Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie
Ralph Tortaire, a monk of the abbey of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire was the author of many poems. In particular he composed a set of seven epistles in elegiac couplets, the ninth of which is devoted to a journey to Normandy. In this poem he describes the town of Caen, its c...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
OpenEdition
2017-02-01
|
| Series: | Tabularia |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journals.openedition.org/tabularia/2813 |
| _version_ | 1817995659621433344 |
|---|---|
| author | Pierre Bouet |
| author_facet | Pierre Bouet |
| author_sort | Pierre Bouet |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Ralph Tortaire, a monk of the abbey of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire was the author of many poems. In particular he composed a set of seven epistles in elegiac couplets, the ninth of which is devoted to a journey to Normandy. In this poem he describes the town of Caen, its castle, its port, and its market, but does not mention, the two abbey churches of Saint-Etienne and La Trinité, built by William and Matilda. He witnesses a magnificent procession by the king of England, who appears publicly with some of his menagerie of exotic animals. He gives a detailed account of his journey along the sea coast between Caen and Bayeux, including all the incidents that took place; he was present at a hunt for a whale that impressed him greatly. Of the ton of Bayeux, he mentions only the cathedral, whose internal and external magnificence he describes. His journey ends at an inn where he is served a drink described as “an extract of acidic apples” under the pretence that it is wine. He describes it as being truly poisonous. The poem displays the culture and the learning of a monk who knows the work of the great poets of Antiquity, and who, within his monastery was responsible for teaching writing and the composition of verse. Traditionally dated to the reign of King Henry I (1100-1135), shortly after the cathedral of Bayeux was burnt in 1105, the journey seems to us to have more likely to have taken place earlier. Ralph Tortaire’s visit probably took place when King William Rufus (1087-1100) was present in the duchy in one of the years between 1096 and 1099 when he was in charge of it while his brother Robert Curthose was taking part in the First Crusade. Following this study, we proposed an edition with translation of the passage from the Epistle IX concerning the cities of Caen and Bayeux (circa 137-316). |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-14T02:10:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-504b22a269104081b8b9ff9cb1899818 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1630-7364 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-14T02:10:16Z |
| publishDate | 2017-02-01 |
| publisher | OpenEdition |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Tabularia |
| spelling | doaj.art-504b22a269104081b8b9ff9cb18998182022-12-22T02:18:28ZengOpenEditionTabularia1630-73642017-02-0110.4000/tabularia.2813Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en NormandiePierre BouetRalph Tortaire, a monk of the abbey of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire was the author of many poems. In particular he composed a set of seven epistles in elegiac couplets, the ninth of which is devoted to a journey to Normandy. In this poem he describes the town of Caen, its castle, its port, and its market, but does not mention, the two abbey churches of Saint-Etienne and La Trinité, built by William and Matilda. He witnesses a magnificent procession by the king of England, who appears publicly with some of his menagerie of exotic animals. He gives a detailed account of his journey along the sea coast between Caen and Bayeux, including all the incidents that took place; he was present at a hunt for a whale that impressed him greatly. Of the ton of Bayeux, he mentions only the cathedral, whose internal and external magnificence he describes. His journey ends at an inn where he is served a drink described as “an extract of acidic apples” under the pretence that it is wine. He describes it as being truly poisonous. The poem displays the culture and the learning of a monk who knows the work of the great poets of Antiquity, and who, within his monastery was responsible for teaching writing and the composition of verse. Traditionally dated to the reign of King Henry I (1100-1135), shortly after the cathedral of Bayeux was burnt in 1105, the journey seems to us to have more likely to have taken place earlier. Ralph Tortaire’s visit probably took place when King William Rufus (1087-1100) was present in the duchy in one of the years between 1096 and 1099 when he was in charge of it while his brother Robert Curthose was taking part in the First Crusade. Following this study, we proposed an edition with translation of the passage from the Epistle IX concerning the cities of Caen and Bayeux (circa 137-316).http://journals.openedition.org/tabularia/2813NormandyCaenBayeuxwhalecathedralcrown of light |
| spellingShingle | Pierre Bouet Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie Tabularia Normandy Caen Bayeux whale cathedral crown of light |
| title | Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie |
| title_full | Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie |
| title_fullStr | Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie |
| title_full_unstemmed | Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie |
| title_short | Raoul Tortaire : mon voyage en Normandie |
| title_sort | raoul tortaire mon voyage en normandie |
| topic | Normandy Caen Bayeux whale cathedral crown of light |
| url | http://journals.openedition.org/tabularia/2813 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT pierrebouet raoultortairemonvoyageennormandie |