PEOPLE, PLACES, AND VIOLENCE: A STUDY OF THE OLD FRENCH CHANSON D’ANTIOCHE

Abstract

The Chanson d’Antioche is a twelfth-century, Old French epic poem which, together with two other works, the Chanson des Chétifs and Chanson de Jérusalem, forms a trilogy of chansons de geste referred to as the central, or “historical”, crusade cycle. The Chanson d’Antioche, which is the earliest, longest, and most detailed of the three works, provides a quasi-historical account of the First Crusade up until the siege and capture of Antioch. The first half of the poem describes the events which bring the crusaders to Antioch, while the second half focuses on the various interactions between Christian and Muslim forces during, and briefly after, the city’s eight-month siege. The poem’s account of these events provides an intimate lens into the milieu in which it was performed and highlights contemporary attitudes towards alterity, space, and violence.