Explore the Craft of Writing Poetry French Verse The Ballade is the dominant Old French form of the 14th and 15th centuries. The NPEOPP refers to the Ballade as "the vehicle of the greatest of early French poetry". It was brought to England by Chaucer who used the Ballade stanza for the Monk's Tale consequently the ballade stanza is also called the Monk's Tales Stanza.
The Ballade gave birth to a whole family of forms, however it is not a relative nor should it be confused with the seemingly universal, "Ballad". The Ballade and its variations are relatively long, somewhat stingy with the