Sagramore
Sagramore, also known as Sagremor le Desré (the Impetuous), is a knight of King Arthur's Round Table in medieval Arthurian literature, renowned for his martial prowess and recurrent appearances across key romance cycles.[1] Introduced as an original character by the French poet Chrétien de Troyes in the late 12th century, he embodies the chivalric ideals of strength and tournament combat, though often portrayed as hot-tempered and vulnerable in pivotal encounters.[2] His role expands in later prose works, such as the 13th-century Lancelot-Grail Cycle (also called the Vulgate Cycle), where he serves as a steadfast member of Arthur's court, engaging in jousts and adventures that highlight the competitive dynamics among the knights.[3] In Chrétien de Troyes' Erec et Enide (c. 1170), Sagramore participates in the grand tournament at Tenebroc, where he fights valiantly in the melee but is on the verge of capture before being rescued by the protagonist Erec, underscoring his skill alongside his reliance on comrades in battle.[1] Similarly, in Cligès (c. 1176), he appears as a prominent Round Table knight during a tournament near Oxford, facing the young hero Cligès in the preliminary jousts and being unhorsed after a fierce exchange, which allows Cligès to gain renown while affirming Sagramore's status as a formidable opponent.[1] These early depictions establish him as a "pillar of strength" at Arthur's court, contributing to the romanticized portrayal of knighthood through ritualized combat and courtly honor.[1] Sagramore's character evolves in the expansive Lancelot-Grail Cycle, a prose compilation that weaves together quests, prophecies, and the quest for the Holy Grail, positioning him among Arthur's elite warriors who test their mettle against legendary figures like Lancelot. In one notable episode, Guinevere organizes a jousting tournament to challenge Lancelot's unmatched skill, and Sagramore—praised as one of England's finest jousters alongside knights like Dinadan and Lionel—rides against him but is swiftly unhorsed, eliciting shock from the onlookers and reinforcing Lancelot's supremacy.[3] This event, drawn from the cycle's emphasis on hierarchical rivalries, illustrates Sagramore's virtues as a bold and confident fighter, even in defeat, while integrating him into broader narratives of chivalric testing and courtly spectacle. His enduring presence across these texts cements his place as a ubiquitous, if secondary, figure in the Arthurian tradition, symbolizing the collective valor of the Round Table fellowship.Origins in Arthurian Legend
Name Variations and Etymology
The name Sagramore originates in the Old French romances of Chrétien de Troyes, where it first appears as "Sagremor," with no known precedents in earlier Arthurian or Celtic traditions, suggesting it was invented by the author himself.[4] In Erec and Enide (c. 1170), the character is named "Sagremor le Desreé," an epithet interpreted as "the Desired" or "the Impetuous," reflecting a sense of eager or headstrong pursuit.[4] This form marks the earliest recorded instance, establishing "Sagremor" as the foundational spelling in the French literary tradition. Across Chrétien's later works, the name evolves slightly in epithets while retaining the core form "Sagremor." In Cligés (c. 1176), Yvain, the Knight of the Lion (c. 1177–1181), and Perceval, the Story of the Grail (c. 1180–1190), he is consistently called "Sagremor the Unruly," emphasizing a variant connotation of impulsiveness or lack of restraint.[4] These appearances in four of Chrétien's five Arthurian romances demonstrate the name's rapid integration into the emerging canon of Round Table knights, with the epithets adapting to narrative contexts without altering the phonetic base. By the late medieval period, the name shifts toward "Sagramor" or "Sagramore" in expanded prose cycles and English adaptations. In the Lancelot-Grail Cycle (c. 1220–1240), it appears as "Sagramor le Desirous," blending earlier French forms with a persistent epithet denoting desire or ardor. Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur (1485) standardizes "Sagramore le Desirous," using it repeatedly in tournament and quest scenes to evoke the knight's bold, often ill-fated charges.[5] This anglicized spelling, with its added "e," influences subsequent English-language versions. In modern literature and adaptations, the name settles as "Sagramore" or "Sir Sagramore," preserving the epithets like "the Desirous" or "the Impetuous" while occasionally appending geographic qualifiers such as "of Hungary" to align with continental lineages described in the Vulgate traditions. Key forms include:| Text | Name Form | Epithet | Approximate Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Erec and Enide (Chrétien de Troyes) | Sagremor | le Desreé (the Impetuous/Desired) | c. 1170 |
| Cligés, Yvain, Perceval (Chrétien de Troyes) | Sagremor | the Unruly | c. 1176–1190 |
| Lancelot-Grail Cycle | Sagramor | le Desirous | c. 1220–1240 |
| Le Morte d'Arthur (Thomas Malory) | Sagramore | le Desirous | 1485 |