Le Morte Darthur Book 10
Chapter 1: Arthur wants to get to know Tristam’s name and what it’s all about with that shield and tells him to fight with him if he wouldn’t do so. So they fight and Arthur gets hurt. That is the reason why Ywain gets wroth and wants to fight against Tristam, too. Then he gets hurt, too. Afterwards Tristam rides into a forest and comes to a castle where he sees 1 man fighting against 9 other men and in his opinions the man fighting on his own is Palomydes. Then he tells the others that it’s not honourable to fight against only one person The one of them tells him to be Breunis Saume Pité and wants him to go away, but Tristam stays and helps the one man.
Chapter 2:
Then the two of them fight against the rest and Palomydes gets wounded. Then he thanks Tristam to have saved his life. Then follows a conversation about the fact that they are enemies to each other but it doesn’t matter anymore up from now. Then they decide to meet in two weeks at a special place so that Palomydes gets the chance to fight against him without being wounded. Palomydes explains how he came into the fight against the 9 knights (he wanted to fight against Breunis Saume Pité, because he has slain the damsel that was under his will). Then they ride together further into the forest where they see a knight sleeping under a tree. As they wake him he starts to fight against them, so that that fall from there horses. Then he goes away. Afterwards Tristam wants to follow that knight but Palomydes needs some rest. So they decide to departe and ride different ways and to meet in two weeks.
Chapter 3:
So Arthur follows the knight and comes to a place where he sees a lady weeping on a dead corpus. Then she tells him that he has been slain by a knight that hates knights of Arthur. Then he asks for her husbands name and she tells him that is was Sir Galardoun. Then he continues riding and meets Gawayne and Bleoberys who tell him that they have been hurt by the same knight, too and Tristam tells them that he has met that knight, too. So Tristam decides to search him. As he rides away, he meets Sir Kay and Dinadam who tell him that have fought with that knight, too. After that conversation he rides away and finds a place to rest for six days.
Chapter 4:
Sir Tristam meets two knights who want to fight with him, but he doesn’t want to, because he is afraid of getting wounded and not being able to fight against Palomydes in two days. So he tells them that he cannot fight against them, but they don’t care and so they fight. Tristam is much better them so that the two of them fall off their horses and Tristam rides away. Then they follow him, because they want to fight against him again, but Tristam explains who he is and what the name of the knight is, he wants to fight with. Then they are very impressed and glad to have met Tristam, because he is a very good knight.
Chapter 5:
Sir Tristam rides to the place where he wants to meet Palomydes (a long time ago Merlyn prognosticated that at that place the two best knights of Arthur’s time would fight against each other) and then a knight appears and they fight against each other without knowing who they are. The Gouvernail and Launcelot’s knave are very afraid of one of them could kill the other. Then Tristam and Lancelot tell each other their names and are very shocked and upset, because they admire each other very much. Then they go to Camelot, where they meet Sir Gawayne and Sir Gaheris.
Chapter 6:
Then they bring Sir Tristam to King Arthur’s court and meet Arthur who is very happy that Tristam is back. Then Tristam tells him what happened and they talk about Lancelot who fought anonymous, because he didn’t want to be identified as somebody from Arthur’s court. Then King Arthur makes Tristam a knight of the Round Table and Tristam promises to stay there.
Chapter 7:
King Mark is very wroth about Tristam being that successful and that there is still so much love between him and Isolde. So he sends some scouts to find something out about what he is doing. Then Mark rides with two of his knights –Besules and Amant- to England. Then Mark asks a knight where to find Tristam and he tells him that he is in Camelot and known as a very good knight and why it is so. Then Mark tells his knights that he wants to kill Tristam, but they don’t want to and so he kills Besules. Then Amant and the knave are very wroth and decide not to fight on Mark’s side any longer and to tell Arthur about it.
Capitulum xlv
Fourth day of tournament. Sire Lamorak wins the praise of the day against 30 knights, helped by Lancelot and King Bagdemagus.
Capitulum xlvj
Fifth day of tournament. Lamorak safes “thre brethren of sir gawayns” from being dishonoured in iuste by Palomydes, for the sake of Arthur being of their kin.
Capitulum xlvij
Palomydes fights Corsabryn for a damoysels sake, and wins. Dynadan fights well at iustes, but is smitten of his horse by Lancelot, at the bidding of Sir Galahalt, in order to make fun of him.
Capitulum xlviij
Sixth day of tournament. Lamorak fights in anger to safe his two brothers and wins. At dinner Dynadan provocates Sir Galahalt, complaining that he will never succeed at tornament as long as Lancelot is put against him on purpose.
Capitulum xlix
Seventh day of tournament. Against his own promise Lancelot attacks Dynadan diguised as a woman. As a result everybody laughs about Dynadan. The prices of the tournament were given 1. to Lancelot, 2. to Lamorak, 3. to Palomydes and 4. to King Bagdemagus.
Capitulum l
King Mark sends Tristram in disguise (without coat of arms) to a tournament in Cornwall were Galahalt and King Bagdemagus conspire to kill Lancelot. Because of Tristram’s disguise he is taken to be Lancelot and therefore is attacked by many knights. Tristram survives through his own strength, but is hurt. King Mark then deceives Tristram and puts him into prison. As a result of this, Isoud raises King Marks own knights against him.
Capitulum lj
Mark tries to deceive Tristram into going on a cruisade with faked letters from the pope, but fails. Instead Percyvale delivers Tristram from prison. In breaking his own oath not to do so King Mark puts Tristram into prison again by force. This time Sadok and Dynas put King Mark into prison and Tristram and Isoud escape by ship.
Capitulum lij
Tristram takes part in tournament where he meets Lancelot and is given a castle by him. Because Tristram is now close to King Arthur he announces a great tournament in which all kingdoms of the British isles are to take part.
Capitulum liij
Tristram meets Breuse and Palomydes at a well. Sir Bleoberys wins against Palomydes and then chases Breuse, who is false knight. Breuse manages to engage three other knights that he runs into on his flight to defend him. After some fuss the thre knights, Ector, Percyvale and Harre find out that Breuse is the “bad guy”, but Breuse escapes.
Capitulum liiij
Palomydes hates Bleoberys now (see chapter before). Parcyvale hears from Palomydes about his brother’s, Lamorak’s, death, caused by Sir Gawayne and his brothers.
Capitulum lv
a.) Tristram meets Dynadan as he is hunting in the woods. They discuss whether a lover is the better knight or those that do not love a lady. As they discuss sir Epynegrys rides along who is known to love a woman too. Dynadan challenges Epynegrys to iuste with him to proof that he, not being a lover, is the better knight. Dynadan looses and parts from Tristram disgruntled.
b.) Tristram then rides home to Ioyous Gard (his castle) and finds that two knights, Agravayne and Gaherys, have slain one of his knights. Tristram beats both of the in battle twice and leaves them.
Capitulum lvj
Tristram tells Isoud about Dynadans attitude towards love, and she invites Dynadan to lodge in their castle, which he does without meeting Tristram whom he searches.
Capitulum lvij
Tristram and Dynadan meet on the road (on their way to the tournament in Lonaჳep) and iuste. Tristram misses on purpose and pretends to put himself under the protection of Dynadan. They ride on together and meet Sir Gareth. Dynadan looses against him in iuste and as they recognise each other they, the three of them, ride on together. Then they meet another knight who hits Gareth out of his saddle. Dynadan refuses to revenge Gareth as he sees the strength of that other knight. Tristram fights him instead and wins. It turns out that other knight is Palomydes and being defeated by Tristram he surrenders to him. Now all for ride on together acknowledging Tristram as their superior.
Marriage & Fidelity (characteristics of Men & Women)
Men fight about/for women p. 350
Women comfort men p. 351
cannot fight for their rights, but need Men for that p. 353
women as counsellor
isoud arms Tristan (helm) p. 367
Violence (legitimate/illegitimate)
to defend women (is good) p. 353
Family ties
Allies in fighting (good and evil) p. 352
more important than justice p. 352, p.365
History vs. fiction
Christianity, miracles and heathenism
Mir.: “a stinke of his body whan the soule departed” p. 353
Chr.: Baptism as something that gives value to a person p. 354
Honour
strong at fighting p. 350, p.351,
to stay on your horse p. 354
cheating honourable (Lancelot disguised) p. 355+356
conspiracy is not honourable p. 356
But stealing bell Isolde is? p. 356 ff
Dishonourable is hitting a knight lying on the ground p. 362
Or riding over him p. 363
Or fighting with many against one p. 363
