| Green Knight | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Real Name |
Bertilak de Hautdesert |
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First Appearance |
Arthurian Legend |
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Created by |
English Myth |
Origin[]
The Green Knight is a heroic character of the Matter of Britain, originating in the 14th-century poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and the related medieval work The Greene Knight. His true name is revealed to be Bertilak de Hautdesert (spelled in some translations as "Bercilak" or "Bernlak") in Sir Gawain, while The Greene Knight names him "Bredbeddle". The Green Knight later features as one of Arthur's greatest champions in the fragmentary ballad "King Arthur and King Cornwall", again with the name "Bredbeddle".
In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Bertilak is transformed into the Green Knight by Morgan le Fay, a traditional adversary of King Arthur, to test his court. However, in The Greene Knight, he is transformed by a different woman for the same purpose. In both stories, he sends his wife to seduce Gawain as a further test. "King Arthur and King Cornwall" portrays him as an exorcist and one of the most powerful knights of Arthur's court. His wider role in Arthurian literature includes being a judge and tester of knights, and as such, the other characters consider him as friendly but terrifying and somewhat mysterious.
In Sir Gawain, the Green Knight is so called because his skin and clothes are green. The meaning of his greenness has puzzled scholars. Some identify him as the Green Man, a vegetation being of medieval art; others as a recollection of a figure from Celtic mythology; a Christian "pagan" symbol – the personified Devil.
Characters similar to the Green Knight appear in several other works. In Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, for example, Gawain's brother Gareth defeats four brothers in different coloured armour, including a "Grene Knyght" named Sir Partolope.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All literary works featuring the Green Knight published before January 1, 1930 are in the public domain in the US.
A list of some notable works can be found here:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
- The Greene Knight
- King Arthur and King Cornwall
Public Domain Comic Appearances Inspired by the Green Knight[]
- Bulls Eye Comics #11
- Dynamic Comics #2-3
- Kayo Comics #12
Notes[]
- Denis Knight was a wealthy American sportsman who inspired by the chivalrous knight of the past becomes the Green Knight.