Hero-Myths & Legends of the British Race
'That canst thou not,' said Oliver;
'Thy heart is far too hot and fierce--
I fear for thee. But I will go,
If that will please my lord the King.'
'No!' cried the king, 'ye shall not go.
I swear by this white flowing beard
No peer shall undertake the task.'
"'My lords and peers, whom shall we send?'
Archbishop Turpin rose and spoke:
'Fair sire, let me be messenger.
Your nobles all have played their part;
Give me your glove and warlike staff,
And I will show this heathen king
In frank speech how a true knight feels.'
But wrathfully the king replied:
'By this white beard, thou shalt not go!
Sit down, and raise thy voice no more.'"
Roland Suggests Ganelon
"Knights of France," quoth Charlemagne, "choose me now one of your
number to do my errand to Marsile, and to defend my honour valiantly,
if need be."
"Ah," said Roland, "then it must be Ganelon, my stepfather; for
whether he goes or stays, you have none better than he!"
This suggestion satisfied all the assembly, and they cried: "Ganelon
will acquit himself right manfully. If it please the King, he is the
right man to go."
Charlemagne thought for a moment, and then, raising his head, beckoned
to Ganelon. "Come hither, Ganelon," he said, "and receive this glove
and staff, which the voice of all the Franks gives to thee."
Ganelon is Angry
"No," replied Ganelon, wrathfully. "This is the work of Roland, and I
will never forgive him, nor his friends, Oliver and the other Peers.
Here, in your presence, I bid them defiance!"
"Your anger is too great," said Charlemagne; "you will go, since it is
my will also."
"Yes, I shall go, but I shall perish as did your two former
ambassadors. Sire, forget not that your sister is my wife, and that
Baldwin, my son, will be a valiant champion if he lives. I leave to
him my lands and fiefs. Sire, guard him well, for I shall see him no
more."
"Your heart is too tender," said Charlemagne. "You must go, since such
is my command."
He Threatens Roland
Ganelon, in rage and anguish, glared round the council, and his face
drew all eyes, so fiercely he looked at Roland.
"Madman," said he, "all men know that I am thy stepfather, and for
this cause thou hast sent me to Marsile, that I may perish! But if I
return I will be revenged on thee."
"Madness and pride," Roland retorted, "have no terrors for me; but
this embassy demands a prudent man not an angry fool: if Charles
consents, I will do his errand for thee."
"Thou shalt not. Thou art not my vassal, to do my work, and Charles,
my lord, has given me his commands. I go to Saragossa; but there will
I find some way to vent my anger."
Now Roland began to laugh, so wild did his stepfather's threats seem,
and the laughter stung Ganelon to madness. "I hate you," he cried to
Roland; "you have brought this unjust choice on me." Then, turning to
the emperor: "Mighty lord, behold me ready to fulfil your commands."
But is Sent
"Fair Lord Ganelon," spoke Charlemagne, "bear this message to Marsile.
He must become my vassal and receive holy baptism. Half of Spain shall
be his fief; the other half is for Count Roland. If Marsile does not
accept these terms I will besiege Saragossa, capture the town, and
lead Marsile prisoner to Aix, where he shall die in shame and torment.
Take this letter, sealed with my seal, and deliver it into the king's
own right hand."
Thereupon Charlemagne held out his right-hand glove to Ganelon, who
would fain have refused it. So reluctant was he to grasp it that the
glove fell to the ground. "Ah, God!" cried the Franks, "what an evil
omen! What woes will come to us from this embassy!" "You shall hear
full tidings," quoth Ganelon. "Now, sire, dismiss me, for I have no
time to lose." Very solemnly Charlemagne raised his hand and made the
sign of the Cross over Ganelon, and gave him his blessing, saying,
"Go, for the honour of Jesus Christ, and for your Emperor." So
Ganelon took his leave, and returned to his lodging, where he prepared
for his journey, and bade farewell to the weeping retainers whom he
left behind, though they begged to accompany him. "God forbid," cried
he, "that so many brave knights should die! Rather will I die alone.
You, sirs, return to our fair France, greet well my wife, guard my son
Baldwin, and defend his fief!"
He Plots with Marsile's Messengers
Then Ganelon rode away, and shortly overtook the ambassadors of the
Moorish king, for Blancandrin had delayed their journey to accompany
him, and the two envoys began a crafty conversation, for both were
wary and skilful, and each was trying to read the other's mind. The
wily Saracen began:
"'Ah! what a wondrous king is Charles!
How far and wide his conquests range!
The salt sea is no bar to him:
From Poland to far England's shores
He stretches his unquestioned sway;
But why seeks he to win bright Spain?'
'Such is his will,' quoth Ganelon;
'None can withstand his mighty power!'
"'How valiant are the Frankish lords
But how their counsel wrongs their king
To urge him to this long-drawn strife--
They ruin both themselves and him!'
'I blame not them,' quoth Ganelon,
'But Roland, swollen with fatal pride.
Near Carcassonne he brought the King
An apple, crimson streaked with gold:
"Fair sire," quoth he, "here at your feet
I lay the crowns of all the kings."
If he were dead we should have peace!'
"'How haughty must this Roland be
Who fain would conquer all the earth!
Such pride deserves due chastisement!
What warriors has he for the task?'
'The Franks of France,' quoth Ganelon,
'The bravest warriors 'neath the sun!
For love alone they follow him
(Or lavish gifts which he bestows)
To death, or conquest of the world!'"
To Betray Roland
The bitterness in Ganelon's tone at once struck: Blancandrin, who cast
a glance at him and saw the Frankish envoy trembling with rage. He
suddenly addressed Ganelon in whispered tones: "Hast thou aught
against the nephew of Charles? Wouldst thou have revenge on Roland?
Deliver him to us, and King Marsile will share with thee all his
treasures." Ganelon was at first horrified, and refused to hear more,
but so well did Blancandrin argue and so skilfully did he lay his
snare that before they reached Saragossa and came to the presence of
King Marsile it was agreed that Roland should be destroyed by their
means.
Ganelon with the Saracens
Blancandrin and his fellow ambassadors conducted Ganelon into the
presence of the Saracen king, and announced Charlemagne's peaceable
reception of their message and the coming of his envoy. "Let him
speak: we listen," said Marsile.
Ganelon then began artfully: "Peace be to you in the name of the Lord
of Glory whom we adore! This is the message of King Charles: You shall
receive the Holy Christian Faith, and Charles will graciously grant
you one-half of Spain as a fief; the other half he intends for his
nephew Roland (and a haughty partner you will find him!). If you
refuse he will take Saragossa, lead you captive to Aix, and give you
there to a shameful death."
Marsile's Anger
Marsile's anger was so great at this insulting message that he sprang
to his feet, and would have slain Ganelon with his gold-adorned
javelin; but he, seeing this, half drew his sword, saying:
"'Sword, how fair and bright thou art!
Come thou forth and view the light.
Long as I can wield thee here
Charles my Emperor shall not say
That I die alone, unwept.
Ere I fall Spain's noblest blood
Shall be shed to pay my death.'"
The Saracen Council
However, strife was averted, and Ganelon received praise from all for
his bold bearing and valiant defiance of his king's enemy. When quiet
was restored he repeated his message and delivered the emperor's
letter, which was found to contain a demand that the caliph, Marsile's
uncle, should be sent, a prisoner, to Charles, in atonement for the
two ambassadors foully slain before. The indignation of the Saracen
nobles was intense, and Ganelon was in imminent danger, but, setting
his back against a pine-tree, he prepared to defend himself to the
last. Again the quarrel was stayed, and Marsile, taking his most
trusted leaders, withdrew to a secret council, whither, soon,
Blancandrin led Ganelon. Here Marsile excused his former rage, and, in
reparation, offered Ganelon a superb robe of marten's fur, which was
accepted; and then began the tempting of the traitor. First demanding
a pledge of secrecy, Marsile pitied Charlemagne, so aged and so weary
with rule. Ganelon praised his emperor's prowess and vast power.
Marsile repeated his words of pity, and Ganelon replied that as long
as Roland and the Twelve Peers lived Charlemagne needed no man's pity
and feared no man's power; his Franks, also, were the best living
warriors. Marsile declared proudly that he could bring four hundred
thousand men against Charlemagne's twenty thousand French; but Ganelon
dissuaded him from any such expedition.
Ganelon Plans Treachery
"'Not thus will you overcome him;
Leave this folly, turn to wisdom.
Give the Emperor so much treasure
That the Franks will be astounded.
Send him, too, the promised pledges,
Sons of all your noblest vassals.
To fair France will Charles march homeward,
Leaving (as I will contrive it)
Haughty Roland in the rearguard.
Oliver, the bold and courteous,
Will be with him: slay those heroes,
And King Charles will fall for ever!'
'Fair Sir Ganelon,' quoth Marsile,
'How must I entrap Count Roland?'
'When King Charles is in the mountains
He will leave behind his rearguard
Under Oliver and Roland.
Send against them half your army:
Roland and the Peers will conquer,
But be wearied with the struggle--
Then bring on your untired warriors.
France will lose this second battle,
And when Roland dies, the Emperor
Has no right hand for his conflicts--
Farewell all the Frankish greatness!
Ne'er again can Charles assemble
Such a mighty host for conquest,
And you will have peace henceforward!'"
Welcomed by Marsile
Marsile was overjoyed at the treacherous advice and embraced and
richly rewarded the felon knight. The death of Roland and the Peers
was solemnly sworn between them, by Marsile on the book of the Law of
Mahomet, by Ganelon on the sacred relics in the pommel of his sword.
Then, repeating the compact between them, and warning Ganelon against
treason to his friends, Marsile dismissed the treacherous envoy who
hastened to return and put his scheme into execution.
Ganelon Returns to Charles
In the meantime Charles had retired as far as Valtierra, on his way to
France, and there Ganelon found him, and delivered the tribute, the
keys of Saragossa, and a false message excusing the absence of the
caliph. He had, so Marsile said, put to sea with three hundred
thousand warriors who would not renounce their faith, and all had been
drowned in a tempest, not four leagues from land. Marsile would obey
King Charles's commands in all other respects. "Thank God!" cried
Charlemagne. "Ganelon, you have done well, and shall be well
rewarded!"
The French Camp. Charles Dreams
Now the whole Frankish army marched towards the Pyrenees, and, as
evening fell, found themselves among the mountains, where Roland
planted his banner on the topmost summit, clear against the sky, and
the army encamped for the night; but the whole Saracen host had also
marched and encamped in a wood not far from the Franks. Meanwhile, as
Charlemagne slept he had dreams of evil omen. Ganelon, in his dreams,