Quick Summary of El Cid There are three parts or cantos to the Poema del Cid.

In the first part, Rodrigo Da de !i"ar, called Cid #El Cid Campeador# $y the %oors&Sidi means My Lord in Arabic), is accused $y Count 'arca (rd)*e of holding $ack for himself tri$utes he +as sent to collect from the %oors for his king ,lfonso !I of -e)n. ,lfonso e.iles Rodrigo from -eon and Castilla. /e ga"e him 0 days to e.ile. El Cid needed money to li"e and support his troops in e.ile, so he faked a chest full of sand and adorned +ith gold nailds and leather red skins. /e pa+ned it +ith Ra1uel and !idas, rich 2e+ moneylenders from 3urgos. They ga"e him 455 marcos as a loan since they kne+ he had gained a lot of money and riches in his $attles against the moors. El Cid places his +ife and t+o daughters in the %onastery of Carde*a for sefekeeping +ith Don Sancho. , and takes lea"e of them hoping that some day he +ill $e a$le to marry his daughters +ell. They announced his departure and 667 horseman lerft their homes to accompany him. The ,rc,ngel San 'a$riel told el Cid that as long as he li"es, he +ill ha"e a good ending to e"erything he does. El Cid and his follo+ers make raids to the south+est of 8arago a into %oorish territory gaining fame and enriching themsel"es. /is companion, %inaya ,l"ar 9a*e is the chief tactician of his troops and first cousin to el Cid:s daughters. ,l"ar 9a*e +as offered some of the money from el Cid, $ut he ;ust +anted to $oast a$out killing the %oors. El Cid sho+s his compassion for the moors $y gi"ing prisoners their li$erty. They $lessed el Cid for his generosity. ,lthough they +on many $attles and $ooty from the moors, and although el Cid sends <ing ,lfonso gifts, he still doesn:t forgi"e el Cid for his alleged $etrayal. El Cid fought +ith the Conde de 3arcelona, don Ram)n de 3erenger. /e +as still mad at el Cid for hurting a nephe+ of his. El Cid +on the $attle against him and one of his famous s+ords Colada. Don Ram)n +as held prisoner, refused to eat, and El Cid promised to release him until he ate. /e did and +as set free. In the second canto, the Cid ad"ances to+ards the %editerranean coast +here he captures the famous city of !alencia. Ra1uel and !idas complain that el Cid has left them poor. /e no+ $rings his +ife and daughters there to li"e +ith him. &, moor, ,$engal$)n, escorted 2imenas entourage. They decide to reside in !alencia in a castle +here you could see the sea and the sights of the city. =usuf, the moorish king of %erruecos, atacks el cid $ecause he con1uered !alencia. They arri"ed, sounded the $attle drums +hich scared do*a 2imena dn her daughters. El cid $attled him, sent gifts to ,lfonso and ,lfonso $ecame happier +ith el Cid. ,lfonso decided is +as soon time to forgi"e el Cid. %ean+hile, the nephe+s of the enemy +ho caused the Cid:s e.ile, the Infantes de Carri)n, scheme to marry the Cid:s daughters to get a share of the no+ great +ealth of the Cid. ,lfonso !I and El Cid meet on the $anks of the ri"er Ta;o, no+ on friendly terms. The king pardons El Cid and arranges his daughers: marriages +ith the Infantes. the Cid is hesitant, ho+e"er he defers to his king. This +ay the king is also responsi$le for his daughters: futures. The marriages take place in !alencia. El cid sends >edro y %u* to take care of and attend to the Infantes of no$le lineage. They +ent to the church Santa %aria +here don 2eronimo, the $ishop ga"e his $lessing. The festi"ities lasted 67 days.

The third canto sho+s the co+ardice of the Infantes in $attles against the %oors. the men of El Cid soon take notice of this and mock the Infantes. the Infantes react $y taking re"enge on their +i"es, the daughters of El Cid. They take lea"e of El Cid, carrying +ith them all their share of the Cid:s +ealth, +hich included t+o priceless s+ords, Colada and Tizn. The Infantes, don 9ernando and don Diego, set of for Carri)n and upon reaching the oak gro"e of Corpes, they order their escort to precede them and they then attack their +i"es sa"agely $y +hipping them and lea"e them for dead. , relati"e of the girls, a cousin, +ho +as sent to follo+ from a distance, takes the young +omen to safety. The Cid demands ;ustice from the king and the no$les from Spain are summoned to Toledo. The Cid demands the return of his s+ords, his +ealth and finally the most important part, a ;udicial duel $et+een his champions and the Infantes de Carri)n. The Cid:s men defeat the treacherous Infantes, and the daughters are married to t+o princes, heirs of ,rag)n and ?a"arra. El Cid is the only Spanish epic preser"ed in an original form, in one manuscript. the poem +as +ritten in "erse, $ut in those days fe+ people kne+ ho+ to read. The minstrels chanted the epic poems $efore audiences composed sometimes of no$les in the castles, and sometimes of peasants in the market place. These performances +ere "ery popular. (ne outstanding aspect of the $ook is the characteri ation of the Cid. /e is real, talks and ;okes, cries, sho+s off. /e lo"es his family and is lo"ed $y all. /e is generous +ith his friends and enemies. /e is loyal and 1uick to forgi"e. /e is ;ust, deeply religious, a little superstitious. 9inally, his courage is unsurpassed, and he is a tender hus$and and father. el Cid em$odies the typical medie"al "irtues +hich make him the perfect medie"al knight. @@ Aseful information taken from El Cid, an adaptiation in the prose for intermediate students