“Amor Deseado”, apodo y canción: una escondida alusión a Juan de Luxemburgo, el rey ciego de Bohemia, en El Victorial

Resum

In ch. 80 of El Victorial, the author, Gutierre Díaz de Games, presents as the youngest son of Edward III of England, in a pseudo-historical context, a blind, strong and brave knight “in love”; his soubriquet, “Desired Love” (‘Amor Deseado’), would be taken from a song composed by a poet in his memory, after he died fighting heroically. Everything leads to think that Gutierre Diaz confuses “Desired Love” with John of Luxembourg (1296-1346), the famous blind king of Bohemia who also died fighting in the battle of Crécy (1346). This article deals with mentions of this royal character, who was considered an exemplary model of chivalry. The allusion to this “Desired Love”, soubriquet and song, could come from some French poem or song that Pero Niño could have heard while travelling through France accompanied by his standard-bearer, the author of El Victorial. The numerous mentions of other French knights, military men, lovers, and sometimes even poets show that both, knight and writer, were very familiar with French courtly and poetic milieux.