Myths and legends
Tristan and Iseult
The legend of Tristan and Iseult is the tale of two lovers who are fated to share a forbidden love. A popular poem from 12th-century France, it was probably based on a Celtic legend, originating in Brittany, northwestern France. It may have come from an even older Persian myth, called Vis and Ramin. Over time, the tale became part of the Arthurian legends, with Tristan one of the knights of the Round Table. The story may have influenced the later story about the romance between Lancelot and Guinevere. The legend of Tristan and Iseult and its idea of romantic love has inspired poets, artists, playwrights and composers ever since medieval times.
The duel with Morholt
The King of Ireland sent his champion knight Morholt to demand tribute (a payment made by a weaker country to a more powerful one) from the Kingdom of Cornwall. Tristan (also known as Tristram) the nephew of King Mark of Cornwall, a chivalrous knight, fought and killed Morholt in a duel, leaving a broken piece of his sword in the fatal wound. There the fragment remained even after Morholt's body had been returned to Ireland. Tristan’s own wound from the bloody duel failed to heal, so he travelled to Ireland in disguise to seek help from Princess Iseult (also known as Isolde), known to be a skilled healer.
Back in Cornwall, Tristan was so full of admiration for Iseult that his uncle, King Mark, decided to marry her. The loyal Tristan returned to Ireland to convey the king’s proposal.
Love potion
Iseult discovered Tristan’s broken sword and realised that it was he who had killed Morholt, her uncle. Because Tristan had killed a dragon that had been terrorizing the people of Ireland, Iseult forgave him and agreed to marry King Mark. She set off with Tristan back to Cornwall. In the meantime, Iseult’s mother had prepared a magic potion that would make them love each other for ever. During the voyage, both Tristan and Iseult drank the potion, not realising what it was, and so fell deeply in love.
Iseult married King Mark, but she could not stop loving Tristan, and he loved her in return. Mark heard about the affair and resolved to execute them both. Eventually the lovers made their peace with the king; Tristan agreed to return Iseult to Mark and leave the country.
Death
Exiled in Brittany, Tristan married another Iseult, known as Iseult of the White Hands. Fated by the magic potion, his love for Princess Iseult of Cornwall raged on inside him, however. When Tristan was wounded by a poisoned spear in battle, Tristan sent his friend Kahedin to find Princess Iseult, the only person who could heal him. He instructed Kahedin to sail back with white sails if he had been successful in bringing Iseult, or black sails if he had not been. Iseult agreed to return to Tristan, but Tristan's jealous wife, Iseult of the White Hands, lied to Tristan about the colour of the sails she could see approaching on the horizon. Tristan died of grief, and when she arrived to find only his corpse, Iseult did so as well.
Consultant: Philip Wilkinson