Research and Reading

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

The anonymous poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is considered one of the masterpieces of Middle English literature. It was composed in the West Midlands region of Britain at the end of the 14th century, but was copied out at the beginning of the 15th. Gawain is a story of knightly deeds, enticement, and wild landscapes. It tells the story of the young Gawain, who is a knight at the legendary court of King Arthur. The poem opens with a description of a Christmas feast at Camelot, the Arthurian court. During the feast a mysterious knight, with green hair and green skin, riding a green horse, arrives and challenges the assembled crowd to a bizarre game, which sets off a chain of events in which Gawain faces trials and temptations.

    Manuscript & Texts

    Medieval Music

    Heraldry — New

    The People of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

    Genealogy and Related Information

    Lesser-Known Characters

    Because we are combining characters from several poems/novels and traditions, here are some of the lesser-known knights and ladies of Arthuriana (and elsewhere) who are part of our Christmas Revels tale. If you don’t see your character below, there are two great resources with searchable databases:  The Camelot Project, a comprehensive collection of Arthurian legend-related materials, and the Nightbringer Mythological Encyclopedia. 

    • Sir Cynan – Cynon ap Clydno, or Cynan, was an Arthurian hero from Welsh mythology. His quest to the Castle of Maidens and his subsequent trial against the Black Knight, serve as a prelude to the adventure of Owain and The Lady of the Fountain. — NEW
    • Sir Erec and Lady Enide – French poet Chrétien de Troyes wrote the earliest account of this knight and his lady.
    • Julian of Norwich – Also known as Juliana of Norwich, or Mother Juliana, she was an English anchoress of the Middle Ages. Her writings, now known as Revelations of Divine Love, are the earliest surviving English language works by a woman, although it is possible that some anonymous works may have had female authors.
    • Lady Lidione – The beautiful daughter of the King of Escavalon, loved by two of Arthur’s knights, one of them being Meraugis of Portlesguez.
    • Lady Lyonesse – Sister of Lynette, chatelaine of Castle Dangerous (also called Castle Perilous), lady and wife of Sir Gareth.
    • Sir Maraugis – A Portuguese knight of the Round Table, and the hero of Raoul de Houdenc’s Meraugis de Portlesguez.
    • Sir Parzival – The hero of a medieval chivalric romance by poet and knight Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The 13th century poem (summarized here)  focuses on Parzival and his long quest for the Holy Grail. Parzival is the half-brother of Sir Fierefiz.
    • Sir Parzival and Queen Condwiramurs – the faithful, enduring love story of Parzival, and the queen whose name means “to guide love.”
    • Sir Pelleas – information about “the gentle knight,” who becomes the husband of Nimue, the Lady of the Lake in Le Morte d’Arthur.-NEW
    • Dame Silence – The story of Cador, the Earl of Cornwall, and his daughter Silence, who is raised as a boy in order to be eligible to inherit, as the king of England has outlawed the succession of females.
    • Taliesin – Taliesin, “of the shining brow,” is a mytho-historical character generally associated with early Wales and North Western Britain in the 6th century AD. He is a figure belonging to both history, as an important Old Welsh court poet, and to mythology, as a magician and seer in both Celtic and Arthurian legend. See his story in the Timeless Myth Summary of Famous Bards.

    Women in Arthuriana

    People of Color in Arthurian Legend

    • Black in Camelot: Race and Ethnicity in Arthurian Legend – A paper that explores the tradition of racial and ethnic diversity in Arthurian legend through historical evidence, medieval texts, and 21st century Arthurian-themed television and film.
    • The Black Knight of the Round Table I Getty News – features an image of Sir Palomides, and other stories and images of people of color in the Middle Ages — NEW
    • Not All the Knights of the Round Table Were White | Smart News| Smithsonian Magazine – Literary clues show the diversity of the Round Table; the article uses Sir Morien as an example.
    • Moors, Saints, Knights and Kings: The African Presence in Medieval and Renaissance Europe – Article by Runoko Rashidi, historian, essayist, and author of Black Star: The African Presence in Early Europe.
    • Sir Morien – The protagonist of the 13th century Saga of Morien is depicted as a black Moorish knight – his mother, a Moorish princess, is described as “black as ink” in some versions of the story. Morien possesses great strength and skill in combat, he is intelligent and resourceful, able to outsmart his opponents on several occasions.
    • Sir Feirefiz – In Book 15 of the medieval chivalric romance Perzival, Fierefiz, who is biracial, is introduced to the Grail legend. Parzival comes upon this “heathen knight” and they fight each other to a draw before discovering their common heritage.
    • Sir Palomides – Known as the “Knight of the Questing Beast,” a demon he (and several knights) pursued throughout his career. According to Le Morte D’Arthur, Palomides and his companions successfully vanquished the Beast after Sir Pellinore’s attempts failed. Palomides’ nobility and prowess were almost unsurpassed.  He was the son of King Escobar the Unknown, and he was brother to Safir and Segwarides.
    • Sir Safir –The youngest son of King Esclabor the Unknown, Safir is the brother of the more famous Sir Palomides and lesser known Sir Segwarides (in our tale, off on a quest), fellow knights of the Round Table, and of Lady Florine, their sister.
    • Lady Florine – Sister of Sir Palomides, Sir Segwarides, and Sir Safir. The Knight of the Castle of the Three Roses died for her love.

    Legendary Characters of Color from Other Traditions

    • Balthazar, the Wise – Although it is commonly accepted today that one of the Three Kings of the Nativity story is Black, this was not original to the tale. In fact, it was only in the Middle Ages that the Kings were named in western Christianity as Melchior, Balthazar, and Caspar. By the 13th century, texts were variously specifying the Magi had come from Persia, India, Arabia, the Mediterranean, Nubia, Sheba, and other legendary lands. By 1500, the Magi were established in western Christianity as Kings who could be taken to represent all of humanity, one for each of the three known continents of Asia, Europe, and Africa.
    • Queen Makeda of Nubia – Queen Makeda was the ruler of the kingdom of Sabaʾ (or Sheba).The story of this queen appears in many different traditions; in Ethiopian tradition, she is known as Makeda; in others she is called Sheba, Biliqis, or Candace. For our production, Queen Makeda is ruler of Nubia, one of the possible locations for the kingdom of Sheba. 

    Bercilak’s Court