Thomasin’s von Zerklære Welscher Gast is the first detailed doctrine of courtly moral and virtue in medieval High German language. It was written in Friuli in 1215/16 where Wolfger von Erla was patriarch. Thomasin’s innovative work provides an insight into various areas of knowledge which were relevant for the courtly culture of the early 13th century. Due to its simple outer appearance, its apparent lack of structure, and the blending of different themes, traditions, knowledge, and teaching contents, Thomasin’s Welscher Gast has long received very little of its well-deserved attention. Recent research has almost exclusively focused on the large cycle of illustrations accompanying Thomasin’s work in nearly all of the manuscripts, thus providing a biased picture which does not live up to the work itself.
By centering the category ‘knowledge’, this book offers a new analytical access to Thomasin’s Welscher Gast. In doing so, it can be observed that various areas of knowledge are used to convey a kind of ethical orientational knowledge, as moral doctrine and learning go hand in hand. From this point of view, Thomasin’s seemingly disparate way of organising his work appears to be intentional: The structure and the various strategies used to present knowledge and teaching contents are always aimed at the precise context, the current theme, and the educational purpose; his system is variable and dependent on the situation. These findings enable an adequate understanding of Thomasin’s Welscher Gast, thus providing a new overall interpretation.