Ill-fated lover's articles, two of them foreign (7)
I believe the answer is:
leander
'ill-fated lover's' is the definition.
(figure of Greek myth)
I can't explain the remainder of the clue.
(Other definitions for leander that I've seen before include "Hero's lover; rowing club" , "In Greek myth, the lover of Hero" , "youth who drowned" , "In Greek mythology, Hero's beloved who drowned in a lake" , "long-distance swimmer" .)