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Courtly Love

For some time, the Southern noble courts of Aquitaine, Toulouse and Provence had been dominated by the troubadours, who were romantic songwriters and storytellers. Duke William IX was the first “Prince of Troubadours” who also became one of the first Crusaders. The troubadours challenged the traditional views of marriage for property, family alliance and convenience. They sang of the romantic idea that individuals should have the choice to live up to their ideals. They told the myth of Tristan and Isolde, a famous love story of the Middle Ages when chivalry prevailed.