After making the above comparative study, we are not willing to accept the statement of Amador de los Ríos, so emphatically repeated by Givanel Mas, that the feats of Roger de Flor form the principal source of the Catalan book of chivalry. Nor will we accept the opinion of Denk that Tirant lo Blanch represents nothing else but the figure of Roger de Flor reproduced in the form of a novel. To the conservative statement of Menéndez y Pelayo we shall offer no serious objections, for the latter part of Tirant lo Blanch does bear the stamp of a kind of historical novel in which the heroic expedition of the Catalans and Aragonese and the tragic fate of Roger de Flor is more or less faithfully reflected. But we feel that the resemblance between Roger de Flor and Tirant lo Blanch and their military enterprises is so slight that even his statement must be qualified as misleading. However, had he stated that Tirant’s activities at Constantinople had a true historical basis, and that basis was Roger de Flor’s expedition to the Orient, we should most heartily indorse that statement.
If we have objected to the intimations and declarations that this book of chivalry is a historical novel based on the exploits of Roger de Flor, it is due to the fact that the real deeds of that hero play a very insignificant part in it. Roger de Flor was a brave commander with a remarkable genius for organizing his forces, and for planning campaigns. Muntaner does not describe him a single time as fighting hand to hand in a battle with the enemy. The historical Roger de Flor probably would not have created enough interest and enthusiasm. Moreover, in Tirant’s adventures and fights on the sea, whenever some extraordinary naval strategy was necessary, the credit for it is not given to Tirant, but to some member of the crew who is usually described as an experienced seaman. And yet Roger de Flor was so efficient a sea captain that the officers of the Temple intrusted him with their largest ship. If the author had intended to represent him, surely he would not have denied him the honor of those exploits. It is obvious that he did not regard his hero as an experienced mariner. The hero he had in mind was a knight whose duty called him to the battlefield. Tirant lo Blanch bears a far stronger resemblance to Guy of Warwick than to Roger de Flor. The striking points of similarity of these characters have already been noted. In addition to these points, we may briefly add that Tirant’s religious zeal; his generosity; his refusal to accept rewards; his fighting in tournaments, in personal combats, and on the field of battle; and his love—debased unfortunately—are qualities that are not mentioned in connection with Roger de Flor, but they are all in accord with the career of Guy of Warwick. Such being the case, would it not be far more accurate to say that Guy of Warwick is the principal source? The very beginning of Tirant lo Blanch indicates that its author was intimately acquainted with the English romance. Is it not probable that Guy of Warwick’s activities at Constantinople reminded Martorell of Roger de Flor’s heroic services to the emperor of that same city, whereupon he selected that historical event as a background for a certain part of the career of his hero? It must be remembered that Martorell knew well the exploits of the brave and adventurous soldiers of the Catalan-Aragonese expedition. His conception of military heroism was in great part based on the history, traditional or written, of his people. The spirit that animated its heroes became a part of him, and consequently it was but natural that that spirit should find expression in a literary production in which a military hero is portrayed.
From the above comparative study of Tirant lo Blanch in relation to its sources, viz., Lull’s Libre del Orde d’Cauayleria, Muntaner’s Chronica, and the English romance, Guy of Warwick, we are convinced that these sources have furnished important ideas and material to Martorell. The features drawn from Lull’s work are few, but, on the other hand, they have been subjected to very little change. It is important, however, for it seems to have provided a starting point for the author. Guy of Warwick has yielded more concrete material than the other two sources, but it has been modified to suit the pleasure and to meet the needs of the author. Muntaner’s Chronica did not furnish as many ideas and suggestions as Guy of Warwick, but the martial spirit of the Catalan and Aragonese warriors pervades a large part of the work.
It is not in our power to divine with certainty the plan as originally conceived by the author when he began his work. However, it is evident that he was intimately acquainted with Lull’s work and the English romance from the very beginning. It is quite probable that Martorell’s purpose was to make a hero of the squire who had received instructions pertaining to knighthood from the hermit, as related by Lull. This hermit reminded him of Guy of Warwick, whom he greatly admired, and he could not resist the temptation to reproduce that part of the English champion’s career which led to his retirement to a hermitage. Then, as we have already observed, the squire who is now Tirant lo Blanch meets the hermit, William of Warwick, after which he continues his way to the English court. A little more than a year later he returns to the hermit, and the latter is informed of the important events that took place in London. After a few days’ sojourn, Tirant returns to his native land, Brittany. His career is very promising, for he has been proclaimed the greatest knight in the exercises of arms at the English court. And now what is the young hero to do? Martorell had perhaps from the beginning of his work rather definite ideas in regard to his hero’s career. Still it is quite possible that he had made no fixed plan in advance, but selected the various spheres of Tirant’s activities during the course of the composition of his book. However that may be, Tirant’s career finally resolved itself into the following distinct spheres of operation: he succored the Knights of St. John on the island of Rhodes; after that, he joined the expedition of the King of France against the infidels; then he went to the aid of the Emperor of Constantinople; next he conquered and christianized Barbary; and finally he returned to Constantinople and reconquered all the lost territory of the Grecian empire. And now the question arises: Are all these various spheres of operation based on real historical events?
PART IV
THE HISTORICAL BASES UPON WHICH TIRANT’S SPHERES OF OPERATION ARE FOUNDED
CHAPTER I
THE WILLIAM OF WARWICK EPISODE
In the preceding part, wherein was made a comparative study of three important sources of Tirant to Blanch, we have had occasion to mention the real historical facts that form, in a more or less general way, the basis of Tirant’s career while in the service of the Emperor of Constantinople. Let us now transfer our researches to the field of history and try to determine what historical events underlie the hero’s various undertakings. Let us, moreover, examine all the features of Tirant lo Blanch that give any indication of historical influence, in order that we may attain a better understanding of the author’s method in composing this work. The first question that confronts us is: What historical basis is to be found in the William of Warwick episode?
The hero of the English romance of Guy of Warwick is more or less a legendary personage. John Rous, a learned scholar and writer who lived between 1411 and 1491, in his writings concerning the legendary history of Warwickshire, names Guy as the second of the Saxon Earls of Warwick. We cannot cite any authentic historical facts about him. The story probably represents an old Saxon legend, perhaps in the form of a ballad, which in the course of time became a romance in French, and this was later translated into English. In the two fourteenth-century versions to which we have referred in Part III of this work, Aethelstan is represented as the King of England. This fixes the supposed time of Guy’s career as prior to 940, which marks the end of Aethelstan’s reign. The latter annexed Danish Northumbria, and, in 937, won the great battle of Brunanburh over the Danes, Scots, and Strathclyde Britons. This fact shows that there are at least some traces of authentic history in the romance, for in Guy of Warwick we read of an invasion of the Danes.