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Robert Wace Biography |
Wace Robert (~1115-~1183) was a poet, whose Anglo-Norman Roman de Brut (c. 1155) was based on the work of Geoffrey of Monmouth. It cannot be regarded as a history in any modern sense. Wace narrates the founding of Britain, by Brutus, to the end of the legendary British history created by Geoffrey of Monmouth. In the midst of the Arthurian section of the text, Wace was the first to mention the legend of King Arthur's Round Table, although he on the whole adds only minor details to Geoffrey's text. The Roman de Brut became the basis, in turn, for Layamon's Brut, an alliterative Middle English poem, and Piers Langtoft's Chronicle.
Wace was born in Jersey and brought up in France, ending his career as Canon of Bayeux; he wrote in Anglo-Norman, a dialect of Old French. His later work, the Roman de Rou, a verse history of the Dukes of Normandy, was, according to Layamon, commissioned by King Henry II of England. Other works, also in verse, include lives of St. Margaret and St. Nicholas.
Although the name Robert has been ascribed to Wace, this is a tradition of no great antiquity. It is generally believed nowadays that Wace only had one name.
There is a granite memorial stone to Wace built into the side of the States Building in Jersey's Royal Square. This includes a quote from the Roman de Rou that expresses the poet's pride in his place of birth:
Jo di e dirai ke jo sui
Wace de l’isle de Gersui
I say and will say that I am
Wace from the Island of Jersey
Writers in Jèrriais have looked on Wace as the founder of Jersey literature. |
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