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{{Short description|Character}}
{{Unreferenced|date=December 2009}}
{{refimprove|date=May 2018}}
[[Image:Iwein-laudine-ring.jpg|thumb|Laudine giving Ywain the magic ring: a scene from ''Iwein'' by Hartmann von Aue. <small>Anonymous 13th-century fresco; Schloss Rodenegg, Alto-Adige, Italy.</small>]]
'''Laudine''', also known as the '''Lady of the Fountain''', is a character from [[Arthurian legend]] who appears in [[Chrétien de Troyes]]' poem ''[[Yvain, the Knight of the Lion]]'' and all works based on it, such as the [[Welsh language|Welsh]] tale ''[[Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain]]'' and the [[German language|German]] ''[[Iwein (poem)|Iwein]]'' by [[Hartmann von Aue]]. She marries the hero of the tales ([[Sir Ywain]]) after he kills her husband, but spurns him when he neglects her for knightly adventure, only to take him back in the end.


[[File:Burne-Jones, Edward Owain-departs-from-landine.jpg|thumb|''Owain Departs from Landine'', by Sir [[Edward Burne-Jones]] (19th century)]]
In Chrétien's [[romance (genre)|romance]], Laudine is the ruler of the mystical Castle of Landuc located near a spring in [[Brocéliande]] Forest. Her husband [[Esclados]] guards the magical spring, which generates a huge storm when its water is poured onto a nearby basin. Yvain's cousin [[Calogrenant]] had once done this and been attacked and beaten for it, so Yvain sets out to avenge him. Yvain mortally wounds Esclados and follows him back to the castle, where he espies Laudine and [[Love at first sight|falls instantly in love]] with her. Though she is distraught by her husband's death, her vassals, especially her servant [[Lunete]], talk her into marrying him so the land won't go unguarded.


'''Laudine''' is a character in [[Chrétien de Troyes]]'s 12th-century [[Chivalric romance|romance]] ''[[Yvain, or, The Knight with the Lion]]'' and all of its adaptations, which include the [[Medieval Welsh literature|Welsh]] tale of ''[[Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain]]'' and the [[Middle High German literature|German]] [[Heroic epic|epic]] ''[[Iwein]]'' by [[Hartmann von Aue]]. Usually known as the '''Lady of the Fountain''', she becomes the wife of the poem's protagonist, [[Yvain]], one of the knights of [[King Arthur]]'s [[Round Table]], after he kills her husband, but later spurns the [[knight-errant]] when he neglects her for heroic adventure, only to take him back in the end.
Things go well for a while until [[Sir Gawain]] invites Yvain to seek chivalric adventure with him. Laudine does not want him to go, but relents when he agrees to return after a set number of days. She provides him with a [[magic ring]] that protects true lovers from bodily harm, and warns him not to be late. Yvain gets caught up in his exploits, and does not come home. Laudine sends a messenger to reclaim her ring and inform her husband he will not be allowed back. After a period of madness, Yvain engages in new adventures, fighting to aid others (such as the Lion that gives him his nickname), rather than to gain glory for himself. Eventually he proves himself to his wife, and she accepts her husband back into her castle.


Chrétien calls her "''la dame de Landuc''", i.e. the noblewoman in command of the territory and castle of "Landuc", located near a supernatural fountain within the [[enchanted forest]] of [[Brocéliande]]. The lady Laudine's fountain, which magically generated a powerful storm when its water was poured into a nearby basin, was guarded by her husband, [[Esclados]] [[Red Knight|the Red]], until his defeat by Yvain. After learning about his cousin [[Calogrenant]]'s encounter with Esclados, in which the former was attacked and beaten for using the well to create a storm, Yvain took revenge on behalf of his kinsman by slaying Esclados in single combat. He then followed the mortally wounded warrior back to the castle, where he fell [[Love at first sight|instantly in love]] with his victim's widow. Though distraught over her husband's death, Laudine was convinced by her vassals (especially her servant and confidante [[Lunete]]) to marry Yvain to ensure the protection of her lands.
The Welsh story ''Owain'', one of the [[Three Welsh Romances]] associated with the [[Mabinogion]], Laudine is not given a name other than her title, Lady or Countess of the Fountain.


When Yvain was invited to pursue knightly exploits with [[Gauvain]] (Gawain), Laudine did not want him to go, but relented when he promised to return after a set number of days. She provided her husband with a [[magic ring]] that protected true lovers from bodily harm and warned him not to be late; but Yvain, caught up in his chivalric [[quest]]s, failed to come home on the agreed upon day. Laudine had a messenger retrieve her ring and inform her absent husband that he was not allowed back. After a resultant period of madness (spent as a [[wild man]] in the woods), Yvain engaged in a new series of adventures, fighting to aid others (such as the lion that gave him his nickname) rather than gain glory for himself, and eventually proved himself to Laudine, who accepted her husband back into her castle.
[[Category:Arthurian characters]]


In the 13th-century Welsh tale of ''Owain'', one of the [[Three Welsh Romances]] associated with the ''[[Mabinogion]]'', the corresponding character is left unnamed, known only by her title: Lady, or [[Countess]], of the Fountain. Her first husband is referred to as the [[Black Knight (Arthurian legend)|Black Knight]].
[[fr:Laudine]]

[[it:Laudine]]
The name ''Laudine'' is generally associated with ''Lodonensis'' (or ''Laudonensis''), a [[Latinisation of names|Latinized]] form of the [[toponym]] ''[[Lothian]]''.<ref>Chrétien de Troyes. ''Yvain; or, The Knight with the Lion''. Translated by Ruth Harwood Cline. [[Athens, Georgia|Athens]]: The University of Georgia Press, 1985. pp. xiii-xiv. {{ISBN|978-0-8203-4055-5}}. "''[[Yvain, the Knight of the Lion|Yvain]]''{{'}}s origins are [[Celtic mythology|Celtic]]: ''Yvain'' is a form of ''[[Owain mab Urien|Owain]]'', who according to Chrétien's source commanded an army known as "The Ravens" in the sixth century, and with his father [[Urien]], a historic king of the border district of [[Rheged]], acquitted himself so valiantly against the [[Angles (tribe)|Angles]] that King Arthur awarded him the [[kingdom of Scotland]]. Both Owain's and Urien's names were preserved in [[Welsh folklore]]. In the earlier legends Urien [[Wooing|wooed]] and won the [[fairy]] of a [[fountain]], who, with her friends, would [[Shapeshifting|take the form]] of an army of [[Cultural depictions of ravens|ravens]] to assist her son Owain in battle. As the legend was retold over the centuries, Owain supplanted his father as the wooer of "the Lady of the Fountain," whose traditional name ''Laudine'' is derived from the Latin name of Scotland."</ref>

==See also==
* [[Lynette and Lyonesse]] (characters roughly analogous to [[Lunete]] and Laudine, respectively)

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Arthurian Legend}}

[[Category:Arthurian characters]]
[[Category:Fictional counts and countesses]]

Latest revision as of 19:21, 30 May 2023

Owain Departs from Landine, by Sir Edward Burne-Jones (19th century)

Laudine is a character in Chrétien de Troyes's 12th-century romance Yvain, or, The Knight with the Lion and all of its adaptations, which include the Welsh tale of Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain and the German epic Iwein by Hartmann von Aue. Usually known as the Lady of the Fountain, she becomes the wife of the poem's protagonist, Yvain, one of the knights of King Arthur's Round Table, after he kills her husband, but later spurns the knight-errant when he neglects her for heroic adventure, only to take him back in the end.

Chrétien calls her "la dame de Landuc", i.e. the noblewoman in command of the territory and castle of "Landuc", located near a supernatural fountain within the enchanted forest of Brocéliande. The lady Laudine's fountain, which magically generated a powerful storm when its water was poured into a nearby basin, was guarded by her husband, Esclados the Red, until his defeat by Yvain. After learning about his cousin Calogrenant's encounter with Esclados, in which the former was attacked and beaten for using the well to create a storm, Yvain took revenge on behalf of his kinsman by slaying Esclados in single combat. He then followed the mortally wounded warrior back to the castle, where he fell instantly in love with his victim's widow. Though distraught over her husband's death, Laudine was convinced by her vassals (especially her servant and confidante Lunete) to marry Yvain to ensure the protection of her lands.

When Yvain was invited to pursue knightly exploits with Gauvain (Gawain), Laudine did not want him to go, but relented when he promised to return after a set number of days. She provided her husband with a magic ring that protected true lovers from bodily harm and warned him not to be late; but Yvain, caught up in his chivalric quests, failed to come home on the agreed upon day. Laudine had a messenger retrieve her ring and inform her absent husband that he was not allowed back. After a resultant period of madness (spent as a wild man in the woods), Yvain engaged in a new series of adventures, fighting to aid others (such as the lion that gave him his nickname) rather than gain glory for himself, and eventually proved himself to Laudine, who accepted her husband back into her castle.

In the 13th-century Welsh tale of Owain, one of the Three Welsh Romances associated with the Mabinogion, the corresponding character is left unnamed, known only by her title: Lady, or Countess, of the Fountain. Her first husband is referred to as the Black Knight.

The name Laudine is generally associated with Lodonensis (or Laudonensis), a Latinized form of the toponym Lothian.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Chrétien de Troyes. Yvain; or, The Knight with the Lion. Translated by Ruth Harwood Cline. Athens: The University of Georgia Press, 1985. pp. xiii-xiv. ISBN 978-0-8203-4055-5. "Yvain's origins are Celtic: Yvain is a form of Owain, who according to Chrétien's source commanded an army known as "The Ravens" in the sixth century, and with his father Urien, a historic king of the border district of Rheged, acquitted himself so valiantly against the Angles that King Arthur awarded him the kingdom of Scotland. Both Owain's and Urien's names were preserved in Welsh folklore. In the earlier legends Urien wooed and won the fairy of a fountain, who, with her friends, would take the form of an army of ravens to assist her son Owain in battle. As the legend was retold over the centuries, Owain supplanted his father as the wooer of "the Lady of the Fountain," whose traditional name Laudine is derived from the Latin name of Scotland."