The Historical and Literary Perspective of the "Romances Moriscos Novelescos"

Author(s): Glenroy Emmons

Source: Hispania, Vol. 44, No. 2 (May, 1961), pp. 254-259
Published by: American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/334902
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THE HISTORICAL AND LITERARY PERSPECTIVE

OF THE "ROMANCESMORISCOSNOVELESCOS"
EMMONS
New GLErROYy
Mexico State University
In the Durfin collection of ballads entitled RomanceroGeneral entries are classified according to types such as "Romances
de las cr6nicas caballerescas" and "Romances relativos a la historia de Espafia."
The first section, one of the most extensive,
is called "Romances moriscos novelescos."
Although it contains a handful of excellent
ballads, such as "La morilla burlada," this
is one of the dreariest divisions of the collection. For more than a hundred pages,
if the reader can endure them all, pseudoMoorish lovers spread their plumes before
their ladies, complain and go through almost identical maneuvers from ballad to
ballad. In nearly every case the theme is
love, the action is slight, ornamental features are predominant, and the sentiments
expressed are artificial and formalized.
When the section is finished, the reader is
apt to agree completely with the anonymous bard of No. 245:
con Dios Gazul,
V~lyase
Lleveel diablo4 Celindaja,
Y vuelvanesas marlotas
A quiense las di6 prestadas.x
But whatever our esthetic reactions may
be, it is evident from the 243 selections
which comprise the section that this type
of ballad was immensely popular. No serious person would dismiss the chivalresque,
the sentimental, and the pastoralnovel because they have little if anything to say
to our own more realistic society. Nor can
we ignore the romancesmoriscosnovelescos.
When seen in their proper historical and
literary perspective, these ballads are meaningful and helpful in acquiring an understanding of the period.
The historical background is an all-important factor in the explanation of the de-

velopment of these ballads. In spite of

their rise during the intense centralization
and intolerance of the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries, the Christian Spaniard
was obviously well disposed toward the
Moor. The fact that Christians in composing them played at being Moors is significant in itself. In order to exhibit itself in
this manner, such an attitude must have
been deeply rooted. It would be difficult
to imagine a similar lengthy section of the
Romancero in which Spanish lovers take
French names. The popular attitude toward the French has always been antagonistic, whereas that shown toward the
Moor was always more or less sentimental.
In order to understand something as
deeply entrenched as this sentimental attitude, one must begin with the Moslem invasion itself. Coming on the heels of a decadent Visigothic empire, the first invaders
were in a position to make a good impression. This they apparently did. When the
Moslems first came to Spain there was no
thirst for blood, no hatred of the Christian,
nor was there even a fanaticism for their
own faith. Most historians agree that they
did not really expect to conquer, but once
there they found the conquest so easy because of the state of the Visigothic government that with a few thousand men they
subdued almost the entire peninsula. For
three centuries, from the invasion in 711
until the death of Almanzor in 1002, the
Moslem was unmistakably the superior
military power in Spain. These first few
centuries of Moslem dominance were marked by a tolerance and consideration unknown in the Visigothic empire. Betterment of social conditions for the agricultural class, religious tolerance, the incor-

254

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"ROMANCESMoRIscos NOVELEscos"

poration of Mozarabs into the government

showed the Moslems to good advantage
against the background of their predecessors. The expansion of Islam at precisely the
moment when Europe was weakest, the
brilliance of Moslem civilization at precisely the moment when Europe was darkest, provided an additional psychological
advantage for the invaders. The little
Christian kingdoms of northern Spain,
having nowhere else to turn, revolved in
the orbit of the caliphate in C6rdoba:
Los reyes de Le6n y de Navarra, los pequefios
condes gallegos y los de la Marca, el gran conde

de Castilla,todos acudiancontinuamente
a la

corte de los califas, pues alli decidian su politica

exterior,alli arreglabansus rencillasintestinas,

seguinsabemospor los cronistaslatinos y drabes,
y hasta trataban alli sus asuntos dom6sticos,
seguin nos informa la epopeya. . .

The great Moslem figures were considered

worthy of emulation, and as the period of
Moorish political and military supremacy
was drawing to a close the immense figure of Almanzor fired the imagination of
Christian Spain. Speaking of Moslem influence on tenth-century Castilian standards of virtue, Amrrico Castro remarks:
"Sancho Garcia, y quienes le precedieron,
habian cultivado aquellos valores humanos,
justamente por ser los que el enemigo
imponia y estimaba. Su arquetipo de vida
fue, sin duda alguna, Almanzor. .."
The ethnological factor seems important
in the initial formation of an attitude toward the Moslem. It is easier to respond
favorably to those who resemble us than
to those who do not. When the Moors appeared in 711 they came in relatively few
numbers, without women, and consequently acquired Christian wives. Then in 756,
less than fifty years after the invasion, the
Moslems in Spain formed a separate caliphate in C6rdoba. Thus Spanish Islamic
interests were more than ever confined to
the peninsula. Cut off more or less from
the rest of Islam, the Moslem in Spain
continued to mix with the far more numerous Mozarabs.By the time of the Cid there
was little blood difference between the

255

Moslem of the south and the Christian of

the north. Speaking of this situation before the arrival of the Almornvidesin the
eleventh century, Men6ndez Pidal writes:
"Antes. . . las poco densas diferencias de
raza entre el califato y los reinos del Norte
se habian llegado poco menos que a borrar:
espafioles cristianoso espafioles islamizados
mantenian una lucha casi civil que se resolvia en convivencia."'
Another consideration in the formation
of the Christian attitude toward the Moslem is that of culture. Shortly after Almanzor's death in 1002 the caliphate of C6rdoba disintegrated, and Spanish Islam split
into little kingdoms or taifas. Henceforth
the military superiority of the Christian
Spaniard was to be threatened seriously
only by the eleventh and twelfth century
invasions of the Almor6avidesand Almohades. Culturally, however, Spanish Islam
continued at a high level well into the
thirteenth century. There is often a feeling of admirationin a people who subdue
those culturally superiorto themselves, and
perhaps there was a touch of that in the
Christian Spaniard. "Down to the middle
of the thirteenth century it is scarcely too
much to say that they [the Spanish Moslems] were not only gladly tolerated but
highly esteemed."5Long after the disintegration of the caliphate the taifas continued to produce great men and great
works:
Los reyes de Taifas protegieron mucho a los
literatosy fil6sofos. . . y aunque pudiera creerse
a los almorivides intolerantes y despreciadores
de la cultura, . . . s lo cierto que el desarrollo

de la literaturay de las ciencias, en los siglos

XII y XIII especialmente, Ilega a gran altura.
De este periodo es Averroes,el mis c6lebre de
los fil6sofos &abes;y a tambien corresponden
u1
los grandesescritoresmusulmanes
y judios de la
Espaiia musulmana: Avempace, Tofiil, Ben
Gabirol, Maim6nides,etc. . .8

The military collaborationof Moor and

Christian during the period of Islamic
dominance and after the establishment of
Christian military supremacy is highly indicative of their actual attitudes toward
each other. Such collaborationis one of the

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256

HisPANiA

most frequent themes of medieval Spanish

history: ". .. apenas hay guerra en que
figuren exclusivamente de un lado musulmanes y de otro cristianos, sino que en
ambos ejdrcitos van mezcladas tropas de
las dos procedencias."7Besides the religious
and social implications, this fact indicates
mutual esteem on the part of both Moslem
and Christian. Such alliances were taking
place in the time of Almanzor, whose
Christian soldiers, according to Americo
Castro, numbered so many that Sunday
was holy day for his armies.8 They continued almost without interruptioninto the
fifteenth century: ". . . it is significant of
the continuance of friendly relations between the two faiths, that in 1410 the
Mudejares of Cordobaand Seville had contributed to the expense of the campaign of
the Infante Ferdinand against the Granadan outpost of Antequera."9The extent of
these alliances can be verified by the most
cursory reading of the medieval chronicles
of the Castilian kings.
After the reign of Alfonso XI (d. 1350),
the reconquest was virtually dormant. The
Moor had been driven to the kingdom of
Granada, and for over a century Christian
Spain was concerned only with her own
affairs. During the fifteenth century centralizing influences became strong enough
to demand that the reconquest be completed. In a military sense the conquest of
Granada was no great victory. Symbolically it was, for it represented the end of the
struggle begun in 718 at Covadonga. The
Granadan campaign revived the memories
of the centuries-longwar, and the chivalric
attitude that flowered in the fourteenth
and fifteenth centuries (as well as the comparative ease of the conquest) enhanced
rather than diminished the sentimental attitude toward the Moor.
In popular literature, especially the epic
and the old historical ballad, one notes the
agreement with the historical background
sketched above. Among the earliest examples of Spanish literature are the epics
or gestas prosified in the Primera crdnica

general of Alfonso el Sabio. Of these, Los

siete infantes de Lara illustrates MoorishChristian relations in the tenth century.
The action of Los siete infantes de Lara
takes place during the time of Almanzor
(939-1002), greatest of the Moslem warlords, and the original epic is believed to
be contemporarywith the events described.
Because he consideres himself offended by
his nephews, the infantes, Ruy Blksquez
plots treachery. He sends Gonzalo Gustios,
his brother-in-law and father of the
infantes, to C6rdoba to ask a favor of Almanzor:
Cunnado, uos sabedes bien como me costaron

muchomis bodas,et el condeGarciFernandez

non me ayudo y tan bien como yo cuede et el

deuiera;et Almanmorme prometioque me darie
muy buena ayuda pora ellas, et uos sabedes que

assies.1o
The fact that Gonzalo goes without hesitation shows Almanzor in a favorable light.
Once in C6rdoba he learns from Almanzor
himself that Ruy Blhsquez has betrayed
him: "Roy Blasquez me enuia dezir que
te descabesce; mas yo, por que te quiero
bien, non lo quiero fazer, mas mandartehe
echar en prision."l"

Meanwhile the infantes are led into ambush by their uncle. After a gallant fight
they are taken prisoner by the Moslems
and are given refreshment. When Ruy
hears of this, he goes to the Moors and
threatens to have Almanzor punish them if
they do not follow instructions. In order
to protect themselves the Moors have the
infantes continue the battle until they are
recaptured. This time they are beheaded.
When their heads reach C6rdoba they are
given to Gonzalo, along with his freedom
and provisions for his journey home. For
this consideration Gonzalo is deeply grateful: "Almangor,Dios uos gradesca el bien
que me fezistes et otrossi uos gradesca el
bien que me dezides, et aun uenga tiempo
que uos faga yo por ello seruicio que uos
plega."12.What a foe the Moor is in this,
perhaps the oldest of the gestas!The scenes
depicting the Christians are barbarity itself, while the Moor is unmistakablyideal-

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"ROMANCESMORISCosNOVELESCOs"

ized. It is not the refined, stylized idealization of the Moor found in the romances
moriscosnovelescos;nevertheless it is clearcut and perfectly delineated.
The old historical ballads such as
"Castellanosy leoneses" and "A Calatrava
la Vieja," in addition to their artistic merit,
are valuable for the popular attitudes they
reveal. If the romances fronterizos are excluded, only some twenty of these ballads
remain which are unanimously declared
primitive by the most eminent authorities
in the field. Few make more than a passing reference to the Moor. One, "Pairtese
el moro Alicante," is especially important
for our consideration here, for not only
does it deal directly with Moorish-Christian relations but it is also a direct descendant of the epic Los siete infantes de Lara.
Had any anti-Moorishsentiment developed
since the time the epic itself was sung,
here was an excellent chance for it to appear. Gonzalo Gustios, father of the
infantes, is a captive in C6rdoba and the
Moors have just slain the infantes. When
Almanzor receives the heads, he calls on
Gonzalo to identify them. Before the identification is made, everything indicates that
Gonzalo and Almanzor are on friendly
terms. Almanzor speaks:

257

was accepted some six centuries after the

original epic appeared.
None of the old historical ballads which
give prominence to Moorish-Christianrelations are so closely tied to epic tradition
as "Partese el moro Alicante." The next
pertinent romance is "Por el val de las
estacas."It is quite different from the preceding ballad. The tone of the former is
that of a few lines snatched from the epic
itself, whereas "Por el val de las estacas"
seems to have been composedby some highly gifted individual steeped in epic traditions but working from no known epic
source. Here the Cid is pictured trying to
collect tribute for Castilla from a Moorish
king. Despite threats and counterthreats,
no real antagonism can be detected. There
is a distinct sympathetic current which the
verbal jousting does nothing to dispel.
Finally the quarrel is resolved in a friendly
manner:
Mas da sus pariasal rey,

a ese buen rey de Castilla.

-Por ser vos su mensajero,

de buen gradolas daria.15

Another ballad, "Helo, h6lo por to viene,"
is thought to be derived from a late epic
on the Cid theme. The verbal abuse on the
part of both the Cid and the Moor and the
presentation of the Moor as a lascivious
dijole: -Gonzalo Gustos,
figure indicate that this romance was conmira qui6nconocerais;
ceived at a later date than 'Tor el val de las
que lidiaron mis poderes
en el campo de Almenar:
estacas." This sort of Moor is sometimes
sacaronocho cabezas,
seen in the romances fronterizos,but never
todas son de gran linaje.
in those derived more directly from the old
Respondi6 Gonzalo Gustos:
-Presto os dir&la verdad.13
gestas. Despite the anger of the Cid, the
Some of the most tragic lines in Spanish audience does not participatein it. Instead
literature are those spoken by Gonzalo in there is a festive air which announces the
this ballad as he examines the heads of his spirit of the romances moriscos novelescos.
sons. But in spite of his grief he displays
No other primitive ballads except the
no ill-feeling toward the Moor. The line romances fronterizos contain more than a
indicating Moorish sympathy is also reveal- passing reference to the Moor. Of these
ing: "Al duelo que el viejo hace,-toda references,none can be called anti-Moorish.
C6rdoba
The spirit of this ballad
The romances
are a tran1loraba."4
is identical
to that of the gesta. One shows sition from the oldfronterizos
historical ballad type
Christian opinion of the Moor as it was to the romances moriscos novelescos.16
In
when Spanish literature began and the
determining popular attitudes they cannot
other makes it clear that the same concept be consideredon the same level as the older

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258

HISPANIA

historical ballads. The Spanish epic is

Castilian, and thus the old ballads derived
from them are Castilian also. But the primitive ballads from the romances fronterizos
are Andalusian. Since Castilla proved to be
the political and spiritual center of Spain,
the Castilian epic and ballad can be said
to speak for all Spain. The Andalusian
ballad cannot; its subject matter is more
local and it deals with contemporaryevents
rather than with themes of long standing.
However, the attitude toward the Moor
of the old historical ballad is not contradicted but intensified and even carried a
step further. To be sure, there are several
types of frontier ballad, and this makes
generalizations dangerous. Some of the
most primitive do no more than record
what seem to be eyewitness accounts of
border skirmishes. Others, which seem to
be written by more learned poets, tend to
see the Moorish point of view and in some
cases to identify themselves with the Moor.
In "Abenamar, Abendmar" the sentiment
is definitely pro-Moorish.In doing this the
authors of such ballads are abandoning the
position of popular poetry, where one
would not expect to find such an identification. It is a refinement which would not
occur to a truly popular poet.
The romancesfronterizosare transitional
also in their ornamental features. In the
old historical ballads action is emphasized
and decorative effects are almost nonexistent. In the romances fronterizosaction
is still predominantin most cases, but ornamentation is seriously challenging that predominance. What was once the province
of popular poetry, represented by the epic
and the old historical ballad, is rapidly being invaded by cultured poets bringing
with them all the literary trappings of the
Renaissance.
The emphasis on the amorous theme is
another point of transition between the
fronterizoballad and the romancesmoriscos
novelescos. The love theme had little place
in an epic society where everything was
mentally and physically geared for war. By

the time of the Granadanconquest society,

even when at war, no longer had to think
exclusively in warlike terms and could afford certain refinements. Thus love, which
played a very minor role in old epic literature and in the old historical ballad, was
stressed more as society became more refined."
If we begin with the epic Los siete
infantes de Lara and read the ballads cited
in the sequence given, the romances
moriscos novelescos then seem logical
enough. The epic establishes the mutual
respect of Moor and Christian, and the
ballad "Pirtese el moro Alicante" continues the same sentiments as the gesta.
"Por el val de las estacas,"though feigning
ill will between the Moorish king and the
Cid, ends amicably.The chief difference is
that the popular, anonymous voice of the
type of ballad derived from the epic has
apparently been supplanted by that of a
gifted individual who knows his material
thoroughly and who tends to stylize it. In
"H6lo, hdlo por do viene" the Cid is certainly not on good terms with the Moor,
but the humorous handling of the theme
indicates a lack of real animosity on the
part of either singer or audience. The festive tone, verbal abuse and lascivious picture of the Moor are all reminiscent of
certain romances fronterizos and help fill
the gap between them and the old historical ballad. Finally, the strong resemblance
of certain ornamental and erotic passages
and occasionally of entire ballads to the
romances moriscos novelescos allow us to
accept the latter with no surprise.
The romances moriscos novelescos are
due, then, to a combination of historical
factors which made the subject both possible and acceptable and to a progression
from action-filled themes of consequence to
ornamental themes of frivolity. In the
ornament and embellishment at the expense of content, these ballads fit into the
pattern of other fanciful genres of the
time. Although we may not care for forms
such as the chivalresque and the pastoral

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NOVELESCOS"
"ROMANCESMORISCOS
novel, they were as much a part of the
literatureof those days as the more realistic
forms toward which we are usually more
sympathetic. Without the recognition of
this fact the literary picture of Golden Age
Spain would lack depth and perspective.

259

Estoria de Espaha, ed. Ram6n Menendez Pidal

(Vol. v, Nueva biblioteca de autores espaholes.

Madrid, 1906), pp. 434-435.

11 Ibid., p. 435.
12
Ibid., p. 442.
13 Menendez
y Pelayo, Marcelino, Romances
viejos castellanos (Primavera y flor de romances,

ed. F. J. Wolf and Conrad Hofmann; Vol. viii

of Antologia de poetas liricos castellanos, Madrid,

1899), Vol I, pp. 46-48.

Ibid.

NOTES

14

Romancero general, Vol. I, pp. 491-492.

also that the romances
moriscos novelescos are a decadent form of the
romances fronterizos.
15

1 Romancero general o colecci6n de romances

castellanos, ed. Agustin Durain (Vols. x and xvI,
Biblioteca de autores espaioles. Madrid, 1945).
Vol. I, p. 129.
2 Men6ndez
Pidal, Ram6n, La Espafia del Cid

(Buenos Aires: Espasa-Calpe,1939), p. 36.

Castro,Am6rico,Espahia en su historia (Buenos
Aires: Ediciones Losada, 1948), pp. 236-237.
Sancho Garcia was the grandson of Fernin
Gonzalez.
4 Men6ndez Pidal, p. 293.
3

Merriman, Roger B., The Rise of the Spanish

Empire (New York: The Macmillan Company,

1918), Vol. r, p. 88.
6 Altamirav
Crevea,Rafael. Historia de Espafia,
2nd ed. (Barcelona: Herederos de Juan Gili,
1913), Vol. I, p. 501.
7 Ibid., p. 282.
8 Castro,p. 237.
9 Merriman,p. 199.
10

Alfonso el Sabio, Primera crdnica general.

16 It could be said

17
Though we may find it hard to accept, the
picture of the Moor or the Christian riding to
battle with some token of esteem from his lady
love seems to be a faithful one in the romances
fronterizos. "El embajador veneciano Andr6s

Navagero.

. notaba cuinto en la guerra de

Granada se habia acrecido el herolsmo personal

estimuladopor la presenciade la Reina Cat61lica
con su s6quito feminino: 'no habia caballeroque
no se hallase enamoradode alguna dama de la
corte; y.

stas presenciaban cuanto se hacia,

y daban por su mano las armasa los que iban a

combatir y con ellas algiin favor, dici6ndoles
palabrasde esfuerzoy rogndoles que demostrasen
con sus hazafias cudnto las amaban. ..'

(Menendez Pidal, La epopeya castellana a

trave's de la literatura esnahola. Buenos Aires:

Espasa-Calpe,1945, p. 153.).

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