Medieval Musings
SPOILER ALERT:
some details in this post reveal
plot elements of The Dove of Montségur
Although my first love at university was medieval Italy, hence Dante studies, the dolce stil novo, the Sicilian School, the history of Florence etc., I also took a course in Provençal (today more correctly called Occitan), the language of the population of Southern France, and hence of the troubadours, the poetic ancestors of the sommo poeta (the 'supreme poet') Dante Alighieri. The course was dull and poorly taught, but the subject matter was intriguing, the language of the troubadours rich and exciting, seemingly a blend of Spanish, Italian and French with original elements. And the troubadours were such innovators!
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| Can vei la lauzeta mover 'When I see the lark spread its wings' by Bernart de Ventadorn (circa 1145 - 1200) performed here by Ensemble Alla Francesca |
My first novel, Evin of the Trees, is set within a broad time frame (some time in the Bronze Age) and features extensive travelling. The next story had to be more circumscribed, to deal with one episode in a restricted time and place. What better than a mountaintop fortress during a siege? Research on Southern French history associated with the troubadours brought to light Montségur and the tragedy of the bonshommes, better known as Cathars. It seemed a fitting focal point.
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| It happened here, almost 800 years ago, in what was then the County of Toulouse |
