"Walther von der Vogelweide (c.1170-1230) was the greatest German lyric poet of the Middle Ages. He created and performed his songs for the noblest courts of the Holy Roman Empire. Though every German-speaking schoolchild can recite some of Walther's lines, his work is hardly known in the English-speaking world, largely because it has been available until now only in scattered and poorly annotated translations.".

"Apart from his performances as a Minnesinger, Walther produced many political, religious, and philosophical single-stanza lyrics (Spruche). Presented here is a complete, annotated edition of his Spruche, translated with care and elegance by Frederick Goldin, in a convenient facing-page, dual-language format.

These brilliant and powerful strophes are masterpieces of propaganda and impassioned reflection in which the live voice of the poet and performer comes through to us today, a fierce and irrestible presence from the past. Brief as they are, the Spruche give an intimate and realistic picture of courtly life during a period of relentless political, religious, and cultural conflict - between rival kings, between East and West, between Emperor and Pope.

Here are the insights of a bitter wanderer and lyric genius into a range of issues, including the dynamics of performance, the nature of artistic patronage, the social standing of the poet, the evolution of communal ideals, the meaning of honor, the worldly power of the Church, and the concept of empire. For scholars and general readers alike, this collection offers inspired testimony and noble entertainment from one of the most charismatic witnesses of the Middle Ages."--BOOK JACKET.