#Le Morte D'Arthur

[heartofstanding]

I think - just going off a google - the claim is it's the first novel written in English, though whether it is a novel is debated.

Stack Stories!

Le Morte DArthur

Malory, Sir Thomas. Le Morte DArthur. London: published by David Nutt, In the Strand, 1889.

PR 2041. S7 V.l (Special Collections)

This giant, 861 page epic tells the tale of the legendary King Arthur and his kingdom of Camelot. Sir Thomas Malory took the Arthurian stories that he had read in French and combined them into his own version in order to create eight volumes in English. Le Morte D’Arthur is known as being the first book ever written in English, though if you were to pick up the book now the words would look a little strange. The story was originally written in 1469, which means the English language would have been just coming out of Middle English, so not quite what we consider to be Modern yet. 

While most people agree that nobody knows for sure who actually wrote the book, most agree that it was likely Thomas Malory who was a political prisoner during  The War of the Roses. It is widely believed that he wrote Le Morte DArthur while in prison, and somehow William Caxton got a hold of it in order to publish the story. Regardless of the book’s origins, the stories have influenced other writers, tv shows, and so, so many movies.

Le Morte DArthur is not the oldest version of the tale of King Arthur, but it is the most well known. In Malory’s version we see the story of how King Arthur came to be, the origin of the Sword in the Stone, and the love story that has been an inspiration for all YA love triangle romances. While the book is certainly about King Arthur, Malory also gives us the stories of the Knights of the Round Table, and seems more fond of telling the story of Brotherhood than focusing on love stories. This is how we get more details about Gawain, Tristram, and Galahad, the son of Lancelot. So, if you’re interested in tales of knights, love, and a look at what Middle English looked like, come stop by Special Collections!

-Jasmine Lamb ‘22

Works Consulted:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Malory 

https://www.worldhistory.org/Thomas_Malory/ 

[lionofchaeronea]

The Lady of the Lake Telleth Arthur of the Sword Excalibur. Illustration by Aubrey Beardsley for Book I, Chapter III of Le Morte d'Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory, published by J.M. Dent and Co. in 1893.

[sickfreaksirkay]

<3

[the-evil-clergyman]

Illustrations from Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur by William Russell Flint (1911)

[cogentranting]

"...Then Sir Lamyell of Cardiff, who was also a great lover; Sir Playne de Fors, Sir Melyas de Lyle, and King Arthur's son, Sir Boarte le Cure; Sir Madore de la Porte, Sir Collgrevaunce, Sir Hervyse de la Foreyst Saveage, and Sir Marrok, who was betrayed by his wife and had spent seven years as a werewolf. Then the three brothers, Sir Persaunte, SIr Pertolope, and SIr Perymones, all of whom Sir Gareth had won when he was called Beaumains."

[twistedshipper]

MERLIN 1.13 Le Morte D'Arthur

[adhd-merlin]

mallory: not sure what more you need me to say? his wife made him a werewolf. for 7 years. what's not clicking

[earthshine-moon]

Merlin Parallels

“The more brutal you are, the more enemies you’ll create.” (1x01)

“I want his annihilation, Mordred. I want to put his head on a spike and watch as the crowd feast on his eyes.” (5x02)

“And allow him to grow more powerful, more dangerous until he strikes out against us?” (1x08)

(5x13)

“Are you ever going to change, Merlin?” (1x13)

“I don’t want you to change.” (5x13)

“Maybe that one’s worth dying for, eh?” (3x05)

(5x13)

[demoniacal-art]

sir gawain and gringolet!

[lancelots-squire]

god you can't even challenge all passing knights to a battle and then lock them up in your dungeon anymore. because of woke

[rejamart]

i cannot stress enough how few liberties i took with this.

link to single image version under the cut if you wanna share it somewhere

https://www.deviantart.com/stash/011semh55502

[oldtvandcomics]

Love how it’s written as if this was a completely normal thing to say.

[lionofchaeronea]

Sir Launcelot and the Witch Hellawes (illustration from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur), Aubrey Beardsley, 1894

[cesarescabinet]

Note: This is just for fun and because I'm nosy. I realize the timeline for inspiration is not always simple and can be a bit muddy.

[the-evil-clergyman]

Illustrations from Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur by W. Russell Flint (1910)

[cogentranting]

I think knighthood should function today the same way it does in Le Morte D'Arthur (particularly in regards to celebrities who have been knighted)

Knights should be able to challenge other knights to fights (potentially to the death) for no reason at all at any time.

Knights should be able to knight whoever they want in turn

Women should be able to send knights on random quests whenever they see them.

Kenneth Branagh runs into Sam Neill at a restaurant? Fight. You did a good job caddying for Michael Caine? Boom, he makes you a knight. You see Patrick Stewart on the street? Send him to go deal with the guy at your work who won't stop asking you out.