King Arthur and His Knights | Page 2

helmets laced
with slender gold chains, and coats of mail made of tiny links of steel,
so fine and light that all together hardly weighed more than a coat of
cloth. Usually the legs of the knights were sheathed in steel armor; and
their spurs were steel, or even gold. The ladies sat on horses with long
trappings of silk, purple, white, or scarlet, with ornamented saddles and
swinging bells. The robes of the ladies were very beautiful, being made
of velvet or silk trimmed with ermine. Arthur liked to watch them,
flashing by; crimson, and gold, and blue, and rose-colored. Better still,
he liked to see the pretty happy faces of the ladies, and hear their gay
voices. In those troublous times, however, the roads were so insecure
that such companies did not often pass.
Sometimes the knights and ladies came to visit Sir Hector. Then Arthur

would hurry from the forest to the castle. Sir Hector would stand on the
lowered drawbridge to greet his guests, and would lead them, with
many expressions of pleasure, into the courtyard. Then he would take a
huge hammer hanging from a post, and beat with it on a table which
stood in a corner of the courtyard. Immediately from all parts of the
castle the squires and servants would come running to take the horses
of the knights and ladies. Sir Hector's wife and daughters would then
appear, and with their own hands remove the armor of the knights.
They would offer them golden basins of water, and towels for washing,
and after that put velvet mantles upon their shoulders. Then the guests
would be brought to the supper table.
But Arthur did not spend all his time dreaming in the woods or gazing
at knights and ladies. For many hours of the day he practiced feats of
arms in the courtyard. It was the custom in England to train boys of
noble birth to be knights. As soon as they were old enough they were
taught to ride. Later on, they lived much among the ladies and maidens,
learning gentle manners. Under the care of the knights, they learned to
hunt, to carry a lance properly, and to use the sword; and having gained
this skill, they were made squires if they had shown themselves to be of
good character.
Then, day by day, the squires practiced at the quintain. This was an
upright post, on the top of which turned a crosspiece, having on one
end a broad board, and on the other a bag of sand. The object was to
ride up at full gallop, strike the board with a long lance, and get away
without being hit by the sand bag.
Besides this, the squires had services to do for the knights, in order that
they might learn to be useful in as many ways as possible, and to be
always humble. For instance, they took care of the armor of the knights,
carried letters and messages for them, accompanied them at joustings
and tournaments, being ready with extra weapons or assistance; and in
the castle they helped to serve the guests at table. After months of such
service, they went through a beautiful ceremony and were made knights.
In the country round about, Arthur, of all the squires, was the most
famous for his skill in the use of the lance and the sword, for his

keenness in the hunt, and for his courtesy to all people.
Now, at this time there was no ruler in England. The powerful Uther of
Wales, who had governed England, was dead, and all the strong lords
of the country were struggling to be king in his place. This gave rise to
a great deal of quarreling and bloodshed.
There was in the land a wise magician named Merlin. He was so old
that his beard was as white as snow, but his eyes were as clear as a little
child's. He was very sorry to see all the fighting that was going on,
because he feared that it would do serious harm to the kingdom.
In those days the great and good men who ruled in the church had
power almost equal to that of the monarch. The kings and the great
lords listened to their advice, and gave them much land, and money for
themselves and for the poor. So Merlin went to the Archbishop of
Canterbury, the churchman who in all England was the most beloved,
and said:
"Sir, it is my advice that you send to all the great lords of the realm and
bid them come to London by Christmas to choose a king."
The archbishop did as Merlin advised, and at Christmas all the great
lords came to London. The largest church in the city stood