THE ROYAL HOUSE OF FRANCE - outriders poetry project

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© 2009 Max Wickert
and pitched camp around the city. Gerard made Oliver his heir and commander of all his army,
dubbing him knight and creating him marquis. He entrusted him with his royal banner, which
displayed a silver gryphon on a red ground. The protection of Vienne was entirely entrusted to
Oliver.
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When Charles had laid siege to the city of Vienne, he tried very hard to encompass it completely.
On the third day, Oliver, being a very young man, summoned to his mind many past events. As his
resentment of Roland was constantly fed by Gerard, he grew extremely wrathful. On the third day
after the army had surrounded Vienne, he armed from head to foot and came to Duke Pelioratus 73 ,
telling him that he desired more than anything else to fight with Roland. Gerard greatly urged him
on. Oliver mounted his steed, shouldered his shield, and put his lance in rest.
When Oliver’s father saw him mounted and ready to do combat with Roland, he ran up to him,
seized the reins of his horse, and began to beg him to dismount, refusing to let him ride out. But
Gerard made him let go of the reins. Then Rainier drew his sword against Gerard, calling him a
renegade, since he had caused the death of so many of his own blood, like an enemy to God and His
saints. Had the barons not been nearby, they would have come to blows. And so Oliver rode into
the field and sounded his horn, demanding combat with Roland.
When Charles heard that sound and Oliver’s challenge, he gathered his barons and asked them what
they deemed good to do. Meanwhile Roland called for combat, armed, rode into the field and
saluted Oliver. Oliver replied: “If there were good reason, I should answer ‘Welcome’; but I have
73 Pelioratus: orig. Peggiorato (“the Man Made Worse”), a wordplay on Melioratus (Megliorato, “The Man Made
Better”), Gerard’s new baptismal name.