_ year 1600, sppear'd ‘The famous history of 
_ the seaven champions of christendome,’ in 
_ which the Rowland, Oliver, Guy, Bevis, &c. 
the fabulous heros of old romance, are meta- 
orphose’d into Saint George, Saint Denis, 
int James, Saint Anthony, Saint Andrew, 
aint Patrick, and Saint David, the no less fa- 
 bulous heros of legend and religious impos- 
ture; most of whom receive a certain degree 
of adoration, like the pagan deitys of old, by 
_ the dedication of churches, devotional days, 
and the like: which celebrateéd work, being 
~ acompound of superstition, and, as it were, 
the lyes of christendom in one lye, is, in 
Ca 
i 
e 
+ 
ep parts of the country, believe’u, at this 
lay, to be < as true as the gospel.’ 
_ Mr. Ritson is so well aware of the va- 
Tue of these roniances, as to have expend- 
ed much labour and patience in investi- 
. gating and preserving them: he calls 
’ them the songs. 
t 
 *€ Que priscis memorata Catonibus atque 
i Cethegis 3° 
but no sooner does he consider them as 
_ connected with christian feelings, than 
_ they appear to him to be “ mischievous 
and sanguinary legends,” composed to 
impress the minds of a ‘‘bigotted and 
idiotic people !” 5 
' ‘he first metrical romance, properly 
' and strictly so called, that is known to 
i! ese existed, is,according to Mr Ritson, 
the famous Chanson de Roland. The copy 
iven by the Marquis de Paulmy to Dr. 
Mf Sey: he considers as spurious, and the 
' stanza printed by I'ressan to be his own 
invention. The real Chanson de Roland, 
a le says, was unquestionably a metrical 
_ Tomance of Rot length, upon the battle 
of Roncesvalles; and ‘Taillefer, the Nor- 
man minstrel, sung only a part before 
ie army. We should rather have infer- 
red from the word canjilena, which Wil- 
liam of Malmsbury applies to this song, 
- that it wasactually a war song or ballad, 
and not of any great length. The story 
_ quoted from Hector Bois, and which, 
as Mr. Ritson says, there is no reason to 
_ believe, is parodied from a tale of King 
John the First of Portugal, which there 
is no reason to doubt. 
_ This poem, be it what it may, is not 
known to exist. The most ancient ro- 
mance in the French language, is there- 
wre thought to be one upon the atchieve- 
nts of Charlemagne, respecting the 
truction of the monastery of Carcas- 
and Narbon, and the construction of 
i of de la Grace. This was supposed 
ave been written at Charlemagne’s 
os gommand; but Mr. Ritson proves, that 
RITSON’S ANCIENT ENGLISH ROMANCES. 
521 
it must have been subsequent to the year 
1144. The Roman de Guillaume d’ Orange, 
surnommé au Court nes, is nearly of the 
sameage. Calmet supposed Garin le Lo- 
heran to be the oldest extant. Alexandre 
by Alexandre Bernay, and Lambert le 
Cors; and the Brut of Maistre Wace are 
of this early period. 
«* Before the year 1122, and even, acaord- 
ing to the French antiquarys, in the eleventh 
century, had appear’d a book intitle’d, in 
the W sheer: copys, ‘ Joannis Turpini Histo- 
ria de vila Carol magni et Rolandi.’ This 
‘Turpin is pretended to be the arch-bishop of 
Rheims, whose true name, however, was 
Tilpin, and who dye'd before Charlemagne ; 
though Robert Gaguin, in his licentious 
translation of this work, 1527, makes him; 
like some one else, relate his own death.— 
Another pretended version of this Pseudo- 
Turpin, which is say’d to have been made by 
one Mickius (or Mickel) le Harnes, who 
live’d in the time of Philip the August, or 
1206, has little or nothing in common with 
its false original, being, in fact, the romance 
of Regnaut, or Reynald, and not that of Ro- 
land, who is never once mention’d in the 
head-chepters, and very rarely in the book. 
Mister Ellis, who took it, wit out inspection, 
to be a fair translation of the false Turpin, in 
1207, says, ‘ the real authour was pesliae a 
Spaniard ;’ but this is without authority ; and 
in fact, the Spaniards have no romance of an 
such antiquity. Mister Warton calls this 
fabulous history ‘the ground-work of all the 
chimerical legends which have heen relateéd 
concerning the conquests of Charlemagne 
and his twelve peers :’ but this, at least, re- 
quires it to have been compose’d before the 
year 1066, when the adventures or exploits 
of Charlemagne, Rowland, and Oliver, were 
chantedat the battle of Hastings. Asastrong 
internal proof, however, that this romance 
was writen long after the time of Charle- 
magne, he says, that the historian, speaking 
of the numerous chiefs and kings wko came 
with their armys to assist his hero, amon 
the rest mentions Earl Gell; and ads « OF 
this man there is a song commonly sung 
among the minstrels even to this day.’ In 
another place, he says, that ¢ Turpin’s his- 
tory was artfully forged under the name of 
that archbishop about the year 1110, with a 
design of giving countenance to the crusades 
~from the example of so high an authority as 
that of Charlemagne, whose pretended Visit 
to the holy sepuichre is described in the twen- 
tieth ’ which seems highly probable.” 
If however there existed romance upon 
Charlemagne and his peers before this 
history was written, it is certain that the 
Italian, which is the noblest branch of 
the family, is derived from this stock. 
- Geoffrey of Monmouth set forth his 
book in 1133. We wish Mr. Ritson, or 
