Introduction

The legend of King Arthur can be found in English stories and folktales as early as the sixth century. The greatest and most complete version, however, did not appear until the fifteenth century, with Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur. To create the epic tale, Malory drew from many sources, most notably thirteenth-century French prose romances. He supplemented these French sources with English Arthurian materials.

Malory's story was originally written in Middle English, an early form of the English language, and consisted of eight books, or tales. The first tale concerns the conception, birth, and coronation of King Arthur. The second tale involves the invasion of France and Rome. The third tale, which focuses mainly on the knight Lancelot, was inspired by the French prose story Lancelot. Gareth, the brother of...