The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights

In the aftermath of Morgan’s treachery, Arthur banishes her son, Ewain, from court. Ewain is determined to go on a quest to prove his loyalty to the king. Sir Gawain, his cousin, decides to accompany him. On their journey, they encounter Sir Marhalt, who challenges them to a joust. After fighting both young men, Marhalt asks to join their quest: “If you will permit, I will ride through the forest and share the excitement of your quest. I had forgotten how good questing can be” (136).

The three knights enter a forest where they find three ladies seated under a tree. One is a maid of 15, the second a woman of 30, and the third is past middle age. When questioned, they reply, “We sit here waiting for knights errant such as you. It is our custom, just as questing is yours. If you agree we can lead you to adventures if you will follow our custom; each of you must choose one of us as his guide” (137). Gawain chooses the young maid. Marhalt selects the woman of 30, and Ewain takes the old woman to accompany him. The three knights and their guides take separate paths to adventure. The narrative now shifts to each knight’s individual quest beginning with Gawain. Gawain’s young guide takes an immediate dislike to him because he is so conceited. They come upon a knight bemoaning his fate, though he won’t tell them why. The knight is challenged by nine other jousters and unseats every one. Then, he allows himself to be tied up and carried away by them.

Gawain engages in combat with a different foe as another knight looks on and talks to the damsel. She expresses her dislike of Gawain: “He is a boaster [who] believes a lady has only to look at him to love him. Such a man needs a lesson” (142). The damsel and the second knight leave together. Gawain shrugs off the loss of his guide and goes on his way: “She nearly drove me crazy with her rattling talk. I like a lady more mature, with some experience of the great world, not a stupid little country girl” (143). As Gawain continues his quest, he meets up again with the knight who allowed himself to be carried off. His name is Sir Pelleas, and he is hopelessly in love with the lady Ettarde. He allows her henchmen to beat him and carry him back to her castle because it’s his only chance to be near her. Gawain agrees to intercede with the lady on Pelleas’ behalf.

It doesn’t take long for Gawain to seduce Ettarde himself. When Pelleas arrives to check on the progress of his suit, he finds the couple asleep together. He places his sword across both their necks but doesn’t kill them before going off to die of a broken heart. Gawain wakes up and decides it’s time to leave, but he draws a ridiculous conclusion from the episode: “And as for Pelleas—this is my reward for revenging him on that woman who had made him miserable. […] There is no gratefulness in the world any more” (150). Meanwhile, as Pelleas prepares to die, Nyneve arrives to help him. After she captured Merlin, she reformed and now uses her magical powers for good. She places Ettarde under a love spell. The lady will now long for Pelleas just as he once longed for her, though the knight himself will view her with loathing. Pelleas and Nyneve fall in love with one another and live happily ever after.

The tale now shifts to Marhalt’s adventure with the woman of 30 years. Marhalt is pleasantly surprised by the practical abilities of his companion. She’s adept at living rough during their journey and offers him good advice. They soon develop a comfortable rapport: “She smiled at him and blushed, and her hands, which could tighten a girth and cook a forest stew, fluttered like pale butterflies, so that Sir Marhalt was aware that being a good lady is as much a skill as being a good knight” (161). The lady is equally delighted with Marhalt: “I am pleased with a man who neither overrates his powers nor disparages his skill” (158).

In one of his adventures, Marhalt defeats Arthur’s old enemy, the Duke of the South Border, and his six sons. In another adventure, he enters a tournament hosted by the Lady de Vawse. Marhalt emerges victorious and wins a golden circlet for his damsel. Eventually, the pair comes to the land of the young Earl Fergus, which is being harassed by a giant. When Marhalt kills the giant, Fergus begs the couple to stay as long as they wish. After several months of domesticity, the two grows short-tempered with one another from confinement. By mid-winter, Marhalt is ready to leave, so the couple returns to the meeting place in the woods to await the rest of the questors.

The narrative now turns to the youngest knight, Ewain, who chose the elderly woman as his companion. The dame, Lady Lyne, explains that she chose him because she trains young knights to become champions. As a girl, Lyne learned the art of warfare: “I was a better rider than they, a better hunter […] Only the accident of girlness prevented me from being more than equal to the boys (175). She takes Gawain to her castle and puts him through a grueling training regimen that lasts nine months. When he emerges from the ordeal, he is ready to test his skills. Lyne presents him with new armor and weaponry that is superior to any he will encounter. She assesses his new abilities:

I don’t think men are very good at fighting. The average, that is. Too softhearted, too fair, too vain. A woman with a man’s body would be a champion. You will be a reasonably good knight, but your very manness will limit you (190).

She then travels with Ewain to enter a tournament. Along the way, he is challenged by various knights and defeats them. Though the tournament is a sad and sordid affair, Ewain wins. Lyne encourages them to slip away quickly because she fears an accidental blow might kill her pupil quicker than a competent foe.

They then go to see the lady who owns the Castle of the Rock. Her other holdings have been stolen by two brothers, Sir Edward and Sir Hugh. Lyne describes them as a pair of thieves. She negotiates a single combat arrangement with the brothers and carefully coaches Ewain on battle tactics. The following day, Ewain kills one brother and forces the other to surrender. Grateful, the lady of the castle proposes marriage to Ewain, but he declines, saying he has taken an oath to complete a quest and return to Camelot. Then, Ewain and Lyle return to the place where the others are waiting for them. The knights all take their leave of their guides: “And the three rode happily toward Camelot. And each prepared his tale as he would have it told and repeated down the ages” (204).