Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field in Six CantosScott, Walter
General
Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field in Six Cantos
Scott, Walter
Flodden, Battle of, England, 1513 -- Poetry
Queen Guenever.'--'Yee say well,' said Sir Launcelot; 'Jesus
preserve me from your subtill craft." And therewith he took his
horse, and departed from her."'
Sir Thomas Malory's 'Morte D'Arthure' was first printed by Caxton in
4to., 1485. A new issue of this belongs to 1634. The republication
referred to by Scott is probably the edition published in 1816, in
two vols. l8mo. The Roxburghe Club made a sumptuous reprint in 1819,
and Thomas Wright, in 1858, edited the work in three handy 8vo.
vols. from the text of 1634. This edition is furnished with a very
useful introduction and notes.
lines 267-70. 'One day when Arthur was holding a high feast with his
Knights of the Round Table, the Sangreal, or vessel out of which the
last passover was eaten, (a precious relic, which had long remained
concealed from human eyes, because of the sins of the land,)
suddenly appeared to him and all his chivalry. The consequence of
this vision was, that all the knights took on them a solemn vow to
seek the Sangreal. But, alas! it could only be revealed to a knight
at once accomplished in earthly chivalry, and pure and guiltless of
evil conversation. All Sir Launcelot's noble accomplishments were
therefore rendered vain by his guilty intrigue with Queen Guenever,
or Ganore; and in this holy quest he encountered only such
disgraceful disasters as that which follows:--
'But Sir Launcelot rode overthwart and endlong in a wild forest, and
held no path, but as wild adventure led him; and at the last, he
came unto a stone crosse, which departed two wayes, in wast land;
and, by the crosse, was a stone that was of marble; but it was so
dark, that Sir Launcelot might not well know what it was. Then Sir
Launcelot looked by him, and saw an old chappell, and there he wend
to have found people. And so Sir Launcelot tied his horse to a tree,
and there he put off his shield, and hung it upon a tree, and then
hee went unto the chappell doore, and found it wasted and broken.
And within he found a faire altar, full richly arrayed with cloth of
silk, and there stood a faire candlestick, which beare six great
candles, and the candlesticke was of silver. And when Sir Launcelot
saw this light, hee had a great will for to enter into the chappell,
but he could find no place where hee might enter. Then was he
passing heavie and dismaied. Then he returned, and came again to his
horse, and tooke off his saddle and his bridle, and let him pasture,
and unlaced his helme, and ungirded his sword, and laid him downe to
sleepe upon his shield, before the crosse.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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