Comment le Cid s’est-il inscrit dans la légende ? [QdH #55]

Spain, November 1808, Napoleon I launches a great offensive on the Iberian peninsula, prey to the revolts since the country was put under control by France. After taking the city of Burgos, the Napoleonic troops are free to pillage throughout the region. At the Monastery of San Pedro de Cárdenas, in their search for treasures, soldiers dig tombs. The horrified populations manage to recover precious relics and bring them to the French military intendant in Burgos. These bones are identified and attributed to a quasi-mythical historical figure of Spanish history, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, better known as Cid. His remains are repatriated to France, in a context where the taste for the great tragic heroes and the valiant warriors braving adversity are in vogue in these pre-Roman times. The Cid, a noble Christian banished, mercenary in the service of Muslims, then a wandering knight, managed to carve an independent kingdom in the troubled period of the Spanish Reconquista. A real feat. His extraordinary history never ceased to inspire many authors after his death, who gradually mythified Rodrigo Díaz. Let's go back to the Cid's journey and observe how a historical figure turns into a legend over time, blurring the border between reality and fiction. At the time of the Cid, in the 11th century, Spain is a mosaic of Christian kingdoms and Berber or Arab provinces. Many languages ​​and dialects are spoken there, the ancient Castilian, the Aragonese, the Asturian or the Arabic, of course. The ability to understand and communicate in another language than his is a key to success for kings, diplomats, knights or mercenaries. But learning a language is a long and complex process, which requires an investment of every moment. The sponsor of this video, Hypnoledge, offers a simple and revolutionary solution to facilitate this learning. 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If, like me, you feel a certain blockage with languages, I strongly advise you to download and try Hypnoledge. There are really for all levels. Whether you are very good in a language or with a school level, it will help you to improve easily and really quickly. In addition to that, at the moment, you have 14 free days thanks to the link in the description. I really invite you to test this revolutionary learning method directly after the video. Let us now return to our initial subject, the extraordinary journey of a banished knight who settled in a kingdom in medieval Spain. In the 8th century, the Iberian Peninsula, then under Visigoth domination, is conquered by the Muslim forces of the Umayyad Caliphate. Only the region of the Asturias manages to resist, well protected by its mountains, and becomes a Christian kingdom. Al-Andalus is named the Hispanic territories under Muslim domination. In 750, the Umayyad Caliphate is overthrown by the Abbasids. Abdelrahman, the only survivor of the massacre that struck his family, took refuge in Spain and broke free from the Caliphate. He founded the Emirate of Cordou. King Franck-Pépin-le-Bref took advantage of this instability to take back Roussillon and Septimania. Charlemagne continued this movement and pushed the Muslims further south, and founded the March of Spain, a militarized frontier zone that had to stop the Saracen incursions. It consisted of dependent counties of the Carolingians. In 824, the Kingdom of Navarre obtained its independence from the Carolingian power. At the same time, the Kingdom of Asturias gained ground. Despite constant Muslim raids at the borders, the situation stabilized. The reign of Abdelrahman II was marked by a great cultural outpouring of Al-Andalus. Scholar, poet, doctor, astronomer or merchant, a flood of Orient. For the Christian populations of the Emirate, three possible choices. Either they remain Christian but pay taxes, these are the Mozarabs. Either they convert, they are called the Mouladis. Either they flee to the Christian kingdoms. These exiles then allowed to inflate the populations of these northern kingdoms. The conversions to Al-Andalus are numerous in the 9th century, the Umayyad power becoming more severe with the non-Muslims. In 911, at the death of the King of Asturias, Alphonse III, the kingdom was divided between his heirs. Kingdom of Galicia and Leon, which quickly merged, and County of Castille, who tried, each at their level, to extend their territory to the south. The arrival to power of the energetic Emir Abdelrahman III changed the situation. He submitted the rebellious governors of Al-Andalus, especially in Toledo, stopped the armies of Leon and went to take Pamplona. He spread to the east and settled in Balearic Islands. Strong of his victories, he proclaimed in 929 the Caliphate of Cordoba, positioning himself as a guarantor of the unity of Islam. His policy of religious tolerance prevents revolts and ensures a certain stability. It's a golden age for Al-Andalus. The trade is flourishing there, art and crafts are developing, the architecture has a characteristic style. In 977, Al-Manzur, the Caliph's vizier, usurped the power and inflicted serious reversals to the Christian kingdom of the north, going to pillage Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, horrifying the whole of Christianity. The siege of Barcelona provoked an electroshock in the Catalan counties, which took advantage of the fall of the Carolingians to definitively break free from the Franks, unable to protect them. At the death of Al-Manzur, a long civil war, particularly violent, broke out in Al-Andalus, between Arabs, Berbers, nobles and ambitious rulers. The Caliphate broke out in 1031, and on its ruins, many independent emirates, the Taifas, formed. These Taifas have fluctuating borders, they ally or wage war, and do not hesitate to associate with the Christian kingdoms to their own interest. Too few to conquer militarily these Taifas, the Christian kingdoms made them pay a tribute, the pariah. The three greatest Taifas, Badaros, Toled and Saragos, submitted, followed by Seville, which absorbed the Taifas to the west. In the north, the Count of Castilla, Ferdinand I, managed to re-establish the old kingdom of the Asturias, and extended in Coimbra. A few years later, the Catalan counties united to become the kingdom of Aragon, and seized the east of Navarre. The Barcelona county also extended. Here are the forces present in the middle of the 11th century. The situation in Spain is therefore particularly complex. The alliances and wars between Christian kingdoms and Muslim Taifas fluctuate constantly, causing a chronic instability in a climate of generalized violence. It is in this troubled context that was born around 1050, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar. The one who will be nicknamed the Cid, was born in a family of the Leonese aristocracy, who managed to enter the good graces of King Ferdinand I. He was raised by the king's court, and especially by his eldest son, Sancho. Endowed with a solid education, speaking Arabic, he quickly engaged himself on the battlefields alongside Sancho. The baptism of fire took place in Graus in 1063, for the count of the kingdom of Castileon. The death of Ferdinand I in 1065 led to the division of the kingdom between his descendants. His friend became king of Castile, under the title of Sancho II. Immediately, a fratricidal war broke out. Sancho exiled his brother Garcia, and regained the Galicia. The Cid actively participated in the military campaigns, and sharpened his sense of war and his abilities as a man, especially during the battle of Colpereira, which led to the exile of the king of Leon, Alfonso, in the Taifa of Toledo. It is assumed that it was during this period that he began to be nicknamed Campeador, meaning remarkable warrior or victorious leader. Another version, not attested, would come from a stunning victory of Rodrigo during a duel for the control of the city of Calahora, in the conflict that opposes Navarre to Leon. This common practice is to settle a conflict between kingdoms by a duel, thus avoiding the excessive bloodshed of a ranged battle. During the siege of Zamora, which aims to dislodge the last heir of Ferdinand I, Sancho II is ruthlessly assassinated with a spear in the back. Alfonso, strongly suspected of having commanded the murder, took the opportunity to return and take the head of the kingdom of Castile. The siege of Zamora saw a first legend of the Cid arise. He would have faced 15 knights alone, killing several, and confusing the others. Rodrigo still swears to the new king Alfonso VI. An episode, probably imaginary, reveals an independent character that will cause his fall. He would have solemnly sworn to Alfonso in front of a parterre of noble Castilians that he did not command the murder of his brother Sancho. The king swore it, and will never forgive him this public humiliation. Despite everything, for eight years, he fulfilled various functions, judge, diplomat or tax collector in the taifas submitted to the crown. Rodrigo obtained the king at the hand of his niece Jimena, and thus joined the royal family. A story alone sums up the geopolitical imbroglio of the time. Rodrigo is sent by Alfonso VI in the taifa of Seville, which has grown considerably, to collect taxes. At the same time, the taifa of Grenade invaded the Sevillian lands, with the help of another servant of Alfonso VI, charged with the same mission as Rodrigo to Grenade. The Cid won the battle. He imprisoned the Christian knights for a while, who are theoretically his allies, then sent them back to Castile. In 1081, he repelled a Muslim attack at the Castilian border, then led a raid of pillaging in the taifa of Toledo as a reprisal. Except that Alfonso VI is on good terms with the Berber dynasty that reigned in Toledo. Despite the important place he occupied in the court, the sanction for this bloody initiative fell. The exile. Rodrigo is not alone in this ordeal. Many relatives accompany him and because of his already established reputation, many mercenaries, former prisoners or dissidents in search of wealth start to serve him. But this small troop must be maintained. He offered his services to the Count of Barcelona, who led them and eventually turned to the taifa of Saragossa. Rodrigo became a mercenary chief for the Muslim count, led raids and won many battles, especially against the Kingdom of Aragon and the Count of Barcelona. This period allowed him to refine his military skills and become a real leader. A keen knowledge of human psychology, he loyalized his soldiers by living by their side, by equally sharing the loot and by imposing an iron discipline, making his army constantly operational. His soldiers, integrating both Muslims and Christians, fought with more enthusiasm than most of the king's armies. Tactically, he skillfully mixed Muslim and Christian war techniques. For example, he was inspired by the Arab armies by using the lightning charge of cavalry followed by a strategic retreat. During this period, his nickname of Sid, Sidi, meaning lord or Ka'id in Arabic, began to spread throughout the peninsula. His reputation of invincibility created his legend, which never ceases to grow. Since 1063, the knights who fought the Muslims in Spain benefited from an indulgence granted by the Pope. Many fighters came from France to serve Alfonso VI. This decisive help allowed him to take Toledo, which was however his vassal, and to become master of the Taifa. He then placed the siege in front of Saragos, where Sid was in post with the emir. But the siege was quickly lifted. A serious threat from the south forced the Christians to reorganize. For fear of Alfonso's spectacular advance, small Taifas asked for help to the rising power in Africa, the Almoravid dynasty. This group of Berber tribes managed in a few years to impose itself from the south of present-day Morocco to the Mediterranean. The first sultan of the dynasty, Yusuf ibn Tachfin, founded Marrakech and constituted a real empire, characterized by a strict application of Islamic law. He answered the Taifa's request and landed in Spain in 1086. The troops of emirs of Seville, Badaros, Grenada and Almeria joined him. Alfonso VI then met, allied for the occasion, with the king of Aragon. The battle of Zalaca is particularly bloody. In digital inferiority, 2,500 Christian soldiers against 7,500 Muslims, the Christian forces suffered a crushing defeat, losing half of their army. The Almoravid troops did not pursue the conquest. Ibn Tachfin had to return to Africa following the death of his son and a status quo was drawn in the peninsula. The arrival of the Almoravids changed the political panorama since many alliances were made and were broken. Thus, Alfonso and the Cid reconciled after the battle, the Castilian king probably needing a competent and energetic military commander. Rodrigo reintegrated the court and for two years, he resumed his old tax collector activities. Above all, he was sent in the front line to protect the interests of the crown. He came to help the Taifa of Valencia then of Saragossa, attacked by the Taifa of Arrida and the County of Barcelona. But again, the alliances evolved. The Taifa of Saragossa collided with Castile and tried to take Valencia with the County of Barcelona. In the digital inferiority, the Count of Peador revealed his qualities as a diplomat and managed to raise the siege by negotiating. A Castilian protectorate was established on Valencia. In 1088, Youssef ibn Tachfin returned to Al-Andalus. He placed the siege in front of Aledo, recently conquered by Alfonso. The king of Castile went to his meeting and ordered the Cid to join him. Without any explanation, Rodrigo did not come. The king of Castile sanctioned him for treason. He is again exiled and all his goods confiscated. From now on, the Cid rides alone and will never be in the orders of any lord. The Cid reconstituted his own army which uses terror and torture as a weapon of war. For two years, the troops of the Count of Peador acted like a wandering army, riding without a base of action, practicing extortion, plundering and above all, tax evasion, which allows to establish quasi-protectorates on different taifas, which, for fear of violent retaliation, submit. The taifas and the Count of Barcelona join to stop this army escaping to all control. But they are dryly beaten at Tevar. On this occasion, he once again proves a real military genius. He spreads false information in the opposing armies by sending false deserters who sow trouble. He chooses the meeting place on a wooded ground in order to surprise his opponents. In 1092, he reconstructs and settles in the fortress of Pena Cadiela and makes it his base of operation. From now on, the Levantine zone of the peninsula, with Valence as its center, is tributary and under protectorate of the Cid. Alfonso VI reacts. He joins with the king of Aragon and even calls on the fleets of Pis and Gênes to dislodge the Cid. The coalition fails in front of Valence, which gives the opportunity to Rodrigo Diaz to take revenge by launching an expedition of plundering, of plundering, and of destruction in Castile. While he reconciles himself with the emir of Saragos, Rodrigo learns that a revolt led to the assassination of the emir of Valence, his ally and tributary, and that the power has just passed to the hands of allies of the Almoravids. The new objective of the Cid is now clear. Take back Valence and make Taifa his personal kingdom. He places the siege in front of the city and regularly attacks its outposts. A Almoravid rescue troop fails in its attempt to dislodge the Cid. The Campeador uses many techniques to make the city capitulate. First, he establishes a total blockade, preventing all supplies so that the population dies of hunger. In the psychological war that constitutes a siege, he builds markets around Valence so that the populations besieged see the den of which they would have the right if they capitulated. He sends infiltrators to spread false information, sow mischief, or foment a revolt. He tries to break through the gaps using war machines, but also by attacking the city gates head-on. After a year, it is finally hunger that wins. Valence capitulates on June 17, 1094. The Cid enters the city and proclaims himself Prince of Valence. The wandering knight is now sovereign. Obviously, the Almoravids react. Barely conquered, the city is besieged by 10,000 Muslims commanded by the nephew of Ibn Tachfin. The Cid applies a skillful tactic. He discreetly goes out at night with the bulk of his troops and hides behind the enemy rearguard. In the early morning, a detachment of cavalry comes out of Valence to provoke the advance of the Almoravid troops, then retreat behind the walls. At the same time, Rodrigo attacks the camp by surprise and captures the Almoravid commander. It is the disbandment in the Muslim troops, forced to flee. The Cid will repel a new assault in 1097 and will not be more worried by the Berbers until his death a few years later. The Cid, in order to affirm his principality, allies himself with his former enemy of Barcelona, but also of Aragon, to whom he gives part of his territory. He consecrates a new cathedral to Valence and wishes to establish a perennial kingdom through his lineage, by marrying his children to those of Aragon and Barcelona. He dies in 1099. His kingdom will not survive him, despite the resistance of his wife Jimena to prevent the Almoravids from taking the city back. Abandoned by the Castile, the Almoravids, The exceptional fate of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar quickly becomes the subject of a mythological constriction. The story of this noble Castile who carved a kingdom in this tormented Spain brings together all the ingredients of a literary character, high in color. From his living already, the oral transmission of his exploits makes him a heroic figure, admired or hated. Obviously, the stories vary according to the point of view of the authors. The story of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar is not only the story of Valence, the stories vary according to the point of view of the authors. The first Arabic texts, written from his living, compare him to an enraged dog or an indomitable lion which aroused fear but also admiration among his enemies. But it is especially in Christian kingdoms that the reappropriation of his history will erase the borders between legend and reality. The Historia Roderici, the original story, the one on which all the others will build themselves afterwards, is written a few years after his death and is presented in the form of a biographical chronicle. But the myth is truly built at the turn of the 13th century through a song of gestures, the Cantar de Miocid, the Poem of the Cid. Rodrigo is presented there as an outstanding fighter, brave and measured, a perfect vassal of Alfonso VI who, as a sovereign, does not know how to recognize the qualities of his servant. His years at the service of the Taifa of Saragos are simply erased. The Cid becomes a champion of Christianity, the exemplary knight, without the slightest nuance. He is presented as coming from a modest environment, a myth that still persists today. The author adds totally imaginary elements, like a duel in a closed field to avenge his outraged daughters by suitors. The texts follow each other from the 14th to the 17th century. A story of duel is added between Rodrigo and Count Don Gomez who beat his father-in-law. This episode is based on the famous play of Corneille in 1637 which presents the Cid as a character torn between love and duty. Following the trend of Spanish romanceros, epic texts exalting bravery and adventure, a last axis is definitely the Cid in the imaginary. The rebel one, who forces King Alfonso VI to recognize that he did not kill his brother. When the king announces him that he is banished for a year, Rodrigo, impertinent, answers him that he will leave for four years. He is now associated with a new ideal, that of the valiant warrior who overcomes the powerful to write his own destiny. The myth, not getting bored of contradictions, will now constantly oscillate between the figure of the exemplary vassal and that of the unsubdued knight. The religious and political reappropriation of the history of Rodrigo Diaz is also at the heart of his mythification. The Spanish rulers summon the figure of the Cid in their fight, whether against Muslims or later against foreign kingdoms. For example, Alfonso X goes on a pilgrimage on his tomb near Burgos to revive the memory of a fighter now totally Christianized and heroized. The propaganda of the Franco-Spanish exalts the figure of an eternal character, embodying the identity of the country, who by his holiness, his bravery and his heroism fights the enemies both inside and outside the country. Conversely, the Republican exiles refer to it from the angle of the banished fighter who fights against the unjust power. The Cid becomes from the 19th century a major cultural figure who delights in the 20th in the mass culture. Classical music, painting and literature continue to write his legend. Cinema appropriates it very quickly, just like video games. The Cid is the very example of the historical hero promoted by legend in myth, by the intermediary of the arts. Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, the Cid Campeador, is a synthesis of the path that leads a historical character to legend by a productive rewriting of collective imaginary. That's it, I hope you enjoyed this video. As usual, if you want to support the channel, you can acquire this original illustration representing the Cid signed by the artist Manon Potier by going to the Tipeee page or KissKissBankBank. And in addition, for the purchase of an illustration, you will benefit from a three-month subscription to the magazine History and Civilization and will receive three numbers directly from you with access to digital advantages and without commitment. A big thank you to all the donors without whom nothing would be possible. Thank you again for watching and see you soon for a new episode.