In the 1351 Treason Act, treason is distinguished as fitting into one of two categories: high treason and petty treason (“Treason Act 1351”). Petty treason was seen as a disloyalty or betrayal of another subject. This was not as strictly punishable as the other form of treason that was most certainly deadly for those convicted: high treason. This distinguished form of treason was named such due to the severity of the crime being committed: a crime against the crown. This extended to more than just the king himself, but also included the acts of:
“Violating your majesty’s wife, the sovereign’s eldest daughter, or the wife of the heir to the throne…If you waged war against the king, aided the enemy or even killed the king’s chancellor…”
(Gani).
All of this was the highest form of treason one could commit, making it the one that included the most devastating of consequences. This Act defining treason can be seen as upheld in the laws described in Arthurian Literature. Deceit and disloyalty can have disastrous effects, such as the betrayal of Lancelot and Guinevere, which ultimately led to the fall of Camelot. Similarly, Sir Gawain’s mistakes in his failing to uphold his deal within his interaction with King Bertilak, as well as Lancelot and Guinevere’s betrayal of Arthur and Camelot, show the disastrous effect of breaking the trust and loyalty that kingdoms are built upon (Prior). However, the great distinction between the two stories is that Gawain committed petty treason, while Lancelot and Guinevere committed high treason. In addition to this, these betrayals were seen differently based on the gender of the person committing the crime. The Arthurian figures of Guinevere Lancelot and Gawain will be discussed in detail. The betrayal of these three figures as well as their respective punishments will be explored in depth.
The betrayal of Lancelot and Guinevere is one that is known widely and is the cornerstone of most modern-day romantic love triangles. Their disloyalty and treasonous behavior is known to be one of the many dominos that were knocked over to the ultimate fall of Camelot. While their mistakes were shared, their punishments differed greatly. Lancelot was know to have been stripped of his knighthood and sentenced to die a dishonorable death, while it was decided that Guinevere would die by fire and be burnt at the stake. While these two punishments were equally fatal, neither were actually carried out due to the interruption of Arther’s eventual death. Both were exiled from Camelot and sent to be nomads, Lancelot set out to wander and Guinevere eventually found solace in joining a nunnery where she lived out the rest of her days (Malory).
The punishments for each of these high-ranking societal members for their treasonous acts verified greatly due to the fact that the punishment of a man was different than that of a woman. In the Treason Act of 1351, men and women were given different executions. If convicted, their penalty was death either by means of drawing and quartering or hanging if a man or by drawing and burning of a woman (“Treason Act 1351”). This distinction could be due to the fact that women were often seen as temptresses when involved in such crimes of passion, leading people to believe that they possess some capability of wilding magic; thus the decision to burn them at the stake. This was the only way to free a woman from the hold of the dark magic, killing the demon within so the woman could also die with what was thought to be a clean spirit.
There were no such superstitions pertaining to Lancelot’s ultimate judgment. He was a knight who lived by a code of chivalry which had specific guidelines and procedures to follow in the event that said code was to be violated by a treasonous knight. Given that he committed an act specified under the Treason Act of 1351, a “violation” of the King’s wife, he was given the most severe of punishments for a man living under that code.
In the poem of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain is punished less severely than Guinevere and Lancelot, due to the fact that the treason he committed was the lesser of the two types defined in the Treason Act. This lesser treason being petty treason. Gawain he did not receive the death he had originally agreed to in the Green Knight’s bargain. While he did break the bargain, Gawain paid a price for the deal he struck in the place of his King, Arthur. The price Gawain paid was that he did not escape unscathed; the Green Knight left a cut across the back of his neck. It is true that Gawain is guilty of the petty treason he is accused of committing against King Bertilak, but due to his repentance, eventual confession, and the fact that Bertilak was not Gawain’s king, or even a king for that matter, the Knight’s behavior only falls under that of disloyalty to another subject:
“Gawain’s temptation at the castle Hautdesert represents the pivotal moment in the narrative where Gawain’s decision to…exchange daily winnings with his host Bertilak is put to the test…Gawain violates this agreement by keeping the magical girdle offered by Bertilak’s wife. The concealment of the girdle forces Gawain to violate his word, and because he attempts to hide the garment, he further compounds his culpability by consciously acting insincere during his exchange with Bertilak”
(Laing 7).
From the Green Knight, also known as Bertilak de Hautdesert, the small scratch, in place of the beheading that was promised, is the reward that Gawain receives for proving that he had good intentions in his heart and has more to his true character than his treasonous behavior might suggest (Armitage).
While Guinevere and Lancelot’s punishment is considered fitting of their crime, Gawain’s story stands as more of a lesson than a tragic mistake, and thus his punishment is reflective of that. All broke the trust of those superior to them and paid for their disloyalty in accordance with what was most commonplace for their sex at the time. While no one was immune to the punishments of treasonous behavior, the differences in those punishments are noteworthy. The paralleled unity of the actual laws of the time in the Arthurian Legends are set add authenticity to the works. It makes them even more historically accurate and believable as well as more impactful and realistic for the reader.
Bibliography
Armitage, Simon. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Faber & Faber, 2018.
Gani, Aisha. “Treason Act: the Facts.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 17 Oct. 2014, www.theguardian.com/law/2014/oct/17/treason-act-facts-british-extremists-iraq-syria-isis.
Kelly, Robert L. “Royal Policy and Malory’s Round Table.” Arthuriana, vol. 14, no. 1, 2004, pp. 43–71.
Laing, Gregory L. (2009) “Treason and Betrayal in the Middle English Romances of Sir Gawain,” The Hilltop Review: Vol. 3: Iss. 1, Article 3.
“Morte Darther Manuscript .” Digitised Manuscripts, www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Add_MS_59678.
Prior, Sandra Pierson. “The love that dares not speak its name: displacing and silencing the shame of adultery in le Chevalier de la Charrete.” The Romanic Review, vol. 97, no. 2, 2006.