François Villon....Ballad Of The Ladies Of Yore
François Villon
The Cursed Poet of the Middle Ages
A Life of Crime and Academia
He is the best known French poet of the Late Middle Ages. He was involved in criminal behavior and had multiple encounters with law enforcement authorities.
A Life of Crime and Academia Early Education: Born into poverty as François de Montcorbier or des Loges, he was adopted by Guillaume de Villon, a wealthy chaplain who provided his surname and paid for his schooling.
Master of Arts: He was a brilliant student, earning a Master of Arts degree from the University of Paris in 1452.
The Fatal Brawl: In 1455, Villon fatally stabbed a priest named Philippe Sermoise during a street fight, forcing him to flee Paris.
The College Heist: After receiving a royal pardon for the killing, he returned to Paris only to orchestrate a massive burglary at the Collège de Navarre on Christmas Eve in 1456, stealing 500 gold crowns.
The Ultimate Escape: Arrested again in 1462 for a street brawl, he was sentenced to be hanged. On January 5, 1463, the high court commuted his sentence to a 10-year banishment from Paris. Villon left the gates of the city and vanished completely from historical records.
Ballad Of The Ladies Of Yore
Tell me where, in what country,
Is Flora the beautiful Roman,
Archipiada or Thais
Who was first cousin to her once,
Echo who speaks when there's a sound
On a pond or a river
Whose beauty was more than human?
But where are the snows of yesteryear?
Where is the learned Heloise
For whom they castrated Pierre Abelard
And made him a monk at Saint-Denis,
For his love he took this pain,
Likewise where is the queen
Who commanded that Buridan
Be thrown in a sack into the Seine?
But where are the snows of yesteryear?
The queen white as a lily
Who sang with a siren's voice,
Big-footed Bertha, Beatrice, Alice,
Haremburgis who held Maine
And Jeanne the good maid of Lorraine
Whom the English burnt at Rouen, where,
Where are they, sovereign Virgin?
But where are the snows of yesteryear?
Prince, don't ask me in a week
or in a year what place they are;
I can only give you this refrain:
Where are the snows of yesteryear
▼▼ DEEPER DIG ▼▼
शान्ति εἰρηνικός سلام — [ L ] 和平 ☮︎ शांति 평화 ſíot͡ʃáin ሰላም pax