French, which had already appeared in the dialect of the Lower Rhine about 1170.

Rudolf von Ems, died in 1254, followed Gottfried von Strassburg in manner, but adopted graver, less worldly matter. His works are: "Der gute Gerhard," who ransoms Christian captives from the heathen, and refuses the crown of England;

Barlaam und Josaphat, the latter an Indian prince, converted by the former to be a Christian hermit. (This is founded on a legend in the life of Buddha.)

Wilhelm von Orlens, half historical.

Alexander, another rendering of the deeds of Alexander the Great.

Weltchronik, brought down only to the time of Solomon. Frequently classed with Rudolf von Ems is

Konrad von Würzburg, who died in 1287, at Basle, apparently of an epidemic, since his wife and daughters died at the same time. His works, of mediocre value, are: "Trojanerkrieg" (with the continuation by a later poet about 60,000 lines), one of the longest Middle High German poems.

Frau Welt, a legend from the French, tending to show the deceitfulness of worldly glory.

Otto mit dem Barte, an old German saga.

Die goldene Schmiede, in praise of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The popular story of the

"Schwanritter," "Swan-knight," known to us in the modern"Lohengrin."

Konrad's poems, flowing from a too prolific pen, are full of violations of taste, and wanting in true poetic feeling. He believed in his own merit, however, and wrote a "Klage der Kunst" in which he lamented the too cold reception of poetry by an unappreciative world.

The consideration of these minor poets brings us to the satirical writers of the period, the chief of whom are :

Stricker, an Austrian, author of "Pfaffe Amis," who ranks also as a minor epic poet of the time, having written "Daniel von Blumenthal" and a rendering of the "Rolandslied." His satires, however, which were numerous, form his chief title to remembrance. He is didactic in tone, holds to a strongly expressed moral, and is in the main a strict churchman. This does not prevent him from introducing a fraudulent priest into his best remembered satire.

Pfaffe Amis deceives first his bishop, then all with whom he is brought into contact, plays tricks of all sorts, harmless and the reverse, and deals largely in false relics and sham miracles. His tricks are, at a later period, attributed to the German favourite, "Tyll Eulenspiegel."

After Stricker, the writer of the story of a discontented peasant, who set his heart on shining at court, has to be noticed. This is

Wernher der Gartener, who wrote "Meier Helmbrecht."

Meier Helmbrecht was the son of a peasant, spoilt by his mother, vain, fond of dress and foolishly ambitious. As his father will not permit him to go on his travels, he defies him and joins a robber-band. After having returned home and told his adventures, supposed to be courtly, but really only of drinking and wild revels, he goes back to his robber companions, followed by his sister. She is on the point of being married to one of the robbers, when the officers of justice swoop down upon them; Helmbrecht is blinded as a punishment, and afterwards driven away and finally hanged by the peasants. The satire is written as a warning against the rising discontent of the times.

CHAPTER IV.

HÖFISCHE LYRIK.

SIDE by side with the epic or narrative poem, lyricism, practised by princes, even emperors, was in its mediæval glory.

Minnesingers: Heinrich von Veldeke, already mentioned among the epic poets as the author of an Æneid, did essential service to poetry in general by the introduction of purer rhyme, by which the mere assonance of an earlier period was now entirely superseded. Veldeke's lyric poetry is gay and lively, extensive in volume and excellent in kind. He was one of the founders of "Minnepoesie" (Love-poetry), and seems to have been of especially susceptible and lively temperament. His graceful songs bear witness to this: "the song of birds and the trees in bud" can console him, even in parting from his lady. As a rule the lyric poets "Minnesinger "-sons of the troubadours as they are, having inherited the mantle of the old "Spielmann" and added to it the courtly grace of a chivalrous age-are witty, bright and lively, whatever shortcomings may fall to their share.

Minnegesang was not wholly devoted to songs of love, though that was its primary object. We may divide the subjects into three classes:

1. Love-songs, celebrating the service of woman.

2. Religious songs, celebrating the service of God.

3. Political songs, celebrating the service of feudal lords.

According to the style of the troubadours introduced from France, Minnepoesie was, in general, destined to be sung. There were three principal forms:

1. Das Lied, the strophe of which contained two equal parts called "Stollen," and one unequal part called " Abgesang."

2. Der Leich, having metrical changes.

3. Der Spruch, which contained a religious or political doctrine.

There are three valuable collections of the lyrics of this time:

1. The Pariser Handschrift (so called because the MS. is preserved in Paris), or Manessische Handschrift, as it is also styled, containing the poems of 140 German singers, the most valuable of the Middle High German lyrics.

2. The Weingartner Handschrift.

3. The Heidelberger Handschrift, now in Stuttgart.

The principal poets whose names are preserved are the following:

1. Spervogel, who wrote on the subject of worldly wisdom.

2. Ritter von Kürenberg wrote in the popular, as distinguished from the courtly style, and used the Nibelungenstrophe.

3. Dietmar von Aist also wrote in the popular manner, and used for his songs short lines rhyming in pairs.

4. Heinrich von Morungen, a Thuringian and a follower of Veldeke, wrote bright and fanciful lyrics which often show the influence of the French troubadours.

5. Friedrich von Hausen, a knight from the Palatinate who was in high favour with Frederick Barbarossa, died while on the Crusade, in 1190, shortly before the death of the Emperor. In his love-songs he laments the necessity of leaving his lady for the holy war, and is fond of representing conflicting emotions.

6. Reinmar von Hagenau gives utterance to interminable lamentations of unrequited love. His style is flowing and full of melody, but a certain artificiality shows itself in his verse; fashion rather than feeling is his motive power.

7. Walther von der Vogelweide, born about 1160, probably in Austria (Tyrol), was in 1204 one of the poets in the "Wartburgkrieg," died in 1227. His name is the greatest among the writers of Minnepoesie. It was his to show the wide-reaching influence of song, and as with the modern French chansonnier, politics played an important part in his widely-sung lyrics. But love, religion, his own poverty, everything furnished Walther with subject-matter for poetic utterance. He composed political songs for several princes, songs which ran like wild-fire through the land; yet, though he passed from court to court, he seems to have experienced the proverbial ingratitude of princes, for he possessed nothing of his own until late in life, when the Emperor Frederick II. granted him a small freehold, which happy event caused him, as usual, to break forth into song

"I have a fief! Hearken all the world, I have a fief!" Walther has been called the greatest German lyric poet before Goethe. His fresh and striking pictures impress themselves at once on the imagination. That wearisomeness of detail, that artificial piling of figure upon figure, the one destroying the other, which marks the poet made, not born, is nowhere to be found in Walther. If he is describing a maiden, some happy characteristic, dashed in with one touch, brings her before the mind's eye at once. One telling line in the opening of a lyric takes the place of whole verses of details. Again, in his political songs and Sprüche" he never fails to hit the mark he aims at. Often the whole gist of his subject is contained in one line alone, as in a "Spruch " favouring the election of Philipp

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