ROMANCE, 205 
Perceforest” (printed in 1528), avers the following rigma¬ 
role concerning its discovery. In the year 1288, Count 
William of Hainault had, it is affirmed, crossed the seas in 
order to be present at the nuptials of Edward, and in the 
course of a tour through Britain, was hospitably entertained 
at an abbey situated on the banks of the Humber, and 
termed, it seems, Burtimer, because founded by a certain 
Burtimericus, a monarch of whom our annals are silent, but 
who had gained, in that place, a victory over the heathens 
of Germany. Here a cabinet, which was inclosed in a pri¬ 
vate recess, had been lately discovered within the massive 
walls of an ancient tower, and was found to contain a Gre¬ 
cian manuscript, along with a royal crown. The abbot had 
sent the latter to King Edward, and the Count of Hainault 
with difficulty obtained possession of the manuscript. He 
had it rendered from Greek into Latin by a monk of the 
abbey of Saint Landelain, and from that language it is said 
to have been translated into French by the author, who gives 
it to the world in honour of the Blessed Virgin, and for the 
edification of nobleness and chivalry. 
It is conjectured that the prose romances were many of 
them written by churchmen, because many of them are 
adorned %vith those scriptural characters which figure so 
strangely in the early mysteries or plays. Thus we are in¬ 
formed that “ in the curious romance of Huon de Bourdeaux, 
a sort of second part is added to that delightful history, in 
which the hero visits the terrestrial paradise, encounters the 
first murderer Cain, in the performance of his penance, with 
more matter to the same purpose, not likely to occur to the 
imagination of a layman 3 besides, that the laity of the period 
were, in general too busy and too ignorant to engage in 
literary tasks of any kind. The mystical portion of the 
romance of the Round Table seems derived from the same 
source. It may also be mentioned, that the audacious and 
sometimes blasphemous assertions, which claimed for -these 
fictions the credit due even to the inspired writings them¬ 
selves, were likely to originate amongst Roman Catholic 
churchmen, who were but too familiar with such forgeries, 
'for the purpose of authenticating the legends of their super¬ 
stition. One almost incredible instance of this impious 
"species of imposture occurs in the history of the Saint Graal, 
which curious mixture of mysticism and chivalry is ascribed 
by the unfearing and unblushing writer to the Second Person 
of the Trinity.” 
This amusement formed a fine weapon of attack for the 
Reformers. In the reign of Elizabeth, when the drama had 
completely turned the romance out of fashion, Ascham tells 
us, that “ In our forefathers tyme when papistrie as a standyng 
poole covered and overflowed all England, fewe books were 
read in our tongue, saving certain books of chivalrie, as they 
said for practice and pleasure, which as some say were made 
in monasteries by idle monks and wanton chanons." 
But churchmen were by no means the only authors of these 
legends. Although the Sires Clercs, as they were sometimes 
termed, were accounted the chronicles of the times in 
which they lived, and though upon them usually the com¬ 
mands of the sovereigns whom they served, imposed the task 
of producing new romances under the usual disguise of ancient 
chronicles translated from the learned languages—we find 
individuals among the laity, and those of no mean rank, 
who began to consider romance-writing an elegant employ¬ 
ment. Among these it is sufficient to mention Sir Thomas 
Malony, who compiled the Morte D'Arthur, from French 
originals; and Lord Berners, the excellent translator of 
Froissart, and author of a romance called The Chevalier de 
la Cygne. 
With greater verbosity, and far less fire than their poetical 
predecessors, the prose romances exhibited, nevertheless, 
more attention to the description of manners than had before 
been attempted. There was some attention shown to relieve 
their story, by the introduction of new characters, and to 
illustrate these personages by characteristic dialogue. The 
lovers conversed with each other in the terms of metaphysical 
gallantry, which were used in real.life; and from being a 
mere rhapsody of warlike feats, the romance began to assume 
Vol. XXII. No. 1494. 
the more artificial form of a picture of society. It is in 
the prose folios of Lancelot du Lac, Perceforest, and 
others, that antiquarians find recorded the most exact ac¬ 
counts of fights, tournaments, feasts, and other magnificent 
displays of chivalrie splendour, and we arc informed by an high 
authority, that these ancient books, amid many pages of dull 
repetition and uninteresting dialect, and notwithstanding 
the languor of an inartificial, protracted, and confused story, 
exhibit from time to time passages of deep interest, and 
situations of much novelty, as well as specimens of spirited 
and masculine writing. 
At the same time it cannot be concealed that the prose 
romances of chivalry were produced for the most part by 
Bayes’s most expeditious recipe for original composition, 
namely, by turning verse into prose, being extremely diffuse 
and languid compilations from the early metrical tales; and 
they are in general of little use to the antiquary, as neither their 
authors nor their dates can be ascertained. The early 
metrical tales are far more deserving of attention as connected 
with real history; and if we consider the romances of chivalry 
merely as amusements to the imagination, the subject appears 
better adapted for verse than for prose. The stately and 
formal manners of those ages soon grow wearisome in or¬ 
dinary narrative, and require to be enlivened by the rapidity 
and brilliancy of poetical-description. And who does not 
feel that the marvellous exploits and supernatural events with 
which they abound, deserve rather to be sung to the sound 
of the harp, tabret, cymbal, and all manner of musical instru¬ 
ments, than to be detailed in the sober language of truth, 
which is absurdly affected by the prose romancers, who 
generally announce themselves as authentic historians, and 
rail at the falsehood of their metrical predecessors ? Accord¬ 
ingly it is among the poets that we are to look for the finest 
specimens of the fictions which we are now considering; and 
while the romances of Ariosto, and Tasso and Scott, are 
read again and again by persons of all descriptions, the 
Amadis de Gaul is now almost forgotten. 
In tracing what is called the origin of romances, some 
authors have fixed their attention solely on the classic models, 
others have referred these amusing fictions to an eastern 
origin ; a third party has fled to the northern Scandinavian 
legends, and a fourth has contended for the sufficiency of 
human nature to produce them in every age and climate. 
The opinions of the three first are supported by those traces 
of Grecian, Arabian, and Scandinavian legends which are 
found in nearly all the romances of the middle ages. The 
opinion that original invention supplied much of the works 
under consideration, though, at first sight, probable, does 
not bear close examination. Of all the faculties of the mind, 
imagination seems most dependent on foreign aid, and con¬ 
trary to what might be expected, scarcely exists with un¬ 
civilized people. Caressed and largely rewarded by the 
great, subject from their wandering life to some variety of 
adventure, spectators of the internal affairs of families, 
and the external manners of society, the minstrels present 
nevertheless nearly one story. A remarkable historical event 
and a warlike exploit adapted to the ancestor of the patron 
who listened to its commemoration, is slightly diversified by 
the gorgeous imagery of the east, or, as we advance towards 
Germany, rendered sublime by the terrific images of the 
Scandinavian mythology. A barter of commodities takes 
place between these caterers for royal and noble amuse¬ 
ment, and we have the whole of the ruder romances. The 
early history of Europe, their foundation, the mythological 
history of remote and unknown countries, their adjuvants, 
the minstrel’s feeling for natural beauty, or his observation of 
passing manners, their ornament—-such are the primary 
materials of that beautiful and complex structure, which, in 
our own civilized times, already rivals the potent enchant¬ 
ment of the drama, and bids fair to eclipse the more laboured 
forms of poetry altogether. 
The classical sources of romances are few. The Greek lan¬ 
guage was scarcely known in many countries where romances 
first appeared. The Odyssey of Homer has indeed been 
traced into one of the tales of the middle ages, but this is 
3 G the 
