Raimbaut of Orange (c. 1147 – 1173) or, in his native

Old Provençal Old Occitan ( oc, occitan ancian, label= Modern Occitan, ca, occità antic), also called Old Provençal, was the earliest form of the Occitano-Romance languages, as attested in writings dating from the eighth through the fourteenth centuries. Old ...

, Raimbaut d'Aurenga, was the lord of

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower * Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum ...

and

Aumelas Aumelas (; Languedocien: ''Aumelaç'') is a commune in the Hérault department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Hérault department The following is a list of the 342 communes of the Hérault department of Fra ...

. His properties included the towns of

Frontignan Frontignan (; ) is a commune in the Hérault department in southern France. Frontignan is renowned for its AOC wine, the Muscat de Frontignan, a sweet wine made solely from the Muscat grape variety. Geography Frontignan is located in the ...

and

Mireval Mireval (; oc, Miravau) is a commune in the Hérault department in Occitanie in southern France. Vic-Mireval station has rail connections to Narbonne, Montpellier and Avignon. It is famous for its muscat wine, the ''Muscat de Mireval'', abo ...

. He was the only son of

William of Aumelas William of Aumelas (or Omelas) was the second son of William V of Montpellier and of Ermessende, daughter of count Peter of Melgueil. The lordship of Aumelas (the Aumeladez) was detached from the territories of Montpellier to create a property for ...

and of Tiburge, Countess of Orange, daughter of Raimbaut, count of Orange. After the early death of Raimbaut's father, his guardians were his uncle

William VII of Montpellier William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conq ...

and his elder sister Tibors. He was a major

troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) 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 troubadour is usually called a '' trobai ...

, having contributed to the creation of ''trobar ric'', or articulate style, in troubadour poetry. Abou
forty of his works
survive, displaying a gusto for rare rhymes and intricate poetic form. His death in 1173 is mourned in a ''planh'' (lament) by

Giraut de Bornelh Giraut de Bornelh (; c. 1138 – 1215), whose first name is also spelled Guiraut and whose toponym is de Borneil or de Borneyll, was a troubadour connected to the castle of the viscount of Limoges. He is credited with the formalisation, if not the ...

, and also in the only surviving poem of the

trobairitz The ''trobairitz'' () were Occitan female troubadours of the 12th and 13th centuries, active from around 1170 to approximately 1260. ''Trobairitz'' is both singular and plural. The word ''trobairitz'' is first attested in the 13th-century r ...

Azalais de Porcairagues Azalais de Porcairagues (also ''Azalaïs'') or Alasais de Porcaragues was a trobairitz (woman troubadour), composing in Occitan in the late 12th century. The sole source for her life is her '' vida'', which tells us that she came from the country ...

, who was the lover of Raimbaut's cousin

Gui Guerrejat Gui Guerrejat ("the warrior") was the fifth son of William VI of Montpellier. When still a boy, in 1146, he inherited the castles of Paulhan and le Pouget from his father. After the death of his brother William VII, around 1172, Gui served joi ...

. It seems possible that Azalais's poem was composed in an earlier form while Raimbaut was still alive, because in his poem ''A mon vers dirai chanso'' he appears to contribute to the poetical debate begun by

Guilhem de Saint-Leidier Guilhem de Saint-Leidier, also spelled Guilhem de Saint Deslier, Guillem de Saint Deidier and Guilhèm de Sant Leidier was a troubadour of the 12th century, composing in Occitan. He was lord of Saint Didier-en-Velay, was born at some date before ...

and taken up by Azalais as to whether a lady is dishonoured by taking a lover who is richer than herself. Aimo Sakari argues that Azalais is the mysterious ''joglar'' ("jongleur") addressed in several poems by Raimbaut.

Bibliography

*Pattison, Walter T. ''The Life and Works of the Troubadour Raimbaut d'Orange''. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1952. LCCN 52-5321. *Sakari, A. "Azalais de Porcairagues, le 'Joglar' de Raimbaut d'Orange" in ''Neuphilologische Mitteilungen'', vol. 50 (1949) pp. 23–43, 56-87, 174-198.

External links

Complete works in Provençal and their English translation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raimbaut of Orange 1140s births 1173 deaths People from Orange, Vaucluse 12th-century troubadours