El Cid. The legendary warrior of medieval Spain whose battles were a precursor for the upcoming Crusades in Europe and the Middle East. In this chronicle, the life of El Cid is explored as he attempts to bring together both Moor and Christian into a unified Spain. With amazing painted full color images by acclaimed noted artist Wayne Reid and written by award winning author Gary Reed. Part 1 of 2.
Overview: A look at the man who was El Cid. Here was a man thought by some to be a simple mercenary and by others, a patriotic leader of Spain and Christianity. Although he fought for the Church, it was he that tried to unite the two different worlds of Christianity and Islam. It was his glorious victory (even after he was dead) that set the stage for the next event that would occupy Europe’s next hundred years…The Crusades. The true story of El Cid is one of legend as well as mystery. But the impact of the person known as El Cid is indeed known. It was in Spain, which was more African than European at that time, where the Arab world and the European world clashed. A time when the newer religion of Islam came up against the might of Christianity. The fight for Spain between the two religions predated the great expeditions of the Crusades and served as a foretelling of the wars of the faiths that would affect so much of the world’s history. It is a story of one man, the nation’s hero who could haven taken over the rulership yet was still blindly obedient to his King. It is a saga of two men who had different gods yet believed in the goal of mankind first and fought to keep the two worlds co-existing together. It is a story of love as the wife of El Cid allows her husband an undignified death in order that he could led his army in one last battle. It would be his farewell battle…a swan song….the song of the Cid would live forever.
