10.) and I became more interested in the inquiry. him Turpin's book begins with the appearance of St. James in a dream to Charlemagne, to inform him that the saint's body lay buried in Gallicia, in the power of the Saracens, and to urge to deliver that province from their sway. The emperor obeys : and in the next chapter St. James, by miraculous aid, gives him Pampeluna and Gallicia. He builds churches to the saint, from gratitude and devotion; and a long chapter is employed in describing his visit to the city of Saint James in Spain. It is obvious that the subjection of the mussulmen in Spain, and the recom |