Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14 Summary and Analysis

Chapter 12:

Books and authors are discussed. Students disinclined to law, medicine, or teaching, would sometimes wander the country, living by their wits. These wanderers were called "Goliards," and they came to develop a new type of Latin verse known for its irreverence and pagan nature.

Other poets and authors wrote in one of the two French languages of the time, Provencal or northern. Troyes was a major center for northern-writing authors. Chretien de Troyes is Troyes' most famous author. His works are the basis for most of what is known about the Arthurian legends. A soldier, Geoffroi de Villehardouin, wrote about the sacking of Constantinople in the vernacular, creating the first masterpiece in French prose.

In 1250, Champagne is ruled by Thibaut IV, a famous poet and songwriter. He has a famous infatuation with the French queen, Queen...