Амадис де Гаула: Иберийский рыцарский роман

Iberian chivalric romance

Amadís de Gaula (in English Amadis of Gaul) (lang es, amaˈðiz ðe ˈɣawla) (Amadis de Gaula, ɐmɐˈdiʒ ðɨ ˈɣawlɐ) is an Iberian landmark work among the Spanish and Portuguese chivalric romances which were in vogue in the 16th century, although its first version, much revised before printing, was written at the onset of the 14th century in an uncertain place of the Iberian Peninsula. The earliest surviving edition of the known text, by Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo (not Ordóñez de Montalvo), was printed in Zaragoza, Spain, in 1508, although almost certainly there were earlier printed editions, now lost. It was published in four books in Castilian, but its origins are unclear: The narrative originates in the late post Arthurian genre and had certainly been read as early as the 14th century by the chancellor Pero López de Ayala, as well as his contemporary Pero Ferrús. Montalvo himself confesses to have amended the first three volumes, and to be the author of the fourth. Additionally, in the Portuguese Chronicle by Gomes Eanes de Zurara (1454), Amadis is attributed to Vasco de Lobeira, who was knighted after the Battle of Aljubarrota (1385). Other sources claim that the work was, in fact, a copy of João de Lobeira, and that it was a translation into Castilian Spanish of an earlier work, probably from the beginning of the 14th century, however, no primitive version in Portuguese is known. A more recent sources attribute Amadis to Henry of Castile, due to evidence linking his biography with the events in Amadis. The inspiration for the "Amadis de Gaula" appears to be the forbidden marriage of Infanta Constanza of Aragon with Henry in 1260 (see Don Juan Manuel's es of 1335), as forbidden as was also Oriana's marriage to Amadis. In the introduction to the text, Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo explains that he edited the first three books of a text in circulation since the 14th century. Montalvo also admits to adding a fourth as yet unpublished book as well as adding a continuation, Las sergas de Esplandián, which he claims was found in a buried chest in Constantinople and transported to Spain by a Hungarian merchant (the famous motif of the found manuscript). Amadís de Gaula was the fictional character Don Quixote's favorite book in the novel by Miguel de Cervantes.

The story narrates the star crossed love of King Perión of Gaula and Elisena of England, resulting in the secret birth of Amadís. The place called Gaula is a fictional kingdom within Brittany. It has in the past been identified with Wales or France, but it is best understood as a completely legendary place. Abandoned at birth on a raft in England, the child is raised by the knight Gandales in Scotland and investigates his origins through fantastic adventures. He is persecuted by the wizard Arcaláus, but protected by Urganda la Desconocida (Urganda the Unknown or Unrecognized), an ambiguous priestess with magical powers and a talent for prophecy. Knighted by his father King Perión, Amadís overcomes the challenges of the enchanted Ínsola Firme (a sort of peninsula), including passing through the Arch of Faithful Lovers. Despite Amadís' celebrated fidelity, his childhood sweetheart, Oriana, heiress to the throne of Great Britain, becomes jealous of a rival princess and sends a letter to chastise Amadís. The knight changes his name to Beltenebros and indulges in a long period of madness on the isolated Peña Pobre (Poor Peak or Mountain). He recovers his senses only when Oriana sends her maid to retrieve him. He then helps Oriana's father, Lisuarte, repel invaders. A short time later he and Oriana scandalously consummate their love. Their son Esplandián is the result of this one illicit meeting. Rodríguez de Montalvo asserts that in the "original" Amadís, Esplandián eventually kills his father for this offense against his mother's honor; however, Montalvo amends this defect and resolves their conflict peaceably. Oriana and Amadís defer their marriage for many years due to enmity between Amadís and Oriana's father, Lisuarte. Amadís absents himself from Britain for at least 10 years, masquerading as "The Knight of the Green Sword". He travels as far as Constantinople and secures the favor of the child princess Leonorina, who will become Esplandián's wife. His most famous adventure during this time of exile is the battle with the giant Endriago, a monster born of incest who exhales a poisonous gas and whose body is covered in scales. As a knight, Amadís is courteous, gentle, sensitive, and a Christian, who dares to defend free love. Unlike most literary heroes of his time (French and German, for example), Amadís is a handsome man who would cry if refused by his lady, but is invincible in battle and usually emerges drenched in his own and his opponents' blood.

As mentioned above, the origins of the book of Amadís are disputed.

The only known complete text of Amadís de Gaula is that of Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo, a Castilian writer. The earliest surviving text (book) is from 1508, although scholars accept that there were earlier editions. If this text had been based on a Portuguese original, there would be linguistic evidence in the text. As there is none, the text of Montalvo must have been written in Castilian.

The only known manuscript are the 15th century fragments found in a book binding (a discarded manuscript, in this case Amadís, was used as raw material for binding another book), and identified and published by es. He claimed sole ownership of only Book IV. The existence of a prior version of Books I to III has been supported by Antonio Rodríguez Moñino's identification of four 15th century manuscript fragments (c. 1420). The name "Esplandián" is clearly visible in one of these. The fragments belong to the collection of the Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley. They show that, contrary to the usual view that Montalvo expanded the first three books, instead he abbreviated them.

In the Spanish translation of Egidio Colonna's De regimine principum, Amadís is mentioned and also the poet Enrico, who could well be Enrico de Castiglia. Egidio Colonna was in Rome in 1267 when Henry of Castile was elected Senator. The translation was made around 1350 under King Peter the Cruel. This is the oldest mention of Amadís.