home page ?


Leus sonetz,
Si cum suoill,
Vuoill ades e mon chan,
C'un sirventes prezan
Vuoill far; mas hom no.is cui
Q'ieu ja cel avol brui
Estiers ni en chantans,
Q'anta e dans
Mi par e volpillatges,
Qand ja.is part bos lignatges
Ni l'uns a l'autre faill;
Q'ieu vei que.l Bautz assail
E tal' et es talatz,
Et a parens assatz,
Manens e sojornatz,
E mains altres juratz,
Cui faill cors e barnatz.

Per so dreitz
Non acuoill
C'om sos amics soan
Per gerra, co.l Bautz fan
Lor paren dui e dui;
Que n'Azemars lor fui,
De Peitieus, tot enans,
Tant l'es affans
Gerra e metre gatges!
Mas del plaich fon messatges,
Puois tolc se de trebaill.
En Girautz, al miraill,
Ademars sos coignatz
(mas Bar' es derocatz)
L'en blasm', et eu si fatz,
Car del comt' es privatz
Qe.il tol sas eretatz.

Giraudetz
Amics vuoill
Qe.is sojorn aqest an,
C'aissi.s coven d'enfan
Que sas armas estui
Qand hom gast' e destrui
Sos amics plus prezans.
El e Rostans,
Plus parliers c'us gramages,
Tenon per gerr' ostatges,
C'anc trepas ni sonaill
Ni ausberc ab capmaill
No fo per els portatz,
Ni lor cavals armatz,
Ni colps pres ni donatz;
Pero.l coms ten en patz
Lo castel de Mornatz.

Si.l comtetz
De l'orguoill
Qe.l coms li vai mostran
Non fai meillor deman,
Ben sapchatz q'ieu non sui
Dels sieus, anz lo refui,
C'uoimais es bels e grans
E per semblans
Als enemics salvatges;
E.l poders e.l paratges
Taing c'a bon pretz s'engaill,
E gerrei e baraill
Com joves estrunatz.
Mals e braus es doptatz,
E cel deseretatz
Q'es humils ni vol patz
Er prenda cal li platz.

Si neletz
D'autre fuoill
Cantarai, car si van
Li baron cambian;
Q'en Guillems se desdui,
De Monpeslier, a cui
Vim jurar sobre sains
Gerr' e masans,
E dec segre.ls viatges
Del Bautz, mas sos coratges
L'es viratz d'altre taill,
E.l coms non es d'un aill
Cregutz ni sos comtatz!
E.n Bernartz, q'es raubatz,
D'Andus', e desfiatz,
Et a.ls covinens fratz
Del Bautz et oblidatz.

Lo valletz
De Nantuoill
Feri mieills de son bran
Q'en Dragonetz ogan;
E.l Bautz pense d'autrui,
Q'el non fer ni hom lui
De manes ni de lans.
Ai qans gazainz
E qans bons vassalatges
Sol far, et es dampnatges
Qe tant leu s'anuaill,
Qand ve c'om sobrassaill
Sos parens plus prezatz
E sojorna.is delatz!
En Guillems Arnautz jatz,
Que n'es tant mal protatz
C'om l'en ten per malvatz.

A light song
(as is my habit)
I ask for, and my singing:
because I want to compose
a grand sirventes; but let no man think
that I conceal base dissension
in my songs or elsewhere,
since I think it is shame
and harm and waste
when there is somewhere a noble family
whose members fail each other.
And now I see the lord of Baux attack
and defeat and being defeated
and he has relatives aplenty,
who are rich and take their ease,
and many other sworn allies as well,
whose heart and valour fails them.

Justice, in itself
doesn't admit
that one should reject his friends
in times of war, still his relatives do it,
one with another and with the lord of Baux.
First Azemar of Poitiers
shunned them from the outset,
so stressful does he find
waging war and placing guaranties.
Instead, he sent words of agreement
and thus ended his troubles.
Seeing this, Guiraut
Ademar, his brother-in-law,
(now that Barri is in ruins)
blames him, and so do I,
because sir Azemar is a good friend of the count
and still deprives him of his inheritance.

Giraudet
Amics may well
amuse himself this year
since it is meet for a child
that he hangs his weapons
when people damage and destroy
his worthiest friends.
He and Rostan,
than whom no lawyer is more talktative,
are kept as hostages during the war
since neither bell nor standard-pieces,
neither hauberk nor mail
was ever worn by them,
nor ever were their horses saddled
nor a blow given or taken by them.
Thus the count keeps the castle
of Mornas in peace.

If the young count
doesn't make stronger protest
touching the arrogance
the count is showing him,
let it be clear to you that I don't stand
for him, and that I disown him instead,
since now he's very much a grown-up
and, as far as looks go,
fierce towards the enemy.
Both power and ancestry
must be equalled by worth, I think:
let him fight and quarrel
like an impetuous youth.
An ill, violent man is respected
and the disinherited
who is humble and wants peace,
let him take henceforth to himself whom he likes.

Likewise
I shall sing
about other wrongs because
the barons are forswearing themselves.
Take Sir Guillems of Montpellier,
who amuses himself, he whom
we saw swear on holy relics
about war and havoc;
he ought to have followed the journeys
of the lord of Baux, but his thoughts
have turned him towards other directions;
and the count, nor his domains
have earned a head of garlic's worth.
And [so does amuse himself] Sir Bernartz of Anduze,
who is despoiled and defied,
and has broken his agreement
with the Lord of Baux and forgotten it.

The young hero
of Nantueil
wielded his sword better in battle
than Dragonet, this year.
Let the Lord of Baux think of somebody else
since this man doesn't strike, nor is he struck,
without much hesitation.[?]
Alas, which achievements,
which feats of great valour
would he do, and it is a shame
that he slumps into indolence
when he sees people attacking
his worthiest relatives
while he idles in the surroundings!
And Guillem Arnaus slumbers:
he has carried himself so badly
that people think he's gone bad.

Note: the model for this sirventes was Giraut de Bornelh's "Los apleiz" (also known as "Los apleichs" in certain critical editions), available on this troubadour's page.