spine 16.5 A MW 1 Dec 11 W au Jehan Wauquelin Q The figure of Alexander the Great haunted the medieval imagination – as uelin much as Arthur, as much as Charlemagne. His story was translated more often The Medieval in medieval Europe than any work except the Gospels. Yet only small sections of the Alexander Romance have been translated into modern French, and Nigel Bryant’s is the first translation into English. Romance of Alexander The Deeds and Conquests of Alexander the Great is Jehan Wauquelin’s superb compendium, written for the Burgundian court in the mid-fifteenth century, R which draws together all the key elements of the Alexandrian tradition. Translated by Nigel Bryant With great clarity and intelligence Wauquelin produced a redaction of all the omance of major Alexander romances of the twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries – including the verse Roman d’Alexandre, The Vows of the Peacock and La The Medieval Venjance Alixandre – to tell the whole story of Alexander’s miraculous birth and childhood, his conquests of Persia and India, his battles with fabulous beasts and outlandish peoples, his journeys in the sky and under the sea, his poisoning at Babylon and the vengeance taken by his son. This is an accomplished and exciting work by a notable writer at the Burgundian court who perfectly understood the appeal of the great conqueror to ambitious dukes intent upon extending their dominions. Nigel Bryant has translated five major Arthurian romances from medieval A French, including Perceforest in which Alexander features prominently. He has lexander also translated the fourteenth-century chronicles of Jean le Bel. Cover: Alexander in battle, from the manuscript of Wauquelin’s The Deeds and Conquests of Alexander the Great produced in 1447 for Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. (Bibliothèque Nationale MS français 9342, folio 108.) Tr . B ry ant Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge IP12 3DF (GB) and 668 Mt Hope Ave, Rochester NY14620-2731 (US) www.boydellandbrewer.com The Deeds and Conquests of Alexander the Great This content downloaded from 198.91.37.2 on Mon, 28 Dec 2015 04:43:09 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions THE MEDIEVAL ALEXANDER Alexander the Great was a figure of immense importance in the Middle Ages. He exercised a powerful influence on the medieval imagination, and was es- tablished in the fourteenth century as one of the ‘Nine Worthies’, an epitome of chivalry. The literature devoted to his life, his deeds and his conquests enjoyed a remarkable popularity throughout Europe, yet only small sections have been translated into modern French and none at all into English. This is a surprising gap. An excellent way into this vast and fascinating body of work is Jehan Wauque- lin’s superb compendium, written for the Burgundian court in the mid-fifteenth century, which draws together in a most accessible and readable form all the key elements of the Alexandrian tradition. With great clarity and intelligence Wau- quelin produced a redaction of all the major Alexander romances of the twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, including the verse Romans d’Alixandre, the Fuerre de Gadres and Les Voeux du Paon and its sequels, to tell the whole story of Alexander’s miraculous birth and childhood, his conquests of Persia and India, his battles with lions, elephants, giants and dragons, his journeys in the sky and under the sea, his poisoning by Antipater and the vengeance taken by his son. This is an accomplished and exciting work by a notable writer at the Burgun- dian court who perfectly understood the appeal of the great conqueror to ambi- tious dukes intent upon extending their dominions. Nigel Bryant has translated five major Arthurian romances from medieval French, including Perceforest in which Alexander features prominently. He has also translated the fourteenth-century chronicles of Jean le Bel. This content downloaded from 198.91.37.2 on Mon, 28 Dec 2015 04:43:09 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Also by Nigel Bryant The High Book of the Grail: A Translation of the thirteenth century romance of Perlesvaus Chrétien de Troyes, Perceval: The Story of the Grail Merlin and the Grail The Legend of the Grail Perceforest The True Chronicles of Jean le Bel This content downloaded from 198.91.37.2 on Mon, 28 Dec 2015 04:43:09 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions THE MEDIEVAL ROMANCE OF ALEXANDER JEHAN WAUQUELIN’S THE DEEDS AND CONQUESTS OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT Translated by Nigel Bryant This content downloaded from 198.91.37.2 on Mon, 28 Dec 2015 04:43:09 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions © Nigel Bryant 2012 All rights reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation no part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system, published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted, recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner The right of Nigel Bryant to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 First published 2012 The Boydell Press, Woodbridge ISBN 978 1 84384 332 0 The Boydell Press is an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 3DF, UK and of Boydell & Brewer Inc. 668 Mount Hope Ave, Rochester, NY 14620–2731, USA website: www.boydellandbrewer.com The publisher has no responsibility for the continued existence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accu- rate or appropriate. A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Papers used by Boydell & Brewer Ltd are natural, recyclable products made from wood grown in sustainable forests Set in Palatino by The Word Service, Hungerford, Berkshire Printed in Great Britain by XXXX This content downloaded from 198.91.37.2 on Mon, 28 Dec 2015 04:43:09 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Contents INTRODUCTION Wauquelin’s Sources 1 Advice to Princes 8 The Conqueror: a Very Burgundian Hero 11 The Sovereign God 18 Another Appealing Myth 23 Further Reading 25 BOOK ONE Prologue 29 ALEXANDER’S CHILDHOOD II Of the noble King Alexander’s father and mother, and their 30 positions and their characters. III How certain malicious and envious men began to spread 30 rumours about this worthy lady Olympias. IV Of the wonders that attended the birth of the noble King 31 Alexander. V Of Alexander’s upbringing, and to whom he was entrusted 32 for his instruction in liberal and moral sciences. VI How at the age of ten Alexander dreamt a wondrous dream 33 while sleeping on his bed. VII How King Philip of Macedon summoned several learned 33 men to interpret his son Alexander’s vision. VIII The interpretation of Alexander’s dream given in Greek by 34 Astatus. IX The interpretation given by the second wise man, named 34 Saligor de Lieres. X How the wise philosopher Aristotle interpreted Alexander’s 35 dream. XI How Alexander killed the sorcerer Nectanebus, who had 35 slandered him and his mother. XII Of the horse named Bucephalus, ridden by Alexander in 36 many battles. XIII How Alexander mounted Bucephalus, the horse no one dared 37 go near. Downloaded from University Publishing Online. This is copyrighted material http://universitypublishingonline.org/boydell/ebook.jsf?bid=CBO9781782040309 vi CONTENTS XIV How Alexander was dubbed into the order of knighthood. 37 XV Of the rites performed and the garments and equipment 38 bestowed upon Alexander. THE WAR AGAINST THE KING OF ARMENIA XVI How King Philip of Macedon and his son Alexander were 39 challenged by Nicolas, king of Armenia and Turkey. XVII The reply given by the young King Alexander to King 40 Nicolas’s herald, on behalf and in the name of his father. XVIII How King Alexander mustered his forces to march into the 41 land of Armenia. XIX How the king appointed twelve commanders of his army, 42 who were called the twelve peers. XX How King Alexander sent Sanson, son of King Omer of Persia, 43 to deliver a message and pronouncement to King Nicolas of Armenia. XXI How Sanson Dailly of Persia delivered his message to King 44 Nicolas of Armenia. XXII How King Nicolas tried to win over Sanson by persuasion or 44 by threat, but failed. XXIII How Sanson of Persia returned to Alexander with the news 45 that battle would be joined. XXIV How King Alexander and King Nicolas formed their 46 battalions, and of the mighty battle that followed. XXV How King Nicolas challenged Alexander to single combat, in 48 which he was to lose his head. XXVI How Alexander slew King Nicolas on the field of battle and 49 gave his land to duke Ptholomer. FROM ATHENS TO TARSUS XXVII How King Alexander laid siege to the city of Athens, but did 50 not take it, out of respect for Aristotle. XXVIII How Alexander restored his mother to her rightful position 51 with his father King Philip, who had cast her out and rejected her, intending to marry one named Cleopatras. XXIX Of Alexander’s conduct and the envoys sent by Darius. 52 XXX Of the gifts sent by King Darius to Alexander by his envoys. 53 XXXI How Alexander set out with his army and defeated the Duke 53 of the Rock, and several other matters. XXXII How King Alexander marched towards the city of Tarsus, and 55 several other remarkable events.