THE SCENE: Watch out knights of medieval Europe, because this lady of Brittany really knows how to to play the scene.
THE TEXT: There lived in Brittany four men whose names I do not know. There were not very old, but were exceedingly handsome, brave, and valiant knights: generous, courtly and liberal. They were held in very high esteem and were amongst the region’s noblemen. The four of them loved the lady and strove to perform brave deeds. Each man did his utmost to win her and have her love, taking great pains to woo her for himself. Each one of them would have thought himself capable of outdoing the others. The lady, who possessed great intelligence, gave careful thought to which of them was more worthy of her love. They all had such great merit that she was unable to choose the best, yet she did not wish to lose all three in order to retain just one. To each she displayed a friendly mien; she gave them love tokens and sent her messengers to them. Each was unaware of the other’s success, but no one could distinguish between them in any way. Each one though he could gain the upper hand by the quality of his service and his entreaties. When the knights assembled, each one, if he could, would lead all the rest in performing brave deeds in order to please the lady. They all regarded her as their beloved, wore her love token, a ring, sleeve or pennant, and used her name as a rallying cry.
– Chaitivel, Marie de France, 12th Century AD
