The Paladins, also known as the Twelve Peers (French: Douze Pairs), were twelve famous knights who were important members of Charlemagne’s court during the 8th century. They first appeared in medieval stories from the 12th century called the chanson de geste cycle, which is part of the Matter of France. In these stories, the Paladins played a role similar to the Knights of the Round Table in Arthurian tales. These stories often showed the Paladins as brave Christian warriors fighting against Muslim invaders from the East. While the names of the Paladins changed in different stories, there were always twelve of them, a number connected to Christianity. Roland, one of the most famous Paladins, was also called Orlando in later Italian stories. The most well-known story about the Paladins is The Song of Roland, written between 1050 and 1115. This story describes Roland’s brave death during the Battle of Roncevaux Pass.
The legend of the Paladins was inspired by real events, including the Umayyad invasion of Gaul and later conflicts between the Frankish Empire and the Emirate of Córdoba in the region called Marca Hispanica. The word “paladin” comes from Old French and is based on the Latin term comes palatinus, which meant a high-ranking official or close advisor.
The Paladins remained a popular topic in medieval French literature. During the Italian Renaissance (15th and 16th centuries), stories about the Paladins added more fantasy elements, which later influenced operas in the Baroque music period (16th and 17th centuries). In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the term “paladin” was used outside of fiction to describe small groups of trusted military advisors working for national leaders. Today, paladins are often shown as individual holy warriors or healers in stories, especially in the Dungeons & Dragons game, which introduced the paladin character class in 1975.
Etymology
The first known use of the word "paladin" in English was in 1592, in a poem called Delia (Sonnet XLVI) by Samuel Daniel. The word came to English from Middle French "paladin," which came from the Latin "palatinus." This Latin word is linked to Palatine Hill, which means "of the palace" in the Frankish title "Mayor of the Palace." An Old French form, *palaisin, was used in Middle English as "palasin" around 1400.
Later, the word "paladin" was used to describe important officials in royal and imperial courts. The word "palatine," used in many European countries during the medieval and modern times, has the same origin.
By the 13th century, words for Charlemagne's companions appeared in European languages. The earliest was the Italian "paladino." Today, French uses "paladin," Spanish uses "paladín" or "paladino" (from French and Italian), and German uses "Paladin." Over time, "paladin" came to mean any brave and noble hero, like the Knights of the Round Table from the stories of King Arthur.
Historical title
During the Roman imperial period, a palatinus was one of the emperor's closest servants, who lived in the emperor's residence as part of the imperial household. The title continued into the medieval period as comes palatinus. However, the modern spelling paladin is now used only for fictional characters in the chanson de geste, while the English term for comes palatinus is count palatine. After the fall of Rome, a new feudal title called palatinus began to develop. The Frankish kings of the Merovingian dynasty (480–750) used a high official called comes palatinus, who first helped the king with legal matters and later handled many of these duties themselves. Other counts palatine were assigned to military and administrative tasks.
In the Visigothic Kingdom, the Officium Palatinum was a group of officials with the title count who managed different parts of the royal household. The Comes Cubiculariorum oversaw the chamberlains, the Comes Scanciorum directed the cup-bearers, and the Comes Stabulorum managed the equerries who cared for the stables. The Ostrogothic Kingdom also had palatine counts, such as Comes Patrimonium, who was responsible for the king’s private land. This system was used by the Carolingian rulers (751–987). A Frankish legal document from 882 and writings by Hincmar, archbishop of Reims, show how much legal work in the Frankish Empire was handled by these officials.
Some counts palatine were sent to different parts of the empire to serve as judges and governors, and the areas they ruled were called palatinates. By the High Middle Ages, the title "count" became very common, used by both powerful nobles who ruled large regions and local lords who controlled smaller areas. As powerful nobles took control over local lords, they wanted to show the difference between themselves and these smaller "counts." To do this, some powerful nobles began calling themselves "Count Palatine," meaning they ruled large areas similar to duchies, such as the Counts Palatine of Champagne in the 13th century. The Count Palatine of the Rhine was a prince-elector since ancient times, as noted in a papal letter from 1261 and confirmed in the Golden Bull of 1356. The title was also used in the Kingdom of Hungary.
Medieval romance
In the French courtly literature of the 12th century, the paladins are the twelve closest companions of Charlemagne. They are similar to the role of the Knights of the Round Table in Arthurian romance.
The names of the twelve paladins change in different stories, and sometimes more than twelve are listed. The number twelve is popular because it is similar to the Twelve Apostles. Roland and Oliver are always named among the paladins. Other characters who often appear include Archbishop Turpin, Ogier the Dane, Huon of Bordeaux, Fierabras, Renaud de Montauban, and Ganelon.
Their most famous story is The Song of Roland, written between about 1040 and 1115. This story describes the paladins defending Charlemagne’s army against the Saracens of Al-Andalus and their deaths at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass because of Ganelon’s betrayal. The Song of Roland lists the twelve paladins as Roland, Charlemagne’s nephew and the main hero; Oliver, Roland’s friend and strongest ally; and Gérin, Gérier (these two are killed by the same Saracen, Grandonie), Bérengier, Otton, Samson, Engelier, Ivon, Ivoire, Anséis, and Girard. Other characters, like Archbishop Turpin and Ogier the Dane, are also mentioned in the story but are not always counted among the twelve.
The paladins appear in many chansons de geste and other stories about Charlemagne. In Fierabras (about 1170), the paladins recover holy relics stolen from Rome by the Saracen giant Fierabras. In some versions, Fierabras becomes a Christian and joins the paladins. In Le Pèlerinage de Charlemagne, the paladins travel with Charlemagne on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and Constantinople to challenge the Byzantine Emperor Hugo.
Early modern reception
During the Italian Renaissance, authors Matteo Maria Boiardo and Ludovico Ariosto wrote stories that were once as well-known and respected as those of William Shakespeare. Their works, Orlando Innamorato and Orlando Furioso, helped reshape the stories of brave knights called paladins. These stories include more exciting adventures than earlier tales. Boiardo and Ariosto listed the paladins differently but kept the total number at twelve.
The paladins in their stories include Orlando (Roland), Charlemagne’s nephew and the main hero; Oliver, Roland’s rival; Ferumbras (Fierabras), a Saracen who became a Christian; Astolpho, a descendant of Charles Martel and Orlando’s cousin; Ogier the Dane; Ganelon, the betrayer who appears in Dante Alighieri’s Inferno; Rinaldo (Renaud de Montauban); Malagigi (Maugris), a sorcerer; Florismart, a friend of Orlando; Guy de Bourgogne; Namo (Naimon or Namus), Duke of Bavaria and Charlemagne’s trusted adviser; and Otuel, another Saracen who converted to Christianity.
In the Baroque era, Ariosto’s poem inspired many operas. Early examples include Francesca Caccini’s La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina (1625) and Luigi Rossi’s Il palazzo incantato (1642). Antonio Vivaldi staged three operas based on Ariosto’s work: Orlando furioso (1713) by Giovanni Alberto Ristori, Orlando Furioso (1714) with music by Ristori and Vivaldi, and Orlando (1727). In France, Jean-Baptiste Lully created a musical tragedy called Roland (1685) based on Ariosto’s work.
Some of the most famous operas inspired by Ariosto include those by Handel: Orlando (1733), Ariodante, and Alcina (1735). Les Paladins (1760) by Jean-Philippe Rameau is based on a story by La Fontaine, which itself comes from Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso. The popularity of operas based on Ariosto continued into the Classical era and later, with works like Niccolò Piccinni’s Roland (1778), Haydn’s Orlando paladino (1782), Méhul’s Ariodant (1799), and Simon Mayr’s Ginevra di Scozia (1801).
The word "Paladin" was used again in the early modern period to describe the closest followers of a monarch. For example, leaders who supported Protestant Frederick V during the Thirty Years’ War were called Paladins.
Modern reception
The word "Paladin" was sometimes used to describe the closest advisors of the German Emperor. In 1871, the magazine Die Gartenlaube called Albrecht von Roon, Otto von Bismarck, and Helmuth Karl Bernhard von Moltke "the three Paladins of the German Emperor." Similarly, British generals Garnet Wolseley and Frederick Roberts were later called "Queen Victoria's Paladins." Adolf Hitler also used the term to refer to Hermann Göring as his Paladin.
During the 19th century, stories from the "Matter of Britain," which are tales about Britain, became very popular among poets and artists. However, stories from the "Matter of France," which are tales about France, were not as widely discussed. The Song of Roland, a famous story from the "Matter of France," has inspired many modern works, such as Graham Greene’s The Confidential Agent (1939) and Stephen King’s Dark Tower series.
In 1960, Emanuele Luzzati and Giulio Gianini created an animated short film titled I paladini di Francia. This film was later adapted into a children’s illustrated book with rhyming text, titled I Paladini de Francia ovvero il tradimento di Gano di Maganz (1962). The book was later published in English as Ronald and the Wizard Calico (1969).
In the later 20th century, the word "Paladin" became a common theme in modern fantasy stories. The "Paladin" character class was first introduced in 1975 for the game Dungeons & Dragons in Supplement I – Greyhawk. This character class was inspired by the main character of the 1962 fantasy novel Three Hearts and Three Lions, which borrowed elements from medieval legends, including stories from the "Matter of France." In 1983, an Italian fantasy film titled I paladini — storia d'armi e d'amori was released. The "Paladin" character also appeared in video games, such as The Bard's Tale (1985). In the game Age of Empires II, the Paladin is the strongest version of knights for certain civilizations. In 2008, the Hollywood action film Jumper featured characters called Paladins, led by a character named Roland. However, the term "Paladin" does not appear in the 1993 science-fiction novel on which the movie was based.