© Mark Wade
| Map of Castille © Mark Wade |
Former kingdom, now autonomous community of Spain, with the capital at Pamplona. In the Cid’s time it was an independent kingdom. Area 10,421 square kilometers. Estimated population in AD 1100, 100 thousand and population density 9.6 per square km.
The manner in which he divided his lands was this: he gave to Don Sancho the kingdom of Castille as far as to the river Pisuerga, on the side of Leon, with the border, which included the dioceses of Osma, and Segovia, and Avila, and on the side of Navarre as far as the Ebro, as he had won it from his nephew Don Sancho Garcia, King of Navarre.
When King Don Sancho of Navarre saw that there was a new King in Castille, he thought to recover the lands of Bureva and of Old Castille as far as Laredo, which had been lost when the King his father was defeated and slain at Atapuerca in the mountains of Oca.
And now seeing that the kingdom of Ferrando was divided, he asked help of his uncle Don Ramiro, King of Aragon; and the men of Aragon and of Navarre entered Castille together.
But King Don Sancho gathered together his host, and put the Cid at their head; and such account did he give of his enemies, that he of Navarre was glad to enjoy Rioja in peace, and lay no farther claim to what his father had lost.
Then King Don Sancho gathered together a great host, Castillians and Leonese, and they of Navarre and Biscay, Asturians, and men of Aragon and of the border.
So two hidalgos were sent after him, and they found him in Navarre, on the eve of passing into France.
And afterwards the Castillians arrived, and they of Navarre, and they also received him for their Lord and King, but upon this condition, that he should swear that he had not taken counsel for the death of his brother King Don Sancho.
Now there was a mortal enmity between my Cid and Count Garcia Ordonez, and in this year did my Cid gather together those of his table, and all his power, and entered into the lands of Logrono, and Navarre, and Calahorra, burning and spoiling the country before him.
In the following years nothing is found to be related, save that my Cid did battle by command of the King with a knight called Ximen Garcia de Tiogelos, who was one of the best of Navarre: they fought for the castle of Pazluengas, and for two other castles, and my Cid conquered him, and King Don Alfonso had the castles.
Now there was at this time war between Almocanis, King of Seville, and Almundafar, King of Granada, and with Almundafar were these men of Castille, the Count Don Garcia Ordonez, and Fortun Sanchez, the son-in-law of King Don Garcia of Navarre, and Lope Sanchez his brother, and Diego Perez, one of the best men of Castille; and they aided him all that they could, and went against the King of Seville, and when my Cid knew this it troubled him, and he sent unto them requiring them not to go against the King of Seville, nor to destroy his country, because he was King Don Alfonso's vassal; otherwise the King must defend him.
And the King sent the Infante Don Ramiro his cousin, and the Infante Don Sancho, son to the King of Navarre, and Count Don Gonzalo Salvadores, and Count Don Nuno Alvarez, and many other knights with them; and they came to the Castle, and Almofalez said he would not open the gates to them, but if the King came he would open to him.
The bodies were ransomed, seeing that there was no remedy, the Castle being so strong, and Don Gonzalo was buried in the Monastery of Ona, according as he had appointed in his will; and the Infante Don Sancho with his forefathers the Kings of Navarre, in the royal Monastery of Naxara.
The tidings of this great enterprise spread far and wide, and adventurers came from all parts to be present, not only they of Castille and Leon, Asturias and Nagera, Galicia and Portugal, but King Sancho Ramirez of Aragon came also, with the flower of Aragon and Navarre and Catalonia, and Franks and Germans and Italians, and men of other countries, to bear their part in so great and catholic a war.
Now when all this had been appointed, as ye have heard, and while they were all in the court, there came into the Palace messengers from the Kings of Aragon and of Navarre, who brought letters to King Don Alfonso, and to the Cid Campeador, wherein those Kings sent to ask the daughters of the Cid in marriage, the one for the Infante Don Sancho of Aragon, the other for the Infante Garcia Ramirez of Navarre.
These messengers hight, he of Aragon Ynigo Ximenez, and he of Navarre Ochoa Perez.
And those knights did homage before the King, that in three months from that day the Infantes of Aragon and of Navarre should come to Valencia, to the Cid, to be wedded to his daughters.
And to the knights who had come from Aragon and Navarre concerning the marriages, he gave many horses, and money in gold, and sent them with great honour into their own country.
And the Cid said unto Dona Ximena, Now may you without let marry your daughters with the Infantes of Aragon and Navarre, and I trust in God that they will be well and honourably married, better than they were at first.
While yet that messenger of the Soldan of Persia abode in Valencia, tidings came to the Cid that the Infantes of Aragon and Navarre were coming to celebrate their marriage with his daughters, according as it had been appointed at the Cortes of Toledo.
He of Navarre hight Don Ramiro, and he was the son of King Don Sancho, him who was slain at Rueda; and he married with Dona Elvira, the elder: and the Infante of Aragon who married Dona Sol, the younger, hight Don Sancho, and was the son of King Don Pedro.
When eight days were overpast the Bishop Don Hieronymo married the Infantes of Aragon and Navarre to the daughters of the Cid in this manner: the Infante Don Ramiro of Navarre to Dona Elvira, and the Infante Don Sancho of Aragon to Dona Sol.
And when they reached Salvacanete, the Bishop Don Hieronymo, and Dona Ximena, and Alvar Fanez, and the other honourable men, sent their letters to all the kinsmen and friends of the Cid Ruydiez, bidding them come and do honour to his funeral; and they sent letters also to his sons-in-law, the Infantes of Aragon and Navarre, and to King Don Alfonso.
And there after few days the King of Navarre came with the Queen Dona Elvira his wife; and they brought with them two hundred knights; howbeit their shields were not reversed, for they had heard that no mourning was to be made for the Cid.
The day when he drew nigh the Infante of Aragon and the King of Navarre went out to meet him, and they took the body of the Cid with them on horseback, as far as the Monastery of San Christoval de Ybeas, which is a league from Cardena; and they went, the King of Navarre on one side of the body, and the Infante of Aragon on the other.
Moreover he did great honour to the King of Navarre, and to the Infante of Aragon, ordering that all things which were needful should be given to them and their companies.
And he sent for the ivory chair which had been carried to the Cortes of Toledo, and gave order that it should be placed on the right of the altar of St. Peter; and he laid a cloth of gold upon it, and upon that placed a cushion covered with a right noble tartari, and he ordered a graven tabernacle to be made over the chair, richly wrought with azure and gold, having thereon the blazonry of the Kings of Castille and Leon, and the King of Navarre, and the Infante of Aragon, and of the Cid Ruydiez the Campeador.
And he himself, and the King of Navarre and the Infante of Aragon, and the Bishop Don Hieronymo, to do honour to the Cid, helped to take his body from between the two boards, in which it had been fastened at Valencia.
King Don Alfonso, and the sons-in-law of the Cid, King Don Ramiro of Navarre, and the Infante Don Sancho of Aragon, with all their companies, and all the other honourable men, abode three weeks in St. Pedro de Cardena, doing honour to the Cid.
And of the company of the Cid, some went with the King of Navarre, and other some with the Infante of Aragon; but the greater number, and the most honourable among them, betook themselves to King Don Alfonso, whose natural subjects they were.
Dona Sol, who was the younger, came first, because Aragon is nearer than Navarre, and also because she was a widow; for the Infante Don Sancho, her husband, had departed three years after the death of the Cid, and had left no child.
And when they had thus divided it, Dona Sol said that all which she had in the world should be for her nephew the Infante Don Garcia Ramirez, and with the good will of Queen Elvira his mother, she adopted him then to be her son, and she took him with her to Aragon, to the lands which had been given her in dower, and bred him up till he became a young man; and after the death of his father he was made King of Navarre, as may be seen in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Spain.