FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99  
100   101   102   103   >>  
CELOT SAVED THE QUEEN One day in May Queen Guinevere invited ten ladies and ten knights to ride a-Maying with her the next morning in the woods. So at the appointed time they assembled, all dressed in green silk and green velvet, the color of young grass. The knights wore white plumes in their helmets, and the ladies wore white May-blossoms in their hair. They rode off very happily, telling the king that they would return before noon. Now the good King Bagdemagus, for whom Sir Lancelot had fought, had a bad son named Sir Malgrace. For a long time he had wanted to capture the queen and carry her off to his castle. He had been afraid to try, however, because of her large bodyguard. All the young knights of the Round Table liked to ride with her and protect her. They took good care of all the ladies of the Court, but they loved the queen most. When Sir Malgrace heard that the queen was out a-Maying with only a few knights, and these not fully armed, he determined to take her prisoner. So he called together eighty men-at-arms and a hundred archers, and set out. Soon he came upon her and her attendants. They were sitting on a little hill, with wreaths of flowers and leaves on their arms and necks. Before they could rise to their feet, Sir Malgrace and his men dashed upon them. "Traitor!" cried the queen. "What would you do?" "I will carry you to my castle, fair queen," he said. "And never again shall you go free." "I will not go with you," said the queen. Then the ten knights drew their swords and set on the hundred and eighty men of Sir Malgrace. They fought so well that they overthrew forty. Still, they could do little against such numbers, and soon all were wounded. When the queen saw this, she cried out: "Sir Malgrace, do not slay my noble knights, and I will go with you. I would rather die than cause them further harm." The knights said that they would rather perish than be prisoners to Sir Malgrace. However, upon an order from their lord, the archers tied up the wounds of the queen's followers, and put them on horseback. Then the whole company rode slowly towards the castle of Sir Malgrace. Sir Malgrace kept close to the queen for fear she would escape. Once when they were in a thick part of the wood he rode ahead to break the branches so that they should not strike her face. Then the queen whispered to a little maiden who rode near her: "If you can do so, slip away from the company. You ar
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99  
100   101   102   103   >>  



Top keywords:

Malgrace

 

knights

 

ladies

 

castle

 

fought

 
eighty
 

archers

 

hundred

 

Maying

 
company

swords

 
overthrew
 

Traitor

 

branches

 

whispered

 

numbers

 

However

 

slowly

 

dashed

 

followers


horseback

 

maiden

 

wounds

 

prisoners

 

escape

 

wounded

 

strike

 

perish

 

return

 

telling


happily

 
blossoms
 

wanted

 

Bagdemagus

 

Lancelot

 
helmets
 

plumes

 

Guinevere

 

invited

 

morning


velvet

 

dressed

 

appointed

 

assembled

 

capture

 

prisoner

 
called
 

determined

 

leaves

 

Before