The Song of Roland
(late 11th century)
(The mightiest and noblest of Charlemagne's crusading knights is betrayed, but his companions stand fiercely by him as the Saracens attack.)
The Song of Roland
(late 11th century)
(The mightiest and noblest of Charlemagne's crusading knights is betrayed, but his companions stand fiercely by him as the Saracens attack.)
CONTENTS:
1-25: The setting is the 8th century, when Charlemagne (also called Carlon) had sacked all of Moorish Spain except Saragossa, where Marsilion held his army. A Muslim knight Blancandrin devised a plan to rid Spain of the French Christians-give them treasure and some men as insurance, and promise that Marsilion will come soon to France and convert to Christianity, if only Charlemagne goes home immediately. Then, of course, the Saracens will simply renege and sacrifice the sureties. They proceed with the plan; and despite misgivings (especially of the knight Roland, hero of the Spanish conquests), Charlemagne agrees to send someone to parley with Marsilion. Roland wishes to go, but Charlemagne refuses to let him. Roland then chooses his rash stepfather Ganelon (also called Gučnes), who is furious at this and promises to take vengeance (two other knights sent on a similar mission earlier had been killed by Marsilion).
26-52: Ganelon rides and catches up to the Paynims, while still seething at Roland. He and Blancandrin become fast friends and promise to kill Roland together. Upon meeting Marsilion, Ganelon delivers terms, saying that unless Marsilion accepts Christianity and accepts Roland keeping half of Spain, Charlemagne will drag him back to Aix in France as a slave. Plus, in recompense for the two barons killed earlier, Charlemagne wants Marsilion's uncle the caliph. Marsilion is initially furious, but once calmed he marvels at Charlemagne's might. Ganelon offers his aid to their plan by pledging to betray Roland and his companion Oliver to Marsilion, after Charlemagne returns to France. Ganelon is made a friend and given a sword and helmet.
53-78: Ganelon brings the sureties to Charlemagne, and lies that Marsilion's army, including the caliph, are drowned at sea, and that Marsilion will accept Christianity. Charlemagne prepares to leave for France. He has threatening dreams as four thousand Saracens gather for the attack on the rearguard to be left behind in Spain. Ganelon volunteers Roland to lead the rearguard, which Roland accepts boldly although he is angry at Ganelon's treachery. Charlemagne offers Roland half the army, but Roland only takes twenty thousand men, including all twelve peers. Marsilion's nephew wishes to strike the first blow in the upcoming battle, and assembles twelve warriors to fight the 12 Christian nobles. Each is introduced in turn.
79-111: As the Saracens ride to meet Roland, Oliver notices their might and realizes the full extent of Ganelon's betrayal. He begs Roland three times to blow his horn for Charlemagne to return, but Roland will have none of that shame, and trusts to God, the French, and his sword Durendal. Roland gives the French a rallying speech and the Archbishop Turpin gives a sermon and blessing. They fall to battle. Marsilion's nephew badmouths Charlemagne, and Roland pays him back by skewering him. The Franks fight valiantly, killing eleven of the twelve Saracen warrior "peers" and nearly all of the 100,000 man army. But the French lose many also, and storms meanwhile in France herald the coming death of Roland as if it were the Apocalypse. Marsilion's main force has yet to arrive.
112-160: Marsilion's main army arrives, and many killings on both side ensue, the French warriors taking revenge on each of their own great knights killed. Eventually they rout the Saracens, despite the difference in numbers. Roland, Oliver, and Archbishop Turpin are the most valiant heroes. When only sixty Christians are left, Roland wants to blow his horn at last for Charlemagne to return, but Oliver is against it, and angry at Roland for not having done it when it could have done some good. Turpin urges Roland to do it, and he does. He blows the horn so hard that blood vessels in his head burst, and his ears bleed. Charlemagne hears it, has Ganelon arrested, and rides back at full speed. Roland renews the fight, cuts off Marsilion's hand, and kills his son, sending his army to flight. But Marsilion's uncle Marganice remains with his Negro army. Marganice strikes Oliver mortally from behind, and Oliver takes his own revenge and also makes up with Roland, before dying. Roland faints. Upon reviving, only he, Archbishop Turpin, and Walter Hum are left alive of the French, and the last is mortally wounded. They fight on together courageously. In a volley of javelins Walter dies and Turpin gets four in the chest but fights on. Finally four hundred warriors descend on Roland but cannot prevail, and the horns of Charlemagne can now be heard. The pagans flee.
161-176: Roland helps the wounded Turpin and then brings back the bodies of the nobles to lie in one place. Eventually Turpin dies, and Roland, mostly from his own horn-blowing, feels he is close to death as well. A Saracen feigning death tries to steal his sword, but Roland kills him with his horn. Worried that Durendal will fall into pagan hands, he tries to break it, but it will not. He lies beneath a pine, faces Spain as a conqueror, confesses his sins and faith, and dies. He surrenders his life to God as a knight surrenders a fief, with the handing of a glove.
177-213: Charlemagne arrives to see his army slaughtered and the Saracens in flight. He pursues, and with the help of God who bestills the sun while they ride, they catch up to and rout the pagans, most of whom drown in a river. The French then sleep. Charlemagne sleeps in his armor with Joyeuse, his sword, whose blade is the head of the lance that pierced Christ's side, by his head. He dreams of two conflicts yet to come, in imagery of beasts. Meanwhile Marsilion, defeated, has their gods Mahound (Mohammed), Termagant, and Apollyon destroyed because of their lack of help to them, and sends to Babylon to Baligant, Emir and king of all Paynims (pagans), for aid. The Eastern horde sails by magical lights (carbuncles) and lands in Spain. He sends for Marsilion and wishes him to come pledge his fealty to him and opposition to Christianity; and pledges to seek Charlemagne out and defeat him. Marsilion is near death from his wounds, so Baligant rides to him at Saragossa, where Marsilion pledges his fealty to Baligant. The Arabs then ride to Charlemagne at Roncevaux, scene of the battle, to which Charlemagne has returned. Charlemagne finds Roland and mourns aloud piteously, wishing for his own death and worrying for the safety of the realm. They bury the dead and are about to go home with the bodies of the nobles.
214-257: Suddenly Baligant's scouts gallop forth and challenge Charlemagne to fight the horde. Charlemagne rouses the men to arms and they form columns of 15-40 thousand men, by nation of origin, each under a great warrior. Ten columns are formed, totaling around 350 thousand men. Charlemagne prays for aid, and they array themselves. Meanwhile, the mighty warrior Baligant is readying his host. His son Malpramis is given the honor of meeting the first two columns of the French. Thirty columns, the *least* having fifty thousand men [!] are arrayed, mostly repulsive rogues from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. They call upon their gods, and the two hosts meet. Both are fine, and realize that the fight will be great. All columns engage and there are immediate melees and losses on both sides. Malpramis achieves great slaughter until Duke Naimon strikes him down. Charlemagne then rescues the wounded Naimon. He and Ogier the Dane distinguish themselves. The tide turns in favor of the French, and the Paynim standard goes down. Baligant is disheartened.
258-266: Charlemagne and Baligant fight well and hard. Charlemagne will not be Baligant's vassal, nor will Baligant accept Christianity, so they continue. Baligant cuts Charlemagne's scalp to the bone, but Charlemagne, inspired by Gabriel, recovers and promptly kills Baligant with a blow to the head. The Paynims flee, and Charlemagne chases them all the way to Saragossa, where Marsilion dies even as he watches the rout. Saragossa is taken, and all the remaining vestiges of paganism destroyed. The people are baptized on pain of death.
267-291: Charlemagne leaves a garrison at Saragossa, and returns to France with the Queen Bramimonda, hoping to convert her by love. He gets to his citadel at Aix and calls for judges from all areas of the empire. At the word that Roland has died, his young betrothed Aude dies of grief. Meanwhile, Ganelon is shackled in a public square and is beaten, awaiting trial. Charlemagne charges him with treason. Ganelon objects that it was merely vengeance against Roland, and sets thirty of his kin, the greatest of them Pinabel, to defend him. All of the judges except Thierry want to give up the case for fear of Pinabel. Charlemagne is disturbed at their cowardice; but Thierry sentences Ganelon to death, and puts his sword where his mouth is. Pinabel and Thierry fight, neither will yield, and sparks fly so thick that they catch fire to the grass, which soon is spattered with blood. Pinabel slices into Thierry's cheek, but Thierry crashes his sword into Pinabel's brain. As per their code, the thirty sureties standing behind Pinabel and Ganelon also forfeit their lives, and they are hanged. The judges agree that for Ganelon death by torture is the sentence. He is pulled apart by horses, and justice is thereby served. Queen Bramimonda is baptized, and all is peace-until Gabriel comes that very night and tells Charlemagne that his services to protect Christendom against the Saracens are again required.
This is an anthem of a book-a mighty, direct, vibrant punch of a poem. It is simple, stylized, yet well-balanced; powerful, but not without subtlety. It is relatively short, as epics go, and is the best of its genre-the "Songs of Deeds", or Chansons de geste, of medieval French literature, of which there were hundreds. In style, in its portrayal of the values of chivalry, in its composition, and in many other ways it is the supreme knightly adventure poem. For the Penguin edition the proficient translator (and great author in her own right!) Dorothy Sayers has written a superb introduction, revealing the excellence of the poem and explaining various aspects of it, and providing a background for appreciating it. Much of the style and nature of this book can be gleaned from the summary above and the quotes below, but I would make mention of a few aspects or passages in particular:
-The poem has an interesting format. Ten-syllabled lines are grouped together in stanzas called laisses that differ in length. The final syllables in each line do not rhyme, but are assonant, meaning that the vowel sounds are the same. Thoughts end with the lines, which make for a steady flow of the poem. In addition, each line pauses in the middle, dividing it into two noticeable subsections. Conventions of stress are adhered to as well, for ease and aesthetics of recitation. An expert English translation, such as Dorothy Sayers' from which the quotes below were taken, will reproduce these elements closely.
-Combat sequences are often ritualized, with certain phases of the battle always following others. A good example of a duel is that of Pinabel and Thierry in 278f. The battle cry is Montjoy! Horses and swords are often named. Individual melees are important-in fact, a whole war may depend on the outcome of its leaders' duel.
-The description goes in and out during battles: a view of an individual fight, and then pulling back to view the host as a whole.
-A theme of courageous honor versus cowardly betrayal is stressed in the work, with Roland being the paragon of the first and Ganelon the incarnation of the second.
-The concept of "might makes right" is actually not appropriate to describe the knightly code of chivalry. Rather, it is "might reveals right": God was viewed simplistically as being the direct arbiter of every martial encounter (282). When a combatant fell or lived, it was God's will. So, analogously to the drawing of lots in the Bible, fights were used to determine God's judgment in a matter.
-Vibrant battle scenes are portrayed as by an enthused medieval sportscaster.
-Some deeds are exaggerated; for instance, a favorite stroke is that which slices the head, body, armor, saddle, and horse in two. (e.g., 119, 124).
-Soliloquies on the brink of great scenes are common, as in Shakespeare. These often reveal the values of nobility and chivalry-although never in a didactic or unnatural way-- and also build up suspense for the deeds to come.
-The giving of a glove as a pledge of fealty or in surrender at death is recurrent. Roland gives his glove to God, whereas Marsilion gives his to the pagan king Baligant.
-Even the Saracen horde gives Charlemagne fair warning, as opposed to the cowardly treachery of Ganelon and Marsilion. A man can approach nobility and honor no matter who he is, although, as several passages below point out, Christianity is deemed necessary to fully arrive there. Take the praising description of Baligant, for example (228).
-There is a great buildup of energy and suspense, from 214 through the 230's and onward, to the great battle. Such is also found before the first battle, 68f.
-The satisfying ending, with Charlemagne at temporary peace until Gabriel appears to him again, is remarkable and seems far ahead of its time.
-The Christians, though fighting ostensibly for their God, seem personally quite unspiritual. One might have expected more reverence in the French on a Crusade (i.e., using God as more than just a basis for oaths, a direction for laments, and a source to pray for help in battle). Even Charlemagne treats the wars in Spain as "his cause" rather than God's-he never asks for God's guidance, but only his help to succeed (226). Nevertheless, the poem is thoroughly Christian, in the sense that its theology is more or less on track with basic (i.e., early) Christianity. There is no Mary worship, intercession of saints, or other additives. And the Biblical imagery is pervasive: The twelve peers under Charlemagne easily invite comparison with the twelve apostles under Jesus, one of course being the betrayer (12); the pagans die like the Egyptians by drowning in a river; Charlemagne's sword is tipped with the lancehead that pierced Jesus's side; the sun is stilled for the Christians' chase of the Muslims as it was for Joshua; and upon Roland's death the apocalypse is thought to be imminent (110).
-In reference to the Christianity of the book, and given the favored moral issues of today's society, mention must be made of the genocidal tendency of the army and the questionable morality of the entire "holy war" enterprise, not to mention the conversion of a people by death threat (266). Xenophobia, which gave rise in this case to the ill-treatment and demonization of peoples of the Middle East and Africa, is of course a fixture in literature-and so, presumably, in people's attitudes-in all but the very few most thoughtful and democratic of cultures, and often even in them in times of war. Its pervasiveness can help to explain the unresolved inconsistency between the tenets of Christianity and some of the attitudes of the author and characters. Incidentally, the fact is intriguing that a person with heightened sensibilities to racism and sexism in literature and cinema today, may nevertheless sit down with exquisite enjoyment to portrayals of murders by the dozen. Right and wrong may not be subjective, but the way we pick and chose our favorites from these categories certainly is.
Tidbits of Significance (translated from the French by Dorothy L. Sayers; the numbers refer to laisses, the divisions of Old French poetry)
"AOI"
-Exclamation at the end of many laisses, thought to be a shouted refrain (perhaps related to "Ahoy!")
-of Charlemagne, 10.
…your arm itches to swing sword and hurl spear in burnished armor beneath a noble standard; or, you want to experience the culture and attitudes of the Age of Chivalry in its best form.
If you like this, you'd also like...
(for the knight in quest of mighty deeds:)
-Chrétien de Troyes, Yvain (late 12th century).
-Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (c.1375).
-Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte D'Arthur (1470).
-Sir Walter Scott, Ivanhoe (1819).
(for the fan of the Roland or Orlando legends:)
-Boiardo, Orlando Innamorato (1487).
-Ariosto, Orlando Furioso (1532).
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