author
Matteo Maria Boiardo
1440–1494
A courtly Renaissance poet who helped revive the chivalric epic, he is best remembered for the lively, unfinished Orlando Innamorato. His work helped set the stage for Ariosto and later Italian romance literature.
2 Audiobooks
The Orlando Innamorato
by Matteo Maria Boiardo
Orlando innamorato
by Matteo Maria Boiardo
About the author
Born in 1440 or 1441 in Scandiano, in northern Italy, Matteo Maria Boiardo was a nobleman, humanist, and poet connected to the Este court at Ferrara. He received a strong classical education and also served in public roles, including appointments in Modena and Reggio.
He is best known for Orlando Innamorato, an ambitious poem that mixed the worlds of Charlemagne’s heroes with the wonder and adventure of romance. That blend of courtly love, fantasy, and knightly action gave fresh energy to the Italian epic tradition and strongly influenced writers who followed.
Boiardo died in 1494, leaving his most famous poem unfinished. Even so, his writing remains an important bridge between early Renaissance humanism and the great Italian epics that came after.