Sir Gawain seized his lance and bade them farewell

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. It was one of the three great Wester ...

, Gringolet is Sir

Gawain Gawain (), also known in many other forms and spellings, is a character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest ...

's mighty and beloved horse. A sturdy

charger Charger or Chargers may refer to: * Charger (table setting), decorative plates used to fancify a place setting * Battery charger, a device used to put energy into a cell or battery * Capacitor charger, typically a high voltage DC power supply ...

, with distinctive ears, Gringolet was known far and wide for his ability in combat, and appears in many romances in several different languages.

Derivation of name

Israel Gollancz in the early 20th century suggested that Gringolet was derived from the giant

Wade Wade, WADE, or Wades may refer to: Places in the United States * Wade, California, a former settlement * Wade, Maine, a town * Wade, Mississippi, a census-designated place * Wade, North Carolina, a town * Wade, Ohio, an unincorporated communi ...

's magic boat, Guingelot or ''*Wingolet'' – one form of magical transport (horse) being substituted for an earlier one (boat). More generally accepted is the suggestion by the prominent Arthurian scholar

Roger Sherman Loomis Roger Sherman Loomis (1887–1966) was an American scholar and one of the foremost authorities on medieval and Arthurian literature. Loomis is perhaps best known for showing the roots of Arthurian legend, in particular the Holy Grail, in native Ce ...

that the French name Gringalet derived from either the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

''guin-calet'' ("white and hardy"), or ''keincaled'' ("handsome and hardy") – linked to a wider Celtic tradition of heroic white horses with red ears.

Appearances

His earliest appearance is in

Chrétien de Troyes Chrétien de Troyes (Modern ; fro, Crestien de Troies ; 1160–1191) was a French poet and trouvère known for his writing on Arthurian subjects, and for first writing of Lancelot, Percival and the Holy Grail. Chrétien's works, including ''E ...

' ''

Erec and Enide , original_title_lang = fro , translator = , written = c. 1170 , country = , language = Old French , subject = Arthurian legend , genre = Chivalric romance , form ...

''; in that poem he is borrowed by

Sir Kay In Arthurian legend, Sir Kay ( cy, Cai, Middle Welsh ''Kei'' or ''Cei''; la, Caius; French: ''Keu''; Old French: ''Kès'' or ''Kex'') is King Arthur's foster brother and later seneschal, as well as one of the first Knights of the Round Table. ...

to joust against

Erec The Knights of the Round Table ( cy, Marchogion y Ford Gron, kw, Marghekyon an Moos Krenn, br, Marc'hegien an Daol Grenn) are the knights of the fellowship of King Arthur in the literary cycle of the Matter of Britain. First appearing in lit ...

. Even Gringolet cannot prevent Kay from losing to the protagonist. In the

Lancelot-Grail The ''Lancelot-Grail'', also known as the Vulgate Cycle or the Pseudo-Map Cycle, is an early 13th-century French Arthurian literary cycle consisting of interconnected prose episodes of chivalric romance in Old French. The cycle of unknown authors ...

Cycle, Gawain wins Gringolet from the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

king Clarion; a different story of the acquisition is given in

Wolfram von Eschenbach Wolfram von Eschenbach (; – ) was a German knight, poet and composer, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of medieval German literature. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry. Life Little is known of Wolfram's life. There are ...

's ''

Parzival ''Parzival'' is a medieval romance (heroic literature), romance by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, centers on the Arthurian hero Percival, Parziva ...

'', where the horse bears the mark of, and comes from the stable of, the Grail castle – part of the gradual displacement of Gawain by Percival and the story of the grail. In the

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English p ...

poem ''

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is a late 14th-century chivalric romance in Middle English. The author is unknown; the title was given centuries later. It is one of the best-known Arthurian stories, with its plot combining two types of f ...

'', Gawain sets out atop Gringolet in search of the Green Chapel. Lines 600–604 of the poem describe Gringolet's ornate appearance in being readied for the journey: :''The bridle was embossed and bound with bright gold;'' :''So were the furnishings of the fore-harness and the fine skirts.'' :''The crupper and the caparison accorded with the saddle-bows,'' :''And all was arrayed on red with nails of richest gold,'' :''Which glittered and glanced like gleams of the sun.''

Gawain's attachment

Gawain is always shown as attached to Gringolet, caring for his horse, and talking to it as to a beloved pet or companion. When (in one tale) Gringolet is killed beneath him in combat, Gawain is seized with battle fury, and runs mad, his strength amplified, until nightfall.J. Matthews, ''Sir Gawain'' (2003) p. 117

References

Arthurian characters Horses in mythology {{fantasy-char-stub

Derivation of name

Appearances

Gawain's attachment

See also

References