Published in Society and Culture in Portugal

Keywords: Keywords: Castile, chivalry, El Cid, Estoria de España, Leon.

This article proposes to analyze the image of Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar constructed by Estoria de España of Alfonso X and as chronicles derived from it. Our research is concentrated not so much on the study of political and military abilities of El Cid, but mainly on the knightly model that is elaborated from its image by the chroniclers that represent a voice of the king in the analyzed historical works. According to the chronicles, Rodrigo acts as a vassal of the three kings (Fernando, Sancho and Alfonso) who succeed each other on the throne of Castile and Leon, constructing with each one of them peculiar relations that introduce to the reader or listener of history a wide spectrum of situations in which Rodrigo continues to remain within the line of behavior of an exemplary vassal.