The scope of the poem is then, in true epic fashion, summed up
in a few lines[87]:--
"Twelve paladins had Charles in court, of whom
The wisest and most famous was Orlando;
Him traitor Gan conducted to the tomb
In Roncesvalles, as the villain plann'd too,
While the horn rang so loud, and knell'd the doom
Of their sad rout, though he did all knight can do;
And Dante in his comedy has given
To him a happy seat with Charles in heaven."
--_Id. ibid._
The poet then introduces the immediate object of the poem. On Christmas
day Charlemagne held his court, and the emperor was over-glad to see all
his noble Paladins around him. His favour shown towards Orlando excited
the spleen of Gano, who openly attacked him as too presumptuous and
powerful. Orlando overhearing his words, and perceiving Charlemagne's
ready credulity, drew his sword in a rage, and would have killed the
slanderer, had not Ulivieri interposed. On this Orlando quits Paris,
full of grief and rage, and goes forth to wander over the world in
search of adventures. His first enterprise is undertaken in behalf of a
convent, besieged by three giants, who amused themselves by throwing
fragments of rock and trees torn up by the roots, into the courts and
garden of the monastery, which kept the poor monks in perpetual alarm.
Notwithstanding their dissuasions, Orlando conceives this to be an
adventure worthy of him: he goes out against the pagan and monstrous
assailants. He kills two in single combat, and then goes to seek the
fiercest and mightiest of the three, Morgante. This ferocious giant has
retired, meanwhile, to a cavern of his own fashioning, and was dreaming
uneasily of a serpent who came to slay him, which was only defeated by
his having recourse to the name of the Christian Saviour. This disposed
him to submission and conversion, and Orlando, delighted with these good
dispositions, embraces and baptizes him. The monks are very grateful for
their deliverance, and desirous to keep their preserver; but Orlando,
tired of idleness, takes a kind and affectionate leave of the abbot,
whom he discovers to be a cousin of his own, and departs with his
convert in search of adventures.
Meanwhile, Rinaldo, enraged at his cousin's departure, and the
partiality displayed by the emperor for the traitor Gano, leaves the
court with Ulivieri and Dudone in search of the wanderer. They meet with
a variety of adventures, and join him at last in the court of king
Caradoro, whom they aid in his war with king Manfredonio, who demanded,
at the sword's point, the beautiful Meridiana, daughter of Caradoro, as
his wife. Manfredonio is defeated. The verses that describe his final
departure, at the persuasion of Meridiana, and the force of love which
caused him to submit to her decree of banishment, forms one of the
prettiest episodes of the Morgante. Meridiana falls in love with
Ulivieri, who had delivered her: he converts her to Christianity; but
this does not prevent him from following the example of the pious
Æneas, and deserting her a short time after.
Gano was not content with the dispersion and exile of the Paladins: he
sent messengers to Caradoro and Manfredonio, telling who the wanderers
were, and inciting these monarchs to destroy them. Besides this, he
invited Erminione, a Saracen king of Denmark, to attack France while
unprotected by its bravest warriors. The king succeeds so well, that,
besieging Paris, he took prisoner all the remaining Paladins; and poor
Charlemagne, who cuts a sorry figure throughout the Morgante, sighs for
the return of Orlando and Rinaldo. Gano triumphed, and offered one of
the enemy's generals to deliver up Montalbano to him by treachery;
Lionfante nobly refuses, and feels inclined to put the traitor to death;
he is saved by the intercession of the family of Chiaramonte, who feared
that if things were pushed to an extremity with him, his followers would
revolt, and endanger the empire.
Orlando and his friends hearing in the course of their wanderings of the
danger of Charlemagne, returned with a large army to deliver him. Gano
wants to persuade the emperor that these allies are enemies in disguise;
but the strength and valour of the most renowned Paladins are not to be
mistaken. The magic arts of Malagigi the enchanter persuade Lionfante of
the truth of the Christian religion: he is converted, and the war comes
to an end, to the great discontent of the indefatigable Gano, who
instantly begins to stir up another, informing Caradoro of the seduction
of Meridiana, who sends a giant ambassador to complain to Charlemagne.
The ambassador behaves with extreme impertinence, and is killed by
Morgante.
Rinaldo, who is rather quarrelsome, has a dispute with Ulivieri, on
which, at the instigation of Gano, he is banished; and he and Astolfo
become bandits. Astolfo is taken by treachery, and sentenced to be
hanged. Poor fellow! Astolfo, who is always good-humoured and
courageous, is a kind of scape-goat, for ever in humiliating and
dangerous situations. He is now worse off than ever; but while ascending
the gallows, and while the halter is fitting, a tumult is made to save
him, and Charlemagne, overpowered, to preserve his life and kingdom,
pardons him and Rinaldo, and banishes Gano. But this was only done to
gain time. The emperor hates the race of Chiaramonte in his heart; and
Ricciardetto, the youngest brother of the house, being taken prisoner
while Rinaldo is absent, Charlemagne resolves to hang him. The Paladins
were highly indignant, and Orlando left the court; but Ricciardetto was
saved by his brother Rinaldo, who drove the emperor from his throne, and
forcing him to take refuge in one of Gano's castles, took possession of
the sovereignty himself; till, hearing that Orlando was imprisoned and
sentenced to die by a pagan king of Persia, he restores the emperor to
his throne, causes Gano to be banished, and sets out to deliver his
cousin, accompanied by Ulivieri and Ricciardetto. He succeeds in his
attempt by means of Antea, the daughter of the king of Babylon, who
falls in love with him. It is impossible to follow all the intricacies
of the adventures and the wars that ensue, the interest of which is
derived from the detail and expression, both lost in a brief abstract.
Antea, while she continues to be devotedly attached to Rinaldo, is, on
some treacherous suggestion of Gano, induced to enter France, and takes
possession of the castle of Montalbano. Rinaldo is sent by her father
against the old man of the mountain, whom he takes prisoner and converts
to Christianity: and Orlando, who is engaged in fighting and conquering
whole armies, hurries to deliver Ricciardetto and Ulivieri, who are
going to be hanged by Antea's father.
Morgante had been left behind in France, but sets out to rejoin Orlando,
and in his way to Babylon falls in with Margutte. Margutte is a singular
invention, a caprice of the poet. Pulci resolved to paint a fellow
without conscience, religion, humanity, or care for aught but the
grossest indulgences of the senses. Lord Byron has imitated a part of
his confession of faith in one of his poems:--
"I know not," quoth the fellow, "who or what
He is, nor whence he came,--and little care;
But this I know, that this roast capon's fat,
And that good wine ne'er wash'd down better fare."
_Don Juan_, canto III. v. 4.
"My name is Margutte," says this strange being; "I was desirous of
becoming a giant, but half way I repented, so that I am only ten feet
high. I neither believe in black nor blue, but in capon, whether it be
boiled or roast, and I have faith sometimes in butter and other good
things; but above all, I put my trust in good wine. I believe in tarts
and tartlets--the one is the mother, the other is the son;"--and he
continues in a style of blasphemy more shocking to our protestant ears
than those of the most pious catholics, who, as has been mentioned, are
apt to allude in very familiar terms to the mysterious and almighty
Beings, whom they do not the less on this account adore, and propitiate
with prayer.
Margutte's adventures are conducted with a kind of straightforward
wickedness which amuses from its very excess: at an inn, after eating up
all that is to be got,--his appetite is enormous,--and robbing the host,
he sets fire to the house, and departs with Morgante, rejoicing greatly
in his success, and carrying off every thing he could lay his hands
upon. They go travelling on, and meet with various adventures. Morgante
is infinitely amused by his companion, but preserves a gentleness, a
generosity, and kindness of heart, which contrasts agreeably with the
other's unmeasured sensuality. At last, one morning, Morgante, to play
him a trick, draws off Margutte's boots while he is asleep, and hides
them; Margutte looks for them, and at length perceives an ape, who is
putting them on and drawing them off; the sight of the animal thus
engaged so tickles Margutte's fancy, that he laughs till he bursts.
Morgante weeps over him, and buries him in a grotto. The whole episode
of Margutte is distinct from the rest of the work. Pulci allows that it
is not to be found in any of the old songs. Dr. Panizzi supposes, that
under the name of Margutte is concealed some individual well known to
Pulci and his friends, but at variance with them; and therefore made an
object of sarcasm and ridicule.
We must hurry on to the conclusion of this poem, for the incidents are
so multiplied and various, that it would occupy many pages to give an
account of them. Poor Morgante dies--the gentle Christian giant, the
defender of ladies, and fast friend of Orlando. He is on board a vessel
which is wrecked, and he is saved on the back of a whale, but on landing
is bitten by a crab on the heel: he ridicules the wound; but it proves
fatal, and poor Morgante dies. Gano, a traitor to the end, is sent to
Saragossa to treat with Marsiglio, who having been lately defeated, is
to pay tribute to Charlemagne. He there schemes the destruction of
Orlando, who, is to come slenderly accompanied to Roncesvalles to
receive the tribute. The traitor arranges with the king that he shall
advance accompanied by 600,000 men; who, divided into three armies,
shall successively attack the Paladin and his few troops. One of the
best passages of Pulci is the scene in which the treacherous attack of
Roncesvalles is determined on between Marsiglio and Gano. After a solemn
dinner they walked into the park, and sat down by a fountain in a
solitary place. With the hesitation and confusion of traitors they are
discussing the mode of destroying the famous Paladin, when heaven gives
signs of anger by various and terrifying prodigies. Marsiglio's seat is
upset; a laurel near is struck by a thunderbolt; the sun is obscured; a
violent storm and earthquake fill them with alarm; then a fire breaks
out above their heads, and the waters of the fountain overflowing are
turned to burning blood; while the animals of the park attack each
other. Gano is struck by the fall of a large fruit from a carob tree,
(the tree on which Judas Iscariot is said to have hanged himself); his
hair stands on end, and terror possesses his heart; but revenge is too
burning within him to be quenched by fear, and the plot is proceeded in
notwithstanding these frightful events. Orlando comes to Roncesvalles
with a small force, rather a retinue than an army, to rereceive the
gifts and submission of Marsiglio. The king is not neglectful of his
part; his innumerable armies, one after the other, attack Orlando. The
Paladin and his friends perform prodigies of valour; but, like waves of
the sea, their enemies come on irresistible from their number. Orlando
sees all die around him, and his soul is pierced with grief; yet not
till he feels himself dying will he sound the mighty horn which is to
give Charlemagne notice of his peril. The emperor hears the faint echo
borne on the winds three distinct times, and he and all around him feel
certain that treason is at work and Orlando in danger. They turn pale
with terror, and hasten to the sad spot, where they find the noble
warrior dead. Rinaldo is near him. Rinaldo, at the moment that the
slaughter of Roncesvalles was preparing, was far away in Asia. Malagigi
his cousin puts a devil named Astoroth into a horse, which is to bring
him to his cousin's aid in a few hours. This journey of Rinaldo and the
evil spirit forms a curious episode. They converse together on their way
concerning things divine and infernal. On coming to this passage, the
reader is struck by the lofty tone the poet assumes: there is a mingled
disdain, dignity, and regret in the fallen angel, that moves at once
compassion and respect: he is thus described[88]:--
"This was a demon fell, named Astorot;
No airy sprite, nor wanton fairy he;
His home was down in the infernal grot.
And he was wise and fierce prodigiously."
It has been supposed that Pulci did not write this portion of the poem.
Panizzi does not hesitate to give credit to the assertion of Tasso[89],
who declares that it was written by Ficino. But Tasso affirms this
merely upon hearsay, which is slender authority. There is nothing to
which contemporaries are more prone than to discover that an author does
not write his own works. There is nothing in the style of these stanzas
unlike Pulci's best and more serious verses. Rinaldo's journey, thus
accelerated, was however to no purpose in saving his cousin; he could
only assist in his revenge--and the poem concludes with the hanging of
Gano and Marsiglio, archbishop Turpin kindly undertaking to perform the
last office for the king with his own hand, and ties him up to the
famous carob tree.
The great beauty of the Morgante, besides scenes and passages of pathos
and beauty, is derived from the simple, magnanimous, and tender
character of Orlando. Charlemagne is a doting old man, Gano a traitor,
Rinaldo a violent and headstrong warrior or robber, Astolfo
vainglorious, but all are selfish and erring, except the singleminded
and generous conte di Brava. He is the model of a true
knight,--compassionate, sincere, and valiant: his death is courageous
and pious: he thinks of the grief of the emperor, and the mourning of
his wife Aldabella, and after recommending them to God, he embraces his
famous sword Durlindana, and pressing it to his heart, and comforted by
an angel from God, he fixes his eyes on heaven and expires.