Taillefer

Norman minstrel. He sang war songs at the Battle of Hastings, in which he was killed. He is shown in the Bayeux tapestry.

Taillefer (Latin Incisor-ferri, both meaning 'hewer of iron') was the surname of a Norman ioglere (juggler or jester) whose exact name and place of birth are unknown (sometimes his first name is given as "Ivo").

Wace mentions Taillefer in the Roman de Rou:

Taillefer, qui mult bien chantout, sor un cheval qui tost alout, devant le duc alout chantant de Karlemaigne e de Rollant, e d'Oliver e des vassals qui morurent en Rencesvals. -Roman de Rou, lines 8013-8019 Translation: Taillefer, who sang right well, Upon a swift horse Sang before the Duke Of Charlemagne and of Roland And of Oliver and their vassals That died at Roncesvalles.

The story of Taillefer is also told by Geoffrey Gaimar, Henry of Huntingdon, William of Malmesbury and in the anonymous Carmen of the Battle of Hastings.

A version drawn from all the sources can be found in Winston Churchill's History of the English-Speaking Peoples

Taillefer is also the name of a mountain in the Dauphiné Alps.