| Commentary: |
Snow 2007rn"The book, the author's 1976 doctoral thesis, carefully reconstructs from poetic texts, and from historical studies and documents, the pre-eminence and impact of troubadour poetry on the reign on ten Iberian monarchs (1100-1300) and of certain highborn nobles who also maintained courts. The long chapter (pp. 181-258) on Alfonso X establishes a reliable chronology of the poets and, in many cases, of the poems themselves, which make allusion to Alfonso X. Taken into account are the poetic debates in which Alfonso may have directly participated: those with N'At de Mons, Arnaut Catalan, and Guiraut Riquier. These careful labors pay dividends to the readers for rarely has so systematic a presentation of court patronage been provided by previous scholarship {Milá y Fontanals, Michaëlis, etc.}. This volume will be an essential tool in future work on Alfonso's relationship to the poets and the poetic currents of his day. A companion volume (of texts) is also available [1978]." |
