Aude, or Alda, Alde, was the sister of Oliver and betrothed of

Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...

in ''

The Song of Roland The ''Song of Roland'' () is an 11th-century based on the deeds of the Frankish military leader Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in AD 778, during the reign of the Emperor Charlemagne. It is the oldest surviving major work of French li ...

'', and other chansons de geste. The story of her engagement to Roland is told in '' Girart de Vienne''. In ''The Song of Roland'' Aude is first mentioned by her brother Oliver when he tells Roland that the two will never be married, when the two counts are arguing before the battle; they are later reconciled, but both die fighting the

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Rom ...

s. When

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...

returns to Aix and informs Aude that Roland has died, she collapses at the Emperor's feet and dies of grief. "The Lovely Alda" is part of Edward MacDowell's 1891 orchestral composition, ''Two Fragments after the Song of Roland''.

References

Characters in The Song of Roland Female characters in literature {{lit-char-stub