The liberation of the Isle of Servage turns a shipwreck into a transfer of power. Sir Tristram, arriving with his wife Isoud la Blanche Mains and Sir Kehydius, finds the island governed by Sir Nabon, a lord whose domain is known for imprisoning or killing the knights who enter it. Tristram defeats Nabon, rejects the offer to rule in his place, and helps bring about the release of prisoners and a new government under Sir Segwarides. The episode’s resolution depends not only on victory in combat but on the victor’s choice not to claim the territory for himself.

Arrival and the Island’s Peril

While taking a small barge along the coast, Tristram, Isoud la Blanche Mains, and her brother Kehydius are driven by the wind to the Isle of Servage in Wales. The barge is wrecked, and Isoud is hurt. The party makes its way into the forest, where Tristram encounters Sir Segwarides and a damsel. Segwarides recognizes him and admits that Tristram had given him cause for resentment by separating him from his wife. He nevertheless sets that grievance aside: he will not hate a noble knight over a lady he calls light, and offers to help Tristram because both are in danger.

A woman born in Cornwall explains the island’s threat: knights who come there are captured or killed. Tristram answers by declaring his identity and naming earlier deeds that establish his reputation, including slaying Sir Marhaus, freeing Cornwall from Ireland’s tribute, and defeating Sir Palamides. He promises to deliver the island. His confidence is not merely a claim to fame; it places the coming fight within a wider record of service and makes the island’s liberation the objective of his arrival.

Tristram and Lamorak Meet

Tristram learns that another knight of King Arthur’s company has been shipwrecked on the island. The stranger is brought to the lady’s lodging dressed as a fisherman. Tristram recognizes Sir Lamorak, though Lamorak does not recognize him. Lamorak gives his name only after asking whether Tristram is Nabon, the island’s lord. Tristram replies that he is Nabon’s enemy and does not hold land from him. Lamorak then identifies himself as the son of King Pellinore.

Their meeting gives the island’s crisis a second strand: the two knights have a history of conflict, but the immediate danger makes cooperation necessary. Lamorak recalls that Tristram once brought him down and later refused to fight him on foot. Tristram denies that fear was the reason. The encounter thus reopens an earlier rivalry even as they discover that they share an enemy. Lamorak’s position is especially precarious: Nabon’s people hold him and his companions under their power, and his earlier illness has left him weakened.

The Challenge and Nabon’s Defeat

Nabon summons the island’s people to his castle for the fifth day, when his son is to be made a knight and a gathering of knights is to joust. Five hundred knights assemble. Lamorak is brought there with Tristram, Kehydius, and Segwarides, since Nabon’s people dare not do otherwise. Nabon lends Lamorak a horse and armour at his request. Despite his weakness, Lamorak performs so impressively that he unhorses most of the five hundred knights; the account singles out the scale of his achievement before turning from the tournament to the decisive contest.

Nabon offers to fight Lamorak, but Lamorak is weary and bruised. Nabon kills Lamorak’s horse rather than meet him in the mounted encounter, and Lamorak continues on foot until Nabon pauses the fight. Acknowledging the knight’s prowess, Nabon offers him courtesy and asks whether any of his companions will take up the challenge. Tristram steps forward, asks for a horse and reliable armour, and arms himself in the pavilion. He understands that Nabon will attack horses rather than face a spear thrust, so he chooses to fight on foot.

The two fight on foot for a long time. Nabon eventually asks his opponent’s name, and Tristram identifies himself as a knight of Cornwall serving King Mark. Nabon welcomes the opportunity, saying that he had most wanted to fight Tristram or Sir Launcelot. They engage again, and Tristram kills Nabon. He then kills Nabon’s son. With Nabon and his heir dead, the people of the island say that they will hold of Tristram: the battle has opened the way to a new ruler, but does not determine that Tristram himself must take it.

Settlement and Aftermath

Tristram refuses the island when its people offer it to him. Instead, he proposes Sir Lamorak, who has already demonstrated his prowess in the tournament. Lamorak also declines, saying that he has not earned the lordship as well as Tristram. When neither knight will accept, Tristram suggests giving the island to someone who has not performed as much. They settle on Sir Segwarides, who accepts the gift, becomes lord, and governs the island. He releases all the prisoners and establishes good governance in the valley.

The episode therefore makes the distribution of power part of the victory. Tristram’s defeat of Nabon removes the ruler who had made the island dangerous; his refusal to possess the territory prevents liberation from becoming a simple exchange of masters. Lamorak’s renown is recognized without being converted into a claim, while Segwarides receives authority and puts the change into practice by freeing the captives. The newly appointed lord later returns to Cornwall and tells King Mark and La Beale Isoud of Tristram’s advancement of him, making the island’s political settlement known beyond its shores. The news also causes La Beale Isoud sorrow because she learns that Tristram is married to Isoud la Blanche Mains, a personal consequence that follows the public account of the victory.