By Henry Butler Clarke. A work which tells the story of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, the legendary El Cid, whose military genius and character made him one of the most celebrated figures of medieval Spain. Set during the turbulent years of the Reconquista, the book follows his rise from Castilian nobleman to commander, exile, conqueror, and ruler of Valencia, while placing his remarkable career within the wider struggle between the Christian kingdoms and Muslim Spain.
The narrative unfolds against a backdrop of shifting alliances, rival monarchs, ambitious nobles, and powerful taifa kingdoms, where political survival often depended as much upon diplomacy as success in battle. Clarke traces the campaigns that transformed the balance of power across the Iberian Peninsula, revealing the complex relationships that united and divided Christians and Muslims alike during one of Europe’s most dramatic periods. Drawing upon medieval chronicles and the great Spanish epic The Poem of the Cid, Clarke presents both the historical Rodrigo Díaz and the legendary hero whose fame endured long after his death.
The Moors called him El Cid, which meant the Lord (probably from the original Arabic al-sayyid). The Christians called him El Campeador, which means “Outstanding Warrior.”
Written before the era of political correctness, here is The Cid’s story—and that of Spain—from the Muslim conquest (A.D. 711) to the time of The Cid himself, until his death in A.D. 1099.
Chapters cover the Saracen conquest, the ancestry of The Cid, the legendary accomplishments of The Cid as a young man and his youthful exploits, the reign of Don Sancho, the accession of Don Alfonso and the banishment of The Cid, The Cid in exile, the conquests of Alfonso and the condition of the Saracen princes of the south, the Almoravides in Spain, the Battle of Zalaca, the reconciliation of Alfonso and The Cid, Yusuf’s return, the outlawing of The Cid again, conquests in Andalusia, the unification of Spanish forces, the revolution at Valencia, Ibn Jehaf, the sieges of Valencia, The Cid’s victory, the marriage of his daughters, the last battle and his death.
Includes three appendices: 1) judicial combats between noblemen, 2) the laws of banishment and 3) ritualistic controversy in the 11th century.
Softcover 382 pages, indexed, 20 maps and illustrations, #820
