Paolo and Francesca. Francesca da Rimini: historical facts, image in works of literature, painting and music None of us finished reading the page

In the second circle of Hell, the endless wind still carries victims high feelings- Helen the Beautiful and Paris, Cleopatra, Achilles, as well as Dante’s contemporaries - Francesca and Paolo, killed by a jealous person. Tragic story this couple has survived to this day thanks to the success of " Divine Comedy»

Illustration: Vladimir Kapustin

Donna Francesca, daughter of Messer Guido da Polenta, the most influential man in Ravenna, kept looking out of the window, waiting for matchmakers. The girl's father had high hopes for her marriage with the son of a powerful lord from Rimini, hoping, with the support of new relatives, to become the sole ruler of Ravenna. And Francesca wondered to herself how the groom would behave, what his manners and habits were - for example, whether he shared her passion for reading French novels about knights and fair ladies. And then the gates opened, hooves thundered on the stones of the paved courtyard. The cavalcade was led by an elegant young man, whose clothes showed not only his high position, but also his ability to choose tailors.

Here is the young Messer Malatesta, who is destined to become your husband! - Donna Francesca’s companion, a lively and memorable girl, who seemed to know all the aristocrats of Romagna by sight, pointed to the handsome man. The bride’s heart began to beat often: the will of powerful parents rarely coincided with the dreams of their daughter for marriageable age, but Francesca had to connect her life with a man who seemed to have stepped out of the pages of her favorite novels. How could the girl know how cruelly she was mistaken...

Meeting a Contemporary: Adultery and Double Murder

Francesca Malatesta, née da Polenta and known in art as da Rimini, is the first sinner with whom Dante Alighieri spoke in Hell. The author of the poem “The Divine Comedy”, having sent himself on an “excursion” to the afterlife, during it “washed the bones” of many famous personalities. A beautiful Italian woman, together with the man who became the only love of her life, after death ended up in the second circle of hell. In it, those “who have given over their minds to the power of lust” - adulterers and erotomaniacs - are endlessly carried around by the wind. Here are Helen and Paris, because of whom the Trojan War began, the Egyptian queen Cleopatra and other “celebrities” of antiquity, but the poet’s attention was attracted by a contemporary woman.

"Paolo and Francesca da Rimini." Dante Gabriel Rossetti, 1867

The Florentine Dante hardly met Francesca, but the tragic death of the high-born lady was discussed in all the noble families of Italy. In addition, by the time of the creation of “Hell,” the poet personally knew her brother Bernardino, with whom he fought side by side in the Battle of Campaldino in 1289.

Dante's conversation with Francesca in The Divine Comedy contains minimal information about the woman and the circumstances of her death; not even the name of her companion is mentioned: in 1308–1315, when the first part of the poem was created, it was still obvious to potential readers who and what it was about speech.

The essence of this story was conveyed to this day by chroniclers, and the details by medieval commentators of Dante’s poem: in the mid-1280s, Giovanni Malatesta, the son of the ruler of Rimini, killed his beautiful wife and younger brother Paolo out of jealousy. “He caught them in the act of adultery, took a sword and pierced them at once so that they died hugging,” wrote Jacopo della Lana, a commentator on The Divine Comedy, in the 1320s.

Dante only asks the woman about how the feeling arose between her and her companion that led them to adultery and death. The poet hears a touching story about how Paolo and Francesca read alone French novel about the love of the legendary knight Lancelot for the wife of his king and the book helped them understand their own mutual feelings:

We just read about how he kisses
I clung to the smile of my dear mouth,
The one with whom I am forever shackled by torment,
He kissed, trembling, my lips.

"Kiss". Auguste Rodin, 1888–1898

And now Francesca and Paolo, killed without repentance, are condemned to eternal torment, but death did not separate them. Francesca's husband, however, is predicted to suffer in the lowest and most terrible circle of Hell, intended for the worst traitors, because Giovanni Malatesta is a murderer of close relatives who betrayed the sanctity of family ties.

In Francesca's defense: marriage scam

The most detailed account of this tragedy was left by another classic of Italian literature, Giovanni Boccaccio, in his Commentary on the Divine Comedy, probably written in 1373. He provides details that change the “picture of the crime.”

To begin with, Francesca was cruelly deceived. The groom, whom her father considered a profitable match for his daughter, was ugly and crippled; everyone called him Gianciotto, which means Lame Gianni. And, according to Boccaccio, a friend warned Messer Guido da Polenta that this matchmaking could “turn into a scandal,” since young Francesca had too “wayward soul” to meekly marry such an unattractive subject. And Guido resorted to cunning. In medieval Europe, a noble gentleman who was unable to come to the bride’s house at the appointed time for his own wedding could enter into an absentee marriage - when the bride was led to the altar and other formalities were carried out by a person authorized by the groom. So, in 1490, the German king, the future emperor, Maximilian I of Habsburg, busy with the war, but wanting to get ahead of other contenders for the hand (and, accordingly, for the possessions) of Anna, heiress of the Duchy of Brittany, sent his representative to Rennes. He, having signed the marriage agreement on behalf of Maximilian, appeared, accompanied by the court, to the girl’s bedroom and for a moment put his leg under the blanket, which meant the king’s entry into conjugal rights.

So Messer da Polenta agreed with the Malatesta family so that on behalf of Gianciotto Paolo, who had the nickname il Bello, the Handsome, would come to conclude the marriage with Francesca. Only the bride was not told about the substitution, and the romantic girl, thinking that it was Paolo who was destined for her husband, fell in love with young man even before the wedding.

Boccaccio writes about events almost a century ago, and not everything is clear in the story. So, according to him, Messer da Polenta chose Gianciotto as his daughter’s husband because he was considered the heir of Rimini, but in fact, the dominance of the Malatesta family over the city in those years was still in question. Paolo was not suitable as a groom, since he was already married to Orabile Beatrice from the Ghiaggiolo family. It's quite strange that Francesca didn't know about this.

The interior of Francesca's room on the second floor of Gradara Castle, reconstructed in the 20th century

When the girl was brought to Rimini to her real husband, Boccaccio continued, she was deeply disappointed and offended: “One must think that, seeing herself deceived, she hated him.” But at the same time, according to the Florentine, Francesca “did not throw out the already existing love for Paolo from her soul.” The heart of this beauty cannot be called prone to betrayal: constancy in feelings is what ultimately brought her into the arms of Paolo.

In Giovanni's defense: manslaughter

Everything secret becomes clear, and, as Boccaccio writes, following the earlier Florentine commentator on Dante’s poem, Messer Giovanni, who was often away on business, was informed by a servant about Francesca’s relationship with Paolo. The enraged husband, unexpectedly arriving home, began to break into the bedroom door, from where his wife at that moment, in a panic, was escorting Malatesta Jr. out through another exit. Francesca let her husband into the room, thinking that Paolo had already disappeared, and meanwhile the young man caught his clothes on an iron hook sticking out of the door, and did not have time to free himself when his brother rushed at him with a sword. The woman rushed between them, shielding her lover from the blow, and Giovanni, as Boccaccio wrote, “had already swung his hand with the sword and rushed forward with this blow - and something happened that he would not have wanted, since the sword had previously cut Francesca’s chest, how he got closer to Paolo.” Giovanni was shocked by what happened, “because he loved his wife more than himself.” With the second blow the jealous man killed Paolo.

Gradara Castle, 30 km from Rimini, according to one version, the place of death of Paolo and Francesca

Giovanni has his own drama. And if you believe Boccaccio, he is not a cold-blooded avenger and even, probably, could forgive his wife for betrayal, judging by the fact that he did not want her death. The husband, whom the lady quietly hated, is also, in a sense, a victim of a chain of tragic events that, according to Boccaccio, was launched by a truly ruthless man - Francesca's father.

Earthly justice: revenge that never happened

Dante predicted Giovanni Malatesta eternal torment in the ice for what he had done, but in earthly life the noble lord was not punished for the murder. In 1286 he married again, Ginevra of Faenza, and they had five children; He ruled the city of Pesaro until his death.

Relations with the Malatesta clan with the da Polenta family did not deteriorate after the death of Francesca: the two clans continued to enter into dynastic marriages among themselves. The tragedy of the lovers “came back to haunt” the next generation: Uberto, Paolo’s son, dreaming of avenging his father’s death, fled from Rimini and for several years fought in the wars against the Malatesta clan in the ranks of their enemies. Later, however, political ambitions prevailed in his soul over the thirst for revenge, and Uberto invited Ramberto Malatesta, the son of Giovanni, to jointly overthrow their uncle Pandolfo in order to take possession of Rimini. Ramberto, however, was both vindictive and calculating at the same time, and therefore betrayed and killed his restless cousin.

Whoever was to blame for the deaths of the star-crossed lovers, writes dentist Theodolinda Barolini, "Francesca's story made her, by the first decade of the 14th century in central Italy, a cultural icon, known roughly as the late Princess Diana is today." However, over time, the tragedy would have gradually been forgotten if Dante had not written about Francesca and Paolo in the Divine Comedy. The plot of their love was borrowed from there by many artists, in particular the poets John Keats and Gabriele d'Annunzio, composers Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Sergei Rachmaninov; Auguste Rodin was also inspired by this plot - the famous sculpture “The Kiss” was first called “Francesca da Rimini”.

--
* Translation by M. Lozinsky

Photo: Fine Art Images / Legion-media, Bridgeman / Fotodom.ru, Getty Images, Nazareno Balducci

The story of Paolo and Francesca: Paolo and Francesca, a love story, an excerpt from the divine comedy

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In 1200, two families, the Da Polenta of Ravenna and the Malatesta of Rimini, were the most influential in the political life of the Romagna region. In 1239, the ruler of Rimini was Malatesta da Verucchio, who had four children: Giovanni, nicknamed Gianciotto the Lame, as he was ugly and had defects at birth, Malatesta, Paolo the Fair ( Paolo Il Bello) and Maddalena.

From an early age, the Malatesta children were politically educated and always accompanied their father in various negotiations. Gianciotto and Paolo were especially distinguished in this. Both, in 1265, fought against Guido da Montefeltro and Traversari, supported by Da Polenta. In 1275, having decided to celebrate the victory and consolidate the alliance, the heads of the families agreed to become related: Malatesta’s first-born, Gianciotto, was to lead Da Polenta’s daughter, Francesca, down the aisle. Intuitively, Francesca’s parents understood that their daughter would never want to marry a cripple, and then it was decided to mislead their daughter: the young and beautiful Paolo was supposed to marry Francesca by proxy from her older brother, and convince her that he was her real husband.

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Seeing a young and energetic young man from the window, the girl was fascinated and immediately agreed to the marriage. The next morning she realized that she was lying next to an unpleasant and ugly old man, it was Gianciotto. It is also known that from 1269 Paolo was already married by convenience to the last heiress of the castle of Ghiaggiòlo in the Forlian Appanines, Orabile Beatrice.

Despite disappointment and deception, Francesca gave birth to a daughter for Gianciotto, Concordia, who, after the murder of her mother and the second marriage of her father, was sent to the monastery of Santarcangelo di Romagna.

Some time later, in 1282, Paolo, thanks to his innate diplomacy, was appointed governor of Florence by Pope Martin IV, and Gianciotto at that time became mayor of the city of Pesaro. In 1283 Paolo returned to Romagna. And, settling near Gradara, he became a frequent guest at Gianciotto’s castle, also meeting his wife. During one of these meetings, the young people were taken by surprise by Malatestino dell'Occhio, Paolo's younger brother, and Gianciotta. He told his older brother about what he had seen. After which Gianciotto pretended to leave for Pesaro. But suddenly returning to the castle, he found Francesca and Paolo together in the room.

Reading love story Lancelot and Guinevere, the young ones, were filled with boundless passion and... kissed. At this time, an enraged Gianciotto flew into the room and drew his sword. Paolo tried to escape through the hatch, but got caught in his clothes and was unable to complete his escape. At that moment, when Gianciotto decided to plunge the sword into his brother, Francesca stood between them and was killed along with Paolo. So, blinded by jealousy and anger, Gianciotto killed both.

There are no confirming sources about the events and the exact place of what happened, only legends and stories of people remain, passed down from generation to generation. Numerous studies have been conducted into this fascinating story. But many claims refer to the fact that the secrecy of the murder may have been in the interests of preserving relations between the ruling families or dictated by political jealousy, since Gianciotto felt strong envy of his brother for his brilliant career.

This love story inspired many artists and poets of different times to create their masterpieces. Tragic love Paolo and Francesca was sung by Dante Alighieri in the Divine Comedy, Canto V, “Inferno”:

73	I started like this: “I would like an answer
	From these two who blow together
	And this storm blows away so easily.”
76	And to me my leader: “Let the wind bend them
	Closer to us; and let him pray with love
	Their call is yours; they will abort the flight."
79	Seeing that their wind is against us:
	“O souls of sorrow! - I called. - Here!
	And respond if He allows!”
82	Like doves to the sweet call of the nest,
	Supported by the will of the carrier,
	Spreading their wings, they rush without difficulty,
85	So they too, hovering in the oppressive darkness,
	Dido left the mournful swarm
	To my cry, welcomingly calling.
88	“O gentle and blissful living one,
	You, who visited in indescribable darkness
	We, who have stained the earthly world with blood;
91	If only the king of the universe were our friend,
	We would pray that he would save you,
	Sympathetic to the hidden torment.
94	And if you have a conversation with us,
	We are happy to talk and listen ourselves,
	While the whirlwind is silent, like here now.
99	I was born above those shores
	Where are the waves, like a tired messenger,
	They meet the Po with accompanying rivers.
100	Love burns tender hearts,
	And he was captivated by an incomparable body,
	Those who are lost are so afraid at the hour of the end.
103	Love, commanding loved ones to love,
	I was so powerfully attracted to him,
	That you see this captivity as indestructible.
106	Love together led us to death;
	In Cain there will be an extinguisher of our days.”
	Such speech flowed from their lips.
109	The sorrowful spectator of the mourning shadows,
	I bowed my head on my chest in sadness.
	"What are you thinking about?" - asked the teacher.
112	I started like this: "Oh, did anyone know
	What bliss and what a dream
	She brought them down this bitter path!”
115	Then, addressing the silent ones,
	Said: “Francesca, your complaint
	I listen with tears, compassion.
118	But tell me: between the sighs of tender days,
	What was the science of love for you,
	Who revealed to the ear the secret call of passions?
121	And she told me: “He suffers the highest torment,
	Who remembers joyful times
	In misfortune; your leader is your guarantee.
124	But if you know before the first grain
	You are full of thirst for ill-fated love,
	I will lavish words and tears in full.
127	In our leisure time we once read
	There is a sweet story about Launcelot;
	We were alone, everyone was careless.
130	Over the book, our eyes met more than once,
	And we turned pale with a secret shudder;
	But then the story defeated us.
133	We just read about how he kisses
	I clung to the smile of my dear mouth,
	The one with whom I am forever shackled by torment,
136	He kissed, trembling, my lips.
	And the book became our Galeot!
	None of us finished reading the page.”
139	The spirit spoke, tormented by terrible oppression,
	The other one wept, and their hearts were tormented
	My brow was covered with mortal sweat;
142	And I fell like a dead man falls.

I continue my little project “Muses of the Pre-Raphaelites,” especially since now I torture my students with these paintings. But it’s okay, let them join the world culture. Moreover, they seem to like it.

Today's selection is dedicated to Francesca from "The Divine Comedy." Of course, Dante Gabriel Rossetti could not ignore such a topic.

Feuerbach

Original (thanks mlle_anais )
I" cominciai: "Poeta, volontieri
parlerei a quei due che "nsieme vanno,
e paion sì al vento esser leggieri.”

Ed elli a me: “Vedrai quando saranno
più presso a noi; e tu allor li priega
per quello amor che i mena, ed ei verranno.”

Sì tosto come il vento a noi li piega,
mossi la voce: “O anime affannate,
Venite a noi parlar, s"altri nol niega!"

Quali colombe dal disio chiamate
con l"ali alzate e ferme al dolce nido
vegnon per l"aere, dal voler portate;

Cotali uscir de la schiera ov"è Dido,
a noi venendo per l"aere maligno,
sì forte fu l"affettuoso grido.

"O animal grazioso e benigno
che visitando vai per l"aere perso
noi che tignemmo il mondo di sanguigno,

Se fosse amico il re de l"universo,
noi pregheremmo lui de la tua pace,
poi c"hai pietà del nostro mal perverso.

Di quel che udire e che parlar vi piace,
noi udiremo e parleremo a voi,
mentre che "l vento, come fa, ci tace.

Siede la terra dove nata fui
su la marina dove "l Po discende
per aver pace co"seguaci sui.

Amor, ch"al cor gentil ratto s"apprende
prese costui de la bella persona
che mi fu tolta; e "l modo anchor m"offende.

Amor, ch"a nullo amato amar perdona,
mi prese del costui piacer sì forte,
che, come vedi, ancor non m"abbandona.

Amor condusse noi ad una morte:
Caina attende chi a vita ci spense.”
Queste parole da lor ci fuor porte.

Quand"io intesi quell"anime offense,
China" il viso e tanto il tenni basso,
Fin che "l poeta mi disse: “Che pense?”

Quando risposi, cominciai: “Oh lasso,
quanti dolci pensier, quanto disio
menò costoro al doloroso passo!”

Poi mi rivolsi a loro e parla" io,
e cominciai: “Francesca, i tuoi martiri
a lagrimar mi fanno tristo e pio.

Ma dimmi: al tempo de" dolci sospiri,
a che e come concedette amore
che conosceste i dubbiosi disiri?

E quella a me: “Nessun maggior dolore
che ricordarsi del tempo felice
ne la miseria; e ciò sa "l tuo dottore.

Ma s"a conoscer la prima radice
del nostro amor tu hai cotanto affetto,
dirò come colui che piange e dice.

Noi leggiavamo un giorno per diletto
di Lancialotto come amor lo strinse;
soli eravamo e sanza alcun sospetto.

Per più fiate li occhi ci sospinse
quella lettura, e scolorocci il viso;
ma solo un punto fu quel che ci vinse.

Quando leggemmo il disiato riso
esser basciato da cotanto amante,
questi, che mai da me non fia diviso,

La bocca mi basciò tutto tremante.
Galeotto fu "l libro e chi lo scrisse:
quel giorno più non vi leggemmo avante.”

Mentre che l"uno spirto questo disse,
l "altro piangea; sì che di pietade
io venni men così com"io morisse.
E caddi come corpo morto cade.

Dante Alighieri
73 I started like this: “I would like an answer
From these two who blow together
And this storm blows away so easily.”

76 And to me my leader: “Let the wind bend them
Closer to us; and let him pray with love
Their call is yours; they will abort the flight."

79 Seeing that their wind is against us:
“O souls of sorrow!” I cried. “Here!”
And respond if He allows!”

82 Like doves to the sweet call of the nest,
Supported by the will of the carrier,
Spreading their wings, they rush without difficulty,

85 So they too, hovering in the oppressive darkness,
Dido left the mournful swarm
To my cry, welcomingly calling.

88 "O kind and blissful living one,
You, who visited in indescribable darkness
We, who have stained the earthly world with blood;

91 If only the king of the universe were our friend,
We would pray that he would save you,
Sympathetic to the hidden torment.

94 And if you have a conversation with us,
We are happy to talk and listen ourselves,
While the whirlwind is silent, like here now.

97 I was born above those shores,
Where are the waves, like a tired messenger,
They meet the Po with accompanying rivers.

100 Love burns tender hearts,
And he was captivated by an incomparable body,
Those who are lost are so afraid at the hour of the end.

103 Love, commanding loved ones to love,
I was so powerfully attracted to him,
That you see this captivity as indestructible.

106 Love led us together to destruction;
In Cain will be the extinguisher of our days."
Such speech flowed from their lips.

109 Mourning shadows, a sad spectator,
I bowed my head on my chest in sadness.
"What are you thinking about?" - asked the teacher.

112 I began like this: "Oh, did anyone know
What bliss and what a dream
She brought them down this bitter path!"

115 Then, speaking to those who have fallen silent,
Said: "Francesca, your complaint
I listen with tears, compassion.

118 But tell me: between the sighs of tender days,
What was the science of love for you,
Revealing to the ear the secret call of passions?

121 And she told me: “He suffers the highest torment,
Who remembers joyful times
In misfortune; your leader is your guarantee.

124 But if you know before the first grain
You are full of thirst for ill-fated love,
I will lavish words and tears in full.

127 In our leisure time we once read
There is a sweet story about Launcelot;
We were alone, everyone was careless.

130 Over the book, our eyes met more than once,
And we turned pale with a secret shudder;
But then the story defeated us.

133 We just read about how he kissed
I clung to the smile of my dear mouth,
The one with whom I am forever shackled by torment,

136 He kissed, trembling, my lips.
And the book became our Galeot!
None of us finished reading the page."

139 The spirit spoke, tormented by terrible oppression,
Another wept, and their hearts were tormented
My brow was covered with mortal sweat;

142 And I fell like a dead man falls.

Alexandre Cabanel

Ary Scheffer

Gaetano Prevati

Joseph Noel Paton

John Keats
A Dream, After Reading Dante's Episode Of Paolo And Francesca

As Hermes once took to his feathers light,
When lulled Argus, baffled, swooned and slept,
So on a Delphic reed, my idle spright
So played, so charmed, so conquered, so taken away
The dragon-world of all its hundred eyes;
And seeing him asleep, so fled away,
Not to pure Ida with its snow-cold skies,
Nor unto Tempe, where Jove grieved a day;
But to that second circle of sad Hell,
Where in the gust, the whirlwind, and the flaw
Of rain and hail-stones, lovers need not tell
Their sorrows. Pale were the sweet lips I saw,
Pale were the lips I kissed, and fair the form
I floated with, about that melancholy storm.

John Keats
AFTER READING AN EXTRACT FROM DANTE
ABOUT PAOLO AND FRANCESCA

How he rushed to the heights with wings
Hermes, as soon as Argus was put to sleep,
So, inspired by the magic of the pipe,
My spirit was shackled, broken and taken over
The stalwart monster of the universe -
And he rushed not to the cold of heaven,
Not to chaste-arrogant Ida,
Not to Tempe, where Zeus was sad, -
No, but there, to the second circle of hell,
Where sorrowful lovers languish
Heavy rain and an avalanche of hail,
And the whirlwind carries me away. O mournful sight

Bloodless sweet lips, oh beautiful face:
He is with me everywhere in the whirling of the ill-fated darkness!
(Sergey Sukharev)

Amos Cassioli

Francesca da Rimini is a famous Italian noblewoman. IN European culture she became one of the eternal images. Her tragic life captured by many writers, composers, artists and directors.

Historical figure

It is reliably known that Francesca da Rimini was born around 1255 in Italy. She was born into the family of the ruler of the Italian region of Ravenna, whose name was Guido I da Polenta.

From her youth, the heroine of our article was distinguished by her special beauty and attractiveness. At the age of 20, her parents decided to marry her off. Her chosen one was the head of the province of Rimini, whose name was Gianciotto Malatesta. Obviously, her father was counting on a dynastic marriage. In particular, such a version is contained in Dante’s work dedicated to the heroine of our article.

Francesca herself soon fell in love with her husband’s younger brother, whose name was Paolo. Soon the husband found the lovers together and, in a fit of jealousy, stabbed them both to death.

This is the official version of what happened. However, researchers who have tried to thoroughly understand this story have many questions. There is no consensus even on which city the murder took place. Several versions are expressed - Pesaro, Rimini... They even call it Gradara Castle, located in the province of Pesaro and Urbino.

Francesca in Dante's poem

Francesca da Rimini is one of the characters famous poem Dante Alighieri. She appears in the book "Hell" in the fifth song. "The Divine Comedy" is the work through which Francesca became so famous. It was after this episode that many other representatives creative professions V different genres began to use this episode.

Francesca da Rimini herself tells her story to the poet. Dante learns from her that feelings between the lovers arose after they read together a story about one of the knights of the Round Table - Lancelot.

Allusion to the story of Lancelot

Francesca says that the book became a Galeot for them, after which none of them finished reading the page. Galeot, mentioned in this verse, was a close friend of Lancelot and participated in many of his adventures. It was Galeot who facilitated the knight’s connection with King Arthur’s wife Ginevra.

In The Divine Comedy, Dante draws an obvious parallel between the story of Francesca and Paolo and Lancelot's love for King Arthur's wife. True, in themselves English legends This episode is told slightly differently: it is not Lancelot who kisses the queen, but she who kisses him, and does it in public.

Francesca in other works

After the story of Francesca da Rimini was told by Dante, many other poets and writers began to use it. We list only the most famous works, in which this plot is mentioned.

In 1818, it was described by the Italian playwright Silvio Pellico, who lived during the period of domination of the Austrian Empire in Italy. He talks about the fate of the heroine of our article in the tragedy “Francesca da Rimini”.

The same plot is used by the English poet of the romantic movement in the sonnet “Dream”. And George Henry Beaucaire - in his drama.

The story of the same name about Paolo and Francesca is written by the German prose writer, 1910 Paul Geise. And in 1901, a work written by the Italian playwright Gabriele D’Annunzio was published. In 1902, the American fiction writer Francis Crawford created a tragedy.

The tragic fate of the heroes is also described by the Soviet poet, a student of Vladimir Mayakovsky, Semyon Kirsanov, in the poem “Hell”.

The history of Francesca among Russian symbolists

Of course, the story of this noble Italian lady also attracted Russian symbolists. Alexander Blok mentions her in his programmatic poem “She came from the cold...”. In this case, the story in this work becomes an expressive pointing. The lyrical hero is angry that doves are kissing before his eyes, and not he and his beloved, and that the times of Paolo Malatesta and Francesca are irrevocably over.

Another Russian symbolist has a poem “Francesca Rimini”, written in 1885. He retells the story in detail as described by Dante. He even mentions the episode of reading the novel about Lancelot.

Francesca in fine art

Often this image inspired the work of many artists. Frenchman Ary Schaeffer in 1855 painted the canvas “The Ghosts of Francesca da Rimini and Paolo Malatesta Appear to Dante and Virgil.” Having read Dante's poem in the original, the painter depicts the characters with pedantic, even scrupulous accuracy.

In their meeting, which takes place in the other world, there is a lot of literature and sentimentality, which was inherent in English painting of that time.

Another French artist, Alexandre Cabanel, in 1870 painted the canvas “Francesca da Rimini and Paolo Malatesta”. Cabanel depicts the story as clearly as possible. It’s a sunny afternoon outside, and the lovers are secluded in the room, tightly and carefully closing all the shutters. They are caught by an angry and jealous husband, who already knew in advance what to do. He killed them both. In the picture we already see two lifeless bodies, and a cold-blooded killer with a sword in his hands stands behind the curtain.

The leader of European academicism, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, has a painting called “Paolo and Francesca,” written in 1819. In this case, he turns to romantic themes in his work. Moreover, he returned to this topic more than once.

In the earlier version, from 1814, we see an obvious romantic impulse. To one degree or another, it was preserved in subsequent paintings. He depicts a couple in love who forgot about everything in the world, immersed in a passionate kiss. They are in a state of selfless passion, when they are not at all interested in what is happening around them. And here a husband appears from behind the curtain, ready to destroy this idyll in an instant.

Francesca in illustration and sculpture

One of the most famous images another Frenchman wrote on this plot - Paolo and Francesca da Rimini are depicted in his illustrations for the next reissue on French immortal poem by Dante Alighieri.

There was a place for the passion of lovers in sculpture. The marble statue was created by Auguste Rodin. In 1889, he presented it for the first time at the World Exhibition in Paris. The hugging couple was originally part of an extensive relief group. It was supposed to decorate the Gates of Hell, which the Parisian art museum commissioned from Rodin. However, over time, they were replaced in this composition by another pair of lovers.

Initially, this sculpture bore the name of Francesca, directly indicating what kind of plot is being described here. At Rodin's work you can see Paolo holding a book about Lancelot in his hands. At the same time, lovers do not touch each other with their lips, thus demonstrating that they died without having time to commit a sin.

A more detached name - "The Kiss" - was given to the sculpture by critics who first saw it in 1887. This work especially clearly shows how Rodin treated female characters in their works, paying unconditional tribute to their body. His women are not at the mercy of men. For them, they are equal partners in the passion that has seized them. The pronounced eroticism of this sculpture caused a lot of controversy and discussion. For example, when a copy of it was sent to the World's Fair in Chicago in 1893, local critics considered it simply unacceptable for public display. Therefore, the sculpture was placed in a separate closed room. Visitors were allowed there only upon their personal request.

Francesca in music

Composers from all over the world actively used this image in their work. In 1876, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky released his symphonic fantasy “Francesca da Rimini”. In the center musical composition- a story by Francesca herself, the theme of which is performed solo on the clarinet. It starts out sad and even simple, but over time it develops, becoming undulating with unexpected ups and downs.

The theme develops and leads listeners to the lovers reading a book about Lancelot, then a tragic denouement occurs.

Opera by Rachmaninov

In 1904, the opera of the same name was written by Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninov. The authorship of the libretto belongs to Modest Tchaikovsky. It should be noted that this is a chamber opera, which in genre is close to a cantata or an orchestral poem. The orchestra conveys all the drama. At the same time, the opera does not have a strict division into separate numbers; its action develops rapidly and continuously.

In the first picture we see the experiences of a husband who is overcome by jealous thoughts. The second begins with a calm and even detached reading of the legend of Lancelot, and ends with an irresistible passion with which the heroes are drawn to each other. The premiere of this opera took place in 1906 in Bolshoi Theater. The orchestra was conducted by the author himself. The role of Gianciotto was performed by opera singer Georgy Baklanov, his younger brother was played by Anton Bonacich, and Francesca was played by Honored Artist of the Imperial Theaters Nadezhda Salina.

Many critics noted the excellent music that Rachmaninov wrote, but due to an unsuccessful libretto, the opera soon left the repertoire. The performance was resumed only in 1973. This time Francesca was played by Galina Vishnevskaya, Paolo by Alexey Maslennikov, and Gianciotto by Evgeniy Nesterenko.

In addition, in 1902 an opera with the same name was published in Russia. Its author was the Czech composer Eduard Napravnik.

And in 1914, based on the tragedy already mentioned in this article, Gabriele D’Annunzio wrote an opera of the same name Italian composer Riccardo Zandonai.

Francesca and ballet

This plot was also used in Russian ballet. Based on Tchaikovsky's symphonic fantasy, ballets were staged many times.

At the height of the Great Patriotic War, in 1943, People's Artist of the USSR Boris Afanasyev wrote a ballet in three acts. He managed to stage it in 1947 in the capital musical theater named after Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko.

Screen version of the tragedy

In 1950, the film "Paolo and Francesca" was shot by Italian director Raffaello Matarazzo. The world premiere of the film took place two years later. Vittorio Nino Novarese and Vittrio Montuori helped him write the script.

It is noteworthy that the main role in that film was played by Odile Versoix, the sister of Vladimir Vysotsky’s future wife Marina Vladi. We can also see Versoix in Robert Vernet's detective thriller "Fantômas against Fantômas", the comedy drama "Cartouche" by Philippe de Brocq, and the detective series "Investigations of Commissioner Maigret".

You can also get acquainted with the works of director Matarazzo from the adventure drama “The Ship of Damned Women”, the biographical melodrama “Giuseppe Verdi”, the melodrama “My Love”, which he shot in Italy. But still, the film about Francesca became one of the key ones in his career.

The story of this woman has remained in world art as an example of tragic and passionate love that knows no boundaries or rules. It is sincere and genuine and will certainly inspire more than one master to create a great work.

Most love stories are so banal that they become a thing of the past as soon as the bodies of the people who lived them are buried. But once the story has a bloody ending, it has every chance of becoming a legend. This happened with Romeo and Juliet, as well as with Paolo and Francesca, who will be discussed today.

At the beginning of the 13th century, the most influential dynasties of the Romagna region of Italy were the Polenta and Malatesta. In 1239, there lived in Rimini a ruler named Malatesta da Verucchio, and he had four children: the lame Giovanni, Malatestino, Paolo the Beautiful and Maddalena.

The heads of the dynasties decided to strengthen their common victory in the war with Guido da Montefeltro Malatesta and da Polenta by marriage. According to the agreement, Malatesta’s eldest son, the cripple Giovanni, was to marry da Polenta’s daughter Francesca. The girl's parents understood that she would not agree to marry a lame man, and they resorted to a trick.

On the wedding day, the handsome young Paolo, Giovanni’s younger brother, appeared to Francesca, authorized to marry by his power of attorney. The girl fell in love with the young man at first sight and agreed to become his wife. What was the grief of young Francesca when the deception was revealed. Moreover, it turned out that Paolo was already married to someone else for convenience.

Love, commanding loved ones to love,

I was so powerfully attracted to him,

That you see this captivity as indestructible.

Love led us together to destruction;

In Cain there will be an extinguisher of our days.”

Such speech flowed from their lips.

After several years of an unhappy marriage, Francesca gave birth to a daughter to her legal husband, and Paolo, appointed governor of Florence, became a frequent guest in the house of his elder brother and his wife, in the castle of Gradara. During one of their secret meetings, Brother Malatestino found them and told Giovanni what he had seen. He, pretending that he was leaving on business, suddenly returned to the castle and personally found the lovers Paolo and Francesca kissing. They read the love story of Lancelot and Guinevere and were so carried away that they kissed. It was at this moment that an enraged Giovanni burst into the room.

In our leisure time we once read

A sweet story about Launcelot

We were alone, everyone was careless.

Over the book, our eyes met more than once,

And we turned pale with a secret shudder

We just read about how he kisses

He clung to the smile of his dear mouth,

The one with whom I am forever shackled by torment,

He kissed, trembling, my lips.

And the book became our Galeot!

None of us finished reading the page.

Paolo wanted to escape through the secret passage, but did not have time. Giovanni rushed at his brother with a knife, Francesca covered her lover with herself and took a blow to the chest. As a result, both lovers were killed by Giovanni, blinded by jealousy.

The legend also says that the restless soul of the unfortunate Francesca still wanders around the castle of Gradara during the full moon.

Dante Gabriel Rosetti, "Paolo and Francesca", 1855

But if it weren’t for Paolo and Francesca’s great contemporary, Dante Alighieri, the legend of the couple in love might have remained a legend. But the poet placed them on the pages of his “Divine Comedy”. So, traveling with Virgil through the circles of Hell, he met Francesca and Paolo in the second circle, where those who have known forbidden love during their lifetime serve cruel, exorbitant punishment. The shadow of Francesca, without leaving the passionate embrace of Paolo, told the main character about their suffering in the hellish whirlwind.

This romantic, albeit slightly banal plot of the Italian epic, depicted in the great work, inspired many artists and sculptors to recreate the images of lovers Paolo and Francesca. In the iconographic tradition, they are depicted in several guises: while reading a love book, in a kiss, killed, or already in Dante Alighieri’s Hell. The most dramatic scenes also feature Francesca's legally enraged husband.