Périjon, the king of Gaul, dies. His son ascends the throne and asks Fleur de Marie, King Houel de Nantes’ daughter, to marry him. She agrees to do so once he comes back from a pilgrimage to Roma. He leaves for America with his barons to help the king Bougjia, who is fighting the Saracens. King Bougjia’s daughter, Blanche, offers her love to the young king of Gaul called Périjon - just like his father. He accepts her love but goes back to Brittany to marry Fleur de Marie. Blanche finds him, poses as Fleur de Marie in order to seduce him and becomes pregnant with his child. Fleur de Marie gives birth to Paladin Roland, who kills a lion at the age of seven during a hunt. Blanche becomes Fleur de Marie’s servant to take revenge on Périjon, and she attempts to poison the young Paladin. Fleur de Marie dies because of the poison, but Paladin is saved by the knight Captano. Périjon asks his baron to judge Blanche. Paladin Roland brings the young woman to the woods to kill her, but an angel appears and stops him from going through with his plan. Blanche comes back to America and hides her pregnancy. The French emperor Télémak learns that the admiral Mérilus d’Arabie has declared war on him. He asks his brother Périjon for help. Périjon promises that he and his son Paladin Roland will help. During an enormous battle, the admiral Mérilus, Madracar and Solfina take Roland prisoner. Mérilus informs his brother Méridon, King of Syria, who rejoices over his capture and comes join him along with his barons. Rose, Mérilus’ daughter, visits Roland in his cell, but he rejects her advances because she is a pagan. To get revenge on him, she stops bringing him food. Roland learns that the old Delerigni is in the next cell. He digs a hole in the wall and listens to Delerigni recount his feats of arms before he dies. In the end, Roland agrees to marry Rose, on condition that she helps him escape. Rose plots with the prison guard. They pretend that Roland has died and asked, before his death, to be sent back to Britanny in a coffin. Méridon goes back to Syria. The king Périjon worries about his son Paladin Roland. The Chevalier Ténébreux suggests that they ask for king Bougjia’s help. A messenger brings news of Roland’s death, before his coffin is brought. Roland comes out of it and relates his jailbreak. As an act of revenge, he takes command of his father’s army to fight the pagans. Rose searches for him but she will only find him much later. Paladin Roland and the Bon Ténébreux wage battle against Mérilus and kill over a hundred thousand of his soldiers. Mérilus flees on a ship with his wife and his treasure and asks his brother for shelter, while Paladin Roland goes back home. In an enchanted wood, the knight Cocodor meets a devil, who asks him what his religion is. Cocodor lies and pretends to be a pagan. The devil punishes him by turning him into a giant with a flaming head and ordering him to kill everyone who ventures in his mountain. Cocodor thus kills 200 knights. The emperor Télémak receives a message asking him to end to the miseries caused by the giant, then a second message in which the admiral Goutier d’Antioche commands him to give back Lombardy. Télémak summons his army and meets with Périjon. Paladin Roland offers to fight the giant with the flaming head, but Périjon refuses because he is too young. Roland leaves with Télémak to wage war against the admiral Goutier. The pagan army is defeated by Télémak’s, and Goutier’s son – Carolu – is taken prisoner by Roland then killed in a tournament. On the way home, Roland meets knights on their way to fight the giant. Blanche and Périjon’s child, Raimond dit le Cadet (Raimond alias the Youngest), becomes a knight. He leaves Toulouse to go on an adventure. The knights arrive at the fire mountain where the giant lives. Blanches inquires one of the knights about Roland’s whereabouts, and she is told that he is in Britanny. In a forest, she is attacked by robbers, but she fights and kills them. The devil and giant are thrown behind bars, in an enchanted cell, but they kill all the knights. Mérilus and Méridon swear to kill Périjon and to destroy France to take revenge on Paladin. A new battle begins, opposing Christians and pagans. The latter have three times as many combatants (400 000), and Paladin is taken prisoner. The Chevalier Ténébreux takes command of the army and asks for King Bougjia’s help. Blanche remembers that the guardian angel told her to come to Paladin Roland’s aid. She asks her father for the permission to lead an army, dresses as a warrior and leaves for Syria, where she fights Mérilus and Méridon’s army. She triumphs and delivers Paladin, who avenges himself by putting every pagan to death. Blanche goes back to America and Paladin, in Britanny, recounts to his father how Blanche freed him. Pséryion worries as he remembers how Fleur de Marie was poisoned. Millonnaise, Mérilus’ wife, is pregnant with his child. She makes the devil appear to offer her child’s soul, on the condition that the child can triumph against Paladin. The devil agrees to the deal. For a moment, Cocodor is delivered from the devil’s spell. He comes back to Britanny and asks her daughter for news of his two brothers. He learns that he has killed them when he was the giant with the flaming head. A father and his son, the knights Mariguesse and Mulgador, offer their services to Télémak. They want to fight the giant. In Britanny, Rose is attacked by a traitor who wants to charm her. But Paladin Roland arrives and kills him. Roland and Rose recognise one another, cry and kiss. Then Roland presents Rose to his father and says he wants to marry her. Périjon refuses because she is a pagan. Then he sends Roland to fight the giant. Roland meets his half-brother Raimond le Cadet in a forest, but they fight because they do not recognise one another. Neither one of them manages to win. Paladin bandages his wounds at king Bougjia’s castle. Once he is healed, he leaves for the mountain of Triste-Mort (Sad-Death). He comes across messengers who try to persuade him not to go. Then he meets his uncle Mariguesse and his cousin Mulgador, both dying, and they also advise him not to go, before they die. Roland finds the devil and the giant with the flaming head. The devil disappears and the giant is killed. Poor and rich people alike come running to celebrate his victory. Roland comes back to Britanny, where Périjon and Rose believed him dead. They reunite and kiss. A message is sent to Télémak, who joins them. Roland tells Rose that they must fight Raimond le Cadet before they can marry. He comes across Millonnaisse, who tries to poison him, and he kills her along with the knights that were with her. Roland and Raimond le Cadet meet again and fight, but a young companion recognises Raimond and realises that they are brothers. She takes them to Blanche, who relates how she has given birth to Raimond. Paladin takes her back to Britanny with Raimond le Cadet and King Bougjia. Périjon marries Blanche and Paladin marries Rose and is appointed King d’Antioche. His companions are also rewarded.

Single rod marionettes

Not specified

Belgium

Liège

Handwritten outline

Knighthood

Enchantment

Battle

Poison

Quest

Half-brother

Giant

Epic

Fantasy

Histoire de Paladin Roland. First page of the manuscript.

French

King

Princess

Orlando

Knight

Emperor

Jailer

Count

Prince

Mother

Dame de la suite de la reine de la nuit

Story

Apparition of the Devil

Fight

Metamorphosis

Massacre scene

Scene of recognition

Histoire de Paladin Roland

Story of Paladin Roland

Charlemagne comes back victorious from the war against the Saracens, but he is displeased because several of his vassals, including Duke Beuves d’Aigremont, have refused to lend him a helping hand. On Naymes’ advice, Charlemagne sends his son Lohier to Beuves d’Aigremont to remind him of his duty. The duke is warned by a spy and prepares for Lohier’s visit. He understands his message (to obey Charlemagne or be executed for treason) as a declaration of war and kills him. Duke Aymon, brother to duke Beuves, offers his services to Charlemagne, as well as the services of his four sons, who are granted the title “knights” by the king. Charlemagne hears of the death of his son. The four brothers have mixed feelings about this news. They understand that war is imminent, but how can they fight against their uncle? Aymon decides to fight alongside Charlemagne but suggests that his son leave the castle, as he expects that the situation will change. Beuves asks for truce, then for Charlemagne’s forgiveness. He grants it to him. But Ganelon believes that Lohier’s death must be avenged, and he kills Duke Beuves. During a game of chess, Renaud, Aymon’s oldest son, quarrels with Barthelot, Charlemagne’s nephew, and kills him. Maugis, Duke Beuves’ son, advises him to hide with his brothers in a castle he had built magically in the Ardennes Forest. He gifts him his horse Bayard and the magical sword Flamberg.
Charlemagne discovers their hiding place and leaves with his army to besiege the magical castle. Duke Naymes advises him to send a message to Renaud, in which he would offer to lift the siege if he hands over his brother Richard – who has killed one of the emperor’s men. Renaud declines the offer. Hernier, cousin to Ganelon, poses as an enemy of Charlemagne. Renaud believes his disguise and offers him hospitality. At nightfall, Hernier lets Charlemagne’s army into the castle. The brothers have no choice but to flee. To cover their retreat, Maugis summons an army of demons. Charlemagne gives up on chasing the brothers. He has control over the castle, which leaves his enemy without shelter or means to survive.