The World of Romance

thes t

rdes o

o was fai

e in hi

Per

t like a poor man’s son, though, indeed, we had little money, and lived in a lone place: it was on a bit of waste land near a river; moist, an

at many graves, more than in the yards of many Minsters I have seen, because people fought a battle once

that it was all about a lady that they fought; indeed, this lady, who was a qu

; her hands and face were of silver, and her hair, gilded and mo

rass and marble inside that rough chapel whic

y wore such clothes as the folk about us) would dress herself most richly, and shut the shutters against all the windows, and lig

as two wings, wrought in

ld never understand it, though

o the house on St. Peter’s day; therefore, I and our dog, whi

I was nearly twenty, I sat i

for I thought that my mother and I were walking to mass through the snow on a Christmas day, but my mother carried a live goose in her hand, holding it by the neck, instead of her rosary, and that I went along by her side, not walking, but turning somersaults like a mounteba

wing his head right back, and sinking his chin on his breast alternately; and when we saw him do this, we presently began also to knock our heads against t

e Devil, the Devil, O the Devil,’ so I went up to him, and put my hand on his breast, meaning to slay him, and so awoke, and found myself st

rm might happen to her and me, if that knight’s coming made her cease in it; so I struck him with my left hand, where his face was bare under his mail-c

singing, I said no word, but let him lie there,

leather after I had wiped the blood from it; and in an hou

ve slain our greatest foe, and now the people will know you for

ther? he seems to be some

eople will but kn

turned it round again, so that it la

point at last, after all the wrong you have done me and mine; now must I work carefully,

, Mo

ve wrought these many Peter’s days by

rcoat, Moth

spade, and come

a while as if she were looking for something

nd, and she

garden, should have a sudden fear come over me that I should not find it after all; though for th

beech tree was behind us — she

etimes stooping into the hole and howling, sometimes throwing herself on the grass and twisting her hands together above her head; she went once down the

my might for another hour, and then beheld a chest of heavy wood bound with iron

ee their scales and their eyes, and of some even the forked tongue was on it, and lay on the rivet, and the rings were gilded here and there into patterns and flowers so that the gleam of it was most glorious. — And the mail coif was all gilded and had red and blue stones at the rivets; and the tilting helms (inside which the mail lay when I saw it first) was gilded also, and had f

at my mother would have me put it on, and ri

ink; but what thoughts soever came to me were only of the things that would be, glory in the midst

elight and drew the edges of the hawberk over my cheek, I liked so to feel

he world, if I might on

, and I felt strange and new in it, a

s knight’s horse and his lance, and ride away, or else the people will come here t

but she said: ‘N

ong the garden lilies, she rent from it th

s on a blue ground; she bid me bear the Knight’s body, all armed as he was, to put on him his helm and lay him

wn in her gorgeous raiment on her bed, she spread her a

ionel, for

had kissed h

either did I ever know what wrong that was which h

so to me, yet I knew the thoughts of her heart, and that the thing she had wished so earnestly f

se of the thoughts that were in me, and, stopping at

ng held his cour

they brought me into the great hall where he was with all his knig

my name; so when I had told it him, and said that I was a king’s son, he p

right sun, meaning to mock at me for my shining armour, and he drew nearer and nearer till his

efore me and drew my sword, and the women drew together aside and whispered fearfully, a

d then an armed knight came into the hall and

or a love I have for your face and gold armour, I will give you good counsel; go presently to the King and say to him: “In the name of Alys des roses and

left talking with that knight and was just going to stand up and say

he golden wings, pray of you three boons in the

s came back safe again, he would on that day grant any three boons to the first man who as

d make me a knight; and thirdly, that

up to the palace, and the people came to the windows, and the houses were hung with cloths and banners of silk and gold, that swung down right from the eaves to the ground; likewise the bells a

ehind, and in the midst Sir Guy led the Lady Alys by the

of their great beauty; the second band I did not see, for when they passed I was leaning back against the wall, wishing to die with my hands before my face. But when I cou

is sword over my shoulder, she held

Alys sat under a green canopy, that she might give the degree to the best knight, and by her sat the good knight Sir Guy, in a long rob

der knights began to arm, and I grew most joyful as I met them, and no man un

and was most pale, never answering any word that any one might say to her, till the Knight Guy said to her in anger: ‘Alys! what ails you? you would ha

t think a little, and do not break your faith with me; God hates nothing so much a

ly, as if she had not caught his meaning, and that just

ght, on a great horse, and when we met our spears both shivered, and he howled with vexation, for

helm, she trembled; but I know not, for I was stronger than that knight, and when we fou

shed red for pleasure, and Sir Guy took note of

y I saw a gre

nd fought quite in another way to what the other knights had, so that I saw at once that I had no chance against him: nevertheless, for a long time he availed

e degree was given to Sir Guy, because I had ov

rowned him, both of them being very pale, for she doubted if I were slain, and he knew that she did not love him, thinking before that she did; fo

d only cleft my helm, and when I came to myse

he, knowing nothing of me? likewise dust had b

who is he?’ Then the old man, whose head was heavy for grief, said: ‘Oh, sir! this is my son; for as we went yesterday with our merchandize some twenty miles from this fair town, we passed by a certain hold, and therefrom came a knight and men at arms, who when my son would have fought with them, overthrew him and bound him, and me and all our men th

f and pain my son’s heart burst,

ry, and I was much rejoiced th

love to b

t the skirt of his surcoat, as har

to slay this knight, if you will

he did not ask who I was, or whether I was a good knight, but began

ed in thinking that while Guy was sitting at the King’s table feasting, I was riding out to

rd; we wound up the hill on foot, for it was very steep; I ble

mort, or like the bl

nd a knight on horseback among them, who was armed in red, stood before us, and on one side of him wa

come to pay tribute in person, old man, and is t

ng in a rage, ‘I have

with a yell, who without moving slew his horse with an axe, and then the

the red knight held them back, saying: ‘Nay

n cloth over my eyes, and I felt the wretched spear-point sl

but in the world, or the sk

last now, but I think years, though really

ether I was in the world or heaven

as, and was thinking of that; I missed verse after verse of the s

re was a knot of folks gathered about a minstrel, who sat on the edge of a fountain, with his head laid sideways on his shoulder, and nurs

fair a

ery t

the d

the good

Alys t

’s own d

l her g

one wel

d a good

so was

wingès

blue

slew t

igh Gard

eed that

open

s! truly this man was a perfect knight, and deserved to win Alys. Ah! well! but

tter loneliness; no one cared for me; verily, I think, if any one had spoken t

alk about, and in the Palace Pleasaunce,

how that I t

ht ought to do; for that hearing the mad enterprise I had ridden o

nd coldness of heart in him that froze me; so scornfully, too, he said that about ‘my mad enterprise,’ as though I must be wrong in everything I did. Yet afterwards,

, too, was most lovely, as it grew towards evening, and I had all the joy of a man lately sick in the flowers and all things; if any bells at that time had begun to chim

eld it in my hand, and lo! down the garden walk, the same fair

alked to meet her smiling, but

s des roses wishes to s

side me, thinking deeply, and picking a rose to pieces as she went; and I, too, tho

d a tall knight, fair and strong, and in armour, save his head, who s

am de la Fosse, my true knight;’ so the knight took my hand and seemed to

or and bade me go in while she abode still

hangings that f

me, and stood pale, and with her lips apa

but rather felt that I could take it all in, lose no least fragment of it; then at once I

, and with my arms round about her, and her arms hanging loose, and her lips dropped, we held our lip

aid, ‘Dear Lionel,’ and fell forward as though she were faint; and again I held her, and kissed her all over; and then she loosed her hair that it fell

lliam de la Fosse, and while they talked about what we should

y in the midst of a great band of knights and men-at-arms, and other bands drew to us as we wen

a great banner of red and gold, cut into so many points that it seemed as if it were t

hand underneath her hair, so that the fingers of it folded over and just lay on her cheek; she gazed down on

and flowers (and there were angels and knights and ladies w

she knelt down and kissed my lips; and then the priest came in, and the singers and the censer-boys; and that chapel was soon confusedly full of golden raiment, and incense, an

the painted hall and in the fair water-me

her wrist and long hand, and she would kiss my shield and helm and the gold wings on my surcoat, my mother’s work

ay it on her knees and talk to it,

Thou knowest that my love was

ve! endless passion! endle

ks grew thinner, and her passionate face seemed more and more a part of me; now too, whenever I happened to see her between the grim fighting she would do nothin

nd could not call on God; but Alys cut me a tress of her yellow hair and tied it in my helm, and arme

se and Lionel of the gold wings, and on the other the spears of King Gilber

ver yet could two thousand men stand against

slay six of them and the spears were as thick as ever;

ir Guy, utterly fearless, cool, and collected; nevertheless, with one stroke I broke his helm, and he fell to the ground

walls. And I was the last to go in, and just as I was entering, the boldest and nearest of the enemy

the ribs with my left hand, and with my right, by sheer strength, I tore off his helm and part of

lain, for they surrounded

out and rescued

more, because I thought of Alys lying with her face upon the floor and her agonised hands outspread, trying to clutch something, trying to hold to the cracks of the boarding. So when I had seen William de la Fosse slain by many men, I cast my shiel

so long to kiss her again before I died, to soothe her too, so that she should not feel this day, when in the aftertimes she thought of

ry Sir Guy l

I said; I came to her and kissed her head as she lay, then raised

ence we only saw the quiet country, and kissed her lips till she

rt for a little, it is t

quick enough, no doubt, and I shall have you longer with

ause of her praying face; surely God wou

have you yet a little longer, I

em, and then did not get up again at

old a sudden tramping that s

d not see, and then one pushed aside the hangin

ebody weep fo

lips, and then stood aside, with her dear head thrown back, and holding her lovely loose hair strai

rd, which was three inches broad, gave me a stroke across the thighs that hi

my darling shriek