Gareth
Gareth | |
---|---|
Matter of Britain character | |
![]() "Sir Gareth of Orkney", Howard Pyle's illustration for The Story of Sir Launcelot and His Companions (1907) | |
First appearance | The First Continuation of Perceval, the Story of the Grail |
In-universe information | |
Title | Prince, Sir |
Occupation | Knight of the Round Table |
Family | Lot, Morgause (parents) Agravain, Gaheris, Gawain, Mordred (brothers) King Arthur (uncle) |
Spouse | Lyonesse |
Relatives | King Arthur's family |
Home | Orkney, Camelot |
Gareth (Welsh: [ˈɡarɛθ]; Old French: Guerehet, Guerrehet) is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend. He is the youngest son of King Lot and Queen Morgause, King Arthur's half-sister, thus making him Arthur's nephew, as well as brother to Gawain, Agravain and Gaheris, and either a brother or half-brother of Mordred.[note 1] Gareth is particularly notable in Le Morte d'Arthur, where one of its eight books is named after and largely dedicated to him, and in which he is also known by his nickname Beaumains.
Arthurian legend
French literature
The earliest role of Gareth, appearing as Guerrehet,
Several of his adventures are narrated in the Vulgate Cycle (
His death at the hands of
Le Morte d'Arthur
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Arthur_Hughes_-_Overthrowing_of_the_Rusty_Knight.jpg/220px-Arthur_Hughes_-_Overthrowing_of_the_Rusty_Knight.jpg)
Gareth is the hero of Book IV (Caxton VII) in Sir
After a year passes, Gareth finally embarks on a knightly quest. He goes to the aid of an unknown woman, later revealed to be the Dame Lynette, to save her sister Lyonesse (both also appearing under various alternate spellings) from the Red Knight of the Red Lands. Gareth is accompanied by the dwarf Melot, who knows his true identity. However, Lynette takes Gareth as a mere kitchen boy and constantly derides him. On the way, he defeats Sir Perarde, the horrible Black Knight, and takes his armour and horse. He then meets Sir Pertolope, the Green Knight, who mistakes him for his brother, the Black Knight. Lynette tells the Green Knight that he is a kitchen boy and begs him to rid her of him. Gareth overcomes the Green Knight, but spares his life in return for the knight's swearing to serve King Arthur. He then in much the same fashion defeats Sir Perymones, the Puce Knight (sometimes the Red Knight, but not to be confused with the one of the Red Lands), and Sir Persaunte (Persant of Inde), the Indigo Knight, both of whom also swear loyalty to Arthur. He arrives at Lyonesse's castle, where she is besieged by Sir Ironside, the Red Knight of the Red Lands. Gareth fights him all day and finally prevails, although the Red Knight has the strength of seven men, and intends to slay him just like Ironside had slaughtered all the other knights who came to save the lady Lyonesse. However, the Red Knight explains that he did so because the lady he loved made him swear to kill Lancelot, and the only way to get Lancelot's attention was to first kill these knights. Hearing this, Gareth decides to spare the Red Knight, making him swear to serve Arthur and also go to Camelot and apologise to Lancelot. Lustily in love with Lyonesse, Gareth conspires to consummate their relationship before marrying. Only by the magical intervention of Lynette is their tryst unsuccessful, thus preserving Gareth's virginity and, presumably, his standing with God. Gareth later counsels Lyonesse to report to King Arthur and pretend she does not know where he is; instead, he tells her to announce a tournament of his knights against the Round Table. This allows Gareth to disguise himself and win honour by defeating his brother knights. The heralds eventually acknowledge that he is Sir Gareth right as he strikes down Sir Gawain, his brother.[7]
In Malory's telling, there are only two knights that have ever successfully held against Lancelot: Sir Tristan and Gareth. This was always under conditions where one or both parties were unknown by the other, for these knights loved each other "passingly well". Gareth was knighted by Lancelot himself when he took upon him the adventure on behalf of Lynette. Later, Gareth tells Tristan he had parted ways with his brothers Gaheris and Agravain due to their dislike of him and their murderous ways.
Eventually, Lancelot's unintended and brutal killing of his young friend and hero worship follower makes the central event of the final grand tragedy at the end of Malory's tale.[8] In this scene (based on the English Stanzaic Morte Arthur rather than on the French original) in Book VII (Caxton XVIII), "The Death of Arthur", Gareth arrives unarmed in protest after he is ordered by King Arthur to help guard the execution of Queen Guinevere. Nevertheless, he ends up accidentally killed by the battle-mad Lancelot during the rescue of the queen, along with his brother Gaheris. Gawain refuses to allow Arthur to accept Lancelot's sincere apology for the deaths of his brothers. Lancelot genuinely mourns the death of Gareth, whom he loved closely like a son or younger brother, but Arthur is forced by Gawain's insistence to go to war against Lancelot. This leads to the splitting of the Round Table, Mordred's treachery in trying to seize Guinevere and the throne, Gawain's own death from an unhealed wound he suffered in his duel with Lancelot, and Arthur and Mordred slaying each other in the final battle.
Modern versions
The legend of Gareth and Lynette has been reinterpreted by many writers and poets, the most renowned being
In some other retellings, Gareth marries Lynette's sister, whom he rescues, and Gaheris marries Lynette. Theodore Goodridge Roberts authored the short story "For to Achieve Your Adventure", in which Lynette knows she is sending Gareth into an ambush in an attempt to make him give up for his own protection.
In the Fate franchise, Gareth is depicted as a female knight, while keeping much of the legend's original family traits and story; she ends up brutally killed by the mad Lancelot. An alternative Gareth also appears in a faery world in the "Lostbelt 6: Avalon le Fae" scenario of the mobile game Fate/Grand Order.
- In the film Knights of the Round Table (1953), he was played by Anthony Forwood.
- Richard Thorp played him in the British film Lancelot and Guinevere (1963).
- Vera Chapman's novel The King's Damosel (1976) gives a complete version of Lynette's life.
- Gareth was portrayed by Jonathan Cake in the film First Knight (1995).
- In the video game Mega Man Xtreme 2 (2001), Gareth is a knight-like android who serves his creator, the witch Berkana.
- In the novel Queen of Camelot (2002) by Nancy McKenzie, Gareth and Lynette formally became betrothed when he first came to Arthur.
Notes
- ^ An enumeration of the four brothers (excluding Mordred) can be found in Chrétien de Troyes's Perceval, the Story of the Grail when Gawain tells the "white-haired queen" (his grandmother Igraine) the names of the four brothers ("Gawain is the oldest, the second Agravain the Proud [...], Gaheriet and Guerehet are the names of the following two."[1] A brief portrait of the five brothers (including Mordred) can be found in the prose Lancelot.[2]
References
- ^ Verses 8139–8142 in the Dufournet edition; verses 8056–8060 in the Méla edition.
- ISBN 9781843842354.
- ISBN 9783826028113.
- ISBN 978-0-300-13370-7.
- ISBN 9780859917704.
- ^ Norris J. Lacy, ed., Lancelot-Grail: Lancelot Parts III and IV, pp. 393–4.
- ^ "Sir Gareth". Archived from the original on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
- ISBN 978-0-85991-068-2.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Gareth and Lynette at the Camelot Project