Guillaume Tirel, alias
Taillevent (
Old FrenchOld French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from around 900 to 1300...
: "slicewind") (born ca. 1310 in
Pont-AudemerPont-Audemer is a commune and the seat of a canton of the department of Eure in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Sights:The commune was spared substantial damage to its historic buildings during the Battle of Normandy. Nowadays the half-timbered buildings and the canals running...
– 1395) was cook to the Court of
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
at the time of the first Valois kings and the Hundred Years War. His first position was enfent de cuisine
(kitchen boy) to Queen Jeanne d'ÉvreuxJeanne d'Évreux was the third wife of King Charles IV of France, daughter of his uncle Louis d'Évreux and Margaret of Artois. She bore no male heir, thus "causing" the end of the direct line of the Capetian dynasty...
. From 1326 he was queux
, head chef, to Philip VIPhilip VI , known as the Fortunate and of Valois, was the King of France from 1328 to his death. He was also Count of Anjou, Maine, and Valois from 1325 to 1328...
. In 1347, he became squire to the Dauphin de ViennoisThe Counts of Albon were minor French nobles in south-eastern France, in the Rhône Alps region.Under Guigues IV, Count of Albon, who was nicknamed le Dauphin or the Dolphin on his coat of arms, they took a new hereditary title, Dauphin of Viennois , named for the region around Vienne, where they...
and his queux
in 1349. In 1355 he became squire to the Duke of NormandyDuke of Normandy is a title held or claimed by various Norman, English and French rulers from the tenth century until the end of the French monarchy...
, in 1359 his queux
and in 1361 his sergeant-at-arms. The Duke of Normandy became Charles VCharles V , called the Wise, was King of France from 1364 to his death and a member of the House of Valois...
in 1368 and Tirel continued in his service.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Taillevent' Start a new discussion about 'Taillevent' Answer questions from other users |
Guillaume Tirel, alias
Taillevent (
Old FrenchOld French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from around 900 to 1300...
: "slicewind") (born ca. 1310 in
Pont-AudemerPont-Audemer is a commune and the seat of a canton of the department of Eure in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Sights:The commune was spared substantial damage to its historic buildings during the Battle of Normandy. Nowadays the half-timbered buildings and the canals running...
– 1395) was cook to the Court of
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
at the time of the first Valois kings and the Hundred Years War. His first position was enfent de cuisine
(kitchen boy) to Queen Jeanne d'ÉvreuxJeanne d'Évreux was the third wife of King Charles IV of France, daughter of his uncle Louis d'Évreux and Margaret of Artois. She bore no male heir, thus "causing" the end of the direct line of the Capetian dynasty...
. From 1326 he was queux
, head chef, to Philip VIPhilip VI , known as the Fortunate and of Valois, was the King of France from 1328 to his death. He was also Count of Anjou, Maine, and Valois from 1325 to 1328...
. In 1347, he became squire to the Dauphin de ViennoisThe Counts of Albon were minor French nobles in south-eastern France, in the Rhône Alps region.Under Guigues IV, Count of Albon, who was nicknamed le Dauphin or the Dolphin on his coat of arms, they took a new hereditary title, Dauphin of Viennois , named for the region around Vienne, where they...
and his queux
in 1349. In 1355 he became squire to the Duke of NormandyDuke of Normandy is a title held or claimed by various Norman, English and French rulers from the tenth century until the end of the French monarchy...
, in 1359 his queux
and in 1361 his sergeant-at-arms. The Duke of Normandy became Charles VCharles V , called the Wise, was King of France from 1364 to his death and a member of the House of Valois...
in 1368 and Tirel continued in his service. From 1381 he was in service to Charles VICharles VI , called the Well-loved and the Mad , was the King of France from 1380 to 1422, as a member of the House of Valois.-Early life:...
. He died in 1395 at around 80 years of age.
He wrote a famous book on cookery named Le ViandierLe Viandier is a recipe collection largely credited to Guillaume Tirel, alias Taillevent. However, the earliest version of the book has been dated to around 1300, about 10 years before the birth of Tirel...
that was influential on subsequent books on
French cuisineFrench cuisine is a style of cooking derived from the nation of France. It evolved from centuries of social and political change. The Middle Ages brought Guillaume Tirel, better known as Taillevent...
and important to food historians as a detailed source on the
medieval cuisineMedieval cuisine includes the foods, eating habits, and cooking methods of various European cultures during the Middle Ages, a period roughly dating from the 5th to the 16th century...
of northern France. During the reign of Philip VI, Taillevent was a major influence in the rise of imperial favor for the strong red wines being produced in the south of France as well as those coming out of Burgundy.
Today, many restaurants named "Taillevent" capitalize on the reputation of Guillaume Tirel. "Guillaume Tirel" was also the name of a catering business in
BrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium...
(1989–1999).