Der wilde Alexander

Perhaps originally from Württemberg or more probably Switzerland, Alexander is mentioned in both the Codex Manesse, where he is portrayed as a wild rider with a red robe, as well as the Jenaer Liederhandschrift.

Whether Alexander was part of the gentry is not known, but he is generally considered to have been a wandering minstrel who was dependent upon his reception at court.

The majority of his poems deplore the decadence of the age, of which the fall of Acre is considered to be a symptom.

His poetry is written in a simple yet expressive style, and always contains a degree of spiritual interpretation; for example, Hie vor dô wir kinder wâren contains one of only a handful of depictions of childhood in medieval poetry, yet still contains a warning against sensual pleasures.

Alexander also wrote a minneleich, Mín trûclîchez klagen, which invokes the essence of Cupid, as well as mentioning the destruction of Troy.