The Kingis Quair ("The King's Book")[1][2] is a fifteenth-century Early Scots poem attributed to James I of Scotland. It is semi-autobiographical in nature, describing the King's capture by the English in 1406 on his way to France and his subsequent imprisonment by Henry IV of England and his successors, Henry V and Henry VI.
Illustration of wall paintings in Penkill Castle, depicting scenes from The Kingis Quair.
The poem begins with the narrator who, alone and unable to sleep, begins to read Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy. At first, he reads in the hope that it will help him get back to sleep, but he quickly becomes interested in the text and its treatment of Boethius' own experience of misfortune. At last, he begins to think about his own youthful experience, and how he came to a life of misery. On hearing the Matins bell, he rises and begins to write a poem describing his fate. He begins with a sea voyage taken when he was twelve years of age, when he was captured and imprisoned for eighteen years. Whilst in prison, he feels isolated, believing himself to be the most miserable man living. The sight of birds singing outside his prison window draws him back into the outside world. Looking out, he sees a beautiful woman, and falls in love. This woman is ultimately to be the means of his liberation, and this sequence of events closely parallels the biography of James I of Scotland. James's imprisonment came to an end with his marriage to Joan Beaufort whose name may be punningly referenced in the 'flour jonettis' which the beloved lady wears in her hair (stanza 47).
When the lady departs, the narrator becomes desperately sad, and eventually falls into a trance. In a dream, he visits three goddesses, who address his love-problem. The first, Venus, admits that she has no authority in this case, and directs him to Minerva, who probes the nature of his love. Once satisfied that his desires are pure, rather than being simple lust, she advises him on the nature of free will, telling him that he must cultivate wisdom if he is to avoid being prey to changing fortunes. Finally, he descends to the earthly paradise, where he sees Fortune and her wheel, which fill him with fear. Fortune sets him to climb on her wheel, and, as she pinches his ear, he awakes.
Consumed by doubt, the narrator is reassured by the appearance of a turtle dove carrying a message, signalling the beneficent quality of his vision. The narrator claims that Fortune kept her promise to him by increasing his wisdom, so that he is now in a state of happiness with his beloved. The poem closes with the narrator offering thanks to all who, at the end of the poem, brought about his good fortune, and a dedication to the 'poetis laureate' Geoffrey Chaucer and John Gower. The poem's penultimate verse repeats its first line, 'heigh in the hevynnis figure circulere', so that its structure echoes that of the celestial spheres that it evokes.
Rhyming Schemeedit
The Kingis Quair uses the Chaucerian rhyme scheme rhyme royal: ABABBCC. The form was once thought to have been named for James I's usage, but scholars have since argued that it was named for its reference to the French chant royal.[3]
Bibliographyedit
James I of Scotland, The Kingis Quair, ed. Linne R. Mooney and Mary-Jo Arn, The Kingis Quair and Other Prison Poems. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Medieval Institute Publications, 2005.
Ebin, Lois A. "Boethius, Chaucer, and the Kingis Quair." Philological Quarterly 53 (1974), 321–41.
Greene, Darragh. "Sum newe thing: Autobiography, Allegory and Authority in the Kingis Quair." In On Allegory: Some Medieval Aspects and Approaches. Ed. Mary Carr et al. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars, 2008. pp. 70–86.
Mapstone, Sally. "Kingship and the Kingis Quair." In The Long Fifteenth Century: Essays for Douglas Gray. Ed. Helen Cooper and Sally Mapstone. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997. 52–69.
Petrina, Alessandra. The Kingis Quair of James I of Scotland. Padua: Unipress, 1997
The poem is the subject of "A Royal Poet," in The Sketchbook by Washington Irving (1820).
^Mooney, Linne R.; Mary-Jo Arn (2005). "James I of Scotland, The Kingis Quair: Introduction". The Kingis Quair and Other Prison Poems. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Medieval Institute Publications. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
^Henry Noble MacCraken, "King James' Claim to Rhyme Royal", Modern Language Notes, 24 (1909): 31–32.
External linksedit
Text of poem
January 01, 1970
kingis, quair, king, book, fifteenth, century, early, scots, poem, attributed, james, scotland, semi, autobiographical, nature, describing, king, capture, english, 1406, france, subsequent, imprisonment, henry, england, successors, henry, henry, illustration, . The Kingis Quair The King s Book 1 2 is a fifteenth century Early Scots poem attributed to James I of Scotland It is semi autobiographical in nature describing the King s capture by the English in 1406 on his way to France and his subsequent imprisonment by Henry IV of England and his successors Henry V and Henry VI Illustration of wall paintings in Penkill Castle depicting scenes from The Kingis Quair Contents 1 Summary 1 1 Rhyming Scheme 2 Bibliography 3 Notes 4 External linksSummary editThe poem begins with the narrator who alone and unable to sleep begins to read Boethius Consolation of Philosophy At first he reads in the hope that it will help him get back to sleep but he quickly becomes interested in the text and its treatment of Boethius own experience of misfortune At last he begins to think about his own youthful experience and how he came to a life of misery On hearing the Matins bell he rises and begins to write a poem describing his fate He begins with a sea voyage taken when he was twelve years of age when he was captured and imprisoned for eighteen years Whilst in prison he feels isolated believing himself to be the most miserable man living The sight of birds singing outside his prison window draws him back into the outside world Looking out he sees a beautiful woman and falls in love This woman is ultimately to be the means of his liberation and this sequence of events closely parallels the biography of James I of Scotland James s imprisonment came to an end with his marriage to Joan Beaufort whose name may be punningly referenced in the flour jonettis which the beloved lady wears in her hair stanza 47 When the lady departs the narrator becomes desperately sad and eventually falls into a trance In a dream he visits three goddesses who address his love problem The first Venus admits that she has no authority in this case and directs him to Minerva who probes the nature of his love Once satisfied that his desires are pure rather than being simple lust she advises him on the nature of free will telling him that he must cultivate wisdom if he is to avoid being prey to changing fortunes Finally he descends to the earthly paradise where he sees Fortune and her wheel which fill him with fear Fortune sets him to climb on her wheel and as she pinches his ear he awakes Consumed by doubt the narrator is reassured by the appearance of a turtle dove carrying a message signalling the beneficent quality of his vision The narrator claims that Fortune kept her promise to him by increasing his wisdom so that he is now in a state of happiness with his beloved The poem closes with the narrator offering thanks to all who at the end of the poem brought about his good fortune and a dedication to the poetis laureate Geoffrey Chaucer and John Gower The poem s penultimate verse repeats its first line heigh in the hevynnis figure circulere so that its structure echoes that of the celestial spheres that it evokes Rhyming Scheme edit The Kingis Quair uses the Chaucerian rhyme scheme rhyme royal ABABBCC The form was once thought to have been named for James I s usage but scholars have since argued that it was named for its reference to the French chant royal 3 Bibliography editJames I of Scotland The Kingis Quair ed Linne R Mooney and Mary Jo Arn The Kingis Quair and Other Prison Poems Kalamazoo Michigan Medieval Institute Publications 2005 Ebin Lois A Boethius Chaucer and the Kingis Quair Philological Quarterly 53 1974 321 41 Greene Darragh Sum newe thing Autobiography Allegory and Authority in the Kingis Quair In On Allegory Some Medieval Aspects and Approaches Ed Mary Carr et al Newcastle Cambridge Scholars 2008 pp 70 86 Mapstone Sally Kingship and the Kingis Quair In The Long Fifteenth Century Essays for Douglas Gray Ed Helen Cooper and Sally Mapstone Oxford Clarendon Press 1997 52 69 Petrina Alessandra The Kingis Quair of James I of Scotland Padua Unipress 1997 The poem is the subject of A Royal Poet in The Sketchbook by Washington Irving 1820 Notes edit Wiktionary Mooney Linne R Mary Jo Arn 2005 James I of Scotland The Kingis Quair Introduction The Kingis Quair and Other Prison Poems Kalamazoo Michigan Medieval Institute Publications a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a Missing or empty url help Henry Noble MacCraken King James Claim to Rhyme Royal Modern Language Notes 24 1909 31 32 External links editText of poem Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Kingis Quair amp oldid 1178299708, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
