
Uc de Saint Circ (San Sir) or Hugues (Hugh) de Saint Circq (
fl.
''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...
1217–1253
[Aubrey, ''The Music of the Troubadours'', 22–23.]) was a
troubadour
A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a '' trobai ...
from
Quercy
Quercy (; oc, Carcin , locally ) is a former province of France located in the country's southwest, bounded on the north by Limousin, on the west by Périgord and Agenais, on the south by Gascony and Languedoc, and on the east by Rouergue ...
. Uc is perhaps most significant to modern historians as the probable author of several ''
vidas
Vidas may refer to:
People
* Vidas Alunderis (born 1979), Lithuanian footballer who is currently unattached
* Vidas Bičiulaitis (born 1971), retired boxer from Lithuania
* Vidas Blekaitis (born 1972), Lithuanian strongman
* Vidas Dančenka (bor ...
'' and ''
razos'' of other troubadours, though only one of
Bernart de Ventadorn exists under his name.
[Gaunt and Kay, 290.] Forty-four of his songs, including fifteen ''
cansos
The ''canso'' or ''canson'' or ''canzo'' () was a song style used by the troubadours. It was, by far, the most common genre used, especially by early troubadours, and only in the second half of the 13th century was its dominance challenged by ...
'' and only three ''canso'' melodies, have survived, along with a
didactic manual entitled ''Ensenhamen d'onor''.
[Egan, 111.] According to
William E. Burgwinkle, as "poet, biographer, literary historian, and mythographer, Uc must be accorded his rightful place as the 'inventor' (trobador) of 'troubadour poetry' and the idealogical trappings with which it came to be associated."
Uc is probably to be identified with the Uc Faidit (meaning "exiled" or "dispossessed") who authored the ''Donatz proensals'', one of the earliest
Occitan Occitan may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain.
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France.
* Occitan language
Occitan (; ...
grammar
In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structure, structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clause (linguistics), clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraint ...
s. This identity fits with Uc's status as the "inventor" of troubadour poetry as a distinct type and his life in Italy (possibly due to exile during the
Albigensian Crusade
The Albigensian Crusade or the Cathar Crusade (; 1209–1229) was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crow ...
).
Biography
Uc was born in the town of
Thégra
Thégra (; oc, Tegrà) is a commune in the Lot department in south-western France.
See also
* Communes of the Lot department
The following is a list of the 313 communes of the Lot department of France
France (), officially ...
to a minor nobleman, Arman, lord of Saint-Circ-d'Alzon, a village which no longer exists but was in the vicinity of
Rocamadour
Rocamadour (; ''Rocamador'' in Occitan) is a commune in the Lot department in Southwestern France. It lies in the former province of Quercy.
Rocamadour has attracted visitors for its setting in a gorge above a tributary of the River Dordogn ...
.
[Egan, 110.] According to Uc's ''vida'', the castle of Saint-Circ lay "at the foot of" (''al pe de'') the church of Sainta-Maria de Rocamadour, which is atop a cliff overlooking the
Alzon river valley and was destroyed by war in Uc's time.
[Egan, 109.] Furthermore, according to his ''vida'', Uc's many older brothers sent him off to receive a clerical education in
Montpellier.
At Montpellier he learned to read and write and discovered "songs and poems and ''
sirventes'' and ''
tenso
A ''tenso'' (; french: tençon) is a style of troubadour song. It takes the form of a debate in which each voice defends a position; common topics relate to love or ethics. Usually, the tenso is written by two different poets, but several examples ...
s'' and couplets and the deeds and the sayings of the worthy men and the worthy women who were living or had lived in the world."
It was through this education that he became a minstrel (
jongleur
A minstrel was an entertainer, initially in medieval Europe. It originally described any type of entertainer such as a musician, juggler, acrobat, singer or fool; later, from the sixteenth century, it came to mean a specialist entertainer w ...
).
Uc's gained fame through the ''
coblas'' and ''
partimen
The ''partimen'' (; ca, partiment ; also known as ''partia'' or ''joc partit'') is a cognate form of the French jeu-parti (plural ''jeux-partis''). It is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry composed between two troubadours, a subgenre of the ''tenso ...
s'' he exchanged with the
Count of Rodez, under whom he probably served in the Albigensian Crusade, and through the two ''tensos'' he exchanged with
Raymond III of Turenne, brother of
Maria de Ventadorn.
He also had contact with
Dalfi d'Alvernha, to whom he addressed one poem.
According to his ''vida'', he went into
Gascony
Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part ...
, where he wandered around on foot—occasionally on horse—penniless. Eventually he gained settled down with
Guillerma de Benauges, a countess and viscountess, who introduced him to
Savaric de Mauleon, who in turn clothed and outfitted him.
According to his ''vida'', he spent a considerable amount of time with Savaric in
Poitou
Poitou (, , ; ; Poitevin dialect, Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a Provinces of France, province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe.
Geography
The main histori ...
and the surrounding regions before heading into
Catalonia
Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy.
Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the no ...
and
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to so ...
, where he was at the court of
Peter II;
Castile, where he attended that of
Alfonso VIII
Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (''El Noble'') or the one of Las Navas (''el de las Navas''), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at ...
; and finally
León, where he was at that of
Alfonso IX.
Around 1220 he moved east into
Provence
Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border ...
, where his ''vida'' says he was "with all the barons", and into
Lombardy and the
March of Treviso (''marca Trevisana'').
During his travels in Languedoc, Spain, Provence, and Italy he probably met many other troubadours. Eventually Uc is said to have settled down with a wife and children, after which he never composed songs.
Uc's association, in Italy, with the
da Romano and
Malaspina Malaspina can refer to:
;People
*The Italian noble Malaspina family. Members of this family include:
**Albert Malaspina (1160/65 – 1206/12), Italian marquess.
** Conrad Malaspina (The Old) ( – after 1254), Italian nobleman.
** Spinetta Malaspin ...
families is evident in his surviving poetry.
It lasted forty years while he was in Italy, where he was probably a
Guelph
Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Well ...
.
Poetry
According to one version of his ''vida'', Uc ''non fez gaires de las cansos'' ("never accomplished much with his songs"), apparently because he was "never really in love with a lady".
While the biographer commended his lyrical and melodic compositions, he probably regarded his fifteen ''cansos'' out of a total forty-four poems as unusually low.
He was reputed to be able to feign love and to praise and belittle women with ease, but after his marriage his poetic output ceased.

Uc's poetry was influenced by his ecclesiastical education.
As mentioned above, he wrote ''cansos'' and ''tensos'', but also some ''sirventes''. His work is in general pedantic and truculent.
One of Uc's ''sirventes'', which begins ''Messonget, un sirventes'', acknowledges that it is ''el son d'en Arnaut Plagues'' ("the song of lord
Arnaut Plagues
Arnaut Plagues or Plages (fl. c. 1230–1245) was a troubadour probably from Provence.
Only one song of his survives, a ''tenso'' with the trobairitz Felipa, ''Ben volgra midons saub(r)es''. Though this song has also been attributed to Peirol ...
"), an imitation of by Arnaut. Another of his ''sirventes'', which begins as a "light" work with many textual affinities to at least four other troubadour works, but it ends as a political assault on
Ezzelino III da Romano, the viceroy of the
Emperor Frederick II
Frederick II ( German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Je ...
in Italy: ''Chanzos q'es leu per entendre''.
In , Uc demonstrates a hatred of the emperor, accusing him, a "monster of heresy", of believing in neither immortality nor paradise. Furthermore, he intends to humiliate
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
and the
Church and so the
Crusade against him in
Apulia is justified because ''selh qu'en Dieu non cre non deu terra tener'': "he who does not believe in God should not reign".
Uc also composed a ''
danseta
A ''dansa'' (), also spelt ''dança'', was an Old Occitan form of lyric poetry developed in the late thirteenth century among the troubadours. It is related to the English term "dance" and was often accompanied by dancing. A closely related form, t ...
'' in which the refrain was apparently repeated between the four stanzas.
Prose
Late in his life, at the da Romano court, Uc became a representative of the academic prose style then coming into fashion. In this vein he composed a collection of ''vidas'' and ''razos''.
[Cabré, 131–132.] Most of these were written in Italy and the numerous historical errors they contain have been attribute to the time and distance between the lives and events they describe, for, judging by the Italianisms which had crept into Uc's vocabulary by the time they were written, he must have been in Italy a while before he began their composition. The ''razos'' have been dated to 1227–1230 and no post-1219 events are recorded in them. Uc's earliest attempt at biography, however, is the collection of ''razos'' of
Bertran de Born
Bertran de Born (; 1140s – by 1215) was a baron from the Limousin in France, and one of the major Occitan troubadours of the 12th-13th century. He composed love songs (cansos) but was better known for his political songs (sirventes). He ...
, which were possibly penned in Languedoc or shortly after his arrival in northern Italy; in his later works he refers to the ''razos'' of Bertran as ''l'autr'escrit'': "the other writings". The sole ''vida'' to contain a direct claim of authorship is that of Bernart de Ventadorn, which says: ''Et ieu, N'Ucs de Saint Circ, de lui so qu'ieu ai escrit si me contet lo vescoms N'Ebles de Ventadorn'' ("And I, Lord Uc of Saint Circ, have written about him
ernartwhat the viscount Lord Ebles of Ventadorn told me").
Among the ''vidas'' he is supposed to have written is one of
Sordello
Sordello da Goito or Sordel de Goit (sometimes ''Sordell'') was a 13th-century Italian troubadour. His life and work have inspired several authors including Dante Alighieri, Robert Browning, and Samuel Beckett.
Life
Sordello was born in the ...
, a troubadour at the court of Ezzelino III and
Alberico da Romano
Alberico da Romano (1196 – 26 August 1260), called Alberico II, was an Italian condottiero, troubadour, and an alternatingly Guelph and Ghibelline statesman. He was also a patron of Occitan literature.
Biography
Alberico was born in the c ...
.
In it he presents what is probably the "official" court version of the kidnapping of
Cunizza Cunizza da Romano (c. 1198–1279) was an Italian noblewoman and a member of the da Romano dynasty, one of the most prominent families in northeastern Italy, Cunizza's marriages and liaisons, most notably with troubadour Sordello da Goito, are wide ...
: that Ezzelino ordered him, who lived at the court of Cunizza's erstwhile husband,
Rizzardo di San Bonifacio, to take her back to him.
Uc wrote an exchange with
Peire Guilhem de Luserna
Peire Guilhem de LusernaVariations of his Occitan name found in primary sources are ''Peire guiellms'', ''Peire Willems'', ''Peire Guillem'', ''Peire Guillems'', ''Peire Guielm'', and ''Peire Guillielm''. ( it, Pietro Guglielmo di Luserna) was a Pi ...
, an Italian troubadour, concerning Cunizza, in which Uc attacked her and Peire defended her.
Uc de Saint Circ: ''Peire Guillem, de Luserna''
RIALTO.
Sources
*Aubrey, Elizabeth
"References to Music in Old Occitan Literature."
''Acta Musicologica'', 61:2 (May–Aug., 1989), pp. 110–149.
*Aubrey, Elizabeth. ''The Music of the Troubadours''. Indiana University Press, 1996. .
*Bond, Gerald A
"The Last Unpublished Troubadour Songs."
'' Speculum'', 60:4 (Oct., 1985), pp. 827–849.
*Burgwinkle, William E. "For Love or Money: Uc de Saint-Circ and the Rhetoric of Exchange." ''Romanic Review'', 84:4 (1993:Nov.) pp. 347–377.
*Burgwinkle, William E. "The ''chansonniers'' as books" (pp. 246–262). ''The Troubadours: An Introduction''. Simon Gaunt and Sarah Kay, edd. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. .
*Cabré, Miriam. "Italian and Catalan troubadours" (pp. 127–140). ''The Troubadours: An Introduction''. Simon Gaunt and Sarah Kay, edd. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. .
*Chambers, Frank M. "Imitation of Form in the Old Provençal Lyric." ''Romance Philology'', 6 (1952/1953) pp. 104–121.
*Egan, Margarita (ed. and trans.) ''The Vidas of the Troubadours''. New York: Garland, 1984. .
*Gaunt, Simon, and Kay, Sarah. "Appendix I: Major Troubadours" (pp. 279–291). ''The Troubadours: An Introduction''. Simon Gaunt and Sarah Kay, edd. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. .
*Guida, Saverio. "Uc de Saint Circ e Clara d'Anduza". ''Messana: Rassegna di studi filologici, linguistici e storici'', 4 (1990), pp. 169–94.
*Guida, Saverio. "L'attività biografica di Uc de Saint Circ a Treviso". ''Il Medioevo nella Marca: trovatori, giullari, letterati a Treviso nei secoli XIII e XIV''. Treviso: 1991, pp. 91–114.
*Guida, Saverio. "Uc de Saint Circ usuraio ed eretico?" ''Cultura Neolatina'', 54 (1994), pp. 169–98.
*Guida, Saverio. ''Primi approcci a Uc de Saint Circ''. Soveria Mannelli, 1996. .
*Guida, Saverio. "Lo (pseudo)pseudonimo della danseta di Uc de Saint Circ (Bdt 457, 41:3)". ''Tenso: Bulletin de la Société Guillem IX'', 21 (2006), pp. 7–22.
*Jeanroy, Alfred, and Salverda de Grave, J. J. ''Poésies de Uc de Saint-Circ''. Toulouse: 1913.
*Meneghetti, Maria Luisa. "Intertextuality and dialogism in the troubadours" (pp. 181–196). ''The Troubadours: An Introduction''. Simon Gaunt and Sarah Kay, edd. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. .
*Poe, Elizabeth Wilson. "''L'Autr'escrit'' of Uc de Saint Circ: The ''Razos'' for Bertran de Born." ''Romance Philology'', 44:2 (1990:Nov.) pp. 123–136.
*Sansone, E. Giuseppe. ''La poesia dell'antica Provenza: testi e storia dei trovatori''. Ugo Guanda, ed. 1993.
*Throop, Palmer A
"Criticism of Papal Crusade Policy in Old French and Provençal."
''Speculum'', 13:4 (Oct., 1938), pp. 379–412.
*Uc de Saint Circ
Complete works.
*Zinelli, Fabio. "Uc de Saint-Circ imitatateur de Hugues de Berzé? Les chansons BdT 457,26 et RS 1821". ''Medioevo Romanzo'', 28 (2004), pp. 39–62.
*Zinelli, Fabio. "La chanson ''Be fai granada follor'' (BdT 457,7): Un cas d'attribution controversée et la tradition manuscrite de Saint-Circ (avec une note sur l'iconographie de C)". ''Studi medievali'', 47:2 (2006), pp. 589–651.
External links
Complete works
at trobar.org
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Uc De Saint Circ
13th-century French troubadours
French biographers
People from Lot (department)
French male non-fiction writers