''The Vows of the Heron'' (''Voeux du héron'') c.1346 is a satirical Flemish poem, which purported to explain the causes of the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...
in terms of the goading into action by a Low Country exile of
Edward III of England
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ro ...
.
Background
Robert III of Artois
Robert III of Artois (1287 – between 6 October & 20 November 1342) was Lord of Conches-en-Ouche, of Domfront, and of Mehun-sur-Yèvre, and in 1309 he received as appanage the county of Beaumont-le-Roger in restitution for the County of Artois ...
, in exile in England, was a significant bone of contention between England and France, as well as a persistent agitator of Edward to take action against France.
Theme
''The Vows'' presents Robert as offering Edward a
heron
The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...
at a royal banquet: "I believe I have caught the most cowardly bird...It is my intention to give the heron to the most cowardly one who lives or has ever lived: that is Edward Louis, disinherited of the noble land of France...because of his cowardice". The poem satirizes Robert as the cunning instigator of the war; and presents Edward as his naïve, blustering victim.
While almost certainly a fictional account, modern historians consider that the poem nonetheless reveals a kind of truth about the relations of the two men, and the approach to war.
Ethos
Johan Huizinga
Johan Huizinga (; 7 December 1872 – 1 February 1945) was a Dutch historian and one of the founders of modern cultural history.
Life
Born in Groningen as the son of Dirk Huizinga, a professor of physiology, and Jacoba Tonkens, who died two y ...
emphasised as typically late medieval in the poem, what he called “the spirit of barbarian crudeness that it reveals”, as well as the self-mockery found within its grimness.
One knight, Jean de Beaumont, is presented as claiming that:
“When we are in the tavern, drinking strong wine,/When the ladies pass and look at us….Nature urges us to have desiring hearts/...
ut whenour enemies are approaching us,/Then we should wish to be in a cellar so large”.
See also
Further reading
*J. L. Grigsby ed., ''The Vows of the Heron'' (1992)
References
External links
Vows of the Heron
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vows of the Heron, The
14th-century poems
Satirical works
War poetry
Hundred Years' War literature
Anonymous works