Once upon a time there was a man with the improbable name of Kilydd son of Kelyddon, who married one of King Arthur’s aunts, a woman with the even more improbable name of Goleuddydd. According to my pronunciation guide, Goleuddydd … Continue reading →
“Sire!” calls Bedivere, as the magic barge’s gangplank retracts all by itself and Arthur, up on deck, lies down with his head in Morgan’s lap. “Sire! What will happen to me? I’m the last Knight of the Round Table!” “You’re … Continue reading →
“Well, darn,” says Sir Lucan. “C’mon, let’s get the king’s body out of here,” says Sir Bedivere. “Those looters are going to be coming through here soon.” Lucan and Bedivere pick up Arthur, and did I mention before that Lucan … Continue reading →
It’s a tense scene, with both Arthur’s group and Mordred’s group expecting the other to double-cross. Naturally things go south; the catalyst here is a snake biting a knight’s ankle. This knight (Malory doesn’t specify if he’s one of Arthur’s … Continue reading →
On the eve of this planned joust/battle with Mordred, Arthur dream[s] a wonderful dream. He’s in a chair on a scaffold! It gets better. The scaffold is all connected to this big wheel assembly, and it’s slowly turning. As it … Continue reading →
Mordred’s still working on getting Guenever out of her tower when a messenger brings him word: Arthur, Gawaine, and their troops are landing at Dover. Mordred’s okay with this, though, because he has the common people on his side. Apparently … Continue reading →
“Alas,” says Arthur, “that ever this unhappy war was begun.” Nevertheless Arthur does not go home, as Launcelot suggests! Instead the siege goes on for three weeks more, with no activity to speak of, until one morning Sir Gawaine feels … Continue reading →
For three solid hours they joust. Sir Launcelot and Sir Gawaine, hammering one another out in the field in front of Castle Benwick. Their horses die in the first pass, but without a word they dismount, pull out their swords, … Continue reading →
And so, bright and early one morning, Arthur and his enormous army lay siege to Castle Benwick. Sir Gawaine, pretty much the last knight standing, acts as his general. They encircle the castle and assault it with ladders, which Launcelot’s … Continue reading →
Meanwhile Arthur and Gawaine mobilize all of England to invade Benwick. It’s sixty thousand troops, which is the largest army we’ve seen in a while, on par with Arthur’s invasion force in Book V or the armies he and Team … Continue reading →
