La belle Isabeau
French source:
Alexandre Dumas
Au pied du vieux château,
J'ai ouï conter l'histoire
De la jeune Isabeau.
Elle était de votre âge,
Cheveux noirs et l'oeil bleu.
Enfants, voici l'orage!
À genoux! Priez Dieu!
La belle jeune fille
Aimait un chevalier.
Son père sous la grille
La tint comme un géôlier.
Le chevalier volage
L'avait vue au saint lieu.
Un soir dans sa cellule
Isabeau vit soudain,
Sans crainte et sans scrupule,
Entrer le paladin.
L'ouragan faisait rage,
Le ciel était en feu.
Enfants, voici l'orage!
À genoux! Priez Dieu!
De frayeur Isabelle
Se sentit le coeur plein:
Où donc est, disait-elle,
Le sire chapelain?
Il est, suivant l'usage,
À prier au saint lieu.
Venez! avant l'aurore
Nous serons de retour.
Hélas! son père encore
L'attend depuis ce jour
Enfants, voici l'orage!
À genoux! Priez Dieu!
Fair Isabeau
English translation ©
Richard Stokes
At the foot of the old castle,
I heard them tell the tale
Of young Isabeau.
She was your age,
With black hair and blue eyes.
Children, the storm is brewing!
Fall to you knees! Pray to God!
The fair young maiden
Loved a knight.
Her father, like a jailer,
Kept her behind bars.
The fickle knight
Had see her in church.
One evening, Isabeau
Suddenly saw the paladin
Enter her prison cell
Without fear or qualms.
The hurricane raged,
The sky was ablaze.
Children, the storm is brewing!
Fall to you knees! Pray to God!
Isabelle's heart
Filled with fear:
'But where,' she said,
'Can the chaplain be?'
He is, as he is wont to be,
At his prayers in church.
'Come with me! Before dawn
We shall be back!'
Her father, alas, from that day on,
Awaits her still.
Children, the storm is brewing!
Fall to your knees! Pray to God!
La belle Isabeau
French source:
Alexandre Dumas
Fair Isabeau
English source:
Richard Stokes
Dans la montagne noire,
On the black mountain,
Au pied du vieux château,
At the foot of the old castle,
J'ai ouï conter l'histoire
I heard them tell the tale
De la jeune Isabeau.
Of young Isabeau.
Elle était de votre âge,
Children, the storm is brewing!
Cheveux noirs et l'oeil bleu.
Fall to you knees! Pray to God!
Enfants, voici l'orage!
À genoux! Priez Dieu!
La belle jeune fille
The fair young maiden
Aimait un chevalier.
Loved a knight.
Son père sous la grille
Her father, like a jailer,
La tint comme un géôlier.
Kept her behind bars.
Le chevalier volage
Children, the storm is brewing!
L'avait vue au saint lieu.
Fall to you knees! Pray to God!
Un soir dans sa cellule
Isabeau vit soudain,
Sans crainte et sans scrupule,
Entrer le paladin.
L'ouragan faisait rage,
Isabelle's heart
Le ciel était en feu.
Filled with fear:
Enfants, voici l'orage!
'But where,' she said,
À genoux! Priez Dieu!
'Can the chaplain be?'
De frayeur Isabelle
'Come with me! Before dawn
Se sentit le coeur plein:
We shall be back!'
Où donc est, disait-elle,
Her father, alas, from that day on,
Le sire chapelain?
Awaits her still.
Il est, suivant l'usage,
Children, the storm is brewing!
À prier au saint lieu.
Fall to your knees! Pray to God!
Venez! avant l'aurore
Nous serons de retour.
Hélas! son père encore
L'attend depuis ce jour
Enfants, voici l'orage!
À genoux! Priez Dieu!
Composer
Hector Berlioz
Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic composer. His output includes orchestral works such as the Symphonie fantastique and Harold in Italy, choral pieces including the Requiem and L'Enfance du Christ, his three…
Poet
Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas was a French writer. He is very widely read, and is particularly known for his novels The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the…