Merlin and the Grail

by Robert de Boron

  ‘Some while ago the Grail was given to Joseph while he was in prison: it was brought to him by Our Lord Himself. And when he was set free Joseph journeyed into the desert with a great many of the people of Judaea. For as long as they held to a good life Our Lord granted them grace, but when they ceased to do so, that grace was denied them. The people asked Joseph if it was through their sin or his that they had fallen from grace, and Joseph grieved deeply and went to his vessel and prayed to Our Lord to send him a sign to guide him. Then the voice of the Holy Spirit came to him and told him to have a table made, which he did, and when it was ready he placed his vessel upon it and ordered his people to be seated there. And the innocent sat at the table, but those who were guilty of sin all left, unable to stay in its presence. Now, at this table was an empty place, which suggested to Joseph that no-one could sit where Our Lord had sat; but a false disciple named Moyse, who had often misled them in many ways, came to Joseph and begged him in God’s name to let him fill the empty seat, saying he felt so full of Our Lord’s grace that he was clearly worthy to sit there. Joseph said to him: ‘Moyse, if you’re not as you seem, I advise you not to put yourself to the test.’ But the disciple replied that God would grant him success in filling the empty place as surely as he was a good man. Then Joseph said that if he was truly so good he should go and sit in the seat. And Moyse sat there, and plunged into an abyss.

  ‘Know, then, that Our Lord made the first table, and Joseph the second; and I in the time of your father Utherpendragon ordered the making of the third, which in time to come will be greatly exalted, and throughout the world people will speak of the fine chivalry which in your time will assemble there.

  ‘Know this, too: when he died Joseph, who had been given the Grail, bequeathed it to his brother-in-law Bron. And this Bron has twelve sons, one of whom is named Alain li Gros. And Bron, the Fisher King, commanded Alain to be his brothers’ guardian. By Our Lord’s command Alain has come here from Judaea to these isles in the West, and he and his people have now arrived in these parts; the Fisher King himself lives in the isles of Ireland in one of the most beautiful places in the world. But I tell you, he is in a worse state than any man has ever known, and has fallen gravely ill; but however old or infirm he may be, he cannot die until a knight of the Round Table has performed enough feats of arms and chivalry – in tournaments and by seeking adventures – to become the most renowned knight in all the world. When that knight has attained such heights that he’s worthy to come to the court of the rich Fisher King, and has asked what purpose the Grail served, and serves now, the Fisher King will at once be healed. Then he will tell him the secret words of Our Lord before passing from life to death. And that knight will have the blood of Jesus Christ in his keeping. With that the enchantments of the land of Britain will vanish, and the prophecy will be fulfilled. So know, then, that if you do as I’ve instructed, great good may come to you. But I must go now: I can be in this world no longer, for my Saviour will not grant me leave.’

  The king said that if Merlin could stay with him he would have his deepest affection; but Merlin said it was impossible. And with that he left the king and made his way to Northumberland to Blaise, who had been his mother’s confessor, and who had kept a written account of all these events at Merlin’s instruction. Meanwhile Arthur remained with his barons, pondering deeply upon Merlin’s words.

  Notes

  1 A miniature has been cut from the Modena manuscript, along with a short section of the text. The missing lines are replaced here by the corresponding passage from the Paris manuscript B. N. fr. 747.

  2 The Modena text resumes.

  3 More lines are lost because of the missing miniature: the Paris manuscript replaces them.

  4 The Modena text resumes.

  5 Another miniature has been cut from the Modena manuscript. The missing lines are again supplied from the Paris manuscript B. N. fr. 747.

  6 The Modena text resumes.

  7 Literally ‘and those who at his time will reign’.

  8 Another fragment is lost from the Modena manuscript because of the missing miniature. Lines from B. N. fr. 747 again replace it.

  9 The Modena text resumes.

  10 There is a play on words here, juxtaposing sanc (‘blood’) and sens (‘intelligence’).

  11 Literally ‘Merlin was lord of...’.

  12 A reference to the work of Geoffrey of Monmouth.

  13 i. e. Pendragon.

  14 This is, of course, Stonehenge.

  15 The manuscript reads ‘tell you nothing’. There appears to be a simple scribal error, writing dire nule cose rather than celer nule cose.

  16 The Modena manuscript reads en cambre son segnor (‘in her lord’s chamber’), rather than en samblance son segnor as in other texts. The latter phrase is probably necessary to make full sense of the situation.

  17 Logres is here thought of as a city rather than – as is more usual in Arthurian romance – a land.

  Perceval

  AND KNOW THIS: no king ever held so great a court or so great a feast as did King Arthur. And no king ever earned such love from his barons as he; and Arthur himself was the fairest man and the finest knight known. And because he was such a valiant king, and bestowed such handsome gifts, he became so renowned that throughout the world no-one spoke of anyone but him, so that all knights made their way to his court to see him and to be in his company. No man’s deeds of chivalry were held in any esteem until he had spent a year in Arthur’s household and received a sleeve or pennon from the king.

  Thus it was that his renown was universal, and reached the land where Alain li Gros was living; and he set his heart on sending his son Perceval to Arthur’s court when the time came to give him arms. He often said to him: ‘When you grow up, dear son, I shall take you with the greatest pride to the court of King Arthur!’

  So he said many times, until it pleased Our Lord that Alain li Gros should pass from this world. And when he was dead, Perceval decided to go to Arthur’s court; and one day he armed himself handsomely, mounted a hunting-horse and set off so quietly that his mother did not know. When she realised Perceval had gone she lamented terribly, and was sure the wild beasts of the forest would devour him. The thought of this so overwhelmed her with grief that she died.

  Meanwhile Perceval rode on till he reached the court of the great King Arthur; and he came before him and greeted him most nobly in the presence of his barons, and said that if it pleased him he would gladly stay and join his household. The king accepted him and made him a knight; and there at court Perceval grew much in wisdom and courtesy – for you may be sure that when he left his mother’s house he knew nothing. Indeed he proved his worth so much to the other barons that he later became a knight of the Round Table, and was much loved at court. Later there came Saigremor and Yvain, King Urien’s son; and another Yvain, of the white hands; and Dodinial, son of the lady of Malehaut; and Mordred, Arthur’s nephew, who was later to commit great treachery, as you will hear; and Guirres his brother, and Garries and Gawain. These four were the sons of King Lot of Orkney, and King Arthur was their uncle. And after them came Lancelot of the Lake, a knight of the highest stature. So many more knights gathered there that I cannot name them all; but I can tell you that there were so many good knights at King Arthur’s court that throughout the world men spoke only of the fine chivalry at the great King Arthur’s Round Table.

  The time came when Arthur remembered Merlin’s words to him; and he came before his barons and knights and said: ‘My lords, you must all return here at Pentecost, for on that day I shall hold the greatest feast ever held by any king in any land. And I want each man here to bring his wife, for I wish the highest honour to be paid to the Round Table, which Merlin established in the time of my father Utherpendragon. The twelve peers of my court will sit in the twelve seats; but I want you to know that all who attend my feast and wish to stay with me will be forever of the company of the Round Table, and as a mark of high honour wherever they may go,
each will carry the Round Table’s pennon or device.’

  This announcement caused a great stir, and all the barons of the court were overjoyed, for they longed to be known as members of the Round Table. With that they departed, each to his own land, while Arthur remained at Logres, thinking deeply about how he could further enhance the Round Table’s reputation.

  At Pentecost every knight from every land gathered for King Arthur’s feast; for I tell you, Arthur was held in such esteem that even those who were not his vassals would have considered themselves dishonoured and would not have dared show themselves at court or in the presence of worthy men if they failed to attend King Arthur’s court at Pentecost. So many came from every land that no man could record them all.

  Then the day of Pentecost arrived, and Arthur came to the Round Table and had mass sung in the presence of everyone. And when the mass was ended, the king took the twelve peers and bade them sit in the twelve seats; the thirteenth remained empty, symbolising the place where Judas had sat before he rose [to go and betray Christ].1 Merlin had left it empty at Utherpendragon’s table, and for that reason Arthur did not dare to fill it.

  On that day of Pentecost the king’s feast was great indeed; and the knights of the Round Table dressed him in royal robes and set the crown upon his head and honoured him as he deserved. With more than seven hundred censers of fine gold they censed the air wherever he walked, and scattered flowers2 and mint before him: they paid him all possible respect. Then the king declared that everyone present at his feast should be clad in the same robes and devices, and as soon as the command was given it was done. And so many knights and damsels were there that the king presented five thousand four hundred robes and devices of the Round Table. With that the king summoned the water3 with a fanfare of a hundred trumpets, and then all the knights sat down to dine.

  And Arthur, with crown on head and robed in gold, was much admired by all who had not seen him before, and indeed, was wondrously esteemed by all who beheld him that day.

  When the meal was done the king gave orders for the tables to be cleared, and everyone went out into the fields to tourney. You would then have seen ladies and damsels climb the towers and lean on the battlements to watch the knights jousting amid great festivity. That day the knights of the Round Table jousted against those from elsewhere; and they were closely watched by the ladies and damsels – and so fought all the harder, for there was scarcely a knight who did not have his sister or his wife or his lover present. And be assured, that day the knights of the Round Table carried off the prize, for Sir Gawain, son of King Lot, fought mightily, as did Kay the seneschal who was Entor’s son, and Urgan, a very bold knight, and Saigremor and Lancelot of the Lake, and Erec who was a fine knight indeed. They jousted on until they vanquished the outsiders, and when evening came they had won the prize. All through the day the valiant King Arthur was mounted on a palfrey, baton in hand, and rode between the ranks to keep order and prevent any interference. With him was Perceval, the son of Alain li Gros, who was most upset that he had not taken part in the tournament, but he had wounded his hand and could not joust. Instead he accompanied Arthur all day, along with Guirres and Garries, who were brothers to Sir Gawain and sons of King Lot. All day these three were with the king, and they went to see the ladies and damsels as they watched the jousting; and the daughter of King Lot of Orkney, Sir Gawain’s sister, whose name was Elainne, and who was the most beautiful damsel then alive, saw Perceval the Welshman and was smitten with the deepest love for him. How could she help it? For he was the most handsome knight in all King Arthur’s company.

  At evening the tournament broke up, and the knights and damsels turned to dancing and the most joyful festivities. But Sir Gawain’s sister Elainne could think of nothing but Perceval the Welshman: she loved him desperately. And when night came the knights went to their lodgings or their tents, but Elainne could not rest. She called a boy and sent him to Perceval with the message that Elainne, Sir Gawain’s sister, greeted him most nobly and much desired to see him joust against the Round Table. And she bade him, by the faith he owed, to joust in the morning before her in red arms which she would send him. Perceval was taken aback by this, but his heart was filled with joy that such a worthy damsel as King Lot’s daughter should bid him take up arms for love of her and joust against the Round Table. He sent back word that, for love of her, he would do anything the damsel asked: ‘I will joust tomorrow, most willingly.’

  The messenger was delighted, and returned to the damsel with Perceval’s reply. And the damsel, overjoyed, fetched the arms and sent them to Perceval, who was mightily pleased with them. You may be sure that he slept very little that night.

  Next morning the king rose and went with his barons to hear mass. When mass had been said the twelve peers went to eat at the Round Table, where they were well served: Arthur did them all possible honour. He bade a fanfare be sounded as the water was brought, and then the knights sat down to dine throughout the hall, and they were well served indeed. The story does not tell of the dishes they ate, but I can assure you they had whatever they asked for; and when they had eaten the king called for the tables to be cleared, and the ladies and damsels went out to the fields to see the jousting and celebrations of the Round Table.

  Sir Gawain’s sister Elainne was there, desperate to see Perceval clad in the arms she had sent him. And the knights who wanted to joust and win the prize rode from Carduel and joined in combat with those of the Round Table. So the festivities began once more, and none so great had there ever been. And be assured that Lancelot of the Lake – along with Gawain and Sir Yvain, the son of King Urien – overcame all the outsiders. Then it was that Perceval the Welshman came, finely clad in the arms that the damsel had sent him, and he charged full tilt at Saigremor, aiming straight at his shield; and when Saigremor saw him he turned towards him, and with their horses at full gallop they dealt each other such blows on their shields that their lances flew into splinters. But Perceval the Welshman, who knew what jousting was about, smashed into horse and man together, so that Saigremor did not know what had hit him and was sent flying, crashing to the ground in the middle of the field so heavily that everyone who saw him thought he must be dead. And Perceval took his horse and presented it to Elainne, who received it with the utmost joy. And know this: Perceval performed so well that day that he outfought all the knights of the Round Table, defeating Kay the seneschal, Yvain the son of King Urien, and Lancelot of the Lake, and they all declared that he should fill the empty place at the Round Table. And the king, who was valiant and wise, came to Perceval and said to him: ‘Sir knight, I wish you to reside with me from this time on, to be a knight of my household and of the Round Table. You may be sure I shall pay you the utmost honour.’

  And Perceval replied: ‘Many thanks, sire.’

  And with that Perceval took off his helmet; and the king recognised him and was astonished, and asked him why he had not been armed the day before and why he was now in disguise. And Perceval said: ‘Sire, I’d like you to keep it secret, but let’s just say that I did it for love – and if I’d had a choice, I’d have done quite differently.’

  When the king heard this he began to laugh, and pardoned him kindly, saying that things done for love should be freely forgiven. And Sir Gawain and Yvain and Lancelot and all the knights of the Round Table agreed. Then Perceval told the king that he was eager to see the Round Table and those who sat there.

  ‘Dear friend,’ the king replied, ‘you may do so tomorrow.’

  ‘It will give me great pleasure,’ said Perceval.

  With that their conversation ended. That night there was a great feast, and in the morning the barons assembled to hear mass; and when mass had been said they all came to the place where stood the Round Table. The king bade them be seated; and when they had done so, one place remained empty. Perceval asked the king what was special about the empty seat, and the king replied: ‘My dear friend, it has great significance, for it is the place destined for
the finest knight in the world.’

  Perceval longed to sit there; and he said to the king: ‘Sire, grant me permission to take that seat.’

  But the king replied that he should not do so, for great misfortune might befall him; for a false disciple had once sat in the empty place and the earth had swallowed him in an instant.

  ‘Even if I were to grant you permission, you ought not to sit there.’

  But Perceval was aggrieved at this and said: ‘So help me God, unless you give me leave, my lord king, I swear I shall no longer be a knight of your household.’

  When Gawain heard this he was most upset, for he loved Perceval dearly, and he said to the king: ‘Sire, give him leave to sit there.’

  Lancelot made the same plea, and the twelve peers likewise, imploring him so fervently that the king – most reluctantly – agreed, saying: ‘I grant your wish.’

  Perceval was overjoyed; and he stepped forward, crossing himself in the name of the Holy Spirit, and sat in the empty seat. And the moment he did so the stone split beneath him, uttering such an anguished groan that it seemed to all those present that the earth itself was crumbling into an abyss. And with the earth’s groan came so great a darkness that for a league and more no man could see his neighbour. And then a voice rang out, crying:

  ‘King Arthur, you have committed the gravest wrong of any king who ever reigned in Britain, for you have disobeyed the command that Merlin gave you. And know that Perceval here has shown more audacity than any man who ever lived, and it will cost him and all the knights of the Round Table the greatest suffering in the world. Were it not for the goodness of his father Alain li Gros and his grandfather Bron, who is known as the Fisher King, he would have fallen into the abyss and died the terrible death that Moyse suffered when he wrongfully sat in the place that Joseph had forbidden him.