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Excerpt from Idylls of the King, by Baron Alfred Tennyson Tennyson

 But Arthur, “We sit King, to help the wronged<br />

Through all our realm. The woman loves her lord.
Peace to thee, woman, with thy loves and hates!
The kings of old had doomed thee to the flames,
Aurelius Emrys would have scourged thee dead,
And Uther slit thy tongue: but get thee hence—
Lest that rough humour of the kings of old
Return upon me! Thou that art her kin,
Go likewise; lay him low and slay him not,
But bring him here, that I may judge the right,
According to the justice of the King:
Then, be he guilty, by that deathless King
Who lived and died for men, the man shall die.”

 Then came in hall the messenger of Mark,<br />

A name of evil savour in the land,
The Cornish king. In either hand he bore
What dazzled all, and shone far-off as shines
A field of charlock in the sudden sun
Between two showers, a cloth of palest gold,
Which down he laid before the throne, and knelt,
Delivering, that his lord, the vassal king,
Was even upon his way to Camelot;
For having heard that Arthur of his grace
Had made his goodly cousin, Tristram, knight,
And, for himself was of the greater state,
Being a king, he trusted his liege-lord
Would yield him this large honour all the more;
So prayed him well to accept this cloth of gold,
In token of true heart and fealty.

 Then Arthur cried to rend the cloth, to rend<br />

In pieces, and so cast it on the hearth.
An oak-tree smouldered there. “The goodly knight!
What! shall the shield of Mark stand among these?”
For, midway down the side of that long hall
A stately pile,—whereof along the front,
Some blazoned, some but carven, and some blank,
There ran a treble range of stony shields,—
Rose, and high-arching overbrowed the hearth.
And under every shield a knight was named:
For this was Arthur’s custom in his hall;
When some good knight had done one noble deed,
His arms were carven only; but if twain
His arms were blazoned also; but if none,
The shield was blank and bare without a sign
Saving the name beneath; and Gareth saw
The shield of Gawain blazoned rich and bright,
And Modred’s blank as death; and Arthur cried
To rend the cloth and cast it on the hearth.

Explanation ​

Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from Idylls of the King by Alfred, Lord Tennyson ​

Context of the Work ​

Idylls of the King (1859–1885) is a cycle of twelve narrative poems by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, retelling the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Written in the Victorian era, Tennyson’s work blends medieval Arthurian romance with moral and philosophical concerns of his time—particularly the decline of chivalry, the fragility of idealism, and the tension between law and passion.

This excerpt comes from "The Last Tournament" (one of the later Idylls), where Arthur’s kingdom is already decaying. The scene depicts Arthur’s justice, his disdain for corruption, and the hypocrisy of King Mark of Cornwall—a vassal king whose treachery (particularly against Tristram and Isolt) is well-known in legend.

Breakdown of the Excerpt ​

1. Arthur’s Judgment (Lines 1–12) ​

"But Arthur, ‘We sit King, to help the wronged / Through all our realm. The woman loves her lord. / Peace to thee, woman, with thy loves and hates!..."

  • Situation: Arthur is adjudicating a case involving a woman (likely a wife) who has been wronged, possibly by an unfaithful or abusive husband. The exact crime is unclear, but the kings of old (Aurelius Emrys, Uther Pendragon) would have punished her harshly—burning, scourging, or mutilation.
  • Arthur’s Mercy vs. Old Brutality:
    • He rejects the cruel justice of the past, showing his progressive, Christian-influenced rule ("by that deathless King / Who lived and died for men"—a reference to Christ).
    • Yet, his warning ("Lest that rough humour of the kings of old / Return upon me!") suggests his struggle to maintain order—his patience is wearing thin.
    • He orders the woman’s kin to capture (not kill) the accused, emphasizing due process ("that I may judge the right").

Themes & Devices:

  • Justice vs. Mercy: Arthur’s rule is idealistic but strained; he tries to balance law with compassion, but the threat of violence lingers.
  • Christian vs. Pagan Morality: The "kings of old" represent brutal, pre-Christian justice, while Arthur’s reference to Christ aligns him with redemption and moral law.
  • Foreshadowing: His frustration hints at the collapse of Camelot—his ideals are failing against human corruption.

2. The Arrival of Mark’s Messenger (Lines 13–26) ​

"Then came in hall the messenger of Mark, / A name of evil savour in the land, / The Cornish king..."

  • King Mark of Cornwall is a notorious villain in Arthurian legend—jealous, treacherous, and cruel (he later betrays Tristram, his own nephew, over Isolt).
  • The Cloth of Gold:
    • The messenger presents a dazzling golden cloth, symbolizing wealth and false loyalty.
    • The simile ("as shines / A field of charlock in the sudden sun / Between two showers") suggests deceptive beauty—charlock (a bright yellow weed) is fleeting and insubstantial, much like Mark’s "fealty."
    • The cloth is a bribe, meant to flatter Arthur into knighting Mark (since Tristram, Mark’s nephew, was already knighted).

Themes & Devices:

  • Appearance vs. Reality: The golden cloth is showy but hollow, mirroring Mark’s false loyalty.
  • Corruption of Chivalry: Mark, a vassal king, should serve Arthur honorably, but he manipulates knighthood for status.
  • Irony: Mark claims true heart and fealty, but the audience (and Arthur) knows he is duplicitous.

3. Arthur’s Rejection of Mark (Lines 27–42) ​

"Then Arthur cried to rend the cloth, to rend / In pieces, and so cast it on the hearth..."

  • Arthur’s Outrage:
    • He orders the cloth torn and burned, rejecting Mark’s hypocritical gift.
    • His rhetorical question ("What! shall the shield of Mark stand among these?") emphasizes disgust—Mark does not belong among true knights.
  • The Shield Wall:
    • The hall contains a "treble range of stony shields", each representing a knight’s deeds:
      • Blank shields = no noble deeds (e.g., Modred, the traitor).
      • Carved shields = one deed.
      • Blazoned shields = two deeds (e.g., Gawain, a model knight).
    • This visual symbol reinforces Arthur’s meritocratic ideal—knighthood is earned, not inherited.
    • Mark, who has done nothing noble, has no place here.

Themes & Devices:

  • Symbolism of the Shields:
    • Gawain’s blazoned shield = honor and achievement.
    • Modred’s blank shield = treachery and emptiness.
    • The hearth (where the cloth is burned) symbolizes purification—Arthur rejects corruption.
  • Arthur’s Authority: His commanding tone ("rend the cloth") shows his uncompromising stance against false chivalry.
  • Foreshadowing of Doom: The oak-tree smouldering on the hearth suggests decay—Arthur’s ideals are burning out.

Significance of the Passage ​

  1. Arthur’s Struggle to Uphold Ideals:

    • He rejects brutality but is forced to threaten it, showing the strain of his rule.
    • His anger at Mark reveals his disillusionment—even vassal kings mock his ideals.

  2. The Decay of Camelot:

    • The blank shields (Modred, Mark) represent the rise of treachery.
    • The burning of the gold cloth symbolizes the destruction of false values—but also the futility of Arthur’s fight.

  3. Victorian Parallels:

    • Tennyson wrote during an era of industrialization and moral crisis.
    • Arthur’s failed utopia mirrors Victorian anxieties about progress, faith, and leadership.

  4. Tristram & Isolt Subplot:

    • Mark’s hypocrisy foreshadows his later betrayal of Tristram, a key event in Arthur’s downfall.

Conclusion: Why This Matters ​

This excerpt captures the heart of Idylls of the King—the tension between idealism and reality. Arthur’s justice is noble but fragile, while figures like Mark embody the corruption that will destroy Camelot. The symbolism of shields, fire, and gold reinforces the moral decay of the kingdom, making this a pivotal moment in Tennyson’s tragic vision of Arthur’s reign.

Tennyson’s rich imagery, rhetorical questions, and historical allusions (to Aurelius, Uther, Christ) elevate the scene beyond mere storytelling—it becomes a meditation on leadership, morality, and the cost of ideals.