LE MORTE D’ARTHUR GUIDED READING 12: BOOK 1, CHAPTER 11, 12, 13

Chapter Eleven

We’re going to go through Chapters Eleven, Twelve and Thirteen pretty quickly and I’m going to skip quickly through some of the battle scenes, because it’s all like this person smote that one down, and then this person smote that one down, etc. I’ll still include them, so you can have a complete reading of Le Morte d’Arthur here, but I don’t have much comment to make on what happens.

My understanding is that Malory loved battles and amplified a lot of the battles in the material, but you might find that the action writing of 1485, two hundred years before the novel was even invented, lacks the urgency and pulse-pounding excitement we are accustomed to today.

So for Chapter Eleven we’re going to move quickly through the first three paragraphs because they just talk about who did what at the tournament. 

And King Arthur and the two knights let depart the seven hundred knights in two parties. There were three hundred knights of the realm of Benwick and of Gaul turned on the other side when they dressed their shields and began to couch their spears, many good knights. So Griflet was the first that met with a knight, one Ladinas, and they met so eagerly that all men had wonder, and they so fought that their shields fell to pieces and horse and man fell to the earth, and both the French knight and the English knight lay so long that all men thought they had been dead.

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When Lucan the butler saw Griflet so lie, he horsed him again anon, and they two did marvelous deeds of arms with many bachelors. Also Sir Kay came out of an ambushment with five knights with him, and they six smote other six down. But Sir Kay did that day marvelous deeds of arms that there was none did so well as he that day. Then there came Ladinas and Gracian, two knights of France, and did passing well that all men praised them. Then came there Sir Placidas, a good knight, and met with Sir Kay and smote him down horse and man, wherefore Sir Griflet was wroth and met with Sir Placidas so hard that horse and man fell to the earth. But when the five knights knew that Sir Kay had a fall, they were wroth out of their wits and therefore each of them five bare down a knight.

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When King Arthur and the two kings saw them begin to wax wroth on both parties, they leapt on small hackneys and let cry that all men should depart unto their lodging. And so they went home and unarmed them and so to evensong and supper. And after the three kings went into a garden and gave the prize unto Sir Kay and to Lucan the Butler and unto Sir Griflet. And then they went into counsel and with them Gwenbaus, the brother unto Sir Ban and Bors, a wise clerk, and thither went Ulfius and Brastias and Merlin. And after they had been in counsel they went unto bed.

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And on the morn they heard mass and to dinner and so to their counsel and made many arguments what were best to do. At the last they were concluded that Merlin should go with a token of King Ban and that was a ring unto his men and King Bors and Gracian and Placidas should go again and keep their castles and their countries as for King Ban of Benwick and King Bors of Gaul had ordained them, and so passed the sea and came to Benwick. And when the people saw King Ban’s ring and Gracian and Placidas, they were glad and asked how the kings fared and made great joy of their welfare and cording, and according to the sovereign lords desire, the men of war made them ready in all haste possible, so they were fifteen thousand on horse and foot, and they had great plenty of victual with them by Merlin’s provision. But Gracian and Placidas were left to furnish and garnish the castles for dread of King Claudas.

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Right so Merlin passed the sea well victualled both by water and by land, and when he came to the sea he sent home the footmen again and took no more with him but ten thousand men on horseback, the most part men of arms, and so shipped them and passed the sea into England and landed at Dover. And through the wit of Merlin, he led the host northward the priviest way that could be, though unto the forest of Bedigraine, and there in a valley he lodged them secretly. Then rode Merlin unto Arthur, and the two kings and told them how he had sped, whereof they had great marvel that man on earth might speed so soon and go and come. So Merlin told them ten thousand were in the forest of Bedigraine, well armed at all points. Then there was no more to say but to horseback went all the host, as Arthur had afore purveyed.

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So with twenty thousand he passed by night and day, but there was made such an ordinance afore by Merlin that there should no man of war ride nor go into no country on this side Trent water but if he had a token from King Arthur, where through the king’s enemies durst not ride as they did tofore to espy.

Basically what’s going on here is that King Ban and King Bors came with a few knights, you know, just three hundred, but their real armies are much larger. Once they get to know King Arthur and see that he’s a cool guy, Merlin takes their ring back to their armies and asks the armies to come. The point of the ring is so they know it’s really from Kings Ban and Bors. So they send fifteen thousand men to help King Arthur, while also making arrangements for some to be left behind to defend their castles against King Claudas. 

And in the last paragraph what happens is that Merlin leads ten thousand of these knights and hides them in the forest of Bedegraine, because what he’s planning—and what happens—is that the rebel kings are all going to be fighting King Arthur in front of the forest, having no idea that there’s this huge army hiding behind. And when they have fought all day and are tired, this other army is going to stream out and finish them off! We’ll see how that all plays out.

By the way, that last little bit about “no man of war should ride on this side of Trent water” just means that they need to be careful not to make themselves known to the enemy, so they can retain their secret position. 

So now let’s get back to it.

Chapter Twelve

And so within a little space the three kings came unto the Castle of Bedegraine and found there a passing fair fellowship and well beseen, whereof they had great joy and victual they wanted none.

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This was the cause of the northern host, that they were reared for the despite and rebuke the six kings had at Caerleon. And those six kings by their means gat unto them five other kings and thus they began to gather their people, and how they swore that for weal or woe they should not leave each other until they had destroyed Arthur. And then they made an oath. The first that began the oath was the Duke of Cambenet, that he would bring with him five thousand men of arms the which were ready on horseback. Then swore King Brandegoris of Strangore that he would bring five thousand men of arms on horseback. Then swore King Clarivaunce of Northumberland he would bring three thousand men of arms. Then swore the King of the Hundred Knights that was a passing good man and a young, that he would bring four thousand men of arms on horseback. Then there swore King Lot, a passing good knight and Sir Gawain’s father, that he would bring five thousand men of arms of horseback. And there swore King Uriens that was Sir Uwain’s father of the land of Gore and he would bring six thousand men of arms on horseback. Also there swore King Idres of Cornwall that he would bring five thousand men on horseback. Also there swore King Cradlement to bring five thousand men on horseback. Also there swore King Aguisance of Ireland to bring five thousand men of arms on horseback. Also there swore King Nentres to bring five thousand men of arms on horseback. Also there swore King Carados to bring five thousand men of arms on horseback.

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So their whole host was of clean men of arms on horseback fifty thousand and on foot ten thousand good men’s bodies. Then were they soon ready and mounted upon horse and sent forth their fore-riders, for these eleven kings in their ways laid a siege unto the castle of Bedegraine, and so they departed and drew toward Arthur and left few to abide at the siege, for the castle of Bedegraine was holden of King Arthur and the men therein were Arthur’s.

Okay, so at the beginning of Chapter Twelve it just says that the original six rebel kings met with five more and all agreed they’re going to take on King Arthur. And it goes through each of the kings and how many knights they have in detail.

Then in Chapter Thirteen is when things get good, because we have the first of our prophetic dreams, and then the battle gets started. 

Chapter Thirteen

So by Merlin’s advice there were sent fore-riders to skim the country and they met with the fore-riders of the north and made them tell which way the host came, and then they told it to Arthur, and by King Ban and Bors’ counsel they let burn and destroy all the country afore them there they should ride.

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The King with the Hundred Knights had a wondrous dream two nights before the battle that there blew a great wind and blew down their castles and their towns, and after that came a water and bore it all away. All that heard of the dream said that it was a token of a great battle. Then by counsel of Merlin, when they knew which way the eleven kings would ride and lodge that night, at midnight they set upon them as they were in their pavilions. But by the scout watch by their host cried, “Lords! At arms! For here be your enemies at your hand!”

The King with the Hundred Knights has a dream that a great wind comes and blows down their castles and their towns, then a great flood comes and sweeps it all away. In the Vulgate, it is King Lot who has this dream. And although it goes by fast here, you have to slow down to take a moment to let it all wash over you. A huge wind blows down their castles, destroying everything, meaning, everything these established kings of the land have built and consider to be stable—all gone. Then a massive flood comes and carries everything away, essentially reducing their kingdoms to nothing, as though none of them ever existed. It goes by fast when you just say it, but it’s a monumental thing to have happen. To me it speaks of one generation’s fear as they see what they have built being toppled by the rising of the next generation… and we’ll see how it looks toward the end of the saga as Arthur watches his own world being toppled by the age that follows him.

One thing that often follows prophetic dreams in the Arthurian legend is someone dismissing it as no big deal, and that happens here where someone says it just means that there will be a great battle, not that there will be a great battle in which their side is devastated. 

Then, in the last sentence, we hear that Merlin has advised Arthur to attack in the middle of the night, while the rebel kings and their troops are asleep in their tents. So they are roused to arms, and the battle begins!

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