The Relatio metrica de duobus ducibus

A Twelfth-Century Cluniac Poem on Prayer for the Dead

By (author) Christopher A Jones By (author) Scott G Bruce

Book cover: The Relatio metrica de duobus ducibus

Extent: 216 pages

Publisher: Brepols Publishers

Subjects: Literary Studies, Medieval Studies

Series: Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin

Series volume number: 10

Language: English

Paperback (Published)

(December 2016)

ISBN: 9782503568270

Price: $125.00

In stock

The first edition and translation of a fascinating Latin poem on the cult of the dead at twelfth-century Cluny.


The twelfth-century Latin poem called the Relatio metrica de duobus ducibus has never been edited or translated before. On its surface, the poem retells a popular exemplum about an encounter between two warring dukes and a mysterious army from heaven. While retelling the story in verse, however, the poet has greatly expanded his prose source, elaborating its teachings about the importance of intercessions for the dead and introducing wholly new emphases on knightly piety and the benefits of dying for a holy cause. The present book, which offers the first edition, translation, and analysis of the poem, situates the 827-line poem in its literary and historical contexts. The publication of the Relatio metrica should be of interest to scholars of medieval Latin poetry, Cluniac monasticism, and the spirituality of the Crusades.

  • By (author) Christopher A Jones
  • By (author) Scott G Bruce