Rudolf von Ems

Rudolf von Ems

Rudolf von Ems (c. 1200 - 1254) was a mediaeval German epic poet.

Life

Rudolf von Ems was born in the Vorarlberg, in an area that is now Austria. He took his name from the castle of Hohenems near Bregenz, now in Austria, and was a knight in the service of the Counts of Montfort. His works were written between 1220 and1254. He is thought to have died whilst accompanying King Conrad IV on his advance into Italy.

He was one of the most learned and also most productive poets of his time, although not all his works are preserved. Those that are, are distinguished by grace and sincerity in the narration, strict morality and technical mastery. He himself describes Gottfried von Strassburg as his ideal; this is quite credible - as opposed to other poets who seem only to do lip service or pay their respects for form's sake - as he sometimes quotes literally from "Tristan", for example. He has also adopted Gottfried's technique of making literary excursuses in which he names works of contemporaries and of his own.

He died in Italy in 1254.

Works

Of his surviving works, the tale "Der gute Gerhard" ("Gerhard the Good") is the oldest and also the best, a depiction of Christian humility, probably based on a Latin source.

This was followed by "Barlaam and Josaphat", dating from approximately 1225 - 1230 AD, taken from a Latin translation of a Greek version of the story of the conversion of an Indian prince to Christianity (a story which is believed in fact to be that of the Buddha, at many removes); and by "Wilhelm von Orlens", the story of the childhood love of Willehalm and Amelie, who are among the most famous lovers of the Middle Ages.

His "Alexanderroman" ("Romance of Alexander"), written about 1240, is a fragment. In 21,000 verses the upbringing and battles of Alexander are depicted, in which the hero is a model of knightly virtue. Rudolf's sources for this work were principally the "Historia de preliis" and the "Historiae Alexandri Magni" of Curtius Rufus.

The "Chronicle of the World" ("Weltchronik") is Rudolf's last work, dedicated to King Conrad IV. It narrates, as an addition to the Bible, the "Historia scholastica" of Petrus Comestor and the "Pantheon" of Godfrey of Viterbo, the history of the world from the creation up to the death of King Solomon, with the added motive of legitimizing the rule of the Hohenstaufen dynasty. As early as the 13th century this work was combined in many manuscripts with the Christherre-Chronik.

A further work, "Eustachius", is lost.

Editions of works

* Anon, 1967. "Rudolf von Ems: Weltchronik. Aus der Wernigeroder Handschrift herausgegeben von Gustav Ehrismann". 2nd ed., Dublin: Weidmann: Deutsche Texte des Mittelalters 20.
* Asher, John, 1989. "Rudolf von Ems, Der guote Gêrhart". 3rd ed., Tübingen: Altdeutsche Textbibliothek 56.
* Junk, Victor, 1928-29 repr. 1970. "Rudolf von Ems, Alexander. Ein höfischer Versroman des 13. Jahrhunderts", 2 vols. Darmstadt: Wiss. Buchgesellschaft (unaltered reissue of the Leipzig edition of 1928-29).
* Pfeiffer, 1843 repr. 1965. "Barlaam und Josaphat". Leipzig.

References

* "Meyers Konversationslexikon". 1888-90, 4th edition, Bd. 14, S. 15 (see also external link below)

* Becker, Peter Jörg. 2003. "Rudolf von Ems: Willehalm von Orlens [Kat.Nr. 40] ", in: Peter Jörg Becker and Eef Overgaauw (eds.): "Aderlass und Seelentrost. Die Überlieferung deutscher Texte im Spiegel Berliner Handschriften und Inkunabeln", Mainz 2003, pp.94-96.
*Brackert, Helmut, 1968. "Rudolf von Ems. Dichtung und Geschichte". Heidelberg.
*Dunphy, Graeme (ed.), 2003. "History as Literature. German World Chronicles of the Thirteenth Century in Verse". Kalamazoo.
*Klingenböck, Ursula, 1994: "doch weiz ich es von wârheit niht. Fiktionalisierung und Historisierung im "Alexander" Rudolfs von Ems". Dissertation, Vienna University.
* Vilmar, 1839. "Die zwei Rezensionen und die Handschriftenfamilien der Weltchronik Rudolfs von Ems". Marburg.

External links

*
* [http://www.aeiou.at/aeiou.encyclop.r/r941176.htm Brief article at AEIOU (Austrian Online Encyclopaedia)]
* [http://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/sammlung1/cpg/cpg323.xml?to_blatt=3r&docname=cpg323 Heidelberg MS of "Willehalm von Orlens"]
* [http://susi.e-technik.uni-ulm.de:8080/Meyers2/seite/werk/meyers/band/14/seite/0015/meyers_b14_s0015.html#Rudolf%20von%20Ems Meyers Konversationslexikon Online: Rudolf von Ems]
*CathEncy|wstitle=Rudolf von Ems

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  • Rudolf von Ems — (li.), seinem Schreiber diktierend. Eingangsbild der Weltchronik. Rudolf von Ems (* um 1200 in Hohenems/Vorarlberg; † 1254 ?) war ein deutscher Epiker des Mittelalters. Inhaltsverzeichnis …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Rudolf von Ems — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Rudolf von Ems (circa 1200–1254) fue un poeta épico medieval alemán. Del Weltchronik: El David con escribas y múscios. Iluminación del manuscrito de la biblioteca central de Zürich …   Wikipedia Español

  • RUDOLF VON EMS — (mort en 1254 env.) On ignore les dates de naissance et de décès de Rudolf von Ems, et la vie de ce grand écrivain reste dans l’ombre. Il est issu d’une famille de ministériaux au service de la famille de Montfort, et originaire d’Ems (Domat, au… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Rudolf von Ems — • Middle High German epic poet of the thirteenth century Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Rudolf von Ems     Rudolf von Ems      …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Rudolf von Ems — Rudolf von Ems, deutscher Epiker des Mittelalters, ein Schweizer von Geburt, stand in Diensten des Grafen von Montfort und dichtete zwischen 1220 und 1254, in welchem Jahr er vermutlich als Begleiter Kaiser Konrads IV. »in welschen Landen« starb …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Rudolf von Ems — Rudolf von Ẹms,   Dichter des 13. Jahrhunderts aus Hohenems (Vorarlberg); Epiker in der Nachfolge der Klassiker der mittelhochdeutschen Blütezeit. Rudolf stammte aus ritterlichem Geschlecht und war Ministeriale der Grafen von Montfort; er starb… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Rudolf von Ems — ▪ German poet born c. 1200, Hohenems, Swabia [now in Austria] died c. 1254, Italy       prolific and versatile Middle High German poet. Between about 1220 and 1254 he wrote five epic poems, totaling more than 93,000 lines.       Though the… …   Universalium

  • Rudolf von Tavel — (* 21. Dezember 1866 in Bern; † 18. Oktober 1934 ebenda) war ein Schweizer Journalist und Schriftsteller. Inhaltsverzeichnis …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Herren von Ems — Wappen der Herren von Ems in Scheiblers Wappenbuch von 1450 Die Herren von Ems, später von Hohenems (ab 1560 Grafen), waren ein Adels und Rittergeschlecht in Vorarlberg. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • EMS — bezeichnet: Ems Chemie, Schweizer Unternehmen beheimatet in Domat/Ems, Kt. Graubünden, Schweiz AG Ems, Reederei in Emden Ems (1934), Bereisungsschiff des Wasser und Schifffahrtsamtes Emden ein 1884 gebautes Dampfschiff der Flüsse Klasse des… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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