Sir Thomas Malory (c.

1405 – 14 March 1471) was an English writer, the author

or compiler of Le Morte d'Arthur. The antiquary John Leland (1506–1552) as well
as John Bale believed him to be Welsh, but most modern scholars, beginning with
G.L. Kittridge in 1894,[1] assume that he was Sir Thomas Malory of Newbold
Revel in Warwickshire, who was a knight, land-owner and Member of Parliament.
[2]
The surname appears in various spellings,
including, Mallerre,Maillorie, Mallory, Mallery, Maelor, Maleore, and as it seems
he may have spelled it,[3] Malleorré. The name comes from the Old
French adjectivemaleüré (from Latin male auguratus) meaning ill-
omened or unfortunate.

Thomas Malory was the author, translator, editor, compiler, and genius behind Le
Morte Darthur . His work, which has had a considerable impact on the cultural
history of English-speaking countries since 1485, represents the best of the
synthetic, creative tradition of late medieval England. The facts of his life in many
ways remain a mystery. The text of his work solicits prayers on the author’s behalf
from his readers, and the Malory manuscript tells us that he was a “knyght
presonere.” All else remains speculation.

While several Thomas Malorys have been identified, the scholarly world has
generally settled on the so-called Kittredge-Hicks Malory, Sir Thomas Malory of
Newbold Revel. Nagging doubts have persisted, however, because of aspects of
his character. This Sir Thomas Malory was born sometime between 1400 and
1410, the son of Sir John Malory of Newbold Revel in Warwickshire. In 1434 Sir
John died, and Thomas Malory inherited the family estates. In 1436 he fought at
the siege of Calais in the retinue of Richard Beauchamp, earl of Warwick. Clearly,
Malory’s family was of some consequence in Warwickshire. However, criminal
records on the man himself intermingle with his military career. In 1443, he was
apparently indicted for theft in the substantial amount of forty pounds. The charge
was not proved, for Malory and his apparent accomplice, Eustace Burnaby, did not
appear in court to deal with the charges. Sometime around this period he married a
woman named Elizabeth, who bore him two sons, Robert, who died in his youth,
and Nicholas, who survived.

Malory was undoubtedly popular in Warwickshire, for, in 1445, he was chosen as

one of the two knights of the shire and served in Parliament at Westminster for the
year. Despite his popularity, he was back in trouble virtually immediately. During
the period 1450–51, he was putatively involved in attempted murder, robbery,
cattle raids, rape, and extortion. He was imprisoned at Coleshill and escaped. After
his escape he was alleged to have robbed a Cistercian monastery. He was arrested
in 1452 and imprisoned. In 1454, he was released on bail and went on a cattle raid.
He also stole personal property and was imprisoned in Colechester. Through a
series of legal manipulations, he was released from Marshalsea through a royal
pardon and sent to Ludgate, which was ordinarily a debtor’s prison. On 13 October
1457, he was released on bail until 28 December, with heavy penalties pending if
he did not return. On 28 December he was recommitted to Marshalsea. He was
imprisoned again in 1460 at Newgate. His career during this period can only be
described as marked by rapine and violence. For the next ten years, the Newbold
Revel Malory drops out of sight generally. It appears that he was excluded from
two general pardons granted by Edward IV in 1468. It is speculated that he was in
prison when he finished Le Morte Darthur between 1469 and 1470. He apparently
died on 14 March 1471, likely due to plague and while still in prison. In The
Indian Summer of English Chivalry , Arthur B. Ferguson notes that the late
medieval interest in romance in England was sparked by a craving for traditional,
old-fashioned values. The career of the Newbold Revel Malory hardly presents a
portrait of a very true and perfect knight. It is not surprising, then, that the search
has continued for other candidates.

In 1966, William Matthews reviewed the evidence for all previous candidates for
the authorship and suggested a new one. Basing his arguments on the text of Le
Morte Darthur , Matthews suggests that the real author is “another man of the
same name.” Matthews suggests that the predominance of northern linguistic
elements in the text and the availability of sources and other material point to Sir
Thomas Malory of Hutton and Studley. While very little information is available
on this candidate, Matthews builds a case that seems logical on its surface. It will
have to stand the test of time and further investigation by historians and literary
scholars of the sort the Newbold Revel Malory has previously attracted. Until
Matthews’ arguments are elaborated by further investigation or until additional
candidates come forth, the Newbold Revel Malory, with all his warts, remains the
most likely candidate for authorship.

CRITICAL RECEPTION

As previously noted, throughout the last 500 years, Malory has had his detractors,
but they have always been eventually shouted down by his proponents. Besides
those who challenge the work on moral grounds, others have raised questions
about its unity because Malory worked from a complicated and diverse set of
English and French sources. Eugéne Vinaver, Robert H. Wilson, and C. S. Lewis,
among others, all dealt with the question of unity. Lewis’ perspective is perhaps
the most useful. He indicates that in one sense it does not matter whether Malory
had “any intention either of writing a ‘single work’ or of writing may ‘works.’” He
goes on to suggest that the unifying feature is Arthur and his knights and their
character consistency. D. S. Brewer has suggested that Le Morte Darthur is sui
generis and that it has qualities of older cyclical romances.

In similar fashion, the nature of the romance tradition in Le Morte Darthur has
come under scrutiny. Larry D. Benson has argued for the “realism” of the
romance. Typically, readers have seen the work as the epitome of romance and
romance traditions. Discussions about Malory’s sources continue. A major event in
source studies occurred in the earlier part of the twentieth century, when H. Oskar
Sommer published the Vulgate Version of the Arthurian Romances and made
readily available some of the sources that Malory had used. Sommer, Wilson,
Vinaver, Benson, and numerous other later critics have helped us to understand
Malory’s creative process as he constructed Le Morte Darthur . Other questions
relating to social ethics abound. What is the tension between courtly love and
chivalry? Is chivalry itself a benevolent or outmoded aspect of society? Questions
involving characterization in the work have also recently been raised. Did the
characters actually evolve, or are they static? As early as 1934, Robert H. Wilson
attempted to resolve questions about characterization in the work, but more
remains to be done.

A particularly noteworthy aspect of Malory’s appeal is his prose style. Working

from diverse sources, he integrated plot and character through a distinctive
rhetorical voice. Field has noted Malory’s tendency to use “narrative without
description” (see Romance and Chronicle , 36–38) as one of his most important
techniques in adapting his sources. He also softened the epic violence of some
sources, as well as deleting prolix descriptions from others, in forging a unified
compendium of Arthurian romance.

All of these matters relate to the single most important question now current
among Arthurian scholars with regard to Le Morte Darthur . Is it properly titled Le
Morte Darthur or more properly titled Works? Matthews argues that the Caxton
version is the “best text,” and his arguments are persuasive. Despite the efforts of
new critics and others to eliminate authorial intention from consideration,
Malory’s design for Le Morte Darthur remains at the forefront of critical debate.

The Arthurian Legend which today towers above all others is enshrined
in Le Morte d'Arthur written by Sir Thomas Malory and completed in
1470. This epic story, culminating with the death of King Arthur, is
based on Geoffrey of Monmouth's much earlier one, but Malory
introduces elements already popularised by the Romance-writers, and
brings in other Arthur-related stories from elsewhere on the continent.
So for the first time, 'The Sword in the Stone', 'The Round Table', 'The
Quest of the Holy Grail', the adultery of Lancelot and Guinevere, and
the tale of Tristram and Iseult (the most romantic of all that Malory
tells, and a prelude to the final tragedy of King Arthur), are all brought
into one more-or-less coherent single narrative.
Thomas Malory was, by all accounts, a rogue, as well as a (now)
distinguished author. His rampant criminality (cattle rustling, ambush
with intent to murder, robbery, extortion, rape, insulting an Abbot, etc)
is why he spent significant parts of his life in prison, and were it not for
the length of his final prison term we may not have Le Morte d'Arthur at
all, because it was then, in prison, that he wrote its 507 chapters and
more than 300,000 words.
Malory originally wrote Le Morte d'Arthur as eight books, or "tales".
In brief, the first tale tells of Merlin (the wizard) arranging for Uther
Pendragon's seduction and marriage to Igraine, leading to the birth of
Arthur, his fosterage, his pulling out of The Sword of the Stone, and his
crowning. The second deals with the establishment of the Round Table
and the invasion of France and Rome - Arthur the Emperor, in heroic
mode. The third tale largely concerns Lancelot, who deals with
Méléagant's (or Meliagaunce) threat to Arthur's world, and proves his
devotion to Guinevere. The fourth tale is of Gareth, Gawaint's brother,
and is supposedly based on a lost English poem. The fifth tale is about
Tristram and Iseult, and originates outside the world of King Arthur
and his Knights. The sixth tale is about the "coming of the Grail" - in his
version of the Sangreal, Malory adapts the Christian mysticism of the
French 'Quest del Saint Graal' and inflates the importance of Lancelot,
who is recognised as a Grail Knight. The seventh tale is the romance
between Lancelot and Guinevere, and is largely based on the French
'Mort Artu'. It foreshadows the final destruction of the "Arthurian
fellowship". The last and eighth tale concerns the discovery of Lancelot
and Guinevere's ongoing adultery, the battle between Modred and
Arthur, and Arthur's ultimate death.
Whilst consistency and harmony aren't always prevalent in Malory's
epic work, he nonetheless provides a basic vessel within which a body of
other related concepts and tales are fairly well contained, and could be
superficially characterised like this:
The central figure was King Arthur, a noble hero around whom were
gathered the equally noble Knights of the Round Table - the most
valorous Knights (including the sinner-hero Lancelot) in history - and
the fair ladies of Camelot, worthy of the highest acts of chivalry. The
Knights variously performed great deeds and embarked on a number of
virtuous and romantic "quests", including the supreme 'Quest for the
Holy Grail'. King Arthur was a figure of enigma whose life had a
mysterious beginning and a mysterious end. His guardian and advisor
in the early days of his kingdom was Merlin the wizard, whose
predictions continued to influence the course of the story. King Arthur
fought many battles but was ultimately betrayed by those close to him:
his sister, son, wife, and friend, causing his inevitable downfall at his
last great battle.
Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur was printed by the 'father of British
printing', William Caxton in 1485. He divided Malory's eight books into
twenty-one, and wrote a preface to the story. If you don't feel like
reading and making sense of 300,000 words written in Middle-English,
you can instead read a summary of Le Morte d'Arthur. See also
Francoise Taylor'sillustrations for Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur.
Who was Sir Thomas Malory?
Discussion over exactly who was the author of Le Morte d'Arthur
continues amongst scholars and academics. What is clear is that the
author was a member of the English gentry and that the work was
largely written whilst he was encarcerated. An excellent and convincing
bibliographical note was written by the 20th Century literary historian
A.W. Pollard [ from which ]:
"The Morte Darthur was finished, as the epilogue tells us, in the ninth
year of Edward IV., i.e. between March 4, 1469 and the same date in
1470. It is thus, fitly enough, the last important English book written
before the introduction of printing into this country, and since no
manuscript of it has come down to us it is also the first English classic
for our knowledge of which we are entirely dependent on a printed text.
Caxton's story of how the book was brought to him and he was induced
to print it may be read ... in his own preface. From this we learn also
that he was not only the printer of the book, but to some extent its
editor also, dividing Malory's work into twenty-one books, splitting up
the books into chapters, by no means skilfully, and supplying the
'Rubrish' or chapter-headings. It may be added that Caxton's preface
contains, moreover, a brief criticism which, on the points on which it
touches, is still the soundest and most sympathetic that has been
written.
"Caxton finished his edition the last day of July 1485, some fifteen or
sixteen years after Malory wrote his epilogue. It is clear that the author
was then dead, or the printer would not have acted as a clumsy editor to
the book, and recent discoveries (if bibliography may, for the moment,
enlarge its bounds to mention such matters) have revealed with
tolerable certainty when Malory died and who he was. In letters to The
Athenaeum in July 1896 Mr. T. Williams pointed out that the name of a
Sir Thomas Malorie occurred among those of a number of other
Lancastrians excluded from a general pardon granted by Edward IV. in
1468, and that a William Mallerye was mentioned in the same year as
taking part in a Lancastrian rising. In September 1897, again, in
another letter to the same paper, Mr. A. T. Martin reported the finding
of the will of a Thomas Malory of Papworth, a hundred partly in
Cambridgeshire, partly in Hunts. This will was made on September 16,
1469, and as it was proved the 27th of the next month the testator must
have been in immediate expectation of death. It contains the most
careful provision for the education and starting in life of a family of
three daughters and seven sons, of whom the youngest seems to have
been still an infant. We cannot say with certainty that this Thomas
Malory, whose last thoughts were so busy for his children, was our
author, or that the Lancastrian knight discovered by Mr. Williams was
identical with either or both, but such evidence as the Morte Darthur
offers favours such a belief. There is not only the epilogue with its
petition, "pray for me while I am alive that God send me good
deliverance and when I am dead pray you all for my soul," but this very
request is foreshadowed at the end of chap. 37 of Book ix. in the
touching passage, surely inspired by personal experience, as to the
sickness "that is the greatest pain a prisoner may have"; and the
reflections on English fickleness in the first chapter of Book xxi., though
the Wars of the Roses might have inspired them in any one, come most
naturally from an author who was a Lancastrian knight.
"If the Morte Darthur was really written in prison and by a prisoner
distressed by ill-health as well as by lack of liberty, surely no task was
ever better devised to while away weary hours. Leaving abundant scope
for originality in selection, modification, and arrangement, as a
compilation and translation it had in it that mechanical element which
adds the touch of restfulness to literary work. No original, it is said, has
yet been found for Book vii., and it is possible that none will ever be
forthcoming for chap. 20 of Book xviii., which describes the arrival of
the body of the Fair Maiden of Astolat at Arthur's court, or for chap. 25
of the same book, with its discourse on true love; but the great bulk of
the work has been traced chapter by chapter to the 'Merlin' of Robert de
Borron and his successors, ... the English metrical romance La Morte
Arthur of the Thornton manuscript, ... the French romances of
Tristan ... and of Launcelot, ... and lastly to the English prose Morte
Arthur of Harley ... As to Malory's choice of his authorities critics have
not failed to point out that now and again he gives a worse version
where a better has come down to us... But of the skill, approaching to
original genius, with which he used the books from which he worked
there is little dispute.
"Malory died leaving his work obviously unrevised, and in this
condition it was brought to Caxton, who prepared it for the press with
his usual enthusiasm in the cause of good literature, and also, it must be
added, with his usual carelessness. New chapters are sometimes made
to begin in the middle of a sentence, and in addition to simple misprints
there are numerous passages in which it is impossible to believe that we
have the text as Malory intended it to stand. After Caxton's edition
Malory's manuscript must have disappeared, and subsequent editions
are differentiated only by the degree of closeness with which they follow
the first. Editions appeared printed by Wynkyn de Worde in 1498 and
1529, by William Copland in 1559, by Thomas East about 1585, and by
Thomas Stansby in 1634, each printer apparently taking the text of his
immediate predecessor and reproducing it with modifications.
Stansby's edition served for reprints in 1816 and 1856 (the latter edited
by Thomas Wright); but in 1817 an edition supervised by Robert
Southey went back to Caxton's text, though to a copy (only two are
extant, and only one perfect!) in which eleven leaves were supplied from
Wynkyn de Worde's reprint. In 1868 Sir Edward Strachey produced for
the present publishers a reprint of Southey's text in modern spelling,
with the substitution of current words for those now obsolete, and the
softening of a handful of passages likely, he thought, to prevent the
book being placed in the hands of boys. In 1889 a boon was conferred
on scholars by the publication of Dr. H. Oskar Sommer's page-for-page
reprint of Caxton's text, with an elaborate discussion of Malory's
sources. Dr. Sommer's edition was used by Sir E. Strachey to revise his
Globe text, and in 1897 Mr. Israel Gollancz produced for the 'Temple
Classics', a very pretty edition in which Sir Edward Strachey's principles
of modernisation in spelling and punctuation were adopted, but with
the restoration of obsolete words and omitted phrases. As to the present
edition, Sir Edward Strachey altered with so sparing a hand that on
many pages differences between his version and that here printed will
be looked for in vain; but the most anxious care has been taken to
produce a text modernised as to its spelling, but in other respects in
accurate accordance with Caxton's text, as represented by Dr Sommer's
reprint. Obvious misprints have been silently corrected, but in a few
cases notes show where emendations have been introduced from
Wynkyn de Worde - not that Wynkyn had any more right to emend
Caxton than we, but because even a printer's conjecture gains a little
sanctity after four centuries. The restoration of obsolete words has
necessitated a much fuller glossary, and the index of names has
therefore been separated from it and enlarged. In its present form the
index is the work of Mr. Henry Littlehales."