Hartmann, von Aue, active 12th century. Iwein

Iwein is a Middle High German verse romance by the poet Hartmann von Aue, written around 1200. An Arthurian tale freely adapted from Chrétien de Troyes' Old French Yvain, the Knight of the Lion, it tells the story of Iwein (Yvain), a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. It was written after Hartmann's Erec, and is generally taken to be his last work. The poem tells how Iwein embarks on an adventure which culminates in marriage to the lady Laudine. But he is then persuaded to leave her for a year to pursue success in tournaments. After he misses the deadline to return to her, he is rejected by Laudine in front of the Arthurian court. Dishonoured, he descends into madness and goes off into the wilderness. There he is healed by a lady with a magic ointment and has further encounters which allow him to show true heroism. These include helping a lion which is being attacked by a dragon, the lion then becoming his companion. Eventually, his honour restored, he regains Laudine's favour. Iwein was recognized by contemporaries and later generations alike as a masterpiece and a classic. Its enduring popularity is attested both by the large number of manuscripts from the whole High German area over three centuries and by the depiction of scenes from the poem in a number of frescos.