Without enemies, there would be no heroes. And it rings true that if there were no Saracens, then there would be no Frankish knights. So in this page, I have listed some of the Saracen rulers and warriors that appeared in the chansons de geste, particularly those that are found in the Chanson de Roland.
By Jimmy Joe
Welcome to the new section of the Arthurian Legends, which I've called the Songs of Deeds. However, these legends are not related to King Arthur or to his knights or to the grail. These legends are about Charlemagne, the greatest king of the Frank...
Frankish Women Saracen WomenFrankish WomenSaracen Women
The greatest hero in the Frankish legends. He was sort of like a French Heracles, Achilles, Sigurd, Cu Chulainn or Lancelot, a hero of unsurpassed strength and courage. Roland was the main character of the epic, Chanson de Roland, which recounted ...
A Saracen nobleman and warrior. Valdabrun was a vassal to Marsile. Valdabrun seemed to be Marsile's admiral, since it said that he commanded a thousand galleys at sea. According to Chanson de Roland, Valdabrun captured Jerusalem through treachery,...
A Frank count. Ogier was often called Ogier the Dane. He was a main character in his own chanson. In Chanson de Roland, he was nominated by Ganelon to serve as the vanguard of Charlemagne's army at Rencesvals, a position that was normally given to...
The Song of Roland, or, in French, La Chanson de Roland, is the best known of the Old French epics. It was possibly first composed some time in the 10th or 11th century, though the earliest extant version of the chanson, was found in the 12th cent...
A Saracen king of Spain. Marsile was actually a vassal to Baligant, the king of Babylon. His capital in Spain was Saragossa. His wisest adviser was Blancandrin. Marsile was the husband of Bramimonde, and father of Jurfaleu the Blond. His horse was...
The Emir of Babylon. Baligant was the father of Malpramis and brother of Canabeus. Marsile, the Moorish king of Spain, was one of Baligant's many vassals. It should be noted that this "Babylon", is not the city in Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq). The...
The villainous stepfather of Roland and brother-in-law of Charlemagne. According to poems found in the Geste de Doon de Mayence, Ganelon was a son of Griffon d'Hauteville, and grandson of Doon de Mayence. Ganelon was married to Charlemagne's siste...
