Loomis, R. S. (1953) - Edward I, Arthurian Enthusiast. Speculum, 28

Medieval Academy of America
Edward I, Arthurian Enthusiast

Author(s): Roger Sherman Loomis
Source: Speculum, Vol. 28, No. 1 (Jan., 1953), pp. 114-127
Published by: Medieval Academy of America
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EDWARD I, ARTHURIAN ENTHUSIAST
BY ROGER SHERMAN LOOMIS
SIR MAURICE POWICKE in his fine study, King HenryIII and theLord Edward,
has this to say on the relationof Edward I to the Arthuriantradition.'
He knew. .. howto appealto history. He triedto comprehend in hisownrulethetradi-
tionsofhisland.He wouldnotallowLlywelyn andtheWelshto relyuponthememories
ofKingArthur and thebeliefin hisreturnto save them.Whenhe and QueenEleanor
wereat Glastonbury at Easterin 19278,he had thetombofArthur and Guenevereopen
andtheremains placedelsewhere. Fewpeopleknowwhy,addstheannalistofWorcester;
but thereasonwas doubtlessto linktheEnglishroyalhousewiththe greatpatronof
Glastonbury andto confirm thetruthofhisburial.AfterthedefeatoftheWVelsh Edward
is said to have possessedhimself ofthetraditional crownofArthur, a Welshtreasure,
justas laterheremoved thestoneofSconeto Westminster. The conquestofNorthWales
appealedto contemporaries as an Arthurian adventure,and thefeastand 'roundtable'
whichhe celebrated at midsummer limitsofSnowdonia
at Nefyn,'in thefarthest bythe
sea,'suggest thathehimself wasnotaversetothisassociation ofideas.Atleastoneforeign
chronicler [Lodewijkvan Velthem] gave a highlyromanticArthurian of the
rendering
campaign.
In these briefremarksSir Maurice implies that Edward's interestin the
legendarykingofBritainwas dictatedby expediency,by politicalconsiderations;
and one mustgrantthat thiswas in largepart true.But a morecompletesurvey
of the subject will show, I believe,that sentimenttoo was involved,and that
in his cult of ArthurEdward was influencedby a vogue not exclusivelyEnglish
but sharedby most of the aristocraciesof Christendomin his day.2The earliest
Table Round, imitativeofthe festivitiesand tourneysdescribedin the romances,
was held in Cyprusin 1223. The quixoticAustrianknight,Ulrichvon Lichten-
stein,in 1240 made a tour of Styria and Austria in the r6le of 'Kunic Artus,'
joustingwith all comers.In 1278, accordingto the Roman de Ham, Robert II,
Count of Artois,played the part of the 'Chevalier au Lyon' in elaborate semi-
dramaticfestivitiesand tourneys.Some of the handsomestilluminatedcopies
of the Vulgate Arthurianromanceswere produced in Picardy at this time,'
and we read of 'taules redones' held in Spain in 1269, 1286, and 1290. Surely
politicalcalculationshad littleifanythingto do withthisextraordinaryaddiction
to mattersArthurianin lands remotefromBritain,and part ofEdward's interest
in these same matterscannot be connectedwith his Welsh wars, but may be
attributedsimplyto the factthat he was a man ofhis time.
The associationof the kingsof England with the legends of Arthurmay be
IF. M. Powicke,King HenryIII and theLord Edward (Oxford,1947), ii, 724.
2On the Round Tables and otherimitationsof Arthurianfictioncf. R. S. Loomis, 'Chivalricand
Dramatic Imitationsof ArthurianRomance,' MediaevalStudiesin Memoryof A. K. Porter(Cam-
bridge,Mass., 1939), i, 79-97; E. Sandoz, 'Tourneysin the ArthurianTradition,'SPECULUM, XIX
(1944), 389-420; R. HI. Cline, 'The Influenceof the Romances on Tournamentsofthe Middle Ages,'
SPEcULUM,xx (1945), 204-211; L. Keeler,Geoffrey ofMonmouthand theLate Latin Chroniclers,Uni-
versityof CaliforniaPublicationsin English,xvii, No. 1 (Berkeleyand Los Angeles,1946), pp. 131-
137; N. Denholm-Young,'The Tournamentin the ThirteenthCentury,'Studiesin MediaevalHistory
Presentedto F. M. Powicke(Oxford,1948), pp. 240-268.
R. S. and L. H. Loomis, ArthurianLegendsin MedievalArt (New York, 1938), pp. 89-97.
114
EdwardI, ArthurianEnthusiast 115
assumed to start with the dedicationof one of the manuscriptsof Geoffreyof

Monmouth'sHistoriaRegumBritanniaeto King Stephenabout 1136,4and it can
be followedthroughthe reignsof Henry II, Richard, John,and Henry III.5
Not one of them, however,can be proved to have had more than a passing
interest;not one of them is recordedas owningan Arthurianromancein the
technicalsense,though,of course,HenryII must have owned a copy of Wace's
Brut.6It is only with Edward that we possess a seriesof indications,fromhis
thirty-second to his sixty-sixthyear, of a strongconcernwith both the historic
and the romantictraditionsof Arthur.
The firstof these comes fromthe Italian romancerRusticiano da Pisa, the
same who took down fromMarco Polo's lips the remarkablyveraciousaccount
of his travels. Rusticiano states in his French romance,Meliadus, that it was
compiled fromthe 'livre monseigneurEdouart, le roi d'Engleterre,en cellui
temps que il passa oultre la mer ou service nostreseigneurDame Dieu pour
conquester le saint sepulere.'7Now Edward spent the winterof 1270-71 in
Sicilyand returnedto it in 1272,but it was probablynot untilthe springof 1273
that therewas likelyto be any contactbetweenEdward, now kingon the death
of his father,and Rusticiano. The book whichEdward broughtwith him and
whichhe leftbehindin Italy was eithera Prose Tristanor a Palamedeor a combi-
nation of both.8At any rate, Tristan and his fatherMeliadus were prominent,
but also otherswhomthe worldhas chosenrightlyto forget.The prolixityand
thebanalityofthe narrativeforecasttheromancesoftheRenaissance,burlesqued
in Don Quixote.
Tournamentswere recorded in complete detail, and though for us these
narrativesare moredead than the personalcombatsin the Iliad, yet forEdward
thesepassages ofarmsweresomethingbetweena hobbyand a professionalduty.
The conduct of war was part of a king's business,and tournamentsfurnished
practicein warfare.Besides theywerea formofsport- a sportto whichEdward
had already proved his devotion.9There can be little doubt that Edward's
love of tourneyswas one reason forhis interestin the romancesof the Round
Table.
Alreadythe hero of the baronial war and of a crusade,Edward in 1277 had
nmadehis firstvictoriousexpeditioninto North Wales and on 11 November
had forcedLlywelynto do homage.The followingEaster he and his wifevisited
Glastonbury,and on 19 April he orderedthe opening of Arthur'stomb. To
quote Adam of Domerham:10
I J. S. P. Tatlock, Legendary7Iistoryof Britain (Berkeleyand Los Angeles,1950), p. 436.
5 R. S. Loomis, 'Tristramand the I-ouse of Anjou,' ModernLanguageReview,xvii (1922), 24-30.
E. K. Chambers,ArthurofBritain(London, 1927), pp. 110-115, 124, 270-274.
6 Tatlock,op. cit.,pp. 503, 530. The copyofthe Brutpresentedto Queen Eleanor wouldsurelyhave
been seen by her husband.

7 E. Loseth,Romanen Prose de Tristan(Paris, 1890), pp. 423 f.
8 E. G. Gardner,Arthurian Legendin Italian Literature(London and New York, 1930), pp. 46 f.

I MatthewParis, ChronicaMajora, ed. Luard, v (London, 1880), 557.
10Adam of Domerham, HIistoriade Rebus GestisGlastoniensibus, ed. T. Hearne (1727), p. 587.
Chambers,op. cit.,pp. 125, 280 f.
116 EdwardI, ArthurianEnthusiast
Die veroMartisproxima sequente... increpusculofecitDominusRexaperiri sepulchrum
inclitiRegisArturi.Ubi in duabuscistis,imaginibus et armiseorumdepictis,ossa dicti
regismiraegrossitudinis, et Gwunnarae reginaemiraepulchritudinis, separatiminvenit.
Ymagoquidemreginaeplenecoronata;ymaginis regiscoronafuitprostrata, cumab-
scicionesinistraeauriculae,et vestigiisplagae unde moriebatur. IlJventaeciam fuit
scripturasuperhiissingulismanifesta. In crastinovero,videlicetdie Mercurii,
Dominus
Rex ossa Regis,Reginaossa Reginae,in singulispaliispreciosisinvoluta,in suis cistis
recludentes,et sigillasua opponentes,praeceperuntidemsepulchrum antemaiusaltare
celeriter
collocari,retentis exteriuscapitibuset genisutriusquepropterpopulidevoti-
onem.
When Leland visitedthe abbey in 1534 and 1539 he saw the tomb,and de-
scribedit as of black marble,withtwo lionsat each end and an effigy
ofthe king
at the foot." No trace of what must have been an impressivemonumentof the
best period of English mediaeval art survivedthe dissolutionand destruction
of the monasteries.
Edward's mainmotivein causingthe openingofthe twelfth-century tomband
the transferof the bones ofArthurand Gueneverewas doubtlessthat attributed
to himby Sir Maurice,but one may also allow someweightto meredisinterested
curiosity.Edward would have been less than human had he felt no desire to
look upon the remainsof the supremeglory of Britishmonarchyand of his
beautifulif erringwife.For a readerof romanceswhat glamorousassociations
hoveredabout thosewhitebones!
Whitsuntideofthefollowing year,1279,saw Edward and his queen at Amiens,'2
and it may well have been on this occasion that Girardd'Amienspresentedto
her his Escanor, one of the latest French romancesof the Arthuriancycle.'3
It is veryprolix,runningoriginallyto more than 27,000 lines,and containsan
unusual numberof principalcharacters,makingthe plot very complicated.It
is a signof the timesthat Dinadan is allowed to remarkin strongtermson the
futilityofrandomfighting, but how such unknightly sentimentswentdownwith
Edward we shallneverknow,but can onlyguess.
In Michaelmasof the same year,whenEdward was past his fortiethbirthday,
he was theguestofhisclosefriendand supporter, RogerMortimer,at Kenilworth
castle. It must have been a magnificentoccasion,forit is mentionedby many
chroniclers.'4From these we gatherthat Mortimerinvited a hundredknights
and a hundredladies, and held on Thursdaya 'Round Table,' at whichhe won
a prizeofa goldenlion and also celebratedhis farewellto arms.Edward knighted
Mortimer'sthreesons. Mortimerreceivedas a presentfromEdward's sister-in-
law, the Queen of Navarre, some barrelswhichappeared to contain wine,but
"Chambers, op. cit.,p. 125.

12 AnnalesMonastici,ed. Luard, iv (London, 1869), 477.
13J. D. Bruce,EvolutionofArthurianRomance(Baltimoreand Gottingen,1923), ii, 283 f.
14 Dugdale, Monasticon(London, 1830), vil, 350. Thomas of Walsingham,HistoriaAnylicana,ed.
H. T. Riley (London, 1863), i, 19. Walsingham,YpodigmaNeustriae,ed. Riley (London, 1876),
p. 173. W. Rishanger,Chronica,ed. Riley (London, 1865), p. 94. Annales Monastici,iv, 281 f., 477.
ChroniclesofMayorsand Sheriffs, and FrenchChronicleofLondon,ed. Riley (London, 1863), p. 239.
Nicholas Trivet,Annales,ed. T. Hog (London, 1845), p. 300.
when opened were foundto be fullof gold. One is not astonished,therefore, to

learn that he had all the guests transportedat his own expense to Warwick
on the fourthday.
In her interestingarticle on the Wigmoremanuscriptin SPECULUM, XVI
(1941), 109-120,ProfessorGiffinis inclinedto explainMortimer'slavish display
and the celebrationofa Round Table as a calculatedeffort to associatehis family
with Arthur,fromwhom he claimed descent throughhis Welsh mother.But
Dr Ruth Cline has weakenedtheforceofthisarguriaent, in SPECULUM, XX (1945),
294, n. 5, by showinghow oftenbeforeand after1279 Round Tables were held
withoutany possible use of Arthur'sprestigeforpolitical or dynasticends.
From 1283, however,we have a record which was of undoubted political
significance.In the precedingyear Llywelyn,the last native princeof Wales,
had rebelledand been slain; whereuponEdward proceededto attach the princi-
palityto the English throne.He receivedas tokensof submissioncertainrelics
treasuredby theWelsh,amongthemthe crownofArthur.The Waverleyannalist
adds: 'et sic Wallensiun-gloria ad Anglicos,licet invite,est translata.'15When
Edward returnedto London in the summerof 1285 afteran absence of three
years,he broughtthis alleged crownof Arthuralong with othertrophies,pro-
ceeded in solemnprocessionto WestminsterAbbey,and presentedthemat the
high altar.16What subsequentlybecame of this preciousdiadem is a mystery,
forthereis no furtherrecordof it. But it is obvious that Edward regardedthe
possessionof Arthur'scrownas symbolizinghis sovereigntyover Wales, just as
in 1296 he removedthe coronationstone of Scone to WAestminster and in 1299
seized the crownof JohnBalliol to signifyhis overlordship of Scotland.
Edward also celebratedthe conquestof Wales by holdinga Round Table at
Nevyn, Carnarvonshire,27-29 July1284.17 It was attended by many English
and foreignknights,who engagedboth in 'choreiset hastiludiis.'
the next recordsinvolve the close relationswhichEdward establishedwith
Brabant. In 1290 he gave his daughterMargaretin marriageto John,son of the
Duke of Brabant, at Westminster,18 and in the followingyears he became,
accordingto Huet,19'une sorte de heros national' for the Brabanqons. Two
English chroniclersassert that in 1294 the duke himselfheld a Table Round
at Bar-sur-Aube,20 and though the Continentalwriterssay nothing of the
15AnnalesMonastici,ed. Luard, ii (1865), 401; iv (1869), 489. Chronicles oftheReignsofEdwardI

and EdwardII, ed. Stubbs (London, 1882),i, 91. H. Knighton,Chronicon, ed. J. R. Lumby (London,
1889), i, 277. Rishanger,Chronica,p. 107.
16 Chronicles of theReignsof Edward I and Edward II, i, 92. L. Keeler, op. cit. (note 2 above),
p. 102. On Arthur'scrowncf.Revueceltique,xii (1891), 281.
17 Rishanger,Chronica, p. 110. AnnalesMonastici,ii, 402; iii, 313; iv, 491. FloresIlistoriarum,ed.
Luard (London, 1890), iii, 62. Fordun,Chronica,ed. Skeiie (Edinburgh,1871), i, 308. For date cf.
H. Gough,ItineraryofEdwardI (London, 1900), p. 157.
18 Chronicles oftheReignsofEdwardI and EdwardII, i, 98. For Edward's relationswithBrabant
cf.J. de Sturler,Les Relationspolitiquesetles kchanges
commerciaux entrele duchgde Brabantetl'Angle-
terrean moyen&ge(Paris, 1936), pp. 141-163.
1' MoyenAge,xxvi (1913), 175, n. 1.
20 Annales
Monastici,
iii, 388f.Floresilistoriarum,
iii, 88.
Table Round theymentiona great tournament,and Lodewijk van Velthem,a
Brabanqon priest, recounts with some elaboration how the duke arranged
this assemblageto celebratethe returnof the Count of Bar fromEngland with
his new bride,Edward's otherdaughter,Eleanor.21 The tragicoutcome of the
jousting,in which the duke was fatallywounded in the arm, created quite a
sensationin the Low Countries.If thiswas a Round Table, one shouldnot over-
look the fact that both the unfortunateduke and the Count of Bar were allied
by marriagewithKing Edward.
It is this intimateconnectionbetweenEngland and Brabant whichexplains
the extraordinaryspace allotted to Edwardian affairsin the chroniclewhich
Lodewijk completedin 1316 and the fact that here we finda most elaborate
account of a Round Table held by Edward himself.Though at least three
scholars,Hoogenhout,Huet, and Chotzen,22have discussed this account and
have concludedthat it bore some remoterelationto the actual festivitiesof the
period,theywereso impressedby its manifesthistoricalblundersthattheyfailed
to take it as seriouslyas it deserved.Huet stated flatly:23 'Nous devonsadmettre
que le narrateuravait quelque connaissancede la Table Ronde de 19284,mais
qu'il inventalibrementles circonstanceset tous les details de son recit.' Such a
reactionwas natural,as one may see fromthe followingsummaryofLodewijk's
narrative.24
AfterEdward had capturedthe town of Cornuaelge,he sent to Spain forthe
daughterof the Spanish king,and on her arrivalin London held a greatfeastto
celebratethe wedding.'In the course of the feast therewas prepareda Round
Table of knightsand squires.' 'Accordingto customa play (spel) ofKing Arthur
was enacted.... The best were chosenand named afterthe knightsof old who
were called those of the Table Round.' The kinginstructedhis squiresto intro-
duce into the play the wrongsthat he had suffered fromcertaintownsso that
the chosen knightsmightbe pledged to avenge them. The parts of Lanceloet,
Walewein, Perchevael, Eggrawein, Bohoit, Gariet, Lyoneel, Mordret, and
Keye were taken. The tournamenthad been proclaimedall over England and
a great assembly includingmany ladies had gathered.At sunrisethe Round
Table began,and the knightsaforementioned had the betterof theiropponents,
except 'Keye,' who was set upon by twentyyoungmen; his saddle-girthswere
cut, all in fun,of course,and he himselfwas hurledto the ground.He was not
seriouslyhurt,and the spectatorslaughedlustilyto see himfillinghis traditional
r6le.
The king, declaringthat everythinghad taken place as in Arthur'stime,
21 MonumentaGermaniaeHistorica,Script.,x, 406; xvii, 79. Chroniques des Ducs de Brabant,ed.

P. F. X. de Ram (Brussels,1854), II, 465, 734 f. Lodewijk van Velthem,Continuation of SpiegelHis-
toriael,ed. Van derLinden,De Vreese,and De Keyser (Brussels,1931),ii, 187-191 (Bk. III, ch. 40 f.)
22 N. M. Hoogenhout, Untersuchungen zu Lodewijkvan Velthem'sSpiegelHistoriael(Leiden, 1902).
MoyenAge,xxvi, 173-197.BulletinoftheBoardof CelticStudies,vii (1935), 42-54.
23 MoyenAge,xxvi, 176.
24 Lodewijkvan Velthem,op. cit.,i (1906), 295-3921 (Bk. ii, ch. 15-920).The summaryis based on a
translationkindlymade forme by ProfessorAdriaan Barnouw.
turnedfromthe fieldto the banquet hall and caused the knightswho had as-
sumed Arthuriannames to sit at the table with him. Afterthe firstcourse,a
page rapped on a windowforsilence,and the kingannouncedthat he musthear
tidingsbeforethe next course.Presentlya squirerode in, spatteredwith blood,
called the kingand his courtierscravens,and prayedGod to destroythemunless
they took vengeance on the Welsh for what he had endured. The king and
thoseof the Round Table promisedto do so. Afterthe second course,therewas
the same suspense till a squire rode in on a sumpter,his hands and feet tied,
and, aftertauntingthe circleofknights,begged'Lanceloet' to releasehim.When
his hands were freed,he gave 'Lanceloet' a letterfromthe king of Irlant, de-
nouncinghim as a traitorand daringhim to meet him on the coast ofWales.
The hero was somewhatoverwhelmedby this challengetill 'Walewein' and the
king promisedtheirsupport.Afterthe thirdcourse and the customarypause
the Loathly Damsel entered,her nose a footlong and a palm in width,herears
like those of an ass, coarse braids hangingdown to her girdle,a goitreon her
long red neck, two teeth projectinga finger'slengthfromher wrymouth. She
rode on a thin limpinghorse,and of course she addressedher firstremarksto
'Perchevael'and told himto rideto Licesterand winthe castlefromits lord,who
was assailinghis neighbors.She bade 'Walewein'ride to Cornuaelgeand put an
end to the strifebetweencommonsand lords.The two knightsundertookthese
adventures,and the Loathly Damsel, who, we are informed,was a squire thus
disguisedat the king's command,slipped away and removedhis make-up.The
kingthen proclaimedwhat his knightshad not suspected,that the messengers
had been part of the festival,but he held themsternlyto theirpledges; and so
a date was set for startingon the campaign against Cornuaelge,Wales, and
Irlant.
In thisnarrative,as throughout therestofVan Velthem'streatmentofEnglish
affairs,the chronologicaland geographicalconfusionis shockingto the sober
historianbut amusing for the mere litterateurto contemplate.The marriage
betweenEdward and Eleanor of Castile took place in Spain, not in London,
and in the year 1254, eighteenyears beforehe succeeded to the throne.The
capture of the town of Cornuaelge shows a confusionbetweenthe county of
Cornwalland the castle of Kenilworth,25 a strongholdof the rebelbarons,which
surrenderedto Edward and his fatherin 1266, twelve years afterthe prince's
wedding,not before.There was no attack on the town of Leicesterduringthe
baronialwars,but the Earl of Leicester,Simon de Montfort, was of coursethe
leaderofthebaronialparty.Therewas no expeditionagainstIrelandin Edward's
time; but thereis a satisfactoryexplanationof the errorin the hypothesisthat
Lodewijk identifiedScotia withIreland,28carryingover into the thirteenthcen-
turya bit ofknowledgewhichwas trueforthe Dark Ages. Everyoneknowsthat
Edward's last yearswere devotedto the subjectionof Scotland. Such a mass of
anachronismsand blundersand the obviouslyfictitiousaccount of Edward's
25 BulletinoftheBoard of CelticStudies,vii, 48.

26 Ibid., vii, 49, n. 4. MoyenAge,xxvy,179, n. 1.
120 Edward1, ArthurianEnthusiast
Welsh campaigns,aboundingin adventuresas fantasticas any encounteredin
the romancesof the Round Table or of Alexanderthe Great,are enoughto put
the readeron his guard against acceptingthe storyof Edward's Round Table
as strictlyveracious.
Nevertheless,the evidenceis not altogetherunfavorable.Chotzenhas demon-
stratedthat behind the confusionand the romancinglay a real acquaintance
with the outstandingevents of Edward's reign- the marriagewith a Spanish
princess,the barons' wars,and the many campaignsagainst the Welsh and the
Scots. However unreliable,Lodewijk cannot be dismissedaltogether,and when
we reconsiderhis narrativeof the Round Table whichaccompaniedEdward's
marriage,we discoverseveral reasonsfortakingit seriously.
First of all, forthisaccounthe expresslyinvokesa Latin authority:'Die gene
diet dlatijn bescreef,Seide so vele van der saken.' Secondly,we know that
Edward was presentat Mortimer'sRound Table of 1279 and that he himself
sponsoredanotherin 1284, and we shall see that he held still a thirdin 1302.
Thirdly,if we make allowances for Lodewijk's confusionof Kenilworthwith
Cornuaelgeand of Scotland with Irlant, the threemessengerscallingforexpe-
ditionsagainstthe Welsh,Irlant,and Cornuaelgewould correspondto the three
outstandingwars of Edward's time, against the Welsh, the Scots, and the
barons.Fourthly,if we realize that such a rehearsalof his militarytriumphsin
the formof Arthurianinterludes,thoughutterlyanachronisticon the occasion
ofEdward's firstmarriagein 1254,wouldhave been quite possibleand appropri-
ate on the occasion of his secondmarriagein 1299 to Margaret,sisterof Philip
IV of France, we get rid of at least two objectionsto the credibilityof the
narrative.For Lodewijk was more likelyto have read an account or heard a
reportof an event of 1299 than of an event whichtook place forty-five years
earlier,and he would be correctin placing that event in England. Finally, a
remarkableconfirmation comes in an unexpectedformand froman unexpected
quarter.A monk of St Albans, composinghis Annales Angliae et Scotiaeabout
1312, afterdescribingthe magnificent ceremonieswhichaccompaniedthe wed-
ding of Edward and Margaret of France on 10 September1299,27 followedit
immediately,as ProfessorLaura Keeler detected,28 by an account of the festivi-
tieswhichhe liftedfromGeoffrey ofMonmouth'sdescriptionofArthur'scorona-
tionbanquet and the ensuingknightlysports.
ProfessorKeeler naturallyinquired: 'What was the chronicler'smotive for
transcribing virtuallyverbatimfromthe Historia?'She made threesuggestions,
and thefirstprobablycomescloseto thetruth.'Perhapsbeinga monk,unfamiliar
withweddingfestivitiesat court,yet desiringto do justice to the magnificence
of his sovereign'snuptials,he turnedto what he did know- a descriptionin
the listoria which could, he thought,be adapted by omittingwhat seemed
antiquated.' The two accounts of Edward's nuptialsbecome understandableif
27Rishanger,Chronica,pp. 394-397.
xxi (1946), 28-31.
28Keeler,op. cit. (note 2 above), pp. 55-58. SPECULUM,
we put them together.The Brabangonpriesthad heard or read a detailed ac-

count of the elaborate interludes29 which glorifiedthe victories of Edward
underthe guise of an Arthurianmasquerade,but he completelydiscreditedhis
versionof the proceedingsby assigningthem to the firstmarriagewhich took
place in Spain in 1254. On the otherhand, the monk of St Albans got the date
and place of the second marriagecorrectlybut knew only that therehad been
someeffort to reproducethefestivitiesofKing Arthur'stime.Ratherthanadmit
his ignoranceof so notable an occasion, he went to what purportedto be a
trustworthy accountof Arthur'scoronationceremoniesand followedthat. Thus,
thoughneitherchroniclergives us an accurate description,betweenthe two of
themwe get a prettygood notionof the feast at whichEdward presidedin his
sixtiethyear,assumingthe role of King Arthur.
If theie is still any doubt as to the plausibilityof Lodewijk's report,let us
consultthe Roman de Ham, already mentioned,which describesin full detail
an Arthurianassemblage and tournamentwhich took place at Hem-Monacu
betweenPeronneand Bray in 1278.30We know that historicfiguresimperson-
ated those of Arthur'stime, Count Robert II of Artoistakingthe part of the
Chevalierau Lyon and beingactuallyaccompaniedby a lion or some Snug the
Joinerin a lion's skin. The presidinggeniuswas Queen Genievre,who may be
identifiedwith great probabilitywith the Queen of France herself,to whose
coteriethe Count of Artoisbelonged.31 Now this queen was Marie de Brabant,
mentionedincidentallyby Dante, the sister of that Duke of Brabant who
losthis lifeat the Round Table ofBar in 1294 and motheroftheyoungMargaret
whomEdward marriedin 1299 and forwhomhe put on his Round Table mas-
querade. The dramatic featuresof the tournamentof 1278, over which pre-
sumablyMarie de Brabantpresided,weremuchmoreelaboratethan thosewhich
attendedthe Round Table of 1299, whichpresumablycelebratedthe marriage
of her daughter.But on both occasions Sir Kay furnishedcomic relief,and we
have on the formeroccasion the entranceof a distresseddamsel corresponding
to the entranceof the maltreatedmessengerson the latter.There is abundant
reason,therefore, to take Lodewijk's storyof Edward's Round Table as a fairly
trustworthy reportof what actually took place at Canterburyin September
1299.
The next demonstrationof Edward's interestin Arthurianprecedentstook
quite a different form.The Scots had appealed to the Court of Rome against
the injuries inflictedon them by the English, and Edward commanded his
secretariesto collectmaterialsto substantiatethe rightsof the English crown
over Scotland.A letter,addressedto BonifaceVIII, was drawnup and to it on
7 May 1301 a hundredEnglishbaronsaffixedtheirseals. Most ofthe claimswere
29 On 'interlude'as meaninga play given betweenthe coursesof a banquet cf. L. B. Wrightin
ModernLanguageNotes,XLI (1926), 98-100.

30 Histoire des Ducs de Normandie,ed. F. Michel (Paris, 1840), pp. 222-283. Sarrasin,Roman du
Hem,ed. A. Henry(Paris, 1939). On locationof tournamentcf.Romania,LXII (1936), 386 ff.
de la France,xxiii, 473.
31 MediaevalStudiesin MemoryofA. K. Porter,i, 95. Histoirelitteraire
of Monmouth'sHistoria,and among themoccursthe follow-
based on Geoffrey
ing 32
Item,Arturus, Rex Britonum, Scotiamsibi rebellemsubjecit,
princepsfamosissimus,
& penetotamgentem delevit:& posteaquemdam,nomineAnguselum, in RegemScotiae
Et cumposteaidemRex Arturusapud civitatemLegionumfestumfaceret
praefecit.
celeberimum, ibidemomnesRegessibisubjecti;interquosAnguselus,
interfuerunt Rex
pro regnoScotiaeexhibensdebitum,gladiumRegis Arturidetulit
Scotiae,servitium
omnesRegesScotiaeomnibus
anteipsum;& successive RegibusBritonum fueresubjecti.
As ProfessorKeeler pointedout,33the secretarieswho composedthisletterwere
not too scrupulousin theircitationsfromthe Historia,and added and omitted
to suit theirpurpose.It is truethat Geoffrey representsArthuras handingover
the kingdomof the Scots to Anguselus,but the chroniclemakes it clear that in
so doinghe was merelyrestoringthe land to its rightfulsovereign.
We have a briefrecordthat Edward in the course-ofa somewhatfutilein-
cursioninto Scotland in 1302 ordained'la table rounde' at Falkirk.34This was
probablyin commemoration of the great victoryhe had obtainedover William
Wallace at this same place fouryearsbefore.
The last event of the reign which had an Arthuriancoloringoccurredon
Whitsunday,1306,when the kingwas almost sixty-sevenyears old.35News had
come of a new uprisingof theScots. A greatassemblageof noblesand theirsons
gathered at Westminster.The venerable king knightedhis son, Edward of
Caernarvon,and investedhim with the duchy of Aquitaine; the prince then
knightedthreehundredof his companionsin the abbey. Afterwardswhen the
companyhad adjourned to the banquet hall, two servitorsbore.in on a large
tray two swans coveredwith a networkof gold. First of all, the King vowed
beforeGod and the swans that he would avenge on Robert Bruce the wrong
whichhe had done to God and the church,but afterthat would bear arms no
more against Christianmen, but would go to the Holy Land, neverto return.
Thereafter,Prince Edward vowed that he would not sleep two nightsin the
same place but would help in the fulfilment of his father'sundertakingagainst
the Scots. The otherknightsfollowedsuit,but what the precisenatureof their
vowswas is notrevealedto us.
The king's vow combinesthe obligationsof chivalryand piety. To dedicate
oneselfto the serviceof God against the Turks was doubtlessthe highestideal;
but scarcelylowerand even morepressingwere the obligationsof honorand of
feudal right.The vows of Edward and his son were surelytaken in the full
consciousnessthat thus, accordingto the romancers,Arthurand his knights
32 Thomas Rymer,Foedera,ed. A. Clarke, F. Holbrooke (London, 1816), i, 982. Keeler, op. cit.
(note 2 above), pp. 52, 103, 130.

83 Keeler, op. cit.,pp. 53 f.
84 ChroniclesoftheReignsofEdwardI and EdwardII, i, 104.
35Nicholas Trivet,Annales,pp. 408 f. FloresHistoriarum, iII, 131 f. E. K. Chambersgivesin Medi-
aeval Stage (Oxford,1903), ii, 234-238, a list of minstrelswho performedon this occasion. We also
learnfromthe WardrobeAccounts,34 Edw. I, that 80s. 6d. werepaid forthe swans. C. P. Cooper,
Proceedings ofHis Majesty'sCommissioners (London, 1833).
had been wont to pledge themselvesto highand perilousemprises.The earliest
example of these vowingsin the Matter of Britain is furnishedby Chretiende
Troyes in his Contedel Graal about 1180. This is the finescene laid at Arthur's
courtat Caerleonwhen the Loathly Damsel rebukedPerceval forhis silenceat
the castle of the FisherKing, and announcedthe adventuresof Chastel Orguel-
leus and Montesclaire.36
Et messireGauvainssautsus,
Si ditque sonpooirfera
De li rescorre et s'i ira.
Et Girflez li filzDo redit
Qu'ilirasi Deus li aft,
Devantle ChastelOrguelleus.
'Et je sorle MontDolereus,'
Fet Kahedins,'monter irai
Ne jusquela ne finerai.'
Et Percevausredittotel:
Qu'ilne girraan un ostel
Deus nuizan trestot sonaage .
Tant que il del graalsavra
Cui I'an an sert.. .
Et bieneinsijusqu'a cinquante
An sontleve,et si creante
Li unsa I'autreet ditet jure
Que mervoille ne avanture
Ne savrontqu'il ne I'aillentquerre,
Tantsoitan felenesse terre.
Though Chretienmakes no mentionof a banquet, the hour is noon and the
courtis assembledin the hall. Here, then,we have a scenewhichmay have sug-
gestedthe vowingat Westminster in 1306,particularlyPerceval's swearingthat
he would not sleep two nightsin the same place till he had achieved the object
ofhis quest,as the same scenehad suggestedthe entranceoftheLoathlyDamsel
and her challengeto 'Perchevael'sevenyearsbeforeat Edward's weddingfeast.
While Chretien'sContedel Graal was one of the favoriteromancesof the late
thirteenthand earlyfourteenth centuries,as indicatedby theextantmanuscripts,
etheProse Lancelotenjoyed an even greatervogue. And this, too, containeda
vowingscene.3 Bohort distinguishedhimselfabove a thousand other knights
at a tourneyorganizedby King Brangoire,and was afterwards seatedwithtwelve
companionsin a tent,when the king's daughtercalled on each of the thirteen
to promiseher some rewardforher service.The knightsthen vied with each
otherin makingthe mostpreposterousvows.A muchfineruse of the same motif
is foundin the Questedel Saint Graal,wherewe read that afterthe Grail,covered
with white samite,had floatedinto the hall at Camelot and ministeredto all
the company,Gauvain firstand thenthe otherknightsvowed to seek fora year
86 Chr6tien ed. A. Hilka (Halle, 1932), vss. 4718-46. For theseand other
de Troyes,Percevalroman,
ofMichiganPublications,Languageand Literature,
vows cf.J. H. Reinhardin University viii (1932),
25-57.
87 VulgateVersionoftheArthurianRomances,ed. H. 0. Sommer(Washington,1909-13), iv, 266 f.
and a day till theysaw the vessel openly;and the next morningthe vows were
repeatedon holy relics.38 As I have shownin SPECULUM, VIII (1933), 419 f.,this
scene is ultimatelyderivedfromthe Irish saga, The SecondBattleofMoytura,
whichgoes back to the tenthcenturyat latest.
We have illustrations ofthepracticein Englishliteraturealao. Malory adapted
the scenesfromthe Questein his thirteenth Book. The fourteenth-century poem,
ThteAvowingofArthur,tellshow the king,Gawain,Kay, and Baldwinundertook
certainhard tasks,39and the ballad of King Arthurand King Cornwallquotes
Arthuras saying40
'Ile makemineavowto God
Andalsoeto theTrinity
Ile neversleepeonenightthereas I do another
Till thatroundtable[KingCornwall's]I see.'
Arthurset out withfourof his knights,and on theirarrivalat Cornwall'scastle
all made extravagantboasts and succeeded in accomplishingthem. Professor
Reinhardin The Survivalof Geis in ArthurianRomance(Halle, 1933), pp. 316-
324, has citedotherexamplesfromthe Matter of Britainand fromIrish sources.
Though the takingof vows,needlessto say, was practicallya universalcustom,
therecan be littledoubt that the Arthurianexamplesbear an intimaterelation
to theirCeltic analogues.
Evidently,then, the ceremoniesof 1306 had an Arthurianbackground,but
in none of the Arthuriantextsis thereanythingresemblingthe oath by a brace
of swanis.So far as one can tell today, this was an innovation.Of course,the
presenceof the fowlon the high table was nothingnew, forgame of all kinds
furnisheda considerable,ifnot the major,part of a greatbanquet. Four hundred
swans constitutedonly a small fractionof the provenderforthe ins-tallationof
ArchbishopNevilleat York in 1467.41But I have foundno precedentforEdward's
takinga solemnoath on these decorativebirds.Whetherhe was the firstto do
so or not, he certainly,in the moderncolloquialism,'startedsomething.'For it
seems prettyclear that all subsequentobservancesof this kind,as describedin
literatureor recordedin history,wereinspireddirectlyor indirectlyby the cere-
moniesof 1306.
ProfessorRitchie has pointed out42the probable connectionbetween this
spectacularoccasionand the famouspoem,the Voeuxdu Paon, composedbefore
1313, by Jacques de Longuyonat the instanceof Thiebaut de Bar, bishop of
Liege.43 Thiebaut had intimateconnectionswith England, being presentedby
38VulgateVersion,vi, 13 f., 18.
39W. H. French,C. B. Hale, Middle EnglishMetricalRomances(New York, 1930), pp. 611 f.
40Englishand ScottishPopular Ballads, ed. H. C. Sargent,G. L. Kittredge(Boston, 1904), p. 50.
On this ballad cf. K. G. T. Websterin EnglischeStudien,xxxvi (1906), 351 f., and R. S. Loomis,
ArthurianTradition,pp. 133-138.
41W. E. Mead, EnglishMedievalFeast (London, 1931), p. 33.
42Buik ofAlexander,ed. R. L. GraemeRitchie (Edinburgh,1925), i, xxxixf. I see no good reason
to concludethat Edward's vow on theswans was based on a local customofBar, as Ritchiesuggests.
Cf. SPECULUM, xx (1945), 266, n. S.
43ProfessorPeckham of Columbia is engagedin preparinga new edition.
Edward to the rectoryof Pagham, Sussex,and most important,was the brother
of Edward's son-in-law,the Count of Bar, in honor of whom the the Duke of
Brabant held the Round Table of 1290.44 Thiebaut's niece and Edward's grand-
daughter,Joan of Bar, was marriedin London to Johnde Warenne,Earl of
Surrey,20 May 1306,and two days laterthe youngbridegroom was amongthose
who wereknightedand who followedKing Edward and his son in makingtheir
vows.44 Thiebaut must have listenedto accounts of this impressiveaffair.One
can hardlybe wrongin assumingthat when a fewyears later he promptedthe
compositionof the Voeuxdu Paon, in whichthe knightsof Alexanderthe Great
take vows on a roasted peacock, he recalledthe presenceof his niece and her
husband at Edward's historicPentecostalfeast.Thiebaut seems to have had so
stronga fixationon this themethat he also commissioneda poem, the Voeux
de l'Epervier,in whichhe himselfand EmperorHenry VII are representedas
makingvows on a sparrow-hawk duringa banquet at Milan.4"
The Voeux du Paon, we know, was widely read, was translatedinto many
languages,and inspiredat least three other literarytreatmentsof the theme
of vowingon a bird. The Voeux du He'ron,so cogentlyand learnedlydiscussed
by ProfessorWhitingin SPECULUM, xx (1945), 261-278, was an anti-English
burlesque,which ascribesthe originof the Hundred Years War to a series of
grotesqueoaths swornon a heronby Edward III and membersof his court in
1338. In 1463 David AuberttranscribedforPhilip the Good, Duke ofBurgundy,
a pseudo-historic romancecalled L'Histoiredes TroisNoblesFils du Roi, contain-
inga scenein whichthe King of Sicilyholdsa banquet at Naples and all present,
includingthreekings' sons, make vows to a peacock.46The motifalso occurs in
thelateromanceofCleriadus etMgliadice.47
The spectacularceremonieswhichin the reignof Edward I were taken with
utmostseriousnesshad become more and more of a hollowmockery.When in
1453 the fall of Constantinoplehad revived the idea of a crusade, Philip the
Good arrangedin the followingyear a 'Banquet du Phaisan,' the ne plus ultra
of wastefulextravagance,at which he personallyswore to lead an expedition
against the Turks and to challengethe sultan to a duel - a vow whichhe con-
spicuouslyfailedto accomplish.48
Edward I has been recognizedby historiansas one of the most successfulof
English kings in shaping the destiniesof Britain. He subjugated Wales and
laid the groundworkforthe ultimateconquest of Scotland; he has been called
the EnglishJustinian.Yet it seemsclear fromthe factsI have presentedthat he
was stronglyinfluenced by literarytradition,not so muchin regardto his practi-
cal policies,but in regardto the romanticatmosphere,the Arthurianpageantry,
44Buik ofAlexander,i, xxxixf.

46 Ibid., I, xxxviii,n. 2.
46Ibid.,I, xltiii.
47Ibid., i, xlii, n. 6. H. L. D. Ward, Catalogueof theRomancesin theBritishMuseum,I (1888),
883 f.
48 G. Doutrepont,La a la courdesducede Bourgogne(Paris, 1909), pp. 106-117.
Litt6raturefrangai8e
R. L. Kilgour,Declineof Chivalry(Cambridge,Mass., 1937), pp. 253-257.
withwhichhe envelopedthem.He evidentlyliked to thinkofhimselfin the rOle

ofArthurus redivivus.
Contemporary writersand those of the nextgenerationalso made the associ-
ation betweenEdward and his Britishpredecessor.In an Anglo-Frenchpoem,
Le Rossignol,composedby a certainJohn,prebendaryof Howden in Yorkshire
and clerk of the householdto Edward's mother,John asserts that the heart
which is armed with the love of God is worthierthan any hero- Gawain,
Lancelot, Iwain, or Arthur,worthiereven than Edward, 'qui a beau viaire,'
and who has performedsuch exploitsagainst the Saracens and at the tourney
of Chalons (1273).49In the firstyearsofhis reign,then,Edward was rankedwith
the knightsof the Round Table. Afterhis death one Johnof London wrotein
1307 a Latin elegy,addressedto his widow,comparinghimto his advantagewith
greatwarriorsofthe past.50ThoughArthurhad laid undertributeall thewestern
lands fromAquitaine to the OrkneyIsles, he failedto destroythe Saxons, was
finallywounded and disappeared.'Non sic succubuitEdwardus rex noster.'
Not long after,the Yorkshirechronicler,Peter de Langtoft,includedin his
account of Edward's reignno less than seven references to Arthur,whichI cite
briefly.5'Arthurnever held his fiefsas securelyas Edward. Philip of France
triedto robEdward ofhis lands in Aquitaine,whichArthurhad givento Beduer.
In a list of the falls of princesLucius the emperorand Arthurappear. Edward
in his campaignagainstFrance failedto win the supportof his barons because
he had not followedthe exampleofArthurin distributing gifts.Arthurhad been
a model of justice temperedwith mercy.Edward's great Pentecostal feast of
1306 was the most splendidever celebratedin Britain,except Arthur'scorona-
tion at Caerleon.Peter concludeshis poem by twiceassertingthat Edward was
the most gloriouskingsinceArthur'sday.52
De chevalerye,apresly reisArthure,
la flure;
Estaitly reisEdwarddes Cristiens
Tantfubealse grantz, tantpussanten armoure,
De lypoethommeparlertantcumle secledure.
Moreover, several manuscriptsof the chronicleadd a French translationof
Edward's claimto sovereigntyoverScotland,includingthe precedentestablished
by Arthur."3And the conceptionof Edward as a hero of adventuresas fantastic
49 Romania,LXIX (1946-7), 496-519, especiallypp. 508-511.

of theReignsof Edward I
50 Chronicles and Edward II, ii, 15. Keeler, op. cit. (note 2 above), pp.
59 f.
51 Pierrede Langtoft,Chronicle, ed. T. Wright(London, 1868), ia,266, 278,284, 296, 326, 368.
b2 Ibid., ii, 378, 380. Van Velthemalso, when speakingof the death of Edward (op. cit.,in, 64;
Bk. v, ch. 26), says that therehad neverbeen a kingso mightyin war since Arthur'stime.
53Langtoft,Chronicle, ii, 404, 406. On p. 266 Langtoftquotes a poem about Edward whichasserts
that 'Merlynde ly ad prophetez,'and certainmanuscriptsof his chronicle(CambridgeUniversity
Library,G.Ii, and Sidney Sussex College 43) contain Anglo-Frenchpropheciesassignedto Merlin
concerningthe six kingswho followedJohn,in whichEdward appears as 'une dragounde mercy.'
Versionsofthesepropheciesexistalso in Latin and English.Cf. RupertTaylor,PoliticalProphecyin
England (New York, 1911), pp. 48-51, 157-164; H. L. D. Ward, Catalogueof Romances ... in the
BritishMuseum,i (London, 1883), 299 f., 308-310, 812, S22.
as any recountedin the Matter of Britain is found,as Powicke observed,in
Lodewijk van Velthem's narrativeof the Welsh campaign of 1282-83.64We
have a guidingstag and a guidingbird,a storm-making springand a ferocious
bear, ancient weapons and a cave where lay huge bones; perhaps,Lodewijk
suggests,the weapons and the bones werethose of Arthurhimself.We see once
more,then,how persistentlythe careerof Edward Plantagenetremindedmen
ofhis own and the nextgenerationofthe fabulousdeeds of the Britishkingand
ofhis Round Table knights.
Seldom, I think,has the impressof literatureon events and of events upon
literaturebeen morecuriouslyillustratedthan in theprecedingpages. To borrow
a phrase frommy friendand colleague,ProfessorEmery Neff,'the poetryof
history'and the historyofpoetryare inextricably intertwined.
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
54Lodewijkvan Velthem,op. cit. (note 21 above), II, 132-170 (Bk. III, ch. 22-84). Huet has a sum-
maryand an excellentcommentin MoyenAge, xxvi, 179-197, in whichhe points out parallelsin
romance.

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Edward I, Arthurian Enthusiast

assumed to start with the dedicationof one of the manuscriptsof Geoffreyof

been seen by her husband.

8 E. G. Gardner,Arthurian Legendin Italian Literature(London and New York, 1930), pp. 46 f.

"Chambers, op. cit.,p. 125.

when opened were foundto be fullof gold. One is not astonished,therefore, to

15AnnalesMonastici,ed. Luard, ii (1865), 401; iv (1869), 489. Chronicles oftheReignsofEdwardI

21 MonumentaGermaniaeHistorica,Script.,x, 406; xvii, 79. Chroniques des Ducs de Brabant,ed.

25 BulletinoftheBoard of CelticStudies,vii, 48.

we put them together.The Brabangonpriesthad heard or read a detailed ac-

ModernLanguageNotes,XLI (1926), 98-100.

(note 2 above), pp. 52, 103, 130.

44Buik ofAlexander,i, xxxixf.

withwhichhe envelopedthem.He evidentlyliked to thinkofhimselfin the rOle

49 Romania,LXIX (1946-7), 496-519, especiallypp. 508-511.

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