Literature: The Ricardian Poets

Richard II, who reigned 1377-1399, had the misfortune of being sandwiched between two of the more spectacular Plantagenet kings, his grandfather Edward III and his cousin, Henry of Bolingbroke, later Henry IV.  Like his great-grandfather Edward II, Richard's reign was one distance after another, plague, revolt, political unrest and the like.  However, to his credit, Richard appreciated literature and several of his courtiers or court officials were unusually blessed with ability as poets.  Masterpieces such as The Canterbury Tales, Gawaine and the Green Knight, and Piers Plowman give the lie to the Middle Ages as being all dark and dreary musings on religion and death.  The four towering Ricardian Poets are:

Geoffrey Chaucer (c 1343-1400), was born in London to a wealthy mercantile family.  His father's connections eventually enabled Geoffrey to become a page in the home of a wealthy noblewoman, and he eventually worked his way into the royal service, functioning in various administrative as well as diplomatic capacities.  Geoffrey was a Renaissance man before there was such a notion in England.  In addition to his work as an author, he was also a noted astronomer, philosopher and astronomer.  In addition to The Canterbury Tales, he wrote The Book of the Duchess, The House of Fame, The Legend of Good Women, and Troilus and Criseyde, as well as a textbook on astronomy for his own young son.  He was the first poet to be buried in Westminster Abbey.

John Gower (C 1330-1408) was born into a landed family, had access to and the leisure time to read books such as the Bible Ovid, John of Salisbury and Roman classics.  He once met Richard II and was invited to spend some time aboard the royal barge.  Then, as now, one doesn't just run into royalty and then spend time with them, which suggests some connections.  In his early life, John was loyal to Richard, though he later switched loyalty to and dedicated works to Henry of Bolingbroke, who became Henry IV.  He was most likely a lawyer or had some dealings in real estate.  Later in life, Henry IV gave him a pension.  Gower is mostly noted for three poems that are in Latin, French and English, again suggesting a person of some learning.  The Mirror of Man, Vox Clamantis and Confessio Amantis are three of his works that have survived today.  He is buried in Southwark Cathedral.

William Langland (c 1332- c 1386) is the author of one known work, Piers Plowman.  A manuscript held at Trinity College, Dublin ascribes the work to William of Langland, son of Stacy of Rockayle, who died in Shipton-under-Wychwood, a tenant of the Lord Spencer in the county of Oxfordshire.  Unlike Chaucer, who left his tracks in official records, little is known of Langland's life.  The dialect of his poem suggests that he grew up and lived in the Midlands.  A note in another manuscript stated that Langland died soon after writing his magnum opus. 

The Pearl Poet or the Gawain Poet, who is called after two of his most famous works because no one knows his/her name or anything else about him/her.  The works are Sir Gawaine and the Green Knight, Patience, Cleanness, and maybe, St. Erkenwalde.  The language and subject matter of the Poet's works suggests he/she comes from this time period, and was from a wealthy or leisured background.  Sources have debated over his/her identity, proposing John Dunne, John Prat, a member of the wealthy Massey family or someone else, possibly even a female.  Sadly, we will never know for sure. 

What is it: The Pardoner

Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, written in the 1380's while Chaucer was an official in the service of Richard II, are to the Plantagenet era what Shakespeare is to the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods.  This complex and impressive set of stories set in poetry are important for two other reasons.  Many words are first attested in the English language because they appeared in the Tales.  They are also an important slice of medieval life, shedding light on Medieval people and customs that would otherwise be lost. 

One of the tellers of tales is called a Pardoner.  A pardoner was a member of the clergy, usually a deacon, licensed to sale Papal indulgences.  For a sum of money donated to the Church, according to the beliefs of the time, one could spring a soul (sometimes one's own soul), out of Purgatory or get a pass straight to Heaven.  Even in the pre-Reformation era, Pardoners were looked upon much as used car salesmen are today, not very honest.  Chaucer gives us this viewpoint in his description of the pardoner, a member of the clergy who wears his hair long, has much knowledge of the world and sexual experience, and isn't above supplementing his own income through his employment despite a vow of poverty.  Some pardoners, indeed some priests, trafficked in the sale of fake relics, charged for hearing confessions or dispensing sacraments and engaged in other fleecing practices.  However, because of their role in Medieval society, they were a necessary evil.