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RS 1126

Hugues de Berzé

I S’onques nuns hons por dure departie ot cuer dolant, dont l’ai je par raison, c’onques tortre qui pert son compaingnon 4 ne fut un jor de moi plus esbahie. Chascuns ploure sa terre et son païs cant il se part de ses coraus amis, mais il n’est nuns congiés, que que nuns die, 8 si dolerous com d’amin et d’amie.

II Li reveoirs m’a mis en la folie, dont je m’iere gardeis mainte saison, d’aler a li; or ai quis’ ochoison 12dont je morai, et se je vif, ma vie vaudra bien mort, car cil qui ait apris estre anvoisiés et chantans et jolis a aseis pis, cant sa joie est faillie, 16que s’il moroit tout a une foïe.

III Se je seüsse autretant a l’enprendre que li congiés me tormentaist ensi, je laissasse m’ame en vostre merci, 20s’alaisse a Deu graces et mercis randre de ceu que ainz soffristes a nul jor que je fusse beans a vostre amour; mais je me teing apaiés de l’atandre, 24puis que chescuns vos aime ensi sans prendre.

IV Mult a croissiés amorous a contendre d’aler a Dieu ou de remanoir ci, car nesuns hom, puis k’Amors l’a saisi, 28ne devroit ja si grief fais entreprendre: on ne puet pas servir a tant seignor; proec qe fins cuers qi bet a haute honor ne se poroit de tel chose deffendre, 32por ce, dame, ne m’en devés reprendre.

V Un confort voi en vostre dessevrance, que je n’avrai a Deu que reprochier; mais quant por li me covient vos laissier, 36je ne sai rien de greingnor reprochance; car cil qui voit tel amor dessevrer et n’a pooir qu’il puisse recovrer a assez plus de duel et de pesance 40que n’avroit ja li rois s’il perdoit France.

VI Ahï, dame, tout est fors de balance, partir m’estuet de vos sans recovrier; tant en ai fait que je nel puis laissier, 44mais s’il ne fust de remanoir viltance et reproche, j’alaisse demander as fins amans congié de demorer; mais vos estes de si tres grant vaillance 48que vostre amins ne doit faire faillance.

VIIa Merveille moi coment puet cuers durer (mss. DT) ki prent congié a sa dame a l’aler; mais mandast li de Lombardie en France, 52car lons consirs doble la desevrance.

VIIb Mout par est fols cil qui vait oltre mer (mss. LnHOpQp) qui prent congié a sa dame a l’aler; mais mande li de Lombardie en France, 52que li congiés doble la desirance.

I If ever a man had a sorrowful heart because of a cruel separation, then it is right that I should have one, since a turtle-dove which loses its companion was never more disconsolate than I. Everyone pines for his country and his land when he leaves his close friends, but whatever anyone may say, there is no parting as painful as that between lover and beloved.

II The desire to see her again has given me the insane idea (which I have resisted for a long time) of going back to her; so I have put myself in a situation which will bring about my death, and if I live, my life will be like death, for a man who has learned to be merry and joyful and glad is much worse off, once his joy is over, than if he died straight away.

III Had I known as well, when I decided on this parting, that it would have tormented me so, I should have left my soul in your service and gone to thank God for ever allowing me to aspire to your love; but I am content to wait, since everyone loves you like this without receiving anything.

IV A crusader in love must well ponder whether to go towards God or to remain here, for no-one, once Love has taken hold of him, ought ever to assume such a heavy burden: one cannot serve more than one lord; but since a noble heart that aspires to high honour cannot avoid doing this, you ought not, my lady, to blame me for it.

V I see one comfort in parting from you: I will have nothing for which to reproach myself before God. On the contrary, I know nothing more blameworthy than being made to leave you for Him, since a man who sees such love being split apart without him being able to go back on his decision has much greater grief and sorrow than the king would were he to lose France.

VI Ah, lady, there is no more room for indecision! – I have to leave you without delay; I have gone so far that I cannot turn back. But if staying behind were not a base and shameful thing, I would go and ask true lovers for permission to remain; yet you are of such great worth that your lover ought not to fail in his duty.

VIIa I marvel how a man’s heart can hold out when he bids his lady farewell at the moment of his departure; instead he should send it to her in France from Lombardy, for lingering heartache doubles the [grief of the] separation.

VIIb A man going overseas is out of his mind if he bids farewell to his lady before leaving; instead he sends it to her in France from Lombardy, because the farewell doubles desire.

Text

Luca Barbieri, 2015.

Historical context and dating

Born in all probability around 1170, the castellan Hugues V de Berzé (now Berzé-le-Chatel, 15 km northwest of Mâcon, Saône-et-Loire) took part in the Fourth Crusade, as he himself testifies in his moralising Bible, and as Villehardouin’s chronicle confirms (La conquête de Constantinople, § 45). According to the latter, Hugues took the cross together with his father and other Burgundian knights after the chapter of Cîteaux on 14 September 1201 and embarked at Venice in the autumn of the following year, having as his travelling companions, among others, Conon de Béthune and the Châtelain de Couci, who died during the undertaking. The French crusaders set out after Pentecost (8 June) 1202, crossed the Alps near the pass of Moncenisio and passed through Lombardie (northern Italy), probably arriving in Venice at the end of June or beginning of July. From there, after overcoming some serious financial difficulties and resolving differences over their strategy, they set out to sea in the direction of the Holy Land (1-8 October according to the prevalent hypothesis, 8 November according to Runciman). As is well known, in the course of the journey the leaders of the expedition changed their objective and headed for Constantinople, besieging and conquering the city between the summer of 1203 and spring of 1204, and establishing the seat of a Latin empire. According to the meagre allusions contained in the Bible, Hugues de Berzé participated in all operations, remained in the East until at least 1205, and probably also completed a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. In 1207 he was probably not yet back in Burgundy, since during the course of that year it is his brother Gautier who signs an official act regarding the family fief; Hugues appears in a document of 1216 and perhaps also one of 1212, but the exact time of his return is unknown. The song RS 1126, a farewell to his lady, must have been composed when the trouvère had already taken the cross (vv. 17 and 25) before his departure between 14 September 1201 and 8 June 1202; however the allusion contained in v. 52 of the envoi, in which the author says that to avoid the pain of separation it is preferable to send greetings to the lady from Lombardie, suggests that it may have been written during the journey in Italy, hence probably during the second half of June 1202. Since some of the features of the manuscript tradition are compatible with the presence of authorial variants, the song may have been written on two occasions, first in Burgundy before departure and then during the journey in Italy.