fort à propos absent - conveniently absent ( translation glossary) History Book,History,Art/Literary

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GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

French term or phrase:	fort à propos absent
English translation:	conveniently absent
Entered by:	Ingeborg Gowans

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9:08pm Feb 14, 2008

French to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - History / History Book

French term or phrase: fort à propos

Contexte:

"Entre-temps, le cistercien Suger était devenu tout puissant à la cour de France. Il prit la régence en 1146, en l'absence du roi parti **fort à propos** en croisade."

Merci!

femme

femme

KudoZ activity
Questions: 434 (15 open)
Answers: 352

United States

Clarification request(s) and response

Christopher Crockett: 1:44pm Feb 15, 2008: Of all the many errors your writer has made, *this* one is a real Howler and you might do the poor guy a favor by bringing it to his attention, lest he be laughed out of whatever market you're trans. for: Suger was most definitely *NOT* a Cistercian.
Christopher Crockett: 1:45pm Feb 15, 2008: He was the very famous Abbot of the Benedictine house of St. Denis. *Everyone* who works in the field knows this.

while the king was conveniently absent , on a crusade / most likely on a crusade

Explanation:
born 1081, near Paris — died Jan. 13, 1151) Abbot of Saint-Denis and adviser to Louis VI and Louis VII. A peasant boy educated at the abbey of Saint-Denis, he was a schoolmate and close friend of the future Louis VI. In 1122 he was elected abbot, and he used popular veneration for the saint and for the church's banner to rally military support for the king. Suger's work on the church of Saint-Denis was instrumental in the development of Gothic architecture. He arranged a treaty ending the civil war between Louis VII and his vassal Thibaut, and he served as regent (1147 – 49) while the king was away on the Second Crusade.
For more information on Suger, visit Britannica.com.

via leo/French/German German English "gelegen" in erman, meaning convenient ; not sure this is totally correct, but it would make sense from the context here I hope it helps a BIT

Selected response from:

Ingeborg Gowans
Canada

Note from asker to answerer

Mnay thanks, Ingeborg!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

2 +4

while the king was conveniently absent , on a crusade / most likely on a crusade

Ingeborg Gowans

took the opportunity

Christopher Crockett

fortuitously

fourth

timely, well-timed

xia29

was fortuitous

emiledgar

possible different interpretation

Kari Foster

Answers

41 mins confidence:

was fortuitous

Explanation:
The king's departure occured at exactly the right time.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 47 mins (2008-02-14 21:55:52 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

On reflexion, fortuitous only implies chance, so one might need to reinforce the fact the the chance of him leaving at this time was beneficial to the consolidation of power by Suger.

emiledgar
Belgium
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English,

French
PRO pts in category: 8

48 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +4

while the king was conveniently absent , on a crusade / most likely on a crusade

Explanation:
born 1081, near Paris — died Jan. 13, 1151) Abbot of Saint-Denis and adviser to Louis VI and Louis VII. A peasant boy educated at the abbey of Saint-Denis, he was a schoolmate and close friend of the future Louis VI. In 1122 he was elected abbot, and he used popular veneration for the saint and for the church's banner to rally military support for the king. Suger's work on the church of Saint-Denis was instrumental in the development of Gothic architecture. He arranged a treaty ending the civil war between Louis VII and his vassal Thibaut, and he served as regent (1147 – 49) while the king was away on the Second Crusade.
For more information on Suger, visit Britannica.com.

via leo/French/German German English "gelegen" in erman, meaning convenient ; not sure this is totally correct, but it would make sense from the context here I hope it helps a BIT

Ingeborg Gowans
Canada
Works in field
Native speaker of:

German
PRO pts in category: 8

Note from asker to answerer

Mnay thanks, Ingeborg!

3 hrs confidence:

timely, well-timed

Explanation:
À(-)propos, subst. masc.
1. Vieilli. Caractère de ce qui vient à point nommé, opportunité.
Retrieved from: http://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/propos

"fort" is added to reinforce the meaning, maybe "very" or "really"

Reference: http://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/propos

xia29
New Zealand
Works in field
Native speaker of:

French

10 hrs confidence:

possible different interpretation

Explanation:
I understand not only that the king's absence was perhaps well timed, but that the author is also saying 'what an amusingly apt coincidence that he happened to be off on a religious crusade when Suger (a clergyman) took advantage of the situation'. So, not just a matter of timing, but the NATURE of his trip was 'à propos'.
"Fittingly, the king happened to be away on a crusade when Suger..."

Kari Foster
France
Native speaker of:

English

11 hrs confidence:

fortuitously

Explanation:
"fort a propos" perhaps most simply rendered as "fortuitously"

fourth
France
Native speaker of:

English

16 hrs confidence:

took the opportunity

Explanation:
Once again with this author, one is tempted to correct his foolish, sloppy thinking rather than just giving him a straight translation.

Calling Suger a "cistercien" [which should be capitalized in English, btw] is a real Howler (say, this isn't a StandUp comedy routine, is it?), but almost as bad is implying that he had anything to do with Louis VII's going on crusade so that he could "take the Regency."

On the contrary, the sources make it pretty clear that the aging Suger was quite reluctant to be (btw) *co-*regent (with the king's kinsman).

Christopher Crockett
United States
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 92

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French: fort à propos

English translation: conveniently absent