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The Tragic Love Tale of Tristan and Iseult from Arthurian Legend

© Linda Casselman

One day the beautiful maiden Iseult with the long golden hair found the young orphan Tristan ravaged and washed upon the shore of Ireland. She took pity on the poor lad and nursed him back to health, curing him of a terrible wound in his side. Once he was well again, the day came for Tristan to depart to find his uncle's kingdom.

Upon Tristan's arrival in Cornwall, his uncle, King Mark, welcomed him with open arms, and having no heirs wanted to name his dear nephew Tristan his successor to the throne. The nobles of the court objected to this so King Mark said that he would marry only the woman to whom belonged the magnificent golden hair that a small swallow had just dropped before him. Tristan immediately recognized the golden tress and announced that it belonged to the fair princess Iseult of Ireland, and he volunteered to travel there on the king's behalf to ask for her hand in marriage.

When Tristan arrived in Ireland he was surprised to find it terrorized by a fearsome dragon. Thinking it would aid his cause in seeking Iseult's hand, he set out to kill it. And he did! But poor Tristan was so weakened by the dragon's poisonous breath that another stole the glory for destroying the beast.

Suspecting trickery, Iseult and her mother soon discovered the wounded Tristan and again Iseult nursed the knight back to health. While caring for Tristan, she noticed that a piece was missing from his sword - a piece that exactly matched the fragment found in her dead kinsman Morholt's head! Tristan had killed him during a battle with the Irish in Cornwall.

Out of revenge for her cousin, Iseult lifted the sword against Tristan to kill him, but she found she could not kill him. Her heart was too tender to commit such an act. So when Tristan was well again and asked for her hand in marriage to his uncle the King of Cornwall, Iseult was indeed distressed. She was even more distressed when her father readily agreed to the union to help restore peace between Ireland and Cornwall.

To ease her daughter's pain, Iseult's mother prepared a love potion which if Iseult and King Mark drank on their wedding night would cause the couple to love each other eternally. This she gave to Iseult's maid Brangaine.

All did not go well, however, for on their journey back to Cornwall, Tristan became thirsty and accidentally drank the love potion and offered some to Iseult which she accepted. And there Tristan and Iseult fell deeply in love with each other.

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