Four Arthurian Romances
the Rhone and the Saone, while Pampelune is, of course, a Spanish city
near the French frontier. (F.)]
[Footnote 414: The topography of the kingdom of Gorre, the land where
dwell the captives held by King Bademagu, is much confused. One would
suppose at first that the stream traversed by the two perilous bridges
formed the frontier of the kingdom. But here (v.2102), before reaching
such a frontier, the captives are already met. Foerster suggests that we
may be here at a sort of foreground or borderland which is defended by
the knight at the ford (v. 735 f.), and which, though not within the
limits of the kingdom, is nevertheless beneath the sway of Bademagu. In
the sequel the stream with the perilous bridges is placed immediately
before the King's palace (cf. Foerster's note and G. Paris in "Romania",
xxi. 471 note).]
[Footnote 415: For magic rings, see A. Hertel, op. cit., p. 62 f.]
[Footnote 416: This "dame" was the fairy Vivian, "the lady of the lake".
(F.)]
[Footnote 417: A good example of the moral dilemmas in which Chrétien
delights to place his characters. Under the displeasing shell of
allegory and mediaeval casuistry we have here the germ of psychological
analysis of motive.]
[Footnote 418: The legendary origin of this ointment, named after Mary
Magdelene, Mary the mother of James, and Mary Salome, is mentioned in
the epic poem "Mort Aimeri de Narbonne" (ed. "Anciens Textes", p. 86).
(F.)]
[Footnote 419: The universities of Montpellier and of Salerno were the
chief centres of medical study in the Middle Ages. Salerno is referred
to in "Cligés", v. 5818.]
[Footnote 420: The hero of the poem is here first mentioned by name.]
[Footnote 421: The classic love-story of Pyramus and Thisbe, told by
Ovid et al., was a favourite in the Middle Ages.]
[Footnote 422: Here he have the explanation of Guinevere's cold
reception of Lancelot; he had been faithless to the rigid code of
courtesy when he had hesitated for even a moment to cover himself with
shame for her sake.]
[Footnote 423: The expression "or est venuz qui aunera", less literally
means "who will defeat the entire field". Though Chrétien refers to the
expression as a current proverb, only two other examples of its use
have been found. (Cf. "Romania", xvi. 101, and "Ztsch. fur romanische
Philologie", xi. 430.) From this passage G. Paris surmised that Chrétien
himself was a herald-at-arms ("Journal des Savants", 1902, p. 296), but
as Foerster says, the text hardly warrants the supposition.]
[Footnote 424: The evident satisfaction with which Chrétien describes in
detail the bearings of the knights in the following passage lends colour
to Gaston Paris' conjecture that he was a herald as well as a poet.]
[Footnote 425: According to the statement made at the end of the poem
by the continuator of Chrétien, Godefroi de Leigni, it must have been at
about this point that the continuator took up the thread of the story.
It is not known why Chrétien dropped the poem where he did.]
[Footnote 426: Bade = Bath. (F.)]
[Footnote 427: The situation recalls that in "Aucassin et Nicolette",
where Aucassin confined in the tower hears his sweetheart calling to him
from outside.]
[Footnote 428: The figure is, of course, taken from the game of throwing
dice for high points. For an exhaustive account of dice-playing derived
from old French texts, cf. Franz Semrau, "Wurfel und Wurfelspiel in
alten Frankreich", "Beiheft" 23 of "Ztsch. fur romanische Philologie
(Halle," 1910).]
[Footnote 429: Alexander's horse.]