Lyfe of Ipomydon

Ipomydon is the son of the King and Queen of Poyle. At a Whitsuntide feast, Ipomydon hears tell of the daughter and heir of the late king of Calabre, who is renowned for her beauty and goodness, and falls in love with the idea of her. Swearing that he would die of a broken heart if he cannot serve her, he persuades his mentor Sir Tholomew to accompany him to her country. He arrives with many riches, telling the lady that he is ‘a man of strange contrè’ and begs leave to serve her. The lady can think of nothing else but the ‘strange squire’ and, after witnessing him at a hunt, concludes that he is noble, at which point she invites him to eat at the high table next to her cousin Jason. Ipomydon and the lady share such looks of love-longing that she begins to worry about her reputation, so she rebukes Jason for sharing looks with her maid, to warn him off. Ipomydon understands the rebuke is meant for him and is ashamed of causing dishonour to Jason, so he takes his leave.

The heir of Calabre remains unmarried and her counsel request that she marry so that a man can govern them. She agrees to hold a three-day tournament and marry whoever is proven to be the best knight, hoping that the ‘strange squire’ will win. Ipomydon, now a knight of great renown, hears of the tournament and takes Sir Tholomew, a retinue and three sets of horses, armour and hounds in white, red and black to Calabre. He anonymously competes in the different coloured armour, wins each day and sends his winnings to the Queen and her retinue, except for Caymes. Caymes accuses him of ‘breaking the Queen’s bower’. They fight and Ipomydon breaks Caymes’ arm and sends him back to the King in disgrace.

Ipomydon returns home to find that his father is dead. His mother informs him that she had a child before she was married, who has sent her a ring to give to his brother, by which he would know him. Many men want Ipomydon to be crowned King, but he wants to prove himself further as a knight. Meanwhile, Duke Geron wishes to marry the heir of Calabre and threatens to take her and her lands by force, unless she finds a knight to defend her honour. Ipomydon hears of this and, dressed as a fool, goes to King Melliager’s household. He exacts a promise from Melliager that he may have the first deed of arms that is asked of the King, in return for being a fool in his hall. Immediately, a maiden on a white mule accompanied by a dwarf rides into the hall, asking for help for her lady, the heir of Calabre. ‘The fool’ accompanies her on a rescue mission. They pitch their tent to rest and eat three times on the way to Calabre. Each time the maiden refuses to give ‘the fool’ any food or rest, and each time they are beset by a knight who wishes to take the maiden as a lover. Ipomydon defends her honour and kills each knight. The third knight is Duke Geron’s brother, and after Ipomydon kills him he takes his horse and armour. The maiden now knows him to be a knight and propositions him, but he refuses. The next day, when Ipomydon rides to challenge Duke Geron, he is mistaken for Geron’s brother because they are dressed the same. They fight, but the lady cannot tell which is which and, when Ipomydon wins and rides to the castle, she fears he is Geron so flees by ship.

Sir Campanus volunteers to go with the lady find out which of the knights won the battle. When they see Ipomydon they mistake him for Duke Geron and Campanus and his men challenge him. After Ipomydon has slain many men and has his gloves wrenched from him, Campanus recognises his ring and they realise they are brothers. The lady learns that Ipomydon was her ‘strange squire’ and, after a lengthy recap, they call together all the great and the good who attend a feast and witness them being married by the archbishop. Ipomydon becomes King of Calabre, gives his brother the kingdom of Poyle and lands to Tholomew and Jason.

Edition used for plot summary: Ikegami, The Lyfe of Ipomydon (1983).