Twelve Peers
The Twelve Peers were Charlemagne's elite paladins or knights - the corps d'elite. The Twelve Peers were sort of like Arthur's Knights of the Round Table.
According to all tales, Roland was the leader of the Twelve Peers. Roland was Charlemagne's best paladin, as well as the king's nephew.
Each paladin was a formidable warrior. And each peer had a companion to fight alongside him. Roland had Oliver as his companion. So in the time of battle they fought in pairs. It was not so much to defend each other's back, as to kill as many of their enemies as possible, matching the prowess of their companion. For a knight or paladin, courage and glory were paramount to them.
The Twelve Peers commanded Charlemagne's first division in the army. They were the crack troops and advance-guard, meant to spearhead any attack of a battle. This division was numbered twenty-thousand strong.
However, in the Chanson de Roland, through the ill-advice treachery of Roland's stepfather Ganelon, the division of the Twelve Peers were assigned to serve as the rearguard of Charlemagne's army at Rencesvals (modern Roncesvalles) and they were destroyed by the numerically superior Saracen army.
Below, I have only listed the Twelve Peers as they are found in the Chanson de Roland. Names in the list varied from epic to epic. For example, the Archbishop Turpin and Duke Naimes were listed as being members in the Pilgrimage of Charlemagne. A couple of epics named Ogier the Dane in the list.
It should be noted that the Saracen Marsile appointed his own version of the Twelve Peers, but I will not list them here.
By Jimmy Joe
