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etiquette and its artificial sentiment, was introduced into German poetry from Provencal literature; but the German Minnesang was no slavish See also:

IMITATION (Lat. imitatio, from intitari, to imitate)

imitation of the poetry of the troubadours. Its See also:

TONE, THEOBALD WOLFE (1763-1798)

tone was, on the whole, far healthier and more sincere, reflecting the difference between the See also:

SIMPLE

simple conditions of German See also:

LIFE

life and the older and corrupt See also:

CIVILIZATION

civilization of See also:

PROVENCE (Provincia, Proenza)

Provence. The minnesinger usually belonged to the See also:

LOWER

lower ranks of the See also:

NOBILITY

nobility, and his verses were addressed to a married woman, often above him in See also:

RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank; consequently the commonest lyric themes are the See also:

LOVER, SAMUEL (1797-1868)

lover's hopeless devotion and complaints of the See also:

LADY (0. Eng. hlaefdige, Mid. Eng. ldfdi, lavedi; the first part of the word is hldf, loaf, bread, as in the corresponding hldford, lord; the second part is usually taken to be from the root dig-, to knead, seen also in " dough "; the sense development fr

lady's See also:

CRUELTY (through the O. Fr. crualte, mod. cruaute, from the Lat. crudelitas)

cruelty, expressed with a somewhat wearisome iteration. That real See also:

PASSION (post-classical Lat. passio, formed from pati, passus, to suffer, endure)

passion was sometimes See also:

PRESENT

present may be safely assumed, but it was not within the rules of the See also:

GAME

game, which corresponded fairly closely to the later sonneteering conventions. The poet was not permitted to give the lady's name, or to betray her identity; and a See also:

DIRECT

direct expression of passion would also have contravened the rules. The poems were from the first sung in open See also:

court to a See also:

MELODY (Gr. ,ueXw3ia, a choral song, from name, tune, and gi6i, song)

melody (Weise) of the poet's own composing, with the See also:

ACCOMPANIMENT (i.e. that which " accompanies ")

accompaniment of a See also:

FIDDLE (O. Eng. fithele, fidel, &c., Fr. vide, viole, violon; M. H. Ger. videle, mod. Ger. Fiedel)

fiddle or small See also:

HARP (Fr. harpe; Ger. Harfe; Ital. arpa)

harp. That the minnesinger was no See also:

IMPROVISATORE

improvisatore is evident from the complicated forms of his See also:

VERSE (from Lat. versus, literally a line or furrow drawn by turning the plough, from vertere, and afterwards signifying an arrangement of syllables into feet)

verse, which were partly borrowed from the Provencal, but possibly owed something to the Latin rhymed verse 1 of the wandering scholars, The older songs consisted of a single See also:

STROPHE (Gr. o-rpod>)

strophe See also:

CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

cast in three divisions, two (known as Stollen or doorposts) identical in See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form, stating and developing the See also:

ARGUMENT

argument, the third (Abgesang) of different form, giving the conclusion. Later on, two or more strophes were used in a single poem, but the principle of their structure was retained. In this form were cast the Tagelied, a See also:

DIALOGUE

dialogue describing the parting of lovers at See also:

DAWN (the 16th-century form of the earlier " Jawing " or " dawning," from an old verb " daw," O. Eng. dagian, to become day; cf. Dutch dagen, and Ger. tagen)

dawn; and the crusading See also:

SONG

song.

See also:

Side by side with these existed the Spruch, written in a single undivided See also:

STANZA (Low Lat. stantia, Ital. stantia or stanza)

stanza, destined for recitation and often cast in the form of a See also:

FABLE (Fr. fable, Lat. fabula)

fable. The See also:

lay (See also:

LEITH

Leith) was written in unequal strophes, each formed of two equal divisions. It was applied in the first instance to sacred lyrics, 1 See the Carmina Burana, ed. J. A. Schmeller, 4th ed., See also:

BRESLAU (Polish Wraclaw)

Breslau, 1964. and was first used in love poems by the Alsatian minnesinger See also:

ULRICH

Ulrich von See also:

GUTENBERG, JOHANN (c. 1398–1468)

Gutenberg. The origin of the native lyric, which flourished especially in See also:

Austria and See also:

BAVARIA (Ger. Bayern)

Bavaria, is perhaps to be sought in the songs which accompanied dancing. These were not necessarily love songs, but celebrated the coming of See also:

SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring, the gloom of See also:

winter &c., the commonplaces of Minnesang throughout the two centuries of its existence. The older lyrics, which date from the See also:

MIDDLE

middle of the 12th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century, are simple in form and written in the See also:

ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

ordinary epic metres. The earliest minnesinger whose name has come down to us is Der von Kurenberg (ft. c. 116o), a See also:

SCION

scion of an See also:

AUSTRIAN

Austrian knightly See also:

FAMILY

family whose See also:

castle lay on the See also:

DANUBE (Ger. Donau, Hungarian Duna, Rumanian Dunarea, Lat. Danubius or Danuvius, and in the lower part of its course Ister)

Danube, See also:

west of See also:

LINZ

Linz.

These songs, however, contradict the See also:

root idea of Minnedienst, since the lady is the wooer, and the poet, at the most, an acquiescent lover. They take the form of laments for an absent lover, complaints of his faithlessness and the like. Among the other Austrian and See also:

south German lyrists who show small trace of See also:

FOREIGN

foreign See also:

INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence was Dietmar von Aist (d. c. 1171), though some of the songs attributed to him seem to be of later date. While the love-song remained in the hands of See also:

NOBLE, SIR ANDREW (1832- )

noble singers, the Spruch was cultivated by humbler poets. The See also:

elder of the two or three poets concealed under the name of Spervogel was a wandering See also:

SINGER, SIMEON (1846-1906)

singer who found patronage at the court of the burgraves of See also:

REGENSBURG (RATISBON)

Regensburg, one of whom himself figures among the earlier minnesingers. The characteristic period of German Minnesang begins at the See also:

close of the 12th century with the See also:

ESTABLISHMENT (0. Fr. establissement, Fr. etablissement, late Norm. Fr. establishement, from O. Fr. establir, Fr. etablir, Lat. stabilire, to make stable)

establishment of the Provencal tradition in western See also:

Germany through the poems of Heinrich von Veldeke and See also:

FRIEDRICH, JOHANN (1836— )

Friedrich von See also:

HANSEN, PETER ANDREAS (1795-1874)

Hansen. See also:

NATIONAL

National elements abound in Veldeke's songs, although the amour courtois dominates the whole; Friedrich von Hansen (d. 1190) followed Provencal See also:

MODELS

models closely. The See also:

long crusading song Sie darf See also:

WICK

wick See also:

des Ziken niet, is a See also:

GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good example of his See also:

POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers. A close See also:

DISCIPLE

disciple of the troubadours Peire Vidal and Folquet de Marseille was the Swiss Cdunt See also:

RUDOLF (otherwise known as Basso NOROK and Gannon)

Rudolf von Fenis.I The greatest name among the earlier minnesingers is that of Heinrich von Morungen, a Thuringian poet who lived on in popular See also:

story in the ballad of " The Noble Moringer." He brought See also:

GREAT

great imaginative See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power to See also:

bear on the See also:

COMMON

common subjects of Minnesang, and his poetry has a very See also:

MODERN

modern See also:

note. The formal See also:

art and See also:

SCIENCE (Lat. scientia, from scire; to learn, know)

science of Minnesang reached full development in the subtle love-songs of Reinmar, the Alsatian " See also:

nightingale of See also:

HAGENAU

Hagenau." See also:

UHLAND, JOHANN LUDWIG (1787-1862)

Uhland aptly called him the " scholastic philosopher of unhappy love." As a metrist he See also:

DEVELOPED

developed a greater correctness of See also:

RHYME

rhyme, and a better handling of German metres.

He became a member of the court of See also:

DUKE (corresponding to Fr. duc, Ital. duca, Ger. Herzog)

Duke See also:

LEOPOLD (M.H. Ger. Liupolt; O.H. Ger. Liupald, from hut, Mod. Ger. Leute, " people," and paid, " bold," i.e. " bold for the people ")

Leopold V. (d. 1194) of Austria, and there See also:

WALTHER, BERNHARD (1430-15o4)

Walther von der Vogelweide (q.v.) was first his disciple, and then perhaps his See also:

RIVAL

rival. Walther, the greatest of See also:

MEDIEVAL

medieval German lyric poets, had Reinmar's technical art, but in feeling was more nearly allied to Morungen. He raised the Spruch to the dignity of. a serious See also:

POLITICAL

political poem, which proved a potent weapon against the policy of See also:

Innocent III. In 1202 at the court of See also:

Hermann, See also:

LANDGRAVE (Ger. Landgraf, from Land, " a country" and Graf, "count" )

landgrave of Thuringia, he met Wolfram von Eschenbach, who is said to have taken See also:

PART

part in the tourney of poets known as the Wartburgskrieg, made See also:

WORLD

world-famous through See also:

Wagner's See also:

TANNHAUSER, or TANHUSER

Tannhauser. The Tagelieder of Wolfram give him a high See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place in Minnesang, although his fame, like that of Heinrich von Veldeke and See also:

Hartmann von Aue, chiefly rests on his epics. A new See also:

style—called by See also:

LACHMANN, KARL KONRAD FRIEDRICH WILHELM (1793-1851)

Lachmann hofische Dorf poesie—was marked out by Neidhart von Reuental (d. c. 1240), who be-longed to the lesser Bavarian nobility. He wrote songs to accompany the dances of the See also:

VILLAGE

village beauties, and comic and realistic descriptions of village life to please the court. He was acknowledged by the See also:

MEISTERSINGER (Ger. for " master-singer ")

Meistersinger as one of the twelve masters of song. Nevertheless, with him the decadence may be said to have begun.

The Styrian poet Ulrich von Lichtenstein (d. c. 1275) unconsciously caricatured See also:

CHIVALRY (O. Fr. chevalerie, from Late Lat. caballerius)

chivalry itself by his Frauendienst, in which he relates the absurd feats which he had undertaken at his lady's command, while Steinmar (f. 1276) deliberately parodied I Rudolf II., See also:

COUNT (Lat. comes, gen. comitis, Fr. comte, Ital. conte, Span. conde)

count of Neuenburg (d. 1196), or, according to some, a See also:

NEPHEW

nephew of his who died in 1257.court poetry in his praises of rustic beauty and good living. In the See also:

LAYS

lays, songs and See also:

PROVERBS, BOOK OF (Heb. Mishle Slzelomoh, " Proverbs of Solomon," abridged by the later Jews to Mishle; Septuagint, irapotpiai or II. EaX.; Lat. Vulg. Parabolae sal. and Liber proverbiorum)

proverbs of Tannhauser something of both elements, of the court and the village, is to be found. He seems to have lived as a wandering singer until 1268,. and there very soon See also:

GREW, NEHEMIAH (1641-1712)

grew up See also:

ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round his name the Tannhauser myth which has so little See also:

FOUNDATION (Lat. fundatio, from fundare, to found)

foundation in his life or poetry. The Austrian poet Reinmar von Zweter (d. c. 126o) See also:

LEFT

left some hundreds of Sprilche political or social in their import. Among the princes who practised Minnesang were the See also:

EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor See also:

Henry VI., though the two songs preserved under his name are of doubtful authenticity, Duke Henry IV. of Breslau (ft. 1270-1290), See also:

King See also:

WENCESLAUS (1361-1419)

Wenceslaus II. of Bohemia, the See also:

MARGRAVE (Ger. Markgraf)

margrave See also:

OTTO

Otto IV. of See also:

BRANDENBURG

Brandenburg, Wizlaw IV., - See also:

prince of Riigen and the unhappy See also:

CONRADIN, or CONRAD THE YOUNGER (1252–1268)

Conradin, the last of the See also:

house of See also:

HOHENSTAUFEN

Hohenstaufen, beheaded by the See also:

order of See also:

Charles of See also:

ANJOU

Anjou before he reached his seventeenth See also:

YEAR

year. The didactic See also:

MOTIVE (from Lat. movere, to move)

motive came more and more to the front in the 13th century. The wandering Swabian poet Marner (d. c.

1270) cultivated especially the Spruch, laughed at the Provencal and courtly tradition, and there is no very great step from his learning and his feuds to the conditions of Meistersang. Heinrich von See also:

MEISSEN

Meissen (1250-1319), known as " See also:

FRAUENLOB

Frauenlob " (" ladies' praise "), was one of the last minnesingers, and his pedantry and virtuosity entitle him to be called the first meistersinger. M. See also:

HAUPT, MORITZ (1808—1874)

Haupt, Des Minnesangs Friihling (3rd ed., edited F.. See also:

VOGT, KARL CHRISTOPH (1817-1895)

Vogt, See also:

LEIPZIG

Leipzig, 1882) is a collection of the minnesingers earlier than Walther von der Vogelweide; there is a comprehensive selection of 97 minnesingers by Karl Bartsch, Deutsche Liederdichter des zwolften bis vierzehnten Jahrhunderts (ed. W. Golther, See also:

Berlin 1901) with bio-See also:

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL

bibliographical See also:

account of individual minnesingers; see also F. See also:

PFAFF, JOHANN FRIEDRICH (1765–1825)

Pfaff, Der Minnesang der 12 bis 14 Jahrhunderts, pt. i. (See also:

STUTTGART

Stuttgart, 1892). See also:

ENGLISH

English See also:

TRANSLATIONS

translations of See also:

early German lyrics are F. C. See also:

Nicholson, Old German Love Songs, translated from the minnesingers of the 12th to 14th centuries (See also:

LONDON

London, 1907).

See also WALTHER V. D. VOGELWEIDE. Of See also:

HISTORICAL

historical and See also:

CRITICAL (in alphabetical order of authors)

critical See also:

WORK

work on the minnesingers, see K. Goedeke, Geschichte der deutschen Dichtung, vol. i. (See also:

DRESDEN

Dresden, 1881) ; H. See also:

Paul, Grundriss der germanischen Philologie, vol. ii. (See also:

STRASSBURG, or STRASBURG (French Strasbourg)

Strassburg, 2nd ed., 1901), where further references will be found; also A. E. Schbnbach, See also:

Die An{ange des deutschen Minnesanges (See also:

GRAZ [GRATZ]

Graz, 1898) ; F. Grimme, Geschichte der Minnesinger, vol. i. (See also:

PADERBORN (Lat. Paderae Fontes, i.e. the springs of the Pader)

Paderborn, 1892); K.

Burdach, Reinmar der Alte and Walther von der Vogelweide (Leipzig, 188o) ; A. See also:

SCHULTZ, HERMANN (1836- )

Schultz, Das ho sche Leben zur Zeit der Minnesinger (2nd ed., Leipzig, 1889) ; J. See also:

FALKE, JOHANN FRIEDRICH GOTTLIEB (1823-1876)

Falke, Die ritterliche Gesellschaft See also:

IM(K2+a2+h2—2 ah cos 0)

im Zeitalter des Frauencultus (Berlin, no date).

End of Article: MINNESINGERS (Ger. Minnesinger from Minne, love)

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