The Death of Lanceor and Colombe

The Death of Lanceor and Colombe is a tragic episode in which Balin’s conflict with Lanceor turns a chivalric challenge into the deaths of both Lanceor and Colombe. Lanceor pursues Balin on behalf of King Arthur’s court, but the combat ends with Balin killing him; Colombe’s grief then leads her to take her own life. The deaths weigh on Balin and frame his reunion with Balan, while Balin’s account makes clear that he remains troubled by Arthur’s displeasure.

Background and Challenge

Lanceor is identified as a knight of Ireland. He takes up the pursuit because Balin has affronted King Arthur and the court. On a mountain, Lanceor catches sight of Balin and calls on him to stop, insisting that the shield before him will not protect him. Balin turns to face him and asks whether he intends to joust. Lanceor confirms that he has followed Balin for that purpose.

Balin questions where Lanceor has come from, and Lanceor names Arthur’s court as the source of his mission. Balin says that Lanceor’s quarrel seems slight to him, but acknowledges that he must answer the challenge. He also says that the dead lady had done him great harm, and that otherwise he would have been reluctant to kill any lady. The exchange connects the contest to Balin’s earlier conflict with Arthur’s court and to the episode’s preceding death, rather than presenting it as an isolated tournament encounter.

The Joust and Lanceor’s Death

The knights take their spears and charge at one another as fast as their horses can carry them. Lanceor strikes Balin’s shield, and his spear breaks into fragments. Balin’s counterstroke pierces Lanceor’s shield and armor and kills him. The exchange is swift and decisive: the challenge intended to redress an affront to Arthur’s court instead leaves its avenger dead.

Balin does not at once realize that Lanceor has been killed. He turns his horse and draws his sword; only then does he see Lanceor lying dead. That delayed recognition marks the moment when combat’s immediate action gives way to its human cost. The episode does not describe a prolonged struggle or a negotiated settlement: it moves directly from the joust to the discovery of Lanceor’s death and the grief that follows.

Colombe’s Grief and Death

A damsel arrives quickly on a fair palfrey. The narrative identifies her as one who loved Lanceor. When she sees that he has been killed, she mourns intensely and says that Balin has slain two bodies and one heart, while losing two hearts in one body and two souls. Her words present the couple’s bond as shared: Lanceor’s death has also destroyed the life of the person who loved him.

Colombe takes Lanceor’s sword from beside him and falls to the ground in a swoon. When she rises, she continues to grieve. Balin approaches and tries to take the sword from her, but she holds it so firmly that he cannot remove it without hurting her. She then uses the sword to take her own life. The account makes her death follow directly from her grief at finding Lanceor dead, while also showing Balin’s unsuccessful attempt to prevent it.

Balin’s Remorse and Reunion with Balan

Balin is deeply troubled by Colombe’s death and ashamed that she has destroyed herself for love of the man he killed. He says he regrets Lanceor’s death because of the love between Lanceor and Colombe. His response does not undo the violence of the encounter, but it shifts the emphasis from the contest’s outcome to Balin’s recognition of the grief it has caused.

Turning away from the scene, Balin sees his brother Balan by his arms. The brothers meet, remove their helmets, kiss, and weep together from joy and pity. Balan says that he had heard Balin had been released from a dolorous imprisonment and had been seen at King Arthur’s court; he came into the country expecting to find him. Balin tells him about the adventure of the sword, the death of the Lady of the Lake, Arthur’s displeasure, Lanceor’s death, and Colombe’s death. Balan shares his sorrow but counsels him to accept the adventure ordained by God.

Consequences and Significance

Balin is particularly distressed that Arthur is displeased with him. He calls Arthur the most worshipful knight then reigning and says that he will regain the king’s love, even at the risk of his life. He and Balan therefore set out toward King Rience, who is besieging Castle Terrabil, intending to prove their worship and prowess and to help one another as brothers should. Their departure gives Balin’s remorse a forward consequence: the deaths do not end his journey, but deepen his desire to restore his standing through further deeds.

The episode turns the language of chivalric honor against the apparent simplicity of revenge. Lanceor acts for Arthur’s court, yet his victory in that cause is impossible: he dies in the very combat meant to answer the affront. Colombe’s grief then makes the cost of the joust inseparable from the relationship it has broken. Balin’s remorse and the brothers’ tearful reunion close the scene not with triumph, but with sorrow carried into the next adventure.