EL CID MASTER OF THE BATTLEFIELD?
Although he would later be mythologised as Spain’s great Christian hero, like many of his mid-reconquista counterparts El Cid served Muslims and Christians alike in the pursuit of power
Known to the Spanish as El Campeador, ‘Master of the Battlefield’, and to the Muslims as El Cid, from the Arabic ‘Al Sayyid’, ‘The Master’, few figures capture the spirit of the mid-reconquista tug-of-war than Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar. In the millennium since his death, European works of poetry, literature and drama have transformed him into Spain’s great Christian hero, celebrated for wrenching Valencia from Muslim hands. Though the facts of his life remain mired in myth, the historical figure behind the legend offers a far more interesting glimpse into the chaotic nature of the Reconquista period.
Born to a Castilian family of minor nobility in the mid-11th century, Rodrigo ingratiated himself with the king of León’s eldest son, Sancho – fighting alongside him at the Battle of Graus against the king of Aragón. When
King Fernando died, his domains were split among his children, leaving Castile to Sancho, León to Alfonso, and Galicia to García. When Sancho took Alfonso prisoner and seized León for himself, the 23-year-old Rodrigo shot up the ranks, earning the nickname El Campeador.
When Sancho was assassinated Alfonso took over his kingdoms and married Rodrigo to his third cousin – an incredibly lucrative union. However, after embarking on an unsanctioned military expedition, the warrior fell out of favour and was exiled. He re-emerged in the court of the Muslim Taifa of Zaragoza, which was a fairly common move for masterless Christian noblemen.
Once again, when the elderly emir of Zaragoza died, his realm was split between his two sons, with Almutamán keeping Zaragoza and his brother Almundir taking Lérida. Rodrigo continued to serve Emir Almutamán, who sent him to subjugate the town of Almenar, which had tried to realign itself with Christian Aragón. Pressing on, Rodrigo continued east towards the Lérida fortress of Escarp, only to be dragged back when the Count of Barcelona laid siege to Almenar. Returning, Rodrigo outmanoeuvred the enemy, capturing the count himself before defeating a joint Aragón-lérida assault in 1084, taking scores of Aragónese nobles hostage.
When Almutamán died, Rodrigo’s former master Alfonso began an aggressive campaign against the Muslim taifas, capturing Toledo then laying siege to Zaragoza. In response, the emergent Maghrebi Almoravid Empire sent an army across the Strait of Gibraltar to help repel the Christians back north. Desperate, Alfonso reconciled with Rodrigo and sent him to defend the kingdom of Valencia from Lérida. Despite the religious faultlines, Rodrigo linked back up with the Emir of Zaragoza. However, in a dramatic twist, when Rodrigo refused to surrender Valencia to his old boss, Zaragoza allied with his old rival, Barcelona, forcing Rodrigo to ally with his erstwhile enemy, Lérida.
After talking the Count of Barcelona into withdrawing, Rodrigo began pushing for greater independence, collecting taxes, which were formerly paid to Catalan counts or the Castile king. With Castile too close for comfort, the small neighbouring Muslim kingdoms of Murcia, Granada and Seville once again asked the Almoravid emperor to attack the Castilian castle of Aledo in 1088. When Rodrigo failed to link up with the Castilian troops near Aledo, considering it an act of treachery, Alfonso once again banished him, this time seizing his property.
Following his dismissal, Rodrigo began carving out his own domain in Valencia, running it as a protectorate and collecting taxes from the region’s major strongholds. After defeating another joint Lérida-barcelona attack, he allied with Zaragoza to defeat a massive invasion by the combined forces of Castile, Aragón, Barcelona, Pisa and Genoa. With this victory, the only force able to rival Rodrigo on the eastern seaboard was the Almoravid Empire. When they returned to Andalusia in June 1090, a pro-almoravid revolt broke out in the city of Valencia, and Rodrigo realised he needed to assert more direct control. After capturing the Castle of Cebolla, he went on to besiege and finally capture the capital itself, adopting the name Prince Rodrigo El Campeador.
In the ensuing years, he continued to expand and consolidate his principality, defeating a further Almoravid invasion in 1097 at the Battle of Bairén with his new ally, Pedro of Aragón. In May 1099, after a life of adventure, Rodrigo died of natural causes. Just three years later his family would be forced to flee Valencia as the Almoravids overran Andalusia, uniting it under their rule.