The Crowning of Louis

Book excerpt: Le Couronnement de Louis, an anonymous work dating from about 1130 to 1140, is the earliest heroic epic of the William of Orange cycle and therefore lays the foundation for the entire chanson-de-geste genre. It tells the story of William's defense of Louis, son of Charlemagne, during his childhood, and William's heroic deeds as he battles Saracens and other villains. This line-by-line translation closely follows the original Old French, capturing the stylistic features that clearly mark the poem as oral literature. A discussion of the poem's background and themes, the William of Orange cycle, and the chanson-de-geste genre precedes the translation.