Gui d'Ussel, d'Ussèl, or d'Uisel (

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 ...

1195–1209Aubrey, 16.) 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 ...

from the

Limousin Limousin (; ) is a former administrative region of southwest-central France. Named after the old province of Limousin, the administrative region was founded in 1960. It comprised three departments: Corrèze, Creuse, and Haute-Vienne. On 1 Jan ...

. Twenty of his poems survive: eight ''

cansos The ''canso'' or ''canson'' or ''canzo'' () was a song style used by the troubadours. It was, by far, the most common genre used, especially by early troubadours, and only in the second half of the 13th century was its dominance challenged by a ...

'', two ''

pastorela The ''pastorela'' (, "little/young shepherdess") was an Occitan lyric genre used by the troubadours. It gave rise to the Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the l ...

s'', two ''

coblas A ''cobla esparsa'' ( literally meaning "scattered stanza") in Old Occitan is the name used for a single-stanza poem in troubadour poetry. They constitute about 15% of the troubadour output, and they are the dominant form among late (after 1220) a ...

'', and eight ''

tenso A ''tenso'' (; ) is a style of troubadour song. It takes the form of a debate in which each voice defends a position; common topics relate to love or ethics. Usually, the tenso is written by two different poets, but several examples exist in whic ...

s'', several with his relatives and including a ''

partimen The ''partimen'' (; ; also known as ''partia'' or ''joc partit'') is a cognate form of the French jeu-parti (plural ''jeux-partis''). It is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry composed between two troubadours, a subgenre of the ''tenso'' or ''cobla'' ...

'' with

Maria de Ventadorn Maria de Ventadorn (or Ventedorn) () was a patron of troubadour poetry at the end of the 12th century. Maria was one of ''las tres de Torena'', "the three of Turenne", the three daughters of viscount Raymond II of Turenne and of Elise de Séverac ...

. Four of his ''cansos'' melodies remain. According to his '' vida'', Gui was the youngest of three sons of a wealthy noble family of the castle Ussel-sur-Sarzonne, northeast of

Ventadorn Moustier-Ventadour (; ) is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. Geography The Luzège forms most of the commune's eastern boundary. Population Personalities *Bernart de Ventadorn, medieval troubadour See also * Chât ...

. He and his brothers Ebles and Peire, as well as his cousin

Elias Elias ( ; ) is the hellenized version for the name of Elijah (; ; , or ), a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC, mentioned in several holy books. Due to Elias' role in the scriptures and to many later associated tradit ...

, are all reputed troubadours and

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

s of Ussel according to the author of the ''vida'', who makes Gui himself a

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

of Montferrand and

Brioude Brioude (; Auvergnat: ''Briude'') is a commune in the Haute-Loire department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-central France. It lies on the banks of the river Allier, a tributary of the Loire. History At Brioude, the ancient ''Bri ...

in the

diocese of Clermont The Archdiocese of Clermont (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Claromontana''; French language, French: ''Archidiocèse de Clermont'') is a Latin Church, Latin archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The diocese comprises the Departments of Fr ...

.Egan, 44. Among his relatives Gui was known for his ''cansos''. The only confirmation of Gui's family from outside his ''vida'' is a reference to the brothers Guido and Eblo Usseli donating land to the abbey of Bonaigue. Gui's biographer believed him to have been in love with Malgarita, wife of Rainaut VI, viscount of Aubusson. He supposedly later fell in love with Guillemette de Comborn, wife of

Dalfi d'Alvernha Dalfi d'Alvernha () was the Count of Clermont and Montferrand, a troubadour and a patron of troubadours. He was born around 1150 and died in 1234 or 1235. He is sometimes called Robert IV, but there is no solid evidence for the name Robert, and ...

, and composed many songs about her. Gui spent almost his entire life in the Limousin and

Auvergne Auvergne (; ; or ) is a cultural region in central France. As of 2016 Auvergne is no longer an administrative division of France. It is generally regarded as conterminous with the land area of the historical Province of Auvergne, which was dis ...

, rarely travelling abroad.Aubrey, 222. Gui addresses several of his songs to Maria de Ventadorn (including the ''partimen'') and makes reference to

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 ...

in one which survives with a melody. The reference to Peter's queen in the song's ''

razo A ''razo'' (, literally "cause", "reason") was a short piece of Old Occitan, Occitan prose detailing the circumstances of a troubadour composition. A ''razo'' normally introduced an individual poem, acting as a prose preface and explanation; it mi ...

'' puts the date of its composition in 1204 or later, after Peter's marriage to

Marie of Montpellier Marie of Montpellier (adapted from Occitan language, Occitan: Maria de Montpelhièr) (1182 – 21 April 1213) was Lady of Montpellier and by her three marriages Viscountess of Marseille, Countess of Comminges and Queen of Aragon. She was the ...

. His ''vida'' records how Gui obeyed a papal injunction from

Pierre de Castelnau Pierre de Castelnau (? - died 15 January 1208), French ecclesiastic, made papal legate in 1199 to address the Cathar heresy, he was subsequently murdered in 1208. Following his death Pope Innocent III beatified him by papal order, excommunicated ...

to cease composing in 1209 and the fact that none of his poems can be reliably assigned later than that date and none mention 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 ...

, it is probable that Gui did indeed obey papal orders and cease writing. Gui's poetry to some measure imitates that of his contemporary

Cadenet Cadenet () is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Geography Cadenet is a village located on the southern slopes of the Luberon Massif, overlooking the valley of the Durance. It ...

, whom he mentions in one piece. His melodies have something in common with those of

Gaucelm Faidit Gaucelm Faidit ( literally "Gaucelm the Dispossessed" c. 1156 – c. 1209) was a troubadour, born in Uzerche, in the Limousin (province), Limousin, from a family of knights in service of the count of Turenne. He travelled widely in France, Sp ...

, whom he may have met in Ventadorn. His melodies all stay within a minor tenth interval and use numerous thirds and triads, but never repeating phrases in the AAB form. His music is characterised by motivic variety and he has been praised for his "subtle and creative compositional faculty".Aubrey, 224. The later troubadour

Daude de Pradas Daude, Deude, Daurde, or Daudé de Pradas (floruit, fl. 1214–1282)Gaunt and Kay, 282.Aubrey, 24. was a troubadour from Prades-Salars in the Rouergue not far from Rodez. He lived to an old age and left behind seventeen to nineteen ''Canso (son ...

referred to Gui in a ''tenso'' and his melody has given some indication that it may have been influenced by those of Gui.Aubrey, 232. Gui's works were reproduced in the anthology of Ferrarino Trogni da Ferrara.

External links

Complete original works

Notes

Sources

*Aubrey, Elizabeth. ''The Music of the Troubadours''. Indiana University Press, 1996. . *Egan, Margarita, ed. and trans. ''The Vidas of the Troubadours''. New York: Garland, 1984. . *Gaunt, Simon, and Kay, Sarah, edd. ''The Troubadours: An Introduction''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. . *Perrin, Robert H. "Descant and Troubadour Melodies: A Problem in Terms." ''Journal of the American Musicological Society'', 16:3, (Autumn, 1963), pp. 313–324. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gui Dussel 13th-century French troubadours People of the Albigensian Crusade 12th-century French Roman Catholic priests 13th-century French Roman Catholic priests 12th-century births 13th-century deaths French male poets Male composers