Song of Roland
Medieval French chanson
The Song of Roland is an 11th-century French epic poem, the oldest surviving major work of French literature.
It recounts the heroic last stand of Charlemagne's knight Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in 778, where he refuses to call for help until it's too late.
The poem established conventions of the chanson de geste tradition—tales of feudal loyalty, Christian valor against pagans, and noble death in battle.
- OliverMale given name
- CharlemagneEarly medieval Western unifier
- BetrayalBreaking of sacred trust
- French literatureWritten works from France
- archbishopSenior prelate over province
last stand · 11th century · horn · dying breath · Saracens · holy war · Sacrifice · noble death · Feudalism · Honor · Crusades · paladin · Franks · rear guard · Allegory · Symbolism · Elegy · chivalry
- PoemsThe Raven, Ozymandias, Invictus, Paradise Lost, Beowulf
- medieval knightsknight, knights, armor, sword, swords
- Epic MythsIliad, Odyssey, Aeneid, Beowulf, Gilgamesh
- epic poetryIliad, Odyssey, Aeneid, Paradise Lost, Beowulf
- epicsIliad, Odyssey, Aeneid, epic poem, Beowulf
- medieval literatureBeowulf, Canterbury Tales, Chaucer, Geoffrey Chaucer, El Cid
Song of Rolandhistorical account
Record of past events
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle · annals · historiography · legal document · charter
Song of RolandOne Thousand and One Nights
Classic frame-tale collection
Song of RolandOdyssey
Epic of homecoming
Reynard the Fox · trickster tale · strategic retreat · survival narrative · Canterbury Tales