Melias
Melias is a knight of the British tradition, attested in Le Morte d'Arthur with 11 citations across the Grail quest narrative.
Melias is a knight of the British tradition, attested in Le Morte d'Arthur with 11 citations across the Grail quest narrative. He is closely associated with Galahad, who makes him a knight, and his brief adventure serves as an early test of the spiritual perils that define the Sangreal quest.
Melias first appears seeking knighthood from Galahad, declaring himself ready for the quest. Galahad obliges and dubs him knight, after which "men brought Sir Melias his armour and his spear and his horse" (Le Morte d'Arthur, Book XIII, Ch. XII). The two ride together for a week before encountering any adventure.
Their first test comes at a fork in the road marked with a warning. Melias chooses the path reserved for the worthier knight and encounters a golden crown, which he takes. This act of coveting triggers immediate retribution: a knight strikes Melias "through hauberk and through the left side, that he fell to the earth nigh dead" (Le Morte d'Arthur, Book XIII, Ch. XIII). The attacker seizes the crown and rides away, leaving Melias helpless.
Galahad arrives to rescue him, defeating two knights who emerge from the woods. Melias, gravely wounded with the truncheon of a spear still lodged in his body, begs to be carried to a nearby abbey rather than left to die in the forest: "for God's love let me not die in this forest, but bear me unto the abbey here beside, that I may be confessed and have my rights" (Le Morte d'Arthur, Book XIII, Ch. XIII). An old monk, formerly a knight himself, examines Melias and confirms he will survive. Before Galahad departs, Melias pledges to seek him again once healed: "My lord Galahad, as soon as I may ride I shall seek you" (Le Morte d'Arthur, Book XIII, Ch. XIV).
Appears in: Beings, Entities in Le Morte d'Arthur, British Tradition