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The Wedding of
Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell
One day King Arthur went hunting in
the
forest
of
Inglewood
with his retainers. At length he and his
companions became separated and he found himself in an unfamiliar part
of the forest. Abruptly, he found that his body was quite frozen and he
could not move a muscle. A menacing figure, dressed in pitch-black armor
approached him, saying, “Arthur, I have you in my power. You have
wrongfully given my lands to Sir Gawain and for that, you will die
unless you find the answer to a question I put to you.”
Arthur found that he could speak and
asked, “Who are you, and what is this question you wish me to
answer?”
“I am Gromer Somer Joure [Summer Day
Man]. If you would win your life, return here in twelve months with an
answer to this question: What is it that every woman desires most?” As
suddenly as he had appeared, he was gone and the King found that he
could move freely again. He returned to his court with a heavy heart.
Of all his retainers, only Sir Gawain
asked King Arthur what sorrow he bore, and Arthur related the tale of
his discomfiture in the forest. Sir Gawain then proposed that they ride
forth and ask every woman they found what she most desires and collect
the answers in a book.
They set out and asked women what they
desired and soon they had a huge book of answers. But as many as they
had found, they were still uneasy that any of the answers they had were
the true one.
Shortly before the King had to meet
with Gromer Somer Joure, he rode again through the forest of Inglewood
and came upon a hideously ugly woman, one who not only looked terrible
with a foot-long dripping nose, donkey ears, and
a gaping mouth with yellow teeth, but
one who also smelled terribly. She stopped King Arthur saying that she
had the right answer and could save his life, if he agreed to her terms.
She somehow knew about
his quest. He asked what her
terms were, and she replied, “I am Dame Ragnell and I want to marry
one of your knights, Sir Gawain.”
King Arthur was horrified, and told
her that he could not promise her Gawain without his consent and that he
would return to her after speaking with Gawain. He returned to court and
explained the situation to Gawain. Without hesitation, Gawain, the most
noble of knights answered that he would marry her in a minute, even if
she was a devil, if it would help save Arthur’s life.
Arthur returned to the forest where
Dame Ragnell was waiting. He told her that Gawain had agreed to marry
her if her answer was the one sought, but if one of the others they had
collected was the one, the deal was off. Satisfied with this, she gave
Arthur the answer.
On the appointed day, Arthur rode to
meet with Gromer Somer Joure. Again Gromer appeared suddenly, demanding
the answer to his question. Arthur gave him the book with the answers
they collected. Gromer looked it over, laughed with a deep laugh, and
told Arthur to prepare to die. Arthur said, "Wait, I have one more
answer," and gave him that of Dame Ragnell.
Gromer roared in frustration! “Only
my sister could have told you that! May she be burned in the fires of
hell for her treachery! Go where you will, King Arthur, I will bother
you no more.” So Arthur returned to Ragnell and brought her back with
him to court.
Upon seeing her for the first time,
Gawain looked stunned but bravely assented to be married the next day.
The ladies of the court wept to see such a kind and handsome knight to
be married to such a hideous woman; the knights were glad it wasn't any
of them who had to marry her.
Ragnell demanded to be married
publicly and to have a great feast with all the nobles attending. She
was decked out in the most costly of
dresses, but her manners repulsed everyone there. She ate great volumes
of food with loud slurps and belches, food sometimes running down her
chin. Great was the pity felt for Gawain that day!
At last the wedding feast was
over, and the couple led to
their chamber. There Gawain gazed at the fire, reluctant to touch his
bride, until she requested a kiss. Bravely, he acceded, only to find a
most radiant woman in his arms. He stared speechless in wonder and,
finally finding his tongue, asked her how could this be. The lady told
Gawain that her own brother, the giant Gromer Somer Jure, had placed a
spell on her which could only be broken if the best knight in the world
had the courage to marry and kiss her.
“I have waited in that shape until I
found a man gentle enough to marry me. Now I offer you a choice: I can
be fair by night and foul by day; or foul by night and fair by day.
Decide which you want.”
Gawain thought for a while, pondering
the events that had lead to this moment, and then it dawned on him what
answer he must give. “I cannot make such a choice; that is for you to
decide.”
She cried
out in joy, “My lord, you are as wise as you are noble and true, for
you have given me what every woman genuinely desires, sovereignty over
herself. You will never see that hideous old hag again, for I choose
to be fair from this time on.” You
have discovered the solution to my brother’s riddle—that the
greatest wish of all women is to be able to make their own decisions.
Thus Gawain
and Dame Ragnell begot Gyngolyn of the Round Table, a knight of
strength and goodness. Dame
Ragnell helped King Arthur and her brother Sir Gromer come to peaceful
terms.
Alas, the
gentle lady lived only five years with Gawain, and he mourned her
death for the rest of his life. Gawain
married often in life, but he never loved another woman so well.
Thus ends
the story of the wedding of
Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell.
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