Cantar de gesta


A cantar de gesta is the Spanish equivalent of the Old French medieval chanson de geste or "songs of heroic deeds".
The most important cantares de gesta of Castile were:
Smaller importance had the Mainete, the Cantar del Cerco de Zamora and others. However, only the Cantar de Mio Cid, the Cantar de Rodrigo and a few verses of the Cantar de Roncesvalles have been preserved in written form. The philologues have reconstructed other passages of the lost Castilian epic from poorly prosificated fragments in chronicles, where they served as sources of information.
The characteristics of the Spanish cantares de gesta are: