King Arthur and King Cornwall
Encyclopedia
"King Arthur and King Cornwall" is an English
ballad surviving in fragmentary form in the 17th-century Percy Folio
manuscript. An Arthurian story, it was collected by Francis James Child
as Child Ballad
30. Unlike other Child Ballads, but like the Arthurian "The Boy and the Mantle
" and "The Marriage of Sir Gawain
", it is not a folk ballad but a professional minstrel's song. It is notable for containing the Green Knight
, a character known from the medieval poems The Greene Knight
and the more famous Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
; he appears as "Bredbeddle", the character's name in The Greene Knight.
; about half of each page was ripped out to start fires. As such, the ballad is missing about half of its content, though some of the missing material can be deduced from context. Apparently after bragging about the excellence of his famed Round Table
, King Arthur
is told by Guinevere
that another king has an even better one. Arthur and his company leave their kingdom (here Brittany
rather than Great Britain
) in disguise searching for this king, and eventually come to Cornwall
, where the resident monarch offends them with a series of boasts about his magical items, the child he fathered on Guinevere, and Arthur's comparative mediocrity. All go off to bed, and the Knights of the Round Table make a series of vows against Cornwall's boasts, such as Gawain
's declaration that he will make off with Cornwall's daughter.
Arthur's men discover Cornwall has sent a seven-headed monster, a sprite named Burlow Beanie, to spy on them. Sir Bredbeddle, the Green Knight
, wages a long battle against him with a sword from Cologne
, a Milan
ese knife, a Danish
axe, and finally a sacred page which gives him the upper hand. As a test of his control over the creature, he orders him to fetch a horse. Though Burlow Beanie obeys, he rebels when another knight, Marramile, tries to control him, and the Green Knight is called in to help. A missing section likely described Arthur's men taking possession of Cornwall's other magical objects and learning the secret of their use from the sprite. The remaining text describes Arthur beheading King Cornwall with his own sword; the final missing half page likely described his triumph.
's "The Squire's Tale
" from the Canterbury Tales, the English romance Sir Launfal
and especially the Carolingian romance
Pèlerinage de Charlemagne
, in which Charlemagne
and his paladin
s visit the Byzantine Emperor, superior to Charlemagne in looks according to Charlemagne's wife. They make a series of boasts about their abilities, and are called out on them by the emperor's spy, but are eventually able to fulfill them with help from God. Making chivalric vows is a central theme in the medieval English tale The Avowing of Arthur, while the importance of keeping one's pledges is important to tales like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle
.
"King Arthur and King Cornwall" may be a version of a lost medieval story, but it is also possible that it is a product of the 17th century, taking hints from older chivalric romance. The character of Bredbeddle makes the author's knowledge of The Greene Knight obvious; whether made in the 16th century or before, the ballad relies on the audience's knowledge of the Gawain romances popular since the 12th century. Gawain's promise to have his way with Cornwall's daughter is in accordance with his womanizing portrayal in certain Old French works.
The magician-king of Cornwall does not appear in other Arthurian romance. In other stories, Cornwall is ruled by either Arthur's cousin Cador
, or by King Mark
, the uncle of Tristan
and husband of Iseult
. Equally unique is Cornwall's daughter, whom he had fathered on Guinevere behind Arthur's back. Several Arthurian staple characters do make appearances, such as Guinevere, Gawain, and Tristan.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
ballad surviving in fragmentary form in the 17th-century Percy Folio
Percy Folio
The Percy Folio is a folio book of English ballads used by Thomas Percy to compile his Reliques of Ancient Poetry. Although the manuscript itself was compiled in the 17th century, some of its material goes back well into the 12th century...
manuscript. An Arthurian story, it was collected by Francis James Child
Francis James Child
Francis James Child was an American scholar, educator, and folklorist, best known today for his collection of folk songs known as the Child Ballads. Child was Boylston professor of rhetoric and oratory at Harvard University, where he produced influential editions of English poetry...
as Child Ballad
Child Ballads
The Child Ballads are a collection of 305 ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, collected by Francis James Child in the late nineteenth century...
30. Unlike other Child Ballads, but like the Arthurian "The Boy and the Mantle
The Boy and the Mantle
"The Boy and the Mantle" is Child ballad number 29, an Arthurian story.Unlike the ballads before it, and like "King Arthur and King Cornwall" and "The Marriage of Sir Gawain" immediately after it in the collection, this is not a folk ballad but a song from professional minstrels.-Synopsis:A boy...
" and "The Marriage of Sir Gawain
The Marriage of Sir Gawain
"The Marriage of Sir Gawain" is an English Arthurian ballad, collected as Child Ballad 31. Found in the Percy Folio, it is a fragmented account of the story of Sir Gawain and the loathly lady, which has been preserved in fuller form in the medieval poem The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle...
", it is not a folk ballad but a professional minstrel's song. It is notable for containing the Green Knight
Green Knight
The Green Knight is a character in the 14th-century Arthurian poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and the related work The Greene Knight. His true name is revealed to be Bercilak de Hautdesert in Sir Gawain, while The Greene Knight names him "Bredbeddle"...
, a character known from the medieval poems The Greene Knight
The Greene Knight
The Greene Knight is a late medieval rhyming romance, found in the Percy Folio Manuscript. The storyline effectively parallels the more famous Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in describing the dealings of Gawain, King Arthur's nephew, with the Greene Knight.The text was edited by Thomas Hahn for...
and the more famous Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a late 14th-century Middle English alliterative romance outlining an adventure of Sir Gawain, a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. In the poem, Sir Gawain accepts a challenge from a mysterious warrior who is completely green, from his clothes and hair to his...
; he appears as "Bredbeddle", the character's name in The Greene Knight.
Synopsis
"King Arthur and King Cornwall" occurs in a damaged section of the Percy FolioPercy Folio
The Percy Folio is a folio book of English ballads used by Thomas Percy to compile his Reliques of Ancient Poetry. Although the manuscript itself was compiled in the 17th century, some of its material goes back well into the 12th century...
; about half of each page was ripped out to start fires. As such, the ballad is missing about half of its content, though some of the missing material can be deduced from context. Apparently after bragging about the excellence of his famed Round Table
Round Table
The Round Table is King Arthur's famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his Knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status. The table was first described in 1155 by Wace, who relied on previous depictions of...
, King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
is told by Guinevere
Guinevere
Guinevere was the legendary queen consort of King Arthur. In tales and folklore, she was said to have had a love affair with Arthur's chief knight Sir Lancelot...
that another king has an even better one. Arthur and his company leave their kingdom (here Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
rather than Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
) in disguise searching for this king, and eventually come to Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, where the resident monarch offends them with a series of boasts about his magical items, the child he fathered on Guinevere, and Arthur's comparative mediocrity. All go off to bed, and the Knights of the Round Table make a series of vows against Cornwall's boasts, such as Gawain
Gawain
Gawain is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table who appears very early in the Arthurian legend's development. He is one of a select number of Round Table members to be referred to as the greatest knight, most notably in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight...
's declaration that he will make off with Cornwall's daughter.
Arthur's men discover Cornwall has sent a seven-headed monster, a sprite named Burlow Beanie, to spy on them. Sir Bredbeddle, the Green Knight
Green Knight
The Green Knight is a character in the 14th-century Arthurian poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and the related work The Greene Knight. His true name is revealed to be Bercilak de Hautdesert in Sir Gawain, while The Greene Knight names him "Bredbeddle"...
, wages a long battle against him with a sword from Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, a Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
ese knife, a Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
axe, and finally a sacred page which gives him the upper hand. As a test of his control over the creature, he orders him to fetch a horse. Though Burlow Beanie obeys, he rebels when another knight, Marramile, tries to control him, and the Green Knight is called in to help. A missing section likely described Arthur's men taking possession of Cornwall's other magical objects and learning the secret of their use from the sprite. The remaining text describes Arthur beheading King Cornwall with his own sword; the final missing half page likely described his triumph.
Analysis
The story resembles Geoffrey ChaucerGeoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
's "The Squire's Tale
The Squire's Prologue and Tale
"The Squire's Tale" is a tale in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. It is unfinished, perhaps deliberately, and comes first in group F, followed by the Franklin's interruption, prologue and tale. The Squire is the Knight's son, a novice warrior and lover with more enthusiasm than experience...
" from the Canterbury Tales, the English romance Sir Launfal
Sir Launfal
Sir Launfal is a 1045-line Middle English romance or Breton lay written by Thomas Chestre dating from the late-14th century. It is based primarily on the 538-line Middle English poem Sir Landevale, which in turn was based on Marie de France's lai Lanval, written in a form of French understood in...
and especially the Carolingian romance
Matter of France
The Matter of France, also known as the Carolingian cycle, is a body of literature and legendary material associated with the history of France, in particular involving Charlemagne and his associates. The cycle springs from the Old French chansons de geste, and was later adapted into a variety of...
Pèlerinage de Charlemagne
Pèlerinage de Charlemagne
Le Pèlerinage de Charlemagne or Voyage de Charlemagne à Jérusalem et à Constantinople is an Old French chanson de geste dealing with a fictional expedition by Charlemagne and his knights. The oldest known written version was probably composed around 1140...
, in which Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
and his paladin
Paladin
The paladins, sometimes known as the Twelve Peers, were the foremost warriors of Charlemagne's court, according to the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. They first appear in the early chansons de geste such as The Song of Roland, where they represent Christian martial valor against the...
s visit the Byzantine Emperor, superior to Charlemagne in looks according to Charlemagne's wife. They make a series of boasts about their abilities, and are called out on them by the emperor's spy, but are eventually able to fulfill them with help from God. Making chivalric vows is a central theme in the medieval English tale The Avowing of Arthur, while the importance of keeping one's pledges is important to tales like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle
The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle
The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle is a 15th-century English poem, one of several versions of the "loathly lady" story popular during the Middle Ages...
.
"King Arthur and King Cornwall" may be a version of a lost medieval story, but it is also possible that it is a product of the 17th century, taking hints from older chivalric romance. The character of Bredbeddle makes the author's knowledge of The Greene Knight obvious; whether made in the 16th century or before, the ballad relies on the audience's knowledge of the Gawain romances popular since the 12th century. Gawain's promise to have his way with Cornwall's daughter is in accordance with his womanizing portrayal in certain Old French works.
The magician-king of Cornwall does not appear in other Arthurian romance. In other stories, Cornwall is ruled by either Arthur's cousin Cador
Cador
Cador was a legendary Duke of Cornwall, known chiefly through Geoffrey of Monmouth's pseudo-historical History of the Kings of Britain and previous manuscript sources such as Vita Sanctus Carantoci circa 1100 from Cotton Vespasian xiv...
, or by King Mark
Mark of Cornwall
Mark of Cornwall was a king of Kernow in the early 6th century. He is most famous for his appearance in Arthurian legend as the uncle of Tristan and husband of Iseult, who engage in a secret affair.-The legend:Mark sent Tristan as his proxy to fetch his young bride, the Princess Iseult, from...
, the uncle of Tristan
Tristan
Tristan is one of the main characters of the Tristan and Iseult story, a Cornish hero and one of the Knights of the Round Table featuring in the Matter of Britain...
and husband of Iseult
Iseult
Iseult is the name of several characters in the Arthurian story of Tristan and Iseult. The most prominent is Iseult of Ireland, wife of Mark of Cornwall and adulterous lover of Sir Tristan. Her mother, the Queen of Ireland, is also named Iseult...
. Equally unique is Cornwall's daughter, whom he had fathered on Guinevere behind Arthur's back. Several Arthurian staple characters do make appearances, such as Guinevere, Gawain, and Tristan.
External links
- "King Arthur and King Cornwall". From the Camelot Project. Retrieved May 31, 2007.