William the Trouvère facts for kids
William (who lived around 1150–1200) was an English poet. He was also known as William the Trouvère. He took old stories written in Latin and changed them into poems in a language called Anglo-Norman. These poems were based on a collection of tales known as Miracles of the Virgin.
William's Writings
William was first known as Adgar, but he later became more commonly called William. With help from his friend Gregory, William translated over forty stories. He found these stories in a Latin book called Miracles of the Virgin. He discovered this book in a special bookcase, or almarie, at St. Paul's Cathedral in London.
William turned these stories into poems using a style called octosyllabic Anglo-Norman verse. This means each line of the poem had eight syllables, and the language was a mix of Old French and Old English.
His collection of these stories, which included about forty-nine tales, was named Gracial. William dedicated this book to a woman named Maud, also known as "dame Mahaut." She was likely the abbess (the head nun) of Barking Abbey. Maud was a daughter of King Henry II, who ruled England from 1154 to 1189.
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