Ruggiero (character)

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Ruggiero is a central character in the Italian romantic epics Orlando Innamorato by Matteo Maria Boiardo and Orlando Furioso by Ludovico Ariosto. He is the son of a Christian knight and a Saracen woman, and he is raised in Africa as a Saracen warrior by the wizard Atlante. In Ariosto’s version, his twin sister is Marfisa.

Two fateful possibilities hover over him: he could convert to Christianity, marry Bradamante (the sister of Rinaldo), and found a heroic Este lineage in Italy, only to be betrayed and killed soon after; or he could remain a Saracen and help destroy the Frankish Empire.

Atlante hides Ruggiero in an invisible castle atop Mount Carena in Africa. King Agramante of Africa wants him to win a war in Europe, and a thief named Brunello steals a magic ring to remove enchantments, helping them find the hidden castle. A tournament outside the castle makes Ruggiero the champion; he is knighted and joins the Saracen army invading Europe. He duels with Orlando and Rinaldo, and falls in love with Bradamante, who is his ally and the sister of Rinaldo.

Atlante later imprisons him in the enchanted castle with other lords and ladies. Bradamante rescues him, but he is tricked onto a hippogriff and taken to Alcina’s island, where he forgets Bradamante. A good sorceress, Melissa, helps him remember and he helps rescue Angelica. He is baptized as a Christian and marries Bradamante. At their wedding, Rodomonte challenges him to a duel, which ends with Rodomonte’s death.

Ruggiero appears in several operas, including Handel’s Alcina and Caccini’s La liberazione di Ruggiero, and in the 18th-century opera Il Ruggiero. He has been depicted in film as well.