#dame lionesse

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Sir Gareth & his Lady by Sir William Russell Flint

Now we turn to Sir Beaumains, who asked Dame Lyonette if he might see her lady sister. “Sir,” she said, “I would like very much for you to see her.”

Then Sir Beaumains, in full armor, took his horse and spear and rode straight up to the castle; when he came to the gate he found there some armed men, and they pulled up the drawbridge and dropped the portcullis. He marveled as to why they would not allow him to enter, and then he looked up toward a window; there he saw fair Dame Lyonesse, and she said loudly, “Go on your way, Sir Beaumains, for you shall not have all my love yet, not until you are numbered among the worthiest knights. Therefore, go and labor in knightly worship for a year, and then you shall hear new tidings.”

“Alas, fair lady,” said Sir Beaumains, “I have not deserved to be treated this way by you! I believed that you would show me good cheer, and for what I have done I deserve thanks. I have surely bought your love with some of the best blood of my body!”

“Fair, courteous knight,” said Dame Lyonesse, “do not be displeased, nor overhasty. Know well that neither your great effort nor your good love shall be for naught, for I value your hard labor, your courage, your generosity, and your goodness as I should. Therefore, go on your way and be comforted, for this will all work out for the best for you. A year will soon be over. Trust me, fair knight: I will be true to you and never betray you. I will love you and none other until the day I die.” With that she turned away from the window, and Sir Beaumains rode from the castle making great dole.

—Thomas Malory, Le Morte de Arthur (trans. by Dorthy Armstrong)

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The Rejoicings of Sir Gareth's Marriage

The Rejoicings of Sir Gareth's Marriage, from Stories of the Days of King Arthur by Charles Henry Hanson

So when she arrived she was shown every hospitality both by the king and by queens and knights. Of all the ladies there, she was named the fairest, without peer. When Sir Gareth arrived, they exchanged many good looks and words, and all men had great joy to behold them. Then King Arthur and many other kings came, along with Queen Guenevere and Queen Morgause, Sir Gareth’s mother. The king asked his nephew, Sir Gareth, whether he wished to have the lady as his paramour or else as his wife.

“My lord, know well that I love her above all ladies now alive.” “Now fair lady,” said King Arthur, “what do you say?”

“My most noble king,” said Dame Lyonesse, “know well that my lord, Sir Gareth, is he whom I would rather have as my husband than any other Christian prince or king. If I may not have him, I promise you I will never have anyone, for my lord Arthur,” said Dame Lyonesse, “know well that he is my first love, and he shall be the last. If you will allow him to have his will and free choice, I dare say he shall have me.”

“That is the truth,” said Sir Gareth, “if I do not have you as my wife, there shall never be another lady or gentlewoman who shall have joy of me.”

“What, nephew?” said the king. “Is the wind in that door? Know well that I would do nothing to stop your love, and know too that you cannot love so well but that I can increase rather than decrease it. Also, you shall have my love and lordship to the utmost, as much as it lies in my power.” Sir Gareth’s mother said the same.

So then preparations were made for the wedding, and by the king’s advice it was decided that it would be on the following Michaelmas, at Kinkedon, by the sea, a beautiful area. So it was announced in all places throughout the realm, and Sir Gareth summoned all the knights and ladies that he had won in battle previously, so that they would be with him in Kinkedon by the sea on the day of his marriage.

Dame Lyonesse, the Damsel Lyonette, and Sir Gringamore rode to their castle, and she gave a rich and goodly ring to Sir Gareth, and he gave her one. King Arthur gave her a rich neck ring made of gold. Then she departed. King Arthur and his fellowship rode toward Kinkedon. Sir Gareth brought his lady with him, and they caught up to the king and rode with him. … On Michaelmas day, the Archbishop of Canterbury performed the wedding of Sir Gareth and Dame Lyonesse with great solemnity. King Arthur had Sir Gaheris wed the Damsel Savage, Dame Lyonette, and he made Sir Aggravain wed Dame Lyonesse’s niece, who was a fair lady. Her name was Dame Laurel.

—Thomas Malory, Le Morte de Arthur trans. Dorsey Armstrong (p.199)

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Dame Lyonesse's Ring, Or How Beaumains Became the Knight of Many Colors

Then Sir Gareth asked Dame Lyonesse and the Red Knight of the Red Lands and Sir Persaunt and his brothers, and Sir Gringamore, that none of them reveal his name, and not to make more of him than they would of the least knight who was there. “For,” he said, “I wish not to be known as one of the best or the worst, neither at the beginning or the ending.”

Then Dame Lyonesse said to Sir Gareth, “Sir, I would give you a ring of mine, but I would ask you, as you love me, that you will let me have it back again when the tournament is over. For the ring increases my beauty much more than it is, and the virtue of the ring is this: it will turn what is green to red, and red to green, and what is blue to white, and what is white to blue. It will thus change all manner of colors. Also, whoever wears this ring will lose no blood. For great love, I give this ring to you.”

“Thank you,” said Sir Gareth, “my own lady! This ring is appropriate for me, since it will change my appearance and make it so that I will not be known.”

—Sir Thomas Malory's Morte Darthur: A New Modern Translation Based on the Winchester Manuscript by Dorsey Armstrong

See more on Basil Valentine, Beaumains & the Philosopher's Stone

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"How Dame Lionesse came forth arrayed like a princess." From The Romance of King Arthur (1917). Illustrated by Arthur Rackham.

Ecstasis Menti for 1/1, 1/14, 1/22, 2/3, 2/25, 3/21, 3/30, 4/2, 4/20, 5/9, 5/18, 5/19, 5/20, 5/29, 6/13, 7/13 & 8/26/2016.

AND then came forth Dame Lionesse arrayed like a princess, and there she made him passing good cheer, and he her again; and they had goodly language and lovely countenance together…And ever the more Sir Gareth beheld that lady, the more he loved her; and so he burned in love that he was past himself in his reason; and forth to night they yede unto supper, and Sir Gareth might not eat, for his love was so hot that he wist not where he was.”

—Thomas Malory, Le Morte d’Arthur