Aliscans is a chanson de geste

Chanson de geste

The chansons de geste, Old French for "songs of heroic deeds", are the epic poems that appear at the dawn of French literature. The earliest known examples date from the late eleventh and early twelfth centuries, nearly a hundred years before the emergence of the lyric poetry of the trouvères and...

of the late twelfth century. It recounts the story of the disastrous but fictional battle of Aliscans (Alescans) in France, between Christian and pagan armies. The name 'Aliscans' presumably refers to the Alyscamps

Alyscamps

The Alyscamps is a large Roman necropolis, which is a short distance outside the walls of the old town of Arles, France. It was one of the most famous necropolises of the ancient world. The name is a corruption of the Latin Elisii Campi...

 in Arles

Arles

Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....

. It belongs to the Guillaume d'Orange cycle, and in the action Guillaume's nephew Vivien is killed.

It is written in the old Picard language

Picard language

Picard is a language closely related to French, and as such is one of the larger group of Romance languages. It is spoken in two regions in the far north of France – Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy – and in parts of the Belgian region of Wallonia, the district of Tournai and a part of...

, and has around 8000 lines. It is dated, probably, as composed 1180-1190, and survives in 13 manuscripts.

It is generally thought to be a source for the Willihalm of Wolfram von Eschenbach

Wolfram von Eschenbach

Wolfram von Eschenbach was a German knight and poet, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of his time. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry.-Life:...

, and the two works cover the same events The chanson is likely based on the Chançun de Willame, a version of the cycle from the beginning of the century.