CHA P. III. History of the Anglo-Norman Jongleurs and Minstrels. NORMAN JONGLEURS IN tracing the history of the vernacular poetry of ANGLOEngland, it will be useful first to consider the earliest state of those men who began the cultivation of this AND MINdelightful art. In civilized ages, the poet, the musician, the singer and the actor, are distinct characters; in the ruder periods of nations, they have been usually united. The aoidoi and rapsodoi of ancient Greece, the bards of Wales, the harpers and gleemen of the Saxons, the northern scalds, and the citharœdi of the Romans, were itinerant performers, who combined the arts of poetry, music, singing and gesticulation.' After the Norman conquest, the same class of men, with the same union of talents and performances, were frequent in England and Normandy, and long continued to be popular, under various denominations. It is probable, that as their numbers multiplied with the increasing population which favored them, some division of these variously-qualified individuals into distinct classes gradually took place. The composer would be more rare than the performer, and the musician would become separated from the poet. 1 Cassiodorus mentions a citharœdus, learned in his art, who could delight with his face and hands as well as by his voice.' Var. 1. 2. ep. 41. p. 64. Their Latin names are various-most commonly, histriones, joculatores, scurræ, mimi. But John of Salisbury adds, saliares, balatrones, æmiliani, gladiatores, palestritæ, gignadii, præstigiatores, malefici. De nugis Curial. 1. 1. c. 8. STRELS. HISTORYOF BOOK These distinctions would be greater when part of VI. their fraternities chose to exhibit as jesters and merryLITERARY andrews. In time, every means of popular exciteENGLAND. ment that could obtain gifts or good cheer, and could be, in any way, connected with minstrelsy, was, to its great abuse and degradation, successively connected with it, till the profession became disreputable by its mercenary immoralities. In one of our earliest Anglo-Norman poems, we find them spoken of as chantur, fableier, jangleres, and menistre; and their art is called janglerie.' This author, tho a rhymer himself, yet being an ecclesiastic, he calls his itinerant brethren "the antichrist, perverting the age by their merry jangles." He accuses them of getting the love of princes, and making them and prelates go astray. He even classes these jangleors with liars, and declares that they will never acquire honor, and that they wilfully sport with moral obligations and good sense.' 6 Sanson de Nanteuil, in his Rhymes on the Proverbs of Solomon, in the British Museum, Harl. No 4388, censures those who III. NORMAN STRELS. Another rhyming moralist, who has left us one of CHAP.. our ancient Anglo-Norman poems, contemplates them with an eye as intolerant, even while practising him- ANGLOself the most important branch of their art, and which their popular use must have contributed so much to AND MINimprove, especially in its rhymes and rhythm. This author, forgetting their intellectual relationship to himself, seems to associate them in his mind with living devils, and forbids us to make or to attend to their romauns and fables. By the phrases with which. he connects them, he afterwards puts their jougler as attempting enchantment, and resembling sorcery and negromancy." He gives them various names: at one time, he speaks of luturs, and describes them as making lutes and motuns, and playing with swords; at another time he calls them jougleours, menestrans, ribaus, and chuffurs; fools, to whom it 10 8 Jugement ne pot plus garder Wilham de Wadigtoun, in his Manuel da Peche, MS. Harl. Lib. N° 4657 & 337. Pechur sunt ceus chatifs Romauns fables e chanceurs fere ne oir a teus jurs Ne deit nule cum funt plusurs. 9 En sorceres ne an sorcerie Gardez vous ke vous ne creez mie Cunter lur sorceries E menuement lur folies Coe ne serroit fors jangler—~ Si vous unkes par folie Entre meistres de negromancie Ov a gent de cele mester Ren donastes pur lur jougler.-Ib. 10 Sachent pur veir les luturs Ky lutes funt a teus jours: Motuns mectent ov espée pendent.-Ib. BOOK was folly to be liberal." His phrases to express their performances also vary; he sometimes calls it making LITERARY minstralcie and noiser. He notices other diversions connected with their mirth; but he condemns and proscribes them all,13 especially if performed in churches or church-yards.1 HISTORYOF ENGLAND. 13 In the free translation of this work, in 1303, by Robert of Brunne, we find a more liberal feeling implied. He condemns the singing and dancing; but it is when practised in church-yards, or on holy days it is the accompanying the jogelours hasadoure or roture to the tavern, the devil's knife, which he blames.16 In mentioning minstrels, he takes an opportunity of noticing how much the famous bishop Grostête loved to hear the harp; that night and days "Si par foll argesce ren donastes 12 Sa menestralcie yloke feseit Et outrage grant ou luter.—Ib, 15 Roberd de Brunne dates his English Ryme' in 1303. You halewyst not thyn halyday— Karolles, wrastlynges or somour games MS. Harl. No 1701. 16 Gyf thou eithyr wyth jogeloure he had solace of notes and lays; and that he taught CHAP. that the virtue of the harp was such as to destroy III. even the power of Satan." 17 These alterations shew, ANGLOthat the taste of the age had learnt to estimate poetry JONGLEURS and music more justly, and to discriminate between AND MINtheir merit and the consequences of their abuse. Our old satirist, who assumes the name of Piers Plouhman, is not so charitable. He treats with visible contempt the "japers and juglers, and janglers of gests." He describes them as haunters of taverns and common alehouses, amusing the lower classes with "myrth of mynstrelsy and losels tales." He brands them as tutors of "idleness, and the devil's deseours," who make their hearers, " for love of tales, in taverns to drink." He angrily declares, that "he is worse than Judas, that giveth a japer silver." 18 The same venerable author gives us full information of the "mynstrales" in his day. They are noticed as playing on the tabret, the trumpet, the fiddle, the pipe, and the harp; as singing with the giterne, dancing, leaping, and telling fair gestes. They knew how to make mirth. They invented foul fan 17 He loved much to here the harpe for manuys wytte hyt makyth sharpe The vertu of the harpe thurgh skylle and rygt 18 See the Visions of Piers Plouhman. 19 Ich can nat tabre ne trompe ne telle faire gestes- ne fithelyn at festes, ne harpen; Japen ne jagelyn, ne gentelliche pipe; 19 nother sailen ne sautrien ne singe with the giterne.-Ib. p. 253. NORMAN STRELS. |