IX. Sir! God grant you long life and happy, but in your Palaces BOOK there is none who should be lodged save you. When you hold your Cortes let it be in those Palaces of Galiana, for there is better room there than in the Alcazar. I will not cross the Tagus to-night, but will pass the night in St. Servans on this side, and hold a vigil there. To-morrow I will enter the city, and be in the court before dinner. The King said that it pleased him well, and he returned into Toledo. And the Cid went into the Church of St. Servans, and ordered candles to be placed upon the altar, for he would keep a vigil there; and there he remained with Minaya and the other good ones, praying to the Lord, and talking in private. The tents his company were pitched upon the hills round about. one who beheld them might well have said, that it looked a great host. of Poema del Any 3064. like Cid. 3026. Chr. del Cid. cap. 247. Chr. Gen. ff. 292. › sent his ivory placed in the IV. When the King entered the city, he bade his seneschal How the Cid Benito Perez, make ready the Palaces of Galiana for the next seat to be day, when the Cortes should begin; and he fitted the great Palace. Palace after this manner. He placed estrados with carpets upon the ground, and hung the walls with cloth of gold. And in the highest place he placed the royal chair in which the King should sit; it was a right noble chair and a rich, which he had won in Toledo, and which had belonged to the Kings thereof; and round about it right noble estrados were placed for the Counts and honourable men who were come to the Cortes. Now the Cid knew how they were fitting up the Palaces of Galiana, and he called for a squire, who was a young man, one whom he had brought up and in whom he had great trust; he was an hidalgo, and hight Ferran Alfonso: and the Cid bade him take his ivory seat which he had won in Valencia, and which had belonged to the Kings thereof, and place it in the Palace, in the best place, near the seat of the King; and that none might hurt IX. BOOK or do dishonour unto it, he gave him a hundred squires, all hidalgos, to go with him, and ordered them not to leave it till he should come there the next day. So when they had dined, they made the seat be taken up, and went with it to the Palaces of Galiana, and placed it near the seat of the King, as the Cid had commanded; and all that day and night they remained there guarding the ivory seat, till the Cid should come and take his place thereon; every one having his sword hung from his neck. This was a right noble seat, and of subtle work, so that whoso beheld it would say it was the seat of a good man, and that it became such a one as the Cid. It was covered with cloth of gold, underneath which was a cushion3. Chr. del Cid. cap. 248. Chr. Gen. ff. 292. concerning Of the strife V. On the morrow, after the King had heard mass, he went which was about to rise into the Palace of Galiana, where the Cortes was to assemble, the ivory seat. and the Infantes of Carrion and the other Counts and Ricosomes with him, save the Cid who was not yet come; and when they who did not love the Cid beheld his ivory seat, they began to make mock of it. And Count Garcia said to the King, I beseech your Grace, tell me, for whom that couch is spread beside your seat: for what dame is it made ready; will she come drest in the almexia., or with white alquinales on her head, or after what fashion will she be apparelled? Sir, a seat like that is fit for none but your Grace: give order to take it for yourself, or that it be removed. When Ferran Alfonso, who was there to guard the ivory seat heard this, he answered and said, Count, you talk full foolishly, and speak ill of one against whom it behoves you not to talk. He who is • Gobierto de un tartari muy noble. This I am unable to explain. It may have been the name of some skin or leather, called from the country from whence it came, as we speak of Morocco and Russia. IX. to sit upon this seat is better than you, or than all your line- BOOK age; and he hath ever appeared a man to all his enemies, not like a woman as you say. If you deny this I will lay hands upon you, and make you acknowledge it before my Lord the King Don Alfonso, who is here present. And I am of such a race that you cannot acquit yourself by saying I am not your peer, and the vantage of half your arms I give you! At these words was the King greatly troubled, and the Counts also, and all the honourable men who were there present. And Count Garcia who was an angry man, wrapt his mantle under his arm, and would have struck Ferran Alfonso, saying, Let me get at the boy who dares me! And Ferran Alfonso laid hand upon his sword and came forward to meet him, saying, that if it were not for the King, he would punish him thereright for the folly which he had uttered. But the King seeing that these words went on from bad to worse, put them asunder that farther evil might not happen, and he said, None of ye have reason to speak thus of the seat of the Cid; he won it like a good knight and a valiant, as he is. There is not a King in the world who deserves this seat better than my vassal the Cid, and the better and more honourable he is, the more am I honoured through him. This seat he won in Valencia, where it had belonged to the Kings thereof: and much gold and silver, and many precious stones hath he won; and many a battle hath he won both against Christians and Moors and of all the spoil which he hath won, he hath alway sent me part, and great presents and full rich, such as never other vassal sent to his Lord; and this he hath done in acknowledgment that I am his Lord. Ye who are talking here against him, which of ye hath ever sent me such gifts as he? If any one be envious, let him atchieve such feats as he hath done, and I will seat him cap. 249. with myself to do him honour. Ckr.del Cid. Chr. Gen. f. 292. BOOK How the Cid and his knights apparelled themselves the Cortes. VI. Now the Cid had performed his vigil in the Church of St. Servan, matins and primes were said, and mass performed; and then he made ready to go to the Cortes, and with him went Alvar Fañez Minaya, whom he called his right arm, and and went to Pero Bermudez, and Muño Gustios, and Martin Antolinez that doughty Burgalese, and Alvar Alvarez, and Alvar Salvadorez, and Martin Muñoz, and Felez Muñoz the Cid's nephew, and Malanda who was a learned man, and Galin Garciez the good one of Aragon: these and others made ready to go with him, being an hundred of the best of his company. They, wore velmezes under their harness, that they might be able to bear it, and then their mail, which was as bright as the sun: over this they had ermine or other skins, laced tight that the armour might not be seen, and under their cloaks, their swords which were sweet and sharp. He who was born in happy hour made no tarriance; he drew on his legs hose of fine cloth, and put on over them shoes which were richly worked. A shirt of ranzal he wore, which was as white as the sun; all the fastenings were wrought with gold and silver: over this a brial of gold tissue; and over this a red skin with points of gold. My Cid the Campeador alway wore it. On his head he had a coif of scarlet wrought with gold, which was made that none might clip the hair of the good Cid. His was a long beard, and he bound it with a cord. And he bade Alvar Fañez and Pero Bermudez assemble their companions, and when he saw them he said, If the Infantes of Carrion should seek a quarrel, where I have a hundred such as these I may be well without fear! And he said, Let us mount now and go to the Cortes. We go to make one defiance, and This savage epithet is explained by Sanchez in his glossary to the Poem, with excellent dulness,.. adjetivo que se aplicaba a la espada bien afilada. IX. Cid. 3070. Chr. del Cid. cap. 250. Chr. Gen. f. 293. Howthe King bade the Cid sit on his ivory seat. peradventure it may be two or three, through the folly of those BOOK who may stir against us. Ye will be ready to aid me, saying and doing as I shall call upon ye, alway saving the honour and Poema del authority of King Don Alfonso our Lord; see now that none 3114. of ye say or do ought amiss, for it would be unseemly. Then called he for his horse, and bestrode it, and rode to the Cortes. VII. My Cid and his company alighted at the gate of the Palaces of Galiana 3, and he and his people went in gravely, he in the midst and his hundred knights round about him. When he who was born in happy hour entered, the good King Don Alfonso rose up, and the Counts Don Anrrich and Don Remond did the like, and so did all the others, save the curly-headed one of Granon, and they who were on the side of the Infantes of Carrion. All the others received him with great honour. And he said unto the King, Sir, where do you bid me sit with these my kinsmen and friends who are come with me? And the King made answer, Cid, you are such a one, and have past your time so well to this day, that if you would listen to me and be commanded by me, I should hold it good that I should hold it good that you took your seat with me; for he who hath conquered Kings, ought to be. seated with Kings. But the Cid answered, That, Sir, would not please God, but I will be at your feet: for by the favour of the King your father Don Ferrando was I made, his creature and the creature of your brother King Don Sancho am I, and it behoveth not that he who receiveth bounty should sit with him who dispenseth it. And the King answered, Since you will not sit with me, sit on your ivory seat, for you won it like a good man; and from this day I order that none except King or Pre Both the Chronicles make him carry his whole nine hundred knights to the Cortes. The Poem is more reasonable. |