Courtly love (or fin'amor ) is a medieval European concept regarding chivalric love and literary idea that came into prominence in the 12th century, developed in the context of the Occitan troubadour tradition in southern France, and was introduced to the court of King Henry II of England by EleanorRead more
Courtly love (or fin’amor ) is a medieval European concept regarding chivalric love and literary idea that came into prominence in the 12th century, developed in the context of the Occitan troubadour tradition in southern France, and was introduced to the court of King Henry II of England by Eleanor of Aquitaine.
A major aspect of courtly love was the knight’s devotion to his lady; the knight was expected to love and respect his lady even after she was married to another man, or if she never married. This kind of love was often tempestuous, with the focus on the lady’s feelings, and was usually unconsummated.
The motifs of courtly love were first made popular by the troubadours of Provence and Northern France. The troubadours were poets and musicians, who used their talents to seduce noblewomen and other patrons. They were often on tour, and would therefore court their patrons, who would give them gifts and money to continue their art. Courtly Love was also the inspiration for the knightly love in medieval romance, which was about noble knights who chose to die for their loves.
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The rules of Courtly love were loosely established by the code of the court of Love. It was a noble institution where young knights would be instructed in the ways of love. In particular, they would observe a form of love based on the relationship between a knight and his lady. In the Middle Ages,Read more
The rules of Courtly love were loosely established by the code of the court of Love. It was a noble institution where young knights would be instructed in the ways of love. In particular, they would observe a form of love based on the relationship between a knight and his lady. In the Middle Ages, Courtly love was a popular subject of art and literature.
Courtly love embodied a certain set of ideals that were based on the idea of a knight’s loyalty to a lady of a high ranking.
A knight would defend his lady’s honor at all costs and would often die for her. The relationship between a knight and his lady had a distinct set of rules. A knight would always be respectful to his lady and would never address her by her name, but instead refer to her as “my lady” and to himself as “your servant”.
The knight was expected to be a servant to his lady, and to protect her from any harm. He would never be rude to her, and would always remain faithful. The love was not supposed to be sexual. This kind of love is called “courtly love” because it was a code of conduct practised by the aristocracy in medieval Europe. In exchange for the lady promising to be faithful, her lover would do things for her.
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