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07 - Part 1 Story 6 How Morgan Le Fay Tried To Kill King Arthur · Tales Of King Arthur And The Round Table

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  Speaker 1: Part one, Story six of Tales of King Arthur and
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  Speaker 1: the Round Table by Andrew Lang. This LibriVox recording is
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  Speaker 1: in the public domain. Part one, story six, How Morgan
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  Speaker 1: le Fay tried to kill King Arthur. King Arthur had
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  Speaker 1: a sister called Morgan le Fay, who was skilled in
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  Speaker 1: magic of all sorts, and hated her brother because he
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  Speaker 1: had slain in battle a knight whom she loved the
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  Speaker 1: better to gain her own ends and to revenge herself
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  Speaker 1: upon the king, she kept a smiling face and let
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  Speaker 1: none guess the passion in her heart. One day, Morgan
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  Speaker 1: le Fay went to Queen Guinevere and asked her leave
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  Speaker 1: to go into the country. The Queen wished her to
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  Speaker 1: wait till Arthur returned, but Morgan le Fay said she
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  Speaker 1: had had bad news and could not wait. Then the
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  Speaker 1: Queen let her depart without delay early next morning. At
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  Speaker 1: break of day, Morgan le Fay mounted her horse and
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  Speaker 1: rode all day and all night, and at noon next
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  Speaker 1: day reached the abbey of Nuns, where King Arthur had
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  Speaker 1: gone to rest, For he had fought a hard battle,
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  Speaker 1: and for three nights had slept. But little do not
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  Speaker 1: wake him, said Morgan le Fay, who had come there
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  Speaker 1: knowing she would find him. I will rouse him myself
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  Speaker 1: when I think he has had enough sleep, for she
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  Speaker 1: thought to steal his sword EXCaliber from him. The nuns
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  Speaker 1: dared not disobey her, so Morgan le Fay went straight
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  Speaker 1: into the room where King Arthur was lying fast asleep
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  Speaker 1: in his bed, and in his right hand was grasped
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  Speaker 1: his sword Excalibur. When she beheld that sight, her heart fell,
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  Speaker 1: for she dared not touch the sword, knowing well that
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  Speaker 1: if Arthur waked and saw her, she was a dead woman.
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  Speaker 1: So she took the scabbard and went away on horseback.
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  Speaker 1: When the King awoke and missed his scabbard, he was
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  Speaker 1: angry and asked who had been there, and the nuns
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  Speaker 1: told him that it was his sister, Morgan le Fay,
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  Speaker 1: who had gone away with a scabbard under her mantle. Alas, said, Arthur,
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  Speaker 1: you have watched me badly, Sir, said they, we dared
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  Speaker 1: not disobey your sister. Saddle the best horse that can
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  Speaker 1: be found, commanded the king, and bid sir aunslake take
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  Speaker 1: another and come with me, and they buckled on their
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  Speaker 1: armor and rode after Morgan le Fay. They had not
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  Speaker 1: gone far before they met a cowherd, and they stopped
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  Speaker 1: to ask if he had seen any lady riding that way. Yes,
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  Speaker 1: said the cowherd. A lady passed by here with forty
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  Speaker 1: horses behind her, and went into the forest yonder. Then
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  Speaker 1: they galloped hard till Arthur caught sight of Morgan le Fay,
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  Speaker 1: who looked back, and, seeing that it was Arthur who
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  Speaker 1: gave chase, pushed on faster than before. And when she
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  Speaker 1: saw she could not escape him. And when she saw
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  Speaker 1: she could not escape him, she rode into a lake
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  Speaker 1: that lay in the plain on the edge of the forest,
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  Speaker 1: and crying out, whatever may befall me, my brother shall
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  Speaker 1: not have the scabbard. She threw the scabbard far into
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  Speaker 1: the water, and it sank, for it was very heavy
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  Speaker 1: with gold and jewels. After that she fled into a
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  Speaker 1: valley full of great stones and turned herself and her
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  Speaker 1: men and her horses in two blocks of marble. Scarcely
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  Speaker 1: had she done this when the king rode up, but
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  Speaker 1: seeing her nowhere, thought some evil must have befallen her
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  Speaker 1: in vengeance of her misdeeds. He then sought high and
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  Speaker 1: low for the scabbard, but being unable to find it,
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  Speaker 1: he returned to the abbey. When Arthur was gone, Morgan
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  Speaker 1: le Fay turned herself and her horses and her men
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  Speaker 1: back into their former shapes, and said, now, sirs, we
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  Speaker 1: may go where we will. And she departed into the
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  Speaker 1: country of Gore, and made her towns and castles stronger
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  Speaker 1: than before, for she feared King Arthur greatly. Meanwhile, King
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  Speaker 1: Arthur had rested himself at the abbey, and afterwards he
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  Speaker 1: rode to Camelot and was welcomed by his queen and
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  Speaker 1: all his knights, And when he told his adventure and
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  Speaker 1: how Morgan le Fay sought his death, they longed to
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  Speaker 1: burn her for her treason. The next morning there arrived
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  Speaker 1: a damsel at the court with a message from Morgan
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  Speaker 1: le Fay, saying that she had sent the king her
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  Speaker 1: brother a rich mantle for a gift covered with precious stones,
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  Speaker 1: and begged him to receive it and to forgive her
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  Speaker 1: in whatever she might have offended him. The King answered little,
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  Speaker 1: but the mantle pleased him, and he was about to
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  Speaker 1: throw it over his shoulders, when the lady of the
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  Speaker 1: Lake stepped forward and begged that she might speak to
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  Speaker 1: him in private. What is it? Asked the King. Say
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  Speaker 1: on here and fear nothing, Sir, said the lady, do
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  Speaker 1: not put on this mantle, or suffer your knights to
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  Speaker 1: put it on till the bringer of it has worn
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  Speaker 1: it in your presence. Your words are wise, answered the King.
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  Speaker 1: I will do as you counsel me. Damsel, I desire
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  Speaker 1: you to put on this mantle that you have brought me,
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  Speaker 1: so that I may see it, Sir, said she. It
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  Speaker 1: does not become me to wear a ca king's garment
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  Speaker 1: by my head, cried Arthur. You shall wear it before
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  Speaker 1: I put it on my back, or on the back
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  Speaker 1: of any of my knights. And he signed to them
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  Speaker 1: to put it on her, and she fell down dead,
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  Speaker 1: burnt to ashes by the enchanted mantle. Then the king
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  Speaker 1: was filled with anger, more bitter than before that his
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  Speaker 1: sister should have dealt so wickedly by him. End of
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  Speaker 1: Part one, Story six