author
Wace
A 12th-century poet from Jersey, this Anglo-Norman writer helped shape how medieval readers imagined both Britain and Normandy. His lively verse retellings spread Arthurian legend to a wide audience and left a lasting mark on later literature.
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About the author
Born around 1110 on Jersey and raised in Normandy, Wace was a medieval poet writing in Anglo-Norman French. He studied in Caen and probably in Paris, and later became a canon of Bayeux.
He is best known for two major verse chronicles: the Roman de Brut and the Roman de Rou. The Roman de Brut, completed in 1155, reworked Geoffrey of Monmouth's history of Britain into French verse and is especially remembered for helping popularize the story of King Arthur's Round Table.
Wace's writing mattered not just because he retold famous stories, but because he made them accessible and memorable for new audiences. His work influenced later medieval chroniclers and romance writers, and he remains one of the key voices of 12th-century Norman literature.