Tintagel in Medieval Literature
Castle Tintagel is one that is steeped in history and legend, and it has the great honor of being one of the most important castles featured in medieval literature.
History
Castle Tintagel was built by Richard, Duke of Cornwall, in the 13th century. Now just a ruin on the Cornish coast, it has still been a huge tourist attraction and a place of archaeological intrest since the 19th century.
Tintagel in Gottfried von Straßburg‘s Tristan
In Gottfried‘s version of the Tristan story, Marke lives in Castle Tintagel. Tristan first arrives there after he meets with hunters from the castle in the woods and he goes back to the castle with them. His reaction to the castle when he first sees it paints quite a picture for the reader.
„ei“ sprach er „lieber meister mîn,
saget waz bürge mag diz sîn?
diz ist ein küniclîch castêl!“
der meister sprach: „deist Tintajêl.“
„Tintajêl? Â welh ein castêl!
dê te saut, Tintajêl
und allez dîn gesinde!“1
“Oh,” he said, “what stronghold is this, dear master? It is a castle fit for a king!”
“Tintagel,” answered the huntsman.
“Tintagel? What a splendid castle! God save you, Tintagel, and all who dwell inside you!“ 2
According to Gottfried, Tintagel is an extremely beautiful castle. And the most important thing is, is that Marke’s court there is very noble, beautiful, and when Tristan arrives, musical. Therefore Tintagel is not just a beautiful castle, it is really the best home for Tristan, who ist clearly very noble, talented and musical. Of course, as Marke’s castle and Tristan’s home in this version of the story, Castle Tintagel is extremely important. Huge and important parts of the story occur here.
Tintagel in Sir Thomas Malory‘s Le Morte d’Arthur
As Tintagel is in Cornwall, it is not at all surprising that many of these medieval works include the dukes of Cornwall. Immediately at the beginning of Le Morte d´Arthur the Duke of Cornwall is very important. As with Tristan’s story, Arthur’s story begins with the story of his parents. Therefore, at the beginning of Le Morte d´Arthur Malory describes the war between Uther Pendragon, the king of England, and the Duke of Cornwall, Gorlois. Uther wants the wife of the duke, Igraine, but she is extremely loyal to her husband. So Merlin, the wizard, disguises Uther after he (Uther) has killed the duke, so that he can sleep with Igraine, because she assumes that he is her husband when he comes to her. And through this union between Igraine and Uther, Arthur is conceived, and Igraine and Uther are married. Although it is not clearly said in the text, many believe that Arthur was born there, in Castle Tintagel – so of course, this castle is extremely important to the Arthurian legends. Tristram‘s (Tristan‘s) part in Le Morte d´Arthur is also often set at the castle, because in this part of the story Marke is the Duke of Cornwall. Tristram’s story in Le Morte d´Arthur is almost the same as Gottfried von Straßburg’s version, therefore the castle becomes more and more important for Tristan’s (or Tristram’s) story.
Tintagel in Historia Regum Britanniae
The Historia Regum Britanniae was written in approximately 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth, and it is a fictional account of Britisch history. It was in this book that the link between Arthur and Tintagel was established. Geoffrey describes a bit of Arthur’s story in this book, but of course Sir Thomas Malory wrote a lot more about it.
Bibliography
1 Lines 3155-3161: Gottfried von Straßburg: Tristan. Mittelhochdeutsch/Neuhochdeutsch.
2 p.83: Gottfried von Straßburg: Tristan with the ´Tristan´of Thomas.
- Gottfried von Straßburg: Tristan. Mittelhochdeutsch/Neuhochdeutsch. Nach dem Text von Friedrich Ranke neu hg., ins Neuhochdeutsche übers., mit einem Stellenkommentar und einem Nachwort von Rüdiger Krohn. Band 1-2. Stuttgart 1980.
- Gottfried von Straßburg: Tristan with the ´Tristan´of Thomas. Penguin Books. London 1960.
- Malory, Sir Thomas: Le Morte D'Arthur Volume I-II. Penguin Books. London 1969.