Hackett Publishing

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The Epic of the Cid records the deeds of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, the “Cid” of history and legend. A powerful warrior in the Christian reconquest of medieval Spain, a formidable strategist, and a charismatic leader, the Cid deeply impressed his contemporaries, both Christian and Muslim. Already, in his lifetime, songs, stories, and chronicles were devoted to his exploits.

In offering both a highly readable, colloquial prose translation of El Cantar de Mio Cid and selections from a wide variety of those contemporary accounts, this volume brings the historical figure back to life for modern readers.

Harney’s substantial Introduction and annotation provide the historical, military, and literary background necessary for an informed reading of the texts; also included are maps, a compendium of proper names, a bibliography, and an index.

“Harney’s translation and literary panorama will become a standard reference for students and scholars throughout the English-speaking world for decades to come. Harney’s profound knowledge of the cultural and creative ferment that surrounded the birth of this masterpiece is unchallenged. . . . The complementary medieval texts that Harney assembles—all the bright fragments that make up this mosaic of a ferocious warrior, clan chieftain, family man, and hero—have never before been brought together in one place with reliable translations from the Arabic, Latin, and Spanish.”  
    —George Greenia, College of William & Mary

Michael Harney is Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese, University of Texas at Austin.

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CONTENTS:

Introduction
Bibliography
Maps
The Epic of the Cid
Related Texts

A. Treasury of the Excellencies of the Spaniards.
Ibn Bassam (Abu l’Hassan Ali ibn Bassam).
Chronicle composed in Arabic in the early
twelfth century.

B. The History of Rodrigo (Historia Roderici).
Anonymous. Chronicle composed in Latin,
sometime between 1102 and 1238 but
probably after 1144.

C. The Song of the Campeador (Carmen Campidoctoris).
Anonymous. Ode composed in Latin verse,
sometime between the early 1080s and 1190.

D. First General Chronicle (Primera Crónica General).
Alfonso X of Castile. Chronicle composed in
Old Castilian, late thirteenth century.

E. The Chronicle of Twenty Kings (Crónica de
veinte reyes). Anonymous. Chronicle composed
in Old Castilian, late thirteenth century.

F. The Youthful Deeds of Rodrigo (Mocedades de
Rodrigo). Anonymous. Epic poem composed
in Castilian, latter half of the fourteenth century.

G. “The Cid and the Moorish King.” Anonymous.
Romance (“ballad”) composed in Castilian verse,
late fifteenth or early sixteenth century.

Compendium of Proper Names
Index 

 

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