Guilhem de la Tor
Encyclopedia
Guilhem de la Tor was an early 13th-century jongleur-troubadour
from the Périgord
who spent most of his active career in northern Italy
. He circulated between the courts of the Este
, Malaspina, and Da Romano families.
The tor (tower, castle) that was Guilhem's birthplace does not survive, but it was in the vicinity of the modern town of La Tour-Blanche
, Dordogne
. Guilhem first composed in the Occitan language in 1216–1220, during which period he produced the panegyric
Pos N'Aimerics a fait mesclança e batailla, a song in which the noble women of Italy put an end to a feud for supremacy at court between Selvaggia and Beatrice di Oramala, daughters of Conrad Malaspina. The Treva ("truce"), as it is called, was a sequel to an earlier work (now lost) by Aimeric de Pegulhan describing the feud.
Guilhem is dignified with a long vida
, but much of it cannot be trusted. Among the more trustworthy parts is this description of his character and routine:
The subsequent narrative of the vida is an invention. It relates how he fell in love with a young and beautiful barber's wife in Milan
and abducted her to Como
, where they married and "he loved her more than anything in the world." When she died, Guilhem went mad over the loss and began to believe that she was posing as dead in order to leave him. For ten days he reglularly removed her from the tomb and kissed her and hugged her and asked her to tell him if she were alive or dead and, if dead, to tell him what sufferings she were experiencing so that he could alleviate it with masses and alms. But when the leading men of the city heard this, they expelled him and he went wandering around looking for a sorcerer or sorceress who could bring his wife back to life. He encountered a "trickster" who told him to recite daily the entire Psalter
and 150 Paternoster
s and to give alms to seven poor men before he ate each day, then she would come back to life, but would never eat, drink, or talk. Guilhem set out to do as he was told, but she had not returned to him, he despaired and died. This bizarre legend is related to a partimen
between Guilhem and Sordello
, Un amics et un'amia, in which the former posed the dilemma of whether it is better to follow a deceased lover to death or to move on. The partimen can be dated to 1224–1226, before Sordello's kidnapping of Cunizza da Romano
(Na Cuniza in the poem).
Guilhem was a Ghibelline
in sympathy and he wrote Un sirventes farai d'una trista persona to attack the Guelph
podestà
Ponzio Amato di Cremona. He lampoons the hated Guelph politician as Porc Armat ("armed pig") de Cremona. This song was written before Ponzio's death in 1228.
Guilhem's last song was Canson ab gais motz plazens, inspired by the death in November 1233 of Giovanna d'Este. Guilhem himself is last mentioned in that same month.
Troubadour
A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
from the Périgord
Périgord
The Périgord is a former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne département, now forming the northern part of the Aquitaine région. It is divided into four regions, the Périgord Noir , the Périgord Blanc , the Périgord Vert and the Périgord Pourpre...
who spent most of his active career in northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
. He circulated between the courts of the Este
Este
The House of Este is a European princely dynasty. It is split into two branches; the elder is known as the House of Welf-Este or House of Welf historically rendered in English, Guelf or Guelph...
, Malaspina, and Da Romano families.
The tor (tower, castle) that was Guilhem's birthplace does not survive, but it was in the vicinity of the modern town of La Tour-Blanche
La Tour-Blanche
La Tour-Blanche is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
, Dordogne
Dordogne
Dordogne is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great river Dordogne that runs through it...
. Guilhem first composed in the Occitan language in 1216–1220, during which period he produced the panegyric
Panegyric
A panegyric is a formal public speech, or written verse, delivered in high praise of a person or thing, a generally highly studied and discriminating eulogy, not expected to be critical. It is derived from the Greek πανηγυρικός meaning "a speech fit for a general assembly"...
Pos N'Aimerics a fait mesclança e batailla, a song in which the noble women of Italy put an end to a feud for supremacy at court between Selvaggia and Beatrice di Oramala, daughters of Conrad Malaspina. The Treva ("truce"), as it is called, was a sequel to an earlier work (now lost) by Aimeric de Pegulhan describing the feud.
Guilhem is dignified with a long vida
Vida (Occitan literary form)
Vida is the usual term for a brief prose biography, written in Old Occitan, of a troubadour or trobairitz.The word vida means "life" in Occitan languages. In the chansonniers, the manuscript collections of medieval troubadour poetry, the works of a particular author are often accompanied by a...
, but much of it cannot be trusted. Among the more trustworthy parts is this description of his character and routine:
And he knew many songs, and created and sang well and graciously, and he also invented (trobaire). But when he wanted to recite his songs, he made his discussions of the explanation (razoRazoRaso is an islet of 8 square kilometers in the Barlavento archipelago of Cape Verde. Raso is flanked by the smaller Branco islet on the west and by São Nicolau island on its eastern side. Raso is uninhabited and is now the only home of the Raso Lark. The Brown Booby and Red-billed Tropicbird visit...
) longer than the song itself.
The subsequent narrative of the vida is an invention. It relates how he fell in love with a young and beautiful barber's wife in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and abducted her to Como
Como
Como is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy.It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como....
, where they married and "he loved her more than anything in the world." When she died, Guilhem went mad over the loss and began to believe that she was posing as dead in order to leave him. For ten days he reglularly removed her from the tomb and kissed her and hugged her and asked her to tell him if she were alive or dead and, if dead, to tell him what sufferings she were experiencing so that he could alleviate it with masses and alms. But when the leading men of the city heard this, they expelled him and he went wandering around looking for a sorcerer or sorceress who could bring his wife back to life. He encountered a "trickster" who told him to recite daily the entire Psalter
Psalter
A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were...
and 150 Paternoster
Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
s and to give alms to seven poor men before he ate each day, then she would come back to life, but would never eat, drink, or talk. Guilhem set out to do as he was told, but she had not returned to him, he despaired and died. This bizarre legend is related to a partimen
Partimen
The partimen is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry composed between two troubadours, a subgenre of the tenso or cobla exchange in which one poet presents a dilemma in the form of a question and the two debate the answer, each taking up a different side. It was especially popular in poetic contests....
between Guilhem and Sordello
Sordello
Sordello da Goito or Sordel de Goit was a 13th-century Lombard troubadour, born in the municipality of Goito in the province of Mantua...
, Un amics et un'amia, in which the former posed the dilemma of whether it is better to follow a deceased lover to death or to move on. The partimen can be dated to 1224–1226, before Sordello's kidnapping of Cunizza da Romano
Cunizza da Romano
Cunizza da Romano was an Italian noblewoman, the third daughter of Ezzelino II da Romano and Adelaide di Mangona, and sister to Ezzelino III and Alberico da Romano....
(Na Cuniza in the poem).
Guilhem was a Ghibelline
Guelphs and Ghibellines
The Guelphs and Ghibellines were factions supporting the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor, respectively, in central and northern Italy. During the 12th and 13th centuries, the split between these two parties was a particularly important aspect of the internal policy of the Italian city-states...
in sympathy and he wrote Un sirventes farai d'una trista persona to attack the Guelph
Guelphs and Ghibellines
The Guelphs and Ghibellines were factions supporting the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor, respectively, in central and northern Italy. During the 12th and 13th centuries, the split between these two parties was a particularly important aspect of the internal policy of the Italian city-states...
podestà
Podestà
Podestà is the name given to certain high officials in many Italian cities, since the later Middle Ages, mainly as Chief magistrate of a city state , but also as a local administrator, the representative of the Emperor.The term derives from the Latin word potestas, meaning power...
Ponzio Amato di Cremona. He lampoons the hated Guelph politician as Porc Armat ("armed pig") de Cremona. This song was written before Ponzio's death in 1228.
Guilhem's last song was Canson ab gais motz plazens, inspired by the death in November 1233 of Giovanna d'Este. Guilhem himself is last mentioned in that same month.