Brother Wernher

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Brother Wernher was a poet (representative of the song poetry ) who was mainly in Austria and in the interests of the Austrian rulers and was influenced by Walther von der Vogelweide . Like him, he had connections to the Viennese court.

Brother Wernher ( Codex Manesse , 14th century)

Life

Its origin and status are unknown. It is known that he traveled as a traveling singer in the Bavarian-Austrian lands ( Styria and Carinthia ) between 1225 and 1250. Apparently not very wealthy, he looked for patrons, whom he addressed in his songs and whose generosity ( "milte" ) he hoped for.

Brother Wernher has a style obviously influenced by Walther von der Vogelweide , he was either a close student of the works or a pupil of Walther.

The title “brother” is misleading - Wernher was probably not a religious but a layperson . It is also possible to enter a monastery after giving up life as a traveling singer. Participation in the Fifth Crusade is controversial.

Works

overview

76 stanzas and a religious cross song in eight tones have survived . It is unclear whether several contemporaries published under the name "Brother Wernher"; in any case, the stanzas are stylistically very similar, which suggests a single author.

Wernher was not a minstrel, but a poet, that is, a political orientation could be recognized in many poems. Nevertheless, his repertoire is wide-ranging: In addition to political songs, there are also songs of praise and scolding, religious and artistic sayings.

In contrast to Walther von der Vogelweide, Wernher's political sayings do not consist of a uniform line. He deals with the relationship between church and state, people and aristocracy, supported the aristocratic revolt against Frederick II, criticized Pope Gregory for his inaction or called for participation in the crusade. Whether he took part in a crusade himself is controversial, if at all, but then he took part in the 5th crusade.

Brother Wernher also dealt with the noble virtues with the inclusion of Christian ethics . The "Bittlieder", through which Wernher asked his aristocratic listeners for money through the flower, give a good insight into the hard life of the traveling singers.

Political opinions

Church-state relationship
Wernher advocated that Pope and Emperor should mutually and mutually direct the fate of the West. Unlike with Walther von der Vogelweide, the emperor does not play a primary role. Walther argues mainly with moral arguments, such as “willed by God” or “ feudal obligation ”.
Criticism of the church
Wernher's criticism is not directed against the institution, but against corrupt priests. He complains that not all priests act on the basis of Christian ethics. The goal is harmony and peace.
Criticism of the Pope
His criticism of the Pope is sharp: he should wake up and fulfill his duties ( “Gregôrje, bâbest, spiritual father, wake and break abe dînem slaf” ).
Crusades
Wernher recalls that a crusade includes not only religious but also strategic economic aspects.
Praise and scolding sayings
With negative examples, Wernher wants to show the advantages of following the Christian virtues. Reward is the whole thing through faith.

List of works

  • "Ez wanted a monkey over a sê "
  • "Gregôrje, bâbest, spiritual father, watch and break abe dînem slaf"
  • "I want to sing the kriuze"
  • "Sûsâ, how the ûz Osterîche vert"
  • "I know from Akers kume"

literature

  • Horst Brunner: Brother Wernher's tones. Comments on form and form-historical position , in: Martin Just and Reinhard Wiesend (eds.): Lied studies: Wolfgang Osthoff on his 60th birthday, Tutzing 1989, pages 47–60 ISBN 3-7952-0613-8 .
  • Horst Brunner: Brother Wernher , in: The German literature of the Middle Ages. Author's Lexicon, Volume 10, Berlin, New York 1999, Columns 897-903.
  • Udo Gerdes: Brother Wernher. Contributions to the interpretation of his sayings , (= Göppingen work on German studies; Volume 97), Göppingen 1973.
  • Udo Gerdes: Contemporary history in poetry. Observations on the lyric poetry of Brother Wernher , in: Euphorion 67/1973, pages 117–156.
  • Richard Moritz Meyer:  Brother Wernher . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 42, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1897, pp. 74-76.
  • Anton Emanuel Schönbach : Contributions to the explanation of old German poetry , volume 3/4: The sayings of Brother Wernher, Vienna 1904/05.
  • Franz Viktor Spechtler (ed.): Brother Wernher: Illustration and transcription of the entire tradition , Volume 1: Illustrations; Volume 2: Transkription, (= Litterae; Volume 27), Göppingen 1982, 1984 ISBN 3-87452-214-8 .
  • Fritz Peter Knapp:  WERNHER, brother. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 13, Bautz, Herzberg 1998, ISBN 3-88309-072-7 , Sp. 870-870.  ( Article / beginning of article in Internet archive )

Web links

Wikisource: Brother Wernher  - Sources and full texts
personal data
SURNAME Wernher, brother
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Brother Werner
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Middle High German poet
DATE OF BIRTH 13th Century
DATE OF DEATH 13th Century