Beyond the Borders of Materiality: Tristrem and Counsel in Thirteenth-Century England

The late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries in England were shaped by baronial rebellions and a crisis of counsel. This paper argues that the Tristan tradition provided thirteenth-century authors and artists in England with a space where they could explore these contemporary issues. The Tristan story, largely known throughout Europe since the previous century, circulated in various media, as testified by the Middle English romance Sir Tristrem, the Chertsey tiles, and the set of illuminations in BL Add. 11619. The discourse on counsel and the depiction of barons in Sir Tristrem distinguish this Middle English poem from its earlier literary counterparts and also link it to the other items that keep it company in the Auchinleck manuscript. The alteration of the triangular relationship between the hero, the king, and the king’s barons in the Middle English version speaks to contemporary concerns by increasing Tristrem’s role in the political life of the English realm. A similar focus can be identified in the Chertsey tiles and, to a lesser extent, in the Tristan illuminations. Relying on these two pictorial cycles helps broaden our understanding of the circulation of the Tristan story in medieval England in relation to media other than text.