SOURCE: “The Story,” in William of Palerne: An Alliterative Romance, Groningen, 1985, pp. 93-108.

In the following essay, Bunt studies the structure, setting, historical background, and magical elements in William of Palerne.

1. Since the first three leaves of the Ms. are lost, we are dependent on the French Guillaume de Palerne for the opening episodes of the story, which are, however, recapitulated later in our English poem.

The French poem, then, tells us that king Embron of Sicily and his queen Felise have a four-year-old son, Guillaume, who is entrusted for instruction to two Greek ladies, Gloriande and Acelone. The king's brother, who wishes to gain the throne for himself, bribes the ladies to poison Guillaume and his father. However, while the king, the queen and Guillaume are in the royal park, a large wolf takes the child in his mouth and runs off with it. A pursuit is...