Geoffrey Gaimar

Geoffrey Gaimar ( fl. 1130s), also written Geffrei or Geoffroy, was an Anglo-Norman chronicler. His contribution to medieval literature and history was as a translator from Old English to Anglo-Norman. His ''L'Estoire des Engleis'', or ''History of the English People'', written about 1136–1140, was a chronicle in eight-syllable rhyming couplets, running to 6,526 lines.

Overview of his work

The ''L'Estoire des Engleis'' opens with a brief mention of King Arthur, whose actions affect the plot of the interpolated tale of Havelok the Dane. That aside, most of the first 3,500 lines are translations out of a variant text of the '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' and subsequent portions from other (Latin and French) sources that remain unidentified.

Gaimar claims to have also written a version of the '' Brut'' story, a translation of Geoffrey of Monmouth's chronicle ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' (c. 1136) into Anglo-Norman verse, which was commissioned by Constance, wife of Ralph FitzGilbert, a Lincolnshire landowner. Constance appears to have been implicated in the writing process. Gaimar's translation, if it existed, antedated Wace's Norman ''Roman de Brut'' (c. 1155), but no copy of Gaimar's ''Brut'' (also known as ''L'Estoire des Bretuns'') has survived, being superseded by the latecomer.Ritson notes: "poet anterior to Wace, etc." Ian Short argues that Gaimar's ''Estoire des Bretuns'' was no more than a short epitome of the pre-Arthurian section of Geoffrey of Monmouth's ''Historia Regum Britanniae'', which might explain why Wace's later, full translation of the text became more popular and ultimately superseded Gaimer's.

Gaimar did not create two separate and distinct chronicles, and the two ''estoires'' were merely the former and latter sections of a long-running history starting from the Argonauts' quest for the Golden Fleece to the reign of William II "Rufus" (died 1100) that Gaimar set out to write. Gaimar's scheme was greatly expanded in scope from the translation work on Geoffrey of Monmouth, the former part, which the patron had requested. Ironically, it was solely the latter part covering the Anglo-Saxon period that was transmitted by later copyists, as a continuation to Wace. The scribe of one such copy, in a late 13th-century manuscript ( B.L. Royal 13 A xx i), dubbed the portion with the title ''Estoire des Engles''. The so-called "lost ''L'Estoire des Bretuns''" (History of the Britons) was an expedient term coined by 19th-century commentators."Lestorie des Bretons" as spelt in:

A version of Havelok the Dane occurs at the beginning of ''L'Estoire des Engles'', which must have originally been interpolated in between the history of the Britons and the history of the English, serving as a bridge. Unlike the Middle English version of the legend, Gaimar's version connects Havelok to King Arthur (making him responsible for destroying the Danish kingdom that Havelok would inherit.)There is also an Anglo-Norman lai version, but that is thought to be later and derived from Gaimar. Additionally there is a mention of a sword, Caliburv. 46, (Excalibur), pointing to Gaimar's knowledge of Galfridian legendary history that predated the advent of Wace's ''Brut''.

See also

* British literature
*Anglo-Norman literature

Explanatory notes

Citations

Bibliography

;Texts and translations
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*. Archived from the origina
Vol. I TextVol. II Translation
on 7 August 2007.
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;Studies
*Bratu, Cristian, "Translatio, autorité et affirmation de soi chez Gaimar, Wace et Benoît de Sainte-Maure." ''The Medieval Chronicle'' 8 (2013), pp. 135–164.
*Harper-Bill, Christopher & van Houts, Elisabeth (eds.), ''A Companion to the Anglo-Norman World'', Boydell, 2007. .
*Legge, Mary D., ''Anglo-Norman Literature and its Background'', Oxford University Press, 1963.
*Short, Ian R., "What was Gaimar's Estoire des Bretuns?", in: ''Cultura Neolatina'' 71, 2011, pp. 143–145.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaimar, Geoffrey
Anglo-Norman literature
12th-century English historians
Norman-language poets
12th-century births
12th-century deaths
English chroniclers
12th-century translators