Morien: A Metrical Romance Rendered into English Prose from the Mediæval DutchWeston, Jessie L. (Jessie Laidlay)
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Morien: A Metrical Romance Rendered into English Prose from the Mediæval Dutch
Weston, Jessie L. (Jessie Laidlay)
Arthurian romances; Moriaen -- Romances
What more shall I say hereof? When the feast was ended, and all the
nobles departed, and all had taken leave, then was it in the mind of Sir
Gawain, Sir Lancelot, and Sir Perceval to betake them straightway to
King Arthur's court, for 'twas nigh to Pentecost, and the king (thus
do I read the tale) would hold high court (greater was never held) on
behalf of Galahad, Sir Lancelot's son, for that this hero should then
come to court, and receive the honour of knighthood. And thereof did the
tale wax great; how that he should achieve the quest of the Grail, and
all the adventures, small and great, which appertained to the Round
Table, for 'twas said that he should sit in the Perilous Seat, wherein
durst never man sit. To behold these marvels would many a man come to
court, for the king had bidden all the great folk of the land thither,
and many a knight of praise had obeyed his command.
And for this cause would not Sir Lancelot and Sir Gawain and Sir
Perceval remain afar, but took their leave of Sir Agloval and of Morien
and of his mother, and rode on their way till they came to King Arthur
at Camelot, where he abode, as it pleased him well to do when he would
fain be at peace. And when the king heard of the coming of these three
knights, then was he right joyful at that time; and when he learnt
concerning Sir Agloval, how his wedding feast had been held, and of the
valiant deeds that Morien had done in his own land, then were king and
queen alike glad at heart.
Here will I leave this tale and speak further concerning the Grail,
and the winning thereof. That shall ye find set forth in the book that
followeth hereafter; the other part, that which concerneth Lancelot,
here cometh to an end. Now do I pray God in words straitly, that He have
mercy upon me when my life shall come to an end, and bring my soul to
His heavenly kingdom. May He grant this my prayer!
AMEN. NOTES
1. INTRODUCTION.--In the preface I have dwelt with some fulness on the
interesting questions connected with these opening lines; here it
will be sufficient to point out that in the earlier versions of the
_Perceval_ story the hero is either the only, or the sole surviving, son
of his parents. The introduction of a brother, as a definite character,
belongs to the later stages of Arthurian tradition. The brothers vary in
number and name, but the most noted are Sir Agloval and Sir Lamorak, who
appear to belong to distinct lines of development, Sir Agloval belonging
mainly to the _Lancelot_, Sir Lamorak to the _Tristan_ tradition. So far
I have not met with the latter in any version of the prose _Lancelot_,
though Dr. Sommer in his _Studies on the Sources of Malory_, refers to
him as mentioned in that romance; in the _Tristan_, on the contrary,
he is a leading figure. The _Morien_ story, as I have remarked in the
preface, has obviously been modified by the influence of the later
_Lancelot_ legend, hence, probably, the _rôle_ assigned to Agloval.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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