Le Couronnement de Louis is an anonymous work dating from about 1130 to 1140 that has come down to us in nine manuscripts, the majority of which date from the 13th century. The poem is an important part of the William of Orange cycle in that it is the earliest and therefore lays the foundation for the entire chanson-de-geste genre. It tells the story of William’s defense of Louis, son of Charlemagne, during his childhood, and William’s heroic deeds as he battles Saracens and other villains.
This line-by-line translation closely follows the original Old French and adheres to the prosody of the original so that the musicality of the original verse may be heard in English. This translation also includes the repetitions in the poem, most of which have been left out in other translations, for the repetitions emphasize the strong orality of the poem. A discussion of the poem’s background and themes, the William of Orange cycle, and the chanson-de-geste genre precedes the translation.
