Boeve de Haumtone

"The Anglo-Norman romances of Boeve de Haumtone and Gui de Warewic are the first appearances of stories that became exceptionally popular throughout Europe: versions were written in many languages, including of course Middle English, and were still entertaining adults and children alike up to the nineteenth century. They were written for the post-Conquest, French-speaking nobility, who were interested in the "history" of their adopted country. The heroes of these romances are not only inserted into early English but fight contemporary foes, the "Saracens" of the Middle East and North Africa. Energetic defenders of Christianity and vital props to inadequate rulers, they end their lives in very different ways, Boeve settling down in his North African kingdom and Gui dying as a hermit and proto-saint close to home."--Jacket.