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Der Pleier
Der Pleier is the pen name of a 13th-century German poet whose real name is unknown. Three of his works survive, all Middle High German romances on Arthurian legend, Arthurian subjects: ''Garel'', ''Tandareis und Flordibel'', and ''Meleranz''. Little else is known of him, but he was an important figure in the revival of Arthurian literature in Germany in the mid-13th century, after decades of declining interest in the subject. Name and biography Der Pleier was active between around 1240 and 1270. His real name is unknown. The meaning of his pseudonym is also unknown, though it may mean "The Blower," as in Glassblowing, glassblower, and may refer to his tendency to break down old material and reforge it, much as a glassblower melts down old material to shape it into something new. Textual evidence in his work implies he may have been from Austria, perhaps the area around Salzburg. He had a broad knowledge of German Arthurian literature, and most of his work takes plots, scenes, and es ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Middle High German
Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. High German is defined as those varieties of German which were affected by the Second Sound Shift; the Middle Low German and Middle Dutch languages spoken to the North and North West, which did not participate in this sound change, are not part of MHG. While there is no ''standard'' MHG, the prestige of the Hohenstaufen court gave rise in the late 12th century to a supra-regional literary language (') based on Swabian, an Alemannic dialect. This historical interpretation is complicated by the tendency of modern editions of MHG texts to use ''normalised'' spellings based on this variety (usually called "Classical MHG"), which make the written language appear more consistent than it actually is in the manuscripts. Scholars are uncertain as to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wolfram Von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach (; – ) was a German knight, poet and composer, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of medieval German literature. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry. Life Little is known of Wolfram's life. There are no historical documents which mention him, and his works are the sole source of evidence. In ''Parzival'', he talks of ''wir Beier'' ("we Bavarians"); the dialect of his works is East Franconian. This and a number of geographical references have resulted in the present-day Wolframs-Eschenbach, until 1917 Obereschenbach, near Ansbach in present-day Bavaria, being officially designated as his birthplace. However, the evidence is circumstantial and not without problems - there are at least four other places named Eschenbach in Bavaria, and Wolframs-Eschenbach was not part of the Duchy of Bavaria ('' Altbayern'') in Wolfram's time. The arms shown in the Manesse manuscript come from the imagination of a 14th-century artist, drawing on the f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Middle High German Literature
Middle High German literature refers to literature written in German between the middle of the 11th century and the middle of the 14th. In the second half of the 12th century, there was a sudden intensification of activity, leading to a 60-year "golden age" of medieval German literature referred to as the ''mittelhochdeutsche Blütezeit'' (). This was the period of the blossoming of ''Minnesang'', MHG lyric poetry, initially influenced by the French and Provençal tradition of courtly love song. The same sixty years saw the composition of the most important courtly romances. again drawing on French models such as Chrétien de Troyes, many of them relating Arthurian material. The third literary movement of these years was a new revamping of the heroic tradition, in which the ancient Germanic oral tradition can still be discerned, but tamed and Christianized and adapted for the court. Historical overview The vernacular literature of the Old High German period, written in abbeys an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Writers Of Arthurian Literature
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, plays, screenplays, teleplays, songs, and essays as well as other reports and news articles that may be of interest to the general public. Writers' texts are published across a wide range of media. Skilled writers who are able to use language to express ideas well, often contribute significantly to the cultural content of a society. The term "writer" is also used elsewhere in the arts and music, such as songwriter or a screenwriter, but also a stand-alone "writer" typically refers to the creation of written language. Some writers work from an oral tradition. Writers can produce material across a number of genres, fictional or non-fictional. Other writers use multiple media such as graphics or illustration to enhance the communication of thei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Runkelstein Castle
Runkelstein Castle (german: link=no, Schloss Runkelstein; it, Castel Roncolo) is a medieval fortification on a rocky spur in the territory of Ritten, near the city of Bolzano in South Tyrol, Italy. In 1237 Alderich Prince-Bishop of Trent gave the brothers Friedrich and Beral Lords of Wangen permission to construct a castle on the rock then called ''Runchenstayn''. History In 1277 it was damaged during a siege by Meinhard II of Tirol, who after winning the war against Heinrich Prince-Bishop of Trent, entrusted the castle to Gottschalk Knoger of Bozen. In 1385 the Niklaus and Franz Vintler wealthy merchant brothers from Bozen bought the castle. Niklaus was counselor and financier of the Count of Tyrol, Leopold III, Duke of Austria, which allowed them to buy the castle, a type of residence unfitting – in those times – for people of their rank. The brothers Vintler commissioned a vast restructuring of the castle: a new defence wall, moat, a cistern and more rooms were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Titurel
''Titurel'' is a fragmentary Middle High German Romance (heroic literature), romance written by Wolfram von Eschenbach after 1217. The fragments which survive indicate that the story would have served as a prequel to Wolfram's earlier work, ''Parzival'', expanding on the stories of characters from that work and on the theme of the Holy Grail. ''Titurel'' was continued by a later poet named Albrecht, who tied the story together in a work generally known as ''Jüngere Titurel'' ("Younger Titurel"). History Wolfram's ''Parzival'' was an adaptation of the unfinished French romance ''Perceval, the Story of the Grail'', by Chrétien de Troyes. ''Titurel'' provides the back-story, back-stories of Wolfram's characters, principally the wounded Grail-king Titurel and the tragic lovers Sigune and Schionatulander. ''Titurel'' was written some time after 1217, as indicated by its mention of the death of Hermann I, Landgrave of Thuringia, which occurred that year. It survives in three fragments ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parzival
''Parzival'' is a medieval romance (heroic literature), romance by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, centers on the Arthurian hero Percival, Parzival (Percival in English language, English) and his long quest for the Holy Grail following his initial failure to achieve it. ''Parzival'' begins with the knightly adventures of Parzival's father, Gahmuret, his marriage to Herzeloyde ( gmh, herzeleide, "heart's sorrow"), and the birth of Parzival. The story continues as Parzival meets three elegant knights, decides to seek King Arthur, and continues a spiritual and physical search for the Holy Grail, Grail. A long section is devoted to Parzival's friend Gawain, Gawan and his adventures defending himself from a false murder charge and winning the hand of the maiden Orgeluse. Among the most striking elements of the work are its emphasis on the importance of humility, compassion, sympathy and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wirnt Von Grafenberg
Wirnt von Grafenberg was a Middle High German poet of the thirteenth century. Biography Grafenberg was a Bavarian nobleman who between 1202 and 1205 wrote an epic, entitled ''Wigalois'', which describes the adventures of Gawain's son, the name being a corruption of Guinglain le Galois. Wirnt took his material from the French romance ''Le bel inconnu'' of Renaud de Beaujeu, and used it with great freedom. Though extravagant and didactic, the poem is one of the best romances of the Arthurian cycle written in Germany, apart from the work of Wolfram von Eschenbach and Hartmann von Aue Hartmann von Aue, also known as Hartmann von Ouwe, (born ''c.'' 1160–70, died ''c.'' 1210–20) was a German knight and poet. With his works including ''Erec'', ''Iwein'', '' Gregorius'', and ''Der arme Heinrich'', he introduced the Arthuria .... A prose version was made toward the close of the fifteenth century and printed at Augsburg in 1493. ''Wigalois'' was edited by F. Pfeiffer (Leipzig, 1847) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hartmann Von Aue
Hartmann von Aue, also known as Hartmann von Ouwe, (born ''c.'' 1160–70, died ''c.'' 1210–20) was a German knight and poet. With his works including ''Erec'', '' Iwein'', ''Gregorius'', and ''Der arme Heinrich'', he introduced the Arthurian romance into German literature and, with Wolfram von Eschenbach and Gottfried von Strassburg, was one of the three great epic poets of Middle High German literature. Life Hartmann belonged to the lower nobility of Swabia, where he was born. After receiving a monastic education, he became retainer (''Dienstmann'') of a nobleman whose domain, Aue, has been identified with Obernau on the River Neckar. He also took part in the Crusade of 1197. The date of his death is as uncertain as that of his birth; he is mentioned in Gottfried von Strassburg's ''Tristan'' (c. 1210) as still alive, and in the '' Crône'' of Heinrich von dem Türlin, written about 1220, he is mourned for as dead. Works Hartmann produced four narrative poems which are of i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gottfried Von Strassburg
Gottfried von Strassburg (died c. 1210) is the author of the Middle High German courtly romance ', an adaptation of the 12th-century ''Tristan and Iseult'' legend. Gottfried's work is regarded, alongside the ''Nibelungenlied'' and Wolfram von Eschenbach's ''Parzival'', as one of the great narrative masterpieces of the German Middle Ages. He is probably also the composer of a small number of surviving lyrics. His work became a source of inspiration for Richard Wagner's opera ''Tristan und Isolde'' (1865). Life Other than an origin in or close association with Strasbourg, nothing is known of his life. It would seem, however, that he was a man of good birth and position, who filled an important municipal office in his native city of Strasbourg, but since he is always referred to in German as ''Meister'' (master) and not ''Herr'' (sir), it seems safe to assume he was not a knight, a conclusion supported by the rather dismissive attitude toward knightly exploits shown in ''Tristan''. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gawain
Gawain (), also known in many other forms and spellings, is a character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest Welsh sources. He has subsequently appeared in many Arthurian stories in Welsh, Latin, French, English, Scottish, Dutch, German, Spanish, and Italian, notably as the protagonist of the famous Middle English poem ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight''. Other tales featuring Gawain as the central character include '' De Ortu Waluuanii'', ''Diu Crône'', '' Ywain and Gawain'', '' Golagros and Gawane'', '' Sir Gawain and the Carle of Carlisle'', '' L'âtre périlleux'', '' La Mule sans frein'', '' La Vengeance Raguidel'', '' Le Chevalier à l'épée'', '' The Awntyrs off Arthure'', '' The Greene Knight'', and '' The Weddynge of Syr Gawen and Dame Ragnell''. In Arthurian chivalric romance literature, Gawain is usually depicted as King Arthur's clo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthurian Legend
The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. It was one of the three great Western story cycles recalled repeatedly in medieval literature, together with the Matter of France, which concerned the legends of Charlemagne, and the Matter of Rome, which included material derived from or inspired by classical mythology. History The three "Matters" were first described in the 12th century by French poet Jean Bodel, whose epic ' ("Song of the Saxons") contains the line: The name distinguishes and relates the Matter of Britain from the mythological themes taken from classical antiquity, the "Matter of Rome", and the tales of the Paladins of Charlemagne and their wars with the Moors and Saracens, which constituted the " Matter of France". King Arthur is the chief subject of the Matter of Britain, along with stories relate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
