Two more knights charge forward from the city, nobles named Talanque (a nephew of King Amadis) and Maneli, a prince of Ireland. King Amadis and his son Esplandián accept the challenge. The character of Calafia is used by Rodríguez de Montalvo to portray the superiority of chivalry in which the attractive virgin queen is conquered, converted to Christian beliefs, and married off. At first, Calafia’s forces are successful, as the griffins gleefully snatch Christian men from the ramparts surrounding the city and destroy them. A 1926 portrayal of Queen Calafia and her Amazons is found in a mural in the Room of the Dons at the Mark Hopkins Hotel inSan Francisco. [29], When encountering natives in the New World, Spanish explorers were occasionally told of a tribe composed entirely of women. With Leonorina, his betrothed, looking on, Esplandián masters Radiaro with a flurry of weapon thrusts. They were robust of body with strong passionate hearts and great virtue. Templeton said that "Califia is a part of California history, and she also reinforces the fact that when Cortes named this place California, he had 300 black people with him." Queen Califia was eventually conquered, however, she became a subject of admiration around the world, and Hernán Cortés who would come to explore and name the state of California was obviously no exception. Calafia is a fictional warrior queen who ruled over a kingdom of Black women living on the mythical Island of California. [5] Hale supposed that in inventing the names, Rodríguez de Montalvo held in his mind the Spanish word calif, the term for a leader of the Muslim people. Legend has it that Calafia was a warrior queen who ruled over a kingdom of Black women living on the mythical Island of California. Queen Califia….The Real Amazon The state of California was named for her, a Beautiful Virgin Queen. William E. Hoskins, director of the museum, said that very few people know the story of Queen Califia. That said, Alice had to do a lot of work to try and become that character. Within the Society for Creative Anachronism, the San Diego, CA local chapter is the Barony of Calafia,[35] established in 1972. There is some dispute whether the land was named at this time—no record exists of Ximénez giving it a name. He said, “One of the things we’re trying to do is let people have the additional insight and appreciation for the contributions of African Americans to this wonderful country and more specifically to the state of California”, adding that “the Queen Califia exhibit is particularly poignant.”. Ximénez, who reported pearls found, believed the land was a large island. She was known to be black of skin, of the muurish nationality, and ruled over Islands and … The Origin and the Meaning of the Name California: Calafia the Queen of … Golden Dreams was a 23-minute film and multimedia experience showing the history of California through several recreated scenes, narrated by Whoopi Goldberg as Califia, the Queen of California. The explorer Hernán Cortés and his men were familiar with the book; Cortés quoted it in 1524. Calafia was the title of each empress. Esplandián considers Calafia an infidel, an abomination of the rightfully subservient position of woman in relation to man, and he makes no response. "[25] Niketas Choniates, a medieval Greek historian, wrote about women warriors who fought alongside men in the Second Crusade, riding horses "unashamedly astride" (rather than modestly sidesaddle), dressed as men and maintaining a very warlike appearance. [22], Rodríguez de Montalvo's description of Calafia, her people and her country was based upon many centuries of stories of Amazons, groups of woman warriors who fought like men. In honor of Queen Calafia, the explorers named the land California, as her island realm was called. After the mutiny, Ximénez continued sailing north by northwest and, in early 1534, landed at what is known today as La Paz, Baja California Sur. Her subjects arm themselves with weapons and armor made of gold, as there is no other metal in California. The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure, "Hispanic Americans: Spanish Colonization and Californios (1769–1800s)", "Tourism for Locals: Visiting Diego Rivera's First U.S. Mural: "The Allegory of California, "The History of the West by Wilhelm von Schlüssel", "Bonding Males Cast Adrift Without a Corkscrew, and it happened just 26 miles across the sea", "Calafia: Manifesting the Terrestrial Paradise", "Golden Dreams: A Cinematic California Adventure Starring Whoopi Goldberg", Edward Everett Hale (1885) "The Queen of California", Hubert Howe Bancroft (1899) "Story of Calafia, Queen of California", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Calafia&oldid=992530446, Fictional characters introduced in the 16th century, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 5 December 2020, at 19:25. Queen Calafia, thinking now is as good a time as any for a fight, agrees to help him. She tells him she will meet him on the field of battle and, if they should live, that she wishes to speak further with him. Around the year 1500 in his novel The Adventures of Esplandián, he writes: Know ye that at the right hand of the Indies there is an island called California, very close to that part of the Terrestrial Paradise, which was inhabited by black women without a single man among them, and they lived in the manner of Amazons. Remarkably, the Queen of California is a blend of Black Panther and Wonder Woman. Spanish novelist Vicente Blasco Ibáñez wrote a book entitled La reina Calafia (Queen Calafia) in 1924. The regal central figure shows Califia dressed in proto-Mexican finery, holding a spear in her left hand and examining a gyroscope in her right. The same word in Spanish was califa, easily made into California to stand for “land of the caliph”, or Calafiato stand for “female caliph”. Hale’s joint derivation ofCalafia and California was accepted by many, then questioned by a few scholars who sought further proof, and offered their own interpretations. The griffins begin snatching Muslim soldiers and carrying them aloft, dropping and killing them. Putnam also wrote that The Song of Roland held a passing mention of a place calledCaliferne, perhaps named thus because it was the caliph’s domain, a place of infidel rebellion. I appreciate each and every one of you for joining, viewing, and shopping on my website! [11] He and his escort of sailors were killed by natives when they went ashore for water. To restore their honor she directed her forces to fight alongside those of her allies, with the griffins kept in the ships. Calafia orders her allies forward to assist the Californians in battle, but the griffins pounce again, killing Moslem men. [40], Golden Dreams was a 23-minute film and multimedia experience showing the history of California through several recreated scenes, narrated by Whoopi Goldberg as Califia, the Queen of California. [10] After the mutiny, Ximénez continued sailing north by northwest and, in early 1534, landed at what is known today as La Paz, Baja California Sur. This map is the result of partial exploration and guesswork. These men nearly swamp Calafia in blows, and she can only be pulled back to friendly forces by her sister Liota who attacks the two knights “like a mad lioness”. At an outdoor park in Escondido, California, the sculptor Niki de Saint Phalle built her multiple-piece “Queen Califia’s Magic Circle”, dedicated in October 2003 after her death. Both Calafia and Radario surrender to the Christians. [26] Johann Schiltberger wrote in 1440 about a group of non-Caucasian Tatar Amazons, Mongol giantesses led by a vengeful princess. [5] Calafia orders the griffins forward and they, hungry from the long sea voyage, fly out and maul the city's defenders. [24], In Greek mythology, Amazons are described as a nation of female warriors who live in kingdoms outside of recognized civilization, women who fight with Greek warriors. As governor of Mexico he sent out an expedition of two ships, one guided by the famous pilot Fortún Ximénez who led a mutiny, killing the expedition’s leader, Diego Becerra, and a number of sailors faithful to Becerra. Norandel charged out of the gate against Calafia; upon meeting their two lances were broken but the warriors remained standing. Calafia determines that she must see the man herself before engaging him in combat. [27] Columbus returned to Spain with the story of an island in the Lesser Antilles called "Matinino" (perhaps modern Martinique[28]) that was inhabited only by women, a tale told to him by many of the natives of the West Indies. He described how they used bows and arrows, and lived in many towns. [5], Calafia meets Radiaro, a Muslim warrior who convinces her that she should join him in retaking Constantinople from the Christian armies holding it. Radiaro and Calafia issue a challenge to two Christian warriors to engage them in single combat for the purpose of deciding the battle. He and his escort of sailors were killed by natives when they went ashore for water. The griffins, however, cannot tell Muslim from Christian; they can only tell man from woman. King Amadis and his son Esplandián accept the challenge. After being seated among the Christian kings, she immediately recognized Esplandián from his great beauty, and fell in love with him. Peter Hince, Queen’s roadie throughout the band’s live career and author of Queen Unseen: My Life with the Greatest Rock Band of the 20th Century, agrees. George Davidson wrote in 1910 that Hale's theory was the best yet presented, but offered his own addition. Calafia and her ally Radiaro fight in single combat against the Christian leaders, a king and his son the knight Esplandián. It closed to the general public on September 7, 2008, and was open only to school groups until March 2009. The island itself is one of the wildest in the world on account of the bold and craggy rocks. Radiaro and Calafia issue a challenge to two Christian warriors to engage them in single combat for the purpose of deciding the battle. Text from 7) above: below, Harvard scholar Joshia Royce omits the fact that Califia was referred to in the book he translates. [37] The central character of Queen Califia is presented wearing gold glass armor atop a stylized giant bird. I'm the owner and creator of this website! Spanish novelist Vicente Blasco Ibáñez wrote a book entitled La reina Calafia (Queen Calafia) in 1924. [20], In 1923, Prosper Boissonnade, Dean of Literature at the University of Poitiers, wrote that a fortified capital city in eleventh century Algeria was built and defended by the Beni-Iferne tribe of Berber people. If you have any questions, fell free to ask! 1 was the lead story in the Sunday Examiner and Chronicle on Feb. 1, 1992 as reporter Greg Lewis pointed out the book's depiction of the Queen Calafia story as particularly noteworthy. There is some dispute whether the land was named at this time—no record exists of Ximénez giving it a name. [12] It is not known who first named the area California but between 1550 and 1556, the name appears three times in reports about Cortés written by Giovanni Battista Ramusio. [15], For many years, the Rodríguez de Montalvo novel languished in obscurity, with no connection known between it and the name of California. The attraction, at Disney California Adventure Park at theDisneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, opened with the park on February 8, 2001. As well, the story of an island paradise filled with gold and pearls was a recurring theme that Rodríguez de Montalvo was familiar with. Both Calafia and Radario surrender to the Christians. Templeton says that Calafia is exemplary of a genre of literature from the fourteenth to the sixteenth centuries that featured black women as powerful, wealthy and beautiful. Similarly, the name of Calafia’s monarchy, California, likely originated from the same root, fabricated by the author to remind the 16th century Spanish reader of the reconquista, a centuries-long fight between Christians and Moslems which had recently concluded in Spain. The first voyage of Christopher Columbus in the late fifteenth century sparked a new interest in the search for "Terrestrial Paradise", a legendary land of ease and riches, with beautiful women wearing gold and pearls. It was demolished in July 2009 to make way for the construction of a dark ride called The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure. Norandel charged out of the gate against Calafia; upon meeting their two lances were broken but the warriors remained standing. She commanded a fleet of ships with which she demanded tribute from surrounding lands, and she kept an aerial defense force of griffins, fabulous animals which were native to California, trained to kill any man they found. Calafia is convinced to raise an army of women warriors and sail away from California with a large flock of trained griffins so that she can join a Muslim battle against Christians who are defending Constantinople. She directs the griffin trainers to call them off, and the griffins return to roost in the ships. Calafia led a picked group of women warriors to attack a city gate, one held by Norandel, the half-brother of King Amadis. This book re-introduces Queen Calafía in a unique way interweaving fact and fiction to relay the historical origins of Wonder Woman in the name of mystical California, and its mysterious, unknown seal (concepts not disclosed in even Jill Lepore's historical analysis of Wonder Woman). In 1864, a portion of the original was translated by Edward Everett Hale for The Antiquarian Society, and the story was printed in the Atlantic Monthly magazine. They struck at each other with sword and knife, and a general melee ensued, Calafia throwing knights from their horses and taking great blows on her shield. The same word in Spanish was califa, easily made into California to stand for "land of the caliph", or Calafia to stand for "female caliph". The day’s battle left many dead including 200 of Calafia’s women. [5], Landing near Constantinople, Calafia meets with other Muslim warrior leaders who were unable to remove King Amadis and his Christian allies from the city, and she tells them all to hold back and watch her manner of combat—she says they will be amazed. In 2004, the African American Historical and Cultural Society Museum in San Francisco assembled a Queen Califia exhibit, curated by John William Templeton, featuring works by artists such as TheArthur Wright and James Gayles; artistic interpretations of Calafia. The paintings were archived, and in 1991 they were restored and mounted in the California Room of the state capitol, room 4203, renamed the John L. Burton Hearing Room. Posts tagged Queen Califia: Myth of Fact? This city was called Kalaa-Iferne or Kal-Iferne by the Arabs, and was certainly known at the time in Spain; today it is the ruins known as Beni Hammad Fort. However, the name California also appears in a 1542 journal kept by explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, who used it casually, as if it were already popular. The next day, Calafia duels with King Amadis, and Radiaro duels with Esplandián. In 1864, a portion of the original was translated by Edward Everett Hale for The Antiquarian Society, and the story was printed in the Atlantic Monthly magazine. Some historians have speculated that Queen Calafia was probably one of the female African Amazon Queens similar to those who ruled in Dahomey and parts of West Africa for some time, or perhaps the Nubian Queens of Nubia during the period of 100 BC to 200 AD. Calafia and her ally Radiaro fight in single combat against the Christian leaders, a king and his son the knight Esplandián. California historian Lynn Townsend White, Jr wrote that they considered the as-yet undiscovered California "a land of Orient with fantastic attributes". Boissonnade said the Arab name of this fortress city likely inspired Roland and later Rodríguez de Montalvo, such that Kal-Iferne became first Califerne and then California. [36], In November 1975, the 11,000-capacity Plaza de Toros Calafia was completed, a bullfighting arena in the city of Mexicali, the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California. [33], In 1931, Diego Rivera finished his first U.S. mural, "The Allegory of California," for the Pacific Coast Stock Exchange building (now the City Club of San Francisco).[34]. (Queen Califia painting by James Gayle) California, the land of the ever-living Muurish Empress Calafia/Califia. [26] William E. Hoskins, director of the museum, said that very few people know the story of Queen Califia. Historian Jack Forbes wrote that the Spanish were quite experienced in being ruled by Africans given the Moorish occupation from 710 to 1490. 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