Huguet de Mataplana
Encyclopedia
Huguet de Mataplana was a Catalan
nobleman and poet. His name is also spelled Hug, Huc, Uc, or Uget.
Huguet was the nephew of Ponç de Mataplana, who was attacked by the troubadour
Guillem de Berguedà and then lamented by him in a planh
. He is documented continually from 1185 until his death and in 1197, for the first time, he appears married to a woman named Sança. He was the lord of Mataplana near Nuestra Señora de Mongrony in the Ripollès
and figured extensively in the royal acts of Alfonso II of Aragon
and his son Peter II
, of whom he was said to be a favourite. Huguet himself was a patron of Raimon Vidal de Bezaudun
.
According to the Historias y conquestas of Pere Tomich
(1438) he was present at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa
in 1212. He was wounded at the Battle of Muret
the next year and died of his wounds a few months later. According to the Llibre dels fets
of James I the Conqueror, Huguet was one of those who fled the field at Muret.
According to the Abrils issia of Raimon Vidal, Huguet was an intimate of joglars, and in his So fo el temps Raimon describes in detail Huguet's sumptuous court at Mataplana. It has been posited that Raimon Vidal may have been Huguet's teacher and grammarian. Huguet left behind his own poetry in the form of three tenso
s and one sirventes
. In Scometre.us vuoill, Reculaire he attacks the joglar Reculaire. When young he composed two tensos with a young Blacatz
(or possibly with Blacasset
): En Blanchacet, eu sui de noit and En Diable, vos es per dar enoi. His most studied work is D'un sirventes m'es pres talens, an attack on his good friend Raimon de Miraval
, who disowned his wife, Caudairenga. The sirventes comes with a long razo
explaining the circumstances of its composition. Raimon has left a response.
Catalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
nobleman and poet. His name is also spelled Hug, Huc, Uc, or Uget.
Huguet was the nephew of Ponç de Mataplana, who was attacked by the troubadour
Troubadour
A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
Guillem de Berguedà and then lamented by him in a planh
Planh
The planh or plaing is a funeral lament used by the troubadours, modeled on the medieval Latin planctus. It differed from the planctus in that it was intended for a secular audience...
. He is documented continually from 1185 until his death and in 1197, for the first time, he appears married to a woman named Sança. He was the lord of Mataplana near Nuestra Señora de Mongrony in the Ripollès
Ripollès
Ripollès is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is located in the Ribes and Camprodon river valleys. , its population is 25,744, about 40% of whom live in the capital, Ripoll....
and figured extensively in the royal acts of Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II or Alfons I ; Huesca, 1-25 March 1157 – 25 April 1196), called the Chaste or the Troubadour, was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1164 until his death. He was the son of Ramon Berenguer IV of Barcelona and Petronilla of Aragon and the first King of Aragon who was...
and his son Peter II
Peter II of Aragon
Peter II the Catholic was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1196 to 1213.He was the son of Alfonso II of Aragon and Sancha of Castile...
, of whom he was said to be a favourite. Huguet himself was a patron of Raimon Vidal de Bezaudun
Raimon Vidal de Bezaudun
Raimon Vidal de Bezaudu was a Catalan troubadour from Besalù. He is famous for authoring the first poetical tract in a Romance language , the Razós de trobar...
.
According to the Historias y conquestas of Pere Tomich
Pere Tomich
Pere Tomich or Tomic was a Catalan knight and historian.He wrote a monumental general history of Catalonia from Creation, through the "primers pobladors d'Espanya" , to the reign of Ferdinand I of Aragon. His Histories e Conquestes del reyalme Darago e principat de Cathalunya he finished at Bagà...
(1438) he was present at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa
Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa
The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, known in Arab history as the Battle of Al-Uqab , took place on 16 July 1212 and was an important turning point in the Reconquista and in the medieval history of Spain...
in 1212. He was wounded at the Battle of Muret
Battle of Muret
At the Battle of Muret on 12 September 1213 the Crusading army of Simon IV de Montfort defeated the Aragonese and Catalan forces of Peter II of Aragon, at Muret near Toulouse.-Background:...
the next year and died of his wounds a few months later. According to the Llibre dels fets
Llibre dels fets
The Llibre dels fets is a collection of autobiographical chronicles of the reign of James the Conqueror, King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona. It is written in Catalan in the first person and describes the life of James. Though written at his dictation and with his editing, the work was not...
of James I the Conqueror, Huguet was one of those who fled the field at Muret.
According to the Abrils issia of Raimon Vidal, Huguet was an intimate of joglars, and in his So fo el temps Raimon describes in detail Huguet's sumptuous court at Mataplana. It has been posited that Raimon Vidal may have been Huguet's teacher and grammarian. Huguet left behind his own poetry in the form of three tenso
Tenso
A tenso is a style of Occitan song favoured by the troubadours. It takes the form of a debate in which each voice defends a position on a topic relating to love or ethics. Closely related genres include the partimen and the cobla exchange...
s and one sirventes
Sirventes
The sirventes or serventes is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry used by the troubadours. In early Catalan it became a sirventesch and was imported into that language in the fourteenth century, where it developed into a unique didactic/moralistic type...
. In Scometre.us vuoill, Reculaire he attacks the joglar Reculaire. When young he composed two tensos with a young Blacatz
Blacatz
Blacatz, known in French genealogy as Blacas de Blacas III , was feudal lord of Aups and a troubadour. Sordello composed a lament on his death, inviting the kings of his time to share and eat the heart of Blacatz and thus acquire a portion of his courage.He was the father of the troubadour...
(or possibly with Blacasset
Blacasset
Blacasset, Blacassetz, Blacssetz, or Blachessetz was a Provençal troubadour of the noble family of the Blacas, lords of Aulps, in the Empire. He was probably a son of the troubadour Blacatz, as his vida alleges, though this has come into doubt. He was also distantly related to Charles I of Naples...
): En Blanchacet, eu sui de noit and En Diable, vos es per dar enoi. His most studied work is D'un sirventes m'es pres talens, an attack on his good friend Raimon de Miraval
Raimon de Miraval
Raimon de Miraval was a troubadour and, according to his vida, "a poor knight from Carcassonne who owned less than a quarter of the castle of Miraval." Favoured by Raymond VI of Toulouse, he was also later associated with Peter II of Aragon and Alfonso VIII of Castile...
, who disowned his wife, Caudairenga. The sirventes comes with a long razo
Razo
Raso is an islet of 8 square kilometers in the Barlavento archipelago of Cape Verde. Raso is flanked by the smaller Branco islet on the west and by São Nicolau island on its eastern side. Raso is uninhabited and is now the only home of the Raso Lark. The Brown Booby and Red-billed Tropicbird visit...
explaining the circumstances of its composition. Raimon has left a response.