In Titian's Allegory of Marriage, a man in armour is departing from his sad lady (Plate 1). He is leaving for war in gleaming armour that reflects two images: one of his lady, his muse of poetry, which is mirrored on his chest, and the image of Minerva, his guide in warfare, which seems to be mirrored on the other side of his shield (Plate 6).

Titian's departing warrior is a representation of a poet-soldier. Alfonso d’Avalos, the Marquis del Vasto, embodied this concept. He was a commander in the service of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and his frequent departures from his beloved wife, Maria d’Aragona, were documented in his poem Anchor che col partire (‘Although in Leaving’), which was printed in 1547. Despite his popularity, his story was not the exception, but rather the rule among his peers: the members of a military humanistic elite, who combined military careers with the study of the humanities and/or literary endeavours. They were known for living by the ethos of ‘arms and letters’, a concept dealt with in Baldassare Castiglione's Libro del Cortegiano, published in Venice in 1528, where it was presented by the poet and clergyman, Pietro Bembo, who declared that arms and letters are equally important as noble accoutrements of the ideal courtier. Bembo's personal relationship with Titian is discussed by Valery Rees in the Chapter 2 of the present book.

In this chapter, I interpret Titian's departing warrior as a representation of a poetsoldier by focusing on the literary image of Julio, the principal character in Poliziano's Stanze, who, guided by Cupid, Minerva, and Glory, turns from a poet into a soldier, leaving his muse behind and heading out for the joust.