Heinrich von Veldeke (fl. 1170-1185) was one of the first Middle High German poets to introduce courtly love poetry based on the model originally developed by the Old Occitan

troubadour

and the Old French

trouvère

poets, and he also introduced the literary

stoff

(theme) of Vergil’s

Aeneas

via an Old French source to his German audience. Heinrich hails from a small town or village, Veldeke, located near Hasselt in the Belgian province of Limbourg, and he apparently received a clerical education, being well versed both in French and Latin. The image of Heinrich in the famous

Manessische Liederhandschrift

(early fourteenth century), no. xvi, shows Heinrich, very similar to Walther von der Vogelweide, sitting on a rock and meditating, probably on his love poetry, since his index finger of…

1517 words

Citation: Classen, Albrecht. "Heinrich van Veldeke". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 December 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5545, accessed 19 March 2024.]

5545 Heinrich van Veldeke 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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