Bertran de Born lo Filhs
Encyclopedia
Bertran de Born called lo Filhs ("the Son"), was a Limousin
knight
and troubadour
. He wrote two sirventes
and has three other works attributed to him. He participated in the wars of John Lackland
in France.
He was a son of the famous troubadour Bertran de Born
and his first wife, Raimonda, born shortly after their marriage in 1179. His full brother was Itier and his half brothers were Bertran and Constantin, sons of his father's second marriage, to Felipa, in 1192. Since the younger Bertran would have only been fourteen at the time of the troubadour's activity, the filhs of the chansonnier
s must be the eldest son. Bertran and his brother Itier were dubbed
sometime before 1192.
The sirventes "Quan voi lo temps renovelar", written in 1206 in the style of his father, is attributed to "Bertran de Born" in the chansonniers, but since the elder Bertran had retired to the monastery of Dalon
in 1197, this reference must be to his son. The sirventes is preceded by a long razo
explaining the misfortunes of John Lackland and his evil, which is the subject of the poet's vitriol. An interesting cultural cross-reference occurs in the work when Bertran mentions the chanson de geste
called the Siège d'Orange.
Bertran's second sirventes, "Un sirventes voil obrar d'alegratge", was a personal love poem to his lady, Flor de Lis (unknown by name). The other three works sometimes attributed to Bertran, but not definitively, are:
There is also a medieval attribution that is certainly in error:
Limousin (province)
Limousin is one of the traditional provinces of France around the city of Limoges. Limousin lies in the foothills of the western edge of the Massif Central, with cold weather in the winter...
knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
and troubadour
Troubadour
A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
. He wrote two sirventes
Sirventes
The sirventes or serventes is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry used by the troubadours. In early Catalan it became a sirventesch and was imported into that language in the fourteenth century, where it developed into a unique didactic/moralistic type...
and has three other works attributed to him. He participated in the wars of John Lackland
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
in France.
He was a son of the famous troubadour Bertran de Born
Bertran de Born
Bertran de Born was a baron from the Limousin in France, and one of the major Occitan troubadours of the twelfth century.-Life and works:...
and his first wife, Raimonda, born shortly after their marriage in 1179. His full brother was Itier and his half brothers were Bertran and Constantin, sons of his father's second marriage, to Felipa, in 1192. Since the younger Bertran would have only been fourteen at the time of the troubadour's activity, the filhs of the chansonnier
Chansonnier
A chansonnier is a manuscript or printed book which contains a collection of chansons, or polyphonic and monophonic settings of songs, hence literally "song-books," although some manuscripts are so called even though they preserve the text but not the music A chansonnier is a manuscript or...
s must be the eldest son. Bertran and his brother Itier were dubbed
Accolade
In the Middle Ages, the accolade was the central act in the rite-of-passage ceremonies conferring knighthood.-Ceremony:...
sometime before 1192.
The sirventes "Quan voi lo temps renovelar", written in 1206 in the style of his father, is attributed to "Bertran de Born" in the chansonniers, but since the elder Bertran had retired to the monastery of Dalon
Dalon
The Dalon is a river in the Limousin and the Aquitaine regions of France. It is a left tributary of the Auvézère river....
in 1197, this reference must be to his son. The sirventes is preceded by a long razo
Razo
Raso is an islet of 8 square kilometers in the Barlavento archipelago of Cape Verde. Raso is flanked by the smaller Branco islet on the west and by São Nicolau island on its eastern side. Raso is uninhabited and is now the only home of the Raso Lark. The Brown Booby and Red-billed Tropicbird visit...
explaining the misfortunes of John Lackland and his evil, which is the subject of the poet's vitriol. An interesting cultural cross-reference occurs in the work when Bertran mentions the chanson de geste
Chanson de geste
The chansons de geste, Old French for "songs of heroic deeds", are the epic poems that appear at the dawn of French literature. The earliest known examples date from the late eleventh and early twelfth centuries, nearly a hundred years before the emergence of the lyric poetry of the trouvères and...
called the Siège d'Orange.
Bertran's second sirventes, "Un sirventes voil obrar d'alegratge", was a personal love poem to his lady, Flor de Lis (unknown by name). The other three works sometimes attributed to Bertran, but not definitively, are:
- "Gen part nostre reis liuranda"
- "Guerr'e pantais vei et afan"
- "Un sirventes farai novel plazen"
There is also a medieval attribution that is certainly in error:
- "A tornar m'er enquer al primer us" (actually by Guilhem Rainol d'AtGuilhem Rainol d'AtGuilhem Rainol d'At was a minor Provençal troubadour from Apt in the Vaucluse.Guilhem Rainol was probably the Guilelmus Ranoli who witnessed a document of Alfonso II of Provence in 1209...
)