Song of Roland Power Quotes

This is the way enemy kings deal with each other. Obviously, you don't want to take your enemy's word for anything, so the only way to convince him of your sincerity is to demonstrate some weakness. By sending hostages, Marsile gives Charlemagne the upper hand, allowing him to torture, maim, or kill them in exchange for the bargain. There's a similar exchange during Ganelon's trial, when Pinabel gives Charlemagne hostages in exchange for getting Ganelon temporarily out of prison—medieval bail.

Does anyone else think it's weird that the Franks carry a pure-gold throne with them on campaigns? It must be a super-important symbol of kingship to lug it that far. The other thing to note here is that Charlemagne is described as the "King" rather than the emperor, focusing his empire down to "fair France," when it actually included Germany, Italy, and much of central Europe. But what else would you expect from a French poet, hmmm?

Charlemagne doesn't make decisions without the input of advisors, a council of his top barons that thinks out loud about a problem. These guys are all in feudal relationships with Charlemagne, meaning that in exchange for land or other goods they are obligated to serve in Charlemagne's army. But in the Song of Roland this relationship is a little more complicated. Charlemagne doesn't just want their military allegiance: he wants their advice too.

Here is Charlemagne summarizing Marsile's offer to him and giving us a snapshot of what a 12th-century vassal looked like. Marsile would be an exceptionally wealthy and powerful vassal, in charge of his own city, but he would still hold this city as a "fief" from Charlemagne. So what the heck is a "fief"? In a feudal system, "fief" refers to heritable property granted to someone in return for specific services and allegiance.

In this case, Charlemagne is the feudal lord (the one who grants) and Marsile is the feudal vassal (the one who receives). The type of property being granted could vary widely, but for the feudal relationship between Marsile and Charlemagne, Saragossa would become "marches." For more on how marches are not the months that come after April, see "Setting."

This weird moment points up Charlemagne's unclear motivations. If Duke Naimes is a valuable man, why wouldn't he make a good envoy? Is Charlemagne positive that the envoy will be killed? It also demonstrates how the council provides an important check on Charlemagne's power. Yeah, he can refuse the council's nominations, but he can't speak up for his own idea.

Although he angrily refused Naimes's, Turpin's, and Roland's offers to be the envoy, Charlemagne immediately accepts Ganelon. Does Charlemagne secretly hate Ganelon? Why is he not "valuable" the way Roland, Oliver, Turpin, and Naimes are?

This is definitely a lose-lose situation. But did it have to be like this? The poet notes that Ganelon is speaking with "great guile" (33.426). Would Charlemagne have done all of this to Marsile if he refused the bargain, given that he is exhausted from his seven-year war and on the point of going home anyway? Or was Charlemagne anxious to blast Saragossa all along?

Charlemagne gathers another council to determine Ganelon's fate in an early form of trial by jury—at least until it devolves into a trial by combat. Note that even though Franks have been the only Christian people mentioned so far, Charlemagne gathers vassals "from many lands," including "Bavarians and Saxons," "Germans and Teutons" (275.3793, 95). This jury is diverse.

Charlemagne clearly hates the verdict but can't just toss it out.

Now it turns into trial by combat. Just when you thought everything was all rosy and proto-democracy, we get this old-fashioned horror show. But since this is an empire built on faith and swords, and in particular, the belief that God will help your swords kill bad people, it kind of makes sense that Charlemagne would rely on what swords have to tell him. If Thierry's verdict is indeed the best, then God will make him win.