The Song of Roland discusses the deeply intertwined and often holy relationship between lord and vassal, especially in regards to death and war. By comparing this relationship to the more general one portrayed in Liber Manualis by Dhuoda, the full religious significance of their relationship can be observed. 

Dhuoda begins by guiding her son: “…I must do my best to guide you in how you should fear, love, and be faithful to your lord and father, both when you are with him and when you are apart from him.” By referring to both the lord and father, she structures the discussion of the lord-vassal bond as familial, while also suggesting that the lord and father are interchangeable and of equal importance in her son’s life. Carrying out his lord’s duty is an act of love and loyalty to his father, and vice versa. In fact, she refers to “Elias’s sons, who disobediently scorned the commands of their father and for this met with a bitter death” as a warning to not act against either his lord, solidifying just how interchangeable they are. 

This notion is reflected in Roland’s closely familial bond with King Charles. Before his death, Roland considers the many things that define his life, including “Charlemagne, his lord, who nurtured him.” The use of “nurture” in his musings suggests a father-son bond between him and the king, and, more broadly, an intense connection, as Charles is one of his dying thoughts. This relationship is obviously mutual, evident in Charles’s extreme reaction to discovering Roland’s corpse: “He swooned on his body, his anguish was so great.” Their bond is far more than a commander and soldier, as it more closely mimics a father-son or mentor-apprentice dynamic. 

A significant aspect of this relationship is its relation to God and what is perceived as holy duty. Dhuoda describes how her son’s lord, Charles, is chosen by both his father and God–given that she begins the text stressing the importance of the father and the Lord, this choice is incredibly meaningful. She urges him: “Be steadfastly and completely loyal to him (the lord) in all things,” as if this allegiance is also a direct reverence for his father and God. Dhuoda continually discusses the Scripture in relation to his loyalty, even claiming that full obedience leads to a prosperous life under the eyes of God. She sees the fulfillment of vassal duties as a “celestial goal” rather than simply an earthly job, while also declaring that “all honor and authority are given by God.” With this pronouncement, she places almost god-like power in the lord, with her son offering complete loyalty and compliance in both God’s kingdom and Charles’s. Furthermore, she recommends that her son read historical accounts of vassals and lords in order to learn how to “serve” his own lord. This study sounds remarkably similar to reading Biblical accounts of the relationship between God and man, creating a parallel relationship with the vassal and both his lord and God. In this instance, the connection between lord and vassal is inherently holy, as it directly mimics a greater Biblical relationship. 

A similar bond can be seen in Roland, notably when Roland himself s on the brink of death. Upon seeing many of his companions dying on the battlefield, he exclaims, “Ill-fated you have been, lords! May the God of glory receive your souls and place them in paradise among the holy flowers! And now my own death is causing me anguish; I shall never see the great emperor again.” The description of their death as a result of “ill fate” points to Roland’s belief that the battle is holy and that any sacrifice (including his own) is already decided by God, while true glory is afforded only by this God as a reward for faithfully obeying the king. The vision of Roland being carried away to heaven by the angel Gabriel is ultimately the reward for serving Charles until his death. Finally, Roland’s last lament is that he will not see Charles again, again suggesting that this relationship is the most important and holy in his life. In direct contrast is Roland’s step-father Ganeleon, who faces severe punishment after deceiving King Charles and pursuing his own interests. The message here is clear: obey the lord and be received in heaven; disobey and be struck with damnation. This becomes even more evident as Charles is returning to help the now deceased Roland, during which “…God performed a great miracle for Charlemagne, for the sun stood still.” This portrayal paints God and Charles in a near-mutual, transactional light, as God personally chooses to stop the sun so that Charles may return to the troops and find Roland. Creating such a blurred line between lord and God relates back to Dhuoda’s statement: “believe in God, fear him, and love him.” In both Roland’s and her son’s case, the relationship between father, lord, and God is indistinguishable. (Moreover, this trio can be seen as a parallel to the Holy Trinity, a further example of how religion provides the precedent for a lord-vassal relationship.)

Within the context of the Crusades and religious intolerance, this Biblical outlook is even more significant: categorizing the lord and vassal relationship as holy not only encourages complete obedience, but justifies war and violence–if the lord’s wishes are seen as God-sent, unfaithfulness is an attack on both the kingdom and Christianity. By this logic, understanding the lord-vassal relationship is an example of just how deeply religion is steeped in this period of history. The relationship is also reminiscent of the questions surrounding Jesus’s simultaneous humanity and divinity: believing the lord to be an extension of God on earth is an example of how a figure can be both fully human and inherently related to the divine. The uncertainty and resulting confusion surrounding Jesus perhaps motivated the desire to see lords as nearly divine, as this provides a corporeal example of God’s might and love to a population who may have been unsatisfied without a tangible display of divinity.