Roncesvalles

Roncesvalles
/ron"seuh valz'/; Sp. /rddawn'thes vah"lyes/, n.
a village in N Spain, in the Pyrenees: defeat of part of Charlemagne's army and the death of Roland A.D. 788. French, Roncevaux /rddawonns voh"/.

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Spain
French  Roncevaux , also called  Orreaga 

      village, Navarra provincia (province) and comunidad autónoma (autonomous community) of northern Spain. It lies 3,220 feet (981 metres) above sea level, in the Pyrenees, northeast of Pamplona and near the French frontier. It is known in relation to the Pass of Roncesvalles, or Puerto de Ibañeta, which lies above it at an elevation of 3,862 feet (1,177 metres). This pass is the traditional site of the Battle of Roncesvalles (Aug. 15, 778), in which the Basques ambushed and totally wiped out the rear guard of the Frankish army as they were returning across the mountains to Aquitaine after Charlemagne, campaigning against the Muslims in Spain, had ravaged several towns south of the Pyrenees and had razed Pamplona. The Frankish army was led by the seneschal Eggihard, the count palatine Anselm, and Roland, prefect of the March of Brittany. The battle forms the basis of the legend of the hero Roland recounted in the epics La Chanson de Roland (Chanson de Roland, La) and Roncesvalles.

      In La Chanson de Roland the attackers are the Moors, and the rear guard is commanded by Charlemagne's nephew Roland, who is accompanied by his comrade Oliver and by Archbishop Turpin. Roland, urged by Oliver to sound his horn to recall the main army, is too proud to do so; when the blast is at last blown, it is too late for the returning army to do anything but avenge the main army's deaths. A similar fate was avoided (811) by Louis I (the Pious), or “le débonnaire,” then king of Aquitaine, who forced the wives and children of the local inhabitants to go through the pass with his army.

      At the summit of the pass are the remains of an early chapel of San Salvador (called Charlemagne's Chapel) and the Charlemagne Monument (1934). In the village is an Augustinian abbey, founded jointly about 1130 by Sancho de la Rosa (bishop of Pamplona) and the king of Navarra, for the use of pilgrims, especially those en route to Santiago de Compostela. The main church was built about 1230 by Sancho VII (the Strong) of Navarra and contains his tomb and that of his wife, Clemencia. A 13th-century statue of the Virgin of Sorrows (wood covered with gold) stands in the centre of the altarpiece. Roncesvalles is the scene of an annual procession of penitent pilgrims, each carrying a heavy cross and wearing a black hood, on the Wednesday before Whitsunday. Pop. (2007 est.) 24.

Vicente Rodriguez
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Roncesvalles — ( fr. Roncevaux, eu. Orreaga) is a small village and municipality of northern Spain (Navarre Cities), in the province of Navarre. It is situated on the small river Urrobi at an altitude of 900 meters (2,950 ft.) among the Pyrenees, and within… …   Wikipedia

  • Roncesvalles —   [rɔnθez βaʎes], französisch Roncevaux [rɔ̃sə vo], baskisch Orreạga, Dorf in Navarra, Spanien, 981 m über dem Meeresspiegel, in den Westpyrenäen, 36 Einwohner; Wallfahrtsort mit Augustinerabtei, gegründet 1130 zur Betreuung der Jakobspilger,… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Roncesvalles — u Orreaga en euskera, es un muncipio situado en la Comunidad Foral de Navarra a 47 km de la capital provincial Pamplona. * * * Roncesvalles, Cantar de Roncesvalles, batalla de …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Roncesvalles — (fr. Ronceveaux, spr. Rongßwoh), großes u. schönes Thal der Pyrenäen, zwischen Pamplona u. St. Jean, Pied de Port in der spanischen Provinz Pamplona (Navarra), wo 778 der Nachtrab des Heeres Karls des Großen von den Gebirgsvölkern geschlagen… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Roncesvalles — (spr. rondseswálljes, franz. Roncevaux), Dorf in der span. Provinz Navarra, Bezirk Aviz, 981 m ü. M., in einem Seitental des Urrobi in den Pyrenäen gelegen, hat ein festungsartiges Kloster mit Wallfahrtskirche und (1900) 152 Einw. Hierher verlegt …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Roncesvalles — (span., spr. wálljes), frz. Roncevaux (spr. rongß woh), Stadt in der span. Prov. Navarra, in einem Pyrenäental, durch die Rolandspforte (1057 m) mit Frankreich verbunden, (1900) 152 E., Abtei; hier Niederlage und Tod Rolands durch die Araber 778 …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Roncesvalles — Roncesvalles, frz. Roncevaux (rongßwoh), span. Pyrenäenthal zwischen Pampelona und St. Jean Pied de Port, nach der Sage der Schauplatz von Rolands Niederlage (vgl. Roland). Sieg Monceys 16. und 17. October 1794; Wellingtons 27. Juli 1813 …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Roncesvalles — Orreaga/Roncesvalles Roncesvalles Escudo …   Wikipedia Español

  • Roncesvalles — Gemeinde Roncesvalles/Orreaga Wappen Karte von Spanien …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Roncesvalles — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Roncesvalles peut faire référence à : Le nom espagnol de la ville de Roncevaux, en Espagne. Roncesvalles (Toronto), un quartier de la ville de… …   Wikipédia en Français

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