Olivier lo Templier

Who is Olivier lo Templier?

Olivier lo Templier was a Knight Templar and troubadour probably from Catalonia. He appears as lo templier En'Olivier in one chansonnier, in which is preserved his only work, Estat aurai lonc temps en pessamen. He may be identical with Ramon Oliver who appears as commander of the Templar house of Gardeny near Lleida in 1295. He should not be confused with another troubadour Templar, Ricaut Bonomel, whose style was very different and who wrote from the Holy Land.

His canso can be dated precisely because of its reference to the Crusader fleet which left Barcelona with James I of Aragon at its head in 1269. Olivier wrote the song to James, of whom he was hearty supporter, and the barons of Catalonia for the success of their venture.

Olivier's Catalan identity can only be posited on the internal evidence of his canso, the last line of which mentions the lord of Gelida, Guerau de Cervelló, with whom Olivier may have had links. There is also evidence of Catalanism in his declension, but this may be attributable to the copyist and not Olivier. His affection for James, too, cannot be taken as evidence of Catalan identity in and of itself.