Arthurian Romance-The Knight with the Lion

     Chrétien de Troyes completed the whole piece of  The Knight with the Lion. In turn the poem does not have a prologue. The Knight with the Lion has intertextual references that are linked to The Knight of the Cart and it is agreed upon that these two works were created around the same time. This literary technique helps to cement the story and make it more legitimized. The connection between the two stories help to create a larger world that the read is able to explore more in depth. Yvain takes on the conflict of two separate forms of love. Instead of following his bride, which was a staple form of story telling in this time, he searches for love through his pursuit of glory. Chrétien was able to tell this story in a manner that made the audience think about the status quo.
     King Arthur holds his court at the time of Pentecost. After the meal Calogrenant, a knight, tells a tale of disgrace. Sir Kay mocks the knight at first because the story teller was the only knight to stand in the queen's presence. This being the same seneschal that was seen in The Knight of the Cart, his attitude ridicules the ideas of Calogrenant, which is a stark contrast to his character in Lancelot. Calogrenant continues with his tale.
     He was riding in Broceliande forest looking for adventure when he came across a treacherous path. He rode along this path for a day when he came upon a fortress. The owner gladly hosted the knight for the night. the next morning Calogrenant left his host and come across some bulls fighting amongst themselves. He kept his distance and crossed paths with a ugly peasant. The stranger alarms the peasant, who stands up upon a tree trunk.

http://www.les-mondes-de-gwenn.fr/2011/
05/23/le-recit-merveilleux-du-chevalier-calogrenant/

Calogrenant ask the peasant who he is and if he knows of any adventure suited for a knight. The peasant tells him of a mysterious spring that when its water is cast upon a mystical rock a storm will rise up like nothing he has ever seen. The knight rides away and finds the mysterious tree. Out of curiosity, he sprinkles water on the stone and a great storm rises up. Calogrenant states that he was fearful for his life and was blinded by the lightning strikes. After the storm had ceased a loud knight came along the path and challenged Calogrenant. The fight was short lived and Calogrenant was quickly overthrown. He was able to travel back home but his shame was so great that he held onto this story until this very moment.
      Yvain is insulted that his cousin, Calogrenant, had not informed him of this embarrassing story and he plans on going forth in order to avenge his cousins honor. Kay makes fun of Yvain's boisterous words and is silenced by the queen. King Arthur then enters the room and is retold Calogrenant's story by the queen. Arthur then swears that he will go to see this magical tree and spring. He offers to take any knight who wishes to accompany him. Yvain is upset by this oath, as he sees that it is his duty to fulfill this adventure alone. He takes off immediately in order to gain some distance between the rest of the men.
     Yvain follows the steps of Calogrenant to the letter. He meets the powerful knight at the beautiful tree and engages in a battle. Yvain gets the upper-hand by striking the knight with a hard blow to his helmet that opens up his head. Knowing that he must escape the unnamed knight rides off with Yvain close behind. They enter into the knight's castle where Yvain is thrown off his horse. He is warned by a maiden that he is in grave danger because he served a mortal blow to the knight. She promises to assist him because he was kind to her at Arthur's court. She gives him a ring that makes him invisible to the naked eye. He stays in one spot and is able to observe the people's mad search for the murderer.
      The lady of the house is the most beautiful woman Yvain has ever seen. Only after the funeral processional leaves the room while he is hiding, does he look out the window at this woman who was in grief. The girl who helped Yvain, leaves the knight and joins the funeral in order to shy away from suspicion. Yvain is conflicted because he loves the woman who hates him. Chrétien personifies love as a woman taking over the very being of Yvain. His description helps the audience understand the magnitude of this love that Yvain is feeling. Yvain watches out the window as everyone leaves the grave except the lady of the castle. He has a war within himself about how to handle this love and if it is possible to not obey its motives. Shame and Love keep him imprisoned in the castle. Kay and the other knights would not believe that he had slain the mighty knight without any evidence

http://www.earlybritishkingdoms.
com/bios/yvain.html

and he would be shamed, but Love of the Lady holds him fast in the walls. For his only wish is to see the woman even if it means imprisonment. The servant girl who helped Yvain has always spoken openly with the lady of the house and through her cunning words she is able to convince the woman that the knight is truly worthy of her presence. Yvain is cleaned up by the servant who revitalizes his image. She takes the knight to her lady and he asks for forgiveness. Through the witty words that had been previously spoken by the servant, the Lady of the house willingly forgives the knight and ask him what imprisons him. He confesses his love for the lady and she gladly takes him to the towns people who are overjoyed by the fact that they have a new protector. The two are married.
     King Arthur and his men make their way to the mysterious spring. Kay makes fun of Yvain because he is nowhere to be found. Yvain goes to the spring in order to "protect" the land from the King of Britain and Kay gets the chance to fight the "strange" knight. He is thrown off his horse and in order to delineate from any further battle Yvain reveals himself to his comrades. Yvain relays all that has happened and asks Arthur and his men to join him at the castle. The towns people are overjoyed and celebrate. Gawain is among Arthur's men and is enamored by Lunete, the girl who hid Yvain. She tells Gawain of all that happened and how she convinced her lady to take Yvain "...as her husband" (325). They stay there a week and as Arthur prepares to leave his people they try to convince Yvain to journey back with them. Sir Gawain challenges Yvain's idea of love and tries to convince the knight that love of glory and honor is greater then that of a woman. Chrétien is able to bring up the conflict between armes (honor) and amors (love). Yvain goes to his wife and ask to take leave with Gawain in order to fulfill his love of glory and honor in his young age. She grants him this but states that he must return within a years time in order to keep on good terms with her. It amazes me how often the measure of time that is used is a single year. With the influence of Gawain, Yvain stays away longer then the time allotted. He is then faced with one of the lady's damsels who curses the man who went back on his word. The damsel demands the ring that Yvain's wife had gifted him before his travels began. She snatches up the ring and leaves.
     Yvain goes mad at the thought of losing his love. A hermit sees Yvain, who has become a wild-man, and helps him by feeding him bread. After sometime the Lady of Norison finds Yvain naked under a tree. She sends one of her damsels with a special ointment to cure the knight's maddened mind. He becomes alert again and follows the damsel to the lady's castle. There Yvain is nurtured back to full health. Luckily when Yvain is fully healed he is able to help defend the town from the Count Alier. Yvain abilities as a knight prove to benefit the town and his success helps to build up the courage of the other warriors. Eventually Yvain corners Count Alier who surrenders to any terms that Lady Norison lays out. After taking the prisoner to the Lady, Yvain leaves amidst the pleas of the townspeople.

http://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/theme/yvain

     He travels for some time until he hears "...a very loud and anguished cry" (337). The knight comes upon a lion being attacked by a dragon. Not knowing if the lion would attack after he was freed, Yvain slays the dragon in order to help the suffering animal. Instead of attacking its savior the lion bows down in submission. From that day forward the lion would follow Yvain out of servitude. The beast would hunt for food that Yvain would then cook and at night the lion protected his master and his master's horse. This cycle continued for two weeks until Yvain came upon the spring and stone that had started his whole adventure. He fainted at the sight and his loving pet believed him to have died. Before the lion could do anything rash Yvain woke up and stopped the animals attempt at suicide.
     Yvain laments about his lost love and how he should die. A prisoner hears his words and calls down to him. Lunete, the woman who saved Yvain when he was trapped in the castle, ends up being this prisoner. She tells Yvain of Kay's evil scheme to be rid of her, because the queen trusts Lunete's word more then Sir Kay's. The seneschal uses the queen's distrust of Yvain as a way to catapult Lunete into prison. Yvain ask why Gawain did not help this "...damsel in distress" (341). Lunete relays information that relates this story back to The Knight of the Cart. Sir Kay lost the queen, so Sir Gawain went out to find Meleagant, her captor, therefore he is not to be found in court. Lunete is scheduled to be burned or hanged the next day. Yvain vows to return in order to fight for Lunete's freedom and finds lodging at a obscure stronghold.
     All the homes and huts had been taken in side the massive walls and while the people greet Yvain with joy they continually fall into grief. Yvain's curiosity gets the best of him and he is forced to ask the lord of the town what bothers the townspeople. The lord tells of Harpin of the Mountain, a giant, who had been terrorizing the city and forces everyone into the castle walls. The giant demands that the lord's daughter be given to him. The six sons of the lord had tried to defend the city but to no avail. Yvain asks the leader about Sir Gawain but is again told a shortened version of The Knight of the Cart. Our humble knight finally agrees

http://www.timelessmyths.com/arthurian/tales.html#YvainFountain

to take on the giant himself. The lady of the house and the beautiful daughter join the men. Throughout this story Yvain continually focuses on the idea that things are to happen only if it is God's will. In Lancelot, the main character was driven by the wishes of the woman he surrounded himself with, Yvain's adventure changes depend on women's needs to some extent but are also supplemented by God's will. Yvain tells the lord that he is willing to fight the giant if he is at the castle before a certain hour because he had already given his oath to Lunete.
     The next day Yvain was torn between staying or leaving because the hour had come. After much pleading from the lady and her daughter, Yvain is still torn. Thankfully the giant shows up to demand the girl. Yvain kills the giant with the help of his lion. He then prepares to leave to his next task and ask the lord to get word to Sir Gawain of his success.
     As he enters the chapel, Lunete is tied up and about ready to be put into the fire. Yvain charges in yelling, "Release her! Release the girl, you wicked people! It's not right for her to be burned at the stake or in a furnace, for she has done no wrong" (349). The knight defeats the men who swore against Lunete, with the help of his lion. After the duel, Yvain leaves with his lion only after his love grants him her good-will. He departs from the chapel with only Lunete knowing his true identity. Yvain arrives back at his previous lodging where he is gladly taken in to start the healing process. He stays with these people until he is healthy and strong.
     Lord of Blackthorn dies and his eldest daughter takes control over all the land. His youngest daughter contest this use of power and threatens to seek help at Arthur's court. The oldest, determined to reach the court before her sister, sets out at once to seek Arthur. She is able to reach the court and discuss with Sir Gawain their terms. He agrees to help the power hungry sister and when faced with the youngest sisters request for help he refuses to go back on his word. News of "The Knight with the Lion" surfaces at Arthur's court and the youngest sister becomes determined to find him in order to defend her inheritance. She travels for days and becomes ill. She is given lodging and while she rest a servant is sent out to track down Yvain. The servant comes across the lord that was aided by Yvain when he killed Harpin of the Mountain. The lord directs her to Lunete who gives her directions that take he directly to Yvain. After catching up to Yvain the servant explains the situation and the knight graciously takes on the younger sister's cause. As the two travel with the lion at their side they come across the town of Dire Adventure. While the trio moves through the town many townspeople warn them to turn back and not to take lodging with their king. Yvain, with an innocent heart, does not listen to these words and proceeds to the building. Once at the gates, he climbs the wall to look into the meadow. He is greeted with the sight of maidens dressed in poverty working their hands to the bone in order to please their master. Yvain goes into the meadow in order to learn how these maidens ended up in such a wretched place.
     He learns the castle is owned by two men who were made from a woman and a demon. These men captured a king and in order to gain his freedom the king promised to give these terrible men 30 maidens every year. The only way for the maidens to be set free is if a knight is able to defeat the two demon-men. Step in Yvain. He promises to meet these men and if it is in God's plan he will defeat the masters of the house. Yvain walks around the castle and encounters none good or bad. He finally walks in on a daughter reading a romance to her father and mother. The knight is greeted with blessings and is given every honor that is to be bestowed upon a visitor by the daughter. After a night of good food and rest Yvain awakens and prepares to leave. The king informs him that in order to gain his freedom he must defeat the two demon-men. Before the battle begins Yvain is forced to place his pet lion in a holding room because he is only allowed to face his enemy alone. As the battle rages on the lion can sense Yvain's need for help and tunnels under the door in order to attack one of the men. While the second man tries to save his comrade the knight sees a weakness in his armor and takes this opportunity to strike him down. The first demon-man that was attacked by the lion asks Yvain to call off his lion and admits defeat.
    The townspeople are ecstatic about the upset and gather around Yvain, stating that he is now required to marry the princess. Yvain, remembering his duty to Blackthorn's daughter, refuses the marriage and in-turn upsets the king. The king goes to the extreme of demanding he marry his daughter or Yvain would become their prisoner. The knight is persistent and tries to compromise by stating he will return at the appointed time to take the girl's hand. This does not sit well with the king and he tells Yvain that he can leave and it does not matter if he returns.
      Yvain takes the maidens he had seen in the meadow and leads them out of the town and on their way home. The knight then rides off in the opposite direction behind the servant girl who originally had requested his help. The trio makes it to the lodging where the youngest sister had just recently recovered from her illness and their was much rejoicing. They left the next day and made it to Arthur's camp. That night they stayed in lodging outside the camp in order to hide their identity.

http://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot
/text/han-the-legend-of-yvain

      The next day the oldest sister tries to speed things along in order to guarantee her the fullest inheritance, but the king feels sorry for the younger sister and sees through the lies of the oldest. He forces the court to wait out the full time allotted and as he decrees this The Knight with the Lion and the younger sister walk into the court. The younger sister tries to gain her rightful inheritance without bloodshed but the controlling, older sibling refuses to hear her words. The knights prepare for battle and sadly do not know the identity of their enemy. Chrétien goes into great detail about the love and hatred the men have towards each other. Their love has always been and only because they lack the knowledge of who their opponent truly is do they harbor hatred towards one another. The battle is an equal match and continues on throughout the afternoon. The men finally stop fighting when night is upon them.
     Thankfully Yvain and Sir Gawain begin to discuss the battle and soon learn of each others' names. The two knights embrace and both admit to being defeated. The king and barons are rather confused as to what this rejoicing means. The knights explain what had happened and the king is placed in an odd position. In order to scare the oldest sister into given away some of the inheritance, the king threatens to announce Gawain's defeat. This would be a mortal blow to the reputation of the oldest sister therefore, she willingly gives away part of the land. As Gawain and Yvain have their armor removed the lion runs through the court towards his master. The sight of this animal frightens many but they are reassured by Yvain's words of the lion's gentility. The two knights are taken to the best physician in the land and are healed of their wounds.
     Yvain then feels pressure to seek out his love. His plan is to make such a storm from the spring water and stone that his lady is forced to reconcile with the knight. He leaves with only his lion as company and begins to create a tremendous storm. Lunete is called to council her Lady in order to stop the terrible weather. She is able to tell her Lady of a knight who is well-known amongst the land but is stricken by grief and sorrow. Lunete believes if the knight were to be reconciled with her mistress he would be willing to defend the town. The Lady agrees to help this infamous knight, only knowing him as The Knight  the Lion. Lunete sets out to find Yvain and comes upon him sitting underneath a pine. She tells him of the lady's oath and travels with him back to the fortress. Lunete, Yvain, and his pet lion travel into the city and head to the noble lady. After learning of his true identity the woman feels tricked but is forced to reconcile with the man.
The poem ends with:

"The Chrétien brings to a close his romance of the Knight with the Lion. I've not heard any more about it, and you'll never hear anything more unless one adds lies to it."

Note: William W. Kibler's translation was used for reference.