Book 1, Canto 1 Summary

The Red Cross Knight is riding across the plain (wearing borrowed armor that doesn't quite fit him and bears marks of battles he has not yet seen) with the Lady Una (wearing white but covered with a black veil and leading a white lamb) and a dwarf. The Knight has been assigned his first quest by Gloriana, the queen of Faerie, and is supposed to defeat the dragon that has ravaged Una's homeland and kidnapped her parents. The weather threatens to turn nasty, so the party seeks shelter in a nearby wood. The forest is a comfortable retreat, but the travelers soon lose their way and cannot find the path out. The knight strikes out into a dark, creepy den, despite Una's warning to take his time and be careful, for they are in the Den of Error, a monstrous half-woman...