King Arthur and His Knights: Based on Morte D'Arthur of Sir Thomas Malory

By Thomas Malory and Sir James (editor); Rhead Knowles

Book Overview

"King Arthur and His Knights" is a compelling adaptation of Sir Thomas Malory's 15th-century masterpiece, "Le Morte d'Arthur." This work brings to life the enduring legends of Camelot, chronicling the rise of the legendary King Arthur and the formation of the fellowship of the Round Table. Readers follow the iconic journey from the drawing of the sword from the stone to the final, tragic battles that define the Arthurian age.

The narrative explores the high ideals of chivalry and the complex moral dilemmas faced by figures such as Sir Lancelot, Sir Gawain, and Sir Galahad. Central to the work are the noble quest for the Holy Grail and the intricate web of loyalty and betrayal that eventually threatens the kingdom. This adaptation captures the grandeur and mystical atmosphere of the original source material, presenting the heroic deeds and courtly romances that have shaped Western literary tradition.

As a foundational piece of English mythology, this volume emphasizes the historical and literary value of the Arthurian cycle. It serves as an essential exploration of honor, duty, and the human condition, making the ancient tales of magic and knighthood accessible while preserving the spirit of Malory's classic prose.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you may see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 102576918X
• ISBN13: 9781025769189
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Tradd Street Press
• Length: 286 Pages
• Weight: 0.89 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

A Pleasant Must Read For Any Quester's Soul

This nice collection of tales of King Arthur and his knights of the table round is a wonderful reading for anyone concerned with the history of western civilization and the thought that helped shape it. The book begins with Merlin, and really King Uther Pendragon and the wife of the Duke of Cornwall, Igraine, and the conception of one King Arthur. Following are tales of knight errantry, profiles of brave souls such as Guinevere, Arthur, Merlin, and perhaps most notably, Sir Lancelot and his erstwhile beloved Elaine, and their child, Sir Galahad. The tales are highlighted by prophecies, magical kingdoms, chaste maidens and not so chaste queens. These are, of course the christianized versions of these stories, but it is a strange christianity indeed. The eucharist holds no sway here, where instead, the sankgreall, or holy blood, just appears, sometimes from a cenosr a dove bears in it's mouth, other times leeching from a long sword bore by Christ Himself (to Sir Galahad). Angels bear away noble souls to heaven, while sorcery and magic are promulgated side by side with christian feasts and observances. The thin line between paganism and christianity is blurred to the point the stories bear an uncontested occultic thread from beginning to end which is to good effect here. This is a book when once bought, will be treasured. Hopefully still for many years to come!

my first "favorite book"

My mother gave me this book when I was six years old, and I fell in love immediately. It covers just about every classic Arthurian story, so it's a good introduction to the legends. The formal language is evocative of both the medieval period from which the stories come and the magical realm in which they take place. The woodcut illustrations have a 'stained-glass' look, and add to the atmosphere of the tales. Reading it, you feel that you are getting at the 'original' stories rather than a modern retelling; Green allows the quests and adventures to stand on their own, much as they exist in Malory or the medieval romances, without forcing his voice and version of events onto them. For this reason, I prefer it to other introductory collections of the stories. It's a classic, one that I've reread probably hundreds of times over the last twelve years.

A Good Introduction to Malory

I've used this text to teach upper-division college classes on the Arthurian legend, and I'd say that this is the best text for that purpose.First, although there are some useful and interesting tales missing (such as the tale of Sir Lancelot, and the tale of Sir Gareth), most the the truly vital ones are there -- and the death of Arthur is presented in its entirety.Second, Vinaver DOES modernize the spelling. But you can't modernize the spelling of an archaic word and, since he is NOT writing a translation but providing a modern-spelling edition, he simply standardizes the spelling of the archaic words and provides a gloss on each one. This is much more useful than the banal translations by Keith Barnes and Richard Barber (Legends of Arthur, from Boydell and Brewer).This edition is the best way to get used to Malory's beautiful style without having to figure out Middle English spellings (which isn't really very difficult in Malory's case). It's a well organized book, and makes Malory appealing without compromising on the language -- which is one of Malory's greatest facets.The only problem I have with this text is Vinaver's insistence on re-ordering the tales according to Malory's French originals. "The Knight of the Cart" should be presented AFTER "The Poisoned Apple," and certainly not before the Quest of the Holy Grail. It makes much better sense where Malory put it, where it shows Lanbcelot's deteriorating morals as his relationship with Guenever intensifies. Also, I'd like to see either more from the Quest for the Holy Grail, or nothing at all. The tiny fragment of the story presented here is almost incomprehensible to first-time readers.

Arthurian Legends Are for Everyone

As a teacher, and Arthurian Legend enthusiast, I have found these tales applicable to both middle, and high school students. Timeless stories of chivalry and honor accurately retold by Green excited students, who devoured chapter after chapter of guts and gore, evenly balanced with heroic knightly deeds. In the end students wanted more, and sought other titles independently. Note: TH Lawrence's Sword in the Stone is not an ample substitue. Students found it to be trite, childish, and laborious. It does however demonstrate how authorial interpretation of original plotlines can make or break a story. This book is worth the money.

An excellent King Arthur book for beginners.

The Roger Lancelyn Green version for King Arthur is an excellent Arthur version for beginners. I read this book for one of my classes at my school(Belen Jesuit Prep.)My teacher is an Arthur fanatic. He also got my whole grade involved in Arthur with this book. My favorite tale is The Last Battle. The only bad thing is that King Arthur and the realm of logres comes to such a tragic end.