Minstrels & Troubadours

Adam Robertson

What was a Minstrel?

A minstrel was a servant first employed as a court musician, a

Medieval bard.

Minstrels often created their own ballads but they were also
famous for memorizing long poems based on myths and
legends which were called 'chansons de geste'.

Minstrels often had many skills, including juggling, acrobatics,

dancing, fire eating, conjuring, comedy and animal training.

Wandering Minstrels

As time went on, Minstrels were replaced in the royal courts by the
more sophisticated Troubadours.

There were many venues for the wandering minstrels who had
been displaced at the castles and courts by the refined and
fashionable troubadours. Middle Ages Feasts, Fairs and Festivals
were all common occurrences during the Middle Ages.

The instruments played by wandering minstrels who performed at

these events were light and easily carried. They included fiddles,
the lute, recorders and small percussion instruments.

The songs and ballads sung by such minstrels were traditional

English favorites.

The Legend of Blondel the Minstrel

There is a legend which says that when King Richard the
Lionheart disappeared after the Crusades, a faithful squire named
Blondel the Minstrel journeyed in search of him. As a wandering
minstrel Blondel travelled for months over central Europe, vainly
seeking for news of his friend, the King of England. At last one day,
while singing a song he and Richard had composed together,
Blondel heard the song repeated from a window of the nearby
castle. Blondel the Minstrel recognized the voice to be none other
than that of King Richard. From the window Richard told him to let
the people of England know where he was confined, and Blondel
the minstrel immediately went upon his mission. This of course
lead to the ransom of King Richard and his return to England

Enter The Troubadours

Unlike the Minstrels, who began as court musicians, Troubadours

were originally travelling musicians.

Early Troubadours travelled village to village, some Troubadours,

however, travelled to the major cities of Europe or accompanied the
people travelling to take part in the Crusades.

These travelling Troubadours soon became the spreaders of news

and gossip from place to place.

The role of the troubadours eventually changed to part of an elite

society of royalty and nobles. These elite Troubadours originated as
aristocratic poets and musicians of Provence, France.

Travel in the Middle Ages, prompted by the Crusades, led to a new

and unparalleled interest in beautiful objects, elegant behaviors,
poetry and music.

The Most Famous of Troubadours

Many troubadours were nobles and knights who had taken

part in the Crusades. The following list includes some of
the most well known and influential of these men:

King Richard I of England (the Lionheart)

King Thibaut IV of Navarre

King Alfonso X of Castile and Len

Jaufr Rudel de Blaia

Bernart de Ventadorn

Peire Vidal

Raimbaut de Vaqueiras

Folquet de Marseille (archbishop of Toulouse)

The Importance of Troubadours

By singing songs about the Code of Chivalry and courtly

love, Troubadours helped to strengthen these ideas.

Troubadours were often hired to spread propaganda with

songs praising the patron, mocking his enemies,
encouraging his wars, teaching ethics and etiquette, and
maintaining religious unity.

With the support and encouragement of rulers such as

Eleanor of Aquitaine (King Richard Is mother), the
traditions and arts of the Troubadours soon became
enshrined in English Culture