Representations of Power in Historia Troyana Polimétrica

Abstract

The Historia Troyana Polimétrica (HTP) is an anonymous adaptation of the Roman de Troie by Benoît de Sainte-Maure, dated between the end of the 13th and mid-14th century. Furthermore, it is the oldest known Castilian prosimetrum, since it combines prose with eleven lyrical compositions in different meters. It is preserved in a fragmentary state in the factitious manuscripts 10.146 of the bne (M) and L.jj.16 of the Escorial (E), dated from the middle and final quarter of the 14th century, respectively, along with other Trojan texts such as the Crónica Troyana promoted by Alfonso XI. This work intends to analyse the representations of Agamemnon, Hector and Priam, whom we consider the most important power figures in the story of the Trojan War told by the HTP. These classical heroes, in line with the procedures of the French roman antique, are represented as medieval knights. We believe that the adaptation of the Trojan stories can be linked to the chivalrous policy of Alfonso XI. In the convulsed setting of the Castilian 14th century, and as part of his purposes to subdue the rebellious nobility and strengthen the crown, Alfonso sought to renew the chivalric ideology in order to create a body of knights loyal to the king, with whom he could resume the “Reconquista”.