I think it would be fair to consider the legends of King Arthur as the most iconic of English mythology and folktale. Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain is considered the source material of King Arthur legend. Written in the mid 1100s, the book is a mixture of history and fantasy that first introduced the famous stories of King Lear, King Arthur, and Merlin. I eventually intend to read this classic work, but for now I have focused on the five Arthurian romances of Chretien de Troyes. These stories written in the late 1100s are also considered significant additions to the legendary Arthurian world. Inspired by the Romance of Tristan and Iseult, the French writer introduced many iconic love stories most notably that of Guinevere and Lancelot and the quest for the holy grail. These stories later inspired the most iconic works of Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur. However In this post I will break down the five romantic stories written by Chretien.
The Romance of Eric and Enide
The Queen Guinevere was riding her horse out in the woods one day, when she noticed a foreign knight, maiden, and dwarf and wished to greet him. She sent her maiden to welcome them however the dwarf viciously attacked Guinevere's maiden. Guinevere then sent the knight Eric to great the foreign group, and he too was attacked by the dwarf. Eric honorably chose not to engage with the dwarf yet later sought out the knight, whose name was Yder, who brought shame to himself and Guinevere's maiden. Eric tracked Yder to a small town where a great festival was planned. Here he stayed at a lodge and fell in love with the beautiful lodgekeeper's daughter Enide.
However over time, Eric and Enide were consumed by their love for one another, and Enide began to grow restless. She feared people would begin to doubt Eric's honor as a champion knight. In a stubborn response, and against King Arthur's will, Eric decided to go on an adventure with her at his side seeking confrontation. Eric slew many enemies in the distant lands and commanded that Enide never doubt him. Enide's intentions were of love of course, as she only cared for his health and his honor. Eventually Eric engaged with two giants, and defeated them, however grew very sick from their poison. Enide thought him dead, and she was quickly courted by a wicked count. However one day at breakfast, after suffering verbal assaults from the count, Eric came back to life and slayed the terrible count.
Despite reunited with his lover Enide, Eric's health was still very weak. He was later able to defeat the knight Guivret the short, and the two become great friends. Eric and Enide then visit another kingdom, where they hear tale of a dark garden subdued by "joy". Eric decides to investigate this garden, despite the warnings of everyone else in the kingdom. In the garden Eric faces and defeats a knight, who has been entrapped in the garden defending his maiden, until one could defeat him. The knight is very grateful to be defeated by Eric, and turns out to be the nephew of the king, while his lover is the cousin to Enide. Eric is once again honored for his heroic achievements, and King Arthur decides to crown him king of Nantes. Their celebration is one of epic proportions, where kings, nobles, ladies, and knights travel from afar to celebrate his glorious honor.
Cliges
This unique story is set outside King Arthur's court in the foreign land of Greece and actually has two romances in it. It begins with a heroic knight and prince from Greece named Alexander. Seeking fame and glory, Alexander travels to Britain to become a knight and serve for King Arthur. He plays a crucial role in Arthur's battle against Count Angres, almost single handidly winning back to the kingdom from traitors. During this time Alexander falls for the queen's maiden, Soredamors. After much reluctance, Queen Guinevere encourages them to give in to their mutual love, and so they marry. Alexander and Soredamors have a child named Cliges, and move back to Constantinople, Greece.
After Alexander's death, his brother Alis choses to dishonor their agreement, and he marries a German princess, Fenice. Cliges who has now come of age, travels with his uncle and wins many tournaments among the Germans and Greeks. At this point Fenice falls in love with Cliges, however is it a conflicted love as she has been arranged to marry Alis. Fenice does not want to be a tormented lover like the legendary Isolde, so she appeals to her handmaiden to concoct a potion that will dissuade her husband from having sex with her. Fenice is then able to keep both her heart and body devoted to her lover Cliges.
Meanwhile Cliges decides to honor his feather's wish that he travel to King Arthur and serve for his court. Cliges quickly gains favor with King Arthur, as his father did and wins many battles for the King of Britain. However during his time in Britain, Cliges is lovesick for Fenice, and eventually returns to Greece. She meets with him, and reveals that she has kept her body and heart devoted to him thanks to her handmaiden's love potion. At that point they decide to concoct a plan so they can be together. The plan is to fake her death with another potion, and hide in a tomb where they can share their love secretly.
The plan gets off swimmingly and Fenice is able to appear lifeless thanks to her handmaiden's potion. However after time, the emperor has skilled doctors arrive and they are able to see thru the trick and nearly kill Fenice trying to awake her. Fenice is rescued by other handmaidens and her body is laid in the coffin and tomb as they planned. She is healed from her wounds by her handmaiden, and finally reunited with Cliges so they can fully share their love in the tomb. However once again the plan hits another unexpected twist.
After some time lying with each other in a tower near the tomb, Cliges and Fenice are discovered by one of Alis' knights who hurries to inform his king. Cliges and Fenice quickly flee, while Alis captures Cliges servant and questions him. The loyal servant informs Alis that he did no wrong and reminded Alis of his broken promise and that Cliges was the rightful emperor of Greece. Meanwhile Cliges was able to seek help from King Arthur to win back Constantinople, however the help was not needed as Alis died shortly after the incident. Cliges was able to return to Constantinople with his lover Fenice, and thus become the rightful king of Greece.
Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart
Of the five romances in this book, this is the one I was most familiar and looking forward to. It is my understanding that Chretien de Troyes was the first author to introduce Lancelot as a leading character. This story paved the way for the iconic love affair between Lancelot and the Queen Guinevere. However this story is very different than what I had imagine, and merely touches upon the romance between the two. The story that I am most familiar with is the one presented in the film, The First Knight, in which King Arthur becomes aware of the scandalous affair. Chretien's romantic story was eventually adapted and expanded most notably by Thomas Malory's writing of Le Morte d'Arthur.
Guinevere is at first very cold towards Lancelot, and considers him dishonorable for riding in a cart, however she later changes her mind and develops feelings for her. Lancelot is able to sneak into her tower one night, where they sleep together. However the next morning Guinevere is suspected of adultery and accused by Meleagant. At this point Lancelot challenges Meleagant to a duel of honor in the public square for all to witness. Lancelot is able to get the better of Meleagant, however the king interferes to save his son. Meleagant compromises to allow the queen to leave, if Lancelot will fight him in a year which he agrees to.
During this time Lancelot is captured and imprisoned by Meleagant where he stays with a peasant family. He is able to convince his captors to allow him to fight in the tournament in disguise to once again impress Guinevere. At the tournament Guinevere quickly realizes it is him in disguise and requests that he purposely lose to display his love for her. She later tells him to win, which he also does so willingly. This is no doubt a powerful demonstration of their love for one another. After the tournament Lancelot returns to his captors as promised but is imprisoned once again by Meleagant in a more secure tower. Here he suffers madness and nearly death in the dark dungeon-like tower.
Lancelot is eventually rescued from the tower, by a woman he helped along the road, who happens to be the sister of Melegant. Meanwhile Meleagant has returned to King Arthur's kingdom to face Lancelot as was agreed upon. Since Lancelot is missing, Sir Gawain volunteers to fight in his stead. However before the fight can begin, Lancelot arrives full of vengeance against Meleagant for having locked him in that tower. Lancelot easily defeats and beheads Meleagant. He then shares an embrace with Guinevere however it is not implied what happens to them next. Many later versions of the story expand on the love affair, and the two eventually break free of King Arthur's court.
Yvain, the Knight of the Lion
The story begins where several knights are sharing heroic stories at a feast in King Arthur's court. Yvain hears the legend of the magical stone making storm, defended by a powerful knight. He also discovers that this same knight, known as Esclados has defeated Yvain's cousin Calogrenant. Yvain then decides to seek this magical fountain to avenge his cousin, yet also to achieve glory. He arrives to the forest of Broceliande where he defeats Esclados. However the town is infuriated by the death of Esclados, and Yvain must hide with the defeated warrior's widow, Laudine.
However Yvain becomes engaged with many heroic adventures with Sir Gawain and later on his own. His most notable adventure is saving a lion from a dragon's mouth, in which the lion becomes his loyal companion. Yvain travels everywhere with this lion by his side saving damsels and fighting enemies. He however forgets his promise to Laudine in not returning to her after a year and thus their bond is broken. Yvain is driven with grief and takes on further challenges to calm his mind. He defeats three knights, a giant, and 2 demons.
Yvain later assists a woman who is having an inheritance dispute with her older sister. Yvain agrees to fight for her claim, a case that is oversaw at King Arthur's kingdom. Surprisingly Yvain must face Sir Gawain who is defending the elder sister, yet due to their armor, neither know they are facing one another. The fight is fierce and a total draw, by which both knights realize the other's identity. At this point King Arthur intervenes and declares the elder sister is in the wrong, and since the trial by combat has ended in a draw, the inheritance must be divided by the sisters.
Yvain is fortunately able to reencounter his wife's maid, Lunette, who has been imprisoned and sentenced to burn. He rescues her and shares how miserable he has been since he broke his promise to his wife, Laudine. Lunette is then able to reunite them, by sharing all the adventures Yvain has fought for in her honor. Laudine forgives him and welcomes him back into her arms. The lion also remains as Yvain's loyal companion and protector for the rest of his days.
Perceval, the Story of the Grail
This one I was also looking forward to and it was actually the longest of the five romances by Chretien de Troyes. However much to my surprise the book is unfinished and is later continued by various other authors. The story also has a unique back and forth between protagonists which I wasn't too fond of. It begins by telling the tale of the young Perceval and his rise to knighthood, then the story pivots to the great Sir Gawain and his heroic affairs. I enjoyed the story up until the author decides to focus more on Sir Gawain's adventures.
Perceval then continues on various naïve adventures, full of ambition but lacking in chivalry. He later trains under Gornemant and falls in love with his niece, Blanchefleur. He defends a kingdom from conquest and sends the defeated soldiers back to King Arthur. Perceval continues his travels and intends to return to his mother, when he meets the Fisher King. He witnesses a peculiar procession of sacred objects that includes a lance, a candelabra, a silver plate, and a shiny grail. The grail most captures his curiosity however he does not inquire about it, since he was taught to speak little. He later learns that had he asked about the grail he could have healed the Fisher King. Even more upsetting, the girl tells Perceval that his mother has died.
Having heard of Perceval's many victories King Arthur sends his knights to find Perceval and request that he join his court. Sir Kay is able to find him, and the two do battle in which Perceval cut's off his arm. He does not kill Kay however and does agree to join King Arthur's court. While there he is once again reminded of the mysterious holy grail and his failure to inquire about it. It is revealed that the grail has a magical power to keep the Fisher King alive. However at this point Perceval's story hits a sudden stop and strangely turns to Sir Gawain.
Nothing against Sir Gawain, but I have no idea why this story completely abandons Perceval and focuses on an entirely new protagonist. Gawain is the most honorable of King Arthur's knights as demonstrated in the previous Arthurian legends and there is no questioning his glory. In the final phases of this uncomplete book, Gawain goes on various adventures including fighting in a tournament and liberating a kingdom where his mom resides. Gawain offers a sharp contrast to Perceval's naivety, however that was what made Perceval's story so interesting. He was a youthful warrior on the rise to chivalry glory. It's a shame this story was not completed and further more that Perceval's story was diverted.
