The Junior Classics, Volume 4: Heroes and heroines of chivalry
General
The Junior Classics, Volume 4: Heroes and heroines of chivalry
Children's literature
While King Don Sancho was busied in these wars, King Don Garcia of
Galicia took by force from Donya Urraca his sister a great part of the
lands which the king their father had given her. When King Don Sancho
heard what his brother had done he was well pleased thereat, thinking
that he might now bring to pass that which he so greatly desired; and
he assembled together his Ricos-omes [Footnote: Noblemen, grandees.] and
his knights, and said unto them, The king my father divided the
kingdoms which should have been mine, and therein he did unjustly; now
King Don Garcia my brother hath broken the oath and disherited Donya
Urraca my sister; I beseech ye therefore counsel me what I shall do,
and in what manner to proceed against him, for I will take his kingdom
away from him. Upon this Count Don Garcia Ordonez arose and said,
There is not a man in the world, sir, who would counsel you to break
the command of your father, and the vow which you made unto him. And
the king was greatly incensed at him and said, Go from before me, for
I shall never receive good counsel from thee. The king then took the
Cid by the hand and led him apart, and said unto him, Thou well
knowest, my Cid, that when the king my father commended thee unto me,
he charged me upon pain of his curse that I should take you for my
adviser, and whatever I did that I should do it with your counsel, and
I have done so even until this day; and thou hast always counselled me
for the best, and for this I have given thee a county in my kingdom,
holding it well bestowed. Now then I beseech you advise me how best to
recover these kingdoms, for if I have not counsel from you I do not
expect to have it from any man in the world.
Greatly troubled at this was the Cid, and he answered and said, Ill,
sir, would it behove me to counsel you that you should go against the
will of your father. You well know that when I went to him, after he
had divided his kingdoms, how he made me swear to him that I would
always counsel his sons the best I could, and never give them ill
counsel; and while I can, thus must I continue to do. But the king
answered, My Cid, I do not hold that in this I am breaking the oath
made to my father, for I ever said that the partition should not be,
and the oath which I made was forced upon me. Now King Don Garcia my
brother hath broken the oath, and all these kingdoms by right are
mine: and therefore I will that you counsel me how I may unite them,
for from so doing there is nothing in this world which shall prevent
me, except it be death.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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