Bernger from Horheim

Bernger von Horheim was a minstrel who probably worked towards the end of the 12th century. He is a representative of the Rhenish minnesang and is assigned to the house school around Friedrich von Hausen .

"Bernger von Horheim" ( Codex Manesse , early 14th century)

Life

The dating of Bernger is difficult, as he is attested in only two Northern Italian documents by Philip of Swabia . The earlier document names a 'Berengius de Orehem' in January 1196 in Gonzaga . The later mentions a 'Berlengerius de Oreim' on May 3, 1196 in Arezzo . Count Gottfried von Vaihingen is also named in these two documents and therefore research assumes that Bernger may have had a special connection with him. One can assume that the 'von Horheim' family was employed by the Counts 'von Vaihingen', but this cannot be proven. The Horheim family in the Bavarian and Wuerttemberg region is well documented, to which Bernger is assigned by research.

Miniature Berngers in the Weingartner song manuscript

Also controversial is the assumption that Song IV (MF 114.21), which is referred to as the Knight's Lament, is a testimony in which Bernger reports of an army expedition to Apulia after the king's death. This can refer to the death of King Wilhelm II of Sicily in 1189 or to the death of Tankred of Lecce of Sicily in 1194. However, the participation in the Apulia procession of Henry VI. verifiable neither for Bernger nor for Vaihingen. The latter is several times in the environment of Henry VI. testifies to what could explain Bernger's proximity to the Stauferhof . In connection with this, the research sees Bernger as a ministerial . This is likely to have favored the literary relationship with Friedrich von Hausen, which he probably also maintained there with Bligger von Steinach .

An older research opinion, on the other hand, places the event around the death of a king and the ensuing military expedition around 60 years later. It is said that the king in question was Conrad IV , who suddenly died in Naples in 1254. As a result, the battles for Konradin's inheritance are fought between Manfred and Alexander IV , and this battle prompted Bernger to write Song IV.

A clear origin of Bernger cannot be determined, but is suspected to be in the Rhine-Franconian or Swabian region. While part of the research prefers a home in Horrheim near Vaihingen an der Enz due to the presumption of the employment relationship , another part considers Horheim (today Harheim near Frankfurt) for linguistic reasons .

Since there are no other references to Bernger, current research assumes that, taking into account the abundant documents from southern Germany from this period, he died shortly after the documentary mentions were made at a young age. If one assumes, however, that Lied IV deals with the death of Konrad, Bernger would have to have lived around 60 years longer until the middle of the 13th century. The later time frame would explain Bernger's style, whereas towards the end of the 12th century the same appears extraordinary and forward-looking. Since only six songs have survived under the name Bernger, it is difficult to attach and explain his genius to these. Nonetheless, the little that has been handed down shows his high level of formal ability. (see section on 'Song of Lies')

Tradition and description of the miniatures

The first page of Bernger's songs in the Codex Manesse

In manuscript C, the Manessian song manuscript , six songs with seventeen stanzas have survived under the name of Bernger von Horheim. The manuscript B, the Weingartner song manuscript , contains only thirteen stanzas. The first four stanzas of manuscript C, songs V and VI, are missing from manuscript B. Since the latter is the older manuscript, it is generally assumed that some poets have added songs in the younger.

In addition to the number of stanzas, the miniatures also differ in the respective manuscripts, which probably had the same model, but still show certain differences in some motifs. It can therefore be ruled out that the Codex Manesse simply adopted the older image of manuscript B.

The miniature in handwriting C shows a man and a woman who solemnly shake hands in front of a rose tree. The gesture of the handout represents a contract rite and is interpreted as an expression of the pledge of loyalty to representations of love. The centering of the gestures connecting the two figures emphasizes this. In addition, this solemn attitude points to an older type of author's picture in the manuscript. The hat, the dog, the wreath, the sword and the gathering of the clothes are symbols of domination and wealth. The helmet, which is partially hidden under the hat, stands for knighthood. This could be an indication of Bernger's employment relationship with Vaihingen, the military expedition to Apulia or his status as Ministerial. It cannot therefore be ruled out that Bernger held this position. The rose is the epitome of love, with the use of a red rose meaning ' ir vollenkumene minne ' [her perfect love]. The coat of arms depicts four golden irises on a blue background, which are a symbol of purity and innocence.

The miniature in Weingartner's song manuscript also shows a man and a woman. However, there is no connecting element in this figure. The woman is separated from the man by a scroll which takes the center. In this miniature wealth and domination are also expressed through the helmet, hat, wreath and clothing, which is equipped with ermine fur . In this one we find the same coat of arms, which only differs in the colors. Here the lilies are silver or white and contrast with the red background of the coat of arms.

Works (selection)

Bernger's songs are assigned to the Rhenish minnesong under Friedrich von Hausen. Characteristics of it are u. a. Mehrstrophigkeit, the shape of the canzones verse , a differentiated rhyme scheme and contrafacta . Possible counterfactures can be traced in four songs by Bernger: Song I after Chrétien de Troyes , Song II after Bertran de Born , Song IV after Conon de Béthune , Song VI after Gace Brulé . His songs are mainly minne complaints, which monologically explain the futile advertising efforts of the male lyrical self. His so-called "Lügenlied" (song II) is considered an original achievement.

"Song of Lies" I'm all tired when I present var

1. I feel all zît, when I present var
  ob al der welte and diu mîn alliu sî.
swar i think, vil wol wol I jump.
  swie verre ez is, wil me, so ez is near me bî.
  Strong unde snel, beidiu rîch unde vrî
   is my muot: during that time I run sô soon;
   enmac escape dehein animal in the forest -
  that's a lie: I'm swaere as a blî.

2. I mac von vröiden rage âne strît: it
happened to me from minne sô love.
 swâ would be a walt beidiu lanc unde wît,
  with beautiful booms, I wanted to see him;
  I should have been seen jumping.
   mîn reht is that I twinge on vröiden.
   why do I lie gouch? i enweiz what i sing.
  I never gave up, I want to jeopardize the truth.

3. I make the Merkaeren truoben the muot.
I hân deserve ir nît and ir haz,
 sît daz mîn vrowe is sô rîche unde guot.
  ê what me wê, nu is gentle to me unde baz
  a heart that I never forget,
   that I have to ruin and is even wounded.
   mîn vröide had freed me from worries:
  I was never baz - unde I lie iu daz.

4. I want to succeed, that I never succeed,
to minne der süezen, because I want to say iu.
 The Merkaere have danced a lot,
  swenne sî nu niht mêre heard complain
  Dehein heart sêr. daz tuot sî chase me away.
  [………………………………………… ..]
   des lône ir got, daz mîn trûren has the end -
 that is a lie, and yet it is not lanc.

1. I always feel as if I am flying
 over the world and it is entirely mine.
 Wherever I direct my thoughts - I jump very easily, however
distant it is - I want it, it is close to me.
Strong and bold,
my mind is both noble and free , that's why I run so fast,
no animal can escape me in the forest.
That's a lie, I'm heavy as lead.

2. I can undoubtedly race for joy,
I have become so dearly through love.
If there was a forest somewhere, big and wide,
with beautiful trees, I wanted to spy it
out, you could see me jumping around there.
It is my right to push for joy.
Why do I lie fool, I don't know what I'm singing.
I've never been more miserable if I want to confess the truth.

3. I make the minders confused,
I deserve their disapproval and hatred
because my mistress is so rich and good.
Before I was miserable, now I feel better and better:
a heartache that I never forgot,
I left that behind, and it is completely over.
My joy has freed me from worry.
I've never felt better, but I'll lie this to you.

4. I will succeed where I never succeeded:
in the love of the sweet, I want to tell you.
The watchdogs worry about a lot
when they no longer hear me complain.
Any heartache, it will chase me away.
[……………………………………………… ..]
God reward you that my grieving is over.
That is a lie, and yet it is not far.

Analysis and interpretation

As is typical of Rhenish minstrelsong, this song is composed in a canzone stanza and has the shape of a dactylic four-stroke jack. On the one hand, this rhyme scheme refers to belonging to the home school, and on the other hand, to the Romanesque model and the possibility of a counterfacture. The number of stanzas is rather unusual for a minnie song, as it usually contains three and not four stanzas. Furthermore, the last stanza only counts seven instead of eight lines, which is why research for a long time assumed that the last stanza was bogus and did not come from Bernger. This is opposed by the fact that all stanzas are connected by anaphors and parallelisms. The first and last lines of a stanza are syntactically identical or very similar. It seems as if they are parallel to each other and this parallelism connects the individual stanzas with each other. In terms of content, the last stanza is related to the rest and only through this does the song get its own special character, because it enables the opening of a further dimension.

With this song, Bernger describes the paradoxical situation of the minstrel and criticizes the minnesong as well as the classic situation of minstrel. With the help of 'lying signals', e.g. B. narrator comments , Adynata or other topoi , Bernger relativizes the previously made fantastic statements. These comments can also be interpreted as a level of reflection on the part of the singer. This calls into question the reality content of love. The song of lies is intended to provide instructions for the readership or listeners to understand poetry and to have a didactic function. The use of lying signals directly alerts the audience that the statements in the song are untruthful. To call the song a 'song of lies' is misleading, however, as it is not actually a lie poem. The 'lying signals' only clarify the minnesinger's paradoxical situation and are intended to point out the rejection and internal contradictions of Hohen Minne.

The first three stanzas thematically follow the lamentation of love, but the admission that everything that has already been said is only a lie is not known from lamentations of love. Bernger introduces this novelty. The desires of the lyrical self remain unfulfilled, the sung-about lady rejects it. A state of joy is feigned that does not faithfully reflect the internal state, and this is revealed at the end of each stanza. The last line of the song is particularly interesting in this regard. The lyrical ego speaks of the fact that it is a lie that its sadness (nhd. Mourning or sadness) will come to an end. The statement is revised and the typical situation of minstrel music follows: the lyrical self is rejected by the lady. But this statement follows and is still not lanc and there is something hopeful and fulfilling about it. It remains to be seen whether happiness will come to an end after all, and whether there is no classic minstrel situation. Instead of a one-sided love, a two-sided love is now conceivable. If one assumes that Bernger died around 1200, he indicates something that will come later - the flat love - and thus shows his special feeling for the language. The deconstruction of happiness is reversed and in the distance, no completion, but rather a weakening of love is seen. With song II, Bernger violates the rules of minnows, as the last line of the song does not clearly renounce love and it can come to fulfillment. With this, Bernger creates a new, provocative and multi-dimensional variant of the song, which was later also taken up by Tannhäuser , Reinmar von Zweter and Der Marner .

Song VI

Just a long time I sang the zît hân announced.
swanne si vie, al zergie, daz i sanc.
I adhere to getwange that gît that you sin.
wan si michs ie not erlie, sine twanc
mich after ir, diu me sô betwinget the muot.
I sing unde sunge, I betwunge the guoten, so
that ir güete baz tete. si is good.

Translation by Helmut Brackert

Now I announced the summer for a long time with singing.
As soon as it began, everything I sang about melted away.
I am in need, brought to me by those who sin.
Because she never stopped
pulling me in, she who so confused my mind.
I sing and I sang. I will overcome goodness,
so that its love may do me good. Because she is good.

analysis

Bernger's songs not only show him as a master of form, especially song VI emphasizes his innovation and creativity towards the end of the 12th century. This includes later developments in minstrel, which were only taken up by minstrels in the middle of the 13th century. It is characterized by internal rhymes and verbal connections through various word forms that semantically connect words. So assuming that Bernger died shortly after 1196, this song shows his creativity, curiosity and the courage he mustered to experiment with the language.

expenditure

• Hugo Moser, Helmut Tervooren (arr.): Des Minnesang's spring . 38th, revised edition. Stuttgart 1988, ISBN 3-7776-0448-8
• Günther Schweikle: Middle High German Minne Lyric I. Early Minne Lyric. Texts and transmissions, introduction and commentary . Darmstadt 1977, ISBN 3-534-04746-X , pp. 272-283 and 516-523
• German poetry of the early and high Middle Ages. Edition of the texts and comments by Ingrid Kasten. Translation by Margherita Kuhn. Frankfurt / Main: Deutscher Klassiker Verlag 1995. (= Library of the Middle Ages. 3rd Library of German Classics. 129.)
• Minstrel. Middle High German love songs. A selection. Middle High German / New High German. Edited, translated a. commented v. Dorothea Klein. Stuttgart: Reclam 2010. (= Reclams Universal Library. 18781.)

swell

literature

• Ewald Jammers: The singable melodies for the poems of the Manessian song manuscript. Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag 1979.
• Ewald Jammers: The royal song manual of German minnesong. An introduction to the so-called Manessian song manuscript. Heidelberg: Verlag Lambert Schneider 1965.
• Gert Huebner: Older German literature. An introduction. Tübingen, Basel: Francke 2006. (= UTB. 2766.)
• Hans Eggers:  Bernger von Horheim. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 2, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1955, ISBN 3-428-00183-4 , p. 108 f. ( Digitized version ).
• Günther Schweikle: Bernger von Horheim . In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LexMA). Volume 1, Artemis & Winkler, Munich / Zurich 1980, ISBN 3-7608-8901-8 , Sp. 1982.
• Günther Schweikle: Bernger von Horheim . In: Author's Lexicon (VL²). 2nd Edition. Part 1, Col. 749-752
• Günther Schweikle: Minnesang . 2nd, corrected edition. Stuttgart 1995, ISBN 3-476-12244-1 (= Metzler Collection; Volume 244)
• Wilhelm Wilmanns:  Bernger von Horheim . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 13, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1881, p. 127.
• Hans-Herbert Räkel: The German Minnesang. An introduction with texts and materials. Munich: Beck 1986. (= Beck's elementary books.)
• Heinrich Friedrich von der Hagen: Minnesinger. German song poets of the twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries from all known manuscripts and earlier prints. 4th part. Leipzig: Verlag von Joh. Ambr. Barth. 1838.
• Helmut Brackert (Ed.): Minnesang. Mhd. Texts with transcriptions and notes. Frankfurt / Main: Fischer 1993.
• Ingo Walther (Ed.): Codex Manesse. The miniatures of the Great Heidelberg Song Manuscript. Frankfurt / Main: Insel-Verlag 1988.
• Karl Zangemeister: The coats of arms, helmet decorations and standards of the great Heidelberg song manuscript: Codex Manesse. Görlitz: Strong 1892.
• Manfred Scheck: Mr. Bernger von Horheim. A minstrel in the service of the Counts of Vaihingen . In: Series of publications by the city of Vaihingen an der Enz . Volume 2. 2nd edition. 1990, pp. 69-124.
• Sonja Kerth: Lies have quail legs. Considerations for the German. Medieval nonsense poetry. In: From the Middle Ages to the Modern Age. Festschrift for Horst Brunner. Edited by Dorothea Klein together with Elisabeth Lienert u. Johannes Rettelbach. Wiesbaden: Reichert 2000, pp. 267-289.
• Valeska Lembke: Bernger von Horheim. In: German Literature Lexicon. The middle age. Vol. 4. Poetry and Drama. Edited by Wolfgang Achnitz. Berlin, Boston: de Gruyter 2012. Sp. 130-132. ISBN 978-3-598-24993-8 [22. May 2018].

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Günther Schweikle: Middle High German Minnelyrik: Texts and transmissions, introduction and commentary. Vol. 1. Early Minne lyric. Stuttgart, Weimar: Metzler 1993, p. 516.
2. ↑ Günther Schweikle: Middle High German Minnelyrik: Texts and transmissions, introduction and commentary. Vol. 1. Early Minne lyric. Stuttgart, Weimar: Metzler 1993, p. 516.
3. ↑ Karl Zangemeister: The coats of arms, helmet decorations and standards of the great Heidelberg song manuscript: Manesse Codex. Görlitz: Strong 1892, p. 11.
4. ^ Valeska Lembke: Bernger von Horheim. In: German Literature Lexicon. The middle age. Vol. 4. Poetry and Drama. Edited by Wolfgang Achnitz. Berlin, Boston: de Gruyter 2012. Sp. 130.
5. ↑ Ewald Jammers: The royal song book of German minnesong. An introduction to the so-called Manessian song manuscript. Heidelberg: Verlag Lambert Schneider 1965, p. 129.
6. ^ Valeska Lembke: Bernger von Horheim. In: German Literature Lexicon. The middle age. Vol. 4. Poetry and Drama. Edited by Wolfgang Achnitz. Berlin, Boston: de Gruyter 2012. Sp. 130.
7. ^ Friedrich Heinrich von der Hagen: Minnesinger. Leipzig 1838, p. 251.
8. ^ Valeska Lembke: Bernger von Horheim. In: German Literature Lexicon. The middle age. Vol. 4. Poetry and Drama. Edited by Wolfgang Achnitz. Berlin, Boston: de Gruyter 2012. Sp. 130.
9. ^ Valeska Lembke: Bernger von Horheim. In: German Literature Lexicon. The middle age. Vol. 4. Poetry and Drama. Edited by Wolfgang Achnitz. Berlin, Boston: de Gruyter 2012. Sp. 130.
10. ^ Jammers: The royal songbook of German minnesang. An introduction to the so-called Manessian manuscript. Heidelberg: Verlag Lambert Schneider 1965, p. 81.
11. ↑ Ewald Jammers: The royal song book of German minnesong. An introduction to the so-called Manessian manuscript. Heidelberg: Verlag Lambert Schneider 1965, p. 81.
12. ↑ Ingo Walther: Codex Manesse. The miniatures of the Great Heidelberg Song Manuscript. Frankfurt / Main: Insel-Verlag 1988, p. 112.
13. ↑ NHOtt: symbolism and iconography of the Rose. In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages. Vol. 7. Stuttgart: Metzler. Sp. 1032.
14. ↑ Ewald Jammers: The singable melodies for the poems of the Manessian song manuscript. Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag 1979, pp. 23-27.
15. ↑ after MF 113.1
16. ^ Günther Schweikle: The Middle High German Minnelyrik. IS 275f.
17. ↑ Günther Schweikle: Middle High German Minnelyrik: Texts and transmissions, introduction and commentary. Vol. 1. Early Minne lyric. Stuttgart, Weimar: Metzler 1993, p. 517.
18. ↑ -Herbert Räkel: The German Minnesang. An introduction with texts and materials. Munich: Beck 1986. (= Beck'sche Elementarbücher.) P. 95.
19. ↑ Günther Schweikle: Middle High German Minnelyrik: Texts and transmissions, introduction and commentary. Vol. 1. Early Minne lyric. Stuttgart, Weimar: Metzler 1993, p. 519f.
20. ↑ Sonja Kerth: Lies have quail legs. Considerations for the German. Medieval nonsense poetry. In: From the Middle Ages to the Modern Age. Festschrift for Horst Brunner. Edited by Dorothea Klein together with Elisabeth Lienert u. Johannes Rettelbach. Wiesbaden: Reichert 2000, p. 270.
21. ↑ Sonja Kerth: Lies have quail legs. Considerations for the German. Medieval nonsense poetry. In: From the Middle Ages to the Modern Age. Festschrift for Horst Brunner. Edited by Dorothea Klein together with Elisabeth Lienert u. Johannes Rettelbach. Wiesbaden: Reichert 2000, p. 272.
22. ↑ Sonja Kerth: Lies have quail legs. Considerations for the German. Medieval nonsense poetry. In: From the Middle Ages to the Modern Age. Festschrift for Horst Brunner. Edited by Dorothea Klein together with Elisabeth Lienert u. Johannes Rettelbach. Wiesbaden: Reichert 2000, p. 272
23. ↑ Günther Schweikle: Middle High German Minnelyrik: Texts and transmissions, introduction and commentary. Vol. 1. Early Minne lyric. Stuttgart, Weimar: Metzler 1993, p. 520.
24. ↑ after MF 115.27
25. ↑ Helmut Brackert: Minnesang. Mhd. Texts with transcriptions and notes. Frankfurt / Main: Fischer 1993, p. 79.
26. ↑ Translation error in Brackert: The mhd. Sunge is not a preterital form of singen, that would be mhd. Sanc. Sung means to burn or to sing. Choosing the latter would thus be a repetition of the verb to emphasize the act of singing. If you decide in favor of the former, you can interpret it as follows: The lyrical self sings and (while) burns (his heart).
27. ↑ Helmut Brackert: Minnesang. Middle High German texts with transcriptions and comments. Frankfurt / Main: Fischer 1993, p. 297.

Web links

Wikisource: Bernger von Horheim  - Sources and full texts

• Bernger von Horheim in the Codex Manesse
• Bernger von Horheim in the Weingartner song manuscript