Rewriting the Chronicle Tradition: The Alliterative Morte Arthure and Arthur's Sword of Peace

The Alliterative Morte Arthure poet has revised his sources to create a poem that tells two stories of King Arthur and his conflict with Rome: the first, dominant, narrative is emphatically martial; the second, latent, narrative suggests peaceful alternatives to Arthur's warlike actions. The presence of this second narrative that functions as a critique of the king's actions becomes clear with the appearance of Arthur's sword Clarent in Mordred's hand, a moment unique in the Arthurian tradition.