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| The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.1 |
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Citation Information
122
INTRODUCTION
later media val French Romances.* Bauduin is a knight who,
after a very wild and loose youth, goes through an extraordinary
series of adventures, displaying great faith and courage, and
eventually becomes King of Jerusalem. I will cite some of the
traits evidently derived from our Traveller, which I have met
with in a short examination of this curious work.
Bauduin, embarked on a dromond in the Indian Sea, is
wrecked in the territory of Baudas, and near a city called Falise,
which stands on the River of Baudas. The people of this city
were an unbelieving race.
" Il ne créoient Dieu, Mahon, né Tervogant,
Ydole, cruchéfis, déable, né tirant." P. 300.
Their only belief was this, that when a man died a great fire
should be made beside his tomb, in which should be burned all
his clothes, arms, and necessary furniture, whilst his Horse
and servant should be put to death, and then the dead man
would have the benefit of all these useful properties in the other
world.-- Moreover, if it was the king that died
" Sé li rois de la terre i aloit trespassant,
* * * * *
Si fasoit-on tuer, .viij. jour en un tenant,
Tout chiaus c'on encontroit par la chité passant,
Pour tenir compaingnie leur ségnor soffisant.
Telle estoit le créanche ou païs dont je cant !"-.t.. P. 301.
Gaudin arrives when the king has been dead three days, and
through dread of this custom all the people of the city are shut
up in their houses. He enters an inn, and helps himself to a
vast repast, having been fasting for three days. He is then
seized and carried before the king, Polibans by name. We
might have quoted this prince at p. 87 as an instance of the
diffusion of the French tongue :
" Polibans sot Fransois, car on le doctrina :
j. renoiés de Franche. vij. ans i demora,
Qui li aprist Fransois, si que bel en parla." P. 309.
1r
* Li Rolllalls de Bauduin de Sebourc IIIe Roy de Jhcrusalem ; PoCiile du XIVe Siècle ; Valenciennes, 1841. 2 vols. 8vo. I was indebted to two references of M. Pauthier's for knowledge of the existence of this work. He cites the legends of the Mountain, and of the Stone of the Saracens from an abstract, but does not seem to have consulted the work itself, nor to have been aware of the extent of its borrowings from Marco Polo. M. Génin, from whose account Pauthier quotes, ascribes the poem to an early date after the death of Philip the Fair (1314). See Pauthier, pp. 57, 58, and 140.
-F See Polo, vol. i. p. 204, and vol. ii. p. 191. + See Polo, vol. i. p. 246.
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