{"collection":"Northern European Mythology","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/neu/malory/ma08.htm","path":"neu/malory/ma08.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/neu/malory/ma08.htm","text":"Part II\nChapter X\nHow They Were Desired Of A Strange Custom, The Which They Would Not Obey; And\nHow They Fought And Slew Many Knights\nThis gentlewoman that ye lead with you is a maid? Sir, said she, a maid I\nam. Then he took her by the bridle and said: By the Holy Cross, ye shall not\nescape me tofore ye have yolden custom of this castle. Let her go, said\nPercivale, ye be not wise, for a maid in what place she cometh is free. So in\nthe meanwhile there came out a ten or twelve knights armed, out of the castle,\nand with them came gentlewoman which held a dish of silver. And then they\nsaid: This gentlewoman must yield us the custom of this castle. Sir, said a\nknight, what maid passeth hereby shall give this dish full of blood of her\nright arm. Blame have ye, said Galahad, that brought up such customs, and so\nGod me save, I ensure you of this gentlewoman ye shall fail while that I live.\nSo God me help, said Percivale, I had lever be slain. And I also, said Sir\nBors. By my troth, said the knight, then shall ye die, for ye may not endure\nagainst us though ye were the best knights of the world. Then let them run\neach to other, and the three fellows beat the ten knights, and then set their\nhands to their swords and beat them down and slew them. Then there came out of\nthe castle a three score knights armed. Fair lords, said the three fellows,\nhave mercy on yourself and have not ado with us. Nay, fair lords, said the\nknights of the castle, we counsel you to withdraw you, for ye be the best\nknights of the world, and therefore do no more, for ye have done enough. We\nwill let you go with this harm, but we must needs have the custom. Certes,\nsaid Galahad, for nought speak ye. Well, said they, will ye die? We be not yet\ncome thereto, said Galahad. Then began they to meddle together, and Galahad,\nwith the strange girdles, drew his sword, and smote on the right hand and on\nthe left hand, and slew what that ever abode him, and did such marvels that\nthere was none that saw him but weened he had been none earthly man, but a\nmonster. And his two fellows halp him passing well, and so they held the\njourney every each in like hard till it was night; then must they needs\ndepart. So came in a good knight, and said to the three fellows: If ye will\ncome in to-night and take such harbour as here is ye shall be right welcome,\nand we shall ensure you by the faith of our bodies, and as we be true\nknights, to leave you in such estate to-morrow as we find you, without any\nfalsehood. And as soon as ye know of the custom we dare say ye will accord.\nTherefore for God's love, said the gentlewoman, go thither and spare not for\nme. Go we, said Galahad; and so they entered into the chapel. And when they\nwere alit they made great joy of them. So within a while the three knights\nasked the custom of the castle and wherefore it was. What it is, said they,\nwe will say you sooth.\nChapter XI\nHow Sir Percivale's Sister Bled A Dish Full Of Blood For To Heal A Lady,\nWherefore She Died; And How That The Body Was Put In A Ship\nThere is in this castle a gentlewoman which we and this castle is hers,\nand many other. So it befell many years agone there fell upon her a malady;\nand when she had lain a great while she fell unto a measle, and of no leech\nshe could have no remedy. But at the last an old man said an she might have\na dish full of blood of a maid and a clene virgin in will and in work, and a\nking's daughter, that blood should be her health, and for to anoint her\nwithal; and for this thing was this custom made. Now, said Percivale's\nsister, fair knights, I see well that this gentlewoman is but dead. Certes,\nsaid Galahad, ye bleed so much ye may die. Truly, said she, an I die for to\nheal her I shall get me great worship and soul's health, and worship to my\nlineage, and better is one harm than twain. And therefore there shall be no\nmore battle, but tomorn I shall yield you your custom of this castle. And\nthen there was great joy more than there was tofore, for else had there been\nmortal war upon the morn; notwithstanding she would none other, whether they\nwould or nold. That night were the three fellows eased with the best; and on\nthe morn they heard mass, and Sir Percivale's sister bad bring forth the sick\nlady. So she was, the which was evil at ease. Then said she: Who shall let me\nblood? So one came forth and let her blood, and she bled so much that the\ndish was full. Then she lift up her hand and blessed her; and then she said\nto the lady: Madam, I am come to the death for to make you whole, for God's\nlove pray for me. With that she fell in a swoon. Then Galahad and his two\nfellows start up to her, and lift her up and staunched her, but she had bled\nso much that she might not live. Then she said when she was awaked: Fair\nbrother Percivale, I die for the healing of this lady, so I require you that\nye bury me not in this country, but as soon as I am dead put me in a boat at\nthe next haven, and let me go as adventure will lead me; and as soon as ye\nthree come to the City of Sarras, there to achieve the Holy Grail, ye shall\nfind me under a tower arrived, and there bury me in the spiritual place; for\nI say you so much, there Galahad shall be buried, and ye also, in the same\nplace. Then Percivale understood these words, and granted it her, weeping.\nAnd then said a voice: Lords and fellows, to-morrow at the hour of prime ye\nthree shall depart every each from other, till the adventure bring you to the\nmaimed king. Then asked she her Saviour; and as soon as she had received it\nthe soul departed from the body. So the same day was the lady healed, when\nshe was anointed withal. Then Sir Percivale made a letter of all that she had\nholpen them as in strange adventures, and put it in her right hand, and so\nlaid her in a barge, and covered it with black silk; and so the wind arose,\nand drove the barge from the land, and all knights beheld it till it was out\nof their sight. Then they drew all to the castle, and so forthwith there fell\na sudden tempest and a thunder, lightning, and rain, as all the earth would\nhave broken. So half the castle turned up so down. So it passed evensong or\nthe tempest was ceased. Then they saw afore them a knight armed and wounded\nhard in the body and in the head, that said: O God, succour me for now it is\nneed. After this knight came another knight and a dwarf, which cried to them\nafar: Stand, ye may not escape. Then the wounded knight held up his hands to\nGod that he should not die in such tribulation. Truly, said Galahad, I shall\nsuccour him for His sake that he calleth upon. Sir, said Bors, I shall do it,\nfor it is not for you, for he is but one knight. Sir, said he, I grant. So\nSir Bors took his horse, and commended him to God, and rode after, to rescue\nthe wounded knight. Now turn we to the two fellows.\nChapter XII\nHow Galahad And Percivale Found In A Castle Many Tombs Of Maidens That Had\nBled To Death\nNow saith the story that all night Galahad and Percivale were in a chapel\nin their prayers, for to save Sir Bors. So on the morrow they dressed them in\ntheir harness toward the castle, to wit what was fallen of them therein. And\nwhen they came there they found neither man nor woman that he ne was dead by\nthe vengeance of Our Lord. With that they heard a voice that said: This\nvengeance is for blood shedding of maidens. Also they found at the end of the\nchapel a churchyard, and therein might they see a three score fair tombs, and\nthat place was so fair and so delectable that it seemed them there had been\nnone tempest, for there lay the bodies of all the good maidens which were\nmartyred for the sick lady's sake. Also they found the names of every each,\nand of what blood they were come, and all were of kings' blood, and twelve of\nthem were kings' daughters. Then they departed and went into a forest. Now,\nsaid Percivale unto Galahad, we must depart, so pray we Our Lord that we may\nmeet together in short time: then they did off their helms and kissed\ntogether, and wept at their departing.\nChapter XIII\nHow Sir Launcelot Entered Into The Ship Where Sir Percivale's Sister Lay\nDead, And How He Met With Sir Galahad, His Son\nNow saith the history, that when Launcelot was come to the water of\nMortoise, as it is rehearsed before, he was in great peril, and so he laid\nhim down and slept, and took the adventure that God would send him. So when\nhe was asleep there came a vision unto him and said: Launcelot, arise up and\ntake thine armour, and enter into the first ship that thou shalt find. And\nwhen he heard these words he start up and saw great clereness about him. And\nthen he lift up his hand and blessed him, and so took his arms and made him\nready; and so by adventure he came by a strand, and found a ship the which\nwas without sail or oar. And as soon as he was within the ship three he felt\nthe most sweetness that ever he felt, and he was fulfilled with all thing that\nhe thought on or desired. Then he said: Fair sweet Father, Jesu Christ, I\nwot not in what joy I am, for this joy passeth all earthly joys that ever I\nwas in. And so in this joy he laid him down to the ship's board, and slept\ntill day. And when he awoke he found there a fair bed, and therein lying a\ngentlewoman dead, the which was Sir Percivale's sister. And as Launcelot\ndevised her, he espied in her right hand a writ, the which he read, the which\ntold him all the adventures that ye have heard tofore, and of what lineage\nshe was come. So with this gentlewoman Sir Launcelot was a month and more.\nIf ye would ask how he lived, He that fed the people of Israel with manna in\nthe desert, so was he fed; for every day when he had said his prayers he was\nsustained with the grace of the Holy Ghost. So on a night he went to play\nhim by the water side, for he was somewhat weary of the ship. And then he\nlistened and heard an horse come, and one riding upon him. And when he came\nnigh he seemed a knight. And so he let him pass, and went thereas the ship\nwas; and there he alit, and took the saddle and the bridle and put the horse\nfrom him, and went into the ship. And then Launcelot dressed unto him, and\nsaid: Ye be welcome. And he answered and saluted him again, and asked him:\nWhat is your name? for much my heart giveth unto you. Truly, said he, my\nname is Launcelot du Lake. Sir, said he, then be ye welcome, for ye were\nthe beginning of me in this world. Ah, said he, are ye Galahad? Yea, forsooth,\nsaid he; and so he kneeled down and asked him his blessing, and after took\noff his helm and kissed him. And there was great joy between them, for there\nis no tongue can tell the joy that they made either of other, and many a\nfriendly word spoken between, as kin would, the which is no need here to be\nrehearsed. And there every each told other of their adventures and marvels\nthat were befallen to them in many journeys sith that they departed from the\ncourt. Anon, as Galahad saw the gentlewoman dead in the bed, he knew her well\nenough, and told great worship of her, that she was the best maid living, and\nit was great pity of her death. But when Launcelot heard how the marvellous\nsword was gotten, and who made it, and all the marvels rehearsed afore, then\nhe prayed Galahad, his son, that he would show him the sword, and so he did;\nand anon he kissed the pommel, and the hilt and the scabbard. Truly, said\nLauncelot, never erst knew I of so high adventures done, and so marvellous\nand strange. So dwelt Launcelot and Galahad within that ship half a year,\nand served God daily and nightly with all their power; and often they arrived\nin isles far from folk, where there repaired none but wild beasts, and there\nthey found many strange adventures and perillous, which they brought to an\nend; but for those adventures were with wild beasts, and not in the quest of\nthe Sangreal, therefore the tale maketh here no mention thereof, for it\nwould be too long to tell of all those adventures that befell them.\nChapter XIV\nHow A Knight Brought Unto Sir Galahad A Horse, And Bad Him Come From His\nFather, Sir Launcelot\nSo after, on a Monday, it befell that they arrived in the edge of a\nforest tofore a cross; and then saw they a knight armed all in white, and\nwas richly horsed, and led in his right hand a white horse; and so he came\nto the ship, and saluted the two knights on the High Lord's behalf, and said:\nGalahad, sir, ye have been long enough with your father, come out of the\nship, and start upon this horse, and go where the adventures shall lead thee\nin the quest of the Sangreal. Then he went to his father and kissed him\nsweetly, and said: Fair sweet father, I wot not when I shall see you more till\nI see the body of Jesu Christ. I pray you, said Launcelot, pray ye to the\nHigh Father that He hold me in His service. And so he took his horse, and\nthere they heard a voice that said: Think for to do well, for the one shall\nnever see the other before the dreadful day of doom. Now, son Galahad, said\nLauncelot, syne we shall depart, and never see other, I pray to the High\nFather to conserve me and you both. Sir, said Galahad, no prayer availeth so\nmuch as yours. And therewith Galahad entered into the forest. And the wind\narose, and drove Launcelot more than a month throughout the sea, where he\nslept but little, but prayed to God that he might see some tidings of the\nSangreal. So it befell on a night, at midnight, he arrived afore a castle, on\nthe back side, which was rich and fair, and there was a postern opened toward\nthe sea, and was open without any keeping, save two lions kept the entry; and\nthe moon shone clear. Anon Sir Launcelot heard a voice that said: Launcelot,\ngo out of this ship and enter into the castle, where thou shalt see a great\npart of thy desire. Then he ran to his arms, and so armed him, and so went to\nthe gate and saw the lions. Then set he hand to his sword and drew it. Then\nthere came a dwarf suddenly, and smote him on the arm so sore that the sword\nfell out of his hand. Then heard he a voice say: O man of evil faith and poor\nbelief, wherefore trowest thou more on thy harness than in thy Maker, for He\nmight more avail thee than thine armour, in whose service that thou art set.\nThen said Launcelot: Fair Father Jesu Christ, I thank thee of Thy great mercy\nthat Thou reprovest me of my misdeed; now see I well that ye hold me for your\nservant. Then took he again his sword and put it up in his sheath, and made a\ncross in his forehead, and came to the lions, and they made semblant to do him\nharm. Notwithstanding he passed by them without hurt, and entered into the\ncastle to the chief fortress, and there were they all at rest. Then Launcelot\nentered in so armed, for he found no gate nor door but it was open. And at\nlast he found a chamber whereof the door was shut, and he set his hand thereto\nto have opened it, but he might not.\nChapter XV\nHow Sir Launcelot Was Afore The Door Of The Chamber Wherein The Holy Sangreal\nWas\nThen he enforced him mickle to undo the door. Then he listened and heard\na voice which sang so sweetly that it seemed none earthly thing; and him\nthought the voice said: Joy and honour be to the Father of Heaven. Then\nLauncelot kneeled down tofore the chamber, for well wist he that there was the\nSangreal within that chamber. Then said he: Fair sweet Father, Jesu Christ, if\never I did thing that pleased Thee, Lord for Thy pity never have me not in\ndespite for my sins done aforetime, and that Thou show me something of that I\nseek. And with that he saw the chamber door open, and there came out a great\nclereness, that the house was as bright as all the torches of the world had\nbeen there. So came he to the chamber door, and would have entered. And anon a\nvoice said to him, Flee, Launcelot, and enter not, for thou oughtest not to do\nit; and if thou enter thou shalt forethink it. Then he withdrew him aback\nright heavy. Then looked he up in the middes of the chamber, and saw a table\nof silver, and the holy vessel, covered with red samite, and many angels about\nit, whereof one held a candle of wax burning, and the other held a cross, and\nthe ornaments of an altar. And before the holy vessel he saw a good man\nclothed as a priest. And it seemed that he was at the sacring of the mass. And\nit seemed to Launcelot that above the priest's hands were three men, whereof\nthe two put the youngest by likeness between the priest's hands; and so he\nlift it up right high, and it seemed to show so to the people. And then\nLauncelot marvelled not a little, for him thought the priest was so greatly\ncharged of the figure that him seemed that he should fall to the earth. And\nwhen he saw none about him that would help him, then came he to the door a\ngreat pace, and said: Fair Father Jesu Christ, ne take it for no sin though I\nhelp the good man which hath great need of help. Right so entered he into the\nchamber, and came toward the table of silver; and when he came nigh he felt a\nbreath, that him thought it was intermeddled with fire, which smote him so\nsore in the visage that him thought it brent his visage; and therewith he fell\nto the earth, and had no power to arise, as he that was so araged, that had\nlost the power of his body, and his hearing, and his seeing. Then felt he many\nhands about him, which took him up and bare him out of the chamber door,\nwithout any amending of his swoon, and left him there, seeming dead to all\npeople. So upon the morrow when it was fair day they within were risen, and\nfound Launcelot lying afore the chamber door. All they marvelled how that he\ncame in, and so they looked upon him, and felt his pulse to wit whether there\nwere any life in him; and so they found life in him, but he might not stand\nnor stir no member that he had. And so they took him by every part of the\nbody, and bare him into a chamber, and laid him in a rich bed, far from all\nfolk; and so he lay four days. Then the one said he was on live, and the other\nsaid, Nay. In the name of God, said an old man, for I do you verily to wit he\nis not dead, but he is so full of life as the mightiest of you all; and\ntherefore I counsel you that he be well kept till God send him life again.\nChapter XVI\nHow Sir Launcelot Had Lain Four And Twenty Days And As Many Nights As A Dead\nMan, And Other Divers Matters\nIn such manner they kept Launcelot four and twenty days and all so many\nnights, that ever he lay still as a dead man; and at the twenty-fifth day\nbefell him after midday that he opened his eyes. And when he saw folk he made\ngreat sorrow, and said: Why have ye awaked me, for I was more at ease than\nI am now. O Jesu Christ, who might be so blessed that might see openly thy\ngreat marvels of secretness there where no sinner may be! What have ye seen?\nsaid they about him. I have seen, said he, so great marvels that no tongue\nmay tell, and more than any heart can think, and had not my son been here\nafore me I had seen much more. Then they told him how he had lain there four\nand twenty days and nights. Then him thought it was punishment for the four\nand twenty years that he had been a sinner, wherefore Our Lord put him in\npenance four and twenty days and nights. Then looked Sir Launcelot afore him,\nand saw the hair which he had borne nigh a year, for that he forethought him\nright much that he had broken his promise unto the hermit, which he had\navowed to do. Then they asked how it stood with him. For sooth, said he, I\nam whole of body, thanked be Our Lord; therefore, sirs, for God's love tell\nme where I am. Then said they all that he was in the castle of Carbonek.\nTherewith came a gentlewoman and brought him a shirt of small linen cloth,\nbut he changed not there, but took the hair to him again. Sir, said they,\nthe quest of the Sangreal is achieved now right in you, that never shall ye\nsee of the Sangreal no more than ye have seen. Now I thank God, said\nLauncelot, of His great mercy of that I have seen, for it sufficeth me; for\nas I suppose no man in this world hath lived better than I have done to\nachieve that I have done. And therewith he took the hair and clothed him\nin it, and above that he put a linen shirt, and after a robe of scarlet,\nfresh and new. And when he was so arrayed they marvelled all, for they knew\nhim that he was Launcelot, the good knight, And then they said all: O my lord\nSir Launcelot, be that ye? And he said: Truly I am he. Then came word to King\nPelles that the knight that had lain so long dead was Sir Launcelot. Then was\nthe king right glad, and went to see him. And when Launcelot saw him come he\ndressed him against him, and there made the king great joy of him. And there\nthe king told him tidings that his fair daughter was dead. Then Launcelot was\nright heavy of it, and said: Sir, me forthinketh the death of your daughter,\nfor she was a full fair lady, fresh and young. And well I wot she bare the\nbest knight that is now on the earth, or that ever was sith God was born. So\nthe king held him there four days, and on the morrow he took his leave at\nKing Pelles and at all the fellowship, and thanked them of their great\nlabour. Right so as they sat at their dinner in the chief hall, then was it\nso that the Sangreal had fulfilled the table with all manner of meats that\nany heart might think. So as they sat they saw all the doors and the windows\nof the place were shut without man's hand, whereof they were all abashed, and\nnone wist what to do. And then it happened suddenly that a knight came to the\nchief door and knocked, and cried: Unto the door. But they would not. And\never he cried: Undo; but they would not. And at last it annoyed him so much\nthat the king himself arose and came to a window where the knight called.\nThen he said: Sir knight, ye shall not enter at this time while the Sangreal\nis here, and therefore go into another; for certes ye be none of the knights\nof the quest, but one of them which hath served the fiend, and hast left the\nservice of Our Lord: and he was passing wroth at the king's words. Sir\nknight, said the king, sith ye would so fain enter, say me of what country ye\nbe. Sir, said he, I am of the realm of Logris, and my name is Ector de Maris,\nand brother unto my lord, Sir Launcelot. In the name of God, said the king,\nme forthinketh of what I have said, for your brother is here within. And when\nEctor de Maris understood that his brother was there, for he was the man in\nthe world that he most dread and loved, and then he said: Ah God, now\ndoubleth my sorrow and shame. Full truly said the good man of the hill unto\nGawaine and to me of our dreams. Then went he out of the court as fast as his\nhorse might, and so throughout the castle.\nChapter XVII\nHow Sir Launcelot Returned Towards Logris, And Of Other Adventures Which He\nSaw In The Way\nThen King Pelles came to Sir Launcelot and told him tidings of his\nbrother, whereof he was sorry, that he wist not what to do. So Sir Launcelot\ndeparted, and took his arms, and said he would go see the realm of Logris,\nwhich I have not seen these twelve months. And therewith he commended the king\nto God, and so rode through many realms. And at the last he came to a white\nabbey, and there they made him that night great cheer; and on the morn he rose\nand heard mass. And afore an altar he found a rich tomb, the which was newly\nmade; and then he took heed, and saw the sides written with gold which said:\nHere lieth King Bagdemagus of Gore, which King Arthur's nephew slew; and named\nhim, Sir Gawaine. Then was he not a little sorry, for Launcelot loved him much\nmore than any other, and had it been any other than Gawaine he should not have\nescaped from death to life; and said to himself: Ah Lord God, this is a great\nhurt unto King Arthur's court, the loss of such a man. And then he departed\nand came to the abbey where Galahad did the adventure of the tombs, and won\nthe white shield with the red cross; and there had he great cheer all that\nnight. And on the morn he turned unto Camelot, where he found King Arthur and\nthe queen. But many of the knights of the Round Table were slain and\ndestroyed, more than half. And so three were come home again, that were Sir\nGawaine, Sir Ector, and Sir Lionel, and many other that need not to be\nrehearsed. Then all the court was passing glad of Sir Launcelot, and the king\nasked him many tidings of his son Galahad. And there Launcelot told the king\nof his adventures that had befallen him syne he departed. And also he told\nhim of the adventures of Galahad, Percivale, and Bors, which that he knew by\nthe letter of the dead damosel, and as Galahad had told him. Now God would,\nsaid the king, that they were all three here. That shall never be, said\nLauncelot, for two of them shall ye never see, but one of them shall come\nagain.\nChapter XVIII\nHow Galahad Came To King Mordrains, And Of Other Matters And Adventures\nNow saith the story that Galahad rode many journeys in vain. And at the\nlast he came to Abbey where King Mordrains was, and when he heard that he\nthought he would abide to see him. And upon the morn, when he had heard mass,\nGalahad came unto King Mordrains, and anon the king saw him, which had lain\nblind a long time. And then he dressed him against him, and said: Galahad, the\nservant of Jesu Christ, whose coming I have abiden so long, now embrace me and\nlet me rest on thy breast, so that I may rest between thine arms, for thou art\na clene virgin above all knights, as the flower of the lily in whom virginity\nis signified, and thou art the rose the which is the flower of all good\nvirtues, and in colour of fire. For the fire of the Holy Ghost is taken so in\nthee that my flesh which was of dead oldness is become young again. When\nGalahad heard his words, then he embraced him and all his body. Then said he:\nFair Lord Jesu Christ, now I have my will. Now I require thee, in this point\nthat I am in, thou come and visit me. And anon Our Lord heard his prayer:\ntherewith the soul departed from the body. And then Galahad put him in the\nearth as a king ought to be, and so departed and came into a perilous forest\nwhere he found the well the which boileth with great waves, as the tale\ntelleth tofore. And as soon as Galahad set his hand thereto it ceased, so that\nit burnt no more, and the heat departed. For that it brent it was a sign of\nlechery, the which was that time much used. But that heat might not abide his\npure virginity. And this was taken in the country for a miracle. And so ever\nafter was it called Galahad's well. Then by adventure he came into the country\nof Gore, and into the Abbey where Launcelot had been toforehand, and found the\ntomb of King Bagdemagus, but Joseph of Aramathie's son was founder thereof;\nand the tomb of Simeon where Launcelot had failed. Then he looked into a croft\nunder the minster, and there he saw a tomb which burnt full marvellously. Then\nasked he the brethren what it was. Sir, said they, a marvellous adventure that\nmay not be brought unto none end but by him that passeth of bounty and of\nknighthood all the knights of the Round Table. I would, said Galahad, that ye\nwould lead me thereto. Gladly, said they. And so they led him unto a cave. And\nhe went down upon gretys, and came nigh the tomb. And then the flaming\nfailed, and the fire stanched, the which many a day had been great. Then came\nthere a voice that said: much are ye beholden to thank Our Lord, the which\nhath given you a good hour, that ye may draw out the souls of earthly pain,\nand to put them into the joys of paradise. I am of your kindred, the which\nhath dwelled in this heat this three hundred four and fifty winter to be\npurged of the sin that I did against Joseph of Aramathie. Then Galahad took\nthe body in his arms and bare it into the minster. And that night lay Galahad\nin the abbey; and on the morn he gave him service, and put him in the earth\nafore the high altar.\nChapter XIX\nHow Sir Percivale And Sir Bors Met With Sir Galahad, And How They Came To The\nCastle Of Carbonek, And Other Matters\nSo departed he from thence, and commended the brethren to God; and so he\nrode five days till that he came to the maimed king. And ever followed\nPercivale the five days, asking where he had been; and so one told him how the\nadventures of Logris were achieved. So on a day it befell that they came out\nof a great forest, and there they met at traverse with Sir Bors, the which\nrode alone. It is none need to tell if they were glad; and them he saluted,\nand they yielded him honour and good adventure, and every each told other.\nThen said Bors: It is more than a year and an half that I ne lay ten times\nwhere men dwelled, but in wild forests and in mountains, but God was ever my\ncomfort. Then rode they a great while till that they came to the castle of\nCarbonek. And when they were entered within the castle King Pelles knew them;\nthen there was great joy, for they wist well by their coming that they had\nfulfilled the quest of the Sangreal. Then Eliazar, King Pelles' son, brought\ntofore them the broken sword wherewith Joseph was stricken through the thigh.\nThen Bors set his hand thereto, if that he might have soldered it again; but\nit would not be. Then he took it to Percivale, but he had no more power\nthereto than he. Now have ye it again, said Percivale to Galahad, for an it\nbe ever achieved by any bodily man ye must do it. And then he took the pieces\nand set them together, and they seemed that they had never been broken, and\nas well as it had been first forged. And when they within espied that the\nadventure of the sword was achieved, then they gave the sword to Bors, for it\nmight not be better set; for he was a good knight and a worthy man. And a\nlittle afore even the sword arose great and marvellous, and was full of great\nheat that many men fell for dread. And anon alit a voice among them, and\nsaid: They that ought not to sit at the table of Jesu Christ arise, for now\nshall very knights be fed. So they went thence, all save King Pelles and\nEliazar, his son, the which were holy men, and a maid which was his niece;\nand so these three fellows and they three were there, no more. Anon they saw\nknights all armed come in at the hall door, and did off their helms and their\narms, and said unto Galahad: Sir, we have hied right much for to be with you\nat this table where the holy meat shall be departed. Then said he: Ye be\nwelcome, but of whence be ye? So three of them said they were of Gaul, and\nother three said they were of Ireland, and the other three said they were of\nDenmark. So as they sat thus there came out a bed of tree, of a chamber, the\nwhich four gentlewomen brought; and in the bed lay a good man sick, and a\ncrown of gold upon his head; and there in the middes of the place they set\nhim down, and went again their way. Then he lift up his head, and said:\nGalahad, Knight, ye be welcome, for much have I desired your coming, for in\nsuch anguish I have been long. But now I trust to God the term is come that\nmy pain shall be allayed, that I shall pass out of this world so as it was\npromised me long ago. Therewith a voice said: There be two among you that be\nnot in the quest of the Sangreal, and therefore depart ye.\nChapter XX\nHow Galahad And His Fellows Were Fed Of The Holy Sangreal, And How Our Lord\nAppeared To Them, And Other Things\nThen King Pelles and his son departed. And therewithal beseemed them that\nthere came a man, and four angels from heaven, clothed in likeness of a\nbishop, and had a cross in his hand; and there four angels bare him in a\nchair, and set him down before the table of silver whereupon the Sangreal was;\nand it seemed that he had in middes of his forehead letters the which said:\nSee ye here Joseph, the first bishop of Christendom, the same which Our Lord\nsuccoured in the city of Sarras in the spiritual place. Then the knights\nmarvelled, for that bishop was dead more than three hundred years tofore. O\nknights, said he, marvel not, for I was sometime an earthly man. With that\nthey heard the chamber door open, and there they saw angels; and two bare\ncandles of wax, and the third a towel, and the fourth a spear which bled\nmarvellously, that three drops fell within a box which he held with his\nother hand. And they set the candles upon the table, and the third the towel\nupon the vessel, and the fourth the holy spear even upright upon the vessel.\nAnd then the bishop made semblant as though he would have gone to the sacring\nof the mass. And then he took an ubblye which was made in likeness of bread.\nAnd at the lifting up there came a figure in likeness of a child, and the\nvisage was a red and as bright as any fire, and smote himself into the bread,\nso that they all saw it that the bread was formed of a fleshly man; and then\nhe put it into the holy vessel again, and then he did that longed to a priest\nto do to a mass. And then he went to Galahad and kissed him, and bad him go\nand kiss his fellows: and so he did anon. Now, said he, servants of Jesu\nChrist, ye shall be fed afore this table with sweetmeats that never knights\ntasted. And when he had said, he vanished away. And they set them at the table\nin great dread and made their prayers. Then looked they and saw a man come out\nof the holy vessel, that had all the signs of the passion of Jesu Christ,\nbleeding all openly, and said: My knights, and my servants, and my true\nchildren, which be come out of deadly life into spiritual life, I will now no\nlonger hide me from you, but ye shall see now a part of my secrets and of my\nhidden things: now hold and receive the high meat which ye have so much\ndesired. Then took he himself the holy vessel and came to Galahad; and he\nkneeled down, and there he received his Saviour, and after him so received all\nhis fellows; and they thought it so sweet that it was marvellous to tell. Then\nsaid he to Galahad: Son, wotest thou what I hold betwixt my hands? Nay, said\nhe, but if ye will tell me. This is, said he, the holy dish wherein I ate the\nlamb on Sher Thursday. And now hast thou seen that thou most desired to see,\nbut yet hast thou not seen it so openly as thou shalt see it in the city of\nSarras in the spiritual place. Therefore thou must go hence and bear with thee\nthis holy vessel; for this night it shall depart from the realm of Logris,\nthat it shall never be seen more here. And wotest thou wherefore? For he is\nnot served nor worshipped to his right by them of this land, for they be\nturned to evil living; therefore I shall disherit them of the honour which I\nhave done them. And therefore go ye three to-morrow unto the sea, where ye\nshall find your ship ready and with you take the sword with the strange\ngirdles, and no more with you but Sir Percivale and Sir Bors. Also I will that\nye take with you of the blood of this spear for to anoint the maimed king,\nboth his legs and all his body, and he shall have his health. Sir, said\nGalahad, why shall not these other fellows go with us? For this cause: for\nright as I departed my apostles one here and another there, so I will that ye\ndepart; and two of you shall die in my service, but one of you shall come\nagain and tell tidings. Then gave he them his blessing and vanished away.\nChapter XXI\nHow Galahad Anointed With The Blood Of The Spear The Maimed King, And Other\nAdventures\nAnd Galahad went anon to the spear which lay upon the table, and touched\nthe blood with his fingers, and came after to the maimed king and anointed\nhis legs. And therewith he clothed him anon, and start upon his feet out of\nhis bed as an whole man, and thanked Our Lord that He had healed him. And that\nwas not to the world ward, for anon he yielded him to a place of religion of\nwhite monks, and was a full holy man. That same night about midnight came a\nvoice among them which said: My sons and not my chief sons, my friends and not\nmy warriors, go ye hence where ye hope best to do and as I bad you. Ah,\nthanked be Thou, Lord, that Thou wilt vouchsafe to call us, Thy sinners. Now\nmay we well prove that we have not lost our pains. And anon in all haste\nthey took their harness and departed. But the three knights of Gaul, one of\nthem hight Claudine, King Claudas' son, and the other two were great\ngentlemen. Then prayed Galahad to every each of them, that if they come to\nKing Arthur's court that they should salute my lord, Sir Launcelot, my father,\nand of them of the Round Table; and prayed them if that they came on that part\nthat they should not forget it. Right so departed Galahad, Percivale and Bors\nwith him; and so they rode three days, and then they came to a rivage and\nfound the ship whereof the tale speaketh of tofore. And when they came to the\nboard they found in the middes the table of silver which they had left with\nthe maimed king, and the Sangreal which was covered with red samite. Then\nwere they glad to have such things in their fellowship; and so they entered\nand made great reverence thereto; and Galahad fell in his prayer long time to\nOur Lord, that at what time he asked, that he should pass out of this world.\nSo much he prayed till a voice said to him: Galahad, thou shalt have thy\nrequest; and when thou askest the death of thy body thou shalt have it, and\nthen shalt thou find the life of the soul. Percivale heard this, and prayed\nhim, of fellowship that was between them, to tell him wherefore he asked such\nthings. That shall I tell you, said Galahad; the other day when we saw a\npart of the adventures of the Sangreal I was in such a joy of heart, that I\ntrow never man was that was earthly. And therefore I wot well, when my body\nis dead my soul shall be in great joy to see the blessed Trinity every day,\nand the Majesty of Our Lord, Jesu Christ. So long were they in the ship that\nthey said to Galahad: Sir, in this bed ought ye to lie, for so saith the\nscripture. And so he laid him down and slept a great while; and when he\nawaked he looked afore him and saw the city of Sarras. And as they would have\nlanded they saw the ship wherein Percivale had put his sister in. Truly, said\nPercivale, in the name of God, well hath my sister holden us covenant. Then\ntook they out of the ship the table of silver, and he took it to Percivale\nand to Bors, to go tofore, and Galahad came behind. And right so they went to\nthe city, and at the gate of the city they saw an old man crooked. Then\nGalahad called him and bad him help to bear this heavy thing. Truly, said the\nold man, it is ten year ago that I might not go but with crutches. Care thou\nnot, said Galahad, and arise up and shew thy good will. And so he essayed,\nand found himself as whole as ever he was. Then ran he to the table, and took\none part against Galahad. And anon arose there great noise in the city, that\na cripple was made whole by knights marvellous that entered into the city.\nThen anon after, the three knights went to the water, and brought up into the\npalace Percivale's sister, and buried her as richly as a king's daughter\nought to be. And when the king of the city, which was cleped Estorause, saw\nthe fellowship, he asked them of whence they were, and what thing it was that\nthey had brought upon the table of silver. And they told him the truth of the\nSangreal, and the power which that God had set there. Then the king was a\ntyrant, and was come of the line of paynims, and took them and put them in\nprison in a deep hole.\nChapter XXII\nHow They Were Fed With The Sangreal While They Were In Prison, And How\nGalahad Was Made King\nBut as soon as they were there Our Lord sent them the Sangreal, through\nwhose grace they were alway fulfilled while that they were in prison. So at\nthe year's end it befel that this King Estorause lay sick, and felt that he\nshould die. Then he sent for the three knights, and they came afore him; and\nhe cried them mercy of that he had done to them, and they forgave it him\ngoodly; and he died anon. When the king was dead all the city was dismayed,\nand wist not who might be their king. Right so as they were in counsel there\ncame a voice among them, and bad them choose the youngest knight of them three\nto be their king: For he shall well maintain you and all yours. So they made\nGalahad king by all the assent of the holy city, and else they would have\nslain him. And when he was come to behold the land, he let make above the\ntable of silver a chest of gold and of precious stones, that hylled the holy\nvessel. And every day early the three fellows would come afore it, and make\ntheir prayers. Now at the year's end, and the self day after Galahad had borne\nthe crown of gold, he arose up early and his fellows, and came to the palace,\nand saw tofore them the holy vessel, and a man kneeling on his knees in\nlikeness of a bishop, that had about him a great fellowship of angels as it\nhad been Jesu Christ himself; and then he arose and began a mass of Our Lady.\nAnd when he came to the sacrament of the mass, and had done, anon he called\nGalahad, and said to him: Come forth the servant of Jesu Christ, and thou\nshalt see that thou hast much desired to see. And then he began to tremble\nright hard when the deadly flesh began to behold the spiritual things. Then he\nheld up his hands toward heaven and said: Lord, I thank thee, for now I see\nthat that hath been my desire many a day. Now, blessed Lord, would I not\nlonger live, if it might please thee, Lord. And therewith the good man took\nOur Lord's body betwixt his hands, and proffered it to Galahad, and he\nreceived it right gladly and meekly. Now wotest thou what I am? said the good\nman. Nay, said Galahad. I am Joseph of Aramathie, the which Our Lord hath sent\nhere to thee to bear thee fellowship; and wotest thou wherefore that he hath\nsent me more than any other? For thou hast resembled me in two things; in that\nthou hast seen the marvels of the Sangreal, in that thou hast been a clene\nmaiden, as I have been and am. And when he had said these words Galahad went\nto Percivale and kissed him, and commended him to God; and so he went to Sir\nBors and kissed him, and commended him to Gog, and said: Fair lord, salute me\nto my lord, Sir Launcelot, my father, and as soon as ye see him, bid him\nremember of this unstable world. And therewith he kneeled down tofore the\ntable and made his prayers, and then suddenly his soul departed to Jesu\nChrist, and a great multitude of angels bare his soul up to heaven, that the\ntwo fellows might well behold it. Also the two fellows saw come from heaven an\nhand, but they saw not the body. And then it came right to the Vessel, and\ntook it and the spear, and so bare it up to heaven. Sithen was there never man\nso hardy to say that he had seen the Sangreal.\nChapter XXIII\nOf The Sorrow That Percivale And Bors Made When Galahad Was Dead: And Of\nPercivale How He Died, And Other Matters\nWhen Percivale and Bors saw Galahad dead they made as much sorrow as ever\ndid two men. And if they had not been good men they might lightly have fallen\nin despair. And the people of the country and of the city were right heavy.\nAnd then he was buried; and as soon as he was buried Sir Percivale yielded him\nto an hermitage out of the city, and took a religious clothing. And Bors was\nalway with him, but never changed he his secular clothing, for that he\npurposed him to go again into the realm of Logris. Thus a year and two months\nlived Sir Percivale in the hermitage a full holy life, and then passed out of\nthis world; and Bors let bury him by his sister and by Galahad in the\nspiritualities. When Bors saw that he was in so far countries as in the parts\nof Babylon he departed from Sarras, and armed him and came to the sea, and\nentered into a ship; and so it befell him in good adventure he came into the\nrealm of Logris; and he rode so fast till he came to Camelot where the king\nwas. And then was there great joy made of him in the court, for they weened\nall he had been dead, forasmuch as he had been so long out of the country. And\nwhen they had eaten, the king made great clerks to come afore him, that they\nshould chronicle of the high adventures of the good knights. When Bors had\ntold him of the adventures of the Sangreal, such as had befallen him and his\nthree fellows, that was Launcelot, Percivale, Galahad, and himself, there\nLauncelot told the adventures of the Sangreal that he had seen. All this was\nmade in great books, and put up in almeryes at Salisbury. And anon Sir Bors\nsaid to Sir Launcelot: Galahad, your own son, saluted you by me, and after you\nKing Arthur and all the Court, and so did Sir Percivale, for I buried them\nwith mine own hands in the city of Sarras. Also, Sir Launcelot, Galahad prayed\nyou to remember of this unsyker world as ye behight him when ye were together\nmore than half a year. This is true, said Launcelot; now I trust to God his\nprayer shall avail me. Then Launcelot took Sir Bors in his arms, and said:\nGentle cousin, ye are right welcome to me, and all that ever I may do for you\nand for yours ye shall find my poor body ready at all times, while the spirit\nis in it, and that I promise you faithfully, and never to fail. And wit ye\nwell, gentle cousin, Sir Bors, that ye and I will never depart in sunder\nwhilst our lives may last. Sir, said he, I will as ye will.\nThus endeth the story of the Sangreal, that was briefly drawn out\nof French in to English, the which is a story cronicled for one of the\ntruest and the holiest that is in this world, the which is the xvii. book.","title":"Malory: Book Seventeen, Part II","type":"page"}