Bramimonde

Bramimonde is a character in ''

The Song of Roland ''The Song of Roland'' (french: La Chanson de Roland) is an 11th-century ''chanson de geste'' based on the Frankish military leader Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in 778 AD, during the reign of the Carolingian king Charlemagne. It is t ...

''. Bramimonde is the Queen of

Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...

, wife of

King Marsile Marsile (variously spelled Marsilie, Marsilius, Marsilion, Marcilie, Marsille, Marsilies, Marsilun, or Marsiluns) is a character in the French heroic poem ''The Song of Roland''. He is the Muslim king of the Saracens and of Saragossa. He first appe ...

and mother of Jurfaleu the Blond. Bramimonde is introduced as an unwavering supporter of the

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century Germany in the Middle Ages, German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings, to refer ...

, her husband and the betrayal of

Roland Roland (; frk, *Hrōþiland; lat-med, Hruodlandus or ''Rotholandus''; it, Orlando or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the ...

; going so far as to kiss his betrayer,

Ganelon In the Matter of France, Ganelon (, ) is the knight who betrayed Charlemagne's army to the Saracens, leading to the Battle of Roncevaux Pass. His name is said to derive from the Italian word ''inganno'', meaning fraud or deception.Boiardo, ''Orl ...

, in a show of support that was customary at the time. Over the course of the work, she becomes greatly disillusioned with her

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

faith, as seen in this passage where she grieves over the loss of her husband's right hand by Roland: : "When the Queen Bramimonde heard that her lord had returned, she hurried to him. Then, as she listened to his woful tale, and saw his shattered wrist, from which the right hand was gone, she wept aloud and made a great moan. With terrible curses she cursed Charlemagne and Francia, and she cursed her own heathen gods and idols. Then she threw the image of Apollin down, taking from him his crown and sceptre and trampling him under foot. "Oh, wicked god," she cried, "why hast thou brought such shame upon us? Why hast thou allowed our king to be defeated? Thou rewardest but ill those who serve thee." : The images of Tervagan and Mahomet too she caused to be beaten and broken in pieces, and flung to the pigs and dogs. Never were idols treated with such scorn. " Upon

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

's army's successful destruction of her city's mosques and synagogues, the forced

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

of her people, the crushing defeat of Baligant, and finally the death of her husband, she readily admits defeat. She is captured and taken to Aix upon her surrender and, unlike her subjects, is allowed to convert to the

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

faith by 'parable and sermon' in recognition of her noble lineage. She was baptised as 'Juliana'. Fictional queens Characters in The Song of Roland Literary characters {{lit-char-stub