In following Roland’s lines of “the pagans are wrong and the Christians are right,” I wanted to point out the use of holy relics in the story, and how they seem to be a form of weaponry and defense against the Saracens. I also wanted to see if the agency of using these relics by the French Christians was carried out effectively.
Relics are basically objects that hold religious meaning – either they were a piece of clothing worn by a saint, or can be bones of a saint. In that respect, there are also classes of relics, determined by the object. A piece of bone from a saint is a first-class relic, while the cloth form a saint is a second-class relic.
According to Wikipedia, in Medieval Christianity, relics were prized possessions that allowed the bearer to have a closeness with the saint and ultimately, God. Not only are these objects considered holy, but they are thought to contain some power for miracles. A Christian believes that by having these relics, they can be have access to miracles. The idea is that the Holy Spirit was considered to dwell in those saints who were agents of miraculous events, and therefore, having a piece of that saint (literally) can allow an individual the grace of miracles.
In the Song of Roland, Charlemagne is written to have a first class relic. He is said to have the lance that was used to kill Christ when he was crucified (147). This relic is not only first class, but one of the most prized pieces of relics coming directly from Jesus. Not only is it from Christ, it is the weapon that ended Christ’s life on earth before the miracle of his resurrection days later. One can speculate that Charlemagne’s possession of this first-class relic is agency for his victories over non-Christians.
We also have Roland’s sword Durendal, which contains the tooth of St. Peter, blood of St. Basil, St. Denis’s hair and the Virgin Mary’s garment. Indeed, “what store of relics lie in thy hilt of gold!” (141). One can conjecture that yes, Roland is blessed with several relics and therefore has a strong intimacy with God. It also stands to reason that the “holiness” of his sword helped him to defeat a large portion of the Saracen army. Roland used this relic-filled sword to conquer the vast countries he took for Charlemagne and for Charlemagne’s Christianity. We have spoken of Roland’s brutal killings as monstrous, but perhaps with this sword, they were miraculous. Not only was Roland able to conquer several lands, but he is able to wield his sword and kill several more Saracens after he has blown the Olifant and is bleeding though his temples.
It appears that with the aid of these holy relics, God is truly on their side, especially since they have been successful in their conquests up to this point in the story. However, Roland still does die. Does Roland’s death call into question the usefulness of these relics? Or maybe it is the agency of the relics allowing Roland to finally give up his sword (which he has a hard time doing and then puts it under him) and enter into heaven?
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This is a very interesting post and I'm glad you brought the subject up. It seems to me that there is almost a contradiction between holy relics and Christianity. Relics remind me of the pagan tradition of worshipping through a false idol. For instance, the sword in particular, is almost a false idol for Roland. He places so much esteem in the weapon. When he is about to die he says "Now am I grieved and troubled for my blade" (p.140).
Perhaps this is another one of Roland's flaws. Although the sword contains reminents of holy saints, it is difficult to believe that something so violent can be so holy.
On the other hand, it is not surprising that the weapons of Roland and Charlemagne are deemed as holy relics. As your post mentions this others the Saracens even more so. Charlemagne the bringer of the Christian faith and his most loyal knight carry the "weapons" Christianity. Charlemagne and Roland are in the "right" because they commit violent acts with these holy relics, while the Saracens do not.
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