1. Libro de l’Ancroia or Reina Ancroia
   A very long poem in ottava rima, in over thirty cantos (thirty-three, to be precise), of which numerous fifteenth- and sixteenth-century editions have survived.
2. Baldo da Fiore
   A prose text belonging to the cycle of the so-called Storie of Rinaldo.
3. Guidone
   This romance, so titled, has not come down to us, but its title appears in the Zornale of Francesco de’ Madiis, as well as in the list of books owned by Leonardo da Vinci, contained in the Codex Atlanticus. It may have been a simple abbreviation of the title of no. 5 below.
4. Poema di Guidon Selvaggio
   A version in ottava rima, considerably different from both the printed version and the prose version in Baldo da Fiore. It consists of nine extremely long cantari.
5. Innamoramento di Guidon Selvaggio
   A poem in ottava rima in seven cantari, recounting a condensed version of the first four cantos of the Libro de l’Ancroia.

Queen Ancroia clearly belongs to the well-studied Amazonian model. Her figure interweaves heroic elements with grotesque traits, such as her hyperbolic prowess in battle—ultimately explained by a supernatural origin—and, in her private sphere, an inversion of the traditional gender roles of the time. She treats Guidone, for whom she develops a shameless passion, as a literal object of desire and attempts in every way possible to sleep with him. One can recognize in her that combination of political-military authority and sensuality that was as admired as it was feared in the male imaginary, for its destabilizing effects on patriarchal authority and legitimate succession—a female trait regarded with as much hostility as the autonomous, self-sufficient chastity, for example, of Marfisa. Hence the tendency to ridicule Ancroia, in order to diminish her and to recast her within a more reassuring and harmless framework.

It is worth noting that this transgressive portrayal of male-female relations is repeated, in the broader plot, also in the relationship between Smeralda and Guidone himself, whom the sorceress reduces to a veritable love-slave—a not uncommon dynamic in the world of chivalric epic, replicated in the Furioso in the Ruggero–Alcina episode. Fragments of the stories concerning Ancroia and Guidone appear in the poems of both Boiardo and Ariosto. Ariosto introduces Guidone in the Furioso, making him Rinaldo’s half-brother rather than his son.

While the fortune of the story and of its protagonist is demonstrated by the numerous sixteenth- and seventeenth-century editions, the success of this type of character is further attested by the presence of other extraordinary female adversaries in contemporary chivalric literature, such as Trafata, Fanarda, Anfrosina, and Dama Rovenza. Some of them, after being converted, go on to fight for Charlemagne, and the very attempt to bring them over to the ‘right’ side is additional proof of the allure these figures exerted.[1]

To provide a sense of the plot of the Ancroia cycle, what follows is a summary of the longest version of the story: the version in ottava rima transmitted by the printed tradition, taken here from the princeps edition of the poem (Venice, F. di Pietro, 28 September 1479). This edition is the ancestor of all subsequent ones, but it should be kept in mind that this is an “active” tradition, in which each printer/publisher could introduce changes without hesitation.

A brief summary reveals that Rinaldo, during a pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre, conceived a child with Queen Costanza, the wife of King Saligoso. When the boy turns fifteen, he accidentally learns of his origins and plots revenge against his Christian father. He embarks for France, presents himself before the walls of Monte Albano, and defeats one after another the other sons of Amone. Not finding Rinaldo, he moves on to Paris, where he routs Charlemagne’s best knights. At last, while he is dueling with Orlando, Rinaldo arrives and the inevitable recognition scene takes place. Baptized Guidone Selvaggio, the young man returns to Barbary and goes to the aid of the paladins—led by Orlando—against King Baldo, who, after various turns of fortune, has them besieged in the castle of Loro, at Fiore. After fabulous adventures, Rinaldo also joins the group, accompanied by two centaurs and other companions.

Among the many besiegers, Queen Ancroia arrives with twenty-eight brothers—twenty-four adults and four children—and is famed as an invincible warrior. She falls in love with Guidone, who instead loves, and is loved by, Princess Chazenua. Ancroia proves an exceptional adversary, causing difficulties for both Orlando and Rinaldo, and even managing to capture the lord of Montealbano and his son, as well as her hated rival, whom she attempts to burn alive before the castle of Loro. Taken prisoner in turn by the Christians, Ancroia behaves nobly and is returned to Baldo in a prisoner exchange. When Guidone again falls into her hands, Malagise saves him by taking on his appearance through magic and sleeping in his place with the enamored queen, whom he leaves pregnant with twins before revealing himself and disappearing, carried off through the air by one of the demons who serve him. The arrival of Charlemagne with a great army brings the situation at Fiore to a standstill, prompting the two sides to agree to a six-month truce.

Meanwhile, Gano of Maganza, hoping to kill Guidone, lures him to Barbary by inducing his ally King Susbeche to lay siege to the city of Guidone’s mother. Guided by Malagise and the giant Polinferno, the young man sets off to rescue Costanza riding Baiardo, but he is captured by the sorceress Smeralda, who transports him to a magical invisible castle in order to force him to be her lover. He will be freed by his two companions—but not before Smeralda succeeds in convincing Rinaldo that Gano and Orlando have treacherously killed his son, provoking a legendary duel between the two cousins, beneath the enchanted walls. Once the misunderstandings are resolved, Guidone, Rinaldo, Orlando, Malagise, and Polinferno go to Tunis and wreak havoc on Susbeche’s troops. The king, advised by Gano, declares himself ready for peace and seals it by marrying Costanza. This provides the occasion to invite Guidone and Polinferno to a banquet and kill them treacherously. Rinaldo, Orlando, and Costanza exact a cruel revenge: Susbeche, together with an accomplice, is deprived of food, gradually mutilated, then hung upside down and torn apart by dogs.

In the meantime, the truce that King Baldo had granted the Christians expires and fighting resumes. As soon as she learns of Guidone’s death, Ancroia decides to take revenge on Rinaldo, Orlando, and the emperor, who had failed to protect him. She captures and confines on board a ship the most important Christian knights, including Charlemagne himself. She eventually comes to duel the Count of Brava, but frightened by the enormity of his blows, she flees and sails to the island of Riposta, taking the prisoners with her. When Orlando and Rinaldo reach her, the queen sets conditions: either the Christians hand over Baiardo and Durindana—after which she will fight Orlando—or she will simply hang Charlemagne and all the prisoners.

She is given the horse, which Rinaldo has trained to throw itself to the ground at the beginning of the duel, and a copy of the count’s famous sword. At first the trick seems not to work. In the end, however, Orlando kills the queen. Rinaldo demands that her body be opened in order to discover the secret of her extraordinary strength and courage. It is thus revealed that four tiny lions of flesh and blood are wrapped around her heart.

[1]  See Innamoramento di Carlo Mano [Ve] 1481, Bo 1491, Ve 1491 (LICA N. 92, N. 93, N. 94) Dama Rovenza [Ve] 1482 ca (LICA N. 130).