The Passing of Gilles le Breton

Vast Orc and Goblin enclaves still persisted in the wilderness regions of Bretonnia and there were many Ore warlords in hiding with the remnants of their tribes and vengeance in their hearts. One day, Gilles was riding with a small retinue of Knights Errant on pilgrimage to the sacred lake where the Lady of the Lake had appeared many years before. Suddenly the party was ambushed by Ores led by a chieftain intent on revenge. Though outnumbered, Gilles and the Knights fought ferociously and slew every one of the Ores. Many of the Knights Errant had been slain, only two and Gilles remained alive, but Gilles was mortally wounded by an evil enchanted weapon wielded by the vengeful Ore warlord, whose name history has rightfully thought fit to forget. Gilles' companions took him down to the edge of the lake hoping perhaps that the waters might be enchanted once again and Gilles might be saved. They began calling for the Lady of the Lake.

As they rested there in the fading evening sun a swirling mist began to rise from the lake. Soon the carved prow of a boat could be seen emerging from the mist. It moved as if by enchantment since it had no oars or sail. In the boat was the lone figure of a lady, but it was not the Lady of the Lake. The Knights asked who she was and were told that she was the servant of the Lady of the Lake. Indeed this lady was the Fay Enchantress of Bretonnia who lived a hermit-like existence in a cave on an island in the middle of the lake, seldom ever seen from the shore because of the mist.

The Enchantress asked the Knights to lay Gilles in the boat so she could take him to her island where he would be healed. She warned them that if she granted them this favour, the king could never return home, but must stay forever as the guardian of this sacred place, serving the Lady of the Lake as she did. The Knights were reluctant to part with Gilles, but knew it must be so. Gilles bade farewell to his Knights and accepted his destiny. With heavy hearts, the Knights watched the boat carrying Gilles and the Enchantress glide into the mist and disappear.

The Founding of the Kingdom

The two Knights Errant who were with Gilles when he was taken away by the Fay Enchantress reported everything that had happened to an assembly of all the dukes and Grail Knights of Bretonnia. Some went on a quest of their own to the lake to find Gilles, but instead were met by the Fay Enchantress who allowed them to glimpse a Knight of strange and otherworldly appearance riding in the glades around the lake shores, who she told them was Gilles. They returned and once again an assembly of dukes and Knights gathered to decide what to do and to elect a new leader. The Knights Errant who were with Gilles were honoured with full knighthood as a reward for the noble task of helping Gilles on his last quest. One of these was Gilles' own son, Louis.

Louis was now Duke of Bastonne, his father's old dukedom and as such a powerful warlord in his own right. The assembled Knights debated whether to appoint Louis as overlord of all Bretonnia as his father had been. It was agreed to do this if Louis could prove himself worthy of the honour and the authority Louis therefore vowed to set off immediately on a quest to find the grail and was the first Knight of Bretonnia to deliberately do this. All the Knights agreed that only the favour of the Lady of the Lake herself could mark a man out to rule Bretonnia. Louis' heroic and honourable gesture earned himself the name of 'Louis the Rash' throughout Bretonnia.

Louis set off for the sacred lake where the Lady of the Lake had first appeared. He wandered its shores for days but the lady did not appear. Instead dreams and visions inspired him to seek elsewhere. It was revealed to him that there were many lakes and sacred places where the Lady might appear throughout Bretonnia, and it was his destiny to find her in another place. Louis was not seen again for several years. During this time the Grail Knights, including among them the dukes of Bretonnia, kept up continuous pressure on the Ores and Goblins, honouring their vows and setting aside personal ambitions. Indeed any who had drunk from the grail were incapable of an impure thought or deed and would never consider seizing power for himself or warring with his neighbours over territory.

At long last Louis returned. He rode his warhorse into the great hall of the castle at Couronne where the dukes and Grail Knights were gathered for the midwinter feast. No one doubted that Louis had found the Lady of the Lake and drunk from the grail. Indeed, he possessed strange enchanted weapons with which the Lady had rewarded him and an ancient golden crown. Louis was welcomed to the feast with great jubilation.

In the days that followed he and a party of dukes and Knights rode to the lake where the Fay Enchantress dwelt to ask her the meaning of the gold crown. When she eventually appeared, she declared it to be the crown of Bretonnia to be worn by the king of all Bretonnia, and that the Lady of the Lake had chosen Louis, son of Gilles to be the king. Louis and the Knights rode back to Couronne, escorting the Fay Enchantress. A few days later, she placed the golden crown of Bretonnia upon Louis' head and all the dukes and Knights gathered there hailed him as the first king of Bretonnia. All the dukes pledged loyalty and allegiance to Louis, to the Lady of the Lake and to the sacred grail.

Among Louis' first acts as king of Bretonnia was to turn the age-old knightly traditions into a true code of chivalry. Devotion to the Lady of the Lake became a fundamental part of this code. All over Bretonnia returning Grail Knights had told the tale of the Lady of the Lake and some had built chapels to her in their domains. Knights Errant were already making vows of devotion to her and older Knights even relinquished their castles and domains to set off on their own grail quests. A wave of faith swept the length and breadth of Bretonnia, encouraged by the new king.

Louis also confirmed the dukes in their various dukedoms as his loyal and trusted deputies. Each duke was given charge of protecting the frontiers of the realm or set the task of conquering remaining Ore enclaves. At this time Bretonnia was not as large as it is now, and vast regions which are now part of the realm still awaited conquest. This was especially true in the north of the country, where powerful Ore tribe's put up a fierce resistance in the hills known as the Pale Sisters and at the northern end of the Grey Mountains. Most of the Forest of Arden, which was much larger in those days, and the highlands of the Massive Orcal were still infested with Ores and Goblins. It was not until the reign of Guillaume that these tribes were finally defeated. While these wars raged, the rest of Bretonnia soon began to flourish as never before.