Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz de Vivar (Vivar (Burgos) c. 1044–Valencia, 10 July 1099), known as El Cid Campeador, was a Castilian nobleman, then military and political leader who conquered and governed the city of
Valencia. Rodrigo Díaz was educated in the royal court of Castile and became the alférez, or chief general,
of Alfonso VI, fighting against the Moors in the
early Reconquista. Later exiled by the king, El Cid left service in Castile and worked as a
mercenary for other rulers, both Muslim and Christian.
"El Cid" is derived from the word al-sīd in the Andalusian Arabic dialect (from the Arabic sayyid, "chief" or "lord," a title of respect), while the
title El Campeador (the champion) was granted by his Christian admirers and derives from the Latin campi doctor. These titles reflected the great esteem El Cid had among both Moors and Christians, as
well as his fighting ability; Henry Edwards Watts wrote that el campeador "[m]eans in Spanish something more special than
'champion'.... A campeador was a man who had fought and beaten the select fighting-man of the opposite side in the
presence of the two armies."
"El Cid" was pronounced /ɛl tsið/ (IPA) in medieval Spanish, and /ɛl
θið/ in modern Castilian Spanish.
Early life
The exact date of El Cid's birth is unknown, however, most historians believe that El Cid was born in the year of 1040, in
Vivar (Bivar), a small town about six miles north of Burgos, the capital of Castile. Historical records show that El Cid's
father was Diego Laínez, who was part of the minor nobility (infanzones) of Castile. Diego Laínez was a courtier, bureaucrat, and cavalryman
who had fought in several battles. Despite the fact that El Cid's mother's family was aristocratic, in later years the peasants would consider him one of their own. However, his relatives were
not major court officials: documents show that El Cid's paternal grandfather, Lain Calvo, only confirmed five documents of
Ferdinand I's; his maternal grandfather, Rodrigo Alvarez, certified only two of
Sancho II's; the Cid's own father confirmed only one. This seems to indicate that
El Cid's family was not composed of major court officials.
Babieca, El Cid's war-horse
Babieca was the steed of the Spanish
military leader El Cid in the eleventh century. Several
stories exist about the Cid and Babieca.
One well-known legend about the Cid describes how he acquired his famous war-horse, the white stallion Babieca (Bavieca). According to this story, Rodrigo's godfather, Pedro
El Grande, was a monk at a Carthusian monastery. Pedro's
coming-of-age gift to El Cid was his pick of a horse from an Andalusian herd. El Cid
picked a horse that his godfather thought was a weak, poor choice, causing the monk to exclaim "Babieca!" (stupid!) Hence,
it became the name of El Cid's horse. Another legend states that in a competition of battle to become King Sancho's "Campeador",
or champion, a knight on horseback wished to challenge the Cid. The King wished a fair fight and gave the Cid his finest horse,
Babieca, or Bavieca. This version says Bavieca was raised in the royal stables of Seville and was a highly trained and loyal war
horse, not a foolish stallion. The name in this instance could suggest that the horse came from the Babia region in
León, Spain.
In either case, Babieca became a great warhorse, famous to the Christians, feared by El Cid's enemies, and loved by the Cid, who allegedly requested that Babieca be buried
with him in the monastery of San Pedro de Cardeña (he wasn't). His name is mentioned in several
tales and historical documents about El Cid, including "Cantar de Mío Cid" ("Song of the Cid").
Some say that after the Cid's death in combat, Babieca was never mounted again and died two years later at the age of forty.
Education and early adulthood
El Cid was educated in the Castilian royal court, serving the prince and future king Sancho II, the son of King Ferdinand I (the Great).
When Ferdinand died in 1065, Sancho continued his father's goal of enlarging his territory, conquering the Christian and the Moorish cities of Zamora and Badajoz.
El Cid, the Champion
By this time, the Cid was an adult. He had, in 1067, fought alongside Sancho against the Moorish stronghold of
Zaragoza, making its emir al-Muqtadir a vassal of Sancho. In the spring of 1063, he fought in the Battle of Graus, where Ferdinand's half-brother, Ramiro I of
Aragon, had laid siege to the Moorish town of Graus which was in Zaragozan lands.
Al-Muqtadir, accompanied by Castilian troops including the Cid, fought against the Aragonese. The party would emerge victorious,
Ramiro I was killed, and the Aragonese fled the field. One legend has said that during the conflict El Cid killed an Aragonese
knight in single combat, giving him the honorific title of "El Cid
Campeador".
Service under Alfonso
Much speculation abounds about Sancho's death. Most say that the assassination was a result of a pact between his brother
Alfonso and his sister Urraca ; some even say they had an
incestuous relationship. In any case, since Sancho died unmarried and childless, all of his power passed to his brother,
Alfonso—the very person he had fought against.
Almost immediately, Alfonso was recalled from exile in Toledo and took his seat as king of Leon and Castile. While he was
deeply suspected in Castile (probably correctly) for being involved in Sancho's murder, according to the epic of El Cid the
Castilian nobility, led by the Cid and a dozen "oath-helpers", forced Alfonso to swear publicly
in front of Santa Gadea (Saint Agatha) Church in
Burgos on holy relics multiple times that he did not participate in the plot to kill his brother.
This is widely reported as truth but contemporary documents on the lives of both Alfonso VI of Castile and Leon and Rodrigo Diaz
do not mention any such event. This legend is believed because it adds to accounts of the Cid's bravery. The Cid's position as
armiger regis was taken away, however, and it was given to the Cid's enemy, Count García
Ordóñez. Later in the year, Alfonso's younger brother, García, returned to Galicia under the false pretenses of a
conference.
Battle tactics
During his campaigns, the Cid often ordered that books by classic Roman and
Greek authors on military themes be read in loud voices to him and his troops, both for
entertainment and inspiration during battle. El Cid's army had a novel approach to planning strategy as well, holding what might
be called brainstorming sessions before each battle to discuss tactics. They frequently
used unexpected strategies, engaging in what modern generals would call psychological
warfare; waiting for the enemy to be paralyzed with terror and then attacking them suddenly, distracting the enemy with a
small group of soldiers, etc. El Cid had a humble personality and frequently accepted or included suggestions from his troops. He
remained open to input from his soldiers and to the possibility that he himself was capable of error. The man who served him as
his closest adviser was his nephew, Alvar Fáñez de Minaya.
Marriage and family life
El Cid was married in July 1074 to Alfonso's kinswoman Jimena of Oviedo (spelled Ximena in
Old Spanish). The Historia Roderici calls her daughter of a Count
Diego of Oviedo, a person unknown to contemporary records, while later poetic sources name her
father as an otherwise unknown Count Gormaz. The marriage was probably on Alfonso's suggestion, a move that he probably hoped
would improve relations between him and El Cid. Together El Cid and Jimena had three children. Their daughters, Cristina and
María, both married high nobility; Cristina, to Ramiro, Lord of
Monzón, son of Sancho Garces, and bastard grandson of García V of Navarre; María, first (it is said) to a prince of Aragon and second to Ramón Berenguer III, count of Barcelona. El
Cid's son, Diego Rodríguez, was killed while fighting against the invading Muslim Almoravids from North Africa at the Battle of Consuegra (1097).
His own marriage and that of his daughters increased his status by connecting El Cid to royalty; even today, living monarchs
descend from El Cid, through the lines of Navarre and Foix. El Cid is an ancestor to the monarchies of France and Britain, as
well as every other monarchy in Europe, through his daughter Cristina's son, García VI of
Navarre.
Service as administrator
He was a cultivated man, having served Alfonso as a judge. He kept in life a personal archive with copies of the letters he
mailed and important diplomas he signed as part of his co-operation in the king's administration.
Exile
In the Battle of Cabra (1079), the Cid rallied his troops and turned the battle into
a rout of Emir Abd Allah of Granada and his ally García Ordóñez. However, El Cid's unauthorized
expedition into Granada greatly angered Alfonso, and May 8, 1080,
was the last time the Cid confirmed a document in King Alfonso's court. This is the generally given reason for the Cid's exile,
although several others are plausible and may have been contributing factors: jealous nobles turning Alfonso against El Cid,
Alfonso's own animosity towards El Cid, an accusation of pocketing some of the tribute from Seville, and what one source
describes as El Cid's "penchant" towards insulting powerful men.
However, the exile was not the end of El Cid, either physically or as an important figure. In 1081, El Cid, now a mercenary,
offered his services to the Moorish king of the northeast Spanish city of Zaragoza,
Yusuf al-Mutamin, and served both him and his successor, Al-Mustain II. O'Callaghan writes:
- At first he went to Barcelona where Ramón Berenguer II
(1076-1082) and Berenguer Ramón II (1076-1097), refused his offer
of service. Then he journeyed to Zaragoza where he received a warmer welcome. That kingdom was divided between al-Mutamin (1081-1085) who ruled Zaragoza proper,
and his brother al-Mundhir, who ruled Lérida and Tortosa. El Cid
entered al-Mutamin's service and successfully defended Zaragoza against the assaults of al-Mutamdhir, Sancho I of Aragón, and
Ramón Berenguer II, whom he held captive briefly in 1082.
In 1086, the great Almoravid invasion of Spain through and around Gibraltar began. The Almoravids, Berber residents of present-day
Morocco and Algeria, led by Yusef I (not the same person as al-Mutamin), also called
Yusef ibn Tushafin or Yusef ibn Tashfin, were asked to help defend the Moors from Alfonso. A great battle took place on Friday, October 23, 1086, at Sagrajas (in Arabic, Zallaqa). The Moorish Andalusians, including the
armies of Badajoz, Málaga, Granada, and Seville, defeated a combined army of León, Aragón, and Castile.
According to Thomas:
- The Andalusians encamped separately from the Murabitun. The Christian vanguard (Alvar Fañez) surprised the Andalusian camp
before dawn; the men of Seville (Al-Mutamid) held firm but the remaining
Andalusians were chased off by the Aragonese cavalry. The Christian main body then attacked the Murabitun, but were held in check
by the Lamtuma, and then withdrew to their own camp in response to an outflanking move by ibn Tashufin. The Aragonese returned to
the field, didn't like what they saw, and started a withdrawal that became a rout. The Andalusians rallied, and the Muslims drove
Alfonso to a small hill. Alfonso and 500 knights escaped in the night to Toledo.
Terrified after his crushing defeat, Alfonso recalled the best Christian general from exile – El Cid. It has been shown that
the Cid was at court on July 1087. However, what happened after that is unclear.
Conquest of Valencia
Around this time, the Cid, with a combined Christian and Moorish army, began manoeuvring in order to create his own fiefdom in
the Moorish Mediterranean coastal city of Valencia. Several obstacles lay in his way. First was Ramón Berenguer II, who ruled nearby
Barcelona. In May 1090, the Cid defeated and captured Berenguer in the Battle of Lébar. Berenguer was later ransomed and his son, Ramón Berenguer III, married the Cid's youngest daughter
Maria to ward against future conflicts.
The Cid gradually came to have more influence on Valencia, then ruled by al-Qadir. In
October 1092 an uprising occurred in Valencia inspired by the city's chief judge, Ibn Jahhaf, and
the Almoravids. The Cid began a siege of Valencia. The siege lasted several years; in December 1093 an attempt to break had
failed. In May 1094, the siege ended, and the Cid had carved out his own kingdom on the coast of the Mediterranean. Officially
the Cid ruled in the name of Alfonso; in reality, the Cid was fully independent. The city was both Christian and Muslim, and both
Moors and Christians served in the army and as administrators. In 1096, Valencia's nine mosques were converted into churches; Jérôme, a French
bishop, was appointed archbishop of the city.
The Cid died in Valencia of natural causes on July 10, 1099.
Though his wife Jimena would continue to rule for two more years, an Almoravid siege forced Jimena to seek help from Alfonso.
They could not hold the city but both managed to escape. Alfonso ordered the city burned to prevent it from falling into the
hands of the Moors. Valencia was captured by Masdali on May 5,
1109 and would not become a Christian city again for over 125 years. Jimena fled to Burgos with the
Cid's body. Originally buried in Castile in the monastery of San Pedro de Cardeña, his body now lies at the center of the
Burgos Cathedral.
Legend
Legend has it that after El Cid died, his wife strapped his body to his horse and sent it back into battle, believing that his
troops would be defeated from demoralization. The troops, thinking that their leader was riding to fight beside them, rallied
once more. The opposing army was so afraid of what looked to be an invincible fighter, that they retreated to their boats. Thus,
El Cid is said to have won his final battle even after his death.
Tizona
A sword of El Cid, exhibited in La Real Armería (the Royal Armory) museum,
Royal Palace
of Madrid, Spain. 2006.
El Cid's sword "Tizon" can still be seen in the Army Museum
(Museo del Ejército) in Madrid. Soon after his death, it became one of the most precious
possessions of the Castilian royal family. And in 1999, a small sample of the blade underwent metallurgical analysis which
partially confirmed that it was made in Moorish Cordoba in the eleventh century, although
the report does not specify whether the larger-scale composition of the blade identifies it as Damascus steel.
In 2006 "El Museo del ejercito" (The Army Museum) was moving from Madrid to Toledo and apparently the sword was not available
to be seen in public.
In 2007 the Autonomous Community of Castile and León bought the sword for 1,6
million Euros, and it is currently on display at the Museum of Burgos.
El Cid also had a sword called Colada.
Origin of the Campeador title
Campeador is the Romance or Vulgar Latin version of the Latin campi doctor or campi doctus; the term can be found in writings of late Latinity (4th–5th
century) and can be found in some inscriptions of that era. After that period it became rare, although still sometimes found in
the writings of the less educated writers of the Middle Ages. The literal significance of the expression campi doctor is
"master of the military arts", and its use in the period of the late Roman Empire appears to have signified only one who
instructed new military recruits. But it was in current usage when El Cid was still alive, and was applied to Rodrigo by a member
of his circle in an official document promulgated in his name in 1098.
El Cid in literature, film, and other media
Modern audiences may know a romanticized story of the Cid from the 1961 film starring Charlton Heston as the title
character.
Literally dozens of works were written about El Cid. The oldest of the preserved manuscripts is the three-part Castilian
cantar de gesta Cantar de Mio
Cid, also called The Lay of the Cid, The Song of My Cid, or
El Poema del Cid. It keeps a realistic tone while not following exactly the historical truth. The exploits of El Cid are
the topic of the Carmen Campidoctoris, a Latin text that precedes the Cantar de Mio
Cid.
The Spanish old Romancero, the anonymous short poems based upon the epic poetry, preserved in the late Middle Ages the
memory of El Cid and created new literary episodes on the topic. The prowesses of El Cid are one of the many sources for
Don Quixote's early inspiration: though his steed Rocinante is less than capable, Don Quixote believes him to be better than Babieca. The French playwright
Pierre Corneille wrote the tragicomedy Le Cid in
1636, based on the play of Guillén de Castro, Las Mocedades del Cid. El Cid is mentioned in Canto III of The Cantos
of Ezra Pound as he arrives at Burgos Cathedral and later, alluding to his capture of
Valencia. Jules (Émile Frédéric) Massenet's 1885 opera Le
Cid is a favorite of Plácido Domingo, who has sung the role of Rodrigue
(Rodrigo) many times since first performing it at Carnegie Hall in 1976. [1]
Starting in the 14th century, the legend of El Cid has been perpetuated in chronicles and above all in El Cid romances of the
Spanish romances. Until the 14th century, his life was tolde in form of epic poems, but with each time with more attention to his
youth imagined with much creative liberty, as can be observed in the late Mocedades de
Rodrigo, in which are mentioned how in his youth he ventures to invade France, and has eclipsed the exploits of the
French chansons de gesta. The new compositions presented a conceited nature much to the liking of the times, but were
contradictory with the moderate and prudent style of Cantar de mio Cid. His youth and his love with Jimena were also
subject in the Spanish Romancero.
There have been modern-day films about El Cid, such as El Cid (1961, starring
Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren) and the animated
(2003). In the early 80s, there was an animated series called Ruy,
el Pequeño Cid, portraying the fictional adventures of El Cid as a child.
Games which take place in medieval Europe sometimes feature El Cid. Age of
Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion featured a six-level campaign based on the exploits of El Cid, including his exile
from Castile and his conquest of Valencia. He also appears as a warrior in the Anachronism card game and as the rebel leader of Valencia in Medieval: Total War and Medieval II. In
the latter case, his appearance is also an in-joke homage to Sid
Meier, creator of the legendary Civilization series.
The El Cid Statue overlooks the Plaza de Panama, facing south
toward the Spreckels Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park, San Diego, CA. This 23-ft (7-m) tall bronze equestrian sculpture was
dedicated in 1930 as a symbolic guardian of Balboa Park. Two other statues were made from the same mold -- one stands in the
court of the Museum of the Hispanic Society in New York City; the other is in Seville, Spain. The statue is attributed to
Anna Hyatt Huntington and dated 1927.
References
"El Cid" in the 1913
Catholic Encyclopedia.- "Cid Campeador". The Columbia
Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001.
- "Ferdinand I, Spanish king of
Castile and León". The Columbia Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
- "Ramiro I". The Columbia
Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
- "Sancho III, king of Castile".
The Columbia Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
- "Sancho III, king of Navarre".
The Columbia Encyclopedia. 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
- Simon Barton and Richard Fletcher. The world of El Cid, Chronicles of the Spanish reconquest. Manchester: University
Press, 2000. ISBN 0-7190-5225-4 hardback, ISBN 0-7190-5226-2 paperback.
- Gonzalo Martínez Díez, "El Cid Histórico: Un Estudio Exhaustivo Sobre el Verdadero Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar", Editorial Planeta (Spain, June 1999). ISBN
84-08-03161-9
- Richard Fletcher. "The Quest for El Cid". ISBN 0-19-506955-2
- Kurtz, Barbara E. El Cid. University of Illinois.
- I. Michael. The Poem of the Cid. Manchester: 1975.
- C. Melville and A. Ubaydli (ed. and trans.), Christians and Moors in Spain, vol. III, Arabic sources (711-1501).
(Warminster, 1992).
- Nelson,
Prof. Lynn Harry. "Thoughts on Reading El Cid"..
- Joseph F. O'Callaghan. A History of Medieval Spain. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1975
- Peter Pierson. The History of Spain. Ed. John E. Findling and Frank W. Thacheray. Wesport, Connecticut: Greenwood
Press, 1999. 34-36.
- Bernard F. Reilly. The Kingdom of
León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065-1109 Princeton, New Jersey: University Press, 1988.
- R. Selden Rose and Leonard Bacon
(trans.) The Lay of the Cid. Semicentennial Publications of the University of California: 1868-1918. Berkeley, CA:
University of California Press, 1997.
- Steven Thomas. 711-1492:
Al-Andalus and the Reconquista.
- Henry Edwards Watts. "The Story of the Cid (1026-1099)" in The Christian Recovery of Spain: The Story of Spain from the
Moorish Conquest to the Fall of Grenada (711-1492 AD). New York: Putnam, 1894. 71-91.
- Cantar de mío Cid - Spanish (free PDF)
- Poema de Mio
Cid, Códice de Per Abbat in The European Library (third item on page)zh-classical:席德
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