Chronicles

Discussing Froissart’s biography and significance, Geoffrey Brereton describes Froissart as “the first of the great war-reporters” (9). Also, it is important to note that Froissart wrote in prose. As Brereton observes, many writers in Froissart’s time wrote in verse. Still, Brereton argues that Froissart’s Chronicles should be considered “literature” as much as the writings of the poet Petrarch (9).

Brereton next describes Froissart’s biography. He was born in the County of Hainault, meaning he was likely ethnically Dutch while growing up as a French speaker. Possibly from a family of merchants, Froissart was hired as a poet and chronicler by various monarchs and noble families, most notably Robert of Namur, who was Froissart’s patron when he started writing his Chronicles (11-12). Over the course of his life, Froissart lived and traveled in France, England, Scotland, Italy, and the Netherlands.

Froissart’s Chronicles are based on and continues from the more obscure chronicle written by Jean Le Bel. However, Brereton notes that Froissart has a more detailed description of the Battle of Poitiers than Le Bel. After finishing Book I of his Chronicles, Froissart went from having the pro-English patron Robert of Namur to pro-French patrons Guy de Châtillon and Wenceslas of Bohemia (13).