Cuenca

The winter is past, and March is coming in.

Three months Dona Ximena had been in Valencia, when tidings came to the Cid from beyond sea, that King Yucef, the son of the Miramamolin, who dwelt in Morocco, was coming to lay siege unto Valencia with fifty thousand men.

When the Cid heard this he gave command to store all his Castles, and had them well repaired.

And he had the walls of the city prepared, and stored it well with food and with all things needful for war, and gathered together a great power of Christians and of the Moors of his seignory.

Hardly had he done this before he heard that Yucef was near at hand, and coming as fast as he could come.

Then the Cid assembled together the Christians in the Alcazar, and when they were assembled, he rose upon his feet and said, Friends and kinsmen and vassals, praised be God and holy Mary Mother, all the good which I have in the world I have here in Valencia; with hard labour I won the city, and hold it for my heritage, and for nothing less than death will I leave it.

My daughters and my wife shall see me fight,...they shall see with their own eyes our manner of living in this land, and how we get our bread.

We will go out against the Moors and give them battle, and God who hath thus far shown favour unto us will still continue to be our helper.

When they heard this they cried out with one accord that they would do his bidding, and go out with him and fight under his banner, for certain they were that by his good fortune the Moors would be overthrown.