STATUE OF BLONDELL NEAR DURNSTEIN IN THE WACHAU VALLEY

Blondel de Nesle – either Jean I of Nesle (c. 1155 – 1202) or his son Jean II of Nesle (died 1241) – was a French

trouvère ''Trouvère'' (, ), sometimes spelled ''trouveur'' (, ), is the Northern French ('' langue d'oïl'') form of the '' langue d'oc'' (Occitan) word ''trobador'', the precursor of the modern French word ''troubadour''. ''Trouvère'' refers to poet ...

. The name 'Blondel de Nesle' is attached to twenty-four or twenty-five courtly songs. He was identified in 1942, by Holger Dyggve, as Jean II of

Nesle Nesle () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Nesle is situated at the junction of the D930 and D337 roads, some southwest of Saint-Quentin. The Ingon, a small stream, passes through the commun ...

(near

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

), who was nicknamed 'Blondel' for his long blond hair. He married at the time of his father's death in 1202, and that same year, went on the Fourth Crusade; he later fought in the Albigensian Crusade. However, in 1994, Yvan Lepage suggested that the poet may have been Jean I, father of Jean II, who was Lord of Nesle from 1180 to 1202; this Jean took part in the

Third Crusade The Third Crusade (1189–1192) was an attempt by three European monarchs of Western Christianity (Philip II of France, Richard I of England and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor) to reconquer the Holy Land following the capture of Jerusalem by ...

, which may explain the subsequent legend linking him with

King Richard I of England Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

. If the works are correctly identified and dated, he was a significant influence on his European contemporaries, who made much use of his melodies. The melody of "L'amours dont sui espris" is used in ''

Carmina Burana ''Carmina Burana'' (, Latin for "Songs from Benediktbeuern" 'Buria'' in Latin is a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th century, although some are from the 13th century. The pieces are mostly bawdy, irreverent ...

'', for the song "Procurans Odium."

Legend

By 1260, Blondel's name had become attached to a legend in the highly fictionalised ''Récits d'un Ménestrel de Reims''; this claimed that, after King Richard of England was arrested and held for ransom in 1192, he was found by the

minstrel A minstrel was an entertainer, initially in medieval Europe. It originally described any type of entertainer such as a musician, juggler, acrobat, singer or fool; later, from the sixteenth century, it came to mean a specialist entertainer ...

Blondel, whom he saw from his window, and to whom he sang a verse of a song they both knew. Later versions of the story related that Blondel went from castle to castle, singing a particular song that only he and Richard knew, and that the imprisoned Richard replied with the second verse – thus identifying where he was imprisoned. Then, Blondel either aided the king's escape or reported his position back to his friends. Blondel finally found Richard at

Dürnstein Dürnstein is a small town on the Danube river in the Krems-Land district, in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. It is one of the most-visited tourist destinations in the Wachau region and also a well-known wine growing area. The municipality ...

; in fact, there was no mystery about Richard's location which was widely publicized by his ransomers.The story is similar to the legend attached to the kidnapping and rescue of

Ela Longespée Ela Longespée, Countess of Warwick (died 9 February 1298) was an English noblewoman. She was the daughter of Ela of Salisbury, 3rd Countess of Salisbury and William Longespée, and sister to, among others, Nicholas Longespee, Bishop of Salisbur ...

, heiress to the earldom of Salisbury, in 1196. 'Blondel' is a common surname in Normandy, including on the Channel Islands. It is recorded that King Richard granted a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...

on the island Guernsey to a

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

named Blondel, but it remains uncertain as to whether this has any connection with the legend, or whether the legend has any connection with the known trouvère.

Modern versions

The legend of Blondel did not achieve great popularity in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, but was taken up in the late eighteenth century. It was the basis of

André Ernest Modeste Grétry André — sometimes transliterated as Andre — is the French and Portuguese form of the name Andrew, and is now also used in the English-speaking world. It used in France, Quebec, Canada and other French-speaking countries. It is a variat ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

'' Richard Coeur-de-lion'' (1784). In 1822, Eleanor Anne Porden used the legend in her epic poem ''Cœur De Lion'': in her version, Blondel is really Richard's wife,

Berengaria of Navarre Berengaria of Navarre ( eu, Berengela, es, Berenguela, french: Bérengère; 1165–1170 – 23 December 1230) was Queen of England as the wife of Richard I of England. She was the eldest daughter of Sancho VI of Navarre and Sancha of Ca ...

, in disguise. A poem by Johann Gabriel Seidl titled Blondel's Lied was set to music by Robert Schumann. Throughout the nineteenth century, the legend became a key component in the mythology surrounding Richard. Some later twentieth century novelists, placed a homosexual interpretation on his supposed relationship with the king.

Norah Lofts Norah Lofts, ''née'' Norah Ethel Robinson, (27 August 190410 September 1983) was a 20th-century British writer. She also wrote under the pen names Peter Curtis and Juliet Astley. She wrote more than fifty books specialising in historical fi ...

in ''The Lute Player'' (1951) has Richard make a (rather gentlemanly) approach to Blondel, which is refused, Blondel's heart and devotion being entirely given to Richard's neglected wife Berengaria. In the 1962–63 ITV British television series ''

Richard the Lionheart Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

'', Blondel was a semi-regular character, played by Iain Gregory. The legend inspired '' Blondel'', a 1983 musical by Stephen Oliver and

Tim Rice Sir Timothy Miles Bindon Rice (born 10 November 1944) is an English lyricist and author. He is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, with whom he wrote, among other shows, ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', ...

. The play, a comedic

rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...

, is set during the period of the

. Blondel is portrayed as a frustrated artist, seeking fame as a composer and performer, even as he searches for his imprisoned monarch. Rice collaborated with director

Patrick Wilde Patrick Wilde is an English playwright, screenwriter, actor, and director for television, film and theatre. Early work Most of Wilde's early work was centred on the classics. He played Hamlet, Mark Antony for ATC and Amnon in Tirso de Molina's ...

to revive the show at the Pleasance Theatre in London in 2006.

References in popular culture

*Blondel features as one of the main characters in the novel ''

Overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...

'' by English author

Tom Holt Thomas Charles Louis Holt (born 13 September 1961) is a British novelist. In addition to fiction published under his own name, he writes fantasy under the pseudonym K. J. Parker. Biography Holt was born in London, the son of novelist Hazel H ...

. *Blondel is also the protagonist of the novel
A Search for the King
' by

Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and e ...

. * In

John Jakes John William Jakes (born March 31, 1932) is an American writer, best known for American historical and speculative fiction. His Civil War trilogy, ''North and South'', has sold millions of copies worldwide. He is also the author of The Kent Fam ...

' 1977 novel " King's Crusader", Blondel is on a quest to find his friend and master, Richard the Lion-Hearted. Set in the time of the Third Crusade. * The ''Outlaw'' series by

Angus Donald Angus Donald (born 1965 in China) is a British writer of historical fiction. As of 2020, he has released ten novels and three novellas that loosely follow the story of Alan-a-Dale. Biography Donald's parents being British diplomats, much of h ...

identifies Blondel with

Alan-a-Dale Alan-a-Dale (first recorded as Allen a Dale; variously spelled ''Allen-a-Dale'', ''Allan-a-Dale'', ''Allin-a-Dale'', ''Allan A'Dayle'' etc.) is a figure in the Robin Hood legend. According to the stories, he was a wandering minstrel who became a ...

, follower of

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

. * Blondel is the main character of the musical of the same name. *The English acoustic band of the early 1970s, Amazing Blondel, was named after Blondel. * A stylized version of Blondel, appears in the 1995 BBC documentary series

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were ...

Notes

Sources

* Paris, Louis (ed.), ''La Chronique De Rains'' (''Récits d'un ménestrel de Reims''), 1837, available a
Gallica
* Boyle, David, ''Blondel's Song'', 2005, (an attempt to prove the legend) * Dyggve, Holger Petersen, ''Trouvères Et Protecteurs Des Trouvères Dans Les Cours Seigneuriales De France'', 1942. * Gillingham, John, ''Richard Coeur De Lion: Kingship, Chivalry And War In The Twelfth Century'', 1994, * Lepage, Yvan G., ''Blondel De Nesle. L'Œuvre Lyrique'', 1994. * Nelson, Janet L. (ed.) ''Richard Coeur De Lion An History And Myth'', 1992, * Rosenberg, Samuel N. & Tischler, Hans (ed.), ''Chanter M’Estuet: Songs Of The Trouvères'', 1981,

Bibliography

* In 1862 Prosper Tarbé published an edition including 34 songs attributed to Blondel. * ''Récits d’un Ménestrel de Reims''. Edition Natalis de Wailly. Paris 1876

External links

* * In her poem ,

Felicia Hemans Felicia Dorothea Hemans (25 September 1793 – 16 May 1835) was an English poet (who identified as Welsh by adoption). Two of her opening lines, "The boy stood on the burning deck" and "The stately homes of England", have acquired classic statu ...

relates how Richard I. was discovered in captivity by Blondel. {{Authority control French poets Trouvères 1150s births 1202 deaths 1241 deaths French male poets Male classical composers Christians of the Third Crusade