book 8
Sir Tristram
Born in the Forest
King Mark of Cornwall's sister Elizabeth married King Melodias of Liones (just two of the stacks of kings all over Britain and Europe who ruled under Arthur) and she died giving birth to Tristram in a forest searching for her kidnapped hubby (later rescued by the then as-yet-unstoned Merlin).
Surviving his new step-mum's failure to poison him he grew up into a real goody-goody, until when eighteen years old he was knighted by King Mark so he could defend his right not to pay truage to King Anguish of Ireland by defeating the Irish champion Sir Marhaus (Anguish's queen's brother and a Round Table knight) on a small island near Tintagil.
The Beautiful Isoud
Sir Marhaus eventually died in Ireland where his sister (the queen) pulled a fragment of Sir Tristram's sword out of his brain, and Tristram followed using the pseudonym Tramtrist after a wise-woman predicted his lingering wounds could only be healed in the country of his enemy.
King Anguish's daughter La Beale Isoud healed him and he met Sir Palomides, a pagan Saracen about to get Christened out of love for her, and their sexual rivalry would last for 4 whole books, especially after Tristram humiliated Palomides at an Irish joust.
But then the queen matched the shard from her brother's brain to a nick in Tristram's blade and tried to kill him in the bath, but Sir Hebes stopped her and Tristram returned to the court of King Mark in Cornwall.
There, he, King Mark, and the Round Table knight Sir Boeberis de Ganis all fell in love with the wife of the earl Sir Segwarides, and everybody got hurt.
Love Potion Number Nine
Next Tristram and his sidekick Gouvernail were sent back to Ireland to fetch La Beale Isoud and her sidekickette Dame Bragwaine back to Cornwall to marry King Mark, but on the boat back Tristram and Isoud accidentally drank a love potion and fell permanently in love, before being captured by Sir Breunor of the Castle Pluere (the weeping castle).
King Mark Marries La Belle Isoud
Tristram soon escaped, met Sir Galahad (not THE Galahad, son of Launcelot, but A Galahad, son of Sir Breunor) and delivered Isoud to King Mark whom she married. Then Sir Palomides rode off with her, Sir Tristram followed, they fought, Isoud stopped it and Palomides went off to see Arthur.
Then one day Tristram's cousin Sir Andred tipped off King Mark and he caught them chatting and made a scene, and Tristram humiliated him and ran off into the forest to kill several of his uncle's knights, but they made up, and at the next joust Tristram annoyed Sir Lamorak de Galis to please his uncle.
The Magic Horn
On his way home Sir Lamorak met a knight carrying a magic horn from Morgan le Fay to King Arthur, which could only be drunk from by a woman who was true to her husband (another of Morgan's plans to cause trouble), so he made the knight take it to King Mark instead, to spite Tristram. Isoud and ninety percent of the ladies at court failed the horn test, but the barons stopped Mark from burning them all.
Then Sir Andred and twelve knights captured Tristram one midnight whilst shagging Isoud and dragged them off, but he escaped naked and rescued her too until he was shot with a poison arrow and Mark retrieved Isoud and locked her up.
Tristram Marries Isoud la Blanche Mains
Tris went to Brittany to be healed by the daughter of King Howel, coincidentally called Isoud la Blanche Mains, won his host's war and married his daughter (seriously upsetting the other Isoud and Launcelot when they found out, although Tristram swore the marriage was never consumated).
The Isle of Servage
One day Tristram, Isoud#2 and her brother Sir Kehydius accidentally sailed to the Isle of Servage off the coast of North Wales (where Sir Lamorak was recovering from a shipwreck) and met Sir Segwarides and his new bit of fluff, who had completely forgiven Tris for destroying his marriage. They all got together at a joust organised by the evil lord of the island Sir Nabon le Noire and Tristram slew him and his son and left Segwarides in charge.
Tris and Is#2 returned to Britanny and Sir Lamorak returned to Britain where he saved a damosel from Sir Gawaine, saved then slew Sir Frol and then fought then made friends with Frol's dad Sir Belliance le Orgulus.
Retreat to book 7
Move onward to book 9
Return to the main Malory page
Return to the shrine homepage