Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of Roncevaux Pass

Battle of Roncevaux Pass was a battle fought on 15 August AD 778 at Roncevaux Pass, in what is now Spain. It was part of the Expedition of Charlemagne of 778. The recorded result: Basque victory. Recorded strength: 3,000 soldiers who were crossing the pass; (modern est.) against Unknown, but large.

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Bataille de Roncevaux en 778. Mort de Roland Grandes Chroniques de France, enluminées par Jean Fouquet, Tours, vers 1455-1460 Paris, BnF, département des Manuscrits, Français 6465, fol. 113 (Cinquième
Bataille de Roncevaux en 778. Mort de Roland Grandes Chroniques de France, enluminées par Jean Fouquet, Tours, vers 1455-1460 Paris, BnF, département des Manuscrits, Français 6465, fol. 113 (Cinquième. Jean Fouquet, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought15 August AD 778
WhereRoncevaux Pass, Spain42.989N, 1.334W
OutcomeBasque victory
BelligerentsFranksagainstBasques
Casualties and lossesAll the men in the rearguard were killedandUnknown
Part ofExpedition of Charlemagne of 778

Record

Date15 August AD 778
PlaceRoncevaux Pass, Spain
42.989N, 1.334W
KindBattle, medieval
Strength3,000 soldiers who were crossing the pass; (modern est.)Unknown, but large
Casualties and lossesAll the men in the rearguard were killedUnknown
Commanders
  • Charlemagne
  • Roland
  • Lupo II of Gascony
  • Ximeno the Strong
  • Bernardo del Carpio
Battle of Roncevaux PassBattle of Roncevaux PassBattle of Roncevaux PassBattle of RoncesvallesBattle of OrbaizetaBattle of AldudesBattle of TerapeguiBattle of OrbaizetaBattle of AldudesBattle of TerapeguiBilbaoSan SebastiánLogroñoAgenBiarritzTarbes100 km42.989N, 1.334W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Roncevaux Pass
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Roncevaux Pass today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-07-16. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 895 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 1,238 m, 1,238 m of relief, mountainous country and today it is 66% tree cover, 31% grassland.

tree cover: 66%grassland: 31%tree cover 66%grassland 31%
west to east, 10.0 km848 to 1,056 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 1,224 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 3 times between AD 778 and 1813.

In the same war

Elsewhere in AD 778

Battle of Roncevaux Pass is one of 144 engagements of the 8th century in the atlas and one of 1,070 in present-day Spain.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1233475, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Roncevaux Pass, revision 1382489254, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.