TristanChapter 16: The Avowal

They begin to feel strange…

Their friendship turns to more…

They sneak off the ship.

They consummate their love…

Many times

Chapter 17: Brangane

No longer a virgin, Isolde fears her wedding night with king Mark

Isolde talks Brangane into being her wedding night sub

They will get Mark drunk and pull a switcheroo in the dark.

Brangane reluctantly agrees, and confesses her guilt about the potion

The wedding night arrives

In the dark, Brangane slips into bed with Mark, who can’t tell one woman from another.

After the first encounter, Brangane leaves and Isolde gets into bed with Mark

Isolde sleeps with Mark at night, and fiddles with Tristan by day

But Isolde begins to worry that Brangane will betray her

She asks two of her squires to take Brangane into the woods, cut off her head, and bring back her tongue.

The squires take Brangane.

Brangane fears for her life

Brangane tells the squires her only fault was to give Isolde her white shift when Isolde dirtied hers on the trip from Ireland.

The squires took pity on her

They brought home the tongue of a dog

Isolde is furious and accuses the squires of murder.

The squires produce Brangane, and all is forgiven

Although there were a few close calls,

They fooled around every chance they got

Chapter 18: Gandin

A ship arrived from Ireland

Gandin, a musician who had always admired Isolde, arrives

On his back he carries a small rote

Mark promises to give the musician anything he desires if he will play for the court

After Gandin plays, he demands Isolde as his prize

Mark must keep his word

Out hunting, Tristan hears the news and rides to the rescue

He plays a long lay on his harp, while the ship pulls away from shore

Gandin plays adequately on his small rote

But Tristan’s instrument is not only bigger

He handles it more skillfully!

Tristan rides off with Isolde

Chapter 19: Marjodoc

Tristan’s steward, Marjodoc, is secretly in love with Isolde.

Tristan and Marjodoc share lodgings.

Tristan often sneaks out at night to visit Isolde.

One night, Marjodoc has a dream

He dreams that a boar runs into Mark’s bedchamber

And fouls the bed linens with foam

Waking up, Marjodoc follows Tristan’s footprints in the snow

He arrives at Isolde’s chamber, and hears them making love

Marjodoc reports “rumors” to Mark, who has them carefully watched

Chapter 20: Plot and Counterplot

With Marjodoc’s help, Mark sets several traps for Isolde, to see how she feels about Tristan.

At first a failure, with Brangane’s help Isolde passes the tests.

Chapter 21: Melot

Melot, a dwarf from Aquitaine, arrives at court

Melot and Marjodoc team up to catch Tristan and Isolde

King Mark announces he will go on a hunt for 20 days.

Brangane helps Tristan and Isolde set up a communication system using twigs floating in a brook.

Chapter 22: The Assignation by the Brook

Mark and Melot hide in a tree to catch Tristan and Isolde in the act.

First Tristan, then Isolde notice the shadows and pretend coldness

Chapter 23: The Ordeal

Mark, Tristan, and Isolde were bled

Mark announces he will go to church with Melot

Melot sprinkles flour on the floor.

If Tristan sneaks to Isolde’s bed, he will leave footprints in the flour

Instead, Tristan leaps over to her bed, opens his wound, and gets blood all over the sheets

Mark finds the blood and is suspicious

Isolde will go to London and be questioned by the Bishops.

The Bishop declares she must be subjected to the ordeal of the red hot iron

This will occur in six weeks at Carleon.

Frightened, Isolde writes to Tristan

Disguised as a pilgrim, Tristan carries Isolde from the ship to the shore

She tells him to fall, and he does so, so that she lies in his lap

Now she can swear an oath that she never had carnal knowledge of, never lay in any man’s arms but Mark’s—excepting, of course, the poor pilgrim’s.

Isolde swears the oath, and prepares to carry the hot iron

Modern ordeal in Africa

Isolde passes the ordeal

Chapter 24: Petitcreiu

To escape temptation, Tristan sails away to Swales

Tristan visited his friend Duke Gilan

Gilan was young, single, and gay (straight, but joyful).

Gilan entertained Tristan

But Tristan suffered from melancholy.

Gilan brings out Petitcreiu

Petitcreiu is a little dog of all colors and no color at all

The little dog came from the mystical island Avalon

It sat on a cushion with a bell around its neck

The sound of the bell took sadness away

Tristan wanted the dog for Isolde

But Gilan refused to part with it.

The giant Urgan li vilus terrorized Swales

When the haughty Urgan came to the castle, Gilan had to pay him tribute

Gilan promises to give Tristan whatever he wants if he will rid the kingdom of Urgan

Tristan sets off to kill Urgan

Urgan is scornful of the young knight when Tristan blocks the bridge

The two taunt each other

Urgan strikes, and kills Tristan’s horse

Tristan wounds Urgan in the eye and cuts off his hand

Urgan runs home to reattach his hand

Tristan follows him and steals the hand!

Tristan and Urgan fight on the bridge

Tristan pushes the giant off the bridge, and he shatters on the rocks below.

Tristan returns to Gilan and shows him the hand

The kingdom cheers!

Gilan offers his sister and half his kingdom

But Tristan wants the dog.

Tristan sends the dog to Isolde

She writes to Tristan and tells him to return.

She breaks off the bell.

Chapter 25: Banishment

After watching their tender looks and feeling much pain, Mark banishes Tristan and Isolde from the kingdom.

Tristan and Isolde left the court

All they needed was each other.

But they took Curvenal, a dog, some money, Tristan’s harp, sword, bow, and horn…

Chapter 26: The Cave of Lovers

Tristan and Isolde live in a grotto not far from Mark’s castle

They slept on a crystal bed

And lived on love

Chapter 27: Discovery

Ever melancholy, Mark decides to go out hunting one day

Hearing the sounds of the hunt, Tristan and Isolde lie fully clothed in bed with a sword between them

When Mark peeks in a window, he is pleased to see their innocence

Mark blocks the window so the sun doesn’t harm Isolde’s complexion

When the lovers wake up, they see the window blocked and suspect Mark was there

Chapter 28: The Parting

Mark calls Tristan and Isolde back to court, but cautions them to avoid each other.

Gottfried tells us that even the most virtuous women hate being watched

Like Eve, a woman will do the one forbidden thing.

One day at noon, Isolde goes to the orchard and sends for Tristan

Mark discovers them

When Mark goes off to find witnesses, Tristan wakes Isolde

Tristan must leave.

Isolde gives him a gold ring and makes him promise to let no living woman come between them.

Chapter 29: Isolde of the White Hands

Tristan goes off to Europe, fights for the Holy Roman Empire, and has many adventures

Medieval Europe

Path of 1st Crusade, 11th century

Isolde pined

Tristan returns to Parmenie, hoping for news of Isolde

He mourns the deaths of Rual and Florete

Rual’s sons invite him to stay and retake the kingdom, but the restless Tristan decides to go to Arundel and help settle a feud there.

Old Duke Jovelin was overwhelmed by enemies

Tristan goes to Arundel

He became good friends with Jovalin’s son, Kaedin

Tristan and Kaedin hassle the enemy while they wait for more knights to arrive from Parmenie

Reinforcements arrive from Parmenie, and total victory goes to Tristan and Kaedin

Kaedin has a sister, called Isolde of the white hands.

Tristan is confused by the two Isoldes in his life

He plays and sings songs celebrating Isolde

Naturally, Isolde of the white hands and her brother think Tristan is singing to her

Isolde makes a play for Tristan

Encouraged by Kaedin, and not having received a message from Isolde, Tristan flirts with white hands.