FLORE AND BLANCHEFLEUR, a romance. This tale, generally supposed to be of oriental origin, relates the passionate devotion of two children, and their success in overcoming all the obstacles put in the way of their love. The romance appears in differing versions in French, English, German, Swedish, Icelandic, Italian, Spanish, Greek and Hungarian, but the French version of the tale is the most widespread. The vari ous forms of the tale receive a detailed notice in E. Hausknecht's version of the 13th-century Middle English poem of "Floris and Blauncheflur" (Samna. eng. Denkmbler, vol. 1885) . Floire, the son of a Saracen king of Spain, is brought up in constant com panionship with Blanchefleur, the daughter of a Christian, slave of noble birth. Floire's parents send the boy away at 15 and sell Blanchefleur to foreign slave-merchants. Floire traces her to the tower of the maidens destined for the harem of the emir of Babylon, into which he penetrates concealed in a basket of flowers. The lovers are discovered, but their constancy touches the hearts of their judges. They are married, and Floire returns to his kingdom, when he and all his people adopt Christianity. Of the two 12th-century French poems (ed. Edelstand du Meril, 1856), the one contains the love story with few additions, the other is a romance of chivalry containing the usual battles, single combats, etc. Two lyrics based on episodes of the story are printed by Paulin Paris in his Romancero f rancais (1883) . The English poem renders the French version without amplifications ; its author has less sentiment than his original, and less taste for detailed description. The similarity between the story of Floire and Blanchefleur and Aucassin and Nicolete (q.v.) has been re peatedly pointed out, and they have even been credited with a common source.
See also edition by I. Bekker (1844) ; the Swedish version by G. E. Klemming (1844) ; the 13th-century version of Konrad Fleck, Flore and Blanscheflur, ed. E. Sommer (Leipzig, 1846) ; also H. Sundmacher, Die altfr. and mittelhochdeutsche Bearbeitung der Sage von Flore et Blanscheflur (Gottingen, 1872) ; H. Herzog, Die beiden Sagenkreise von Flore and Blanscheflur (1884) ; edition by E. Haus knecht (1885) ; Zeitschri f t fur dent. Altertum (vol. xxi.) contains a Rhenish version ; the Scandinavian Flores Saga ok Blankifliur, ed. E. Kolbing (Halle, 1896) . The English poem was also edited by Hartschorne (English Metrical Tales, 1829), by Laing (Abbotsford Club, 1829) and by Lumly (Early Eng. Text. Soc., 1866, re-edited G. H. McKnight, 1901). J. Reinhold, Floire et Blanchefleur (1906) suggests a parallelism with the story of Cupid and Psyche.