King Bors

King Bors, king of Gaul and brother of King Ban of Benwick, is a foreign ruler whose alliance becomes crucial to King Arthur’s survival and military strength. Merlin recommends seeking the brothers’ help when Arthur’s enemies are too numerous for the forces he can raise within his own kingdom. Bors answers the appeal, crosses the sea with three hundred knights, and fights vigorously on Arthur’s behalf. His intervention turns an alliance negotiated through reciprocal promises into effective battlefield support.

Identity and Political Position

Merlin introduces King Bors as one of two brothers who are both kings and renowned as formidable fighters. Their realm lies across the sea, and their own position is under pressure: King Claudas is waging war against them over a castle and, through his wealth and ability to attract knights, has often gained the advantage. Bors is therefore not a ruler free of conflict at home, but a king with his own urgent military interests.

That situation shapes the terms of his alliance with Arthur. Merlin proposes that Arthur send trusted messengers with letters inviting the brothers to visit his court and assist in his wars; in return, Arthur would swear to help them against Claudas. The arrangement is a reciprocal compact, not simply a request for Bors’s service. It joins Arthur’s need for reinforcements to the brothers’ need for an ally in their struggle with Claudas.

Merlin’s Counsel and the Alliance

Merlin urges the alliance after warning Arthur and his barons that the opposing force has grown stronger: four additional kings and a powerful duke have joined the enemies already arrayed against Arthur. Without military support beyond what his own realm can provide, Merlin warns, Arthur risks defeat and death. The barons initially express confidence in their own strength, but accept Merlin’s counsel when he explains the scale of the danger and proposes calling on the two kings overseas.

Arthur sends Ulfius and Brastias as envoys. On their way, knights serving Claudas try to stop them, and a fight breaks out at a narrow passage. The envoys reach Bors and Ban with Arthur’s letters and explain what happened; the brothers welcome them and agree to fulfil Arthur’s request. Their response establishes the alliance by both letter and spoken assurance, and they promise to travel to Arthur as quickly as they can.

Arrival at Arthur’s Court

The two kings arrive by Allhallowmas with three hundred well-equipped knights, prepared for peace as well as war. Arthur rides ten miles out of London to meet them, and the arrival is marked by a great welcome. At the feast, Arthur, Ban, and Bors sit together as kings, while court officials oversee the service. The visit also includes a tournament: seven hundred knights take part, and Arthur, the two allied kings, and other notable observers watch from a pavilion covered in cloth of gold and judge the contestants’ performance.

The feast and tournament give the alliance a public, ceremonial form before it is tested in battle. Bors comes not alone but at the head of a substantial company; his presence enlarges Arthur’s military resources and demonstrates that a diplomatic promise has been carried out. The narrative thus connects hospitality and display at court with the practical obligations of kingship and mutual defence.

The Battle Against the Allied Kings

When Arthur’s forces meet the hostile coalition at Bedegraine, Bors and Ban are present with Arthur’s allies. The opponents’ strength is considerable: eleven kings have sworn not to abandon one another until Arthur is destroyed, and their host is described as fifty thousand mounted men and ten thousand on foot. The figures make clear why Merlin had insisted that Arthur seek support beyond his own borders.

The allied kings use a divided attack. Six kings engage Arthur’s side while five hold back with another force, intending to join the fighting after the first group has been engaged for some time. In the battle, two knights of Bors’s side are pressed into danger by King Agwisance and the Duke of Cambenet and have to retreat, though they manage to save themselves and their companions. Bors sees them driven back and is deeply troubled; he then advances rapidly with his fellowship to support them.

King Lot recognizes Bors and identifies him to the King with the Hundred Knights as one of the most honourable men and best fighters in the world. The recognition matters in the midst of battle: Bors is not an anonymous reinforcement but a ruler whose reputation is known even among his enemies. King Carados chooses to meet him, with the other kings promising to support Carados if needed. Bors strikes down the knight he encounters with his spear, continues fighting with his sword, and performs deeds that astonish both sides. His company fights alongside him, and Carados is knocked to the ground before the King with the Hundred Knights comes to his rescue.

Service, Fellowship, and Narrative Role

Bors’s relationship with Arthur is presented through the making and fulfilment of an alliance: Merlin formulates its terms, Arthur sends the invitation, and Bors answers with troops and personal service in war. The narrative emphasizes that support must be reciprocal. Arthur needs the brothers’ knights against the coalition, while Ban and Bors have their own conflict with Claudas for which they have reason to seek Arthur’s aid.

The episode also sets Bors apart through both reputation and action. Lot’s praise identifies him as an eminent warrior, while the charge against the retreating knights gives him a concrete reason to enter the fighting: their peril grieves him, and he moves to reinforce them. His forcefulness therefore appears within the fellowship of allies, not as isolated personal glory. In Arthur’s early wars, Bors embodies the political and military reach gained through keeping faith with rulers outside the kingdom; the alliance turns Arthur’s vulnerability to a stronger coalition into a contest in which his side can stand and fight.