Le Morte Darthur
enquire of Guenever, and so the king granted him. And Merlin went forth
to king Leodegrance of Cameliard, and told him of the desire of the
king that he would have unto his wife Guenever his daughter. That is to
me, said king Leodegrance, the best tidings that ever I heard, that so
worthy a king of prowess and noblesse will wed my daughter. And as for
my lands I will give him wist I it might please him, but he hath lands
enough, him needeth none, but I shall send him a gift shall please him
much more, for I shall give him the Table Round, the which Uther
Pendragon gave me, and when it is full complete there is an hundred
knights and fifty. And as for an hundred good knights I have myself,
but I lack fifty, for so many have been slain in my days. And so king
Leodegrance delivered his daughter Guenever unto Merlin, and the Table
Round, with the hundred knights, and so they rode freshly, with great
royalty, what by water and what by land, till that they came nigh unto
London.
CHAP. II.
_How the knights of the Round Table were ordained, and their sieges
blessed by the bishop of Canterbury._
When king Arthur heard of the coming of Guenever and the hundred
knights with the Table Round, then king Arthur made great joy for their
coming, and that rich present, and said openly, This fair lady is
passing welcome unto me, for I have loved her long, and therefore there
is nothing so lief to me. And these knights with the Round Table please
me more than right great riches. And in all haste the king let ordain
for the marriage and the coronation in the most honourablest wise that
could be devised. Now Merlin, said king Arthur, go thou and espy me in
all this land fifty knights which be of most prowess and worship.
Within short time Merlin had found such knights that should fulfil
twenty and eight knights, but no more he could find. Then the bishop of
Canterbury was fetched, and he blessed the sieges with great royalty
and devotion, and there set the eight and twenty knights in their
sieges. And when this was done Merlin said, Fair sirs, ye must all
arise and come to king Arthur for to do him homage; he will have the
better will to maintain you. And so they arose and did their homage.
And when they were gone Merlin found in every siege letters of gold
that told the knights’ names that had sitten therein. But two sieges
were void. And so anon came young Gawaine, and asked the king a gift.
Ask, said the king, and I shall grant it you. Sir, I ask that ye will
make me knight that same day ye shall wed fair Guenever. I will do it
with a good will, said king Arthur, and do unto you all the worship
that I may, for I must by reason you are my nephew, my sister’s son.
CHAP. III.
_How a poor man riding upon a lean mare desired king Arthur to make his
son knight._
Forthwithal there came a poor man into the court, and brought with him
a fair young man of eighteen year of age, riding upon a lean mare. And
the poor man asked all men that he met, Where shall I find king Arthur?
Yonder he is, said the knights, wilt thou anything with him? Yea, said
the poor man, therefore I came hither. Anon as he came before the king,
he saluted him and said: O king Arthur, the flower of all knights and
kings, I beseech Jesu save thee: Sir, it was told me that at this time
of your marriage ye would give any man the gift that he would ask out,
except that were unreasonable. That is truth, said the king, such cries
I let make, and that will I hold, so it impair not my realm nor mine
estate. Ye say well and graciously, said the poor man: Sir, I ask
nothing else but that ye will make my son here a knight. It is a great
thing that thou askest of me: what is thy name? said the king to the
poor man. Sir, my name is Aries the cowherd. Whether cometh this of
thee or of thy son? said the king. Nay Sir, said Aries, this desire
cometh of my son and not of me. For I shall tell you I have thirteen
sons, and all they will fall to what labour I put them to, and will be
right glad to do labour, but this child will do no labour for me, for
anything that my wife or I may do, but always he will be shooting or
casting darts, and glad for to see battles, and to behold knights; and
always day and night he desireth of me to be made a knight. What is thy
name? said the king unto the young man. Sir, my name is Tor. The king
beheld him fast, and saw he was passingly well visaged and passingly
well made of his years. Well, said king Arthur to Aries the cowherd,
fetch all thy sons afore me that I may see them. And so the poor man
did, and all were shapen much like the poor man: but Tor was not like
none of them all in shape nor in countenance, for he was much more than
any of them. Now, said king Arthur unto the cowherd, where is the sword
that he shall be made knight withal? It is here, said Tor. Take it out
of the sheath, said the king, and require me to make you a knight. Then
Tor alight off his mare, and pulled out his sword, kneeling, and
requiring the king that he would make him knight, and that he might be
a knight of the Table Round. As for a knight I will make you; and
therewith smote him in the neck with the sword, saying, Be ye a good
knight, and so I pray to God so ye may be, and if ye be of prowess and
of worthiness ye shall be a knight of the Table Round. Now Merlin, said
Arthur, say whether this Tor shall be a good knight or no. Yea, sir, he
ought to be a good knight, for he is come of as good a man as any is on
live, and of king’s blood. How so, sir? said the king. I shall tell
you, said Merlin: this poor man, Aries the cowherd, is not his father,
he is nothing like to him, for king Pellinore is his father. I suppose
nay, said the cowherd. Fetch thy wife afore me, said Merlin, and she
shall not say nay. Anon, the wife was fetched, which was a fair
house-wife, and there she answered Merlin full womanly. And there she
told the king and Merlin that when she was a maid, and went to milk
kine, There met with me a stern knight, and half by force he held me,
and after that time was born my son Tor, and he took away from me my
greyhound that I had that time with me, and said that he would keep the
greyhound for my love. Ah, said the cowherd, I wend not this, but I may
believe it well, for he had never no taches of me. Sir, said Tor to
Merlin, dishonour not my mother. Sir, said Merlin, it is more for your
worship than hurt, for your father is a good man and a king, and he may
right well advance you and your mother, for ye were begotten or ever
she was wedded. That is truth, said the wife. It is the less grief to
me, said the cowherd.
CHAP. IV.
_How Sir Tor was known for son of king Pellinore, and how Gawaine was
made knight._
So on the morn king Pellinore came to the court of king Arthur, which
had great joy of him, and told him of Tor, how he was his son, and how
he had made him knight at the request of the cowherd. When king
Pellinore beheld Tor he pleased him much. So the king made Gawaine
knight, but Tor was the first he made at the feast. What is the cause,
said king Arthur, that there be two places void in the sieges? Sir,
said Merlin, there shall no man sit in those places but they that shall
be of most worship. But in the Siege Perilous there shall no man sit
therein but one, and if there be any so hardy to do it he shall be
destroyed, and he that shall sit there shall have no fellow. And
therewith Merlin took king Pellinore by the hand, and in the one hand
next the two sieges and the Siege Perilous he said, in open audience,
This is your place, and best ye are worthy to sit therein of any that
is here. Thereat sat Sir Gawaine in great envy, and told Gaheris his
brother, Yonder knight is put to great worship, the which grieveth me
sore, for he slew our father king Lot, therefore I will slay him, said
Gawaine, with a sword that was sent me that is passing trenchant. Ye
shall not so, said Gaheris, at this time; for at this time I am but a
squire, and when I am made knight I will be avenged on him; and
therefore brother it is best ye suffer till another time, that we may
have him out of the court, for and we did so we should trouble this
high feast. I will well, said Gawaine, as ye will.
CHAP. V.
_How at the feast of the wedding of king Arthur to Guenever, a white
hart came into the hall, and thirty couple hounds, and how a brachet
pinched the hart, which was taken away._
Then was the high feast made ready, and the king was wedded at Camelot
unto Dame Guenever in the church of Saint Stephen’s, with great
solemnity. And as every man was set after his degree, Merlin went to
all the knights of the Round Table, and bad them sit still, that none
of them remove. For ye shall see a strange and a marvellous adventure.
Right so as they sat there came running in a white hart into the hall,
and a white brachet next him, and thirty couple of black running hounds
came after with a great cry, and the hart went about the Table Round.
As he went by other boards, the white brachet bit him by the haunch and
pulled out a piece, where through the hart lept a great leap and
overthrew a knight that sat at the board side, and therewith the knight
arose and took up the brachet, and so went forth out of the hall, and
took his horse and rode his way with the brachet. Right so anon came in
a lady on a white palfrey, and cried aloud to king Arthur, Sir, suffer
me not to have this despite, for the brachet was mine that the knight
led away. I may not do therewith, said the king. With this there came a
knight riding all armed on a great horse, and took the lady away with
him with force, and ever she cried and made great dole. When she was
gone the king was glad, for she made such a noise. Nay, said Merlin, ye
may not leave these adventures so lightly, for these adventures must be
brought again or else it would be disworship to you and to your feast.
I will, said the king, that all be done by your advice. Then, said
Merlin, let call Sir Gawaine, for he must bring again the white hart.
Also, sir, ye must let call Sir Tor, for he must bring again the
brachet and the knight, or else slay him. Also let call king Pellinore,
for he must bring again the lady and the knight, or else slay him. And
these three knights shall do marvellous adventures or they come again.
Then were they called all three as it rehearseth afore, and every each
of them took his charge, and armed them surely. But Sir Gawaine had the
first request, and therefore we will begin at him.
CHAP. VI.
_How Sir Gawaine rode for to fetch again the hart, and how two brethren
fought each against other for the hart._
Sir Gawaine rode more than a pace, and Gaheris his brother rode with
him instead of a squire, to do him service. So as they rode they saw
two knights fight on horseback passing sore, so Sir Gawaine and his
brother rode betwixt them, and asked them for what cause they fought
so. The one knight answered and said: We fight for a simple matter, for
we two be two brethren, born and begotten of one man and of one woman.
Alas! said Sir Gawaine, why do ye so? Sir, said the elder, there came a
white hart this way this day, and many hounds chased him, and a white
brachet was alway next him, and we understood it was adventure made for
the high feast of king Arthur, and therefore I would have gone after to
have won me worship; and here my younger brother said he would go after
the hart, for he was a better knight than I; and for this cause we fell
at debate, and so we thought to prove which of us both was better
knight. This is a simple cause, said Sir Gawaine; strange men ye should