Lion de Bourges: Folios 161 – 170 (lines 30626-32288)

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Lion accompanies the White Knight to the outskirts of Bourges where he meets the fairy Clariande who loans Lion armour from king Arthur with the provision that he must return it in one year and promise to visit Arthur, the fairies Morgan, Gloriande, and Clarisse. The White Knight and Lion then go to free Olivier who is being held by Salmon, one of the sons of Hermer. Lion condemns Salmon to death, but before the execution, he pressures Salmon to disclose where the horn is. Salmon confesses the evil plot of Ysacart and insists that only he knows where the real horn is.

After the liberation of Olivier, the White Knight disappears into the skies while Lion heads for Paris to obtain help from the new King Louis, the flower lily of his dream. Olivier maintains the siege of Bourges.

Joieuse/Tristouse gives birth to twins, a son and a daughter, and she sends a messenger to Bourges to announce the news to Olivier. But Henry the messenger is intercepted by Béatris promising him twenty pounds if he brings back Olivier’s response directly to her.

In the meantime, Béatris convinces a clerk to participate in her evil plan; she makes the clerk Thiéry write a message that orders the viscount of Caffaut to execute Joieuse and her two children, with the threat of being executed himself if he fails to comply. The message bears the false signature of Olivier as well as his counterfeit seal.

Upon his return from Bourges, the messenger Henry goes to Béatris who provides shelter for him, and gets him drunk. During the night she switches the message from Olivier with the fake one that she had dictated to her clerk.

The next day, Henry delivers the message to the viscount, who does not obey. He causes Joieuse and her children to be exiled but Garnier d’Origon, a spy of Béatris, insists that Joieuse and her children be burnt. While Joieuse is waiting to be burnt at the stake, the barons seize the traitor Garnier and throw him into the flames. Joieuse leaves with her children; she reaches Rome by the grace of God. The wife of a senator of Rome is baffled when she sees the ship, without a pilot coming into the port. She and her husband rush to welcome Joieuse.

Back from his mission, Lion brings the new king Louis, as well as Guillaume d’Orange, Beuve de Commarchis, Aymeri de Narbonne, and his son Aymeri de Chétif with him to Bourges. The next day, Ysacart and his brothers leave Bourges to break the siege.

The Battle is long and indecisive; finally Lion, Louis and Olivier are defeated and imprisoned in Bourges while Aymeri de Narbonne, Guillaume d’Orange and Guy de Carthage continue to fight. Guillaume d’Orange succeeds in taking Ysacart and his eleven brothers prisoner while Guy de Carthage puts on the armour of Ysacart and penetrates Bourges. Once he is in the rooms of Ysacart, Guy finds his loyal friend Clariante de Normandie who helps him free Guillaume and his brother Olivier, their father Lion, Louis and the other prisoners. In the early morning, Guillaume finds his wife Gracienne. Louis de France erects a gallows and the traitors are hung. Before dying, Ysacart confesses that he is solely responsible for the betrayal and finally tells them where the horn is buried.


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