09 - Story of King Arthur, in Twelve Tales by Winona Caroline Martin

A retelling of the classic Arthurian legends, this collection of twelve tales captures the grandeur, mystery, and moral depth of King Arthur’s court and the quest for the Holy Grail. Designed for young readers and educators, it brings timeless ideals to life.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
In twelve tales by Winona Caroline Marchant till eight the
dolorous stroke, And there with mourning Merlin came and on
the tomb that told their fame, he wrote, by Bailon's
Balen's name, and gazed theiron and wept Swinburne's Tale of Bailen. Once,

(00:22):
when Arthur was holding his court at Karelian, up to
the castle gate, there wrote a messenger from her old acquaintance,
King Reins of North Wales. This was the giant you
will remember, from whose clutches Arthur had rescued poor old
King Leodogrin of Camilliard, thus s winning for himself not
only glory, but what was far more precious to him,

(00:43):
his beautiful, bright, guinevere rains. It would appear by this
time somewhat forgotten the lesson taught him then by Britain's
young overlord, for he was once again worrying about a
famous mantle of his, whose friends still left the twelfth
King's beard, with which the old giant wild to trim it.
So the message now came to Arthur, much as it

(01:04):
had come to Leodogrand long ago. If you do not
send me your beard, peaceably and of your own accord,
I will march against you with a great army and
take it in your heads along with it. So beware.
At that threat. However, Arthur and all his knights broke
into a merry laugh. Tell your master, said he to

(01:24):
the messenger, that I am not yet old enough to
have a beard worth sending. But tell him also that
if he wants it, such as it is, he can
come and fight for it. After which Arthur, having many
more important things to think about, completely forgot the matter
for a time. Some weeks later, however, when the court
had removed to Camelot, Arthur's favorite capital, the dim rich

(01:47):
city of Shadowy Palaces, news came that Rains was marching
in that direction with his great army of straitons, burning
and slaying the King's loyal subjects as he came. Thereupon,
Arthur sent out the alarm, and there gathered together from
far and near all the noblemen of Britain, ever ready
at a moment's notice to flock to the standard of
their leege lord and crush the enemy. One day, therefore,

(02:11):
when this great company of knights was assembled in the
King's conceal chamber, planning the campaign against rheions. There suddenly
appeared among them a maiden wearing an immense sword. Damsel,
said Arthur, according to his customs, stopping all proceedings to
listen to the plea of one in trouble? Why are
you thus armed? Are there not brave knights enough in

(02:31):
my kingdom to champion the cause of all fair ladies
in distress? This is a reproach to me, For did
I not promise the Lady of the lake, when she
gave me Excalibur, that I would make the land so
safe that no maiden should ever again need to bear
a weapon? Sire replied the damsel, sadly, I wear this
sword because I cannot take it off. It was put

(02:53):
on me by enchantment, and I have been told that
one of the knights here at your court is the
only person in all the world who could ever draw
it from its scabbard and thus set me free from
the curse. Doubtless, maiden, you have been correctly informed, said Arthur,
with just a touch of pride in his voice, For
where in all the world are there such knights as mine.

(03:15):
Then he called his following about him and told them,
beginning at the youngest and least proven to try and
turn this adventure of the sword. So they came, those
stalwart young fellows, and pulled and tugged without success, until
the maiden said, wearily, you need not try so hard.
He who can draw it at all can draw it easily.

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The King, however, was not yet greatly worried, for there
still remained his older knights, true and tried, who had
not made the attempt. Presently, it was Gerret's turn, he
who had vanquished day and night and death himself, And
he stepped forward and pulled and tugged and failed. Then
came Juran, to have humbled the haughty sparrow Hawk, and

(03:57):
he pulled and tugged and failed. Then Tristram, whose prowess
in times pause that delivered both Cornwall and Ireland, and
he pulled and tugged and failed. At this the King turned,
still confident, to his dearest friend, the mighty Launcelot, before
whose lance King, Duke, Earl, Count and Baron had ever

(04:18):
gone down. And he pulled and tugged and failed. Last
of all, Arthur himself, remembering how long ago he had
drawn the sword from the anvil, and unwilling that his
court should be thus put to shame, made a trial also.
So he pulled and tugged, and failed my knights, said he,

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when all was over, I greatly fear that this has
come to us as a warning that their purposes are
no longer as single as in the days of old.
That each man present looked to his own heart and life,
lest the aim of her noble fellowship be defeated. Then
a deep hush fell upon them all, and they dared
not look into each other's eyes, for shame of this

(04:59):
thing that had befallen them. At last, the Maiden was
about to turn hopelessly away, when from a far corner
of the hall there stepped a poorly clad knight known
as Balin the Savage. He was not of Arthur's company,
but he had killed a relative of the Kings, for
which offense he had been thrown into prison until Arthur
had learned that all had taken place in a fair fight.

(05:20):
Then Arthur the just had released the young fellow, who,
as had happened, had not yet left the court this night. Therefore,
after asking permission of a sovereign, bowed low to the
maiden and said, courteously, fair lady, will you let me try? Perchance?
This adventure is mine. But the damsel, wearied as she was,

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looked at Balon's prison worn garments, and answled a trifle scornfully. No, pray,
do not trouble me any more. What can you expect
to do when all these good knights have failed? Do
not judge me by my outward appearance, gentle maiden, persisted
the youth, many a brave man has worn poor raiment before. Now,

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I pray you let me try. Then, having won her
reluctant consent, he took the sword lightly by the hilt
and drew it from its scabboard as easily as Arthur
had drawn his from the anvil in those brave days
of old, after which she held it up a trifle proudly,
and thought that he had never seen so beautiful a
weapon before. Presently, he said, fair lady, may I keep

(06:24):
this sword of the trophy, to which the maiden, ashamed
of her former conduct toward him who had proved to
be her deliverer, was about to consent most willingly when
she chanced to look toward Merlin, in whose eyes she
read a mysterious and gloomy prophecy She hesitated therefore, and
at last said, slowly, speaking as if she were repeating

(06:45):
the words of another rather than her own. You may
have it, sir knight, and welcome, but I advise you
not to take it, for if you do, it will
cause you to do great harm, and with it you
will at last slay the man whom you left best
in all the world. Now this Balen had earned his
title the Savage because of the good natured recklessness of

(07:07):
his disposition. Hearing this strange prophecy, therefore, he never thought
of heeding it, but cried out instead of that damsel,
I will take my chances, for my brother Bailon is
the man whom I love best in all the world,
and I certainly will never raise a sword against him.
Then the maiden yielded and passed from the hall, and

(07:28):
Balen would have followed her had not the king called
him back. Do not go, said Arthur, and do not
be angry with me because of my mistake in throwing
you into prison. Stay with us now we pray you
and be one of her own number. At which invitation
the lad's heart leaped with pride and joy. Yet he answered,
I thank you, sire, but I beg you to let

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me first go forth to seek adventure. Then, when I
have proved myself worthy, I will gladly return if I may. So.
He departed, and when Arthur found himself alone with me Merlin,
he turned to the wise one with a wondering look
in his deep blue eyes. Can it be? Merlin? Said
he that this Balen is the greatest knight in all

(08:09):
the world, who is some day to appear to take
his seat in the siege perilous ah No, replied the stage.
The time for him is not ripe. Nevertheless, this Balen,
weld and careless with his weapons as he sometimes is,
is a passing good knight and will do you good service.
Yet much harm shall also come through his rashness, and

(08:31):
his own life will be short and sad. Meanwhile, Balen,
knowing little of these prophecies and caring less, rode on
his way, rejoicing in his freedom, until he presently met
his twin brother Bailon, who is coming to Arthur's court
to plead for the prisoner's release. After the first joy
of their meeting, Bailon informed his brother that King Rings

(08:53):
was at that moment and camped near by at Castle Terrible.
Let us go against him, then cried Balen impulsively. He
is Arthur's enemy, and this is my opportunity for proving
myself in the cause of the great White King. Balen
was willing enough to agree, so he willed his horse
about and rode with his butter until they met an
old man dressed in black with the long white beard knights.

(09:17):
Where are you going, inquired the stranger, to which Balen,
the hasty one, replied that we will tell you if
you will tell us your name. I will not answer
your question, but I will answer my own instead, said
the aged man, after which you will be able to
answer yours. You are bound for Castel Terrible in search

(09:38):
of author's enemy rings, but you will gain nothing by
your quest unless you ask my advice. Then both the
brothers cried out together, Ah, you are Merlin, You are Merlin.
Pray forgive us for our rudeness, and tell us what
he must do. So the wise one let him into
the shadows of a deep wood and told them to
sleep there until he should awaken them. As they did,

(10:00):
and towards midnight were suddenly aroused by the cry N's
is coming. He is riding through the wood with his
soldiers before him. Wait until they have passed, and when
the king himself appears, you can fall upon an easily
taken prisoner. In fact, they had not long to wait
for presently a company of giant knights rode by. Then
at just the right moment, Merlin whispered, there is rains,

(10:24):
make your attack. Thereupon Balin and Baylon rushed forward, making
such a din and clatter with their arms, that the soldiers,
hearing this terrible noise at their rear, never stopped to investigate, But,
thinking that Arthur's whole army was lying there in ambush,
fled for their lives, abandoning their sovereign to his fate.

(10:44):
Thus was Renes captured and brought to the court of
his rightful liege Lord, whereied a homage most humbly, and
was never afterwards known to trouble Arthur again. Blen, however,
felt that he could not rest on the laurels of
this one achievement. Parting from his brother, therefore, who seems
to have had other work on hand, he rode along

(11:04):
by himself until he chanced to meet with a knight
and a maiden, both of whom appeared very sad and dejected. Instantly,
it occurred to our hero that here might be an
opportunity for another adventure. So he said to the Knight courteously,
you seemed to be in trouble. Is there any way
in which I can help you? Alas neither you nor

(11:25):
any other human being can render me any assistance, replied
the Knight with a bitter sigh. Why I've made an
enemy of Garlon, the man who writes invisible, and he
may strike me down at any time without the slightest warning.
But at least I may ride along with you. May
I not inquire? Balin? Yes, if you wish, was the

(11:47):
hopeless reply. So the three rode on together. But they
had not gone far when suddenly there appeared in the air,
seemingly with no hand to guide it, a lance which
struck the Knight from behind, so that he dropped the ground, crying,
I am killed. Take my horse, sir Knight, for he
is better than yours. Care for this maiden, as you
honor your knighthood. Find this traitor who rised invisible, and

(12:10):
avenge my death. And with those words he died. Then
it was Balen's turn to be sad and silent. For
brave man though he was, he was filled with horror
at the thought that an enemy could steal upon him. Thus,
but presently his anger at the cowardly conduct of this
Garland so flamed within him that he forgot his dread,

(12:30):
and vowed there before the Maiden never to relinquish the
quest until he had found in slain the dastardly fellow.
Now this was far more easily said than done, as
our rash Balen began to realize, as the days went by.
He and the Maiden therefore rode on for a long time,
hearing nothing of Garland, although meeting with various other adventures,

(12:51):
until one evening became to the gate of a stately castle,
of whose lord they begged Harburidge for the knight. While
they were seated at this man time hospitable board above
the music with which their host had sought to entertain them,
Balen believed he heard a sound very like a deep groan,
As no one else seemed to pay the slightest attention. However,

(13:12):
our hero decided that his imagination was playing him some trick.
But presently it came again, this time louder than before,
and then a third time, a terrible moaning sound, as
from one in great pain. Then the music in the
laughter ceased, while the lord of the castle bowed his
head in his hands, as if he too were in agony,

(13:32):
and said, that is my son whom you hear. He
was wounded by a knight named Garlon, who writes invisible,
and they tell me that he can never be healed
until this cowardly fellow is slain. Alas, I am now
too old to start upon such a quest, that I
wish I might find some brave man who would undertake
it for me. Then Balen related his story and added,

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can you tell me where and when I can ever
meet this villain face to face? Yes, replied their host,
for he is the brother of King Pellas, who is
to give a great feast at his castle within a
few days from now. This garland will surely be there,
and he will be visible, for otherwise he could partake
of neither food nor drink. Any knight can attend his

(14:15):
banquet without special invitation, providing he brings with him a lady.
This fair damsel, therefore will make you a welcome guest.
Then Balen rejoiced that at last he was so near
the end of this particular adventure. So in the morning
he and the maiden set out for a distant castle,
to which they came on the first day of the feast.

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The king's attendants led our hero into an inner chamber,
and there disarmed him of all but its precious sword,
which he begged to be allowed to keep by him.
Then he was shown into the great banquet hall and
seated with his maiden at his side. It was a
wonderful gathering of brave knights and fair ladies from all
over Britain, so that poor Balen looked about him bewildered

(14:58):
and began to wonder how he would ever recognize his
enemy amid the throng. Presently he said to the man
on his right, can you tell me which, if these knights,
is Garland the King's brother. Yes, replied his neighbor. There
he is yonder, the one with the dark face. Then
Baling looked steadfastly at the man whom he had sought

(15:19):
so long, and said to himself, I am but a
stranger here while he is among relatives and friends. If
I attack him, they will certainly fall upon me in
a body, Whereas if I let him go, I may
never see him face to face again. But while his
thoughts were passing through his mind, Garland perceived the stranger's
gaze fixed upon him, and Rasing suddenly stepped to his

(15:41):
side and struck him across the face, exclaiming, knave, why
do you stare at me? Eat your meat and do
what you came for so I will, cried Balin, and
with that he drew his sword and cut off Garland's
wicked head before anyone could stop him. Then he turned
to his maiden, saying, flee, flee for your life, for

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I have no chance of saving mine. But tell our
kind host that his son's wound will heal now. She obeyed,
and none too soon, for in another moment, the whole
company of knights had arisen to throw themselves in a
body upon the slayer of their kinsmen. But at that
instant the voice of the king was heard crying aloud,
let no one touch him but me. I alone must

(16:24):
avenge my brother's death. With that, Pellis grasped his spear
and aimed to blow at Balen. Our hero, however, managed
to catch the blow on his sword, which was thus
struck from his hand and crashed through the ground. Then
finding himself. Thus defenseless, Balin dushed through the crowd of
knights in front of him and ran from room to

(16:44):
room of the old castle, hoping somewhere to come across
the weapon, while all the time King Pellies followed in
swift pursuit. Now Balen, hasty, impetuous, well meaning fellow that
he was, had not the slightest idea who this new
enemy of his might be. But the truth was that
he had come to Carbonec, the castle of the Holy Grill,
and that King Pelles was a keeper of the sacred chalice.

(17:08):
The grill, you must know, was the mystic cup from
which Jesus our Savior, drank with his disciples at the
Last supperb and also the vessel in which Joseph of
Rumathea caught the drops of blood when our suffering Lord
hung upon the cross. Since that time it had possessed
miraculous powers, for the blood had remained in it ever after,
endowing it with the mysterious life of its own, the

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nature of which no mortal man could understand. One of
these powers was that it could give food and drink
to whomsoever it chose, so that one thus fed by
it knew neither hunger nor thirst for earthly things. Ever again,
thus it had happened that Joseph, who had given Jesus
burial in his own rock hewn Sepoker, wherein was never

(17:52):
man yet laid, was afterwards thrown into prison and fed
there for many years, so that his jailers were mystified. Afterwards,
when he was at last released, he came to Britain
bearing the sacred Chalice with him, and by it he
had been kept alive here in Carbonet Castle, awaiting the
coming of that best knight in all the world, before
whose arrival it had been prophesied he should not see death.

(18:16):
Balin had of course heard of Joseph and of the
Holy Grill, but he had never hoped to see either,
for the world before the coming of Arthur had grown
so wicked that these wonderful things, once visible to all,
had been withdrawn from mortal eyes. And even the knights
who came and went freely about Carbonet Castle knew nothing
about a certain room which could be reached only by

(18:38):
a secret passage. It chanced, however, that Balen, in his
mad flight before the infuriated monarch, touched the hidden spring
which caused the door to this mysterious passage to swing back.
Down this corridor, he dashed until he found himself upon
the threshold of a room hung with richest tapestries and
lighted by a soft red glow. Proceeding he could not

(18:59):
have to from were, though it was like the light
of neither sun, nor moon, nor candles. The whole atmosphere
of this apartment was so strange and awe inspiring that
probably anyone saved this rash pale in the savage would
have paused reverently before entering upon a magnificent bed. In
a fore corner lay an old old man with a
beard as white as the driven snow. He seemed as

(19:23):
peaceful as if he were dead, yet there was the
color of life upon his cheeks, and his lips were tinted.
Near his side stood a table of solid gold and silver,
wrought together in weird and beautiful patterns. And on this
table lay a spear, from whose point or fell from
time to time a drop of blood. Where the blood
touched it, the table shone with a mysterious glory. Afterwards,

(19:45):
Failing remembered all these things, but at the moment his
one thought was of the weapon of which he stood
in such great need. In an instant he had grasped
it and turned fiercely upon King Pelly's, who was now
close behind him. One moment more and King had dropped
to the ground, senseless with a deep, gaping wound in
his side. But as he fell, Balen fell to the

(20:06):
floor rocking beneath him. Presently he let slip the spear,
which seemed to burn his hand. He looked about him,
terror stricken, and perceived that the walls were shaking and moving.
Then a great din of crashing and splitting struck his ears,
and at last the floor itself began to give way
beneath him, while a burst of light streamed in from
the roof as it opened and fell apart. At last,

(20:29):
the thick stone walls tottered and toppled that with a
mighty roar and crash, the whole castle collapsed into a
formless heap of ruins. For three days after that, Balin
knew no more. Then, as he was returning painfully to consciousness,
he heard a voice which he recognized as Merlin's, gently
calling his name. Balin, It said, wake up, it is

(20:52):
time for you to leave this place. See, I have
brought you a horse, and here is your sword, which
I rescued for you from the ruins. But poor Balin
was stiff and sore, and would much have preferred to
be let alone, until Merlin said to him sternly, Balin
Baalen the savage, do you know what you have done?
I have killed a cowardly murderer who rode invisible, replied

(21:15):
our hero. Yes, But you have done more than that,
continued the sage. The old man who lay in that
bed was the saintly Joseph of Arimathea, and King Pelles
is his descendant and the present keeper of the grille.
While that spare with which you wounded the king's side
was the very one the Roman soldier used when he
pierced the heart of our savior on the cross. And

(21:40):
Joseph and King Pelles whispered Balin in an awed voice.
Are they dead? No, replied Merlin, for it was not
in your power to kill them. But the king can
never be healed of a terrible wound which you gave
him until the coming of the best knights in all
the world. It was because you struck with that was

(22:00):
spared that the castle fell and by that same dolorous
stroke the whole land for miles about his late waste,
and must remain desolate until the coming of that night
of whom I spoke. Then Merlin vanished, and Bilein, sick
at heart, rode on his very way alone. For three days.
He followed the lane through fields where nothing grew, and

(22:20):
through gardens whose flowers hung old and faded on their stalks,
until at last he came to a cross, whereon was
written in letters of gold, let no knight ride alone
to this castle. Balin, however, was too wary of his
own life to heed any warning, and continued on his
way until it came to the castle in question, where
he was greeted heartily by a great company of knights

(22:42):
and ladies. The chief lady of the castle, however, said
to him, stranger, there is a certain knight here who
keeps an island, and no man may pass thereby unless
he jousts with him. That is a bad custom, replied Balin. Nevertheless,
I am willing. So they provided him with his shield.

(23:03):
Then he and his horse were put upon a barge
and sailed away to the further side of a beautiful lake.
There Balen disembarked and rode forward until he beheld coming
toward him a mighty knight, clothed all and fiery red.
In a moment, both had set their spears in rest
and crashed together, so that each was thrown from his horse.
Then they arose and began to fight with their swords,

(23:25):
and it seemed to Balin that never before had he
encountered such prowess. At last, he became angered at the
thought that any one should thus stand against him, and
lashed with such fury that presently the valiant red knight
sank to the grand crying, I yield. You have vanquished me,
and I cannot live with the wounds which I have received.
But I do not care for that, for I have

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kept the custom of the castle as they promised, to
which Balen replied, sir knight, you have killed me too.
Tell me who you are, for never before have I
met with such a valiant man of arms. Then the
stranger answered, huskily, my name is Baylon, brother to Balin,
one of the best knights in all the world him,

(24:08):
I know you could never have overthrown. At this, Balen, wounded,
though he was crept to his brother's side, and raising
his visor, cried bitterly, alas the faithful prophecy was true,
I have done great mischief, and with this sword I
have slain the man whom I loved best in all
the world. Then, not long after, having comforted each other

(24:31):
in their last moments, the two ill fated brothers breathed
their last. The following morning, Merlin came to perform the
burial rites, after which he took Balen's a cursed sword,
and put upon it a new hilt, rich in gold
and jewels, and bearing an inscription written in weird characters.
Then he said to himself, it shall yet serve in

(24:51):
a holy cause. And with that he drove the weapon
into a great block of red marble, which he threw
into the lake, upon whose pleas Bosom it floated like
a piece of wood for many a year, until at
last it drifted down to Camelot, which mystic city had
reached on the selfsame day, when the best night in
all the world arrived there to take his place in
the siege Perilus end of Chail eight recording by Fall