Song of Roland

About “Song of Roland”

The Song of Roland is an 11th-century chanson de geste that recounts the deeds of the Frankish leader Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in AD 778, during the time of Charlemagne. It is the oldest major surviving work of French literature. The poem exists in multiple manuscript versions, showing its widespread popularity from the 12th to the 16th centuries in medieval and Renaissance literature. It remains a significant example of early European epic poetry. (Summary adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.)