Roncesvalles

The Basque word for the forest in which the Battle of Roncevalles took place was Errozabal. The Franks transmuted this into Roncesvaux, meaning Valley of Thorns, and this eventually became Roncesavalles in Spanish. The locals translated the name to Orreaga in Basque.

From the earliest of days, Santa Maria de Orreaga/Roncevalles was closely linked to the Crown. When it was founded as a bishopric, it immediately attracted royal patronage from King García Ramírez. His successors, Sancho el Sabio and Sancho el Fuerte, followed the same line and, indeed, the latter, who was also one of the three kings who conquered the Muslim forces in the definitive Battle of Los Navas de Toloso in Andalusia, is buried in the chapter house of this tiny hamlet.

Because of its location close to the French border, Roncevalles is a milestone on the Pilgrims Way to Santiago de Compostela. In the complex of buildings that make up Roncevalles, the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria stands out.

The church was built at the end of the 12th century and early 13th century with limestone from Oroz-Betelu. Its design is French Gothic style and it replaced an earlier church that stood in the same place. Inside the principal Nave the image of Santa Maria de Roncevalles presides over the high alter. This is a beautiful Gothic woodcarving that has been decorated with silver and gold trimmings.

The old 12th century Romanesque cloister collapsed in 1600 as a result of the weight of snow that had piled up on the roof. It was rebuilt in the 17th century. The chapel of San Agustin opens into the cloister and it is here that the tomb of Sancho VII, ‘El Fuerte’, lies. The slab covering the tomb dates from the 13th century and is in the form of a statue that depicts the imposing height of the King. The chains and maces that surrounded the tent of the Arab King, Miramamolin, during the Battle of Navas de Tolosa (1212), are on display behind a grille. The stained glass windows of the chapel, restored in 1912, also depict the battle.

Roncesvalles is famous for the battle that took here more than 1200 years ago on the 15th August 778. Its history is as indistinct as the peaks of the surrounding Pyrenees on one of their frequent misty days. There is only one certain fact: Charlemagne’s army was attacked and defeated by the Vascons (Basques) on its way back from an expedition beyond the kingdom’s borders.

The attackers were either people from Pamplona seeking revenge for the destruction of their city by Carolingian troops or Vascons from the other side of the Pyrenees whose rebelliousness against Frankish power is recorded in chronicles from the 13th and 14th centuries. In the midst of the uncertainty, the figure of Roland emerges. Historically a Carolingian Prefect of the Breton March, and in the Song of Roland, the nephew of Charlemagne himself, he was in charge of the second squadron of Carolingian troops.

Every version of the battle agrees that the in attack, which took place on the rearguard of the army, Roland accounted for himself well. The attack occurred when the first part of the army had already passed and was waiting on the other side of the mountains. Along with Roland, a large proportion of the most long-established French nobility perished. But the feature that marks Roncevalles distinct from the many other places of battles and books is the fire that this particular incident created in minds of the romantics of the era.

The historical facts moved the contemporaries and inspired the mediaeval narrative epic poem, The Song of Roland. The exploits of the period were converted from what it was, a punitive expedition aimed at consolidating Frankish power, into an episode of the fabulous conquests of Charlemagne.

The battle, according the Song, was the result of betrayal and envy by Roland’s stepfather who, feeling that he had been passed over, plotted his vengeance together with the pagan King of Zaragoza, Marsile. They reached an agreement to destroy the French forces that were commanded by Roland. In the ensuing battle, fought in a narrow defile, Roland and his companions; the wise Oliver, the brave archbishop Turin and twelve Peers of France, were attacked by a Saracen horde of four hundred thousand men. The Song goes on to tell how, like great knights, they fought until their last breath. In a stunning ending, Roland sounds the Oliphant (a type of horn) but dies shortly after.

On hearing the horn, Charlemagne comes to their aid with the main force. Defeating the Saracens, the bodies of the dead knights are taken back to Blaye where they are afforded a burial befitting of the flower of France. The Song ends with the traitors being put on trial and executed.