The Winter King

Content Warning: This guide and the source material contain graphic depictions of war, violence, and sexual violence. It also uses ableist language and outdated and offensive language relating to mental health conditions, which is replicated in this guide only in direct quotes of the source material.

Derfel Cadarn, now an old man living in a monastery, will record the tales of Arthur, even though the local priest wants all memories of pagan times to be forgotten. The monks are awaiting the arrival of Queen Igraine, who is coming to pray for a male child, though she also comes to hear stories from Derfel. She has been to the monastery before and has already given him materials with which to record his stories. Bishop Sansum would surely object, but he cannot read or speak the old language, so Derfel and Igraine tell him they are transcribing the Gospels. Sansum comes in and subjects Derfel to questioning, and Derfel remembers a time when “he bowed to me and kissed my sword, but now he is a saint and I am nothing but the most miserable of sinners” (5).

Derfel begins his story in the year 480 in the Christian calendar, at Caer Cadarn, where the High King Uther’s daughter-in-law is in labor. Uther is old and in poor health, so there is great hope that his daughter-in-law, Princess Norwenna, will produce an heir, as the child’s father already died in a major battle against the Saxon invaders. Uther is still a pagan, but he accepts his daughter-in-law’s insistence on a Christian birth in the hope of having a grandson. When it seems as though mother and child might both die, Derfel, a young errand-boy at the time, is charged with bringing Morgan, a pagan priestess, in the hopes that her prayers will be more effective. The local Christians are furious, but the baby survives, albeit with a clubbed foot. Uther charges Morgan with raising the child, who is named Mordred after his slain father.

Princess Norwenna takes Mordred to Ynys Wydryn, the realm of Merlin, one of the last remaining priests of the ancient Druid faith. The Druids suffered under the Romans, and are now facing the rapid growth of Christianity; the arrival of the Christian princess brings many priests and monks within sight of Merlin’s pagan stronghold. Ynys Wydryn is a collection of people from all over, including Nimue, an Irish woman who was captured in a slaving raid and then alone survived the wrecking of the enslavers’ ship. The fiercely independent Nimue is Merlin’s lover. Morgan, the illegitimate daughter of Uther, is reputed to be magical but also foul-tempered; her body was scarred in a fire that killed her husband. Sebile, Morgan’s “slave,” is a Saxon. Derfel is also a Saxon, captured in childhood during a raid, who miraculously survived being thrown into a sacrificial fire. Merlin gathers such children around him because he believes they “might grow into a new order of Druids and priestesses who could help re-establish the old true religion in Rome-blighted Britain” (19). Yet Derfel wants to be a warrior, not a Druid.

Norwenna arrives with Mordred while Merlin is away on mysterious business. From the head of the bodyguard, Derfel first learns of Arthur, an illegitimate son of Uther who defeated the Saxons in the battle that claimed the elder Mordred’s life. Uther blamed Arthur for the death of his heir and sent Arthur into exile, but it’s rumored that he has returned to Britain.

Gundleus, King of Siluria arrives. Gundleus is the warlord who captured Derfel’s mother and had him thrown as a baby into the sacrificial pit. Gundleus is an enemy of Dumnomia, the kingdom where Derfel lives, but is seeking an alliance by marrying Norwenna and taking on the younger Mordred as a stepson. Gundleus has a Christian entourage as well as a Druid named Tanaburs. He demands entry into Merlin’s chambers, but when he tries to enter, Nimue emerges naked and covered in blood, with the skin of a sacrifice victim covering her face. Gundleus flees in terror, and as Derfel helps her wash off, he finds himself in Merlin’s chambers for the first time, amazed at the collection of items. Nimue collapses into Derfel’s arms, cutting matching lines into their hands and then pressing their hands together to establish a lifelong bond. Nimue then explains the nature of magic, saying that her display with Gundleus may have been an illusion, but it was one in which she genuinely felt the presence of the Gods within her, and that gave her genuine power. She tells Derfel that “we have to remake the old Britain, the real Britain, the land of gods and men” (41), and recover the power that has been nearly lost since Roman times. As winter turns to spring, Mordred shows signs of good health, and a High Council is held to decide the kingdom's future.

The High Council is held in the Roman town of Glevum (now Gloucester, England), with Uther traveling there slowly due to his age and large entourage. Morgan is invited as Merlin’s representative, and Nimue insists on bringing Derfel as her companion. Nimue tells Derfel that she knows Merlin wants them there, but she won’t know their precise purpose until they arrive. The ceremonies open with mock combat, a storytelling competition among bards, and a Christian mass, where a young priest named Sansum delivers a fiery sermon in which he warns that unless the whole of Britain turns to the Christian God, “so long would God curse Britain with rape and slaughter and Saxons” (56). Nimue leaves disgusted, but then they attend the feast, with Uther and many of the kings and princes, who pay homage to him as High King of Britain. Various speakers provide news, mainly to the effect that the Saxons have been chastened by their recent defeat, but reports describe new ships filled with warriors arriving in the parts of eastern Britain under Saxon control. Suddenly, Gundleus and his Druid arrive, denying reports of Irish raiders making incursions into his lands. Uther argues that while his kingdom, Dumnomia (present-day southwestern England), may not be more important than other kingdoms, it is strategically vital and the other kingdoms must come to their defense against the Saxons for the good of the whole. The main question is who will protect Mordred until he is ready to rule, and one of the generals proposes Arthur, but Uther angrily dismisses the suggestion. Many then speak for Gundleus, who has a record of treachery but is a capable warrior. Uther decrees that Gundleus will preside over a council of elders who can check his power. Uther then appoints three guardians for Uther: Owain, his chief warrior; the king of neighboring Gwent; and Merlin. Morgan accepts the charge in his absence.

Suddenly Nimue starts screaming and going into convulsions. She tells the gathering that Merlin has gone to seek the Knowledge of Britain, and then Morgan insists that Merlin will only accept guardianship of Mordred if Arthur is included as well. Gundleus responds angrily, but the other kings recognize Arthur’s considerable military abilities and they give their assent, compelling Uther to do the same with great reluctance.

Gundleus marries Norwenna soon after the High Council, and Derfel returns to his life at Ynys Wydryn while the kingdom waits for Arthur to finish service to an allied king in Brittany (in what is now northwestern France). In the summer, Uther dies, and he is given a traditional pagan funeral by burning rather than a Christian burial. Uther’s banner is brought to the baby Mordred to confirm him as the king-in-waiting. Meanwhile, fighting breaks out between the kingdoms of Gwent and Powys, with Gundleus joining the former and the latter allying with the Saxons. Reports then come that Gundleus has won a great victory and will return south to collect his wife and stepson, bring them to Caer Cadarn, and pronounce Mordred High King. Norwenna is delighted and sees the coronation as a chance to confirm Dumnomia as a Christian kingdom. Morgan then appears to warn that there is deception in the air and the enemy is nearby, but Norwenna flies into a rage and has Morgan and Nimue banished.

Soon Gundleus appears at Ynys Wydryn, surprisingly in the company of his lover whom he was supposed to have abandoned for Norwenna. The guards are anxious, but Norwenna orders them to open the gates. She greets her husband, who has her kiss his sword before he stabs her with it, laughing as she dies. Sebile drops the baby in panic, and Gundleus turns to the baby and kills him. Morgan leads the escape as Derfel looks for Nimue, but the commander of Merlin’s household pulls Derfel into hiding. Gundleus rapes Nimue, plucks her eye out, and has the main hall set aflame, but Derfel manages to escape with her as Gundleus’s men follow, throwing spears and shooting arrows. In safety, Nimue says, “I’ve suffered Two Wounds of Wisdom, Derfel […] the Wound of the Body and the Wound to the Pride. Now all I face is madness and I shall be as wise as Merlin” (90).

They manage to meet up with Morgan and the other escapees, who reveal that the slaughtered baby was the child of Mordred’s nursemaid, and that Mordred himself is safe in their company. Fleeing in the direction of Caer Cadarn, they enter a wide pasture and discover Gundleus’s scouts. Derfel is terrified, despite having waited so long for the chance to prove himself in battle, but as he watches the men approach he sees that they are just as scared as he is:

I was released from fear as the mad, God-given joy of battle came to me for the very first time […] May God and His Angels forgive me, but that day I discovered the joy that lies in battle and for a long time afterwards I craved it like a thirsty man seeking water (97).

With the sword of Merlin’s dead chamberlain, Derfel attacks and kills one of the scouts. He is shaken by the experience afterward.

Later that day as they are approaching Caer Cadarn, Gundleus’s war party cuts them off. They run to the castle as friendly troops sally out under the command of Owain. Gundleus asks for the child, saying, “[Y]ou think any good fortune can attend a country ruled by a crippled king?” (103). Owain simply taunts him back, despite being outnumbered, and the two formations line up against one another, trading insults rather than blows. Owain begins a slow movement toward a more favorable position, and Gundleus’s forces launch spears and arrows, along with two naked men who work themselves into a rage and launch a suicidal attack in the hope of enjoying the Gods’ protection. Suddenly, a horn sounds, and Arthur appears at the head of an army.