THE DUTCH LANCELOT

In the previous chapters we have examined, so far as the material at our disposal permitted, the Lancelot legend in its gradual evolution from a collection of scattered tales, or lais, to the vast body of cyclic romance which was its final form. In this task we have restricted ourselves to those features which more intimately concern the personal character and fortunes of our hero; a choice which leaves untouched a large section of his adventures, such as his friendship with Galehault, and his winning of the Dolorous Garde. These are features which, affecting no romance or chronicle outside the Lancelot proper, cannot well be examined till more versions of this latter are available. In this, the concluding section of these studies, I propose, leaving the question of the nature and origin of the legend, to discuss the relation subsisting between those different versions of the text, on an examination of which I have based the three preceding chapters dealing with the prose Lancelot.

The texts in question are (1) the so-called Dutch Lancelot; (2) the printed edition of 1533 (Lenoire, Paris); (3) Dr. Sommer's summary of the prose Lancelot, based upon the printed edition of 1513, and compared by him with Malory's text; (4) Dr. Furnivall's edition of the Queste; and (5) Malory's Morte Arthur.[158] This gives us practically four different texts for each section (Dr. Sommer having also used the Queste), two of which, the Dutch Lancelot and the 1533 edition, appear to me to be of far greater importance than has hitherto been suspected.

I propose to publish in an Appendix a detailed summary of the contents of the distinctively Lancelot portion of the D. L., but the compilation covers such an extent of ground, and contains texts of such value to the student of Arthurian literature, that I think it will not be superfluous to give here a brief outline of its general character.

A noticeable peculiarity of the version is, that, contrary to all other known versions of the Lancelot-Galahad-Grail story, it is in verse and not in prose. The ms. containing it appears to be of the beginning of the fourteenth century;[159] but Dr. Jonckbloet gives reason to think that the version contained in it was decidedly older than this date, and there are certainly references to the Lancelot story in much earlier Dutch MSS. Probably it is a compilation similar to that of Sir Thomas Malory, intended to combine the various romances of the Arthurian cycle with which the compiler was familiar, or of which MSS. were at his disposal. In the first instance it was a translation, and I think we must hold a very faithful translation, from the French. Even as we have it we shall find that it agrees closely with parallel French versions. In its original form it consisted of four books, the first of which has unfortunately been lost.

Book II. begins with what M. Paulin Paris called the Agravain section of the prose Lancelot, i.e. the Enfances, Galehault, and Charrette portions are not included.[160] The first 36,000 lines follow the course of the Lancelot; at line 36,947 it takes up the Perceval at the point of the arrival of the Grail messenger, and for about two thousand lines goes on to give an account of the achieving of the adventures mentioned by her. In some points the compiler agrees closely with ChrÉtien and seems to have followed his version, in others he departs entirely from any known version of the Perceval. Sometimes his names agree rather with Wolfram than with ChrÉtien; e.g. the lady is Orgeloise simply, not L'Orguelleuse de Logres; and Gawain's challenger is Ginganbrisil, a form which Professor Yorke Powell pointed out some years ago as the probable source of Wolfram's Kingrimursel.

L. 41,420, we have a visit of Gawain to the Grail castle, agreeing closely with that found in the Montpelier Perceval, and also, Dr. Jonckbloet informs us, with that contained in a German version of the Perceval preserved at Rome (cf. Jonckbloet, vol. i. p. xxiv.), adventures of Gariette and Griflette, and the fight between Gawain and Ginganbrisil, which ends in the victory of the former, and the king of Scavalon becoming Arthur's 'man.' This again is not recounted elsewhere.[161]

Ll. 42,540-47,262 contain the romance of Morien, son of Agloval, the hero of which bears a curious resemblance to Wolfram's Feirefis. In this romance occurs the episode of Lancelot's conflict with a monster, which I have examined in chap. iii. This concludes Book II.

Book III. opens with the Queste, the text of which I shall examine in detail further on; it extends to over 11,000 ll. The remainder of the book is occupied by a group of important episodic romances, some of which are found nowhere else. They are as follows:

11,161. La vengeance de Raguidel.[162]

14,300. An adventure of Lancelot, Bohort, and Dodinel, when the latter rescues a maiden tied up in a tree.

14,681. Le Chevalier À la Manche (van den riddere metter mouwen).

18,603. Gauvain et Kei (Hoe Keye Waleweine verriet).

22,271. Lancelot et le cerf au pied blanc (van der jonc frouwen metten hondekine).

23,122-26,980. Torec.[163]

Book IV. Mort Artur, 13,054 ll. The united three books thus comprising a total of over 87,000 lines.

It will be seen from the above brief summary that the D. L. presents many features of great interest for the student of the Arthurian story, but so far, with the exception of the studies published by M. Gaston Paris, to which I have just referred, it does not appear to have attracted much attention from scholars. It is especially to be regretted that Dr. Sommer did not use it for the purpose of his 'Malory' collation; had he done so, he would certainly have come, on many points, to a very different conclusion from that at which he ultimately arrived.

In the following comparison I shall confine my remarks chiefly to such decided variants as cannot possibly be ascribed to the mistakes or emendations of copyists; nor shall I include those minor verbal differences which, however important for a critical edition of the text, do not in themselves definitely prove a divergence of sources. The point I desire to prove is that the versions D. L. and 1533 represent a text radically different from that consulted by Dr. Sommer; and that, in conjunction with Malory, they may be held to represent a family of mss. hitherto unregarded, or unsuspected.

As readers of Malory are aware, he gives no account of the birth or early adventures of Lancelot; the section dealing with that hero begins with Book VI., and takes up his adventures at a point well advanced in what, following M. Paulin Paris, I have called the Agravain section (l. 13,351 in D. L.). That Malory had before him any version of the earlier section of the Lancelot I very much doubt. It must be apparent to any careful reader that, in his view, the Lady of the Lake is connected rather with Arthur than with Lancelot; whenever she intervenes in the story it is to aid the former, rather than the latter. I incline to the belief that Malory's ms. only began at an advanced point of the story, and that he knew little, or nothing, of what had preceded it.

At the commencement of the Terriquen (D. L. gives the name as Tarquijn) adventure, D. L., 1533, and M. all represent Lancelot and Lionel as sleeping under the shadow of a 'pomier' instead of a perron as in S.[164]

When Hector comes to the fountain he finds D. L. LX. shields and helmets, and XL. swords (the first letters have evidently been transposed and should read XL.). 1533. Forty-five helmets, forty-five swords, and 'more than' forty-five shields. S. Forty swords, forty-five shields, and five spears: helmets are not mentioned. Here S. appears to have a confused version of the two preceding accounts.

In the account of the queens who carry off Lancelot D. L. and 1533 agree with S. in naming the ladies (the queen in D. L. is of Foreestan, not Sorestan); otherwise the accounts seem to vary. D. L. and 1533 do not say, as does S., that the first-named is on her way to Norgales through 'Sorelois,' but that her land 'borders on' these kingdoms. It is not the three but only the two last-named, Morgain le Fay and Sibile (Cybele) l'enchanteresse, who are learned in enchantments; and neither D. L. nor 1533 give any indication of their being the 'queen's ladies' as S. represents; they are simply travelling with her.[165]

The lands of the heiress of Rochedon were not seized by the King of Sorestan, as S. states, but by the queen who had been left her guardian (D. L. and 1533). This is much more in accordance with the rest of the story. Otherwise these three versions agree against M.

Later on both D. L. and 1533 agree in speaking of Galehodyn as the neveu, not the filz of Gallehault, as in S. They are of course right.

In the account of the tournament there are a number of small variants. Judging from S., who gives a very condensed summary, D. L. and 1533 are again more correct in details.

On p. 186 of S. the summary departs widely from D. L. and 1533. Thus, according to S., Lancelot, seeking for Hector and Lionel, has met with Bohort, Yvain, and four other knights at the 'Chastel du Trespas.' Lancelot proposes that each of the six knights (sic) (there were of course seven) shall each ride forth separately and return to the castle 'a la feste de toussainz.' In D. L. and 1533 Lancelot has started accompanied by Bohort, Baudemagus, and Gaheret. En route they meet Mordred, naked, and being thrashed with thorns by 'Mathoeus die felle' (Marchant li felon), rescue him, and ride to Chastel du Trespas, where Yvain is imprisoned, whom they also free. It is Yvain, not Lancelot, who suggests the separation and quest.

Again, in the fight between Lancelot and 'Terriquen,' both D. L. and 1533 agree against S. and M. in failing to mention Gaheret's (they have the correct spelling) horse, and saying that Lancelot rides off on his own. Whereas, later on, S. and 1533 agree in giving 'three varlets and three sommiers' and D. L. and M. agree in a 'foster' with four horses.

In the question of the final disposal of the castle D. L. and 1533 again fall into line against S. The latter says that the knights exchange Terriquen's castle for horses, though not very good ones. I suspect this of being a hasty summary which does not represent the text; D. L. and 1533 are so much more detailed. D. L. says that 'Die grave van den Pale (later on Parke, which is I think the correct reading) is rejoiced at the event as his 'neve' was one of the prisoners. He gives all Arthur's knights very good horses. That he receives the castle is not told, though he afterwards appears as the owner. 1533 says that 'Keux[166] du Parc' has a 'brother' prisoner: delighted at his safety he gives them all horses, very good to Arthur's knights, not so good to the others. Out of gratitude they offer him the castle. If S. correctly represents the text of 1513, it is clear, I think, that 1533 gives the original reading, which has been condensed, but rightly understood, by D. L., and confused in S.

In the account of the adventures at the castle D. L., agreeing in the main with S. and 1533, as against M., yet in one point falls into line with this latter against the other two. Both S. and 1533 agree in saying that Lancelot ties his horse to a tree, M. says 'to a ringe on the walle'; in D. L. he ties his horse, when he comes to the 'meester torre, vor die porte al te hant,' which seems to imply M.'s 'ringe.'[167]

I now come to a most extraordinary oversight on the part of Dr. Sommer. On p. 191 and again on p. 274 of his Sources of Malory he commits himself to the statement that M. is the only known source for certain adventures of Lancelot, his rescue of Kay, his riding off in Kay's armour, etc., and proceeds from this supposed peculiarity to postulate a lost 'Suite de Lancelot,' of which this is a precious fragment. Now, not only are these adventures recorded both in D. L. and 1533, but they are found in the summary given by M. Paulin Paris on p. 323 of vol. v. of the Romans de la Table Ronde.[168]

The adventure with Kay does not, in the original, occur at this point, but follows after Lancelot's long imprisonment by Morgain; his freeing Lionel from the dungeon of the King of Estrangeloet; winning the hill guarded by Bohort; and discovering the tomb of his grandfather;—a sequence of incident in which D. L. and 1533 agree perfectly.

Of the following adventures contained in Book VI. S. consequently gives no summary. Throughout M. very closely agrees with D. L. and 1533, but he omits to state, as do both these versions, that Lancelot's arraying himself in Kay's armour was due to the dim light of early morning. He believed himself to be donning his own, and was unaware of the error till his host detected it, when he refused to change, foreseeing the amusing complications which would result. This, having no bearing on the story, which is concerned with the fact, not with the motive, was probably omitted by M. Another slight variation in M.'s version is that he gives three knights and three pavilions, whereas the other two agree in giving two knights and four pavilions. Nor are the knights named as in M., but this is most probably due to the English writer, who hardly ever fails to name his characters.

The four knights of the Round Table are the same in all three cases, and M. and D. L. agree in the order, while 1533 makes Yvain the last to joust. The two first are probably correct, as Gawain, being the most noted of the four, would probably be the last to try his fate. Both D. L. and 1533 agree in a feature omitted by M., that Mordred was originally in the company of these four, but being severely wounded on a previous occasion cannot joust (D. L.); has been left at a castle that morning (1533). M. also omits to say that Segramore reveals their names to Lancelot, who, overcome with grief at having so ill-treated his friends, throws away his shield, and rides off weeping. This causes the four knights to suspect his identity, and they take the shield and carry it with them to court. I suspect that this was in M.'s original, as he makes Gawain say 'whan we come to the courte than ?hal we wete,' which is the reason they give in the other versions for taking the shield; accordingly, they hang it on a pillar in the middle of the hall until it is recognised.

Immediately after this adventure D. L. and 1533 record one of which M. gives no hint, but which is important in view of a remark made by Dr. Sommer on p. 204 of his study. Lancelot, having overthrown these four knights, comes to two pavilions, in one of which is the lady who cured him from his illness at the Poisoned Spring;[169] as they talk a party of knights and ladies ride up, with them a fair child three years old (D. L.); two years old (1533). This is Bohort's son, HÉlie le Blank, whom Lancelot is delighted to see. Now, Dr. Sommer tells us that, saving in the record of this infant's birth, the allusion to it in the Queste, and the mention of HÉlie being at Arthur's court when Lancelot, Hector, and Perceval return from l'Île de Joie, there is no mention of him in the prose Lancelot. It seems clear that a large section of the Agravain must have been omitted in the versions consulted by Dr. Sommer.

Of the three subsequent adventures in Book VI., the final one, that of the knight who smites off his lady's head, and is compelled by Lancelot to do penance for his crime by carrying the dead body from one court to another, is also in our two versions, but occurs at an earlier point in the story. In both he is to go first to Arthur's court, then to that of Baudemagus, and lastly to the King of Norgales. If all spare his life he may live. M. departs from this by only directing him in the first instance to go to Arthur's court: it is Guinevere who sends him on to the Pope. The variant is probably Malory's own.

The other two adventures are not in either D. L. or 1533. The Perilous Chapel, I suspect, was taken over from a Perceval section. Meliot de Logres, and the fetching of a piece of cloth from the chapel of a 'Perilous Cemetery' are both in Perceval li Gallois though not connected with each other. It is noticeable that M. never refers to the 'Perilous Cemetery' of the Lancelot proper, that of the upright swords, but drops out the reference to Galahad's achieving of it, which must certainly have been in his copy of the Queste. I think there may have been two Perilous Cemeteries, one of the Borron Lancelot-Perceval, the other of the Map Lancelot-Galahad cycles, and that this is the first and older.

The adventure of the Lady and the Hawk in chap. xvi. I have not been able to trace.

The events of M., Book VII., are not recorded in either D. L. or 1533, with this possible exception, that when the knights return to court after the adventures recorded above, and are called upon for an account of their doings, Gawain relates how he fought with Gariette, not knowing that he was his brother; which looks as if the story (not related in detail) might represent a version of the similar encounter in Book VII. It seems clear that, full as is the account given in both these versions, the compilers still knew a great deal more than they included.[170]

Books VIII., IX., and X. of M. follow the prose Tristan, and not till Book XI. do we return to the Lancelot. This book opens with the adventures at Corbenic (D. L., Cambenoyc, Cambenoyt, or Cabenoyt). D. L. fails to mention that the lady of the bath is naked, and consistently calls the serpent of the tomb a serpent, never a dragon, in this differing from the other versions. 1533, at this point, after relating the achievement of their adventures, has a curious remark: 'Ainsi prend fin le premier volume des vertus et glorieulx fais et gestes du noble et puissant chevalier Lancelot du Lac et des compaignons de la Table Ronde,' and then continues, without any break of chapter, to relate the succeeding adventure with the Grail and King Pelles' daughter. So far from this passage occurring at the end of vol. i., the Agravain section does not begin till fol. xxxix. of the second volume of this edition. It is possible that when a critical edition of the Lancelot is prepared the above remark may be a guide to an earlier redaction, in which Lancelot was not the father of the Grail Winner. D. L. has nothing corresponding to this.

In the account given by D. L. of Bohort's visit to Corbenic, the fight with the knight who keeps the bridge for love of Elaine is omitted, but it was evidently in the source, as later on the knight arrives at court as vanquished, and his name is then given as Brimol van Pleiche, thus agreeing with M., Bromel la Pleche, against the Brunet du Plaissis or Plessis of 1533 and S. 1533 records the combat.

On page 195 of the Studies we read that Dr. Sommer's source contained no passage to the effect of M., p. 576, 30-32: 'Mervelle not said sir bors / for this half yere he (Lancelot) hath ben in pryson with Morgan le fay, kyng Arthurs syster /.' But 1533 gives it: 'il a este en la prison ou il y a une dame plus dung an entier,' which is nearer the real duration of Lancelot's imprisonment. This seems to indicate that M. had a fairly full Ms. source, from which he selected at pleasure.

Dr. Sommer gives no summary of Bohort's Grail adventures, so I cannot tell if there be any interesting variants between the French versions, but both 1533 and D. L. contain two features, not reproduced in M., which seem to indicate a knowledge of an older Grail tradition. In both the old man tells Bohort that he has seen 'la lance Vengeresse' the 'wrake spere,' he who sits in the Siege Perilous shall know the truth of adventure.'[171] (This, of course, might be Perceval equally as well as Galahad.) Galahad and Lancelot are not mentioned throughout.[172] The Maimed King and the Fisher King are one and the same person. All these points confirm my suspicion that the Corbenic adventure was originally taken over from an earlier, probably a Gawain, Queste.

In the events relating Elayne's visit to the court and Lancelot's madness, 1533 and D. L. in the main agree with S., but with small variants. In both Elayne leaves the court of her own free will, but Arthur does not escort her; she speaks to Bohort before leaving. The knight encountered by Bohort is alone in D. L., thus agreeing with M.; while in 1533 he does not meet him till after he has rejoined Lionel and Hector. The knights who go in search of Lancelot are in D. L. thirty-two in number, and as later on we are told that twenty-five have returned, this does not seem to be a mistake for twenty-three, as we might otherwise think. 1533 does not give the original number as thirty-two, but agrees with D. L. as to those who return, which confirms this supposition.

In all that relates to Perceval and his first appearance at court, D. L. and 1533 agree on the whole with S. rather than with M., but neither of them give any names of Perceval's brothers (save Agloval, who fetches him from his home), nor say how many there were. Lamorak is never mentioned (I believe this character belongs to quite a late redaction). In this and in the reference to Gawain's having slain Perceval's father, I think we have the influence of the Tristan.

In the account of Perceval's being driven from court by the mockery of Kay and Mordred, D. L. has a remark which again shows the influence of an earlier tradition: Perceval is described as 'Eene harde jonge creature, ende die wel simpel sceen te dien.' Nowhere else is there any sign of the simplicity which is a primitive trait of Perceval's character. Later on, after the 'Patrides' adventure (which appears to be differently related from S. as it is from M., Patrides and the lady having fled together, been overtaken, and imprisoned), both 1533 and D. L. agree in the words spoken by Patrides (D. L.) or the king (1533), i.e. that Kay and Mordred have driven from court one who should be a better knight than all save Gawain.

(1533 says 'When he is grown to manhood' he shall be as good, etc.) This certainly points to an earlier stage of tradition, when Perceval and Gawain are the leading knights and Lancelot subordinate to both.

In view of what we now know, I think it is not an unreasonable hypothesis that these two versions, which agree so closely, represent an earlier pseudo-Borron Lancelot-Perceval redaction, which has been worked over in the interest of the later pseudo-Map Galahad version.[173]

Book XII. M. gives the account of Lancelot's frenzy and subsequent cure. Here D. L. agrees with M. in saying that Lancelot strikes the shield as if X. knights did it, whereas both S. and 1533 give XII. Later on D. L. is alone against the other three in saying that Lancelot has only his ankles fettered, whereas the other three versions give ankles and wrists. Nevertheless here I think D. L. is right, as when Lancelot rushes after the boar both S. and 1533 agree in saying that he breaks the rings on his ankles, and make no mention of those on the wrist. Again D. L. makes no mention of hunters, the horse Lancelot takes he finds tied at the castle gate. As later on, when he comes up with the quarry no hunters are mentioned in any version, I think it probable that they were not in the original, but introduced later by some copyist to account for the boar.

At this point D. L. departs abruptly from the other versions, taking up the Perceval story. It is impossible to say whether this be due to a lacuna in the source, which the compiler filled up as he pleased, or whether this really represents an important (and apparently lost) Lancelot redaction. In the remainder of the incidents represented by this book 1533 agrees on the whole with S., with this important difference, that it makes it quite clear throughout that there is a period of some years involved. The reader quite understands all the details of Galahad's arrival at the abbey, his age, etc. Very probably the compiler of 1513 (Dr. Sommer's source) condensed here, as elsewhere, thus causing the confusion noted on p. 205 of the Studies.