The Troubadours

Translated from the French by the author. Edited by Lawrence F. Koons. Combining extraordinary learning with grace of style, this volume provides the first comprehensive work in English on the poetic heritage of the medieval troubadours and the particular impact of the troubadour tradition on Italian and English verse. The songs of the troubadours with their intense lyricism "answered the mood of a feudal society newly awakened to a sense of its native uncouthness by contact with the luxury of the Orient." Contents Editor’s Preface vii I. Introduction 3 II. Moorish Origin 24 III. Amour Courtois 80 IV. Conception of Love 102 V. The Albigenses Crusade 129 VI. The Troubadour Tradition in Italy and England 160 Appendix 204 Bibliography 208 Notes 218 Index 291