Raimon de Miraval(h) (c. 1135/1160 – c. 1220) was a

troubadour A troubadour (, ; ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female equivalent is usually called a ''trobairitz''. The tr ...

(

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

1180–1220) and, according to his '' vida'', "a poor knight from

Carcassonne Carcassonne is a French defensive wall, fortified city in the Departments of France, department of Aude, Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. It is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the department. ...

who owned less than a quarter of the castle of Miraval."Graham-Leigh, 28. Favoured by

Raymond VI of Toulouse Raymond VI (; 27 October 1156 – 2 August 1222) was Count of Toulouse and Marquis of Provence from 1194 to 1222. He was also Count of Melgueil (as Raymond IV) from 1173 to 1190. Early life Raymond was born at Saint-Gilles, Gard, the son of ...

, he was also later associated with

Peter II of Aragon Peter II the Catholic (; ) (July 1178 – 12 September 1213) was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1196 to 1213. Background Peter was born in Huesca, the son of Alfonso II of Aragon and Sancha of Castile, Queen of Aragon, Sancha ...

and

Alfonso VIII of Castile Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (El Noble) or the one of Las Navas (el de las Navas), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at Alarc ...

. His ''

senhal A ''senhal'' is a codename used to address ladies, patrons and friends in the Old Occitan poetry of the troubadours. Only a minority of persons addressed by ''senhal'' have been identified, the rest being subject to much speculation.Frank M. Chamb ...

'' for Raymond VI was Audiart. Raimon has been identified with a person of the same name who undersigned a charter of 1151, which led some to place his birth date as early as c. 1135, while others reject the identification with the Raimon de Miraval of the charter and estimate his birth date at 1160 based on the height of his career c. 1200. That Raimon owned only a quarter of his family's ancestral castle is an indication either of

partible inheritance Partible inheritance, sometimes also called partitive, is a system of inheritance in which property is apportioned among heirs. It contrasts in particular with primogeniture, which was common in feudal society and requires that the whole or most ...

or clan structure. Miraval was captured by

Simon de Montfort Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester ( – 4 August 1265), also known as Simon V de Montfort, was an English nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the baronial opposition to the rule of ...

during the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade (), also known as the Cathar Crusade (1209–1229), was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, what is now southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted pri ...

. After the

Battle of Muret The Battle of Muret (Occitan: Batalha de Murèth), fought on 12 September 1213 near Muret, 25 km south of Toulouse, was the last major battle of the Albigensian Crusade and one of the most notable pitched battles of the Middle Ages. Althoug ...

in 1213 Raimon probably fled to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, after swearing never to sing again until he had regained his castle. At some point he separated from his wife, Gaudairença (or Caudairenga), herself the author of the (now lost) song ''Coblas e dansas'', for uncourtly behaviour. Now a single man, he pursued, with little amatory success but great poetic inspiration, his muses, first Étiennette de Pennautier, wife of Jourdain de Cabaret, “la loba”, the she-wolf, who eventually settled with the Raymond-Roger, Count of Foix, and then with Azalaïs de Boissézon, another married lady, who used his graphic descriptions of her to lure

into her bed. Of Raimon's works 45 remain, of which 22 have melodies: one of the highest survival rates among troubadours.Topsfield, "Raimon de Miraval and the Art of Courtly Love", 33. Most of these works are of the ''

trobar leu The ''trobar leu'' (), or light style of poetry, was the most popular style used by the troubadours. Its accessibility gave it a wide audienc See also *'' Trobar ric'' *''Trobar clus ''Trobar clus'' (), or closed form, was a complex and obscure ...

'' style. Raimon addressed many works to one named "Pastoret", but the identification of this person has been problematic, though he is usually identified as

Raymond Roger Trencavel Raymond Roger Trencavel (also Raimond, ; 1185 – 10 November 1209) was a member of the noble Trencavel family. He was viscount of Béziers and Albi (and thus a vassal of the count of Toulouse), and viscount of Carcassonne and the Razès (an ...

.Topsfield, 'Les Poésies du troubadour Raimon de Miraval'', 26. Raimon was admired by contemporaries and by most poets of later generations and he is famous for his handling of the subject of

courtly love Courtly love ( ; ) was a medieval European literary conception of love that emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of knights setting out on adventures and performing various deeds or services for ladies b ...

. Raimon represents a move away from the traditional '' cansos'' celebrating the ''jois d'amor'' ("joys of love") or ''amor de lonh'' ("love from afar"), but rather emphasizing courtliness, honor, and reputation.Topsfield, "Raimon de Miraval and the Art of Courtly Love", 35–36. The highest virtue is faithfulness, but this hinges on courtliness (''pretz e valor'').

Notes

References

*Graham-Leigh, Elaine. ''The Southern French Nobility and the Albigensian Crusade''. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 2005. * *Topsfield, L. T
"Raimon de Miraval and the Art of Courtly Love."
''The Modern Language Review'', Vol. 51, No. 1. (Jan., 1956), pp 33–41. *Topsfield, L. T. (ed). ''Les Poésies du troubadour Raimon de Miraval''. Paris: Les Classiques d'Oc IV, 1971.

External links

Cunnan wiki source (GFDL)Raimon de Miravalh: Complete Works
(in Provençal) {{DEFAULTSORT:Raimon De Miraval 12th-century French troubadours 12th-century births 1220s deaths 13th-century French troubadours