the year 1010, were
Arnaulpha, bishop of Vic; Accia, bishop of Barcelona; and Othon, bishop
of Girona.

B, page 91.

_And equally ready, when enjoying the favour of the sovereign, to
displease him, if it should be necessary to do so, &c._

RODRIGUE DIAS DE BIVAR, surnamed _the Cid_, so well known by his
affection for Chimena and his duel with the Count Gormas, has been the
subject of many poems, novels {217} and romances in the Spanish tongue.
Without crediting all the extraordinary adventures ascribed to this
hero by his countrymen, it is proved by the testimony of reputable
historians, that the Cid was not only the bravest and most dreaded
warrior of his time, but one of the most virtuous and generous of men.
De Bivar was already famed for his exploits while Castile was still
under the dominion of Ferdinand I. When the successor of that monarch,
Sancho II., endeavoured to despoil his sister Uraque of the city of
Zamora, this champion of the oppressed, with noble firmness,
represented to the king that he was about being guilty of an act of
injustice, by which he would violate, at the same time, the laws of
honour and the ties of blood. The offended Sancho exiled the Cid, but
was soon after obliged by necessity to recall him. When the
treacherous assassination of Sancho, while encamped before Zamora,
entitled his brother Alphonso to the throne, the Castilians were
anxious that their new sovereign should disavow, by a solemn oath,
having had any agency in the murder of his brother. No one dared
demand of the king to take this oath except the Cid, who constrained
him to pronounce it aloud at the same altar where his coronation was
celebrated; adding, at the same time, the most fearful maledictions
against perjury. Alphonso never forgave the liberty thus taken with
him, and soon after banished the Spanish hero from court, under
pretence of his having trespassed on the territories of an ally of
Castile, the King of Toledo, into whose dominions the Cid had
inadvertently pursued some fugitives from justice.

The period of his exile became the most glorious epoch in the history
of the Chevalier de Bivar: it was then that he achieved so many
triumphs over the Moors, aided solely by the brave companions in arms
whom his reputation drew to his standard. After a time Alphonso
recalled the Cid, and {218} received him into apparent favour; but
Rodrigo was too candid long to enjoy the royal smiles. Banished from
court