Chivalric Romance

Chivalric Romance: elements

Now we know what chivalric romance is, we need to know what makes a story a chivalric romance. The main elements in a chivalric romance are chivalry, courtly love, religious poetry, religious piety, adventure, magic, and fantastical antagonists.

Chivalry

It may seem obvious, but all chivalric romances contain chivalry. Chivalry is simply behaving according to the chivalric code. It represents the ideal of knighthood. The word today is still associated with 'gentlemanly' behaviour. The chivalric code includes; having faith and defending the church, defending the weak and being patriotic and brave.

Chivalric persons are not to lie, must be honest and generous and always champion good over evil. Most of the chivalric code can still be seen as honourable today. A knight's sense of honour is important, they believe that the success of the collective is greater than the individual. Other parts of the code have not stood the test of time, however, today we would certainly frown upon waging wars on so-called infidels without mercy.

Courtly Love

As the title suggests, courtly love is all about courting a loved one. Traditionally a knight would fall in love with a 'fair maiden'. Accepting the maiden's freedom of choice, the knights will try to prove themselves worthy of the lady's love. They will do this by acting noble and brave and doing anything she asks. It would not be unusual for knights to be sent out on quests to prove themselves. Sometimes a knight may find themselves competing with another for the same maiden. In this case, the two knights would prove which knight was the most strong and brave in order to win the maiden's heart. A famous example of this would be the tale of Lancelot and Guinevere.

Religious Piety

Part of the chivalric code was to have unerring faith in the church. Knights truly believed they had God on their side. This could be seen as problematic today as knights would often go on crusades to conquer the 'holy land' of Jerusalem. Other times their quests would involve retrieving holy relics, such as Lancelot's search for the holy grail in The Vulgate Cycle (Est. 1215).

Adventure

All chivalric romances are adventure stories. Knights go on quests to either prove their worth or discover a certain object or skill. Sometimes it is to win the heart of a lady and sometimes it is just to prove how brave they are. Many of these adventures are found in Le Morte D'Arthur by Thomas Mallory.

Fig. 2 - Knights often find themselves going on quests of love and honour.

Magic

Characters like Merlin and Morgan Le Fay often bring a little magic to chivalric romances. Morgan Le Fay was an enchantress who has been depicted as both good and bad. In the early works of Chretien de Troyes, she is seen as a great healer. In Le Morte D'Arthur by Thomas Mallory, Morgan Le Fay is depicted as an enemy of King Arthur and his round table.

Fantastical Antagonists

Chivalric romances used fantastical antagonists to excite audiences and prove their heroes' bravery. Not too dissimilar to the comic book movies we would watch today. These antagonists may come in the form of wizards, giants or dragons. In fact, the antagonists in chivalric romances can be anything, the key is that they excite the audience.

Chivalric Romance: examples of poems

Many Chivalric romances came in the form of poetry, particularly the earliest examples. French Poet Chretien de Troyes was perhaps the most famous exponent, writing five Arthurian romances. Another famous example of a chivalric romance poem is 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'. Here we will look at two chivalric romance poems.

'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'

The poem's author is unknown and it is assumed that it was written around 1400. The poem is written in Middle English. It is known as an alliterative poem, which is a form of meter used in Old English. The poem uses rhyme and long alliterative lines to tell its narrative. Over 100 stanzas, the poem follows the traditional quest narrative.

The poem starts at Christmas time in the hall of King Arthur. A large, green knight enters the hall and interrupts the festivities. The knight wishes to play a game where a challenger can chop off his head. If successful, the challenger gets to keep the green knight's axe. Sir Gawain accepts the challenge and is successful. The Green Knight picks up his head and leaves. Before he goes, he shows the bleeding head to Sir Gawain and the Queen, reminding Sir Gawain that he has to go to the green chapel so the Green Knight can strike him in return.

As the end of the year approaches, Sir Gawain makes his way to the green chapel. Sir Gawain faces obstacles, testing both his honour and courage. When he finally meets the Green Knight, Sir Gawain's courage is tested as he thinks that by keeping his appointment, he will face his death. The Green Knight only mildly cuts Sir Gawain's neck. Sir Gawain had used a magic belt to save his life and feels shame because of it. He returns as a hero but feels shame in being cowardly.

Chretien de Troyes's Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart (12th century)

Written by Chretien de Troyes in the 12th century, Lancelot is considered to be the first chivalric romance to feature Sir Lancelot. It is a tale of courtly love and explores Lancelot's relationship with Guinevere, who was largely thought to be King Arthur's wife. The narrative tells us of the abduction of Guinevere and her subsequent rescue by Lancelot.

Although it seems unusual for one of Arthur's Knights to be courting his queen, it was widely accepted, even encouraged in medieval times. Marriage is seen as not affecting a woman's chance of encountering courtly love. However, the affair eventually brings the downfall of King Arthur's kingdom. This is most likely to respect the Christian values of sin and its opinion of extramarital affairs. The poem also features the familiar character of Sir Gawain, who helps Lancelot search for the missing Guinevere.

Chivalric Romance: influences

The chivalric romances did much to shape our view of the medieval period. Their influence can be found directly and indirectly in many adventure stories. Don Quixote (1605) was considered one of the first novels in western literature and was heavily influenced by the chivalric romances. The main character, Don Quixote has read many chivalric romances and decides to revive the ideals of knighthood in Spain.

The characteristic quests that feature in chivalric romances can be seen in the fantasy work of JRR Tolkien, where the protagonists set out to explicitly achieve one goal. JRR Tolkien himself was a medieval scholar at Oxford. One Indiana Jones film, The Last Crusade (1989), goes as far as taking on the same quest. The film has the hero searching for the holy grail, much like Lancelot before him. There can be similarities when looking at stories of the 'Wild West' with their cowboys often defending the weak and saving the fair maiden.

The Castle of Otranto (1764) used a medieval setting and romantic plot and added ghosts. This addition of haunting elements to a romance story marked the beginning of the gothic genre. So chivalric romances can be seen as a forbearer to stories such as Dracula and Frankenstein. Most contemporary stories will contain at least one element of the chivalric romance. So it is safe to say that the influence of chivalric romance is far-reaching.